Sample Software Package Evaluation Matrix

Alternatives Evaluation Matrix Sample - Billing Package

PACKAGE EVALUATION MATRIX SAMPLE

Billing Package

Score = (1.0 -> Req Met (Y), 0.5-> Work Around (WA) / Change Included (CI), 0.1 -> Change Excluded (CE) , 0.0 -> Req Not Met (N))Weighting Factor = (1 -> Optional (O), 3 -> Desirable (D), 5 -> Mandatory (M))

Vendor A Vendor B

Reference Category/Criteria Score ScoreTA.1.0 Architecture 3.79 3.72TA.1.1 Opportunities for phased modular deployment provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.2 Products developed in or can interface with a widely used 4GL development tool. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.3 Products use a widely recognized database management system. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.4 Data dictionary provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.5 Data shared in same file structures across sub-systems. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.6 Redundant versions of data are not maintained. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.1.7 All subsystems can deliver data to and accept data from other automated systems. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.8 Modification of data in one subsystem automatically updates related data in all subsystems. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.9 Data structures can be integrated with customized software O 1 Y 1 1.00 Y 1 1.00TA.1.10 Supports exports of data extracts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.11 Supports batch import of data files. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.12 Supports customer programmer access to database. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.13 Predefined facilities and interfaces to allow addition of custom routines. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

TA.1.14 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.15 Correctly computes comparisons of dates into the next century. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.16 Functions that require exclusive use of data files are clearly identified and documented. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.17 Supports timely updating of information; critical updates take place immediately. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.18 Supports multiple users. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.19 Accessible from remote locations. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.20 Supports Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.21 Open call interface to data D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.22 Open call interface to applications M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.23 Product do not directly perform database management M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00TA.1.24 Product provides a core stack of services with APIs for interface to existing legacy data M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.25 Various product/package elements (i.e. product, rate, hierarchy) are handled by discrete sub-systems D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.26 Clearly demonstrates separation of data, presentation and business rules M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00TA.1.27 Provide for multiple ways to operate the system’s User Interface (keyboard, mouse,…) M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.1.28 Multiple language and country implementation supported D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.1.29 Electronics distribution and version control supported from the host D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00 TA.2.0 Architectural Principles 2.73 3.00TA.2.1 Supports an open system approach. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.2.2 Provides single system image. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.2.3 Operates on preferred hardware - SUN, IBM, DEC, Intel M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.2.4 Operates in preferred operating environment NT, UNIX, WIN95, WIN3.x M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.2.5 Platform independent. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.2.6 Layered architecture with maximum independence between layers. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.2.7 Re-usability employed during code development. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.2.8 Supports client/server implementations. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

TA.2.9 D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

Rank (M, D, O)

Weighting Factor

Response (Y/WA/CI/ CE/N)

Weighted Score


Weighted Score

Product implementation supports inherent designs of operating system and does not attempt to override them.

Consistent with customer standards for protocols, operating systems, network operating systems, disk storage mediums, and other technologies).


Vendor A Vendor B

Reference Category/Criteria Score ScoreRank (M, D, O)

Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

TA.2.10 Exhibit a consistent relationship with target workflow D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00TA.2.11 Workflow must guide the data entry and data flow design. D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00

TA.3.0 Availability/Recovery 3.83 3.00TA.3.1 Recovery mechanism ensures data integrity to the business function level. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.3.2 Data is recoverable after computer failure, up to the last successful transaction M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.3.3 Audit trails automatically provided for all transaction detail. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.3.4 System capable of enabling before and after logging feature. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00TA.3.5 Reporting tools provided for browsing audit trails. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

TA.3.6 M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00

TA.4.0 Maintainability/Flexibility/Expandability 4.60 3.00TA.4.1 System upgradeable without migration to another platform. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.4.2 Incremental growth path to permit expansion, as needed. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.4.3 Minimal customization to products required. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.4.4 Customization and developed interfaces will not impact option to upgrade product. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00TA.4.5 Separate access and handling of transactional vs. informational data M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

TA.5.0 Performance/Reliability 3.67 2.00

TA.5.1 D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA 5.2 Scaleable with SMP machines D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

TA.5.3 M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00

TA.6.0 Platform 2.40 2.40TA.6.1 Proposed configuration supports expected performance levels. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.6.2 Resource requirements (e.g., memory, storage, I/O channels, special) defined and costed. D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00TA.6.3 Designed for easy installation and support. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.6.4 Designed for use in a distributed environment. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.6.5 Capable of supporting external portable devices; e.g., handheld computers. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

TA.7.0 Conversion Aids 3.00 0.30TA.7.1 Will supply conversion expertise on-site on a per-diem basis (provide rates). D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30TA.7.2 Will coordinate data conversion activities. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30TA.7.3 Provides data cleansing services. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30TA.7.4 Provides conversion utilities. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30

TA.8.0 Interface Requirements 3.00 3.00TA.8.1 Ability to interface/interoperate with existing systems. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

TA.9.0 Security 2.80 2.55TA.9.1 Name and password control provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.9.2 Provides individual control of password. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.9.3 Provides central control of passwords. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00TA.9.4 Passwords never display on monitors. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.9.5 Automatic password expiry definable. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30TA.9.6 Stored passwords are encrypted. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

The product must provide failover/recovery for the following scenarios (with minimum possible disruption in the field):-application failure- communication failure- loss of host access- hardware failure- loss of a particular site/center

Response time for devices not using telecommunications: ** specify response requirements; e.g., 98 % of window to window response within 0 to 2 seconds. **

Provide a matrix showing throughput, uptime and response time figure for different volumes and number of users


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

TA.9.7 Provides an add/query/delete security function. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00TA.9.8 Functional security by user provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.9.9 Functional security by user group provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

TA.9.10 File level security by user provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.9.11 File level security by user group provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.9.12 Data attribute (field) level security provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00TA.9.13 Access control of data (read, write, delete, copy) at the file level by user provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.9.14 Access control of data (read, write, delete, copy) at the file level by user group provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00TA.9.15 Security violations are automatically logged. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

IR.1.0 Human Interface 2.30 3.09IR.1.1 Consistent user Interface; e.g., screen layouts, keyboard functions, and navigation. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

IR.1.2 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IR.1.3 Makes consistent, effective use of colour. Provide incorporation of user’s desktop color settings. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.4 Data (decimals, dates) entered, stored, and displayed consistently. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

IR.1.5 D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

IR.1.6 D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.7 Single point of entry provided for all data input. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IR.1.8 Menus provide access to all applications. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00IR.1.9 Menus can be customized. D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00IR.1.10 Quick paths provided from one function to another without using menus. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00

IR.1.11 D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.12 Context sensitive help provided (e.g., F1 from any window field). D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.13 Minimal effort required to escape from incorrect selection or system error. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.14 Provides on-line look-ups of key field information (e.g., customer by ID or name). D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.15 Provides on-line look-ups on partial keys (e.g., part of customer name). D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.16 Numeric entries automatically signed where possible (e.g., credit displays as negative). D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.17 Minimum two levels of error messages provided: error and warning. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.18 Descriptions of error messages are understandable. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.1.19 Documentation on the metaphors used for User Interface M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00IR.1.20 Text, error and messages maintained separately from the Windows M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

IR.1.21 D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00IR.1.22 Allow for heads-down data entry M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00IR.1.23 No redundant screen accesses. All needed data should be provided in the workflow implementation D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

IR.2.0 Interface Requirements 3.00 3.00IR.2.1 Ability to interface/interoperate with existing systems. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

IR.3.0 Reporting Requirements 3.18 2.50IR.3.1 Title, page number, report ID, report date, rundate, and time are shown consistently. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

IR.3.2 D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.3 Tools provided to create custom reports. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GUI interface (e.g., windows, icons, mouse, pull-down menus) consistent with CUA or similar standard. Look and feel should emulate standards like Windows 95 / Windows NT 4.0

Provides formatting options for dates (e.g., DD/MM/YY, MM/DD/YY, YY/MM/DD) that can be easily changed from one format to another. Use Windows 95 date entry options (i.e. direct entry and/or calendar box/icon).

Provides formatting options for currency (e.g., amounts formatted with commas or spaces). Incorporate desktop contrry standard

On-line help provided including: features to assist in locating a function or feature, descriptions of how each function works, descriptions of fields, their contents, and acceptable formats.

At any point in the workflow, the next level and all previous levels in the hierarchy should be enabled (all others should be disabled)

Provides for special forms alignment, interrupting, restarting, and backward and forward spacing through printouts.


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

IR.3.4 Report writing tools are user friendly with a short learning curve. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.5 Provides choice of print directly or view display on monitor and then route to printer/file. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.6 Provides ability to print multiple copies per request. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.7 Able to reprint reports. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.8 Provides ability to select specific pages of a report to print. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IR.3.9 Provides automated report distribution facilities. D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00IR.4.0 Allow integration with pre-printed electronic forms D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00

IR.5.0 Provide a list of commercial reporting / EIS / DSS products that can be hooked into the products database D 3 Y 1 3.00 WA 0.5 1.50 GN.1.0 Contract 0.67 2.37GN.1.1 Ownership of components clearly defined. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.2 Source code available in hard copy and electronic media. D 3 N 0 0.00 CE 0.1 0.30GN.1.3 Ownership of modifications to source code clearly defined. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.4 Protection of source code provided against bankruptcy, receivership, liquidation, take-over, absorption. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.5 Warranties for performance available. D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.1.6 Satisfactory right to terminate clause in contract. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.7 Remedies for breach of contract provided. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.8 Contract protects customer from damages due to non-performance of software. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00GN.1.9 Payments are milestone/delivery based. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

GN.2.0 Costs and Pricing 3.11 3.28GN.2.1 Pricing arrangements available (purchase, license, lease) D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00GN.2.2 Invoices will be payable in appropriate currency. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00GN.2.3 One time costs are included in pricing. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.4 Recurring annual and monthly costs are included in pricing. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.5 Incremental costs for upgrades and expansions are included in pricing. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.6 Implementation support costs identified. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.7 Training costs identified. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.8 Customization costs identified. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.9 Conversion support costs identified. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.2.10 M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.2.11 No or low price increases (including maintenance/support) over last 3 years. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.2.12 Training materials include in price. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.2.13 All documentation included in price. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.2.14 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.2.15 No or low costs for additional copies of documentation. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00GN.2.16 On-line help facilities included in price. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.2.17 D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.2.18 Pricing structure for follow-up training provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

GN.3.0 Documentation 3.67 4.70GN.3.1 Installation guide available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.2 Maintenance guide available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.3 System documentation available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

Prices of other products that must be licensed/purchased for use with each product (e.g., DBMS license) identified.

Copies of documentation included in price: ** quantify requirements ** 100 % of requirements met, 80 to 99 % of requirements met, 50 to 79 % of requirements met, less than 49 % of requirements met.

Training Days included in price: ** quantify requirements ** 100 % of requirements met, 80 to 99 % of requirements met, 50 to 79 % of requirements met, less than 49 % of requirements met.


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

GN.3.4 Operating documentation available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.5 Training documentation available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.6 User documentation available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.3.7 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.8 User documentation clearly defines procedures for all processes. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.9 System documentation includes design and setup information. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.10 Documentation is available in electronic format (e.g., CD-ROM). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.11 Documentation may be maintained by the customer. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.12 Documentation can be copied by customer without restriction. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.13 Documentation is regularly updated and distributed. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.3.14 Source code provided. M 5 N 0 0.00 CE 0.1 0.50GN.3.15 GUI, Database and Design standards (that have been implemented in the product) M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.4.0 Training 2.75 0.31GN.4.1 Training in functional use provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 CE 0.1 0.50GN.4.2 System administration training provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 CE 0.1 0.50GN.4.3 Training provided at: customer site(s), vendor site(s). D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30GN.4.4 Training pre-requisites defined; e.g. basic keyboarding skills. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30GN.4.5 Multi-language training and training materials provided, as required. D 3 N 0 0.00 CE 0.1 0.30GN.4.6 Computer based training software provided. D 3 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.4.7 Classroom instruction and hands-on training provided. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30GN.4.8 Training program can be customized to meet specific customer requirements. D 3 Y 1 3.00 CE 0.1 0.30

GN.5.0 Vendor Qualifications 3.60 4.40GN.5.1 Years in business: 0 to 2, 3 to 5, 5+. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.2 Age of product (in years): 0 to 2, 3 to 5, 5+. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.3 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.4 Number of employees: 1 to 100, 101 to 500, 501 to 1000, 1001+. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.5 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.6 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.7 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.8 Percentage of sales revenue allocated for R&D on each product: 0 to 1, 2 to 5, 6+. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00GN.5.9 A methodology was used to develop the products. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.10 Vendor's customer service employees are available for implementation. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.11 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.12 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.5.13 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.14 Number of these releases still being supported: 0 to 1, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6+. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.15 Satisfactory policy on supporting past releases. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.16 Other software products that could be integrated with these products are available. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.17 Active user group exists for each product. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.18 User Group influences release of the product; e.g., controls x% of enhancements to the product. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

User and training documentation describes how to use each component in non-technical terms (e.g., functional description).

Number of new customers in last 24 months (as a percent of customer base): 0 to 5, 6 to 10, 11 to 25, 26+.

Employees are assigned to product development for each product in sufficient numbers to allow for regular maintenance and enhancements.

Number of employees in customer service for each product per installed user base is sufficient to meet service levels.

Developers of products are currently employed by vendor (i.e., original developers are available for enhancements): 1 to 10, 11 to 25, 25+.

Location of customer service employees (in relation to customer): same city, same region, same country, different country.

Number of customers (e.g., companies, organizations) using each product: 0, 1 to 9, 10 to 24, 25+.

Number of releases (functional enhancements) for each product in last 5 years: 0 to 1, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6+.


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

GN.5.19 Reference sites provided for each product. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.20 Published evaluations of software provided. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.5.20 Proof of success in similar organization provided. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00GN.5.21 Willing to demonstrate products: at customer site, at vendor site. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.22 Proposed contract provided. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.22 Sample plans provided (e.g., implementation, training). M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00GN.5.23 Software license agreements provided (e.g., software maintenance, support). M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.6.0 Warranty/Support 4.58 4.58

GN.6.1 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.6.2 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.6.3 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.4 Documentation updated for any fixes. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.5 Procedures for vendor-initiated fixes provided. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.6 On-site expertise available at no or low cost. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.7 Software warranty begins at: shipment, receipt, installation, acceptance. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.8 Customer can modify software without impacting warranty or support. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00GN.6.9 Updates, enhancements, and new releases covered under maintenance agreements. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.6.10 M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00

GN.6.11 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00GN.6.12 Warranty/support/maintenance is provided for modifications specifically requested by the customer. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

OE.7.2.0 Order Entry Requirements 3.91 4.00OE.7.2.1 Allow for a sponsoring organization and a hierarchy of sponsor sub-groups (total 3 levels). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.2 Establish a "brand" for each sponsor for inclusion on invoice and fulfillment materials. M 5 CE 0.1 0.50 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.3 Set up individual account holders associated to sponsor and (optional) subgroup. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.4 Maintain sponsor identifying information including contact information for sponsor and sub-group. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.5 Maintain sponsor/sub-group customer service phone number. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.6 Maintain sponsor/sub-group long distance number. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.7 Maintain sponsor/sub-group Internet number. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.8 Maintain sponsor/sub-group accounting parameters (e.g., billing cycle, credit limits, delinquency rules, usage li M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.9 Maintain sponsor/sub-group product(s) selected. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00OE.7.2.10 Maintain sponsor/sub-group common code formats (e.g., authorization code lengths, rules, user realms). M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00OE.7.2.11 Set up default order entry template for individual accounts based on sponsor set up information. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.12 Provide for individual account billing addresses to include zip + 4 + 3 (CASS). M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.13 Provide for individual account to have at least 2 addresses: billing address and/or temporary address. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.14 Provide for individual selection of product and services. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.15 Allow override of sponsor credit and usage limits for individual account. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.16 Allow override of sponsor products for individual account. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.17 Allow override of sponsor accounting parameters for individual account. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00OE.7.2.18 Allow flexible and powerful search options for customer data. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.19 Secure confidential data (e.g., credit card number) from unauthorized view. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.20 Provide for automatic notification to service provider (e.g., switch, Internet provider) of new accounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.21 Provide for automatic notification to fulfillment vendors of accounts requiring materials. M 5 WA 0.5 2.50 N 0 0.00

Telephone service provided: 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 24 hours per day, 5 days per week, 8 hours per day, 7 days per week, 8 hours per day, 5 days per week.

Guaranteed response time (e.g., customer representative responds with either fix or action plan) within: 1 to 2 hours, 3 to 5 hours, 6 to 12 hours, 24 hours.

Maximum time to implement an emergency fix: 1 to 2 days, 3 to 5 days, 6 to 10 days, 11+ days.

Failure to install an update, enhancement, or new release impacts the warranty/support/maintenance after: 30 days or less, 31 to 60 days, 61 to 90 days, 91+ days.

Warranty/support/maintenance continues after a product function or the entire product is discontinued for: 30 days, 31 to 60 days, 61 to 120 days, 120+ days.


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

OE.7.2.22 Provide for loading individual customers’ information from sponsor organization’s data file (FTP, tape, disk, CD M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.23 Ability to setup discount and promotional qualifications of a customer. Customer not eligible for discounts on a M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00OE.7.2.24 Be able to cross-reference many sub-accounts under one account (multiple ANIs, Internet account). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

OE.7.2.25 M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

OE.7.2.26 D 3 WA 0.5 1.50 Y 1 3.00OE.7.2.27 Allow for set up of special customer arrangement billing. Provide a mechanism to map special arrangement c D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00OE.7.2.28 Provide complete setup for feed to the fulfillment process i.e. ability to take orders, update the billing informatio D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00OE.7.2.29 Provide checks to ensure data integrity and eliminate duplicates. Provide special info to customer service for M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

RF.7.3.0 Reference Data Requirements 4.23 4.20RF.7.3.1 Maintain multiple dissimilar products with differing pricing options . M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.2 Maintain product pricing rules, including one time charges, recurring charges, and usage/transaction rates. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.3 Maintain standard telecommunications rating and tariffs, within one month of regulatory changes. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.4 Maintain product fulfillment requirements. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.5 Provide for user defined rounding rules for usage calculations. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.6 Provide for flexible discount plans by date, day of week, geography, product, multiple-cross product sales, volu M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.7 Provide for a dollar "cap" on discounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00RF.7.3.8 Provide for special invoice presentation requirements. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.9 Provide for customers having one or more products. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.10 Provide flexibility to set up various package elements separately. Allow a new product/plan to be set up qui M 5 WA 0.5 2.50 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.11 Provide product specific discount structures and give marketing the flexibility to discount one type of traffic fro M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.12 Apply discounts to recurring and/or non-recurring charges for one product based on usage and/or promo for a D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00RF.7.3.13 Allow setup of special promotions/discounts, based onspecial day (i.e. mother’s day)time of dayhome marketsusag M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.14 Support tiers of volume discounts per rate structure (thresholds, rates may vary by product, market, time-period M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RF.7.3.15 Provide automated tools to set/approve all customer specific discount criteria. Provide competitive capability to D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00

CP.7.4.0 Call Processing Requirements 3.64 3.79CP.7.4.1 Accept CDR’s from multiple switch sources. M 5 WA 0.5 2.50 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.2 Accept CDR’s on variable cycle of batches -scheduled from every 15 minutes to once per month. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.3 Rate each call detail record based on the product and customer. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.4 Calculate taxes using current tax authority information, and conforming to business tax rules for all products. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.5 View CDR’s pre and post rating. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.6 Provide exception reports to warn of potential data errors or fraud. M 5 WA 0.5 2.50 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.7 Allow for correction / manual rating of one CDR. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.8 Allow for a batch of CDR’s to be reprocessed / re-rated. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00CP.7.4.9 Provide for management of CDR databases, including options for purging by date, customer, CDR type, error t M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.10 Provide reports for purged data. M 5 N 0 0.00 N 0 0.00CP.7.4.11 Report errors by type. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.12 Ability to identify, and mark, a call detail as belonging to a unique market type. Ability to define a market and D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00CP.7.4.13 Allow multiple options for marketing messages on the invoice and billing inserts (based on a table driven / user M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CP.7.4.14 Provide the ability to summarize threshold qualifications on invoice in order to provide clear communications to D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00

IN.7.5.0 Billing / Invoicing 4.64 4.52IN.7.5.1 Allow multiple billing cycles and selection of customer groups for each cycle. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.2 Allow on-demand processing for a defined sub-set of customers. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.3 Allow balance forward invoicing. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.4 Allow calculation of invoice level discounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

Ability to discount and promote various charges/fees. Discounts can be applied to different components in the product description i.e. monthly access/plan fee, surcharges, equipment charges, and feature charges. Provide a mechanism to audit and can confi

Support pricing package optimization. Allow an OE rep or CSR to verify that the customer is on the "best" possible plan across the products/plans.


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

IN.7.5.5 Allow calculation of invoice level taxes. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.6 Provide for line item billing as described above. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.7 Provide invoice format as approved by customer. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.8 Allow for bar coding / OCR scan line on invoice. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.9 Allow for sponsor organization "brand" to be used on invoice. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.10 Produce delinquency letters for delinquent accounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.11 Provide options for printing (e.g., print image file, paper copies). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.12 Provide on-line view of invoices. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.13 Provide for correction of individual invoice or reprocessing of a batch of invoices. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.14 Considering the large volume of invoices, provide interim status of invoice processing. M 5 N 0 0.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.15 Provide exception reports. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.16 Provide invoice register and audit reports. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.17 Support targeted customer service number on the invoice (allow flexible methods to identify target customer g M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.18 Provide cost allocation reporting for major customers (allows distribution of costs within customers organizat M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00IN.7.5.19 Provide ability to show all usage, aggregate charges, fees and discounts on one bill and on each line item (as ap M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.20 Provide a sorting and grouping mechanism for invoice presentations (make it possible to present bills for same M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.21 Allow presentation of pro rated and prior period and next period charges (in detail or aggregated fashion). Pro M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.22 Provide an option to the customer to view usage based charge details separately. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.23 Prevent holding entire billing run if there are problems with a select number of invoices. Allow auditing to sele D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00IN.7.5.24 Support multiple billing cycles. Provide on-line inspection, forwarding and approval mechanisms for auditing and M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00IN.7.5.25 Support post-billing recoveries to allow rebilling process to be initiated by audit, after exception are handled (or D 3 Y 1 3.00 N 0 0.00

AR.7.6.0 Accounts Receivable Requirements 3.62 3.77AR.7.6.1 Process NPC lockbox payment transactions. M 5 CE 0.1 0.50 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.2 Process credit card payment (authorization and posting). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.3 Process manual payments. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.4 Process credit / debit memos. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.5 Allow VRU access to individual account information. D 3 CE 0.1 0.30 N 0 0.00AR.7.6.6 Provide for follow up and collection of delinquent accounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.7 Produce financial and audit reports. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.8 Interface to General Ledger. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.9 Provide capability to electronically transmit refund and payment requests to corporate office. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00AR.7.6.10 Provide business rules to process unbillable calls or calls/traffic pools marked as exceptions. These rules can b M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AR.7.6.11 Ability to trend usage and show comparisons. Trend free calls and "what-if" analysis on discounts and promos D 3 CE 0.1 0.30 Y 1 3.00AR.7.6.12 Allow re-validation of credit cards before the monthly billing run. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00AR.7.6.13 Allow billing, maintenance and refund of security deposits. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00

AS.7.7.0 Account Status Requirements 3.50 5.00AS.7.7.1 Notify service provider of new and terminated accounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AS.7.7.2 Notify service provider of delinquent accounts. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AS.7.7.3 Evaluate usage against limits; this includes billed and unpaid, pending invoicing, and un-billed usage. M 5 CE 0.1 0.50 Y 1 5.00AS.7.7.4 Notify service provider of available vs. usage limit. M 5 CE 0.1 0.50 Y 1 5.00AS.7.7.5 Provide notification in electronic format required by service provider. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00AS.7.7.6 Ability to include or exclude customer by type,sponsor etc. from notification. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00

CS.7.8.0 Customer Service Requirements 1.65 3.15CS.7.8.1 Provide CTI capability. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.2 Transfer data entered by the customer (into IVR) along with voice call to the CSR, if a transfer is initiated. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.3 Provide a CSR access to all systems that are needed per the workflow D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.4 The presentation layer for CSR function mimics the workflow D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00


Vendor A Vendor B


Weighting Factor


Weighted Score


Weighted Score

CS.7.8.5 Minimize redundant data access procedures. Retain/transfer data across systems as needed. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.6 Provide powerful and flexible inquiry capabilities for all customers’ account information. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00CS.7.8.7 Provide customer call tracking capabilities, including categorizing type of call. D 3 WA 0.5 1.50 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.8 Monitor status of problem call resolution. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.9 Provide capability to forward customer requests to other departments (e.g., account adjustment request). D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.9 Report on customer call types. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.10 Track trends in problems being logged. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.8.11 Provide capability to script "help" to specific customer business solutions. D 3 Y 1 3.00 Y 1 3.00CS.7.9.12 Create a historical database of problems and final resolutions. D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00

EI.7.9.0 External Interfaces 2.50 5.00EI.7.9.1 Provide ability to feed to and receive feeds from other customer systems. M 5 WA 0.5 2.50 Y 1 5.00

RP.7.10.0 Reporting 4.50 3.30RP.7.10.1 Provide easy to use, flexible report generation capability with default options for output (on-line, paper, file). M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.2 Provide option to print on demand any on-line report. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.3 Provide reports of traffic. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.4 Provide billing reports. M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.5 Provide audit reports for all changes. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00RP.7.10.6 Provide exception reporting related to "reasonableness" checks for all processing. M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00RP.7.10.7 Provide an information data warehouse for use by multiple organizations. Provide a virtual single source of inform D 3 N 0 0.00 Y 1 3.00RP.7.10.8 An automatic run of reports, within several days of the billing cycle or after a calendar month/qtr/year. Thes M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.9 Describe and outline AR/Bad debt situation. Create reports that summarize current month and YTD current/30/60/ M 5 Y 1 5.00 Y 1 5.00RP.7.10.10 Account level Reporting/AccessBe able to identify when customers come into the system and be able to segregat M 5 Y 1 5.00 N 0 0.00

Summary Scores

Summary Scores

Rank Response Vendor A Vendor B

Total Requirements Responded toTotal Y 254 263

CI 0 0CE 6 14N 60 49WA 7 1

327 327

Mandatory Requirements Responded toM Y 172 182M CI 0 0M CE 4 3M N 29 25M WA 5 0

210 210

Total RequirementsM 210D 116O 1

Y82%

CE2%

N14%

WA2%

Mandatory Requirements Responded by Vendor A

Y78%

CE2%

N18%

WA2%

Total Req. Responded by Vendor A

Y80%

CE4%

N15%

WA0%

Total Req. Responded by Vendor B

Y87%

CE1%

N12%

Mandatory Requirements Responded by Vendor B

Summary Scores

Y80%

CE4%

N15%

WA0%

Total Req. Responded by Vendor B

Y87%

CE1%

N12%

Mandatory Requirements Responded by Vendor B

Summary by Req Group

Summary by Requirement Group

Vendor A Vendor B

TA.1.0 Architecture 3.79 3.72TA.2.0 Architectural Principles 2.73 3.00TA.3.0 Availability/Recovery 3.83 3.00TA.4.0 Maintainability/Flexibility/Expandability 4.60 3.00TA.5.0 Performance/Reliability 3.67 2.00TA.6.0 Platform 2.40 2.40TA.7.0 Conversion Aids 3.00 0.30TA.8.0 Interface Requirements 3.00 3.00TA.9.0 Security 2.80 2.55IR.1.0 Human Interface 2.30 3.09IR.2.0 Interface Requirements 3.00 3.00IR.3.0 Reporting Requirements 3.18 2.50IR.4.0 Allow integration with pre-printed electronic forms 3.00 0.00

IR. 5.0 3.00 1.50GN.1.0 Contract 0.67 2.37GN.2.0 Costs and Pricing 3.11 3.28GN.3.0 Documentation 3.67 4.70GN.4.0 Training 2.75 0.31GN.5.0 Vendor Qualifications 3.60 4.40GN.6.0 Warranty/Support 4.58 4.58OE.7.2.0 Order Entry Requirements 3.91 4.00RF.7.3.0 Reference Data Requirements 4.23 4.20CP.7.4.0 Call Processing Requirements 3.64 3.79IN.7.5.0 Billing / Invoicing 4.64 4.52AR.7.6.0 Accounts Receivable Requirements 3.62 3.77AS.7.7.0 Account Status Requirements 3.50 5.00CS.7.8.0 Customer Service Requirements 1.65 3.15EI.7.9.0 External Interfaces 2.50 5.00RP.7.10.0 Reporting 4.50 3.30

Total 94.89 89.43

Provide a list of commercial reporting / EIS / DSS products that can be hooked into the products database

Comments

Vendor Response Table

Score = (1.0 -> Req Met (Y), 0.5-> Work Around (WA) / Change Included (CI), 0.1 -> Change Excluded (CE) , 0.0 -> Req Not Met (N))

Weighting Factor = (1 -> Optional (O), 3 -> Desirable (D), 5 -> Mandatory (M))

Vendor A Vendor B

Reference Category/Criteria Comments CommentsTA.1.0 Architecture

TA.1.1 Opportunities for phased modular deployment provided. M Y Y

TA.1.2 D Y Y

TA.1.3 Products use a widely recognized database management system. M Y System is based on Sybase YTA.1.4 Data dictionary provided. M Y Part of Documentation suite YTA.1.5 Data shared in same file structures across sub-systems. D Y YTA.1.6 Redundant versions of data are not maintained. D Y N

TA.1.7 M Y Y

TA.1.8 D Y YTA.1.9 Data structures can be integrated with customized software O Y YTA.1.10 Supports exports of data extracts. M Y YTA.1.11 Supports batch import of data files. M Y YTA.1.12 Supports customer programmer access to database. M Y Y

TA.1.13 M Y Via APIs Y

TA.1.14 M Y YTA.1.15 Correctly computes comparisons of dates into the next century. M Y YTA.1.16 D Y Y

TA.1.17 M Y YTA.1.18 Supports multiple users. M Y YTA.1.19 Accessible from remote locations. M Y Y

TA.1.20 Supports Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). D Y YTA.1.21 Open call interface to data D N YTA.1.22 Open call interface to applications M N YTA.1.23 Product do not directly perform database management M Y N 0

TA.1.24 M Y Y

TA.1.25 D N Y

TA.1.26 M Y N

TA.1.27 M Y YTA.1.28 Multiple language and country implementation supported D Y Y

TA.1.29 Electronics distribution and version control supported from the host D Y Y TA.2.0 Architectural PrinciplesTA.2.1 Supports an open system approach. D Y YTA.2.2 Provides single system image. D Y YTA.2.3 Operates on preferred hardware - SUN, IBM, DEC, Intel M Y Y

TA.2.4 M Y YTA.2.5 Platform independent. D Y Y

TA.2.6 Layered architecture with maximum independence between layers. M Y YTA.2.7 Re-usability employed during code development. D Y YTA.2.8 Supports client/server implementations. D Y Y

TA.2.9 D N YTA.2.10 Exhibit a consistent relationship with target workflow D N NTA.2.11 Workflow must guide the data entry and data flow design. D N N 0

TA.3.0 Availability/Recovery

TA.3.1 D Y Y

TA.3.2 M Y YTA.3.3 Audit trails automatically provided for all transaction detail. M Y YTA.3.4 System capable of enabling before and after logging feature. M N N 0TA.3.5 Reporting tools provided for browsing audit trails. M Y Y

TA.3.6 M Y N

TA.4.0 Maintainability/Flexibility/ExpandabilityTA.4.1 System upgradeable without migration to another platform. M Y YTA.4.2 Incremental growth path to permit expansion, as needed. M Y YTA.4.3 Minimal customization to products required. D Y N

TA.4.4 M Y N

TA.4.5 M Y Y

TA.5.0 Performance/Reliability

TA.5.1 D Y YScaleable with SMP machines D Y Y

TA.5.2 M Y N

TA.6.0 PlatformTA.6.1 Proposed configuration supports expected performance levels. D Y Y

TA.6.2 D N NTA.6.3 Designed for easy installation and support. D Y YTA.6.4 Designed for use in a distributed environment. D Y Y

TA.6.5 D Y Y

TA.7.0 Conversion Aids

Rank (M, D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Value in implementing all Billing functions is recommended

Products developed in or can interface with a widely used 4GL development tool.

All subsystems can deliver data to and accept data from other automated systems.

Via APIs or other custom-developed integrations

Modification of data in one subsystem automatically updates related data in all subsystems.

System is base on relational paradigm and makes use of triggers and stored procedures

Predefined facilities and interfaces to allow addition of custom routines.

Product implementation supports inherent designs of operating system and does not attempt to override them.

Functions that require exclusive use of data files are clearly identified and documented.

Supports timely updating of information; critical updates take place immediately.

System has a real-time orientation

In General, the system supports EDI feeds, specific details on particular EDI standards customer would use are needed

Product provides a core stack of services with APIs for interface to existing legacy data

Various product/package elements (i.e. product, rate, hierarchy) are handled by discrete sub-systems

Clearly demonstrates separation of data, presentation and business rules

Provide for multiple ways to operate the system’s User Interface (keyboard, mouse,…)

Operates in preferred operating environment NT, UNIX, WIN95, WIN3.x

Consistent with customer standards for protocols, operating systems, network operating systems, disk storage mediums, and other technologies).

Recovery mechanism ensures data integrity to the business function level.

Data is recoverable after computer failure, up to the last successful transaction

The product must provide failover/recovery for the following scenarios (with minimum possible disruption in the field):-application failure- communication failure- loss of host access- hardware failure- loss of a particular site/center

Customization and developed interfaces will not impact option to upgrade product.

Separate access and handling of transactional vs. informational data

Response time for devices not using telecommunications: ** specify response requirements; e.g., 98 % of window to window response within 0 to 2 seconds. **

Simple access, sub-second; more complex queries (report gen) can be longer

Provide a matrix showing throughput, uptime and response time figure for different volumes and number of users

See benchmark whitepaper attached as appendix

Resource requirements (e.g., memory, storage, I/O channels, special) defined and costed.

Insufficient information is provided in RFI to provide this info.

Capable of supporting external portable devices; e.g., handheld computers.

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B

Reference Category/Criteria Comments CommentsRank (M,

D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

TA.7.1 D Y Rates would be negotiated CETA.7.2 Will coordinate data conversion activities. D Y CETA.7.3 Provides data cleansing services. D Y CETA.7.4 Provides conversion utilities. D Y CE

TA.8.0 Interface RequirementsTA.8.1 Ability to interface/interoperate with existing systems. D Y Y

TA.9.0 SecurityTA.9.1 Name and password control provided. M Y YTA.9.2 Provides individual control of password. M Y YTA.9.3 Provides central control of passwords. M Y YTA.9.4 Passwords never display on monitors. D Y YTA.9.5 Automatic password expiry definable. D Y CETA.9.6 Stored passwords are encrypted. D N YTA.9.7 Provides an add/query/delete security function. M N YTA.9.8 Functional security by user provided. D Y YTA.9.9 Functional security by user group provided. D Y YTA.9.10 File level security by user provided. D Y NTA.9.11 File level security by user group provided. D Y NTA.9.12 Data attribute (field) level security provided. D Y Y

TA.9.13 D Y N

TA.9.14 D Y NTA.9.15 Security violations are automatically logged. D N Y

IR.1.0 Human Interface

IR.1.1 M Y Y

IR.1.2 M Y Y

IR.1.3 D Y Y

IR.1.4 Data (decimals, dates) entered, stored, and displayed consistently. M Y Y

IR.1.5 D N Y

IR.1.6 D Y YIR.1.7 Single point of entry provided for all data input. M Y YIR.1.8 Menus provide access to all applications. D Y N

IR.1.9 Menus can be customized. D N N

IR.1.10 D Y N

IR.1.11 D Y YIR.1.12 Context sensitive help provided (e.g., F1 from any window field). D N Y

IR.1.13 D Y Y

IR.1.14 D Y Y

IR.1.15 D Y Y

IR.1.16 D Y Y

IR.1.17 Minimum two levels of error messages provided: error and warning. D N YIR.1.18 Descriptions of error messages are understandable. D Y YIR.1.19 Documentation on the metaphors used for User Interface M N Y

IR.1.20 Text, error and messages maintained separately from the Windows M N Y

IR.1.21 D N N 0IR.1.22 Allow for heads-down data entry M N Y

IR.1.23 D Y Y

IR.2.0 Interface RequirementsIR.2.1 Ability to interface/interoperate with existing systems. D Y Y

IR.3.0 Reporting Requirements

IR.3.1 D Y Y

IR.3.2 D Y YIR.3.3 Tools provided to create custom reports. M Y YIR.3.4 Report writing tools are user friendly with a short learning curve. D Y Y

IR.3.5 D Y YIR.3.6 Provides ability to print multiple copies per request. D Y YIR.3.7 Able to reprint reports. D Y YIR.3.8 Provides ability to select specific pages of a report to print. D Y YIR.3.9 Provides automated report distribution facilities. D Y NIR.4.0 Allow integration with pre-printed electronic forms D Y N

IR. 5.0 D Y WA GN.1.0 Contract

GN.1.1 Ownership of components clearly defined. D Y YGN.1.2 Source code available in hard copy and electronic media. D N Source code is not available CE

GN.1.3 Ownership of modifications to source code clearly defined. D Y Y

GN.1.4 D N YGN.1.5 Warranties for performance available. D N NGN.1.6 Satisfactory right to terminate clause in contract. D N Y

Will supply conversion expertise on-site on a per-diem basis (provide rates).

Each of these can be supplied at a cost of $1400

per man day

Access control of data (read, write, delete, copy) at the file level by user provided.

Access control of data (read, write, delete, copy) at the file level by user group provided.

Consistent user Interface; e.g., screen layouts, keyboard functions, and navigation.

GUI interface (e.g., windows, icons, mouse, pull-down menus) consistent with CUA or similar standard. Look and feel should emulate standards like Windows 95 / Windows NT 4.0

Makes consistent, effective use of colour. Provide incorporation of user’s desktop color settings.

Provides formatting options for dates (e.g., DD/MM/YY, MM/DD/YY, YY/MM/DD) that can be easily changed from one format to another. Use Windows 95 date entry options (i.e. direct entry and/or calendar box/icon).

Provides formatting options for currency (e.g., amounts formatted with commas or spaces). Incorporate desktop contrry standard

All database driven menu items can be customized; menu functions cannot

Quick paths provided from one function to another without using menus.

On-line help provided including: features to assist in locating a function or feature, descriptions of how each function works, descriptions of fields, their contents, and acceptable formats.

Provided via hypertexted , online docu.

Minimal effort required to escape from incorrect selection or system error.

Provides on-line look-ups of key field information (e.g., customer by ID or name).

Provides on-line look-ups on partial keys (e.g., part of customer name).

Numeric entries automatically signed where possible (e.g., credit displays as negative).

At any point in the workflow, the next level and all previous levels in the hierarchy should be enabled (all others should be disabled)

No redundant screen accesses. All needed data should be provided in the workflow implementation

Title, page number, report ID, report date, rundate, and time are shown consistently.

Provides for special forms alignment, interrupting, restarting, and backward and forward spacing through printouts.

Provides choice of print directly or view display on monitor and then route to printer/file.

Provide a list of commercial reporting / EIS / DSS products that can be hooked into the products database

Product A is an open database founded on ANSI SQL stds. Any reporting tools can be hooked in. Vendor A recommends use of their own DSS toolkit.

Any SQL Report Writer will work.

Vendor A owns source code and holds all intellectual property rights

Vendor A owns Source code and holds all intellectual property rights

Protection of source code provided against bankruptcy, receivership, liquidation, take-over, absorption.

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B


D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)GN.1.7 Remedies for breach of contract provided. D N Y

GN.1.8 D N YGN.1.9 Payments are milestone/delivery based. D N Y

GN.2.0 Costs and Pricing

GN.2.1 Pricing arrangements available (purchase, license, lease) D Y Y purchase, licenseGN.2.2 Invoices will be payable in appropriate currency. D N Only in USD Y

GN.2.3 One time costs are included in pricing. M Y Y

GN.2.4 Recurring annual and monthly costs are included in pricing. M Y Y

GN.2.5 M Y Y

GN.2.6 Implementation support costs identified. M Y YGN.2.7 Training costs identified. M Y Y

GN.2.8 Customization costs identified. M Y Y

GN.2.9 Conversion support costs identified. M Y Y

GN.2.10 M N N

GN.2.11 M N NGN.2.12 Training materials include in price. M N NGN.2.13 All documentation included in price. M Y Y

GN.2.14 M Y Y 1 Copy onlyGN.2.15 No or low costs for additional copies of documentation. M Y Nominal fee NGN.2.16 On-line help facilities included in price. M N Y

GN.2.17 D N NGN.2.18 Pricing structure for follow-up training provided. D Y Y

GN.3.0 DocumentationGN.3.1 Installation guide available. M Y YGN.3.2 Maintenance guide available. M Y YGN.3.3 System documentation available. M Y YGN.3.4 Operating documentation available. M Y YGN.3.5 Training documentation available. M Y YGN.3.6 User documentation available. M Y Y

GN.3.7 M Y Y

GN.3.8 User documentation clearly defines procedures for all processes. M Y YGN.3.9 System documentation includes design and setup information. M Y YGN.3.10 Documentation is available in electronic format (e.g., CD-ROM). M Y YGN.3.11 Documentation may be maintained by the customer. M N YGN.3.12 Documentation can be copied by customer without restriction. M N YGN.3.13 Documentation is regularly updated and distributed. M Y YGN.3.14 Source code provided. M N CE

GN.3.15 M Unclear Requirement Y

GN.4.0 TrainingGN.4.1 Training in functional use provided. M Y CEGN.4.2 System administration training provided. M Y CE

GN.4.3 Training provided at: customer site(s), vendor site(s). D Y Vendor site typically CEGN.4.4 Training pre-requisites defined; e.g. basic keyboarding skills. D Y CE

GN.4.5 Multi-language training and training materials provided, as required. D N CE Only EnglishGN.4.6 Computer based training software provided. D N NGN.4.7 Classroom instruction and hands-on training provided. D Y CE

GN.4.8 D Y CE

GN.5.0 Vendor QualificationsGN.5.1 Years in business: 0 to 2, 3 to 5, 5+. M Y 14 YRS Y 5+GN.5.2 Age of product (in years): 0 to 2, 3 to 5, 5+. M Y since 1991 Y 3 to 5

GN.5.3 M Y 26+

GN.5.4 M Y 250 Y 501 to 1000

GN.5.5 M Y Y

GN.5.6 M Y Y

GN.5.7 M Y Y 25+

GN.5.8 M Y 6% of overall revenue to R&D N 0GN.5.9 A methodology was used to develop the products. M Y Y ISO 9001 certified

GN.5.10 M Y Y

GN.5.11 M Y Y same region

GN.5.12 M Y Y 25+

GN.5.13 M Y Currently 6.0 Y 4 to 5

GN.5.14 M Y All Y 2 to 3GN.5.15 Satisfactory policy on supporting past releases. M Y Y

GN.5.16 M Y YGN.5.17 Active user group exists for each product. M N Y

Contract protects customer from damages due to non-performance of software.

License, based on a one-time fee. Details attached

Those associated with Product A are included

once GAP analysis is completed

Those associated with Product A are included

Incremental costs for upgrades and expansions are included in pricing.




Prices of other products that must be licensed/purchased for use with each product (e.g., DBMS license) identified.

NA Vendor B has reseller rights to a limited amount of

3rd party software

No or low price increases (including maintenance/support) over last 3 years.

Copies of documentation included in price: ** quantify requirements ** 100 % of requirements met, 80 to 99 % of requirements met, 50 to 79 % of requirements met, less than 49 % of requirements met.

5 Copies of the full docu. are delivered with the system.

Training Days included in price: ** quantify requirements ** 100 % of requirements met, 80 to 99 % of requirements met, 50 to 79 % of requirements met, less than 49 % of requirements met.

User and training documentation describes how to use each component in non-technical terms (e.g., functional description).

GUI, Database and Design standards (that have been implemented in the product)

All initial training is provided as a seperate cost

Training program can be customized to meet specific customer requirements.

Number of new customers in last 24 months (as a percent of customer base): 0 to 5, 6 to 10, 11 to 25, 26+.

100% Customer growth, yr after yr , for past 4 yrs

Number of employees: 1 to 100, 101 to 500, 501 to 1000, 1001+.

Employees are assigned to product development for each product in sufficient numbers to allow for regular maintenance and enhancements.

Number of employees in customer service for each product per installed user base is sufficient to meet service levels.

Developers of products are currently employed by vendor (i.e., original developers are available for enhancements): 1 to 10, 11 to 25, 25+.

No contract programmers, 25 dev. programmers currently

Percentage of sales revenue allocated for R&D on each product: 0 to 1, 2 to 5, 6+.

Vendor's customer service employees are available for implementation.

Location of customer service employees (in relation to customer): same city, same region, same country, different country.

Pls See info on Vendor A Project Mgmt Methodology. A project team will be assigned to project and it will co-locate with project as much as needed to make the project a success.

Number of customers (e.g., companies, organizations) using each product: 0, 1 to 9, 10 to 24, 25+.

20 companies with 25 deployments

Number of releases (functional enhancements) for each product in last 5 years: 0 to 1, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6+.

Number of these releases still being supported: 0 to 1, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6+.

Other software products that could be integrated with these products are available.

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B


D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

GN.5.18 M N Y 75%GN.5.19 Reference sites provided for each product. M Y YGN.5.20 Published evaluations of software provided. M N NGN.5.20 Proof of success in similar organization provided. M N N

GN.5.21 M Y YGN.5.22 Proposed contract provided. M N YGN.5.22 Sample plans provided (e.g., implementation, training). M N Y

GN.5.23 M N Y

GN.6.0 Warranty/Support

GN.6.1 M Y 8X5, Negotiable Y

GN.6.2 M Y Negotiable Y

GN.6.3 M Y Negotiable Y 1-2 DAYSGN.6.4 Documentation updated for any fixes. M Y YGN.6.5 Procedures for vendor-initiated fixes provided. M Y YGN.6.6 On-site expertise available at no or low cost. M Y Negotiable Y

GN.6.7 M Y Negotiable Y ACCEPTANCE

GN.6.8 M Y N

GN.6.9 M Y Y

GN.6.10 M N Y 30 days or less

GN.6.11 M Y Negotiable Y 31 to 60

GN.6.12 M Y Y

OE.7.2.0 Order Entry Requirements

OE.7.2.1 M Y Y

OE.7.2.2 M CE Y

OE.7.2.3 M Y Y

OE.7.2.4 M Y YOE.7.2.5 Maintain sponsor/sub-group customer service phone number. M Y YOE.7.2.6 Maintain sponsor/sub-group long distance number. M Y YOE.7.2.7 Maintain sponsor/sub-group Internet number. M Y Y

OE.7.2.8 M Y YOE.7.2.9 Maintain sponsor/sub-group product(s) selected. D Y Y

OE.7.2.10 M Y N

OE.7.2.11 M N Y

OE.7.2.12 M N Y

OE.7.2.13 M Y Y

OE.7.2.14 Provide for individual selection of product and services. M Y Y

OE.7.2.15 M Y YOE.7.2.16 Allow override of sponsor products for individual account. M Y Y

OE.7.2.17 M Y N

OE.7.2.18 Allow flexible and powerful search options for customer data. M Y Y

OE.7.2.19 M N Y

OE.7.2.20 M Y Y

OE.7.2.21 M WA VIA reports N Would require customization

OE.7.2.22 M Y Y

OE.7.2.23 M Y Y

OE.7.2.24 M Y Y

OE.7.2.25 M Y Y

OE.7.2.26 D WA Y

User Group influences release of the product; e.g., controls x% of enhancements to the product.

Willing to demonstrate products: at customer site, at vendor site.

Software license agreements provided (e.g., software maintenance, support).

All responses in this section are open to negotiation

Telephone service provided: 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 24 hours per day, 5 days per week, 8 hours per day, 7 days per week, 8 hours per day, 5 days per week.

Guaranteed response time (e.g., customer representative responds with either fix or action plan) within: 1 to 2 hours, 3 to 5 hours, 6 to 12 hours, 24 hours.

Maximum time to implement an emergency fix: 1 to 2 days, 3 to 5 days, 6 to 10 days, 11+ days.

Software warranty begins at: shipment, receipt, installation, acceptance.

Customer can modify software without impacting warranty or support.

No source code access available, Any modification that customer can perform will not impact warranty

Updates, enhancements, and new releases covered under maintenance agreements.

Failure to install an update, enhancement, or new release impacts the warranty/support/maintenance after: 30 days or less, 31 to 60 days, 61 to 90 days, 91+ days.

Warranty/support/maintenance continues after a product function or the entire product is discontinued for: 30 days, 31 to 60 days, 61 to 120 days, 120+ days.

Warranty/support/maintenance is provided for modifications specifically requested by the customer.

Allow for a sponsoring organization and a hierarchy of sponsor sub-groups (total 3 levels).

Infinite nesting of accounts within a hierarchy

4 Account levels for aggregation/bill production

Establish a "brand" for each sponsor for inclusion on invoice and fulfillment materials.

Some customization may be reqd in Invoice.

Pass parameter to bill formatting engine to trigger

display of logo/brand on bill.

Set up individual account holders associated to sponsor and (optional) subgroup.

Maintain sponsor identifying information including contact information for sponsor and sub-group.

Maintain sponsor/sub-group accounting parameters (e.g., billing cycle, credit limits, delinquency rules, usage limits, tax exempt status, etc.)

Maintain sponsor/sub-group common code formats (e.g., authorization code lengths, rules, user realms).

Rules are system based or product based, not account

based.

Set up default order entry template for individual accounts based on sponsor set up information.

Utilization of the Product B Web Server Center would allow the customization of

order entry templates.

Provide for individual account billing addresses to include zip + 4 + 3 (CASS).

Interface to CODE1 for address hygiene

Provide for individual account to have at least 2 addresses: billing address and/or temporary address.

Product B support seven addresses per account.

Each account and user (contract) within an account

may have its own product and service inventory.

Allow override of sponsor credit and usage limits for individual account.

Allow override of sponsor accounting parameters for individual account.

Such as name, address, telephone number, SS#,

credit card #.

Secure confidential data (e.g., credit card number) from unauthorized view.

Provide for automatic notification to service provider (e.g., switch, Internet provider) of new accounts.

Product B contains a mediation device to notified

the proper network elements of account and

product/service changes.

Provide for automatic notification to fulfillment vendors of accounts requiring materials.

Provide for loading individual customers’ information from sponsor organization’s data file (FTP, tape, disk, CD).

Would require custom built interface.

Ability to setup discount and promotional qualifications of a customer. Customer not eligible for discounts on a particular rate element of the package. i.e. a bad credit risk doesn’t get free usage on mother’s day.

Be able to cross-reference many sub-accounts under one account (multiple ANIs, Internet account).

Ability to discount and promote various charges/fees. Discounts can be applied to different components in the product description i.e. monthly access/plan fee, surcharges, equipment charges, and feature charges. Provide a mechanism to audit and can confi

"allow marketing to mark up an addnl trend element" requires clarification

Partial compliance - audit and confirm function not available.

Support pricing package optimization. Allow an OE rep or CSR to verify that the customer is on the "best" possible plan across the products/plans.

Product A includes the ability to generate a price quote for a service or activity. A CSR can use this facility with diff.inputs, to evaluate various plans on behalf of a customer, and commit the plan the cust. requests.

Product B contains a Tariff Planner module which allows

for the comparison of rate plans.

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B


D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

OE.7.2.27 D Y N

OE.7.2.28 D Y N

OE.7.2.29 M Y Y

RF.7.3.0 Reference Data Requirements

RF.7.3.1 Maintain multiple dissimilar products with differing pricing options . M Y Y

RF.7.3.2 M Y Y

RF.7.3.3 M Y Y

RF.7.3.4 Maintain product fulfillment requirements. M N Addnl Info needed YRF.7.3.5 Provide for user defined rounding rules for usage calculations. M Y Y

RF.7.3.6 M Y YRF.7.3.7 Provide for a dollar "cap" on discounts. M Y NRF.7.3.8 Provide for special invoice presentation requirements. M Y YRF.7.3.9 Provide for customers having one or more products. M Y Y

RF.7.3.10 M WA Y

RF.7.3.11 M Y Y

RF.7.3.12 D Y Y

RF.7.3.13 M Y Y

RF.7.3.14 M Y Y

RF.7.3.15 D Y N

CP.7.4.0 Call Processing Requirements

CP.7.4.1 Accept CDR’s from multiple switch sources. M WA Y

CP.7.4.2 M Y YCP.7.4.3 Rate each call detail record based on the product and customer. M Y Y

CP.7.4.4 M Y YCP.7.4.5 View CDR’s pre and post rating. M Y Y

CP.7.4.6 Provide exception reports to warn of potential data errors or fraud. M WA YCP.7.4.7 Allow for correction / manual rating of one CDR. M Y YCP.7.4.8 Allow for a batch of CDR’s to be reprocessed / re-rated. M Y N

CP.7.4.9 M N Addnl. Info needed YCP.7.4.10 Provide reports for purged data. M N NCP.7.4.11 Report errors by type. M Y Y

CP.7.4.12 D Y Y

CP.7.4.13 M Y Y

CP.7.4.14 D Y N

IN.7.5.0 Billing / Invoicing

IN.7.5.1 M Y YIN.7.5.2 Allow on-demand processing for a defined sub-set of customers. M Y YIN.7.5.3 Allow balance forward invoicing. M Y YIN.7.5.4 Allow calculation of invoice level discounts. M Y YIN.7.5.5 Allow calculation of invoice level taxes. M Y YIN.7.5.6 Provide for line item billing as described above. M Y YIN.7.5.7 Provide invoice format as approved by customer. M Y Y With customization

IN.7.5.8 Allow for bar coding / OCR scan line on invoice. M Y Y

IN.7.5.9 Allow for sponsor organization "brand" to be used on invoice. M Y YIN.7.5.10 Produce delinquency letters for delinquent accounts. M Y YIN.7.5.11 Provide options for printing (e.g., print image file, paper copies). M Y YIN.7.5.12 Provide on-line view of invoices. M Y Y

IN.7.5.13 M Y Y

IN.7.5.14 M N Addnl. Info is needed YIN.7.5.15 Provide exception reports. M Y Y

Allow for set up of special customer arrangement billing. Provide a mechanism to map special arrangement components to the package elements.

Depends on the special arrangements - please define

further.

Provide complete setup for feed to the fulfillment process i.e. ability to take orders, update the billing information and forward on to the fulfillment

Would require the development of customized interfaces for the transfer of

data.

Provide checks to ensure data integrity and eliminate duplicates. Provide special info to customer service for a new customer (unique arrangements, factors)

Maintain product pricing rules, including one time charges, recurring charges, and usage/transaction rates.

Maintain standard telecommunications rating and tariffs, within one month of regulatory changes.

project will have responsibility for I/P and maintenance of tariff rates.

Partially compliant - fulfillment requirements are customized

Provide for flexible discount plans by date, day of week, geography, product, multiple-cross product sales, volume, call types, customer type and status, and special credits.

Partially compliant - rating algorithms do not consider

status or special credits

Provide flexibility to set up various package elements separately. Allow a new product/plan to be set up quickly by combining different rate elements. Provide a mechanism to model the outcome.

It is assumed that this functionality would be performed in a test environment and not on the billing database.

Provide product specific discount structures and give marketing the flexibility to discount one type of traffic from other traffic types. Also provide for billing of surcharges if minimum usage is not met.

Apply discounts to recurring and/or non-recurring charges for one product based on usage and/or promo for another product. Provide mechanisms to model/confirm that the discounts would indeed show up on the invoice.

Allow setup of special promotions/discounts, based onspecial day (i.e. mother’s day)time of dayhome marketsusage on another productprior billing problem for a particular customer groupAllow flexibility to set expiration criteria (mostly dates) and type of

Support tiers of volume discounts per rate structure (thresholds, rates may vary by product, market, time-period). Provide pricing flexibility to respond to the competition. Provide mechanism to model/audit the discount structure. May need tiers applied t

Provide automated tools to set/approve all customer specific discount criteria. Provide competitive capability to the front end users of the system, to model and approve the criteria.

Vendor A would explore the ability to maintain the existing func. to convert usage events into a std. format and then pass those to Product A

Accept CDR’s on variable cycle of batches -scheduled from every 15 minutes to once per month.

Calculate taxes using current tax authority information, and conforming to customer business tax rules for all products.

Usage events that are to be discounted should be taxed after discounts are applied

Usage events that fail guiding or rating are errored and managed via a separate Q. The system does not provide for exception reporting for fraud mgmt purposes.

Provide for management of CDR databases, including options for purging by date, customer, CDR type, error type.

Purging is accomplished through customized scripts

Ability to identify, and mark, a call detail as belonging to a unique market type. Ability to define a market and be able to produce various reports.

Allow multiple options for marketing messages on the invoice and billing inserts (based on a table driven / user maintained) hierarchy.

Provide the ability to summarize threshold qualifications on invoice in order to provide clear communications to the customer on the qualification on their discounts

Allow multiple billing cycles and selection of customer groups for each cycle.

Partially compliant - Product B does not support assigning

customer groups to a certain bill cycle.

With integration of third party formatting tool.


Provide for correction of individual invoice or reprocessing of a batch of invoices.

Considering the large volume of invoices, provide interim status of invoice processing.

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B


D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)IN.7.5.16 Provide invoice register and audit reports. M Y Y

IN.7.5.17 M Y Y

IN.7.5.18 M Y N

IN.7.5.19 M Y Y

IN.7.5.20 M Y Y

IN.7.5.21 M Y Y

IN.7.5.22 M Y Y

IN.7.5.23 D Y Y

IN.7.5.24 M Y Y

IN.7.5.25 D Y N

AR.7.6.0 Accounts Receivable Requirements

AR.7.6.1 Process NPC lockbox payment transactions. CE YAR.7.6.2 Process credit card payment (authorization and posting). Y YAR.7.6.3 Process manual payments. Y YAR.7.6.4 Process credit / debit memos. Y Y

AR.7.6.5 Allow VRU access to individual account information. CE N Could be developed.AR.7.6.6 Provide for follow up and collection of delinquent accounts. Y YAR.7.6.7 Produce financial and audit reports. Y YAR.7.6.8 Interface to General Ledger. Y Y

AR.7.6.9 Y N Interface could be developed.

AR.7.6.10 M Y Y

AR.7.6.11 D CE YAR.7.6.12 Allow re-validation of credit cards before the monthly billing run. D Y YAR.7.6.13 Allow billing, maintenance and refund of security deposits. D Y Y

AS.7.7.0 Account Status RequirementsAS.7.7.1 Notify service provider of new and terminated accounts. M Y YAS.7.7.2 Notify service provider of delinquent accounts. M Y Y

AS.7.7.3 M CE YAS.7.7.4 Notify service provider of available vs. usage limit. M CE As above Y

AS.7.7.5 M Y Y With customization.

AS.7.7.6 M Y Y With customization.

CS.7.8.0 Customer Service Requirements

CS.7.8.1 Provide CTI capability. D N Addnl. Info needed Y

CS.7.8.2 D N Y With customization.

CS.7.8.3 D Y YCS.7.8.4 The presentation layer for CSR function mimics the workflow D Y Y

CS.7.8.5 D Y Y

CS.7.8.6 M Y Y

CS.7.8.7 D WA YCS.7.8.8 Monitor status of problem call resolution. D N Y

CS.7.8.9 D N YCS.7.8.9 Report on customer call types. D Y YCS.7.8.10 Track trends in problems being logged. D N Y

CS.7.8.11 D Y YCS.7.9.12 Create a historical database of problems and final resolutions. D N Y

Support targeted customer service number on the invoice (allow flexible methods to identify target customer groups)

Function to be developed in release 5.0 of Product B

slated for release 6/97.

Provide Cost allocation reporting for major customers (allows distribution of costs within customers organizations and by account team’s designated sub categories)

Provide ability to show all usage, aggregate charges, fees and discounts on one bill and on each line item (as appropriate). Display all credit line items and deduct from total. Display all balance forwards, etc. Easily identify for the customer how the d

Provide a sorting and grouping mechanism for invoice presentations (make it possible to present bills for same products at different levels of detail and order). Billing must be able to breakout (if needed) on metered, non-metered and surcharge categories


Allow presentation of pro rated and prior period and next period charges (in detail or aggregated fashion). Provide for flexible messaging and target number for this feature.

Provide an option to the customer to view usage based charge details separately.

Prevent holding entire billing run if there are problems with a select number of invoices. Allow auditing to selectively hold a subset of invoices depending on pre-approved holding criteria. Generate automatic trouble ticket info. Ability to generate a

Partially compliant - may verify invoice before

rendering. Automatic issuing of a trouble ticket and the ability to create a manual invoice would need to be

custom developed.

Support multiple billing cycles. Provide on-line inspection, forwarding and approval mechanisms for auditing and other groups (responsible for billing cycles). Minimize manual intervention or needs to start a cycle. Stress exception handling rather than

Support post-billing recoveries to allow rebilling process to be initiated by audit, after exception are handled (or specific bills held back).

Product A includes integration with lockbox bank. The current std. is FirstUSA. The more similar the NPC feed is to the product std, the lower the cost of integration

Product A does not include a std interface with a VRU; however the info is avlbl to be accessed from the database.

Provide capability to electronically transmit refund and payment requests to customer corporate office.

Provide business rules to process unbillable calls or calls/traffic pools marked as exceptions. These rules can be updated in a flexible way for Audit to confirm and trend calls greater than the recycle period. Pre-define an age limit, after which the cal

Ability to trend usage and show comparisons. Trend free calls and "what-if" analysis on discounts and promos.

Data is available, but best done by DSS system

Evaluate usage against limits; this includes billed and unpaid, pending invoicing, and un-billed usage.

Can generate a report that compares total rated but unbilled usage against thresholds for all or a subset of accounts. More info is reqd on the manner in which a prev. bal. would figure into the assessment

Provide notification in electronic format required by service provider.

Ability to include or exclude customer by type,sponsor etc. from notification.

With a custom built interface to a third party CTI application

or Vendor B Intelligent Call Center Application

Transfer data entered by the customer (into IVR) along with voice call to the CSR, if a transfer is initiated.

Provide a CSR access to all systems that are needed per the workflow

Based on our current understanding of the req. and subject to limitations/exceptions noted elsewhere in this doc.

Minimize redundant data access procedures. Retain/transfer data across systems as needed.

Provide powerful and flexible inquiry capabilities for all customers’ account information.

Provide customer call tracking capabilities, including categorizing type of call.

via customer notes capability. CSR must physically log note and type of call

Provide capability to forward customer requests to other departments (e.g., account adjustment request).

Provide capability to script "help" to specific customer business solutions.

project will have responsibility for crafting and maintaining the scripts

With integration of a third party MS-Windows HELP

Package

Comments

Vendor A Vendor B


D, O)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)

Response (Y/WA/CI/

CE/N)EI.7.9.0 External Interfaces

EI.7.9.1 M WA via APIs Y With custom built interfaces

RP.7.10.0 Reporting

RP.7.10.1 M Y YRP.7.10.2 Provide option to print on demand any on-line report. M Y YRP.7.10.3 Provide reports of traffic. M Y YRP.7.10.4 Provide billing reports. M Y YRP.7.10.5 Provide audit reports for all changes. M Y N

RP.7.10.6 M Y N

RP.7.10.7 D N Y

RP.7.10.8 M Y Y

RP.7.10.9 M Y Y

RP.7.10.10 M Y N

Provide ability to feed to and receive feeds from other customer systems.

Provide easy to use, flexible report generation capability with default options for output (on-line, paper, file).

Provide exception reporting related to "reasonableness" checks for all processing.

Not all processing -- subsets. Reports would need to be

customized for certain areas.

Provide an information data warehouse for use by multiple organizations. Provide a virtual single source of information data from end to end for all organizations that need it. Allow access to the right data at the right time (i.e. how the bill would have

Product B Version 5. due for release in June 97 will

support a full data warehouse with data analyzer tool.

An automatic run of reports, within several days of the billing cycle or after a calendar month/qtr/year. These would include: summary by sponsor organization i.e. a school (subtotaled by region) showingsigned up users, actual users, calls, minutes and

Report will need to be customized to customer

specifications

Describe and outline AR/Bad debt situation. Create reports that summarize current month and YTD current/30/60/90+ statistics. Further, be able to forward to customer systems all pertinent account info to get collections support, etc.

Account level Reporting/AccessBe able to identify when customers come into the system and be able to segregate and/or flag the data by time to ensure analysis can differentiate current vs. prior studentsFurther, be able to look at users and determine when

Vendor Response Checklist

Vendor Response Checklist

Srl# Checklist item description Vendor A Vendor B

1 Summary (including approach) Y Y

2 High level description of the solution Y Y

3 Process flow of the proposed solution Y Y

4 Unique advantages related to customer business Y Y

5 Suggested physical platform recommendations Y Y

6 Timing N Y

7 Customer responsibilities N Y

8 References (detail the problem solved or needs met) Y Y

9 Industry benchmarks Y Y

10 Answer to each and every requirement in RFP Y Y

11 Recommended skill set(s) for implementation and subsequent operation N Y

12 Recommended resource plan for skills and volume projections Y Y

13 Customer reference sites provided N Y

Functional Summary

Mandatory Requirements Met by Functional Groups

Vendor A Total Vendor BTA Tech Arch 32 35 29GN General 52 68 57IR UI / Rptg 5 8 8AR.7.6.0 AR 8 9 8AS.7.7.0 Act Status 4 6 6CP.7.4.0 Call Proc 10 12 10CS.7.8.0 Cust Svc 1 1 1EI.7.9.0 Ext Int 1 1 1IN.7.5.0 Billing / Inv 22 23 22OE.7.2.0 OE 21 25 22RF.7.3.0 Ref Data 12 13 12RP.7.10 Rptg 9 9 6

GN.2.0 Costs and Pricing 10 14 10GN.3.0 Documentation 11 15 14GN.4.0 Training 2 2 0GN.5.0 Vendor Qualifications 18 25 22GN.6.0 Warranty/Support 11 12 11

IR.1.0 Human Interface 4 7 7IR.3.0 Reporting Requirements 1 1 1TA.1.0 Architecture 17 18 16TA.2.0 Architectural Principles 3 3 3TA.3.0 Availability/Recovery 4 5 3TA.4.0 Maintainability/Flexibility/Expandability 4 4 3TA.5.0 Performance/Reliability 1 1 0TA.9.0 Security 3 4 4

Tech

Arch

Gen

eral

UI / R

ptg

AR

Act S

tatu

s

Call P

roc

Cust S

vc

Ext In

t

Billing

/ Inv O

E

Ref D

ata

Rptg

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mandatory Req. met by Functional Groups for Vendor A

Vendor A

Total

Functional Groups

No

of

Re

q.

Functional Summary

Tech

Arch

Gen

eral

UI / R

ptg

AR

Act S

tatu

s

Call P

roc

Cust S

vc

Ext In

t

Billing

/ Inv O

E

Ref D

ata

Rptg

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mandatory Req. met by Functional Groups for Vendor B

Vendor B

Total

Functional Groups

No

of

Re

q.

Functional Summary

Tech

Arch

Gen

eral

UI / R

ptg

AR

Act S

tatu

s

Call P

roc

Cust S

vc

Ext In

t

Billing

/ Inv O

E

Ref D

ata

Rptg

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mandatory Req. met by Functional Groups for Vendor A

Vendor A

Total

Functional Groups

No

of

Re

q.

Functional Summary

Tech

Arch

Gen

eral

UI / R

ptg

AR

Act S

tatu

s

Call P

roc

Cust S

vc

Ext In

t

Billing

/ Inv O

E

Ref D

ata

Rptg

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Mandatory Req. met by Functional Groups for Vendor B

Vendor B

Total

Functional Groups

No

of

Re

q.

Sample Software Package Evaluation Matrix

Documents

Transcript of Sample Software Package Evaluation Matrix