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Questions every business stakeholder needs to ask to Sitecore implementation partners

The Premise

Sitecore is widely recognized as one of the most popular content management systems available in the market today. It has gained significant traction with numerous projects being implemented across the globe. In order to maintain its position as a leading software provider, Sitecore consistently updates its software to offer the best capabilities to its customers. Each year, new products are introduced, generating a great deal of excitement within the developer community. 

As a result, Sitecore implementation partners invest time and effort in exploring these new products and enhancements to develop their expertise. This enables them to provide valuable recommendations to customers regarding upgrades, integrations, and customizations that can benefit their businesses. However, customers may wonder how they can ensure that they truly derive business value from all of these offerings.

Naturally, before any implementation takes place, extensive discussions occur between business stakeholders, implementation partners, IT teams, and other relevant parties. The purpose of these discussions is to ensure that the investment made in these projects will indeed add value to the business. Despite these efforts, there are chances that the implementation did not yield the expected results. If I were in such a position, I would take it upon myself to ask the right questions at the appropriate times. In this post, I express my ideas about the same.

Should we incorporate a technology because it  is currently popular?

An important perspective to consider is that just because a technology is deemed good does not necessarily mean it will be beneficial to your specific business. The software industry is constantly evolving, with new technologies, processes, and patterns emerging on a daily basis. However, this does not imply that your application must adopt every single innovation. Any new process or technology should only be introduced into the system if it aligns with the specific needs and objectives of the business.

What value will the project add to business and what metrics will be used to determine its successful completion?

When planning a new project with the expectation of cost savings or improvements in productivity, performance, efficiency, and other areas, it is crucial for the business to inquire if they need the new products or enhancements. How do they do that?

Business stakeholders shall ask about the metrics that can be used to measure the planned improvements. The implementation partner should be requested to run these metrics against the hosted application to determine if it is performing poorly in any of these areas. If deficiencies are identified, then a plan to implement the project shall be executed. At the end, a plan should be established to assess whether the project goals have been achieved upon project completion.

Are we focusing on efficiency or are we unnecessarily complicating things?

I often observe a significant amount of over-engineering in applications. There is no approach that fits all scenarios or business. While an approach may prove to be highly effective for many businesses, it does not necessarily mean it is advantageous in every scenario. If your current software implementation is already performing satisfactorily, adopting to new patterns or technologies may only introduce unnecessary complications. Utilizing metrics can assist in identifying the most suitable approach.

The Conclusion

If you agree with the points mentioned in this article, I suggest that you consider having an independent Sitecore expert as your guardian. An independent specialist in Sitecore can verify the statements made by the implementation partner without any bias and assist in reducing costs associated with upgrades, migrations, enhancements, and implementation projects. Sitecore experts will guarantee that you receive the maximum value for your investment. There are many Sitecore experts and MVPs who will be willing to provide assistance in such scenarios.

Hey Sitecore experts and clients, we are interested in knowing the questions you typically ask before commencing a project. Your inputs will greatly assist us in enhancing this post for the benefit of others.

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