1. Define the operating scope before listing features
Start with the business model you need to support. A retailer adding store fulfillment has different requirements from a business launching a new storefront or coordinating a marketplace. Record current channels, brands, locations and fulfillment partners, then identify what changes in the proposed rollout.
Separate requirements for the first launch from later ambitions. This keeps a useful future capability from becoming an unnecessary dependency for the first release. Give each requirement an owner and an observable outcome.
Planning checklist
- List the channels, stores, warehouses and brands in the initial scope.
- Describe the customer and operational problems behind the project.
- Separate launch requirements, later phases and out-of-scope work.
- Identify the teams that will approve the resulting workflows.
2. Turn the requirements into end-to-end scenarios
A feature checkbox says little about how work moves between teams. Ask vendors to demonstrate a complete journey using a representative assortment and order. Include an exception: unavailable stock, a partial cancellation, a failed payment or a return after part of the order has shipped.
Document the expected state of the order, inventory and payment at each step. Ask who can intervene, what they can change and how another team sees the outcome. A clear exception workflow can matter as much as the happy path.
Planning checklist
- Publish a product with variants and channel-specific content.
- Place an order that requires fulfillment from more than one location.
- Change or cancel an order after allocation.
- Receive a return and reconcile the inventory and refund decisions.
3. Establish data ownership and integration effort
Identify the authoritative system for products, prices, inventory, customers and orders. Then map which applications consume or update each record. Ask what is available as standard functionality, what needs configuration and what requires an integration or separate product.
A named integration is not enough. Confirm the supported use case, direction of data flow, versions, error handling and support owner. Use your existing systems as the basis for the discussion rather than assuming a connector covers every workflow.
Planning checklist
- Name the system of record for each data domain.
- Identify the required synchronization frequency and acceptable delay.
- Ask how failed updates are detected, retried and reconciled.
- Confirm who builds, tests and maintains each connection.
4. Agree what the evaluation must prove
Write acceptance criteria before the demonstration or proof of concept begins. Use conditions your teams can observe: an order reaches the intended location, a stock adjustment appears where expected, or a user cannot approve their own restricted action. Define the dataset and environment used for the test.
Treat scale and performance claims as questions until their scope is clear. Ask for the workload, measurement period, environment and assumptions behind any benchmark. Separate a product demonstration from an agreed production commitment.
Planning checklist
- Agree the scenario, expected result, evidence and sign-off owner.
- Use representative product and order complexity, not only clean examples.
- Record limitations, workarounds and unresolved dependencies.
- Confirm which commitments will appear in the agreed scope or contract.
5. Compare implementation and ongoing ownership
Compare the complete scope of work behind each proposal. Platform charges are only one part of the decision; migration, configuration, integrations, training, support and later changes also need owners and agreed terms. Ask which costs are included and which depend on usage or additional work.
Examine how the platform will be operated after launch. Confirm release coordination, issue escalation, access management and the work your own team must perform. A proposal is easier to assess when responsibilities and assumptions are explicit.
Planning checklist
- Request an itemized scope with assumptions and exclusions.
- Clarify implementation services, integration maintenance and support coverage.
- Identify operational work retained by your team or partners.
- Agree how additional brands, locations or capabilities change the scope.
6. Build a decision record your teams can use
Group findings into workflow fit, architecture, implementation, operating model and commercial scope. Mark each requirement as demonstrated, documented, dependent on further work or unresolved. Weight the requirements according to your business priorities before comparing proposals.
Keep evidence beside the decision rather than reducing everything to a single score. Your final recommendation should explain the tradeoffs, outstanding actions and conditions for proceeding. Reuse this record as the starting point for implementation planning.
Planning checklist
- Keep the same evaluation criteria across vendors.
- Record evidence and limitations for every critical requirement.
- Assign an owner and next action to unresolved questions.
- Confirm the pilot scope and approval criteria before committing to rollout.