Solution Evaluation
What to know
Solution evaluation decides whether a delivered solution is actually delivering value. Know the flow: measure solution performance, analyze measures, assess limitations, and recommend actions. Measures should tie to business goals and acceptance criteria, not merely to whether features were built. Baselines allow before-and-after comparison; KPIs need clear definitions, data sources, and owners. Limitations may sit in the solution, the enterprise (processes, skills, culture), or the operating environment. Recommendations can include tuning, training, process change, or replacing the solution. Evaluation is ongoing, not a single post-implementation gate.
Traps
A common trap is evaluating only against documented requirements and declaring success even when business value is absent. Another is attributing all performance problems to the solution when enterprise constraints are the cause. Watch for measures without baselines or with undefined data collection. Also distinguish solution evaluation from requirements verification: passing tests does not prove value.
Worked example
A new CRM meets all requirements but sales cycle time is unchanged. Measure baseline and current cycle time, analyze adoption data, and find that sales staff still use spreadsheets. The limitation is enterprise adoption, not the software; the recommendation is training and process reinforcement, not immediate replacement.
Rule of thumb
Measure against the business goal with a baseline, investigate causes before recommending a fix, and track whether the recommendation actually improves performance.