While companies continue to increase their purchases of IT solutions, sometimes they bite their fingers. 56% of organizations regret many of the major IT purchases made over the past two years, according to a Gartner survey of 1,120 decision-makers involved in the purchasing and evaluation process in Europe, the USA and Asia. Only 13% of companies do not express any regret with regard to the solutions purchased.
Long, complex and frustrating purchasing processes
According to the same survey, 73% of buyers with significant regrets did not start rolling out the product they purchased. Thus, more than the use of solutions, it is the purchasing process that frustrates organizations, according to Gartner, which sees the consequence of purchasing procedures becoming more and more complex and constituting real challenges for organizations.
Thus, the companies that express more regret are those that took 7 to 10 months to make their purchase. “Slow buying decisions can lead to frustrated teams, wasted time and resources, and potentially even slowed business growth,” said Gartner analyst Hank Barnes.
Optimal client or to avoid?
While 67% of people involved in technology purchases are not part of IT, Gartner recommends that suppliers better understand what type of customer they are dealing with. Teams expressing the most regret tend to disagree on goals, be hesitant, and have difficulty dealing with occasional decision makers (see chart).
According to Gartner, it’s therefore a matter of sales teams identifying optimal customers who follow rigorous decision-making practices and put in the effort to make decisions with confidence. And to avoid, on the contrary, those who lack consensus and discipline in decision-making, clarity in internal processes, or even those who resist change or adopt a tactical vision of technology. “There will be a big gray area in between that you have to think about before committing to pursuing the opportunity. It’s about improving your chances and allocating resources and investments efficiently,” adds Hank Barnes.