Decision Desk · Issue 10 · complete public learning edition

What to Check Before Buying an AI Tool

Decide whether one exact AI product, tier, configuration, contract, implementation plan, and exit path can meet a defined organizational need better than the current process or a nonpurchase alternative.

Begin the issue Build the vendor dossier

Learning time90 minutes

Teaching12 cumulative lessons

InstrumentEvidence + contract

DefaultDo not advance

Procurement chain

Need → product → evidence → terms → operation → exit.

A vendor decision is only as sound as the current-process baseline, exact configuration evidence, binding documents, implementation conditions, and tested continuity plan.

Document the current process and alternatives

Gate

Freeze the exact product and configuration

Gate

Test claims, controls, access, and failure

Gate

Reconcile every binding term and total cost

Gate

Bound implementation and ongoing ownership

Gate

Prove export, deletion, exit, and continuity

Gate

Complete issue curriculum

Twelve cumulative lessons.

Use supplied fictional vendors only. Never enter confidential proposals, security materials, contract text, pricing, credentials, or personal data.

Issue 10

Start with the current process

Open

Document the existing workflow, people, volume, delays, errors, costs, workarounds, affected parties, and baseline before deciding that software is the answer.

Issue 10

Define the governed need

Open

State the specific outcome, authorized users, affected people, exclusions, measures, constraints, and nonpurchase alternatives. Avoid buying a category in search of a problem.

Issue 10

Identify the exact vendor and product

Open

Record the contracting entity, product, tier, version, region, hosting, enabled features, model providers, integrations, limits, and dependencies. Evidence for another tier or configuration does not transfer.

Issue 10

Test claims against real conditions

Open

Separate demonstrations, marketing, roadmaps, and certifications from current evidence. Test representative tasks, edge cases, failure behavior, accessibility, human effort, and disconfirming conditions.

Issue 10

Map data and model terms

Open

Trace collection, inputs, outputs, metadata, retention, deletion, location, training/reuse, model improvement, subprocessors, disclosure, legal demands, ownership, and use after termination.

Issue 10

Review security and operational resilience

Open

Evaluate identity, access, encryption, tenant separation, logging, vulnerability management, incidents, backups, recovery, service dependencies, change control, support, and customer responsibilities.

Issue 10

Evaluate accessibility and unequal impact

Open

Require product-specific evidence for keyboard, screen-reader, visual, hearing, cognitive, language, device, and accommodation access—and test with affected users rather than accepting a generic statement.

Issue 10

Calculate total cost and implementation burden

Open

Include licenses, usage, minimums, overages, integrations, migration, configuration, training, administration, review, support, accessibility remediation, security work, change management, and exit.

Issue 10

Negotiate the operating contract

Open

Align order form, terms, data terms, service levels, security exhibits, acceptable use, support, warranties, indemnity, liability, insurance, audit evidence, change notice, renewal, price protection, and termination.

Issue 10

Design the implementation decision

Open

Use a bounded evaluation with owners, baseline, acceptance criteria, affected-party input, data limits, support, incident paths, stop conditions, and a firewall against automatic rollout.

Issue 10

Prove exit, portability, and continuity

Open

Test usable export, format, completeness, deletion, verification, transition assistance, model/configuration portability, integration removal, credential revocation, replacement workflow, and operation during vendor failure.

Issue 10

Issue a procurement-specific disposition

Open

Do not advance, resolve gaps, run a bounded evaluation, or advance to qualified review. The dossier organizes evidence; it never selects, certifies, contracts for, or approves a vendor.

Critical stop conditions

The contract—not the demo—governs.

the current process, governed need, baseline, owner, or affected people are unresolved
the exact legal entity, product, tier, configuration, model, region, or integration is unknown
marketing, a demo, roadmap, or generic certification substitutes for current product evidence
data retention, training/reuse, subprocessors, deletion, or post-termination rights remain unclear
security, accessibility, human fallback, support, or incident responsibilities lack product-specific evidence
total cost omits implementation, oversight, remediation, usage growth, or exit labor
binding documents conflict with sales promises or permit material unilateral change without control
usable export, verified deletion, transition, credential revocation, or failure continuity is unproven

Interactive instrument · device-local

AI Vendor Evidence and Contract Dossier

Use fictional vendors only. Do not enter proposals, credentials, security reports, personal data, contract text, pricing marked confidential, or other protected information.

0/30procurement gates evaluated

A strong demo is not procurement evidence.
Evaluate the exact product, tier, configuration, terms, operating conditions, total cost, and exit—not the vendor category or sales narrative.

Fictional diligence domain	Evidence current	Exact tier/config	Terms binding	Failure tested	Owner assigned	Exit workable
Current process and product fit	Current process and product fit: Evidence current	Current process and product fit: Exact tier/config	Current process and product fit: Terms binding	Current process and product fit: Failure tested	Current process and product fit: Owner assigned	Current process and product fit: Exit workable
Data, privacy, and security	Data, privacy, and security: Evidence current	Data, privacy, and security: Exact tier/config	Data, privacy, and security: Terms binding	Data, privacy, and security: Failure tested	Data, privacy, and security: Owner assigned	Data, privacy, and security: Exit workable
Accessibility and affected people	Accessibility and affected people: Evidence current	Accessibility and affected people: Exact tier/config	Accessibility and affected people: Terms binding	Accessibility and affected people: Failure tested	Accessibility and affected people: Owner assigned	Accessibility and affected people: Exit workable
Price, implementation, and support	Price, implementation, and support: Evidence current	Price, implementation, and support: Exact tier/config	Price, implementation, and support: Terms binding	Price, implementation, and support: Failure tested	Price, implementation, and support: Owner assigned	Price, implementation, and support: Exit workable
Contract, exit, and continuity	Contract, exit, and continuity: Evidence current	Contract, exit, and continuity: Exact tier/config	Contract, exit, and continuity: Terms binding	Contract, exit, and continuity: Failure tested	Contract, exit, and continuity: Owner assigned	Contract, exit, and continuity: Exit workable

Current process, need, baseline, and affected peopleWhat problem exists now, for whom, at what frequency/cost/error rate? What nonpurchase options exist and what would displacement change?

Exact product, tier, configuration, integrations, and evidenceRecord legal entity, product/tier/version, enabled features, models/providers, hosting, integrations, limits, roadmap dependencies, evidence date, and contradictions.

Data, security, accessibility, and operational controlsRecord data flows, rights, retention, training/reuse, subprocessors, incidents, identity/access, testing, accessibility evidence, human fallback, support, and change notice.

Total cost, contract, implementation, exit, and continuityRecord all fees and labor, service levels, warranties, indemnity/liability, audit, termination, export/deletion, transition help, price/change controls, failure continuity, and owners.

Bounded dispositionDo not advance this vendorResolve evidence or contract gaps firstRun a time-bounded evaluation onlyAdvance to qualified organizational review

Restoring your local dossier…

Completion boundary

The educational product and reusable Vendor Evidence and Contract Dossier are complete.

Real procurement still requires current vendor evidence, exact configuration testing, affected-party input, qualified functional/security/privacy/accessibility/legal/financial review, negotiated binding documents, implementation and incident readiness, tested exit and continuity, budget authority, and organizational approval.

Return to the 12-month program Previous issue