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AI Vendor Evaluation Scorecard.
Stop evaluating vendors by demo quality. Rate your two shortlisted vendors across 7 due-diligence dimensions and see which one wins, and where each carries hidden risk.
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Vetting AI Vendors Beyond the Demo
VS
Dimension
Vendor A
Vendor B
Integration FitHow well does it integrate with your existing systems and workflows?1 = requires full rebuild · 5 = plug-and-play
Data GovernanceVendor's data handling, compliance posture, and privacy protections.1 = poor / opaque · 5 = excellent / transparent
Total Cost of OwnershipAll-in cost over 3 years: licensing, implementation, support, and maintenance.1 = very expensive · 5 = most affordable
PortabilityEase of exiting the vendor and migrating data and workflows elsewhere.1 = deeply locked-in · 5 = fully portable
Support QualityQuality of implementation support, SLAs, and ongoing customer success.1 = poor · 5 = excellent
Time to DeployHow quickly can you realistically go live and start seeing value?1 = 12+ months · 5 = weeks
Proof of ValueStrength of references, case studies, and documented results in similar contexts.1 = no references · 5 = strong peer evidence
Live Comparison
Vendor A
–
out of 100
VS
Vendor B
–
out of 100
Why These 7 Dimensions
The criteria that separate a good vendor choice from a costly mistake.
Integration, TCO & Speed
Why it matters
- Integration Fit is the hidden multiplier on every other cost. A technically capable product that requires 12 months of integration work to deploy is not a low-cost option.
- TCO is always understated in vendor proposals. Licensing is typically 40–60% of all-in cost. The rest is implementation labour, training, maintenance, and governance overhead.
- Time to Deploy matters because value not yet realised is value lost. A 6-month deployment difference has compounding ROI consequences.
Governance, Portability & Risk
Why it matters
- Data Governance scores below 3 are a legal and reputational risk, not just a technical preference. PDPA, GDPR, and sector-specific regulations make vendor data practices a board-level concern.
- Portability scores below 3 mean you are signing a long-term contract even if the paper says 12 months. Data lock-in, API dependencies, and proprietary formats all compound over time.
Support & Proof of Value
Why it matters
- Support Quality is where most vendor relationships fail post-signature. The account executive who closed the deal is rarely the person handling your production incidents at 2am.
- Proof of Value at score 1–2 means you are being asked to be a reference customer, not joining one. Ask for 3 references from organisations similar to yours before scoring above 3.