>>I was asked to find out whether there exist z/OS based products from IBM >>or 3rd parties that provide similar content & functionality. >Yes, reasonable priced. Tell us what products do you want to replace. >BTW: From my experience it is often enough to find an alternative >product and tell about it to your current supplier. The prices can >shrink dramatically.
I respectfully disagree that telling a current supplier is often enough. It might be on one occasion (might), but it's not a strategy likely to work the next time around. And some suppliers are very good at making you think you've got a "dramatically" lower price -- because their original quoted price is dramatically ridiculous. Also, the terms and conditions, most particularly the price attached to growth, are critical. There's a growing trend -- just look at the airline industry -- to obfuscate price through bewildering terms and conditions. Receiving a fair price on any product requires a *credible* market alternative in *your* particular situation. Things that bring credibility to the discussion: - a project actually underway to switch from one vendor to another - past, recent defection to another vendor - respect for functional innovation (i.e. that you care about value, not just price) - knowledge about the product, the vendor's business, your business requirements, etc. - seriousness (e.g. a long term commitment, growth) - timeliness Timeliness means you should be having this discussion about 12 to 16 months before your contract renewal. Here's where you can start within the halls of IBM: http://www.ibm.com/software/solutions/softwaremigration/sps.html But the above advice applies regardless of vendor. - - - - - Timothy F. Sipples Consulting Enterprise Software Architect, z9/zSeries IBM Japan, Ltd. E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
