Decision Tool
AI Vendor Evaluation Framework
A vendor-agnostic set of questions that helps buyers avoid being sold—and pause when answers are vague.
What this helps you decide
- Evaluate vendors on operational reality, not demos.
- Clarify what happens when accuracy drops or behavior changes.
- Prevent lock-in surprises (data, workflows, governance).
When to use it
- You’re comparing chatbot/automation platforms.
- You want to understand ownership, auditing, and exit costs.
- You need a framework for procurement conversations.
The framework
Reliability and drift
- What happens when accuracy drops—how will we know, and what do we do?
- Can we monitor outcomes without reading every transcript?
- What changes when the underlying model changes?
Auditability and accountability
- How do you audit outputs and show why something happened?
- What logs are available, and for how long?
- Where do humans override, and how is that captured?
Data and portability
- Can we extract our data cleanly (inputs, outputs, configurations)?
- What data do you store, and where is it processed?
- Can we move to another system without redoing everything?
Workflow assumptions
- What assumptions does this tool make about our process and roles?
- Does it require us to change how we work, or can it adapt to our workflow?
- What work will still be manual after implementation?
Common mistakes
Common mistakes
- Buying based on a demo that doesn’t match your real data.
- Ignoring exit strategy until after year one.
- Assuming “AI features” automatically equal operational value.
What this does NOT answer
- Which vendor is best (that depends on your workflow and constraints).
- Whether you should automate a workflow that isn’t stable yet.