A software license agreement checklist should include a variety of traits that protect your business interests. For instance, the medical industry constantly purchases and updates software to operate efficiently and enhance the quality of care for patients. Software agreements are vital for the following departments:

  • Electronic medical records
  • Billing
  • Other forms of software

Vendors usually present the provider with a software license agreement to provide various services. It’s worth noting that the licensing of newer software may call for the purchase of more hardware. Hardware requirements need to be part of your inquires with vendors so you can accurately assess the total cost of a project.

Software Agreement Elements

It is usually assumed that the three core elements that need to be discussed in a software agreement are price, performance, and scope. Scope entails the following:

  • Functionality from the software
  • The amount you pay for the software license itself and the maintenance servicing
  • Performance pertaining to a software’s ability to perform in adherence with the specification provided in the agreement

Before undertaking software services and licensing initiatives, it is vital that you establish expectations in accordance with the aforementioned elements. Once you’ve established your standards, you can ask questions pertaining to the vendor’s experience, software functionality, and the budget and timespan of the project.

Before negotiating the agreement with a vendor, you need to consider how you want to implement the technology and how it should be tested. The implementation involves the integration and establishment of the new technology.

Software License Descriptions

There are a number of factors that you need to consider, such as the qualification of the vendor installing the software and the support and training that a vendor is willing to give you. The agreement should detail the necessary steps in effective installation and the tasks necessary regarding implementation, including the duties of each party to complete such tasks within the timetable.

You should also require that the vendor remove anyone from the project you’re having difficulty working with, and you should restrict vendors from reassigning or replacing project members during the implementation phase. You should also convey to the vendor that you need a delivery schedule that establishes critical goal dates, and the issuance of payment for licensing fees stemming from the adherence to that schedule. This would establish expectations before agreement negotiations take place.

Contract Negotiations

Before negotiating contracts with vendors, you should consider how you wish to implement such technologies, including how it will be tested. The implementations phase pertains to the establishment and implementations of the new technology.

It is also vital in the phase that you reach a general consensus regarding which duties will be your own and the remaining responsibilities belonging to the vendor. Vendors must usually be held responsible for installing software into your system, while giving you the necessary customizations necessary to ensure efficient use of the software. You must also be ready to assist as necessary and provide the necessary access to your company information.

You must also negotiate to get additional service integrations at fixed rates per hour during the terms established in the software agreement so you can protect yourself from price hikes if you need more work to be completed. A good example of more work would include any changes needed for your operating system.

Testing Acceptance

Customers and vendors undertake testing acceptance to find out if the software adheres to the standards established in the contract. It is also common to have acceptance tests. The first is allowing the software to go live. During the pre-stage, the software is tested under various conditions. The second phase entails the testing of the software during its live period.

Moreover, the post-live stage should last a single billing cycle and a vital payment should be not be issued until the test is successful. The vendor must also know what your expectations are in regards to acceptance testing, including your intention that the agreement will offer the return of all fees if the software does not pass your standards.

Once the problems have been properly addressed and you select the proper vendor, the vendor usually provides the customer the service agreement. You should also know that vendors expect customers to negotiate from the draft that the vendor presents.

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