Introduction
Choosing a third-party archiving solution can be a difficult process as there are many factors and influences involved. Each organisation is different, with different requirements, different sizes of teams, and different levels of internal expertise and knowledge. This can mean that multiple stakeholders are to be considered in the process of selection to ensure they have access. What’s more, in the pharmaceutical industry, data integrity, security, and compliance are paramount. Therefore, making informed decisions about a digital archiving vendor is crucial.
The overarching objective of this guide is to provide a structured framework that allows organisations to evaluate potential third-party archiving solutions based on their specific requirements. In utilising this guide, organisations can ensure they select a solution that aligns with their unique needs while mitigating risks and maximising the long-term preservation of their valuable data.
Most of the time, there are a lot of stakeholders involved in the decision process, as many of them will need to use the archive in one way or another. This document provides lists of requirements from different departmental perspectives that all equally tie into the decision. Thereby, this assessment guide acts as a comprehensive needs analysis that will assist in determining the most suitable vendor.
This guide is not a “one-size-fits-all" framework, it needs to be adapted to your specific organisation. Therefore, this guide is designed to be customised based on your requirements. We have, where appropriate, added guidance for customising this guide to suit your needs.
At the end of this evaluation process, you will be able to make a confident decision on which third party archiving solution best suits your requirements.
We've created a ready to use version of this assessment guide (in excel) that can be sent directly to potential vendors to fill out.
Download here.
Tips for using this Guide:
- Create a scoring method: On questions you decide are important to your organisation, implement a scoring method whereby you rank the importance of the answer you may be given. This way, if multiple solutions are able to give similar answers, you can use the scoring method to determine which solution is stronger in important fields.
- Use this guide in post-purchase evaluation: After using your selected solution for several months (or perhaps when it comes time for renewal), revisit this guide and your scores to evaluate whether the solution has met your predefined requirements.