Technical evaluations

A technology sale may need a trial or technical evaluation before the customer can decide. Relationship Owner records the evaluation environment, trial end date, active seats and security review against the opportunity. Those details give Sales Manager a defined evidence set to inspect when the evaluation is submitted.

The evaluation has its own revision and status. Draft work becomes Submitted for review, and approved evaluation work can proceed to Completed. This lifecycle describes the evaluation decision. The opportunity remains responsible for its separate commercial stage and eventual Won or Lost outcome.

• Evaluation context. Relationship Owner describes the environment and records the trial end. Active seats and the security review provide further context for the evaluation discussion. Agree how those observations are collected before treating them as decision evidence.
• Independent decision. Sales Manager reviews the submitted revision and can approve, reject or return the work. The decision needs to apply to the evidence actually submitted. Changed evaluation content requires the appropriate correction and renewed review.
• Controlled completion. Only approved evaluation work proceeds to Completed. The operation history records the actions taken against the evaluation, so the team can distinguish a submitted trial from an outcome that has been independently reviewed.

Define what the environment description should identify and what the team means by an active seat. Agree who provides the seat observation and the security review information. A written security assessment should identify the evidence and conclusion relevant to the customer; agree how the findings support the evaluation decision.

Decide the trial end interpretation using the operating time zone and the customer’s evaluation plan. Agree what supports approval and what a Return must explain to Relationship Owner. If trial information comes from a product or technical system, configure that connection during implementation and make its observation timing clear to the reviewer.

Rehearse a platform evaluation in a customer’s test environment. Relationship Owner records the planned trial end, observed active seats and the customer’s security review response. Submit the current revision with the supporting opportunity files available to Sales Manager.

Have the reviewer return the evaluation because the security explanation needs clarification. Correct the evidence and submit it through the agreed review path. Then approve the corrected revision and complete the evaluation. Attempt completion of a different, unapproved revision and confirm that it cannot proceed. Finally, inspect the opportunity: completing the evaluation must not itself record customer acceptance or change the opportunity to Won.

• Evaluation Review Inbox — Submitted evaluations waiting for an independent decision.
• Trials Ending — Open evaluations whose trial end falls within a week or has already passed.
• Evaluation Progress Board — Evaluation progress from Draft through reviewed completion.

Run technical evaluation review, then continue the commercial discussion through proposal and negotiation.