What should you consider when choosing a Managed File Transfer product? As well as matching technical features against your requirements, it is really important to look at the lifecycle of the product you are evaluating.

As with everything in life there is a natural evolution or life cycle that every product will go through i.e. inception, growth, maturity to decline. Of course the length of time in each phase will vary based on a number of different factors like marketing, on-going product development, customer input and a strategic commitment to R&D.  Under these conditions a product’s growth can continue for a long time. But there are some things that you can help identify a product that is in or near the declining phase of its lifecycle.

product life cycle

10 things to look at when evaluating an MFT solution

  1. No product development road map.
  2. Road map is primarily made up of sustaining fixes.
  3. No big enhancements being released in the near term i.e. 6 – 8 months.
  4. No big enhancement(s) released in the last year i.e. reporting, dashboards, etc.
  5. Not up to date with the basic table stakes of MFT functionality. This could also apply to an immature product as well. But if a product has been around for some years and is lacking some basic MFT functionality that should be a big red flag.
  6. Declining Sales. It is easier find out this information for publicly traded companies than private ones.
  7. Little or no marketing promotions for the product(s) you are evaluating.
  8. Still using Old Technology Paradigms, ie: a product doesn’t have the most up to date versions of technology such as encryption algorithms, protocols etc.
  9. Little or no R&D infrastructure.
  10. Based on the competitive dynamics of the MFT industry, if company is not electing to employ one of three strategies: Maintain, Defend, or Innovate your product is in the declining phase of its lifecycle.

Your solution will become a critical component of your organisation’s business workflow, so it’s important to know you are choosing a committed vendor.

We work with some of the industry’s leading vendors. In addition to having a close relationship with them, we understand their position in the marketplace, where their product roadmaps are headed and can help to steer you towards the most appropriate technology for your requirements.  Contact us to see how we can help with your file transfer project.

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