Vendor Evaluation & Due Diligence
Structured framework for evaluating software vendors, service providers, and technology partners before signing contracts.
What This Does
Runs a systematic vendor assessment across 8 dimensions:
- Financial Stability — Revenue signals, funding, burn rate indicators
- Technical Fit — Architecture compatibility, integration complexity, API quality
- Security & Compliance — SOC2, ISO27001, GDPR, data residency
- Pricing Analysis — TCO modeling, hidden costs, contract traps
- Reference Check — Customer sentiment, G2/Capterra scores, churn signals
- Support Quality — SLA terms, response times, escalation paths
- Vendor Lock-in Risk — Data portability, switching costs, proprietary dependencies
- Roadmap Alignment — Product direction vs. your needs over 12-36 months
How to Use
Tell your agent:
- "Evaluate [vendor] for [use case]"
- "Compare [vendor A] vs [vendor B] for our [need]"
- "Run due diligence on [company] before we sign"
The agent will research the vendor using web search and produce a scored evaluation report with a GO / CAUTION / NO-GO recommendation.
Scoring
Each dimension scores 1-10. Overall score is weighted:
- Technical Fit & Security: 2x weight
- Pricing & Lock-in: 1.5x weight
- All others: 1x weight
Thresholds:
- 75+ = GO (proceed with negotiation)
- 50-74 = CAUTION (address gaps before committing)
- Below 50 = NO-GO (find alternatives)
Output Format
## Vendor Evaluation: [Name]
**Use Case:** [What you're buying]
**Date:** [Assessment date]
**Overall Score:** [X/100] — [GO/CAUTION/NO-GO]
### Dimension Scores
| Dimension | Score | Key Finding |
|-----------|-------|-------------|
| Financial Stability | X/10 | ... |
| Technical Fit | X/10 | ... |
| ... | ... | ... |
### Critical Risks
- [List dealbreakers or major concerns]
### Negotiation Leverage
- [Points to push on in contract talks]
### Recommendation
[Final verdict with reasoning]
Instructions for Agent
When asked to evaluate a vendor:
- Search the web for: "[vendor] reviews", "[vendor] pricing", "[vendor] SOC2", "[vendor] alternatives", "[vendor] G2 reviews"
- Check for recent funding/layoff news
- Look at their API documentation quality
- Find contract terms and SLA information
- Score each dimension with evidence
- Produce the evaluation report
- Flag any dealbreakers prominently
Be direct. Companies hide bad news — dig for it. A vendor that looks perfect probably isn't. Find the tradeoffs.
For comparative evaluations, use the same framework side-by-side with a clear winner per dimension.
1---2name: vendor-evaluation-due-diligence3description: Structured framework for evaluating software vendors, service providers, and technology partners before signing contracts.4---5
6# Vendor Evaluation & Due Diligence
7
8Structured framework for evaluating software vendors, service providers, and technology partners before signing contracts.
9
10## What This Does
11
12Runs a systematic vendor assessment across 8 dimensions:
13
141. **Financial Stability** — Revenue signals, funding, burn rate indicators
152. **Technical Fit** — Architecture compatibility, integration complexity, API quality
163. **Security & Compliance** — SOC2, ISO27001, GDPR, data residency
174. **Pricing Analysis** — TCO modeling, hidden costs, contract traps
185. **Reference Check** — Customer sentiment, G2/Capterra scores, churn signals
196. **Support Quality** — SLA terms, response times, escalation paths
207. **Vendor Lock-in Risk** — Data portability, switching costs, proprietary dependencies
218. **Roadmap Alignment** — Product direction vs. your needs over 12-36 months
22
23## How to Use
24
25Tell your agent:
26- "Evaluate [vendor] for [use case]"
27- "Compare [vendor A] vs [vendor B] for our [need]"
28- "Run due diligence on [company] before we sign"
29
30The agent will research the vendor using web search and produce a scored evaluation report with a GO / CAUTION / NO-GO recommendation.
31
32## Scoring
33
34Each dimension scores 1-10. Overall score is weighted:
35- Technical Fit & Security: 2x weight
36- Pricing & Lock-in: 1.5x weight
37- All others: 1x weight
38
39**Thresholds:**
40- 75+ = GO (proceed with negotiation)
41- 50-74 = CAUTION (address gaps before committing)
42- Below 50 = NO-GO (find alternatives)
43
44## Output Format
45
46```
47## Vendor Evaluation: [Name]
48**Use Case:** [What you're buying]
49**Date:** [Assessment date]
50**Overall Score:** [X/100] — [GO/CAUTION/NO-GO]
51
52### Dimension Scores
53| Dimension | Score | Key Finding |
54|-----------|-------|-------------|
55| Financial Stability | X/10 | ... |
56| Technical Fit | X/10 | ... |
57| ... | ... | ... |
58
59### Critical Risks
60- [List dealbreakers or major concerns]
61
62### Negotiation Leverage
63- [Points to push on in contract talks]
64
65### Recommendation
66[Final verdict with reasoning]
67```
68
69## Instructions for Agent
70
71When asked to evaluate a vendor:
72
731. Search the web for: "[vendor] reviews", "[vendor] pricing", "[vendor] SOC2", "[vendor] alternatives", "[vendor] G2 reviews"
742. Check for recent funding/layoff news
753. Look at their API documentation quality
764. Find contract terms and SLA information
775. Score each dimension with evidence
786. Produce the evaluation report
797. Flag any dealbreakers prominently
80
81Be direct. Companies hide bad news — dig for it. A vendor that looks perfect probably isn't. Find the tradeoffs.
82
83For comparative evaluations, use the same framework side-by-side with a clear winner per dimension.
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