User:Shawndouglas/sandbox/sublevel4

LIMS Requirement Development Is More Than a Laboratory Wish List

How should labs develop their requirements?

1. Detail the existing information management system or processes (even if they are manual).
2. Define the associated information and data, and classify their criticality.
3. Identify current and previous information management policy and tools, as well as their effectiveness.
4. Identify the regulations, standards, and best practices affecting your laboratory and its digital assets.
5. Identify the laboratory's various practical workflows and detail how information management tools intersect and improve the workflows.
6. Perform a gap analysis of the current information management system or processes (i.e., define what needs are currently not being met).
7. Declare and describe objectives based on the outcomes of the above assessments, highlighting how you envision identified gaps should be filled.
8. Select and refine requirements based on the assessments, objectives, and policies highlighted prior, identifying a handful of the most critical requirements.

What other considerations should a lab make with their LIMS requirements?

While a laboratory can call up LIMS vendors, ask for a demo, and compare notes on the lab's requirements, it may make sense for the lab to issue a formal request for information (RFI) or request for proposal (RFP) and have major vendors approach the lab with how they can meet its needs. The RFI and RFP are traditional means towards soliciting bidding interest in an organization's project, typically containing the organization's specific requirements and vital questions that the bidder should be able to effectively answer. However, even if your organization chooses to do most of the investigative work of researching and approaching LIMS vendors, turning to a key set of questions typically found in an RFI is extremely valuable for "fact finding."

An RFI is an ideal means for learning more about a potential solution and how it can solve your problems, or for when you're not even sure how to solve your problem yet. However, the RFI should not be unduly long and tedious to complete for prospective vendors; it should be concise, direct, and honest. This means not only presenting a clear and humble vision of your own organization and its goals, but also asking just the right amount of questions to allow potential vendors to demonstrate their expertise and provide a clearer picture of who they are. Some take a technical approach to an RFI, using dense language and complicated spreadsheets for fact finding. However, vendors appreciate a slightly more inviting approach, with practical questions or requests that are carefully chosen because they matter to you. Remember, however, that an RFI is not meant to answer all of your questions. The RFI is meant as a means to help narrow down your search to a few quality candidates while learning more about each other. Once the pool of potential MSSPs is narrowed down, more pointed questions can be asked to ensure those providers meet your needs.

Be cognizant, however, that there may be no LIMS vendor that can meet each and every need of your lab. Your lab will have to make important decisions about which requirements are non-negotiable and which are more flexible. The vendors you engage with may be able to provide realistic advice in this regard, based upon your lab's requirements and their past experience with labs in your industry. As such, those vendors with real-world experience developing systems for laboratories in your industry may have a strong leg up on other vendors, as they can make informed comments about your lab’s requirements based on their past experiences.

If you have zero experience developing an RFI, you may want to first seek out various example RFIs on the internet, as well as some basic advice articles on the topic. Some websites may provide templates to examine for further details.