Dealership integration verification worksheet
Dealership integration verification worksheet: Document an integration at the product, object, direction, timing, fee and support level. It has 3 sections and 14 scored items to run against every provider. Start with the section on identity and applicability, then work down the list in order and write each answer on the sheet.
What this worksheet is for
Document an integration at the product, object, direction, timing, fee and support level. It carries 3 sections: identity and applicability, data movement, operations: totalling 14 scored items, printable or usable on screen, and it is meant to be run identically against every provider you are considering rather than filled in from memory after a demo. Its longest section, data movement, carries 5 of them; the worksheet is a structure for recording evidence, not a certification.
| Sections | 3 |
|---|---|
| Scored items | 14 |
| Format | Printable worksheet |
Identity and applicability
Data movement
Operations
How to use the dealership integration verification worksheet
An integration is claimed by two companies and proven by neither until it runs in your store. This worksheet asks both vendors the same questions, separately, and records both sets of answers side by side.
Start by inventorying the connection: which products and versions on each side, who builds and supports it, and whether it is native, a certified link or a custom project. Write down what the vendors say it does in one sentence each and see whether the two sentences agree.
Then map the data. List the objects that move, such as customers, vehicles, appointments, repair orders or deals, which fields are included, the direction of each flow and how often it runs.
Ask what happens when a record is edited on both sides, how errors are reported and who is told. Ask about fees: setup, monthly, per record and for changes later.
A connection that is free in the brochure can carry a price in the contract.
The last section is validation. Pick five real records, follow each across the connection and compare what arrives with what was sent.
Note what is missing, what is duplicated and how long it takes. Repeat the test after any upgrade on either side.
Assign one person to own the connection after launch, with a named contact at each vendor and a response time. Score each item while the vendors answer, and keep the finished worksheet with both contracts so a later failure can be traced to who promised what.
Keep the evidence from each test. A screenshot of the record on both sides, with the date, is worth more than a promise in an email.
When something fails, note which vendor owned the step, how long the fix took and whether the same fault came back. Those notes decide who you call next time.
Agree before launch how a failed sync is reported to your staff, so nobody discovers it from an angry customer. Review the connection again after every upgrade.
When the test is done, send both vendors the same one-page summary of what you saw, with the records, the dates and the differences, and ask each of them to confirm it in writing, so that the next argument about whose system caused a missing record starts from shared facts. Trust the record, not the claim.
Getting a comparable result
A worksheet only works if every candidate meets the same one.
| Use the same worksheet for every candidate | Run all 3 sections against every provider: identity and applicability, data movement and operations. Keep the order and the people in the room the same. A shortlist scored on different questions is not a comparison. |
|---|---|
| Score during, not after | 14 items run from "both companies, products, editions and versions" to "change and termination procedure". Mark each one while the provider is still in front of you. Memory after three demos favors the most recent presenter. |
| Record the evidence, not the impression | Data movement is the longest section, with 5 items. Against each one, write down what you were shown. Skip how it felt. "Demonstrated on our data" and "described verbally" are different findings. |
| Separate native, configured, partner and roadmap | For every capability, note which of those four it is. Demos blend them together. The difference decides who supports the feature when it breaks. |
| Bring the departments that will use it | Identity and applicability and Operations touch different people. Ask the ones who will live with each section to score it. A worksheet filled in only by management measures management's priorities. |
| Keep the completed copy | A finished copy of the dealership integration verification worksheet records what was promised during selection. Reach for it when the result does not match the demo. |
Operational diligence is all this worksheet organizes. No provider gets certified by it, and it replaces no dealer-specific legal, security, accounting, compliance or technical review.