7 Tips for Understanding the Total Cost of Ownership When Acquiring Applications

7. So far these expenses have focused on vendors’ costs and haven’t addressed planning for internal expenses. Be careful, because internal expenses are usually less budgeted for and can lead to project overruns very quickly.

Travel expenses are one example of internal expenses to potentially budget for. It’s often necessary to travel to and from vendors’ facilities, as well as travel expenses for the vendor to be on-site. These expenses can be as high as 15 percent to 18 percent of the total services for the project. Be aware, some vendors charge a travel fee if the travel is over a certain number of hours or they charge cost plus 2 percent to 3 percent.