qualify
The champion is not the buying committee
Map champion, economic buyer, users, procurement, and security.
Roles that matter
Champion wants you to win. Economic buyer owns the budget. Users live in the workflow. Procurement is the PO path. Security/IT can block install or data access.
Filled scorecard example (fictional)
Names and company are invented for teaching — not a real deal.
| Name | Role | Attitude | Cares about | Next action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Priya Shah | Champion (Dir. Warehouse Ops) | Positive | Cycle time, headcount pressure | Weekly 30-min; owns user intros |
| Marcus Lee | Economic buyer (VP Supply Chain) | Neutral | Payback < 9 months, risk to service levels | Midpoint + final; send ROI draft week 3 |
| Elena Ruiz | Power user (Shift lead) | Negative | Extra clicks, training time | Shadow one shift; co-author exception list |
| Tom Nguyen | Procurement | Neutral | MSA, vendor onboarding, PO timing | Kick off vendor packet week 1 |
| Sam Okonkwo | IT Security | Negative | SSO, data residency, SOC2 | Security questionnaire due week 2 |
Convert negatives and neutrals
Negative users often convert when they feel they are contributing. Neutral procurement and security convert by a documented path started early.
Ideal case
When the champion is also the economic buyer, cycles shorten. Still map users and gatekeepers.
FAQ
- Who is the economic buyer?
- The person who owns the budget and can write the check — sometimes also the champion.
- When do I map procurement?
- Before the commercial decision — ideally in parallel with the pilot from week one.
Claims and patterns on this page are paraphrased from practitioner session notes and the Startup Bible pilots page. See Sources.