# 15. What evidence would make you recommend “buy nothing”—and what must be written into a purchase if we proceed?


**Interview objective:** Turn the findings into a defensible decision, including refusal or a narrower contract.

**Put to:** Tyler Heaps, Sarah Rudd, Daniel Geey and the club’s final approvers.

**Why it matters to buyers:** Our proposed decision standard requires the evidence for purchase to survive the same scrutiny as the evidence for cancellation. Neither a persuasive expert nor a strong aggregate score should override a failed essential requirement.

**A strong answer should cover:**

- The specific gap closed and the evidence supporting that conclusion.
- Cases where the incumbent is sufficient, the sample is inconclusive or internal work is the better route.
- Non-negotiables that cannot be averaged away by attractive features.
- Commercial commitments tied to the tested scope, rather than the demonstration’s broader capabilities.
- Remedies for material coverage loss, delivery failures or unfulfilled implementation commitments, subject to negotiation and legal review.
- Exit, export and continuity arrangements before dependency grows.

**Sharp follow-up:** Which unresolved item would stop you signing today, and what exact evidence would change your answer?

**Request this artefact:** A one-page decision memo with the recommendation, baseline, incremental findings, failed gates, untested areas, costs, responsibilities and review date. Separate “add now” from “reconsider when a promised feature becomes available”.

Proposed expert interview; not yet conducted. No expert quotation is attributed.

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