The place you work out what to buy

A bosberaad is the offsite where a leadership team goes away, argues it out, and comes back having decided something. South African business and government both use the word, and it is exactly what this site is for: the place you go to work out which software to buy, before you commit the budget.

It is pronounced boss beh raad. Non Afrikaans speakers always wonder, so we may as well answer it here.

We started this because the existing options did not work for buyers in this country. International review sites list products that have no South African VAT handling and no local bank feeds, and rank them above products that do. Local resellers write comparisons that happen to conclude you should buy what they sell. Neither is useful when you are the person who has to explain the decision to a board.

So we built the thing we wanted: 39 products assessed against the same local checklist, 8 099 verified reviews from people who actually use them, and prices quoted in rand with the VAT basis stated.

Every product is rated on ease of use, value for money, customer service, functionality and an overall judgement. Star ratings come from verified user reviews and nothing else. Our editorial view shapes what we write, not the average.

Ranking is a separate question. We use a Bayesian weighted average rather than a raw star average, because a raw average lets a product with eleven reviews at 4.8 outrank one with four hundred at 4.4, and that is not useful to a buyer. Each product is blended towards the platform mean, weighted by its review volume.

The full method, including how reviews are verified and how corrections are handled, is on the editorial policy page.

This is what separates us from a generic directory. Every product is measured against the statutory requirements that apply to a South African business, and where a product fails one we say so plainly, including where it is otherwise excellent.

• Accounting: VAT201 at 15% with correct standard, zero rated and exempt treatment, SARS eFiling transfer, bank feeds across Absa, FNB, Standard Bank, Nedbank and Capitec, and accountant access.
• Payroll: EMP201, EMP501, IRP5 and IT3(a), e@syFile validation, UIF, SDL, ETI on the correct sliding scale, BCEA leave and the ACB payment file.
• HR: BCEA annual, sick and family responsibility leave, Employment Equity reporting, skills development submissions and POPIA handling of special personal information.
• CRM and project management: the real rand cost including exchange rate exposure and seat bands, local support hours, POPIA consent handling and actual adoption.