Excerpt from: ITAD Best Practices: Managing Customer Agreements and Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
Minneapolis – Jan 2026
by Josh Feldman, VP, Professional Services
Why this matters
Whether or not you’ve already addressed resource constraints, every ITAD business still faces the same reality: you need to make commitments, record them clearly, and deliver them consistently.
That’s true for winning deals, and even more true for retention. As CompTIA notes, acquiring a new customer can cost significantly more than retaining an existing one.
The common trap is thinking the SLA itself solves the problem. It doesn’t.
If the deliverables in the SLA:
- aren’t aligned with company goals,
- aren’t scoped correctly, or
- aren’t entered into a system that creates direction at each step,
then success depends on manual follow-up (assuming that’s even feasible).
The best practice starts with a consistent sales pitch, proper project assessment, and systems that record commitments and help teams execute them.
A) Align sales with company goals and real capabilities
Sales teams should enter every customer conversation knowing what your company is prepared to offer, and what it is not.
Setting realistic expectations on turnaround time and transparency is not a “nice to have.” It’s what prevents downstream failure.
Checklist items:
- Establish internal clarity on services offered, transparency expectations, pricing, and reasonable delivery timelines (based on projected volumes).
- Hold regular sales meetings to reinforce why SLAs matter in the sales process — and ensure promises are consistent with goals and capabilities.
- Create a feedback loop from sales so leadership stays aware of changing customer demands and can adjust offerings accordingly.
Advanced tip: Use historical transaction data to set a baseline
Evaluate past processing data by material type/service to estimate average processing times. These baselines help you commit to timeframes more precisely by comparing:
- expected job scope
- current workload
- historical averages
B) Train sales to properly assess job requirements and scope
Commitments should be made based on both capabilities and an accurate understanding of what the job actually requires.
Sales is closest to customer requirements. If scope is unclear, delivery becomes guesswork, and the SLA becomes a liability.
Checklist items:
- Train sales to assess and scope projects appropriately (depth depends on deal complexity).
- Create a checklist of supplemental questions to ensure critical requirements are captured before finalizing an agreement.
- Track estimated versus actual work performed to improve scoping accuracy.
- Improve performance with training, process updates, and accountability based on results.
C) Put commitments into a system that drives execution
There must be a centralized, connected process where commitments and requirements are entered, visible, and used to direct work.
The goal is simple: ensure sales can communicate requirements to operations and billing/reporting teams clearly and in time, including what needs to happen and by when.
Depending on your organization, this can be supported by project management software or a more robust ERP. The key is that the system enables:
- recording requirements
- notifying managers and staff of work order requirements
- alerts for what needs processing by when
- insight to help managers prioritize work
- enforcement of required services
- completion tracking
Strong systems don’t just improve delivery today. They create the foundation for new services and competitive advantage, because you can confidently commit to what others can’t.
Checklist item:
Evaluate your current resources, processes, and systems to determine whether:
- basic project management tooling is sufficient,
- upgrading existing systems is feasible, or
- a purpose-built ITAD ERP is the fastest route to consistency at scale.
In closing
Makor Solutions has supported ITAD, reseller, and e-waste organizations since 2003. Through Makor ERP and consulting services, teams strengthen their ability to make commitments they can deliver, and to scale that delivery as expectations rise.
About Makor ERP™
Makor ERP™ is the leading enterprise software for ITAD, recycling, and refurbishment operations, purpose-built to deliver full lifecycle visibility, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence.
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