Answer
Ask for specifics rather than assurances. Request the last two or three years of release notes and compare what actually shipped against what was promised, then ask how many of the vendor's IBM i customers went live in the past 18 months versus how many are simply renewing an older install. A roadmap heavy on security patches and PTF maintenance but light on new integration points, API coverage, or UI investment is a signal the product is being sustained, not advanced.
Partner depth deserves the same scrutiny as the vendor itself. Ask how many certified consultants exist outside the vendor's own staff, what happens if your primary consultant leaves mid-project, and whether local support exists for your specific modules. During the evaluation, submit a real support ticket, not a sales question, and time the response against the SLA the vendor quotes. Buyers should also ask directly whether the product still runs primarily through 5250 green-screen sessions or has moved meaningfully toward browser-based and API-driven access, since that answer says a lot about where engineering investment is actually going.