Tuesday, October 12, 2004
[MANAGEMENT]Five steps to a successful consulting engagement
Five steps to a successful consulting engagement
By Scott Withrow, Builder.com | Thursday, October 7 2004 4:50 PM
Many application development managers are seeking help outside their organizations due to emerging or disruptive technologies, increasing demand on development resources, processing re-engineering, tightening budgets, and shorter timelines.
For the most part, application development managers call upon either a professional consulting firm or an independent contractor to help them meet these requirements. Deciding which option to choose requires a careful analysis of the project requirements and the consultant's skills. Several touch points to consider when making your decision include a thorough risk and cost analysis and the consultant's availability, track record, experience, and qualifications.
Most organizations prefer to do business with a limited group of contractors and/or consultancies to which they have an equitable relationship. Others opt to bargain-shop for the best available consultant that meets a given set of standards.
Either approach has its drawbacks and benefits; the correct approach differs per your circumstances. Consider the following list of preventative measures that you can take to help uncover or deter issues before they have a meaningful impact on your project's goals:
1.
Verify the candidate's consulting/contracting resources:
It's not unusual for a sales lead to misrepresent (either intentionally or unintentionally) a vendor group's skills and capabilities. Therefore, ask for a list of prior clients that are of similar size or industry, or are recipients of similar projects. Then, contact the clients and ask about the success of their engagement. Another option is to request a resume list of the key individuals who would work on your project and then do a similar background solicitation.
2.
Fully define the project:
It's amazing how many consulting engagements begin without a developed project plan; this is a disservice to both you and the contractor. The project plan should include a complete and documented charter, vision and scope, work breakdown, deliverable list, engagement schedule with milestones, defined team roles and responsibilities, change management plan, communication plan, quality assurance and testing plan, and implementation plan.
3.
Perform project oversight:
Whether the project manager is internal or from a consulting group, it's crucial for the individual to be involved with managing the project from the oversight point of view. Typically, this requires that he/she ensures that the project is on schedule, finances are accurate and on target, and issues are being resolved. The key is a proactive partnership approach with the consulting team or individual.
4.
Communicate effectively:
In concert with performing project oversight, proper communication between the consulting team and your organization is necessary for project or engagement success. It's your responsibility to ensure this occurs regularly.
5.
Refer to service levels and contract language:
As a last resort, you may have to fall back on the contracted language--if it exists. A frequent mistake many organizations make is to engage services without a proper contract. This isn't the place for generic language. Be specific and identify clearly the exact expectations your organization and the engagement requires. Key elements include a detailed statement of work, exclusions, arbitration, penalties, and service levels.
Though each organization's relationship with a consultant involves a number of variables, there's one element that remains constant: A successful consulting engagement requires work on both the part of the external resource and the application development manager.
Scott Withrow has more than 20 years of IT experience, including IT management, Web development management, and internal consulting application analysis.
By Scott Withrow, Builder.com | Thursday, October 7 2004 4:50 PM
Many application development managers are seeking help outside their organizations due to emerging or disruptive technologies, increasing demand on development resources, processing re-engineering, tightening budgets, and shorter timelines.
For the most part, application development managers call upon either a professional consulting firm or an independent contractor to help them meet these requirements. Deciding which option to choose requires a careful analysis of the project requirements and the consultant's skills. Several touch points to consider when making your decision include a thorough risk and cost analysis and the consultant's availability, track record, experience, and qualifications.
Most organizations prefer to do business with a limited group of contractors and/or consultancies to which they have an equitable relationship. Others opt to bargain-shop for the best available consultant that meets a given set of standards.
Either approach has its drawbacks and benefits; the correct approach differs per your circumstances. Consider the following list of preventative measures that you can take to help uncover or deter issues before they have a meaningful impact on your project's goals:
1.
Verify the candidate's consulting/contracting resources:
It's not unusual for a sales lead to misrepresent (either intentionally or unintentionally) a vendor group's skills and capabilities. Therefore, ask for a list of prior clients that are of similar size or industry, or are recipients of similar projects. Then, contact the clients and ask about the success of their engagement. Another option is to request a resume list of the key individuals who would work on your project and then do a similar background solicitation.
2.
Fully define the project:
It's amazing how many consulting engagements begin without a developed project plan; this is a disservice to both you and the contractor. The project plan should include a complete and documented charter, vision and scope, work breakdown, deliverable list, engagement schedule with milestones, defined team roles and responsibilities, change management plan, communication plan, quality assurance and testing plan, and implementation plan.
3.
Perform project oversight:
Whether the project manager is internal or from a consulting group, it's crucial for the individual to be involved with managing the project from the oversight point of view. Typically, this requires that he/she ensures that the project is on schedule, finances are accurate and on target, and issues are being resolved. The key is a proactive partnership approach with the consulting team or individual.
4.
Communicate effectively:
In concert with performing project oversight, proper communication between the consulting team and your organization is necessary for project or engagement success. It's your responsibility to ensure this occurs regularly.
5.
Refer to service levels and contract language:
As a last resort, you may have to fall back on the contracted language--if it exists. A frequent mistake many organizations make is to engage services without a proper contract. This isn't the place for generic language. Be specific and identify clearly the exact expectations your organization and the engagement requires. Key elements include a detailed statement of work, exclusions, arbitration, penalties, and service levels.
Though each organization's relationship with a consultant involves a number of variables, there's one element that remains constant: A successful consulting engagement requires work on both the part of the external resource and the application development manager.
Scott Withrow has more than 20 years of IT experience, including IT management, Web development management, and internal consulting application analysis.
# posted by MiDBA @ 10/12/2004 09:25:00 AM 
