Managing the Relationship with a Contractor

Outsourcing technology projects can be a complicated, if often useful, process. (For more about when to outsource, see TechSoup's article, Determing When to Outsource.) The best way to ensure a good relationship with a contractor is to select the right one (see Techsoup's article, select the right one). An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure so don't cut corners in the selection process. Also make sure your contract is developed clearly and with the level of detail necessary to prevent any confusion. (See TechSoup's article,Writing a Contract, for details.)

No matter how good a job you do in selection, sometimes things go wrong. It's the nature of technology projects. Relationships between organizations and contractors can deteriorate quickly if the proper safeguards aren't put in place. In addition, organizations need to maintain a strong role in the process. As many nonprofits have learned, the consequences of handing over too much decision-making power to an outsider in the early stages of a project can be devastating, not to mention costly.

It is important to remember that technology vendors and consultants are merchants who are selling your organization something. While consultants have valuable expertise and skills and vendors have great products and services, don't forget that they make money from the sale. This tension between mission and money can get complicated and you need to remember that they usually have a financial stake in the solutions they propose.

Once you are in a working relationship there are several simple things to do to help manage the relationship with a contractor. These are not complicated things, but they do take time. Again, this is time spent that will save time and problems later.

First and foremost is the need for a person in the organization to function as the "point person" for communications, scheduling, and overall management of the contractor. This need not be a technology expert in your organization, but it should be a person who is a skilled project manager. It is even possible that this be a consultant who you have great trust in.

Be very careful if the point person is knowledgeable about the specifics of the technology. Though this can be beneficial and it seems to make sense, it can lead to some problems. For example, nonprofit staff often feel disconnected from technology decisions and complain that this makes it harder for them to adopt technology improvements. It is important that the contractor and the organization's point person not intentionally or unintentionally end up closing others out of discussions or decisions.

Some additional things to keep in mind that can help you deal with contractor management are:

• Consider having another person or a team in the organization that the organization's point person can go to for advice if needed on specific technology issues or other issues that arise.
• Make sure staff members affected by the project are consulted so they have a chance to give their input.
• For long projects, occasionally review the contract with the contractor to make sure things are on point as far as the schedule and work being completed.
• Set up regular check-in times with the contractor. Even if there is nothing notable happening on the project, it is important that the point person and contractor stay in constant touch. Even a ten minute "touch base" call on a weekly basis can eliminate developing problem.
• Make sure all meetings are documented.
• Make sure that everyone involved understands what is agreed to, when things are happening, and how. It always pays to summarize these points before meetings end so that there is complete clarity.

If you do all these things, then you'll minimize the chances for problems, and if they do arise, you and the contractor will be in a better position to resolve problems as a team.

Even all the best laid plans and good project management will not prevent some relationships from getting difficult. When they do, the first step is to identify what the problem is. Is it about personalities, the process, the product, or something else?

Without clarity on what the problem is, discussions can often get confusing and it is much more difficult to solve problems. This is work that should start with the contractor and the point person, but others in the organization should be brought into this dialogue quickly.

Once everyone is clear on the problem, then there are two core questions to ask: what are the immediate ramifications, and how do we solve the problem? Talk about the problem, develop a plan of action, and take steps to prevent any similar problems. If things are not that easily solvable, then some type of arbitration between the contractor and organization may be necessary. That should be thought of as a last resort.

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