Project Management Training > Contracts and Vendor Management

There’s more to vendor management than deliverables and deadlines. Let's look at a few basic concepts that will help PMs avoid some of the biggest pitfalls.

A new agile procurement process--one that can operate in conjunction with and alongside an agile software development methodology--should significantly improve both the procurement of software vendor’s services and and successful delivery of software projects. This article will explore the underlying principles as well as map the reconciliation points required to harmonize agile development and procurement methods.

RFPs are a double-edged sword for many vendors. In the first article, we looked at the challenges with layout and content. In this second installment, we look at the challenges vendors experience in the process from the point they are made aware of the RFP to the submission of the bid.

Many, if not most, projects rely on outside suppliers — vendors, contractors, consultants — for critical activities and expertise. But these partnerships can do more harm than good if ground rules aren’t established and respeected throught the project. Here are seven factors for working successfully with your project’s external participants.

Some RFPs are bad…really bad. It makes you wonder how clear the purchasing organization is on what they are trying to achieve. Here, we look at the process that an organization goes through in preparing and issuing an Request For Proposal--and identify some best practices.

This will be the first in a series of articles that will look to provide the background of issues involved with managing an agile software development project under a traditionally linear and sequential project procurement process. Software development has been deliberately chosen for the example industry since that’s the domain for which agile is most typically used, but for those using agile in other industry domains, the general issues and proposed solution should work equally well within your industry.

Have you ever thought about the RFP process from the other perspective--the potential vendor who responds? An RFP response is more than just a proposal to supply products and/or services; in many cases it is an opportunity to showcase a potential vendor to the procuring organization. But when some vendors reply to RFPs, you have to wonder what they thought that they were bidding on. In this article, we flag some of the things vendors should consider.

There is lots of great information available on how to use agile methods for custom software development projects, but less so for package implementations. Commercial-Off-The-Shelf solutions make up a large percentage of the IT projects undertaken by companies each year, and many organizations are missing out on benefits that an agile package approach can bring.

Does the use of agile project management require new contract models in order to be successful? Can agile project management be used with traditional fixed-price contracts? Does agile project management require a new type of contract (and if so, what kinds)? Furthermore, wouldn’t a new type of contract discourage the use of agile PM?

Where evolving procurement requirements come from, and why, is in reality no different than how requirements evolve in any organizational area. The challenge is that they compound themselves, layering restriction upon constraint upon requirement. What can an organization do to improve its procurement efforts? What can be done to make procurement work in support of projects rather than be a barrier, roadblock or black hole?

The relationship forged with strategic providers can make the difference between success and failure within the organization. Here, the value proposition they represent is often based more on their service and support levels than price. In essence, SPs become de facto stakeholders with the organization--and thus require special consideration in terms of how the relationship is cultivated and managed.

This two-part article will provide you with some insight into some of the most frustrating aspects that vendors experience when they attempt to decipher the hieroglyphics found in the proposal documents. The first part will focus on the content of the RFP.

Agile methods deliver many benefits in terms of their flexibility to cope with changing requirements and priorities. However, this adaptability and reluctance to be tied down on scope can create contract problems when trying to form supplier agreements or outsource work. Part 1 of our two-part series covers the challenges of agile contracting and offers some of the packaged solutions created so far.

Ending the project is about more than just post-mortems and parties (don't worry, you can still have those, too!). Here we explore why we want to ensure that the project adds to the overall organizational knowledge--and how formal closure to all of the project elements must leave no confusion, gaps or misinterpretation.

With less emphasis on upfront specs and higher rates of change, how are agile projects contracted? Part 2 of this article outlines building blocks for creating agile contracts.

Procurement management is one of the knowledge areas in PMBOK, but procurements for large computer systems or multi-year projects can easily take on a life of their own. This article will provide guidelines for issues that are unique to a procurement project. Ensuring that these guidelines are followed (or at least considered) by the appropriate stakeholder will assist the PM in successfully completing the procurement so that the real work can begin.

Leadership gaps arise as projects trend toward higher complexity. It will take some significant new skills to succeed in complex near-future projects. When you succeed with the workforce, however, much of the complexity evaporates.

Does your organization have a “vendor management” problem — or is really a “requirements gathering and writing” problem? Here are some recommendations.

How do you make a fixed-price contract work? This article investigates the reasons why IT projects tend to overrun the budget--and the mitigating actions that can be applied.