Ashish BhartiTechnician| American Electric PowerLynchburg, Va, United States
It is not only completely ethical to ask but also the responsibility of the project manager to ask for price justification so that the project stays within the approved budget.
In my organization I negotiate contracts with the customers and our clients often require a breakup of manpower cost and material cost along with last purchase orders to validate the quoted price! (Public Sector)
I understand that different organizations may have their policies on how much information you are at liberty to share with the customers. At the end, we want our customers to trust us so it's better to provide a solid basis of price quoted for the job. Saving Changes...
Wayne DillSnr Project Manager| Bermuda Government, Ministry of HealthHamilton, Bermuda
May 25, 2021 7:26 AM
Replying to Sergio Luis Conte
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Why do you consider is not ethical?
Perhaps ethical was a poor word to use - maybe "appropriate" is a better choice. Saving Changes...
Wayne DillSnr Project Manager| Bermuda Government, Ministry of HealthHamilton, Bermuda
May 24, 2021 10:05 PM
Replying to Rami Kaibni
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Wayne
It is totally ethical and in fact part of the responsibility of the person in-charge to question the cost of a certain scope if they felt the cost is not justifiable if comapred to the scope. I personalyl always do that as and when needed.
RK
Thanks You. Appreciate the response and acknowledge its insight.
The answers have been numerous and of tremendous value to me. Saving Changes...
Wayne DillSnr Project Manager| Bermuda Government, Ministry of HealthHamilton, Bermuda
May 26, 2021 4:26 AM
Replying to Adela Tataru
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There is no ethical issue to ask a vendor to detail the price of the provided services/solutions.
Sometimes you might want to have options to be able to not take the full package in order to manage your budget and having the details of the proposal is totally normal.
You might not agree with specific costs for the detailed part but in this case you enter a phase of negotiation.
In projects I have vendors/contractors involved I now specify from the start that I need a detailed breakdown of the proposed package as it allows me to have options to choose from in case of budget issues.
Thanks You. Appreciate the response and acknowledge its insight.
The answers have been numerous and of tremendous value to me. Saving Changes...
Wayne DillSnr Project Manager| Bermuda Government, Ministry of HealthHamilton, Bermuda
May 25, 2021 11:18 PM
Replying to Chris Blythe
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yes its ethical, because you need to justify an investment to your organisation and demonstrate value for money.
Thanks You. Appreciate the response and acknowledge its insight.
The answers have been numerous and of tremendous value to me. Saving Changes...
Financial Management Specialist | US Peace CorpsYaounde, Centre, Cameroon
May 26, 2021 4:26 AM
Replying to Adela Tataru
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There is no ethical issue to ask a vendor to detail the price of the provided services/solutions.
Sometimes you might want to have options to be able to not take the full package in order to manage your budget and having the details of the proposal is totally normal.
You might not agree with specific costs for the detailed part but in this case you enter a phase of negotiation.
In projects I have vendors/contractors involved I now specify from the start that I need a detailed breakdown of the proposed package as it allows me to have options to choose from in case of budget issues.
It's ethical but be careful not overlook the Contract terms Saving Changes...
Dear Wayne,
The level of detail requested depend on the price conditions settled on the contract. Also, when there are change orders, where negotiation leads to shared risk, it is possible to request detailed cost information. Even some contracts include an audit clause in case of non-compliance or a law breach.
But in the case of a proposal, it depends on the condition settled on the call for tender.
When the contract is a shared risk, such as a reimbursable plus fee, the contractor submits all the detailed cost. Saving Changes...
Yes, Its ethical, actually its value vs money and to certain extent the supplier have to tear down some details so the customer is confident that his requirements are satisfied with certain dollar value that they accept to pay Saving Changes...
Peter RapinSubject Matter Expect; Project Delivery| Independent ConsultantOntario, Canada
The question of ethics is not related to the request for cost information but rather what will be done with the information once obtained. Price shopping could be considered unethical as would divulging the information which could damage the supplier. The supplier has a right to know why you require the information and what you will do with it. Asking for costing details so that you can micro-manage the account would not be unethical but may be poor management practice.
Before you ask the supplier for costing details ask yourself: Why do I need this information? how am I going to use it? Do I need to know to advance my objective (project delivery)? What happens if I am refused? Is there a risk/benefit to having this information. Then be able to explain to the supplier if asked. Saving Changes...
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