We have signed a contract with an IT vendor (larger than us) for a multi-year, multi-million dollar program. The program has now started, and we (Program Mgmt) have designed and communicated the program governance framework, charter, steering committees, etc.
Now, we are trying to operationalize them and are being met with a huge amount of resistance (starting from 4 layers down below CEO).
-Refusal to acknowledge our BRDs
-Refusal to map to our BRDs, which are very high level.
-Refusal to give us a list of program staff on their side
-Refusal to give/breakdown total hours worked, and we're on a T&E contract
-Have repeatedly try to coach them on things we ask and met with the response "you do it." This has happened even when some of our most senior people were on the call.
I've never been part of a program where a vendor has refused to comply with all of the basics of a customer's program. The vendor is so much larger than us that they think they have all of the power. In my mind, the obvious thing to do is escalate this even higher than it has gone, but it also makes it feel like I'm being an ineffective Program Manager.
I am stuck. Would love to hear your thoughts. Saving Changes...
If the contract specifies the terms the vendor should follow and they are not doing so, I'd recommend bringing your procurement folks into the picture if 1:1 conversations and escalation with the vendor directly haven't resulted in any improvement. In an extreme case, this could be considered breach of contract.
Thomas WalentaGlobal Project Economy ExpertHackenheim, Germany
Since you developed the "program governance framework, charter, steering committees, etc." just now, I assume they are not part of the contract scope. So why should the vendor comply?
Having worked for IBM, we were a big vendor for most clients, and we did not accept governance structures from them. Many contracted with us and expected us to set up appropriate governance. If governance was within scope, it was negotiated during the contract terms agreement and heavily influenced by vendor structures.
Well, you can have your own governance and then you could agree on its interfaces with the vendor governance, like reporting, escalation, etc. But do not expect them to just agree to what you came up with.
A big vendor is big because governance is working for them.
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1 reply by anonymous
Nov 08, 2023 3:13 PM
anonymous
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Thanks for your perspective,
For background: There were comprehensive meetings held beforehand (6 months leading up to the program kicked-off) where our governance framework was thoroughly presented/reviewed/discussed with the vendor. They did not object to it back then. The issue is that they are objecting now that we are trying to operationalize it.
From my point-of-view (subjective of course), we're not asking for anything over-the-top.
For example:
-We've asked them to map their requirements to our BRDs, and they've refused, telling us to do it
-We've asked for a breakdown of monthly actual costs (by hours) since they are on a T&E contract, which they have also refused because they only want to provide 1 line item
Saving Changes...
Anonymous
Nov 07, 2023 5:23 PM
Replying to Thomas Walenta
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Since you developed the "program governance framework, charter, steering committees, etc." just now, I assume they are not part of the contract scope. So why should the vendor comply?
Having worked for IBM, we were a big vendor for most clients, and we did not accept governance structures from them. Many contracted with us and expected us to set up appropriate governance. If governance was within scope, it was negotiated during the contract terms agreement and heavily influenced by vendor structures.
Well, you can have your own governance and then you could agree on its interfaces with the vendor governance, like reporting, escalation, etc. But do not expect them to just agree to what you came up with.
A big vendor is big because governance is working for them.
Thanks for your perspective,
For background: There were comprehensive meetings held beforehand (6 months leading up to the program kicked-off) where our governance framework was thoroughly presented/reviewed/discussed with the vendor. They did not object to it back then. The issue is that they are objecting now that we are trying to operationalize it.
From my point-of-view (subjective of course), we're not asking for anything over-the-top.
For example:
-We've asked them to map their requirements to our BRDs, and they've refused, telling us to do it
-We've asked for a breakdown of monthly actual costs (by hours) since they are on a T&E contract, which they have also refused because they only want to provide 1 line item
...
1 reply by Kiron Bondale
Nov 09, 2023 7:18 AM
Kiron Bondale
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Unless the governance activities were baked into the contract with the vendor or there was a direct reference to the governance framework within the contract, they are under no obligation to follow it. It is a little surprising that they wouldn't given that it is a T&M arrangement, but perhaps they have higher value work with other clients which they'd rather be doing than following those procedures.
For background: There were comprehensive meetings held beforehand (6 months leading up to the program kicked-off) where our governance framework was thoroughly presented/reviewed/discussed with the vendor. They did not object to it back then. The issue is that they are objecting now that we are trying to operationalize it.
From my point-of-view (subjective of course), we're not asking for anything over-the-top.
For example:
-We've asked them to map their requirements to our BRDs, and they've refused, telling us to do it
-We've asked for a breakdown of monthly actual costs (by hours) since they are on a T&E contract, which they have also refused because they only want to provide 1 line item
Unless the governance activities were baked into the contract with the vendor or there was a direct reference to the governance framework within the contract, they are under no obligation to follow it. It is a little surprising that they wouldn't given that it is a T&M arrangement, but perhaps they have higher value work with other clients which they'd rather be doing than following those procedures.
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