Is Size Important?

Some people think they will get better advice from a big consultancy than a small consultancy, but it isn’t necessarily so. The same staff work in both and they move from one to the other.

Big consultancies: -

  • have a track record of organization
  • probably have experience of bigger projects
  • probably have better equipment
  • can bring more / different types of expertise together

Small consultancies and one-man-bands: -

  • are usually better all-rounders on an individual basis
  • are probably cheaper
  • deal with the customers themselves rather than delegating to junior staff

If you have a big project you will probably get a better result from a big consultancy. If you have a small project you will probably get a faster, cheaper turnaround from a smaller company.

How Do I Choose Between Contractors / Consultants?

In order of importance: -

  • In almost every case relevant experience is the key factor.
  • If someone seems generally bright and intelligent it is probably a good indicator that they are knowledgeable about their specialist subject.
  • Academic qualifications enable an engineer to penetrate a subject, but they are of little value without experience.
  • Within the profession not much attention is paid to membership of professional institutions.

How Much Should I Pay?

Although most development projects are a technical success, between two thirds and three quarters are a marketing failure, an example of which is Motorola’s Iridium venture. There is no point in being too concerned with the cost of the development when the potential for losing money on the marketing is far greater.

In broad terms, given a choice between an expensive, but seemingly good, contractor and one that is cheap, but seemingly bad, go for the expensive one. The extra cost is something that can be managed, but if the project goes wrong it will be out of your hands.

Will The Contractor Move Faster If I Stay On His Back?

The duration of most projects usually depends on external factors, such as how long it takes someone else to deliver, and even if your contractor wants to go faster, the people he has to deal with will be going at their usual pace. Most competent contractors will take the same amount of time.

For the experienced contractor it isn’t difficult to know in advance how long things will take, how much they will cost and what kind of upsets will occur along the way. Far better to listen to what he has to say and if you don’t like the sound of it do something else.