Managers of Outsourced Programs
Vendor-based programs are way of providing an ongoing, stable service or production. Vendors are chosen for their track record, because they have the right infrastructure in place, or a client may set up a dedicated new vendor from scratch to deliver what the program needs. This can also happen when a section of a company is sold to a vendor, and the same people re-engaged as contractors under a program agreement.
Challenge
The challenge is to set the standards, plan the peaks and troughs of work, and manage the vendor performance against service levels. For some newly-appointed program managers, this is a new area where some early structure and coaching and training play a vital role in getting up to speed quickly and ensuring the ongoing success of the program.
Experience
We have helped clients set up new programs, fix existing programs that were not working, and establish standards for future service. We have also managed programs ourselves in our own corporate careers.
Services
Think180 can provide training, coaching and consulting to Program and Project Leaders who manage vendors, as well as advice to the next level managers on how to monitor how programs are being managed. We can provide competency guides that show what skills and expertise are needed for different outsourcing projects, and how to acquire these skills. Where the Think180 workshop is not available in-house when needed, we can offer coaching as required as one-hour sessions over skype as a videoconference.
Resources
Workshop - Managing External Resources
Workshop - Creating Effective Partnerships
Article "Employees Vs. Contractors"
Tools and Checklists
Podcast Series "Managing Vendors and Contractors"
Tips Collection - from our workshops
Article "Who Controls Sourcing"
Article "Value of Partnering"
Article "IT Professionals Managing Vendors"
Article "Contracts and Agreements" (a basic guide)
Outsourcing Matrix
Model - Outsourcing Lifecycle