URGENT: Your organization needs an IT consultant
I’ve seen a lot of RFPs for IT consultants to develop an application, a website or a training. And I have also noticed that many organizations use the same application form and the same people to write all the RFPs. It’s no wonder that many RFPs are meaningless and, in the worst case, organizations don’t get the results they want.
I’ll tell you more in this article. For this article to make sense, I must first establish who I am and why I am the right person to write about this topic.
I am Prince YOULOU, an IT consultant, project manager and designer with over 8 years of experience. I have worked on projects with WFP, UNFPA, UNDP and other international organizations.
I have had the opportunity to work on a variety of projects ranging from organizing technology events such as hackathon, hacker space to developing applications and managing projects with large budgets at stake.
But what’s up with the IT consultant offerings
Organizations have many projects going on at the same time. Inclusion policies strongly encourage the use of local resources in achieving objectives.
This can be done by consulting their database and calling a specific partner. In this case, the IT consultant is selected based on their history of working with the organization or their overall experience.
When this is not possible, they go out to tender and this is where most of the time things go wrong. The project manager requesting the consultant is asked to create bid documents. Most of the time it is a set of files that need to be created.
- TOR (Term of Reference): This document outlines the project, the selection process, and many other important details about the bid.
- The various templates to be filled out (letter of commitment, financial table, etc.)
- And many others depending on the author and other parameters.
You will agree with me that the larger the organization, the greater the demands. That said, they need to ensure that they are selecting the best candidate and that he or she is capable of delivering the expected result within the given time frame.
But what if the offer is not understood by the candidates?
It is normal and logical to say that each sector has its specifications and jargon. For example, a bid for the development of an architectural project is very different from a bid for the development of an IT solution. This means that different skills are needed to work on both documents.
How to select the right IT consultant
It is not correct that a humanitarian project manager with a strong background in refugee issues writes the bid for the development of a technology solution. But unfortunately, this happens too often.
I see some offers, sometimes I cry and sometimes I laugh, it’s a mixture of feelings. First, the document is not understood by the technicians. Second, the required documents don’t fit the assignment.
Last month, I was working on a bid for a local organization. I spent more time understanding the document than responding to the bid. And it was simply difficult to understand the documents.
The document was simply not written for a technician or an IT project manager. And then the validation procedure stated was not consistent with the sector highlighted in the case, although I agree that some elements do not depend on the sector.
Let’s take the example of an offer I remember.
This organization needed a software engineer to create a mobile application. And among their requirements were mentioned:
- A perfect command of languages such as Java, Python
- Visual Studio HTML (which is not a language)
- And the mastery of SAGE software.
These form a set of elements that are not very complementary.
Knowing that each technological project is accompanied by a set of specific skills. In addition, the business objectives may require knowledge of certain additional elements. So it’s a mix that you have to find the right balance.
I have a question, shouldn’t a consultant be selected for their technical skills rather than for their mastery of issues related to a specific topic that is not related to their core area of expertise?
I’ll back this up by taking the case of developing an application in two different contexts. Sorry, I’ll be a little technical, but don’t let that be a hindrance. Think of it as an opportunity to learn a new term or two. This example will help illustrate my point.
The point here is to show how the development of a mobile application (with a single, clear objective) can have different approaches. The choice of approaches is influenced by the goals to be achieved, the targets, the demographics and much more.
Approach 1: Cross-Platform Application Design
Cross-platform development refers to the process of creating an app that works on different types of devices. This is done using tools like React Native, Xamarin and Flutter, which allow you to deploy the created apps on both Android and iOS.
The options are huge, let me give you an overview of the main ones and the specifics related to them. Some examples:
- React Native: React Native allows you to create native applications and uses JavaScript as a programming language to build apps. The great thing about React Native is that you can write modules in languages such as C, Swift and Java.
- Xamarin: Also known as Microsoft Visual Studio Xamarin allows you to build apps for different platforms such as Windows, iOS and Android using a single .net code.
- Flutter: Flutter is a software development kit (SDK) that allows you to create powerful applications on different platforms such as iOS, Android, Web and desktop from a single code
Approach 2: Native Application Development
The term “native app development” refers to the creation of a mobile app exclusively for a single platform. The application is built with programming languages and tools specific to a single platform.
On the market, there are two major players:
- Android application development: You can develop native Android applications in Java, Kotlin and C++ programming languages.
- iOS application development: You can create native iOS applications in Objective-C or Swift. Unlike Android, the iOS operating system has a closed source code, created exclusively for Apple hardware. So you need a Mac device to develop native mobile applications for the iOS platform.
Each objective requires different skills.
Each type of project requires different skills. Looking at this example, we can understand why organizations struggle to select the best candidate, let alone get the desired results.
And on the other hand, a consultant is not an implementer, he is also in charge of educating the organization on the best choices and the different options available. This is to explain how important and decisive it is to write custom documents.
In summary, I can say that organizations need to make sure they write the best possible offer to increase the chances of achieving the desired objectives. And then make sure they have the right candidate selection process.
Have you experienced this? Or do you have a reason why organizations are not hiring IT consultants?
Feel free to share and start a conversation. I want to hear your perspective on this topic.
