Practice Areas: Outsourcing
Outsourcing Vendor Selection and Negotiation
Outsourcing vendor selection and negotiation ranges from comprehensive evaluation of detailed proposals to sole source selection, negotiation and due diligence. In either case, the defining elements include excellent communication, proven procedures and thoughtful preparation and analysis.
We can begin by working with you to develop and prioritize vendor selection criteria. We often facilitate our clients through a "champion" approach when multiple vendor proposals are involved, assigning a lead evaluator to each proposal. Each champion studies all aspects of the proposal to fairly and accurately represent it before the team to ensure the best vendor is selected. We can also help assemble the right team of subject matter experts (e.g., legal, tax, finance, human resources, and information technology) to review your proposals for conformance and compliance.
Once a short list is determined, we regularly advise clients to visit the vendor's site or sites. We help coordinate these visits, set client and vendor expectations, and facilitate discussions. We then advise our clients to revisit the original business case to ensure the original objectives of outsourcing are satisfied.
Negotiations may be the one step in which outside advisory support is most useful. Studies have shown that companies with outsourcing experience have cited negotiations and the resulting contract as partner deficiencies in their process. As experienced negotiators, we can help craft clear pricing schedules, scope of work, service level agreements, technical and commercial schedules, as well as provide ad hoc analyses to support the negotiations.
Outsourcing the right services to the right vendor with the right contract are among the most important decisions for any organization. We can help you make outsourcing successful by ensuring decisions are made with the most reliable and comprehensive information possible.