How to choose a contractor for your business system: 12 questions to ask before signing
Contractor proposals can look very similar, and the differences only surface during the project. These questions help you spot them before you sign the contract.
Questions about experience
- What similar systems has the contractor already built, and what exactly were they responsible for?
- Can they describe the business problem they solved, not just the technology they used?
- Who specifically will work on the project?
Questions about how they work
- How does the project start, and is there a planning stage?
- What does the specification look like, and who approves it?
- How often will you see progress and a working version?
- What happens if the requirements change during the project?
Questions about what happens after go-live
- Who will own the source code and the data?
- What does maintenance look like, and what response time will be written into the contract?
- Will the system have documentation that allows another contractor to take it over?
- How are backups made, and who has access to them?
- How does the collaboration end, and how is the system handed over?
Warning signs
- a quote with no discussion of processes and no specification,
- no clear answer to the question of who owns the code,
- promises that “everything can be done quickly”,
- no contact with the person who actually builds the system.
A good contractor asks questions too
If, at the first meeting, a contractor talks more about technology than they ask about your company, that is a bad sign. A good partner wants to understand how your team works, where it loses time and what decisions management makes. I am happy to answer all of the questions above: book a consultation.
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