Stamp Out Deliverables

I recently read an RFP that began with a short description of the desired outcomes, and ended with an elaborate list of 53 "deliverables." The list included things like detailed project plans, communication strategies, and new organization charts. The RFP stipulated that firms failing to respond to each deliverable would be penalized.

The list was exhaustive (and exhausting). But when viewed as a whole, the deliverables themselves didn't move the client one inch toward the desired changes. It just generated a lot of…well…deliverables.

It's time for consultants to help clients focus on results rather than deliverables. I suspect consultants taught clients the word to begin with, but is that what they really need? Let's shift the client dialogue to benefits, outcomes, results--anything but deliverables.

Comments

[David Friedman]

I've been there. Quite often, procurement departments that are focused on procuring vastly different services compel the internal "buyer" to get specific detail nailed down. Government agencies tend to be hard on this, too.

There comes a time when you have to decide whether you want to compete against the shops that are essentially RFP-responding machines. These consultancies just know how to do it- and they tend to win. And then we lose a lot of time... and that's all I've got in my inventory.