Bryce Harrison

• They entrap the customer or sometimes the vendor.  Don’t we hate it when we sign a contract and the product or service just wasn’t as good as advertised?  I do and cell phone contracts are one of my least favorite.  It should be a crime to give that level of service and lock me in for two years.  But let’s not end there, we also have the government/private sector contracts that are even worse.  The longer the term of the contract, the more entrapping as circumstances are likely to change.
• They contain SLAs.  Writing an SLA (service level agreement) is like chasing jello across the table.  It looks like you got one nailed and it slips through your fingers.  Usually SLAs are very inflexible and both sides are looking for an advantage instead of what works for the customer.  This is usually not the government in public sector contracts especially as they try to modernize entering the unknown and instead get a lesson that taxpayers pay for.
• The time wasted in developing, negotiating and monitoring.  In private industry contract negotiations may take days, weeks or months depending on the size.  Government entities are notorious for lengthy times to put in force a contract.  Bids, BAFOs, negotiating games, etc. sometimes cost more than the contract itself.  These negotiations rarely involve people that are familiar with the work that will be effected assuring that waste will be locked in.  Further, contracts have to be monitored for compliance to the contract that adds additional costs.

A Better Way

I cannot dispute the need for contracts.  However, doing what is right in the eyes of the customer always costs less.  Our attitude should be one of doing what is right for the customer not a contractual one.  Those that pursue an advantage (vendor or customer) rather than pursuing a win-win contract stand to lose eventually (if not now).

The need for an understanding of what good service looks like and/or that the design and management of the work is our biggest opportunity for improvement should be foremost in the development and enforcement of any contract.  It is a better systems thinking way.

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Tripp Babbitt is a speaker, blogger and consultant to service industry (private and public).  His organization helps executives find a better way to make the work work.  Download free from www.newsystemsthinking.com "Understanding Your Organization as a System" and gain knowledge of systems thinking or contact us about our intervention services at [email protected].  Reach him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TriBabbitt or LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/trippbabbitt.