how can I get outsourcers to hold up there end of the bargain

Proper project management can avoid this. How do I know this? Because I am one. . .trust me - it is all about setting expectations, milestones, risks, and constraints on your projects - keep it tight as a drum - and if one is missed - the contract is nul, and you move on.

Please let me know if I can help you any further with your issues as, like I said, I've been a project manager in the Web industry for some time and have seen it all.
Kelsey.

find someone and build a relationship with them.. if you treat your workers as your workers then they will act like workers. If you treat them as friends then they will act like friends.

You do not need any management, what you need is to build a relationship and look at the people that do work as someone that works "with" you and not "for" you.

It's a very simple process, yes there are those that over-commit and then can not do the job. This is why you find someone and build a relationship with them.

James

If only that were true James. . most people dont value friendship - there is a point where you need to draw lines otherwise you will get taken advantage of. .

"oh, just push the deadline another week - I'll get it done"
"I missed this cost, so it is going to be another $20, sorry about that man!"

Etc etc. . I've seen it all trust me - being a friend in business doesn't work. Now not saying not to be kind, genuine etc. . of course do all those things - simply ensure your i 's are dotted and the t's crossed.

That is true .... I have a staff that I have employeed for years and yes I do not consider them working for me but with me.. I done the whole freelance thing for many years.

Find the right person and treat them well and not as employess but as friends and the pay off will be huge.

James

Building a relationship with someone does work well, but sometimes you have something new that requires a new person and in these instances it can be difficult. I imagine everyone has this issue at some point, especially when first starting to outsource work.

I know I have had more success if I make my expectations extremely clear in the very beginning, especially with their responsiveness. I let them know about how often I expect updates, and what they should include.

I also have been taking much more time screening and interviewing them. The problem is that once you find someone, it does take some time to train them, explain the job details, and set all those expectations. When they start to stray, you almost don't want to abandon them too quickly because you know you will probably spend just as much time starting over and finding a new one as it would with the current person and delays.

I find it helps to cut the project right away the minute you sense it isn't going to work out, chalk it up as a bad assignment, and find someone else. I think of it this way - if I am the provider, and I am serious about my work and gaining long-term assignments and building my reputation, I am going to take every client seriously and not only meet but exceed those expectations.

The more I've outsourced, the more I can tell pretty quickly if the person is going to exceed my expectations or just simply suck. Also when I can I request the person to do a small sample of the work, see how long it takes, and what kind of questions they ask...this can give me a better idea of how they are going to be and make a more informed decision. When people don't ask questions and just give me the old 'yes I know everything just hire me' then I run away.

Bill_Z hit on alot of great points...

It is not about you needing a manager, you need to make sure everything is detailed out step by step and you make clear what you want.

Giving a small test job works wonders because then you can see what they can do and how they do it. This is how you build a relationship. The guys I have on my staff all started years ago with 3 small test jobs each. I did not need what they done for me I needed to see how they would work and while we was at it we communicated on IM and phone constantly.

This built a relationship with them and we learned how each other worked and how we got along together.

Building a relationship is very important as it plays a key role in business no matter what anyone says about people do not value friendship.

* You want a responsive list, what do you need ?

To Build a relationship with your readers

* You want social communities to work for your business, what do you need ?

To build a relationship with your friends / followers

* You want repeat customers to purchase again, what do you need ?

To build a relationship with those customers

* You want people to mention your name or product when someone ask about something, what do you need ?

To build a relationship with those people so they recommend you to others

* You want a successful JV, what do you need ?

To build a relationship with someone to form a jv

You see a pattern here... ???

It all boils down to relationships and yes it works great for business because that is what business is built upon.

If anyone thinks the above is not true then feel free to ask some proven marketers such as Steven W., Jay, Steve Fullman and many others on this forum....

James

Hi there,

sorry to hear about that. It's so sad to think that there are some companies whose not really fair when it comes to business. I suggest, before you lease a staff make sure that the companies have references so you can have a background check.

We might be able to help. See sig for further discussion.

Hope to hear from you.

We set up a briefing sheet for our clients to complete so both parties are in agreement as to what has to be done and in what time-frame.