The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/67910
Assessing the Market Within the preceding year, we had approached and tested a number of providers and technology solutions, but we weren't confident about selecting a provider until a thorough RFI/RFP process was completed. In late 2010, we commenced this process with the support of 3Kites, a London-based consultancy we trusted to help facilitate the process in a fair and impartial way. We contacted well-known suppliers and one from left field (a digital agency based in Sydney, Australia). A key part of early discussions in the market assessment was technology-focused: • Should we use Microsoft SharePoint? • Were there better Web content management systems (than SharePoint) for producing a public-facing website? • Given the requirements around producing a complex multilingual site, could we exclude any solutions or providers in an early phase? • Could we utilize social tools or open-source software for a lighter, more cost-effective design and build? The RFI/RFP process was a helpful way to understand different ways we could deliver our solution and prioritize our requirement set. It allowed us to meet and get to know a number of vendors, and it enabled us to exclude a number of solutions early in the process because they did not meet essential minimum requirements. The process produced a short list of two candidates: • A U.K.-based provider specializing in SharePoint development • An Australia-based provider specializing in Sitecore development We were concerned about our ability to get a SharePoint site to market quickly and whether SharePoint (out of the box) could deliver a number of our more sophisticated requirements (especially around security management, user administration, permissions and e-marketing). We were ultimately excited about the provider based in Australia. We liked their work, their understanding of our business drivers and the way they treated us during the RFI/RFP process. They presented a compelling argument that Sitecore was a stronger technical solution for our requirements and gave us confidence that we could run a development project from the other side of the world, regardless of the difference in time zones. Preparing the Project The RFI/RFP process confirmed our preference for the "left field" solution — a digital agency (BlueArc Group) based in Sydney, developing on Danish technology (Sitecore). We were confident in bringing together a team virtually, using tools like WebEx and Peer to Peer 129