PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRMS
Professional service firms are generally large entities, sometimes larger than their client companies, who maintain a workforce of skilled IT professionals who provide IT consulting services on a contract basis. The skills involved would include project managers, business analysts, programmers, programme developers, network professionals, security professionals, website designers and so on.
Professional service firms would typically undertake IT projects, usually on a fixed cost or ‘deliverable’ basis. Such projects may be small or of short duration, such as designing or upgrading a piece of company software, or may be major projects such as designing and implementing a company-wide new IT system. Other projects may involve the advice and installation of security measures; the modification and expansion of a company’s existing main systems; the design and launching of a Company’s website; a review of the Company’s systems to identify inefficiencies; designing, modifying or expanding a company’s internal networks; the implementation of wireless technology, and so on.
Professional service firms may sometimes provide only limited resources to a project, such as a IT project managers and a few key professionals, and then utilise the client company’s IT staff to carry out the day to day project work, under the management and guidance of the professional service firm. Alternatively, the firm may provide a large complement of professionals to undertake and deliver a project, completely independent of the client company’s own IT workforce.
The selection of a Professional service firm is usually based on skill, knowledge, reputation, ethics and creativity, and the price quoted for the services is often of secondary consideration.