Tips for Successful Consulting with MDT

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Tips for Successful Consulting with MDT

• Presented by
• Tom Martin, P.E.
• MDT Consultant Design Engineer
• February 2007

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Who is this Presentation For?

• Consultants wanting to improve their success with
  MDT
• Consultants wanting to get more contracts with MDT

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Format

• Brief Presentation
• Question Answer Session

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Three Main Topic Areas

• General Advice (stuff you already know, but
  is worth repeating)
• Selection Process (how to be successful
  getting projects)
• Project Development Process (how to successful
  working on projects)

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General Advice Tip 1

• MDT expects a lot!
• Government agency
• Engineering agency
• Large agency
• Not an easy-going client

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General Advice Tip 2

• Get to know us, foster relationships
• Many MDT folks will be reviewing your work
  products
• Consultants familiar with MDT staff tend to
  perform better
• Come to Headquarters, spend time with MDT staff
• Work through the Consultant Design Bureau office
  for this

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Selection Process

• Standard RFQ/RFP Process
• Pre-qualification Process
• Both processes involve consultant proposals
• Both processes involve the Consultant Selection
  Board

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Selection Tip 1

• Make your proposals easy to read
• Concise (thin)
• Pleasing to the eye (we like pictures, charts and
  graphs)
• Contain all requested information (see RFQ)
• No small or unusual fonts
• Real references with real phone numbers

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Selection Tip 2

• Make sure the Consultant Design Engineer knows
  your availability, qualifications and interest
• Chair of the Board Meetings
• Only person on Board who should be approached for
  soliciting work

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Consultant Selection Board
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Consultant Selection Board

• Director
• Deputy Director
• Chief Engineer
• Preconstruction Engineer
• Highways Engineer
• Consultant Design Engineer
• Respective District Administrator
• Respective Bureau Chief (specialty projects)
• Others as necessary
• All selections go through the Board

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Selection Tip 3

• Do a good job ALWAYS
• One of the factors the Board uses in considering
  consultants is how they are performing, in the
  recent past and today
• Past performance will come up again..

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Project Development Process

• The following tips will help you if you have
  already been selected and are about to sign a
  contract with MDT
• They may also help you if you are thinking about
  working for MDT and are considering submitting a
  solicitation proposal (am I ready for this?)

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Project Development Tip 1

• Always work through the Consultant Design Bureau
• From the standard contract
• The Consultant will be responsible to and will
  report to the Consultant Design Engineer..
• The usual contact is the MDT Consultant Project
  Engineer, AKA project manager
• Taking direction from others at MDT leads to
  problems and circumvents proper chain of command

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Project Development Tip 2

• Dont work without a contract
• Get agreement on out-of-scope work
• Get contract amendments for out-of-scope work
  before doing the work
• Take direction from the MDT Consultant Project
  Engineer
• Stressful when time-critical work is needed, but
  protects both MDT and the consultant

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Project Development Tip 3

• Be Responsive!
• Acknowledge and address all comments on plan
  sheets, documents, work products, etc.
• Provide information or clarification when asked
• Return emails and phone calls in a timely manner
• This is a highly valued trait at MDT

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Dont Let This Happen!
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Project Development Tip 4

• Be Proactive
• Try to anticipate MDTs project needs
• If you are waiting for MDT, remind us
• Provide brief presentations at Plan Reviews
• Suggest better ways of doing things
• Help us work with our stakeholders

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Project Development Tip 5

• Understand the Importance of OPX2
• Project development software
• Used for all projects
• Used to deliver projects according to fiscal
  projections
• Used to determine staff workloads
• Dynamic
• Updated by MDT staff regularly
• Get with your MDT Consultant Project Engineer and
  learn more about this

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Project Development Tip 6

• Do a good job ALWAYS (remember this?)
• Consultant performance is evaluated yearly
• Performance is worth 30 of score in our
  selection process
• Can be evaluated by any MDT employee
• Affects the Firm across the board, not just
  branch offices or separate categories of service

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Project Development Tip 7

• If you do make a mistake, own up to it and fix it
  without a hassle
• Mistakes happen
• The most successful consultants correct things
  quickly and make lemonade out of the lemons

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What Does MDT Expect?

• Professionalism
• Leadership
• High Quality Work
• Timely Delivery
• Fiscal Responsibility
• Success

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Questions?