Why the usual questions do not work
Most partner selection asks about certifications, client counts and years in business. Every serious firm clears that bar, which makes it useless as a differentiator. The questions below are the ones where answers actually diverge, and where a vague answer tells you something.
About the people
- Will the people in this room deliver the work? Ask for names and ask when you will meet them. A pitch team that disappears at contract signature is the single most common complaint in this industry.
- Who is the delivery lead and what else are they running? A lead across four programmes is a coordinator, not a lead.
- What happens if a key person leaves mid-programme? Ask what the handover obligation is and whether it is in the contract.
- Can we interview the team? A firm confident in its people says yes.
About the plan
- When will we first see the system with our own data in it? If the answer is later than week six, ask why.
- What is explicitly out of scope? A statement of work that only lists inclusions is a statement of work designed to generate change requests.
- How do you handle scope change? You want a register, an estimate against every item and a named sponsor who decides. You do not want absorption, which is how timelines slip quietly.
- How many cutover rehearsals are in the plan? Fewer than one full rehearsal means the go-live duration is unknown.
About the awkward parts
- Tell me about a programme that went badly and what you changed afterwards. A firm that has never had one has either not delivered enough or is not being straight with you.
- What would make you tell us not to do this? A partner who cannot answer has no line they will not cross for revenue.
- What do you not do? Firms that claim to cover everything are usually subcontracting something without telling you.
- Who owns the code and the documentation at the end? Get the answer in writing before, not after.
What to listen for
Specificity. A firm that has done this work answers with detail: which module, which version, what broke, how long the reconciliation took. A firm that has sold it answers with methodology diagrams and the word partnership.
Also listen for the willingness to say no. A partner who agrees with every requirement in the room is not scoping, they are closing, and the disagreement you avoid in week one becomes a change request in week twelve.