In the AEP blog series, Ask an Expert, experts offer their advice on the most pressing issues facing the educational resource industry. During the 2009 AEP Summit session, “Publishers, Developers, and School Districts: Change Agents in Transformation,” Randi Brill of Quarasan! and Keith Garton of Garton Media Strategy discussed the key role independent contractors play in educational publishing. Here, Kevin Dwyer of Strategic Learning Designs presents his 12 keys to maintaining a strong relationship between publishers and contractors.
Solving business problems that lie outside an organization’s core competencies with outside help is more common than ever before. The trend towards smaller organizations complemented by temporary, outsourced talent has generated a pool of highly skilled professionals available and ready to work. In fact, many AEP members are independent contractors, some newly so. I thought it might be helpful to tease out some of the elements of a strong business relationship.
Like many members of AEP, I’ve worked on both sides of this relationship. I’ve hired contractors, and I’ve been hired as a contractor. I’ve had mostly great experiences as an independent, working with terrific leaders at all levels of organizations. Based on my experiences, the decision to hire an independent contractor / vendor for a short project or for a long-term assignment is as important as hiring any other key employee. Let me suggest some things to consider in building an effective and healthy relationship between contractors and employers. Continue reading ‘Building Strong Relationships Between Organizations and Independent Contractors’
Educational Publishing 