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The Consulting Process

The first step to working with ESC is completing the online RFA form. From there, an ESC program manager will walk you through each stage of your project. Everything we do under the Project Planning header is free of charge, and at no time are you under any obligation to contract with ESC for services.

Project Planning

After reviewing your RFA form, an ESC program manager or project director will call you to find out more about your organization's needs and to explain our process. At this point we will tell you if your organization is a good match for ESC, or if there is another agency that can better meet your needs. Examples of projects that we refer to other agencies include legal advice, financial audits, and technology-related issues. The project director will also be able to quote you an hourly rate for services.

If you decide after this initial converation that working with ESC will be helpful for your organization, the project director will identify a team of consultants that has the skills needed to achieve your goals. An in-person meeting will be scheduled so that you can meet the consultants and learn more about their skills and backgrounds, and the consultants can learn more about the history and current needs of your organization. This meeting will be facilitated by the same project director you spoke to over the phone.

Our project directors are pretty good at picking out the best consultants for a particular project, but if you feel that a particular person isn't a good fit for your organization, just let the project director know and he or she will select a new consultant for you to interview. Once you are comfortable with the team members, there may be additional meetings as needed to define the scope of work and the project deliverables. Based on the type and amount of work to be performed, the project director will determine the number of consulting hours that will be needed to complete the project.

The scope of work and project deliverables will be written into a draft Consulting Agreement for you to review. The number of consulting hours will be multiplied by your organization's hourly rate to determine the total project fee. (Please see the Service Grants & Fees section for more information on how ESC charges for services.)

Consulting Engagement

This covers the time from the consulting agreement is signed to the completion of the project deliverables. During the engagement you will be working the consulting team to achieve your goals, and the project director will be available for additional assistance when needed. If at any time you have concerns about the project or the consultants, just let your project director or another ESC staff member know.

Project Evaluation

ESC requires evaluations to be completed for all of our consulting projects. Your feedback is essential in order for us to improve our programs and better serve the community. When your project is complete, you will receive an email with instructions on completing our evaluation form. You have the option of taking an online survey or filling out a MS Word form document. The evaluation asks you to rate both the overall success of the project and the performance of each consultant on the team.