Data Mining Consulting Services Market Procurement Intelligence Report

The market for Consultancy and its sub-segments such as Data Mining Consulting Services are at an interesting intersection. Traditionally, clients were charged on per diem basis for Data Mining Consulting Services. However, rising pressure from clients to decrease pricing has resulted into an alternative pricing model of value-oriented billing where supplier's remuneration is linked to the performance or outcome of the project.

The concept of virtual firms is getting popular. By placing the entire infrastructure in cloud services, and utilizing a small number of physical offices, Data Mining Consulting Services suppliers are trying to cut their costs and developing cost competitive propositions for buyers.

Most clients now prefer splitting a single project among different vendors as it enables them to allocate parts of a project to specialized professional firms and keep the supplier base wide enough. Some clients adopt this strategy to understand the capability and performance of individual supplier and then pick one or a smaller set of suppliers for future contract opportunities.

Trends like these and many others discussed in this report are necessitating a relook at the way Data Mining Consulting Services is procured and the procurement cost saving opportunities that exist.

It has become imperative for category managers to remain as agile as possible in terms of their procurement practices. However, it is not always easy to quickly spot and implement alternative practices in a category like Data Mining Consulting Services. To help quick decision making, this report advises on several procurement best practices that have worked well for category managers.

For example, Category managers must ensure that they have clearly identified and listed down potential negotiation levers to maximize the value of their category spend before entering into contract-related discussions with service providers. Common negotiation levers to maximize value include deadlines, terms related to payments, (including fees, expenses, and payment timelines) and assistance required from the buyer's organization.

Buyers should engage with service providers that can provide integrated services, including consulting, implementation, and support services.

Buyers should invite bids from industry competitors to ensure that the offers they receive are competitive. Service providers may be willing to offer a multi-year engagement at a reduced fee, which can be beneficial for category buyers in the long-term.

Data Mining Consulting Services procurement managers also need to proactively identify and mitigate potential risks that can arise in the supply chain or contracts for Data Mining Consulting Services procurement. Some examples include: