How do we start?

At Contemporary Analysis (CAN) we try to make it as easy as possible to work with our clients. We follow the Master Services Agreement/Statement of Work MSA/SOW style of engagement on our projects.

The first step is to have an open conversation about what you’re looking for with regards to Data Science. To facilitate this we can provide you with our Mutual NDA or we can review/use yours. With in house legal we can work both ways.

Once we have an idea of what your needs are we generate a proposal with an estimate. The estimate will include everything pertinent to the project.

The estimate is a starting point to make sure all the departments and teams are bought into the proposed solution(s). From here we will issue a Master Services Agreement (MSA). This document allows us to streamline any future projects and “on the fly ” changes that may occur. The MSA checks the boxes required of most legal departments for due diligence. Our MSA is also not a commitment to start work. So we frequently recommend getting it placed in the legal teams inbox sooner than later.

Before work begins we will issue a Statement of Work (SOW). This statement of work will outline, in great detail, the project(s). The SOW will always follow the MSA as they are dependent on one another.

Once the SOW is agreed upon we’ll begin work. Should additional projects come up or the project changes significantly (typically client directed) we will issue subsequent SOW’s. There will always be a SOW in place to make sure everyone is on the same page.

Frequently as we are doing the work we’ll notice additional project(s) that we could do. We may issue a SOW with these projects outlined for future reference. If/when warranted our clients can “sign off” on a particular project and we will begin work on the agreed upon section.

The MSA/SOW process is very familiar to some companies. At the same time it may be totally foreign to others. The end goal of this process is to save time and money with legal reviews (MSA) and expedite future projects (SOW).