HintTech Offers Guarantee on IT Projects

18 December 2008 - HintTech, a specialist in eBusiness technology and IT-Projects, guarantees to deliver its services on time and within budget. This isn’t a hollow marketing slogan such as those used by many companies, HintTech offers an actual time and price guarantee in the form of a reference card. HintTech will use this benchmark during the entire project, as long as necessary and adjust in a timely manner to ensure that the targets as agreed to in the project plan are executed within the established timeline and available budget. This is unique in the world of IT projects.

On time, within budget

Delivering an IT project with the required quality, both on time and within budget is still impossible for many IT providers. This can be seen from the almost daily stream of news about failed IT projects, but also from recent research. Ernst & Young have determined that no less than 60% of IT projects that were started in the last two years failed either partially or wholly; one quarter missed their deadlines (time planning) and 16% were far more costly than originally planned.

There are many factors that can lead to an IT project failure. According to Patrick Dekker, Director from HintTech, each list usually includes three standard complaints: “’unclear boundaries or definitions’, ‘unrealistic expectations’, and ‘communication breakdowns’. These three factors can’t be seen separately. Broken communication leads to unclear definitions that in turn leads to unrealistic expectations.”

“Because we carry out complex IT projects in the area of content management systems and web technology applications, from the beginning we work together with the client,” says Dekker. “Similarly, in the planning and budgeting fase there is open and clear communication essential to overcoming unrealistic pricing and planning expectations. Also during the project we work together with the client. We let the people that will be using the application participate in building structural control and evaluation mechanisms into it. This allows the client the ability to see the progress of the project whereby we have a better chance of making the budget and staying within the timeframe.”

HintTech Development Center

According to HintTech, by far the majority of its projects have been delivered within budget and in the agreed upon time. The company can boast of a high customer satisfaction with its work. Additionally, for almost a year HintTech has had not only had Development Centers in the Netherlands and the US, but also in Serbia, which has created a flexibility with planning and capacity issues. “In light of both factors we are convinced that it is realistic to offer a guarantee on IT projects that we execute. This is truly a novel step in the IT world. Whereas in the construction world there has already been such a guarantee in the form of a penalty clause if the planned delivery date did not come through on the agreed upon time, we have chosen for a guarantee in the form of a reference card. This is the standard manner if the promises made in the project plan are met and it is finished in the timeframe agreed upon. We use the reference card during the entire project so that we can adjust in a timely manner to ensure that the targets as agreed to in the project plan are executed within the established timelines and available budget. Past performance does guarantee the future.”

About HintTech

HintTech is a specialist in eBusiness technology (.Net, Java platform, Tridion) and IT-projects. The company was started in 1997 and works with innovative and proven technologies and methods. HintTech provides qualitative custom solutions for their customers. For Tridion, Microsoft, Sun J2EE and IBM WebSphere, HintTech is an advisor as well as partner. HintTech counts Shell, Nuon, Fortis, ING and KLM as clients. It currently employs 113 people and has offices in Delft (Netherlands), San Francisco (US) and Novi Sad (Serbia). www.hinttech.nl