We need contracts that are easy to operate and easy to use to gather relevant data. Simplification deals with the easy to operate bit. At the World Commerce and Contracting EMEA Summit 2022, Stefania Passera, their designer-in-residence challenged her audience of contract and procurement specialists to rethink contracts. She suggested
The top contract and commercial management priority for the engineering and construction companies globally is to improve their internal processes (67% of the 51 respondents to the World Commerce and Contracting Benchmark CCM Survey). Our weaknesses Despite wanting to improve their processes: the majority won’t adopt new tools and systems
Although I am a fervent advocate for simpler contracts [see better contracts by design, or steps to simplification], for many businesses a simple document in MS Word is no longer enough. In 2017, I helped The Federation of Master Builders move from complex text documents to adobe forms (an editable
I’ve said it before, and it’s worth repeating… until they sign on the dotted line they are not a client, they are a prospect. So your contract is part of your marketing resources – a seamless set of resources, on-line and off-line collateral and actions, that reflect your brand. What
As the World Commerce and Contracting’s Most Negotiated Terms 2020 [available to members] report states contracts are the lifeblood of [your] business… define how [your] organization operates, creating critical links with [your] suppliers and customers… Negotiations should focus on creating a mutually agreed framework that informs, guides and is able
A subcontractor on an anerobic digestion facility seems to have found itself in hot water when the tanks it had designed and supplied failed during testing. The main contractor (DBE Energy) had asked Biogas to provide mechanical and process design services for the facility, without any contract being signed or
Construction disputes are a great source of lessons for everyone in the sector. But we must remember that those stories may be tragedies for the parties, especially individuals. As a lawyer, I am often asked to comment on friends’ issues and, having listened to their litany of woes – my
There is a growing global movement towards plain language contracts, especially for individuals or consumers. What does plain language mean and is it enough? What is plain language? According to the Plain Language Federation (and this is the definition in the proposed new ISO on the topic): A communication is
The 2021 HKA Crux Insight Report into lessons learnt from claims and disputes highlights a number of common global causes of engineering and construction claims. The purpose of the report (according to its Foreword) is to offer: actionable insight and suggestions to help owners, contractors and the supply chain navigate
We have never met anyone without a legal background who enjoys working with contracts So starts a 2013 paper by Stefania Passera and Helena Haapio which rues the fact that contracts have become stuff for lawyers rather than as a framework for successful deals and the relationships between a supply