What is a direct project/contract? What is the difference between end direct projects and prime projects?

There is always a client and a person who receives the job. Direct contracts/projects and prime projects all refer to the state in which the contractor has a direct contract with the client. In many cases, there is no one-to-one relationship between the client who is the client, and the contractor, and there are also cases where the contractor entrusts the work to another contractor. It is a contract form such as so-called primary contract, secondary contract, or tertiary contract.
This time, we will explain the characteristics of direct contracts, end direct projects, and prime projects, as well as the differences between primary contracts, secondary contracts, and tertiary contracts.

table of contents

What is a direct project/contract?

A direct project/contract is a company that receives or receives a request directly from a client company or an individual orderer.

● General contract flow

Generally, there is an agent company between the client company and the individual orderer. However, in the case of a direct case, the expression “direct” is used because there is no agent company in between. From a corporate standpoint, it is inefficient to make direct contracts with multiple individuals. Therefore, it is common to have an agent in between. The company can also avoid troubles through the agent. For this reason, it is common for particularly large companies to enter into contracts with agent companies.

● Primary contractor / primary contractor

A prime contractor is a company that receives a direct request from a client company or an individual orderer, just like a direct contract or a direct contract. The primary reception is different from the direct contract. Since the primary contractor is a subcontractor of the prime contractor, it is one step farther from the client. Compared to the second contract and the tertiary contract, the treatment and work contents of the direct contract and the primary contract are different. Please note that many people mistakenly think that the prime contractor and the primary contractor have the same meaning.

● Characteristics of direct projects and contracts

In the case of a direct contract, not only development but also “being involved from the requirement definition and design stage” from the customer who is the orderer is a feature. In the case of a system engineer, programming is rarely done, and the main tasks are meetings with client companies, scheduling, and management of secondary contractors.

What are end direct projects and prime projects?

Here, we will also explain the meaning of end direct projects and prime projects.

● What is an end direct project?

The “end” of an end matter refers to the end-user. Also called an end company. Customers such as companies that have requested system development are end-users. An end-directed project means a project ordered directly from an end company or individual.

● Advantages of direct end projects

System development tends to be multiple subcontracting structures with secondary contracts and tertiary contracts in between. On the other hand, end-directed projects have the advantage of not being hollowed out because they are directly requested by the end. If you can get a direct project, it will be a big achievement and the reliability will increase. Another big advantage is that you can communicate directly with the client. You can work efficiently and work comfortably.

● What is a prime project?

End-directed deals are sometimes referred to as prime deals. Prime means “first,” “first,” and “most important.” Like the end direct deal, it means a deal that has a contract directly from the client.

What is a secondary contract project?

Secondary contracting means that the primary contractor company undertakes development work related to work. Sometimes referred to as “grandchildren”. When we receive an order for system development, the primary contractor is responsible for the formulation and design of specifications, but the secondary contractor is often responsible for programming. The differences and advantages/disadvantages when compared with direct projects and prime projects are as follows.

● Advantages and disadvantages of secondary contracting

An actual program is a secondary contract. The secondary contract has the advantage of being able to hone the technical capabilities of a system engineer. There is also the advantage that it is a little easier because there is no great pressure like a direct contract. After the second contract, the system engineer can program by himself, which can be rewarding.

However, the secondary contract has the disadvantage that the reward is low. Direct contracts receive high salaries because they receive orders directly from clients, but after the second contract, the rewards are lower than those of intervening companies. Compared to direct contract companies, which are often large, the benefits are not very substantial. You can’t expect high rewards, but you can find it rewarding.

Abilities and skills required for direct contract

What abilities and skills do salespeople need for direct contracts?

● Management ability

In direct contract projects, the main task is to meet with customers and manage them, so management skills are required. Management ability is also required to manage the entire system development by setting a work schedule in time for the delivery date presented by the end-user.

Since programming is done by companies and people after the second contract, we do not demonstrate our technical capabilities, but our knowledge and experience can be utilized in scheduling and so on.

Management skills can be improved by accumulating work experience, so it is good to work with aspirations.

● Learning ability

In the case of direct contracts, it is also necessary to constantly brush up on the knowledge to fulfill the customer’s request.

Direct contract projects also require ideas and a wealth of knowledge. You don’t have the opportunity to demonstrate your ability to program like an engineer, but you need to learn hard while doing business. It’s a good idea to keep an antenna daily to absorb new information so that you can handle any matter.

● Long-term thinking ability

Some of those who have been developing programming systems as system engineers may be trying to win direct contracts as sales staff for career advancement or career change. The knowledge gained in system development can also be utilized in the acquisition of direct projects.

In addition, it is good to have long-term thinking. The experience of handling direct contracts can be utilized as an IT consultant in the future. To have a direct contract project, it is necessary to think long-term, aim for step-up one after another, and always look up.

If you have long-term thinking ability, you will be able to get involved with clients from the planning stage of your work, and you will be able to earn a high income as a freelancer in the future.

● Salesforce

As a matter of course, sales staff also need a sales force for direct projects. We will actively make appointments and hold meetings to explore the needs of the other party.

It’s easy to think that sales are suitable for people who are good at speaking, but the most important thing is “listening ability.” People who can listen to the other person’s story and who can find out what the other person wants and needs from the meeting, that is, the person who can listen, are suitable for sales. A direct project must propose problems and solutions that the customer himself has not yet grasped.

Points and precautions that the sales staff of the development company should be careful about

It is not limited to direct projects, but here are some points and precautions that the sales staff of the development company should be aware of.

● Listen to the engineer

Sales reps must look not only outside the company, such as clients but also inside the company. It is important to create an environment where you can listen and have time to talk with the engineers who work daily. To be able to talk to the sales staff in case of trouble, it is important to be able to listen to them in a friendly manner.

● Be careful of heavy use of IT terms

Avoid overusing IT terminology for your clients. If you use the language you normally use in conversations with engineers, it may not reach your clients. Proposals and quotations are created according to the other party. Use IT terms for engineers and try to use words that are easy for clients and other customers to understand.

● Increase the reliability of the company

The larger the scale of a project, the more multiple contracts such as secondary contracts and tertiary contracts will be made. This is because the larger the scale, the larger the number of engineers required, and it becomes difficult to collect a sufficient number of engineers only by direct contract. Even if we can gather enough engineers, the amount of money we will undertake will increase as the scale increases, so “credit examination” is required. Economic power is required to pass the credit examination, but performance is also related. By accumulating achievements, it will be easier to pass the credit examination. Sales reps should make great achievements and increase their credibility so that they can connect to their next job.

● Increase reliability as a business

Development is different from products such as packages, and until it is completed, it will be delivered without objects. Since the program or system to be created does not exist in the process of being created, it cannot be ordered unless the sales staff is trusted by the customer. The quality of the work paid and the reliability of the sales staff will affect the orders for additional orders and new projects. The more credible your sales reps are, the more likely you are to get new customers introduced by existing customers. Development salespeople need to work in good faith to increase their credibility.

Let’s use the matching service to develop new projects under direct contract!

One way to find a new direct contract is to use a matching service.

● How to acquire new customers

To acquire new customers, it is important to connect with people, so follow-up is necessary. By following up to continue the contract, it will lead to the development of new customers as well as the continuation. In direct contract projects, system engineers are required to value connections with people, such as the sales force, rather than programming ability. Connecting with people is also important for acquiring new customers.

● Use matching service

The simplest composition in the IT industry is that it is completed with only one arrow, “Customer → Direct contract”. Next is the form of “customer-> direct contract-> secondary contract”. Some companies receive orders for system development from customers and complete all of the direct contracts, secondary contracts, and tertiary contracts in-house, but in many cases, it is difficult for their employees to do it alone. .. If it is difficult to do the design and programming test in-house, we recommend using the matching service. It is possible to find human resources and companies that have acquired the necessary skills in real-time.

● What is a matching service?

A matching service is a platform that matches a company that wants to place an order with a person who wants to get a job. It is characterized by using a platform on the Internet that acts as an intermediary.

If you are a freelancer, you can search for a project that seems to be able to demonstrate your abilities, apply, and conclude a contract if there is a matching company. You can search for a company that suits your needs by checking the type of business, compensation, contract period, payment conditions for compensation, work location, etc. Depending on the matching service, there may be benefits such as congratulatory money when the contract is concluded, or if you have a high score, the profile will be displayed at the top and it will be easier to match.

What is the hottest zero contract project?

Zero contract projects that are more closely related to customers than direct contract projects are attracting attention.

A zero-contract project is a style in which an engineer consults directly with a client and develops himself. Large direct contracts are followed by secondary contracts and tertiary contracts, but zero contracts mainly deal with small contracts. It is attracting attention to freelancers who have some skills.

Both sales skills and high skills as an engineer are required, but the client-side is also attracting attention because it has merits such as cost and a sense of speed that allows direct communication.

If you want to win direct deals, consider using matching services

Since we receive requests directly from clients for direct projects, we can be involved in system development from the design stage. Since there is no intermediary, you can communicate with the client and work efficiently. It is also an attractive point that no margin is generated. If you want to find a direct project, please consider using the matching service.

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