Jim Mastalerz is the director of Rolta AdvizeX’s Program Management Office.
Name: Jim Mastalerz
Position: Director of Program Management Office
Drafted/Signed: Signed in 2005 from Hewlett Packard, where he served as Global Program Manager for the IT Service Management Group.
Education: B.S., Computer Science (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) and a Masters’ certificate in Project Management (George Washington University).
Quotable Quote:
“As organizations move toward the cloud, the process of integrating the cloud with the business doesn’t get easier. Finding the right partner who can provide the best cloud fit for your business is paramount to an enterprise’s future success.”
Team Highlights:
- Led the Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery practice for Rolta AdvizeX
- Masterminded the RFP Advisor (see below for details)
What is an RFP and why do I need one?
Because of the complexity of IT projects, enterprises often need to create a Request for Proposal (RFP) before they can move forward. RFPs allow organizations to get competitive bids and, most importantly, comparable bids from suppliers. But there’s a skill to creating a good RFP, and without that skill enterprises can end up undermining the success of their project before it’s even started.
A good RFP, for example, shouldn’t have vague requirements, but at the same time it shouldn’t be so detailed and specific that suppliers walk away from the bidding process. Most enterprises have limited experience creating complex RFPs, and as a result fall into one of those traps.
How does the RFP Advisor work?
The RFP Advisor provides a vendor-agnostic, 360-degree view of the project that delivers invaluable insight into the RFP process. It’s based on our own years of subject-matter expertise as well as input from industry experts and even our own customers. It starts with internal workshop sessions featuring cross-functional customer teams, which we mediate to ensure that all the real-time requirements are captured and that the typical inter-departmental barriers are broken down.
From those discussions, we develop an RFP taskforce to move the RFP creation process forward and keep it aligned with business and budgetary goals.
What makes the RFP Advisor unique?
Beyond the expertise we bring to the table, the RFP Advisor is unique because it uses a formalized process to provide manageable and measurable results. The goal is to minimize the amount of heavy lifting that enterprises need to do in creating an effective RFP, so they can get back to their “day” jobs sooner.
Where can the RFP Advisor help the most?
We see a lot of complexity in the cloud. As organizations move toward the cloud, the process of integrating the cloud with the business doesn’t get easier. Finding the right partner who can provide the best cloud fit for your business is paramount to an enterprise’s future success. ▪