Thread:Project:Support desk/I am giving up and going to pay a consultant but how do I do this?/reply (3)

At least part of your question is about using a consultant. As someone who works on MediaWiki contracts full time, I thought I'd try to give you some ideas. This is just how I work, not neccesarily how all consultants work.


 * Make your sure you know what you want. Fereal has given you some technical information.  You should read over that and see if you have any clarifications that you need to make.


 * The amount a consultant charges will vary depending on a number of factors. Some will provide you with a fixed price based on how much they estimate the work will be.  Others are going to provide you with an hourly rate.  If someone gives you an hourly rate, you need to make sure you communicate your budget up front.


 * Communicate, communicate, communicate. Daily reports aren't un-reasonable and through them you'll be able to see how much is getting done and if the project is going in the wrong direction.  Now, while I said daily reports aren't unreasonable, some days nothing will happen on your project, especially if the person you hire is working with other people as well.  Nothing happening isn't the end of the world, but you should see some measure of regular progress.  If you're unhappy with the speeed of the progress, say so.