John
(and Tom),
The
deadline for responses to the consultant recruitment has passed, but I have not
received any substantive response regarding the concerns I raised August 10th
and again August 20th. I really would like to feel more comfortable about the
process and consequent prospects of this undertaking, so I respectfully
request a response from TC leadership about both the issues raised and the
candidate evaluation process. Having spoken with other members of the TC
over the last few days, I think it would be best if the response was sent to the
list rather than in a private communication.
Regards,
TJS
I ask Tom Clarke to
respond directly to the comments you posted, or to call you personally to
discuss them before responding on the list.
John M.
Greacen
Greacen Associates,
LLC
HCR 78, Box
23
Regina, New Mexico
87046
505-289-2164
505-289-2163
(fax)
505-780-1450
(cell)
-----Original
Message----- From: T J Smith
[mailto:TJSmith@ITDecision.com] Sent: Friday, August 20, 2004 3:03
PM To:
legalxml-ms@lists.oasis-open.org Cc: karl.best@oasis-open.org Subject: RE: [legalxml-ms] Recruitment of
consultant(s) to draft specifications
In issuing this
recruitment I think you may have at least indirectly addressed some of the
concerns listed in my posting of August 10th (included below):
"Technical Writer" is now "Consultant," and any time frames for deliverables
have been deleted. Since I (and the TC, for that matter) don't have the
benefit of a formal response to my concerns, I don't know whether to think of
these changes as "fixes" or "patches."
For the record, I
remain particularly concerned about the consequences of incomplete
requirements (item 3 in my posting), and the implied commitments regarding TC
activities or deliverables (item 2) in light of past performance. I don't know
if other members of the TC share these concerns, but as this course is being
taken in the name of the Member Section and thus the TC, I believe it's
incumbent upon the co-chairs to address them. Also, I would very much
appreciate knowing what the candidate selection criteria will
be.
Mind you, I am not
arguing that obtaining outside or paid help is something the TC shouldn't do,
only that we should make every effort to do it right. It may be our last
shot.
-----Original
Message----- From: T J Smith
[mailto:TJSmith@itdecision.com] Sent: Tuesday, August 10, 2004 10:56
AM To: John Greacen;
Electronic Court Filing Technical Committeee Subject: RE: [legalxml-courtfiling]
Attached technical writer statement of work
As I mentioned during
today's call, I have the following problems with the Technical Writer
Statement of Work.
- The nature of the
work to be completed far exceeds the role of a Technical Writer. A Tech
Writer ("scribe") is undoubtedly needed for a project of this scope, but it
will also require an architect, designer, or someone with a broader
grasp of the technology (which I note isn't specified) and how it can be
applied to the business problem.
- The
deliverables described in the SOW are dependent on things to be
produced by the TC (see for instance tasks 1a, 1b, 2a, 2b, and 3b). I
suggest the TC deliver these things before hiring anyone because (1)
they are essentially on the critical path for the project, so any delays
will affect project deadlines, (2) many of them should probably be reviewed
and approved by the TC as a whole, and (3) they could be useful in screening
candidates.
- The SOW speaks of
consolidating use cases, but by themselves use cases do not constitute the
formal requirements that I suggest are appropriate for a project of
this significance - which, after all, hopes to produce a national standard.
A requirements document normally specifies many things that aren't made
explicit by use cases.
- The scope of the
project's deliverables isn't clear: I assume it includes Filing and some
sort of Confirmation, but does it also include Policy, Query-Response, or an
API?
- Given the above, I
suspect the time frames are unrealistic.
-----Original
Message----- From: John
Greacen [mailto:john@greacen.net] Sent: Tuesday, August 17, 2004 6:54
PM To:
legalxml-ms@lists.oasis-open.org Cc:
karl.best@oasis-open.org Subject: [legalxml-ms] Recruitment of
consultant(s) to draft specifications
Dear colleagues – The LegalXML
Member Section Steering Committee – with the concurrence of OASIS management
– has decided to procure the services of a consultant or consultants to move
our specification development process forward at a faster rate. In the
past when a participating organization was able to devote a staff member’s
time to assisting a technical committee in developing a specification, the
process moved with considerable speed.
I attach a request for proposals
for serving as a consultant to the Member Section. I invite any member
of the LegalXML Member Section to apply for this position. I also
invite you to post the request for proposals on sites or lists where it may
attract the attention of interested and qualified persons, or to refer it to
friends, colleagues or acquaintances who may be interested and able to
assist the Member Section.
Proposals are due on or before
August 27th.
Thank you for your assistance in
this recruitment process.
John M.
Greacen
Greacen Associates,
LLC
HCR 78, Box
23
Regina, New Mexico
87046
505-289-2164
505-289-2163
(fax)
505-780-1450
(cell)
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