| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Announcing Beta of Prequalified Jobs Thread poster: Andre Pellet (X)
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| The idea is to assign the job as quickly as possible | Jul 31, 2008 |
Hi Amy,
Amy Williams wrote:
Is anyone else concerned about the facility to accept the first rate under a given threshold? Is there something I've missed? I don't see how this promotes quality.
The idea with prequalified jobs is that the few service providers invited to do the job have *already* been qualified (e.g. the outsourcer has worked with them before), so they don't need to be evaluated again. Instead, the goal is to streamline the process of assigning the job--generally by awarding it to the first prequalified service provider who accepts it.
However, since service providers themselves indicate the rate at which they will accept a job (instead of having the rate dictated to them by the outsourcer), a safeguard is needed to make sure the job is not *automatically* awarded at a rate higher than the outsourcer's budget. This is what the auto-assignment threshold is used for.
When service providers offer to do the job at a rate higher than the auto-assignment threshold, the outsourcer is notified and must manually accept the quote and issue a purchase order, instead of having that happen automatically. (They also have the option to not accept that quote if they choose.)
Will this feature not lead to translators lowering their rates (even) further to snatch that job?
Because the auto-assignment threshold is not shown to the service providers, there is no more incentive to quote a lower rate in a prequalified job than there is in a traditional job posting. There may actually be *less* incentive to do so, since there is a chance that the quote will be accepted automatically without ever being compared to other providers.
I hope this helps to clarify.
Best regards,
Jason
| | | | Andre Pellet (X) 
Local time: 17:07
TOPIC STARTER | Prequalified Screencast available! | Aug 1, 2008 |
All,
A recorded screencast is now available of the Prequalified jobs system which walks through a prequalified job posting, showing the view from the outsourcer and provider at each step. You can find the screencast at connect.proz.com/connect/pqjob/overview.
Thanks,
Andre
| | | | | Auto-acceptance | Aug 1, 2008 |
Amy Williams wrote:
Is anyone else concerned about the facility to accept the first rate under a given threshold? Is there something I've missed? I don't see how this promotes quality...
Shame. If you could explain to me how this feature is positive to the translator I would be very grateful.
Promote quality? It doesn't really, though I can see it as a convenience in some situations. It might even be fun to use this feature to test just how high the "ceiling" is for an existing client.
If I see a routine job sent by one of my regular clients using this tool, I would simply "bid" the usual rate (it would be nice to be able to store these in some way) for that client and wrap things up quickly. In case of a rush job or complexity which would require a higher bid, I don't have a problem with the manual approval required.
However, it might be useful to the outsourcer to be able to switch off the auto-assignment feature. Sometimes availability of particular persons may be more important than the speed of response. I might want to use this feature to send a notice to my "favorite five" before leaving the office, but I might have definite preferences about who does the work among those five. So it might be desirable to review each response individually, especially if one translator notices important technical issues with the job which I have overlooked. Or is this scenario already covered by some other kind of job posting feature? I admit I don't have a very good overview of all the "Connect" variants and so on that ProZ has.
| | | | | The subject of confidentiality | Aug 12, 2008 |
Hi Andre,
What would the outsourcer do about texts that are confidential? For example, I might want a confidential text to be seen by as few people as possible. I would also want to ensure that only vendors who had previously signed my short confidentiality agreement that I issue prior to giving anybody work would have the opportunity to accept the job.
As far as I can figure out, I could make sure that I only include translators who have previously signed the confident... See more Hi Andre,
What would the outsourcer do about texts that are confidential? For example, I might want a confidential text to be seen by as few people as possible. I would also want to ensure that only vendors who had previously signed my short confidentiality agreement that I issue prior to giving anybody work would have the opportunity to accept the job.
As far as I can figure out, I could make sure that I only include translators who have previously signed the confidentiality agreement on my vendors' list. However, if none of them are available, would the job then automatically be sent to somebody else well qualified, whom I have not worked with before and who therefore has not signed my confidentiality agreement?
This is rather a major issue for me.
Nevertheless, I find this new system an interesting idea. I recall there was something similar (in a less structured manner) when Proz.com first started - some kind of "instant jobs", that I, in any event, never had access to, so I did not find out much about them at the time.
Astrid ▲ Collapse
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| Would online agreement to contract(s) suffice? | Aug 13, 2008 |
Hi Astrid,
Great topic, thanks for posting.
Astrid Elke Johnson wrote:
What would the outsourcer do about texts that are confidential? For example, I might want a confidential text to be seen by as few people as possible. I would also want to ensure that only vendors who had previously signed my short confidentiality agreement that I issue prior to giving anybody work would have the opportunity to accept the job.
As far as I can figure out, I could make sure that I only include translators who have previously signed the confidentiality agreement on my vendors' list.
This should work, as long as you tag all translators who have signed your confidentiality agreement in your vendor database.
However, if none of them are available, would the job then automatically be sent to somebody else well qualified, whom I have not worked with before and who therefore has not signed my confidentiality agreement?
You have the *option* to attempt to auto-qualify providers with whom you haven't worked before, but you can also choose not to if appropriate.
Would it be sufficient for you to upload your confidentiality agreement, and have the system require translators to agree before accessing your text? Or would you want to require them to physically sign the agreement and send it back to you first?
Best regards,
Jason
| | | | Luca Tutino
Italy
Member (2002)
English to Italian
+ ...
| Please clarify autoqualification listing criteria | Aug 17, 2008 |
Dear André,
I liked the idea and the appearance of the new system, but I am disconcerted with the results.
I have just tried to preview the system as if I was trying to outsource a job, together with a friend, using her workstation and login.
I accessed the Prequalified job page and took care to select one of my language combinations, a rate within my range and a deadline for which I am available. I did not enter any invitation email address, and checked ... See more Dear André,
I liked the idea and the appearance of the new system, but I am disconcerted with the results.
I have just tried to preview the system as if I was trying to outsource a job, together with a friend, using her workstation and login.
I accessed the Prequalified job page and took care to select one of my language combinations, a rate within my range and a deadline for which I am available. I did not enter any invitation email address, and checked the box for automatic prequalified vendors selection only.
Then we selected "Preview" and looked at the list of pre-qualified translator that would receive the invitation, 5 at a time every 15 mins.
Ouch! For Dutch > Italian there were only three translators in the list, and I was not included. Ok, NL>IT is not my first combination. I thought this might be the reason.
Then I tried with EN>IT, about 15 translators where included, and my name was not there. I tried again half an hour later, and the (apparently random) list of translators was smaller (9 entries) but most of the names where the same as in the first one!
I tried again with my 2nd and 3rd combinations (FR>IT & NL>IT) and now the autoqualification system was not able to identify any available translator, although the deadline was well in next month and I was fully available.
I believe that it is extremely important that this system should not create unjustified disparities between members...
Can you please reassure us with relevant details?
Best regards,
Luca
[Edited at 2008-08-17 13:16] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Autoqualification algorithm is a work in progress, but availability is key | Aug 17, 2008 |
Hi Luca,
Thanks for experimenting with prequalified jobs and posting about your experience.
The algorithm used to automatically qualify service providers is a work in progress and there's certainly room for improvement--right now it seems to be a lot more restrictive than it needs to be. I am actually working on that this weekend, so your feedback is timely.
A key point the system considers when automatically qualifying service providers is whether they've ... See more Hi Luca,
Thanks for experimenting with prequalified jobs and posting about your experience.
The algorithm used to automatically qualify service providers is a work in progress and there's certainly room for improvement--right now it seems to be a lot more restrictive than it needs to be. I am actually working on that this weekend, so your feedback is timely.
A key point the system considers when automatically qualifying service providers is whether they've indicated they are currently available to take on new work. This is important because the platform intends to streamline the job assignment process and make it as efficient as possible. (Your profile indicates that you are explicitly not available today and tomorrow, so the auto-qualify algorithm wouldn't include you today.)
Thanks again for your comments.
Best regards,
Jason ▲ Collapse
| | | | Luca Tutino
Italy
Member (2002)
English to Italian
+ ...
Jason Grimes wrote:
(Your profile indicates that you are explicitly not available today and tomorrow, so the auto-qualify algorithm wouldn't include you today.)
Thank you for your useful reply and for your good work. I will experiment again in the next few days.
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Ian Davies
Australia
Local time: 07:07
Member (2006)
French to English
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| Demo video gets stuck towards the end | Sep 9, 2008 |
The demo is really good, but when we arrive at the invoicing part, it stops streaming...
Has this happened to anyone else, and how do I fix it?
Thanks
Ian
| | | | | Try reloading demo page and skipping to invoice part | Sep 10, 2008 |
Ian Davies wrote:
The demo is really good, but when we arrive at the invoicing part, it stops streaming...
Has this happened to anyone else, and how do I fix it?
Hi Ian,
I wasn't able to reproduce this, it might have been caused by transient Internet connectivity problems. You should be able to reload the demo, and skip ahead to the invoicing part by dragging the slider to around 11:00.
I hope this helps.
Best regards,
Jason
| | | | | Great feature altogether, can we have better invoices? | Aug 23, 2012 |
Andre Pellet wrote: All, A recorded screencast is now available of the Prequalified jobs system which walks through a prequalified job posting, showing the view from the outsourcer and provider at each step. You can find the screencast at connect.proz.com/connect/pqjob/overview. Thanks, Andre
I have seen the demo and thereafter used the feature successfully. This was a great experience altogether. One point that I was a bit disappointed with was the final invoice from the language service provider:
(a) The invoice can't be printed easily: it appears in a separate window without access to a menu (at least in Firefox) and has no "Print" button. (I had to use a different browser, and paste the link in a new windows before I could get access the browser's printing menu).
(b) The invoice should indicate the type of service delivered, i.e. translation, and the names of the languages involved (this information is not always included in the job title, as it is redundant there).
(c) The invoice should have some ProZ.com logo on it, to make it look a bit more "official".
(d) The invoice should have a bit more data on the language service provider, such as his postal address and/or other identifying reference -- the sort of things you usually expect on a regular invoice.
If you could implement these features, that would be great.
Patrick
| | | | | Thanks for the feedback | Aug 23, 2012 |
Dear Patrick,
Thanks for the feedback. I have added this to our backlog of ideas and suggestions for the improvement of this feature, to be evaluated for possible future implementation.
Please let me know if I can help you with anything.
Best regards,
Alejandro
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| Using Connect for interpreting projects | May 7, 2013 |
Hi ProZ.com team,
I love the Connect platform for jobs and would like to start using it to coordinate interpreters. In order for that to happen, could the following small changes be made:
On Job Posting Form:
- add "Interpreting" to the dropdown list of Services
- make file upload not required
- total volume would be x hours (instead of words in project description)
- rate can be calculated per hour (add option to dropdown menu)
On m... See more Hi ProZ.com team,
I love the Connect platform for jobs and would like to start using it to coordinate interpreters. In order for that to happen, could the following small changes be made:
On Job Posting Form:
- add "Interpreting" to the dropdown list of Services
- make file upload not required
- total volume would be x hours (instead of words in project description)
- rate can be calculated per hour (add option to dropdown menu)
On message interpreters see when clicking the link to accept job:
- remove section on Job Files and NDA since there is no document involved
On message interpreters see when clicking the link after receiving PO:
- remove section on Job Files and NDA since there is no document involved
- remove section on Deliver Work
I think with these minor changes, the system could be used just as easily for interpreting projects, making it an added-value feature for the Connect platform.
Let me know if you have any questions, and if these changes will be feasible.
[Edited at 2013-05-07 15:34 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | About disabling option for service providers to propose different rates | May 7, 2013 |
By the way, as I have established rates for my prequalified service providers, why do they have an option to counter with a different rate before accepting? I would prefer if the job poster could disable that option when posting, if desired, since that is the whole reason for having someone prequalified.
I suppose if I was looking for rates, I would use the RFQ or regular ProZ.com job posting instead of the Prequalified Job Posting.
Let me know, thanks!
[Edited ... See more By the way, as I have established rates for my prequalified service providers, why do they have an option to counter with a different rate before accepting? I would prefer if the job poster could disable that option when posting, if desired, since that is the whole reason for having someone prequalified.
I suppose if I was looking for rates, I would use the RFQ or regular ProZ.com job posting instead of the Prequalified Job Posting.
Let me know, thanks!
[Edited at 2013-05-07 15:25 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Only corporate members have full access to Connect platform | May 14, 2013 |
2201FinchCrtTO wrote:
Hi ProZ.com team,
I love the Connect platform for jobs and would like to start using it to coordinate interpreters. In order for that to happen, could the following small changes be made:
On Job Posting Form:
- add "Interpreting" to the dropdown list of Services
- make file upload not required
- total volume would be x hours (instead of words in project description)
- rate can be calculated per hour (add option to dropdown menu)
On message interpreters see when clicking the link to accept job:
- remove section on Job Files and NDA since there is no document involved
On message interpreters see when clicking the link after receiving PO:
- remove section on Job Files and NDA since there is no document involved
- remove section on Deliver Work
I think with these minor changes, the system could be used just as easily for interpreting projects, making it an added-value feature for the Connect platform.
Let me know if you have any questions, and if these changes will be feasible.
[Edited at 2013-05-07 15:34 GMT]
Hello 2201FinchCrtTO,
Thanks for your feedback!
I see that you were previously unable to see the option to post interpreting jobs using the Connect platform because you were a full member, not a corporate member. Please keep in mind that only corporate members can use all the features of the Connect system, whereas full members can only have access to the pre-qualified job feature - an extension of the Connect platform - announced in this thread.
2201FinchCrtTO wrote:
By the way, as I have established rates for my prequalified service providers, why do they have an option to counter with a different rate before accepting? I would prefer if the job poster could disable that option when posting, if desired, since that is the whole reason for having someone prequalified.
I suppose if I was looking for rates, I would use the RFQ or regular ProZ.com job posting instead of the Prequalified Job Posting.
Let me know, thanks!
[Edited at 2013-05-07 15:25 GMT]
Good point. Your suggestion to add the option to disable/enable this feature when posting a prequalified job has been added to our backlog of ideas for site improvement for possible future implementation.
I hope this answers your questions, but please let me know if you have any further doubts.
Best regards,
Maria
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