I'm working on a contract at present where I'm essentially working as a subcontractor for a fairly big digital agency. The real end customer is a big corp.
So far, I have of course done an amazing job :)
- The agency had a "spec" up front - basically a "sitemap" for the app. This was my "blueprint".
- Inside the first week, I built a working prototype app complete with a new data service - which met the sitemap perfectly. Milestone formally accepted - lots of +ive feedback from the agency.
- In the second week I built and delivered a beautiful fully working CMS for the data (really, it's beautiful - I'm stunned). Milestone formally accepted - again lots of +ive feedback from the agency.
Then the problems started... basically I needed the assets and design pack to complete the app and the project, and what the agency delivered was rubbish - unfinished photoshop files completely skipping half of the app and with every page having undecided A/B options. There's nothing decided in this design pack, so we can't even start on the next project phase.
I flagged this with them a few times... they ignored me for a week, then came back with "what are you talking about? we finished the design pack weeks ago"... I then asked them if they'd looked at what they produced... they then looked at it and admitted it needed "some work". Since then it's been more delays and nothing delivered.
The situation now is that:
- this project is now being delayed and delayed and delayed which is causing problems all over the place (with the customer, within the agency, within my schedule)
- I get the sense that the problems/delays are actually being blamed on "that subcontractor"
- my only contact in the project is one person in the agency - so no-one has any visibility of what the true situation is.
I can cope with the delays and the problems, and I'm pretty sure I don't want to work with this current contact ever again. However, I'd really quite like to work for other people in this same agency in the future - and (in my dreams) I also wouldn't mind getting some contact with the end customer too.
How can I avoid a "bum rap" on this project? Any ideas?