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Finding an E-forms Designer
IMR, Oct. 28, 1996
When John Schwope, an electronic forms consultant and president of Automated Documentation Systems in Amherst, N.H., has overflow e-forms work, he turns to an unlikely source for help. An employee of one of his current customers has undergone JetForm training and is proficient at handling basic forms design. The employee, whose employer does not mind her freelance work, picks up some extra money and gains design experience. Schwope says the designer completes work in a few days and supplies it to him on disk. He then adds intelligence to the designs.
Schwope advises other distributors who outsource such work to try designers first in non-critical situations. "Expect them to do a terrible job and that you'll have to do it [over] yourself," he says. That way, you'll have enough time allotted in case you do. Provide an easy form on the first try, and keep the lines of communication open. Because Schwope is knowledgeable about JetForm Design, he can alter the designs if necessary and then advise the designer on how to handle certain situations in the future. He pays the designer by the surface (a 2-part form equals two surfaces), which he says is common in the e-forms business.