BT multimedia roster finalised

BT has announced its first multimedia roster, as part of the on-going restructure of its entire service procurement operation.

The 12-strong list contains consultancies of different sizes and with different capabilities.

It comprises London consultancies Conran Design Group, Wolff Olins, Mahony Associates, Rufus Leonard, Tui Interactive Media, IN.form, Stocks Austin Sice, Deep End Design, Crown Business Communications and Westhill Communications. Wiltshire group Mousepower and York consultancy Infocom complete the list.

BT multimedia roster manager Gordon Butler says the line-up was drawn from the 100 multi-media groups on BT’s Quality

Suppliers List. This covered BT’s entire procurement operation and is being phased out.

The 100 groups were whittled down to 40 after a credentials pitch and to 22 after costing sample projects. The final 12 were chosen after an interview testing their communication skills.

Of the unlucky ten, eight have been put on to a newly-formed Tenderers Suppliers List, which acts as a reserve list to the roster.

The other two groups, Fitch and PSD Associates, are on BT’s three-strong product design roster, set up last year (DW 1 August 1997). Their capabilities were not seen as suitable for the multi-media roster, but their product roster remits have been amended to include interface design.

“Stability was an important consideration with this roster as multimedia is a relatively new area of design. Even some groups we thought were well established are going bust,” says Butler.

Butler was looking for a mix of consultancies to carry out a diverse range of tasks. He has divided project tasks into three categories – design-led, application-led and in-between – and three levels – strategic, creative and production.

BT design manager Richard Troughton adds: “We will be watching the roster closely for the next six months and will probably review it then. A place on the roster does not guarantee work but it gives the groups a good chance.”

The line-up follows the establishment of an 18-strong design-for-print roster in 1996.