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Does your company need to retain the services of a competent computer consulting firm, but you have no idea how to really evaluate “competence”? In the first part of this two-part series on Computer Consulting 101 hiring tips, we looked at why small businesses find it so difficult to hire good computer consulting companies, as well as four basic questions that you must be addressed when searching for a new computer consulting vendor. Now in this second and final installment of this two part series on Computer Consulting 101 hiring tips, we’ll look at how you can evaluate the true, often-confusing expenses of using a computer consulting company, as well as how to more thoroughly review the computer consulting company’s professional credentials and experience. Reseller, “Pure” Computer Consulting Company, or Hybrid Technology Provider Does your company resell various technology products, such as hardware and software? Is this a profit center or do you mind if we shop for our products elsewhere? And if we do shop elsewhere, can we still purchase your needs analysis and procurement services? Are there any other vendors, such as ISPs or telephone companies, that your firm acts as an agent or affiliate for? In other words, do you accept commissions or referral fees for steering business toward certain vendors? Costs, Hidden Charges, and Billing Procedures What are your payment terms, rates and hourly billing minimums? What is billable and what is not billable? Do you charge for your travel time? Telephone support? E-mail/online support? Remote support? Are there any hourly rate billing premiums for after-hours or emergency service? What constitutes “after hours” or an “emergency”? Do you offer support contracts? What are the cost and benefits? Client Reference Accounts, Case Studies, and Testimonials Can you tell me about one of your more long-term small business client accounts? Can you tell me about one of your more recently signed-on clients? Can you tell me about a small business client who didn't work out and why? Can you provide references? Research/Developments and Keeping Skills Sharp How do you keep up with new tech developments? What do you bill clients for and what do you absorb internally? Are there any gray areas? Training Approach and Knowledge Transfer How do you feel about handholding and in-depth training with users? What kind of user and technical training can you provide? Will you train our internal computer administrator to become more self-sufficient, even if it takes away from your "job security" and opportunities to bill more hours? The Bottom Line Don't fall into the ultra-common trap of hiring an independent computer consultant or computer consulting firm that isn't a good fit for your business. Use these Computer Consulting 101 hiring and screening questions as the basis for making a more informed hiring decision for your computer consulting vendor. And if you have any doubts, don't be afraid to seek out a second opinion with another computer consulting company. Copyright MMI-MMV, Computer-Consulting-101.com, All Worldwide Rights Reserved. DesktopMaster 2.0. - Enjoy the newest desktop themes And keep your computer clean! DesktopMaster is the #1 Software for your desktop themes! Registry Toolkit - Registry Cleaner Tool. - Increase computer speed and stability by removing corrupted registry files with Registry Toolkit. We have Conversion Tracking! Guest post written by Stuart Ngai, Director of Technology Solutions, VERAX
Continued from last Monday. Read Part 1 >> Enforce a checkpoint schedule Now that you’ve worked out a set of goals with your staff. Who’s responsible to make sure things are on track? My experience tells me that it’s both of you: your staff needs to take ownership to keep up with skills and you, as their manager, need to be the measuring stick. And if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail. So it needs to be instilled as a routine in order to keep the momentum going. By measuring training progress on a periodic basis like once every 3 to 4 months , you’ll know whether your staff is progressing as expected or perhaps he or she is being overloaded. With such a feedback loop, you’ll be able to fine tune the training plan and keep things in focus. Not one size fits all Everyone’s different. Some of your IT staff might be more comfortable with structured classroom learning while others prefer to be given time and web resources so they can learn at their own pace. And one of the techniques we have done successfully at VERAX is to provide some of the technology savvy staff with resources and allocated time so that they can put together lunch and learn seminars for their peers. And there are many benefits for that: opportunity to showcase what they’ve learned, efficiency in cross training each other, a chance for the team to gel and discuss innovative ideas for your workplace, and virtually no loss of productivity at a minimal cost to the company. It’s been a win-win training mechanism that has been working well for us. So be creative in your approach to training. Make use of web resources With advances in webcasting and e-learning tools, many companies are no longer constrained to sending their staff on expensive offsite training. Virtual training along with virtual machine images would be a great way to learn. And there are tons of resources on the web for that purpose that you should look into (some free resources - Developer Connection, Channel 9) Make it fun Be aware of e-learning trends and listen to your staff for innovative and fun ideas to learn. As an example, one thing we have done is to provide tablets to loan to our staff along with e-book subscriptions so that they can read at their own pace anywhere anytime. Our staff love such innovative approaches to learning and they appreciate our willingness to invest in them. So not only did we generated excitement and high level of staff engagement, we know our staff will be able to learn throughout the year on their own pace instead of the standard one to two weeks training for most companies. So make it fun and engaging. After all, it’s a small investment that pays back many folds. To finish off - You are not alone Just remember that you are not an island on your own. The best way to avoid missteps is to learn from the lessons and best practices of other managers. And guess what? There are already great resources freely available for you, such as the AlignIT portal and LinkedIn group. They are great places where you can read and interact with other IT practitioners for advice. Stuart Ngai
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Stuart Ngai, Director of Technology Solutions at