General Consultant Discussion

Being new to the reseller world (2 years in the making) all of a sudden I am having to deal with what I call IT Woes (or IT Wars). Some client's third party IT folks are just being challenging when it comes to coordinating and working as a team. I am told it was bound to happen and lucky to have dodged it for so long especially given activities. So far my way of dealing with it has been to just not engage (all be it - I certainly want to) and professionally consult the client on what I can do for them. Unfortunately it is at the client's cost now and the time spent on their system shouldn't even be needed. This is also taking away time I need for other projects and client's which I don't think is right. It would be if attention wasn't because of IT's medling. Anyways, I wonder if someone can point me to a forum or literature that can educate me further in this area of business. I'm looking for more options or support that my actions provide the best outcome. Anyone?

This has helped quite a few consultants deal with IT. Seriously - it's an ongoing issue and I've found that the best way to deal with it is to provide Sage KB printouts as practical (usually in response to requests for supported platforms, speed issues or the classic ""unlock region failure""). I'll start most discussions with a customer briefly explaining why Sage is more perceptible to subtle issues with speed whereas Microsoft Office is not. I'd say on about 10-20% of engagements there's push back from the IT department. In about 60% the customers seem to really distrust their own IT people.

When you begin an engagement, IT internal or third-party, make sure that you have them sign off on the support plartform matrix (SPM) and recommended workstation setup tweaks, then copy the customer on this sign off. Repeat for an upgrade. If IT can't follow directions, at least you have their sign off and you've cya.

Wayne-got to love you..ROFL. My initials are JD and I am all over the gentlemen's Jack.

To point out what Moira said -- never give an ""off the cuff"" recommendation on what hardware or OS to use. ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS send the PDF -- or even better send a link to the Sage PDF (you can right click and copy the URL and they'll be able to download it). If I know that I'm dealing with a third party IT and have to wait on them my price is usually at least 25% higher than if I were managing the work myself.

Learning the hard way, but refusing to give up my innocence. Bless my boss for being patient. In this one case the IT guy was slamming me so hard I created a support case to validate my needs on user permission levels. He won't aide in the troubleshooting which is most always permissions or AV setting, he's working so hard I'm beginning to wondering what he's trying to keep hidden, certainly not his arrogance. But again just trying to deliver quality good to the client (not just some users).

You never know where the IT guy is really coming from. I always assume that they are either incompetent, defensive about their turf and/or simply operate in passive-aggression mode. Then I hope to be pleasantly surprised. In addition to the tech specs, we also always specify in the SOW which rights we will need on which machines and networks. We also balk at doing work on the Domain Controller, simply because it can raise further security concerns, or worse, claims that we damaged their systems. In our proposals/SOW for firms that have known problematic IT people, we add a clause stating that if we are forced to reschedule work because we cannot gain usable access that we charge an extra $$ fee. (And then the first time we have the problem we call our buyer and remind him/her of the clause, offering to waive it this one time if the problems go away. They always have.) Wayne is right: if you have trouble with the IT resource, your buyer has heard it before and is likely to be helpful. Working through him/her is usually a key part of smoothing the waters.

Another great suggestion that deals with the matter up front and allows for compension. It's a different approach than what Wayne mentioned but I bet I can apply the JD part to both. Thanks Jerry. Options are good. :) appreciated too.