Discussion on:

10 ethical rules for IT consultants and contractors

Whenever I leave a contract, I will always get someone to sit next to me and delete my accounts on Exchange, AD, Firewalls, etc... I do not create back doors in the first place. I just like to leave the company with the documentation for my project with absolutely no way to get back in after I leave. I do not want to be the one blamed after I leave. If they bring me back, it is too easy to recreate the accounts necessary.

This list has a lot of great points but one is more important. Not creating dependency is so very important. I have seen this in the past, people think they can get away with this to make the company have to rely on just the one person. They are only fooling themselves and looking after their own selfishness. Companies can spot this and they will hire someone else. No one is not replaceable. Things will go on. A good team atmosphere of sharing should be promoted and that is what I try to do at the data center I work at.

Thanks for reading my two cents,

Steve VanTil
http://www.onlinetech.com

Name the client but obscure the data
or
Obscure the client and provide real data.

Does this mean we have to leave our source code?

Yes, you leave your source-code behind. Work-for-hire means the client owns whatever you produce, including the source code.

Oh, and since the client owns the source code, you can't re-use the code at another client, unless mutually agreed upon at the start of the contract.

How much do you have to change before it's something else.
Past just a straight copy and rename, it's near unenforceable. Not to mention, you probably wouldn't do exactly it like that gain.

This time I'll use a while loop.

No, source code ownership is an ambiguous issue unless ownership is spelled out in the agreement / SOW.

Good Ten Commandments ! What I will add to Rule #3 is an extension. Don't just stop at your best recommendation. If you are able to identify multiple (manageable number, of course) options, provide all of them to the client, with their pros and cons listed and let him choose. This way, you don't even have to push your best recommendation. When the client sees your list, he would assume that you have no hidden agenda and increased confidence level can do wonders.

If you are on a daily rate give a full day and more.
If you are on an hourly rate don't add up the part hours at the end of the week.
We are usually paid more than the people who employ us or we work along side and therefore need to be seen to be value for money - this is easily demolished by penny pinching.

I agree with your "lagniappe" (a little something extra") attitude. I would recommend, however, that your invoice shows the total hours worked and then you can apply the "preferred client discount" to adjust the total. I wouldn't leave it to chance that they will notice the extra time you are giving unless you show them.

A fully documented tradesman's entrance on occasion, with a key and security camera...

From time to time you will have a client that has processes and frameworks that are quite low on the maturity scale. Do not succumb to mediocrity, our trade and our skills are important, assist the client to move up, do not move your standards down as it is easier and may avoid conflict. Particularly in the management of change, scope and quality, we are there for a reason. The value for money should also be borne from our discipline. I have seen too many contractors and consultants slip, and that breeds mediocrity. Then they walk away.

Hopefully this is a misunderstanding or inappropriate use of terminology!!
Creating a 'back-door' in the first place in unethical (at least in my opinion)

"Developers like to code a backdoor that no one else knows about"
Is there any evidence or proof of this? Personally, as a developer, I find even the suggestion of this to be offensive.

RodG

On December 7 I spent four hours in a medical office attempting to restore internet. The actual problem was that Optimum had changed equipment out on the pole, so nobody had internet, thus my assigned task was void. Still, a kid from Cablevision had totally screwed up the inside of the network with moved cables and public IP addresses (yes, public) so I had to reset everything and then diagnose the MISSING DNS servers for a spell until Cablevision did arrive and confirmed their work outside was the fault point. So, four hours of relatively good work.

Client did not want to pay me. I did not restore internet.

I am taking him to court if I have to.

How about clients who respect and honor the commitment and expertise of the people they call in for a job!!!!!!!!!! Oh, if I was not incorporated, I could do small claims court, but NO, a company has to file a civil complain to I may have to do court costs. My other option is write him off as a bad debt (I am never working there again anyway) and move on.

CLIENTS! They should have ethics too.

Yours, theirs and the truth.

Before jumping to "they are crooks" always try to see the situation through your client's eyes. You might be surprised. And you may even manage to save the relationship.

Having said that, every consultant runs into this situation at one point or other. From the insurance agent who keeps adding work and then wonders why the bill is higher than expected to the corporate manager who keeps changing their mind and then refuses to pay because you couldn't make the mess work the way they thought it was going to work to the prime who screws up the code then complains that you shouldn't have reported all the bugs.

There will always be bad clients. Some will refuse to pay. Some will not be able to pay. All you can do is 1) take a deep breath 2) ensure that you've done all you can to stop the disagreement 3) learn to recognize the signs.

Glen Ford
http://www.vproz.ca

...and that is exactly why I stopped working for medical offices years ago...

#12
Don't pad the bill or the engagement. You're there for a reason. Do that work and then leave. If your client wants you to do more be sure they are aware of the extra cost BEFORE the work is done. On a daily basis don't pad either your daily bill or your expenses.

#13
Don't undervalue your services. There will always be those who want to pay half price for your services. You have a responsibility to yourself, your dependants, your creditors and your profession to charge a fair rate. And that means you need to know what the fair rate is. (I've seen whole markets destroyed by clients knowing they can pay hourly employee rates for contractors).

#14
Don't overpromise. If you can't do something or if there is a cost to doing something be sure your client knows before you start. Remember that setting expectations are half the battle for happy clients.


Glen Ford
http://www.vproz.ca

Much as most people dislike documentation, it is professional to maintain a high standard of communication to the next person who takes over your work

Bennett Mendes