Join a peer networking organization

One of the best examples I've seen so far is the ARSList, a very active mailing list focussed on Remedy's Action Request System. ARS is a amazingly capable and customizable application solution (Help Desk, Asset Mgmt..., etc.) and there are as many different ways it can be used as there are businesses today.

The ARSList has helped to foster and archive an extremely active and helpful developer base. Remedy itself has helped this process by maintaining an open source API, a knowledge base of known issues and ideas, and by showing the wisdom and vision to incorporate field-developed technology into their releases.

Admins and consultants can share their experiences and bounce new ideas off of each other, which increases their value and abilities. Customers are serviced by more capable and efficient admins and consultants, which reduces their project times and costs. Remedy itself reaps the benefits of new technologies created and tested in the field, making for a very robust and customer-tuned product.

In addition to the demonstrated advantages of peer networking association, I think there's also a corporate lesson here: Companies that support the creativity and needs of their customer base are healthier and more robust. (There have been times in the past few years when it's seemed that we've kept Remedy alive by sheer force of will.)

My advice then, is to always try to create and maintain strong ties between your association and the product(s) it supports. The benefits to both can be enormous.

I agree with the value of these groups, however, some of the participants frequently belittle members that have less knowlegde or experience, or who have difficulty with the English language. This makes many of those groups "unfreindly." Being on the lower end of the technical ladder, I know of what I speak. I've been ridiculed, told I don't belong in the field, responded to that it was a dumb question (I was raised with a veiwpoint that no question is dumb--if you don't know the answer, the only way to get it is to ask). If some of the more knowledgeable participants would act more as mentors, maybe some of us less knowledgeable folks would be more inclined to participate. As a "techie" with a very limited scope of responsibility (25 users on a 2,000+ seat network), I can only "know" what I've dealt with and finding out the answer myself is sometimes the only way.

If you don't think the question is "worthy" of your piece of the "intellectual pie," keep your mouth shut instead of making someone else feel bad.

Can anyone suggest an assoication for Consultants in Canada? Thanks...