I have started up an IT consultancy after being made redundant at the beginning of this year. I have done quite a lot of small local work – mainly fixing, but now have the opportunity to quote on a job for a company moving to bigger premises – they need a new IT network installed.
I don’t know many details at the moment – but it sounds like 1 Windows server + maybe 5-10 workstations.
Technically I will have no problem – although time-wise, I may need an additional person to help depending on the scale.
I have never quoted on this sort of thing before so would really appreciate any advice on what to ask at the initial meeting.
Some things i can think of:
* hardware requirements (server/workstation numbers & details)
* software requirements (versions of Windows, ms office, exchange, other ?)
* locations of hardware and network cabling etc.
* Backup requirements
* internet requirements
* user loggin requirements
* Support – what sort of things to ask/offer here? Is it worth just offering an hourly rate, or a retainer, or super fast response? remote access?
* Is it worth asking about permissions etc at this stage?
Have I missed anything?
Also, is there a template anywhere of a typical layout to present a proposal to a potential client? Remember, I am a small company and this is a relatively small network – so do not need a ‘book’.
I would really appreciate any advice on this.
Thanks and all the best.
Mark.
