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How do you help clients save money?

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by jennifer recktenwald

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As companies downsize and decrease budgets, many will have to stetch their IT dollars. Do you help them compete for the best prices from vendors? Are there other ways you're helping your clients save money, or "do more with less?"

5 replies

by generalist

You could always convince a client that the 'vanilla' version of a software package is more cost effective than a semi-customized package. That, to me, appears to be one of the major areas that impacts the overall cost of a project.

And if the client complains that their business is unique, then get them to take a close look at what they think is unique and what they think is standard. I suspect that you'll find the uniqueness is relatively trivial in most instances. Name changes and simple process changes could help a company use a 'vanilla' package and, perhaps, streamline processes that are mired in the 'we have always done it that way' mindset.

For that matter, a change to a new software package can encourage other changes in the organization.

You just need to get everybody behind things. Management and the line workers.

by md_hashim

Outsourcing and employing/contracting consultants from other parts of the world is definitely a plausible solution. It would be imperative for the contracted organization to understand the business ideals and goals of the contracting organization with onus lying on the latter of having communicated these effectively though.

by shanghai sam

There are many consultants in the home countries that are willing and able to do the right job. I think that having to import talent from other countries has its place but I don?t see treating technology and talent like the garment industry either. I think companies should put more money into training people right here at home and growing them within their own industries is a better answer. What does overseas talent have that we lack? Perhaps answering that question in it self will draw more from this thread.

by clinton goveas

While outsourcing is a good option, there is always a higher level of risk involved in choosing to partner with an outside organisation.

For one, to align the service levels of both partner companies is a feat in itself. A thourough service capability assessment followed by a selection of service provider would be a good way to take care of this issue.

by shanghai sam

Proposing the best solution for the job is still paramount. In providing the proper solution, I save my customer much more then the original investment. I have been known on more then one occasion to turn a contract down because I was going outside of my standards of providing the best solution. In also providing the best solution though, there is room to budge. After a risk assessment and the customer signing off on knowing what risks are implicated, I will put into service a solution, but only then if it makes common sense. Budgets might be getting tight, but they are going to remember the company who provided the correct long-term solution and they will never forget the company that left them out to dry.

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