August 2006 - Posts
This week, and in the coming weeks, we started learning even MORE about CRM then we ever thought there was. Now both Abbie and I are well versed at CRM, especially for small businesses. Or so we thought.
This is really a story about flexibility and why it is important for same while working with clients. We jumped on the Microsoft bandwagon back when they brought out v1.0. We weren't real impressed but persevered through v1.2. Recently we adopted v3.0 SBE specifically as a result of our Action Pack subscription. What has really impressed me is the outlook client, after I finally got it working. The combination of direct web access, integrated outlook access and leveraging integration points with other Microsoft Technologies. But this is not about Microsoft's CRM.
So on Tuesday we met with a prospect that has an installation of TigerPaw CRM. I had not seen it in person before. It seems quite feature rich, and am looking forward to working with them to get the most out of their investment. I like the fact it uses a Microsoft SQL Server backend.
Then on Wednesday we met with another prospect that has an investment in Salesforce.com. They've been running on desktops in a peer to peer network. They will soon be moving locations and we're putting in an SBS server for them. After some discussion I inquired about the Salesforce.com solution...are they happy with it, etc. Well as it turns out, he had never heard of Microsoft CRM!!! So I took him on a test drive, and showed him some of the features. For him, there's a couple of very important items that Microsoft has over Salesforce.com. The first is location, it runs on his system in his network. With SBS it is secured and easily accessed. The second is the feature set. All of the features Salesforce.com has, Microsoft CRM has 'em. Over and above that, he owns it. Pays for it up front, and it's his. Apparently Salesforce.com is charging his CC every three months a fee per user. As it turns out, the cost is not that different than Microsoft CRM, but that does not allow for much of the integration.
Well, we'll be learning a lot about Salesforce.com in the coming months. Primarily to make the transition easier. We'll be learning more about TigerPaw, as well. We spent quite a bit of time over the past month or so discussing and focusing our energies on not just taking the next client that calls, but finding the right client for us. People who are looking for solutions, not just an IT guy to fix a PC or a CPA to do the books. While we can do those things, and will do those things as they relate to other activities, we are actively looking for ways to solve issues for clients. Dashboards, information/business integration, that's where we see our value to our clients.
So today, Susan mentioned a nice little scenerio to reboot her desktop, while away from the office. So let's take that idea abit further. Call your local SBSC or managed services provider and tell them, "Hey, I gotta have this!!!" Well hopefully, if they are worth their salt and know you and your business it's already being done. alot of Management systems now allow for system, service and even application availablity. Don't look now, but Windows can do sometimes natively. If you have a service that HAS to be running, goto start->run->services.msc wait for the services management console to open, then select your 'Mission Critical' service. Then click Action->Properties. In the resulting dialog, Click on 'Recovery' Tab, low and behold there's 4 options for 1st, 2nd and Subsequent failures:
- Take no action
- Restart The Service
- Run a program
- Reboot the machine.
Now consult your local professional before setting these, adn be sure to know and understand the consequences of each. This is a great option, that few people exploit. Let's consider for a moment the run application. That can be an alert or 'open a help desk ticket' or 'Beep Alice' If she gets service in Wonderland. Really kool stuff. Watch out though that when an actual reboot does occur that application event log's gonna fill up aweful quick.
Now on the other hand, hopefully your SBSC/Partner has already settup the monitoring native to SBS or setup an alternative, integrated monitoring solution. If they have not WE NEED TO TALK!!!
So let's bring this full circle, after my little monitoring and services tangent...Hopefully there is some level of node level monitoring, especially, in Susan's case, when she's werkin remotely, she can setup a monitoring system that will, perhaps look for a service availability on the desktop in question, if it ain't available, perhaps open a helpdesk ticket, issue the command to reboot the machine, update the ticket with the results, take it from there....Before you say Enterprise solution, the tools are available inside SBS to do ALL THAT. The only thing missing is a SBSC/Partner to implement it and tie the pieces together...
-bill
Today I was compiling a report for a customer of all their issues and responses for the past month. While collecting all the different stuff, I began to feel like I was in a vignette. I had data from all over the place. Different formats, some email, some phone logs, and various other stuff, like WSUS logs. Slowly it occured to me that this is what most people probably feel like in their daily information worker Roles...
So I decided to build out a simple BI portal for the customer to access. So far, I've had some snags, but it's going pretty well. I am creating the portal in Windows Sharepoint Portal Services. I am using a template for Business Intelligence Portal that has since been replaced by Business Scorecard Manager 2005. I have the template from a while back and it's going pretty well, I think. The best part is mashing up different data sources into a single site. I may setup a test site and show it off to the whoever wants to see it, if I ever get the free time...
So the weekend has passed, and so has the summer. Although don't thell the weather man that. We're still scrorchin' but the kids are back in school. So I get to work this morning, have a ton of things to do, make sales calls, spec out some systems and do up some reports for clients. No big deal, then I see a tickler in my RSS feed oin outlook that Windows Live Writer (Beta) has been released.
WOW!!!
I am testing it out with this. I had tried, unsuccessfully to use the Blog publishing feature in Word 2007 (Beta). But this thing has revealed unto me the secret. For a Community Server based blog, it needs to have /blogs/ then the .ashx file on the end of it. Oh well perhaps this evening.
We'll see how this thing works out. undoubtedly E will want this for her Blogger Acct. I may test it on my Blogger Acct if this works accroding to plan.
BTW, wanna download? I had a terrible time finding this thing...but here's the link.
Later! Bill
Corporate Burocracy (spelling anyone?)
So my Grandfather (Papa) is in a VERY good retirement village. Without getting into the particulars of location, etc. I'll share a recent incident.
Abbie gets a call from Papa about some meds that need to be refilled. She calls the Dr. who in turn calls in the prescription for the refill. There is a Pharmacy onsite at the retirment village. Well about 6 hours or so later, he calls, and says he never got the prescription. Mom and Dad flip out, but calmly call up to the village. They reach someone, who knows nothing but says I'll transfer you over to someone who can help. Mind you it's about 9:00 pm or so...They get the Hospital. and they promptly hang upWhat the !?!?!
So Dad hangs up and calls the 2nd floor attending nurse. She puts him on hold and comes back after a while and says she'll take care of it. Now I have left out several details, like the number of calls that mom and dad made as well as the number of people they spoke to before getting to the 2nd floor nurse. Ultimately, it breaks down like this though. When the Dr. calls in the prescription, and they say, we'll get it delivered, then it should be delivered post haste! Do not pass go, unless then following straight onto Papa's apartment...
So how does this affect my blog and it's readers. Well that place could really use an IT solution, that ties it all together. the problem, is that they are part of a bigger corporation. So no matter what is best for the clients and their families, they'ld rather not invest in a solution that can make things better, easier, etc, because of cost, cost, cost. And that's a real shame! Too often people cannot see past the cost and see the benifit and the better operations.
We're going in there next week to present a solution. They can roll it out at one location and based on the results they can roll that out to additional locations that they run. I know how corporate IT works, having been in the trenches and fought those political battles. Likewise Abbie has been there too, in the Finance dept. and in the Accounting departments of big corporations. This is an area that we would not look for, but because we have been affected, and we know that others, likely are being affected, we're going to jump in there, and try to make this better.
Wish us luck!!!
In a moment of genius, Microsoft recently decided to launch Live.com. I get it, go after those Market $$$ that Hosters, who typically use Linux, get. I get it CRUSH LINUX, CRUSH SALESFORCE.COM!!! or whatever. I fear, however that caught in the crosshairs are also some of those very people Microsoft has been courting with their Service Providers Licensing Agreements. So...
Dear Bill, or Ozzie, or whoever is out there...While Microsfot is busy getting more for your shareholders, rah rah rah, some of your Partners are gonna get squeezed...These are Partners who have loyally rode your coat tails. While I was not at WWPC (either you are with us or you are not), like many Small time Partners, I fear that you may have forgotten about us, down here at the bottom. (see also Yurtle the Turtle of Dr. Suess fame...)
some food 4 thought...
Susan's blog Entry is right on the money.
SMB is a rather nebulous world, where red and white mix into various shades of Pink...For some, my brother for one, SMB is defined as anything less than Multi-Data Center, multi-platform. For others it may mean, anything larger than a Mini Cooper with a cellular data-link. I think all of us who cater IT services to SMB have a pretty good idea of what it is, but few articulate it well. We, at Annabel Watters, PC have been focussing on, not necissarily by choice, on what some may call the Micro Business. These are those with a handful of employees and have a pretty straight forward needs base...Share file, share internet access, send and rec. email, etc. These have become my customers, but what is different, is that rather than telling htem, hey go over to Joe's Hosting, they'll give a Terra-Byte of data and a thousand email addresses for $20/month, I look at who they are and what their business needs are. Not just today but 6 months from now, 2 years from now, 4 years from now, etc... We spend time over lunch and a couple of meetings. I learn as much as I can about them and their business. Hopefully I share as much about us and our business.
Back on Topic...Samll Business is not nec. less than 75 users, it's a state of mind...what does your business want to be. Are you looking to grow? Are you willing to invest in that future? Are you looking for more than a Open Office and Joe's web hosting? If you aren't, that is O.K., I'll be glad to replace your hard drive, or whatever. If you are, however, then there's some GREAT Stuff out there. It doesn't have to be $20k for that first server...You don't have to send that $200/user/3mos to Salesforce.com. You don't have to run Norton AV becaus that's what came with that Laptop from Big Box store A,B, or C. You CAN have Enterprise grade solutions, at a Small, even Micro, price, compared to what it was 3, 5 10 years ago.
Small Businesses CAN have the Silent Partner on their Payroll, without having to pay unemployment and labor taxes...
so, Susan, to me, SB means a business that happens to be small in number of people, but not in ambition, or in needs...
-bill
We have been slammed the past couple of weeks. We did a couple of events, one for eWomen Network, thousands of Women in Business soaking up the atmosphere and sharing knowledge. That was a ton of fun! Another was a B.L.O.C Party at a recent Rangers Game. Alas these 2 events coupled with Family committments and normal business precluded us from attending the WWPC and TechEd. Likewise our existing committments will also force us to miss the upcoming SMBNation in Redmond. Both Abbie and I are disappointed, becuase we firmly believe in the value it offers.
We are actively working to establish an ongoing lunch series here in the North Dallas/Plano area. We have been in contact with a lady who does a similar thing, once a month. She targets her content on Sales and Marketing information. It's a great deal, and so, we discussed the idea with her, and we're going to offer a tech talk on week, a back-office accounting talk another week, and perhaps a legal talk another week, to fill out a month of Thursdays with her Marketing talk. Both Abbie and I are excited about this, as our best marketing, and ultimately our best sales come from relationships and understanding of client pain points. That kind of thing can't be attained over a 30 second elevator pitch.
School starts up again, so I'll be able to get back into the swing of business, normalized working times and hopefully pick up the content production...