December 2007 - Posts
http://www.vladville.com/2007/12/new-years-resolutions-or-last-years-mistakes.html
So did you read that?
Have you been reading Karl's Blog?
Apparently it's the thing to do right now. We've discussed it here, but keep it simple looking into the New Year. Repeat the good things you did. Eliminate the bad things. Problem is that not everything that went South last year was bad for your business. Perhaps you lost a deal that was good for your business, but the client just did not byte. It happens. Be shrewd and keep your wits about you. There's opportunity to learn from every situation, win-lose-or-draw. Sometimes a lose may be just that, sometimes there's more to it. Just because last year was not what you expected, did that sink the ship or were you…
WARNING!!! WATCH OUT FOR MICROSOFT SPEAK HERE!!!
Agile enough to deal with the situation. Well, were you? If not, I'll be on the lookout for your old equipment on eBay. If you rolled with the punches and are in a good place, tell the community. We have found that part of our success is connecting, each and every time we have a win, with our Microsoft Contacts. Most of our deals are specs on Microsoft's radar, but we make sure each one is cataloged, so when they wonder, hey who's the go to SBSC in SCA? I want them to think of us. When they say, who partners with other SBSCs in SCA? I want them to think of us. Who's that goofy guy that keeps burying me in email and phone calls and IMs?
While Vlad maybe heading to Google, I'll not be. Microsoft is not that bad a ship to emulate, and not a bad place to work with. They have helped us identify opportunities and worked to help us win deals, all over the spectrum. Well not exactly. No Government, no School Districts, no fortune 100. But they keep us going, and we are happy to work with them. So as I look back, I can say that working with Microsoft has overall been Good. Repeat that. Working with Packet8, not so much, dump that. Partnering with other likeminded local organizations, good, repeat that. Depending on LPI to deliver on managed services promises, not so much, skip that on this year…
You see how this goes.
Think it out, do it up. Make your lists and get the New Year started right!!!
http://msmvps.com/blogs/bradley/archive/2007/12/26/sa-is-not-a-carrot.aspx
It should round out the solution. Could Microsoft just offer this kind of stuff up, free-of-charge, as a value-added proposition, maybe, but then, other third party software providers can't compete. These kind of solutions already exist and there's a market for charging for this kind of thing, why should Microsoft just give it away.
But this does bring on a larger debate, the value of Software Assurance. I for one like the model. It gives customers choice; unleaded, unleaded plus, and premium unleaded. You don't want or need SA, that's fine. You want it, here ya go. You want a little bit more; we got your hook up. Software Assurance is not pre-paying for the next version of X. Software Assurance is the promise that they will continue to add value, and lest you thing that Microsoft is the only one in this boat. Most Software developers sell 'service' on top of their product; whereby you get 1 year of free-upgrades and service.
I for one am sick of FUD. If you can't or don't use the added value of SA, then by all means don't get it. But don't whine about its existence, and don't whine that the thing you want and think ought to be free is in SA and not freely downloadable. Microsoft makes, or at least owns the rights to it, and can purvey it by any means necessary.
I agree it is frustrating, mostly because in the past, Microsoft simply gave that stuff away. But they have to answer to stock holders and produce dividends. Whether it is charging Partners for marketing materials, or cutting back on the swag at events, they have a bottom line to meet. Will they lose some customers? Maybe. Will they convert others? Probably. Will they lose their market share? Time will tell.
For some 2007 was Great, for others a bust. For us it was a reality check. The Concept of Managed Services is intriguing. We at Annabel Watters, PC believe in Managed Services for Small Businesses. So much so that at around this point in 2006 we sat down and 'projected' what we thought 2007 would be like. We made investments and plans around managed services. We believed so much in it that we predicted that 45% of our business would come from Managed Services. Unfortunately that did not pan out.
2007
The reality of it is that in this Marketplace, right now, clients and customers don't get Managed Services. I think on some level they understand it, but they don't get it. When they can look online, on the fridge, in the mail, hell EVERYWHERE they look, they see Person X, or Franchise Y, ready willing and able to come in provide a one-off service for break-fix at pennies-on-the-dollar, it makes it VERY DIFFICULT to sell the concept of proactive monitoring and management.
We believe in the promise of Managed Services, and will continue to work to sell it when it is right. But right now we see our business evolving into Project Work and Long-Term Consulting. We are working much harder on perfecting a practice around Core IO. Helping clients out of the basic IT world and into a more rationalized IT investment of time, energy and focus.
For the New Year, look for our IT Services company under a new name that more accurately reflects our practice. Annabel Watters, PC will continue to operate as a Public CPA practice. If you are a Microsoft Partner and are looking to make better connections, let us know. If you are a Small Business that is tired of your systems breaking, and tired of wrong answers to your Information Management needs, give us a call. We are excited about 2008.
Have you made a Budget for 2008?
Do you have KPIs for 2008? First Quarter, Second Quarter, Third Quarter, Fourth Quarter?
Are you plugged into the community?
http://msmvps.com/blogs/bradley/archive/2007/12/12/a-checklist.aspx
Susan brings this up, and Karl persistently talks about it. Last night Eriq discussed it, and Vlad doesn't shut up about it!!! Process improvement, through standardization. But it is not enough to standardize a process or set of processes, it has to be ever evolving. Whether its security, or profit margin, or whatever the reason, we collectively have to become better at our business, every time you provide a service, do a post mortem.
Did that task go correctly?
Did I introduce undue risk to the client by performing that task in that manner?
Can I improve how we do that?
Today the answer to these, may be no, but as you learn and move forward, and technology changes and risks change, can you say no forever? Remember Windows 98. At the time the best security you could do, just about was slap on some A/V and wait. And wait was about all you could do, because something was going to happen before the A/V vendor sent out any updates…As time passed they improved their processes, as did we. Now update/release cycles are more common, and we check more often. Likewise Back Office Small Business Edition 4.5 was not very automated. Installation was tricky, some things slid right into place, others, not so much with the sliding, more like, get your crowbar out, you may want to look the otherway…now however, it's much easier.
So, as you look back on the year, could you add a checklist? Could you improve that process? Could you become more efficient? Would you share that with other SBSers?
So here is a Promo video of RP, you may also see it on Microsoft's ResponsePoint site…
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So we got our Demo system a couple of weeks ago. After months of waiting and running to the door to see if it was delivered yet, while we were out of town it arrives, and it promptly sat in the box for almost 2 weeks before I could even break it out and play with it. After finally sitting down and unpacking the base Unit, a beautiful Quanta Syspine box that installed and configured in about 2 minutes. It literally took me longer to unpack and find a good place to put it than it did to get it configured. Then I setup the phones they provided and viola, it's up and running. So it is easy to setup and easy to use, but that ease of use is on fulcrum offsetting some functionality. For example the software does not have any 'wizards' for VOIP services. So to get that setup, I have to get ATA devices and services myself, so that's my next plan, but it got me to thinking…Microsoft provides OCS as well to us, so perhaps, I can get the VOIP lines configured with both systems, ResponsePoint and Office Communications Server. Now that will be very kool, because right now, while RP is a VOIP system between the base unit and the handset, it's not got any SDK or API for extending it's functionality or integrating it further into Outlook or Communicator!!! Some Day…over the rainbow…sing it with me!!!
We have already setup several demos for people to see the RP in action and would be happy to schedule you in. If you want, just call us, we'll bring it by and show you how simple it can be…
http://blogs.msdn.com/sharepoint/archive/2007/12/11/re-the-office-live-workspace-beta.aspx
Abbie and I have been trying to figure out the motivation behind Office Live and the direction its going. Is it something we can use, or sell or advise clients to use? After quite a while, I can say we are not really advising clients to use it. As I see it this is a great option for WHS users, but those on SBS and up are not at all going to be happy with it. So while there is a time and a place for it, our clients and prospects are not likely to be hearing us say:
Go for it!
Now here's a scenario I can see us employing this service…A client has SharePoint for intranet sites, but wants to deploy extranet, without the costs of External Connector Lic. or additional CALS for Partner, vendor and customer Portals. I could really see Microsoft developing an add-on for SharePoint that allows for a monthly service (Office Live) that is hosted offsite, securely and provides interop with SharePoint/Office 07 and external partners, vendors and customers in a cost effective manner.
Will it happen? Will it be easy? I can't say, but I think it's the perfect answer for most SMBs trying to solve the problem of Extranet Portals, without breaking the bank.