How To Pick An IT Consultant by David Berube
At some point, most business are going to need to have some help from a IT consultant. Maybe your business is a small, without many IT resources. Maybe your company is larger, with a significant resources in IT already, and just needs a healthy dose of outside perspective. ... A real IT consultant isn't in the business of writing code; rather, he's in the business of solving problems, and code just happens to be one of the way that he (or she) does it. ... Fortunately, it doesn't have to be hard to choose an IT consultant, because I've the knowledge I've accrued to create some guidelines...

How a Computer Consulting Business Can Help Your Company by Joshua Feinberg
While many small companies only call in a local computer consulting business when something computer-related breaks, there's a lot to be gained by forging a proactive, long-term relationship with a local computer consulting business in your area. Consider Getting Advice from a Computer... A Fresh Computer Consultant Perspective A computer consultant or computer consulting business can also being in a fresh perspective to your company. ... How Computer Consulting Businesses Help A good computer consulting business or computer consultant is prepared to do any number of things to help your...

Obtainable Projects for Information Technology Consultants by Joshua Feinberg
There are many jobs for information technology consultants available today, and the field can be extremely lucrative. Many projects, some that do not involve computer work are out there for information technology consultants that consider their specific strengths and find projects that fit their... A website design project can be huge for a consultant that can also write the content, and a computerized employee-training project can become a larger job if the consultant can also run training seminars.

Computer Consultant Skills: Do You Have to Have 20 Certifications? by Joshua Feinberg
I've had more than one person tell me, "Well, I’m a MCP or I’m a CNA and I’ve got this one cert but I’m working on like 15 more certs and as soon as I get my 19th cert, five years from now, I’ll be all set to be a computer consultant." That’s just a hunk of bologna. ... Some Small Business Technology is Outdated As a computer consultant, what kind of hardware and software and peripherals and infrastructure would you be working with in a typical small business? ... Small Business Aren't Using Cutting-Edge Technology Most small businesses don’t care how many certifications you have.

Computer Consultant Knowledge: Do You Have to Know Everything? by Joshua Feinberg
Will you be expected to know anything and everything about anything that could ever go wrong with small-business IT? No. Do You Need to Be Better at Technical or People Skills? To be a great computer consultant, you just need to be really well organized and be a friendly person that enjoys... It’s just not that important to the typical non-technical small business owner or non-technical small business manager. ... Small Business Owners Want the Whole Package The typical small business owner or manager is not shopping for credentials.

Wireless Ethernet: A Viable Business Opportunity for the IT Consultant by Joshua Feinberg
During 2002, many vendors were rushing to market 802.11a (up to 54Mpbs) wireless Ethernet products that were supposed to be the next wave in wireless networking. However, at the same time, an “in-progress” standard called 802.11g may supplant both the original 802.11b and newer 802.11a standards. ... Wireless Ethernet as a Business Opportunity As an IT consultant you should be aware that wireless is a great business opportunity for savvy computer consultants. ... The Bottom Line about Wireless Ethernet While wireless Ethernet will likely overtake wired Ethernet (Category 5) as the...

Three Things to Totally Achieve the Service Factor by Stuart Crawford
There is an alarming trend in the IT service organizations in today’s service world. It is the lack of quality services provided by small business computer service and network organizations. Could it be the shortage of skilled computer technicians? Or is it really the inability for the leaders... The three things that all small business computer support companies need to master are: - Anticipate your client’s needs – Computer Consultants need to actively anticipate their client’s business goals now and in the future.

The IT Consultant: Considering the Costs of Downtime by Joshua Feinberg
There’s nothing more stressful for IT consultants than getting the dreaded emergency call from a client whose office is "crippled" because of a major systems outage. If you’ve been an IT consultant a while you know the harsh realities of small business technology adoption. ... Valuing System Downtime For a quick, back-of-the-napkin calculation of what system downtime might be costing your clients, consider that the hourly cost of system downtime equals: Projected annual revenue / (Business days per year x Hours in a business day) Use This Tool on Your Website If you’re a little handy...

The IT Consultant Keeps Spare Parts Handy by Joshua Feinberg
An IT consultant needs to be aware that PC vendors are typically very willing to cover inexpensive products like a mouse under standard warranties. But because as an IT consultant your client can probably buy a replacement part of that type for as little as $10, it's probably not worth waiting... Many small businesses have decided to invest in extra PCs in case of emergency to prevent any delays in business. ... As an IT consultant you should encourage your clients to self-insure the warranty coverage for years two and three.

Small Business Server 2003 - Is It For Me? by Joshua Feinberg
Small Business Server 2003 is an excellent choice for your computer consulting business. It is sold as a suite so you get a lot of great features. And Small Business Server 2003 is designed strictly with the needs of small business computer consultants in mind. ... The Bottom Line on Small Business Server 2003 Small Business Server 2003 is a great platform and the only product that Microsoft has ever built, and continues to build today, that was designed from the ground up strictly to meet the needs of the small business computer consultant.