Normally I would post this in one of the private user group forums but I believe this is a topic that everyone should discuss as it is a general ethical question and one that anyone outside a particular platform could encounter either with a national or within their own operation and is something everyone who operates a business with a code of conduct needs to address.

For the protection of all parties and to avoid possible violations of confidentiality agreements the parties involved will remain anonymous.

Recently a national service company posted a job through a service platform for a tech to run a service event to one of their clients. This particular company normally provides the equipment used onsite at such events as part of their service to their customers and this case was no different, however something happened to the shipment and the equipment never made it to the site.

The national requested a tech to go to the site and bring specific equipment for the event to replace that which did not arrive. This was not equipment a service technician would typically have on hand, therefore the following request was made to secure it:

Should the tech not have the necessary equipment to provide onsite for the event, the tech was advised to go to Wal-Mart or Best Buy to purchase it (on the tech's dime) and then return it to the store the next day.

Now, there are ethical questions about unfairly taking advantage of a big box store, but before making the call there are are three very important things to consider.

1. This equipment was intended to be used by the national as a one day rental to the customer
2. It was not one or two items, but a list consisting of over a dozen items, including several expensive hardware devices, accessories and recordable media.
3. The tech would not be reimbursed for any of it.

So the suggestion was to purchase the items, take them on site for the day and return them all to the place of purchase the next day for a refund.

This is just wrong on so many levels I don't know where to begin.

First, the national is renting out equipment it doesn't even own and does not intend to purchase with no compensation to the tech who would own it after purchase. That in itself is just wrong.

Second, the national is suggesting the tech actually use the items for a for-profit event and then return it when finished to the place of purchase. The store will take a serious hit for the merchandise. That could constitute fraud.

Third, returning recordable media after it was used is, at the very least, dumb.

Fourth, should the store ask questions or investigate due to the large amount of merchandise being returned, it will be the tech on the hotseat and on the hook.

Fifth, should something happen to the equipment while on site, the tech assumes all liability. Would the tech's insurance cover it? Possibly, unless it is used as rental equipment. The national would not assume liability, yet collect the rental fee from the customer. That is simply dishonest.

finally, if a national suggested a tech do something ethically questionable or wrong for their own gain and at the tech's risk, it is not a company to work for.

The company did clarify the tech who performs the service event could keep the equipment purchased for the event "as long as its on their dime".

So they will "let" the tech keep something the tech bought and paid for that they wanted the tech to buy for single use as "their" rental, for which the tech would receive no proceeds from, at the tech's own liability and risk, that the tech wouldn't have purchased for himself or herself otherwise.

How big of them!

Now, that's just messed up.

Is this what our industry has come to? What was once considered a somewhat respectable business has become a quagmire of mistrust, disrespect and outright disdain for both the customers/end users and the dedicated, hard working, qualified professionals who service and support them.

Stories abound about nationals who demand immediate service from techs and are slow to pay or actually have clauses in their contracts placed there specifically to avoid payment (and in at least one case even bill the tech) for services rendered,  middlemen on national service platforms who require all manner of detail on service calls for lowball rates, platforms that claim to be neutral parties and assume no liability or risk themselves, yet control the customer/tech relationship and act as judge, jury and executioner of the tech should a dispute arise.

When did we, as IT service professionals, lose control of our own marketplace? At what point was it decided we are no longer contracted professionals, but day laborers with little power to negotiate with our clients and few, if any, rights?

Now we have nationals suggesting we cast away our code of professional ethics as well, telling us to put it all on the line for them at our cost and our risk, as if we are all that stupid and gullible to comply.

The scary part of all this is that, at least to some degree, they may be right.

The reason we got to where we are is because there are some "techs" out there who will comply, and for the lowest amount.

Then again, perhaps its me. Perhaps there are techs who think such a request is perfectly reasonable, who think spending an hour working on a server for $25 is good money and the moral or ethical issues of returning  $1000 worth of merchandise in a potentially fraudulent transaction is just business as usual.

What do you think?

Last update: Wednesday, 16 June 2010

I recently received a call from Dan Martin, Sales Associate at YEXT Computer Repair. According to Dan, Yext was looking for a tech in my area to be the go-to guy for service calls for their customers. Since I no longer run service calls onsite I declined the offer. However, I did tell him about The Force Field and after some discussion I offered to pass along the opportunity to any other tech in the Charlotte, NC area who may be interested.

For those of you who have never heard of Yext, they seem to be like Service Magic. According to their web site,  Yext focuses on matching new customers with techs by offering a pay-for-performance type of lead generation. Techs sign up with Yext, receive a free listing for their business or services and customers search for them on the web site by zip code. Once the tech is contacted and runs the service call he or she pays Yext for the lead.

On the surface it looks like just another Service Magic. But it is more. Much more. Yext isn't really a service platform. It is more like an advertising service, in fact it describes itself as a company that provides "superior local advertising services, local monetization services, and soon, phone service.", according to its web site.

There is Yext ads, which offers a local advertising service, Yext Rep, a reputation management service that according to their web site, operatesin real time and the Yext Network, which serves up targeted ads to your local directory.

Dan wanted to know if I would pass the information along and I told him I would. Below is the e-mail he sent with the details.

Rick,

I am in charge of computer repair technicians along the eastern sea-board.  Here’s some useful information that will help your technicians get a strong overview of our network.

Here’s a link to our site: http://www.yext.com/computerrepair/

Here’s also a link to our debut at TechCrunch50: http://techcrunch.com/2009/09/14/tc50-yext-offers-local-businesses-a-smart-inbox-for-phone-calls/

I can be reached at 212.651.8978.

-----------------

Dan Martin

Sales Associate, YEXT

Now, I am not personally endorsing them since I haven't used the service myself, but  If anyone in my area, or any area is interested, feel free to check it out for yourself and let me know.

Last update: Wednesday, 09 June 2010

Last year the CDN which hosted the first six original episodes of The Force Field went offline permanently, taking the episodes with it. As we just released The Force Field Premium Edition Volume 1 in The Force Field Podcast Store on another host, which consisted of the first six episodes remastered with extended content and no advertising, there was no immediate concern.

The original, free versions of the first six episodes of The Force Field have been remastered, restored and there are plans to re-release them online during the next few months. Three months ago I re-released The Force Field Episode 1 - Pilot and uploaded it to another CDN which hosts our current episodes. 

In March I re-released The Force Field Episode 2 - The VoIP Connection and made it available as well.

Last month I re-released The Force Field Episode 3 - The Last Frontier and it is also available on The Force Field web portal.

Today I re-released The Force Field Episode 4 - Man in the Middle and it is now available in its original listing on The Force Field Podcast Episodes page. 

This episode features interviews with Steve Faulkner and Dave Hendrickson in which we learned how the over abundance of middlemen in the business have affected profitability for the field service techs who actually do the job.

If you are among those involved in recent discussions in the OnForce forums about the low rates and profitability running calls for nationals through online service platforms, you may find this episode of particular interest. Although the episode was originally recorded and released in 2006, the topic is even more relevant today.

For those who remember the earlier days of OnForce, these episodes will be a trip down memory lane. For those who just started listening and are curious, it will be a trip back in time and a glimpse into the start of an experiment in podcasting that became a project dedicated to The Business of Tech. It is interesting to compare the early episodes and hear how the show has changed to become what it is today. If nothing else, it should at least be entertaining.

You can hear the episode at http://www.theforcefield.net/wordpress/?p=12 or at Episode 4 - Man in the Middle.

This is the fourth in a series of re-releases during the next few months. Episode 5 is planned for re-release next month. An additional episode will be re-released each month until June 2010. I will post an announcement as each episode is released.

Last update: Monday, 31 May 2010

Whether you are in the tech business full time or as a side line it is important to create as many connections and networking opportunities as possible to help your enterprise grow and prosper. One resource that can't be overlooked is the alignment of your business with one or more trade associations related to your work.

I was organizing my e-mail this morning and came across a few recent announcements from several trade associations, all listed in The Force Field IT Business Resource Directory. I know some providers inside The Force Field know these associations but many may not be aware of them, so I wanted to take a few moments to get the word out to those who are interested in new opportunities to add value to their entrepreneurial endeavors.

I wanted to pass these announcements along to everyone but do not have time to write them up individually so I will highlight them in digest form. The associations are listed in alphabetical order.

ACRBO - Association of Computer Repair Business Owners

• New Preferred Vendor ProactiveWatch. You can provide that type of monitoring for any size business at an affordable cost. Some of the features are monitoring, management, access and remediation, reports, and many more. Normal pricing starts at $10/month with a $50 a month minimum, however minimum is waived for ACRBO members. If you do hit that $50 a month they will also provide 2 free licenses for your own use.
  
• Discount on CommitCRM packages. The CommitCRM package is a complete CRM, service management and billing solution. When corresponding with CommitCRM tell them that you belong to the Association.
• Virtual Administrator is offering discount per license for Hosted Kaseya.

Membership to ACRBO is FREE. Contact: Dan Hand. E-mail: dan(at)acrbo.com Web site: http://www.acrbo.com

Dan was interviewed on his book in The Force Field Episode 8 - The Computer Repair Business by Dan Hand.

ASCII Group

•  The 2010 ASCII Reseller Success Summit. One day event for solution providers features workshops on selling and providing Managed Services. Event dates NY/NJ, May 6, 2010,  Chicago, June 3, 2010, Orlando, September 16, 2010
  Boston, October 14, 2010. FREE Special VIP Pass ($975 value) for subscribers to ChannelPro. Subscription to ChannelPro is free to qualified professionals.

CompTIA

• CompTIA Breakaway 2010. Annual event August 9-12 2010 in San Antonio Texas. Admission is FREE to CompTIA members, Early Bird rate of $199 for non-members until April 30, 2010.

Membership to CompTIAis annual and dues are based on organization type and membership level. Web site: http://www.comptia.org

NASBA - The Association of Channel Resellers

• Newegg Business. NASBA announced a B2B volume discount program from Newegg.
• Kaspersky Lab teams with NASBA. Discounts on volume license packs purchased through D&H Distributing.
• D&H and NASBA discount program. Resellers receive discounts on purchases through D&H distributing.
• Innovative Visions partnership. NASBA has partnered with a VoIP consultancy for voice and data services allowing members to earn extra revenue reselling VoIP.

Membership to NASBA is FREE.  Contact: Frank Raimondi. E-mail: frank(at)nasba.com. Web site:  http://www.nasba.com.

Learn more about NASBA in The Force Field Episode 35 - Partner With Your Vendors.

Last update: Wednesday, 28 April 2010