How to Be a Successful Computer Consultant - Hardcover

Alan R. Simon

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0070580340 ISBN 13: 9780070580343

Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill, 1998

Synopsis

In this update of the 1994 edition, Simon assures us that demand is intense for computer experts displaced in the last recession and for budding Year 2000 generalists. He canvasses the gamut of the consulting profession: from choosing services/specialties and developing the business plan, to the challenges of staying current and dealing with difficult clients. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

About this title

Review:

Though plenty of working computer consultants would argue that you can't teach their trade in a book, author Alan Simon takes a stab at it. In this book the experienced consultant shares tales from the field and lessons he's learned, saving you the trouble of learning them the hard way.

That's not to say that this book represents a consultancy-in-a-box. Any business endeavor is going to involve trial, error, waste, and second thoughts. Simon's book merely increases the odds that successes will outnumber failures and that your new business won't die of honest mistakes in its critical early years. Furthermore, Simon does not (and cannot be expected to) impart any technical knowledge through these pages. If you're even thinking about becoming a consultant, it's assumed you have a high level of technical expertise.

The author opens with a discussion of the key questions that must be answered by any business plan: What will the business do, and why? He discusses several dozen consulting specialties--including four focused on the year 2000 problem--and the specific issues involved in running each. He then goes on to cover writing business plans, managing employees and subcontractors, and dealing with finances. (His coverage of "revenue spurts" and "dead times" rings particularly true.) He talks about such perennial challenges as figuring out what customers want and how to get more business without swamping yourself or sacrificing quality, all in a readable style. --David Wall

From the Back Cover:

"An excellent introduction to the realities of starting and operating a computer consulting practice... "-Robert Fleming, Computing Reviews. "The book will steer you clear of many of the pitfalls awaiting you in your quest for profitable independence."-Alfred Poor, Pc Magazine. The computer consulting bestseller-now fully updated! Includes revealing interviews with successful consultants. How to Be A Successful Computer Consultant outlines the career survival skills and technological know-how you need to be a consultant/expert sought after by corporations. It outlines step-by-step proven strategies for delivering optimum results-and brings you up to speed on effective use of important technological environments (like the World Wide Web). This updated manual is so in-depth, it can serve both new computer consultants looking to build business and busy experts who will appreciate the book's value as a complete professional reference. It tells you how to: Stay current with technological advances; Manage projects from inside or outside the client site; Zero in on scenarios in which corporations use computer consultants; Assess client needs; Steer clear of trouble spots; Run an efficient business; Choose your target markets, and market yourself in them; Get what you're worth. PLUS, NEW material on: Assessing the effect and usefulness of new technologies; Industry-specific consulting-choosing your specialities and services; Scoping out the client's organization and corporate culture: how to fit into it: how to bring future business your way; Coping with difficult clients/client employees; Next steps in your career-including how to position yourself in new specialties and geographic areas.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0070580340
• ISBN 13: 9780070580343
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 4
• Number of pages: 348