What do you do when you come across technology you know nothing about ?

[urcomputech]

I was referred to a new client couple months ago, they had about 20 or so users. The manager was no longer happy with their current tech company. They were being charged huge amounts of money each month for managed services. The company was on a downsizing trend, so they were clearly looking to cut costs. The problem I came across when I casually audited their network was that they were using high end cisco equipment and a linux server. I am somewhat familiar with cisco routing and switching, but have no experience with linux as a server. After thinking about the learning curve I had in front of me, I decided to advice them to simply let the current company know they were no longer interested in MSP, but to switch them over to break/fix. They appreciated my "good" advice and "honesty". They promised to reach out to me again if they had any problems with the current MSP provider. I have not heard from them since, so I presume it all worked out for them. Of course now, I regret losing the opportunity to gain a decent new client and I ponder what I could have done differently ... partner with someone, learn on their dime, etc.

My question is not about the technology per-se, I'm sure plenty of you have plenty of experience with this specific technology stack, but what i am curious about is what would you have done in a scenario where you confront a, in your own opinion, steep learning curve. I don't mind constructive criticism, but yes, what would you have done in a similar scenario?

 

[mraikes]

I think you did just fine. We all have to pick and choose what we wish to focus on, and what is required for our particular markets. I have no need to know much of anything about Cisco stuff, nor Linux. There's a LOT of stuff I just don't have to know. And that's OK.

In this case, you knew the situation - they wanted to save money. So even if you wanted to "...partner with someone, learn on their dime, etc" that's a tough row to hoe. How can you do that and still charge them enough money to make it worthwhile while saving them money? You chose the safer course, perhaps the wiser course, and you've at least established yourself as an honest second-opinion guy for this potential client. Who knows what the future holds?

Particularly when it comes to businesses, it's my opinion that we must err on the side of caution rather than risk bringing down a business because we were greedy, too inexperienced, or too proud to take a back seat and pass on an opportunity. It sounds like you made the right call.

Edit: Changed the last sentence to reflect my meaning, otherwise it might have been misunderstood as a dis - which it wasn't.

 

[GTP]

Outsource?
I came across this a couple of years ago. Larger company, two locations, 40 workstations and 2 servers.
I'm only a "one man show" mostly residential.
I explained that this was "well outside the scope of my business" and they were very patient and understanding.
I made a few calls and found a company with the expertise and staff that were more than willing to take them on.
I got a nice little "recommendation" commission and an ongoing 2% commission on all work they do.

 

[Markverhyden]

Yep, you do want to be conservative when it comes to business customers. After all most of them would go belly up if their IT systems were down for any significant time period.

As far as limits. I'll make a decision based on my level of experience and customer needs. For instance I'd have no problem working on a MS Domain as long as it's basic so to speak. If they came to me and said they were running Exchange, Access, etc I'd be up front and say those are outside of my skill set. Like @Barcelona I'd look at outsourcing. Possible just the complicated stuff on an as needed basis.

On a side note, did you evaluate what/how the Linux server was being used? After all it's just another OS and most small sites use them just for file sharing. A lot of these NAS's, like Synology, are just *nix boxes.

 

[urcomputech]

On a side note, did you evaluate what/how the Linux server was being used? After all it's just another OS and most small sites use them just for file sharing. A lot of these NAS's, like Synology, are just *nix boxes.

I did look at the linux server and evaluated how it was being used, I am sure if I had to I would be able to "figure it out" given enough time. The linux, coupled with cisco enterprise level equipment, and the mixture of macs and pc's just simply overwhelmed me. My foremost concern was the immediate call of "our network is down" and not knowing right then and there how to go about troubleshooting , as I am used to now. Like @Barcelona , I am a one man show and prefer not to have that level of stress over my head, not to mention the liability. I am though taking steps to further familiar myself with tech that "scares" me, at least the things I am starting to see more often outside my comfort zone. Thank you Mark.

 

[putz]

As far as the Cisco gear, or any other gear for that matter, as long as they have support you should be fine. Cisco support is some of the best I have ever encountered. Their support engineers are actually extremely knowledgeable on their products. If you have an issue or even need help with configuration they will practically do it for you if you can get them connected.

As far as Linux goes, just treat that and whatever applications they are using the same as any other LOB software. As long as they have support with the vendor, work with them for any issues or configurations. If you are in the technology field it might do you some good to learn a little Linux. Just load up a VM with Ubuntu/Debian/CentOS/or Fedora. Those are probably the most common. If they are using it because they feel like it can save them a buck or two, maybe advise them to move said software to Windows if possible, especially if their environment is largely Microsoft, it may be a more reliable solution.

IMO unfamiliar hardware or software shouldn't drive you away from trying to support a business. IT people cant be expected to know everything about everything all the time. If these are critical pieces to the business, they should have active support contracts that allow you to work with the vendor to resolve issues. We pick up many clients that have very specific pieces of software where in most cases if there are problems the only thing we can do is call the vendors support, but after working with it for a while and documenting problems and resolutions you start to understand it and in some cases can resolve smaller issues on your own but some of these systems are so specifically configured by vendors that trying to do things on your own could cause larger problems.

 

[SAFCasper]

I'd say you made the right call. Stick with what you know and are comfortable with.

It's a huge field and nobody is an expert at everything.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Which way to go would depend on a lot of things.
Certainly "taking a pass" is a viable option. Perhaps you do not have the time to try to figure things out, and it might become a big headache/time sink for you.

However...food for thought:
*Cisco gear...and a network of about 20 users. I don't see it being much gear. To look at it from your clients point of view..."budget"...depending on what they're paying that other MSP right now, in all likely hood you could replace that Cisco gear with something you can manage...like a Ubiquiti Unifi system for example...and within a few months the client could start realizing the cost savings. Or you could roll (fudge) that into your MSP plan...and client still ends up with a lower monthly cost.
*The Linux server...there are a few linux distros out there aimed at small businesses...Ubuntu Server, ClearOS....they have easy peasy hand holding web based GUI wizards much like Small Business Server. Spend a little time at the website of that distro reading some "intro 101" guide, or find some YouTube 101 vids on it, and you could be fairly proficient at it quickly.
*Outsourcing, like others mentioned above, certainly a viable option

The way I look at it...part of MSP stuff is providing the client with a functional network of services at a price they are comfortable with. It doesn't necessarily mean you have to maintain "what they already have"...you're able to substitute "that oddball thing" with a product that YOU support...and the client gets their service. Don't feel trapped in having to support stuff they already have. Their engagement with you as an MSP is a long term (hopefully) relationship. Phasing in products that you support doesn't necessarily have to cost them a lot more. It helps lower the time you spend supporting them, so...you can give them lower monthly rates. I charge higher monthly rates to support stuff that I don't want to. There's nothing wrong with that. So....there's give and take in the monthly....use it!

 

[TAPtech]

I think you made the right call here if you felt uncomfortable. You don't want to put someone's business at risk. With that being said, I'm sure you could learn these systems especially if you lean on support as mentioned in this thread. Once you get a bit more experience, you can look at the company as a whole and decide if that one quirky item is worth spending your time on or not. For a business that size, I would have learned the equipment. If the linux setup was super funky and the software provider/vendor didn't offer good support for it... well that should be on the chopping block anyways!

 

[brandonkick]

When it comes to a business environment, I'm not comfortable touching anything that I'm not well versed in. As you've stated, any major issues that come up need to be handled as soon as possible. I don't want them to come to a grinding halt only to realize I have no clue as to what the problem is or even where to start.

In a setting where the equipment or setup isn't mission critical, I might take a stab but would depend on how much I need to learn.

In a case like this one, it seems like the cisco enterprise equipment isn't necessary. You can probably sell off all they have, and replace it with little extra cost to them. Evaluate their hardware needs. Do they need a mixture of mac and pc? If not, get them on one or the other. Simplifying the setup, and ensuring their hardware solutions are in line with their needs is a great thing to look at in this case.

 

[Your PCMD]

What do you do when you come across technology you know nothing about?

Easy....

 

[glennd]

... or as Peter Brock once said ...

 

[Kirby]

You have to look at it from a cost/benefit angle, as you did. It costs you time and effort to learn something new. Will it give you enough benefit to be worth it? For benefit you have to look at what you can make from this company and how you can apply this knowledge with other companies, not just to keep the status-quo, but to get new revenue streams. And, of course, is this something you would like to learn?

In my area learning something new is never worth it unless it's simple. It is a small town of 6,000 people and a few dozen businesses. I had a customer a couple of weeks ago want me to install an Internet radio system which provided the music for a restaurant. I didn't know anything about it, but I know how to read a manual. It took me longer to do than if I had known about it, so I worked with them on the price. I told the customer to tell me what they thought it was worth, but I already had a figure in mind. Keep in mind I was slow at the time. Their figure was higher than mine. I should have split the difference, but I dropped it down to the figure I was happy with, which made them really happy. It was a $500 device so I wanted to charge less than half that in labor. But this had several factors which made it worthwhile to me. One, I wanted to see it. It's not something I've ever given any thought to. Two, I wanted to keep this customer happy. They're not big spenders with me, but I like them. Three, it's a simple thing to follow a manual, do some setup and hook up some speakers. It turned out to be a little more complicated than that, but that just meant I had to take my monitor there with an HDMI port in it. So in the end, for me, this was worth it.

Now, for what you were looking at, learning Linux and brushing up on Cisco is a lot more work, and for a company which is looking at spending LESS money, not more. So you go into it with a learning curve and an expectation that you're going to cost considerably less money. Increased effort, decreased profits, if you had nowhere else that this knowledge could make you money and it's not something you wanted to learn anyway, you made the right call, in my opinion.

 

[fencepost]

It costs you time and effort to learn something new. Will it give you enough benefit to be worth it?

That's been something I've battled with - for example, I'm willing to put that in for Office365 and managing hosted O365 Exchange, but we also had a push a few years ago for "Hey, we can put in a free Linux-based groupware system for clients! It'll save them a ton on licensing charges!" Um, no, not really? If you only end up with a few of those, then you're spending time dealing with the quirks of what can go wrong with a niche system. Corrupt mailboxes, quota issues, delivery issues, spam, updates and migrations, security issues because you have an on-site service exposed to the world, on and on - and with what I'd consider a pretty firm top monthly price per mailbox that you can reasonably charge, because if you're going to be charging more than the cost of hosted Exchange then you'd best be providing something above and beyond what O365 does.

 

[sapphirescales]

If I encounter something that I don't know anything about, I'll be upfront about it with the client and let them know that my knowledge is limited but I'd be happy to try and tackle it for them. Then I negotiate a FIXED price if I'm able to do it, and a fixed price for my attempt if I'm not able to do it. That way if it ends up taking me forever, I'm not stressed out about it and I don't have the client breathing down my neck wondering why it's taking so long. I explain that no one is an expert at everything and that a specialist will be very expensive. To be honest, if I don't know about it, it's probably something so obscure that it would be difficult to even FIND an expert on it, let alone an AFFORDABLE expert.

There are other things that I've passed on because even if I learned them, the chances of me ever needing the knowledge again are very slim. I'm willing to work for a very reasonable rate if I'm learning something because I get the benefit of furthering my education. But if it's not something I'm likely to run into again, I'm going to charge out the ying-yang, and that's not usually what's best for my client.

 

[coffee]

I was referred to a new client couple months ago, they had about 20 or so users. The manager was no longer happy with their current tech company. They were being charged huge amounts of money each month for managed services. The company was on a downsizing trend, so they were clearly looking to cut costs. The problem I came across when I casually audited their network was that they were using high end cisco equipment and a linux server. I am somewhat familiar with cisco routing and switching, but have no experience with linux as a server. After thinking about the learning curve I had in front of me, I decided to advice them to simply let the current company know they were no longer interested in MSP, but to switch them over to break/fix. They appreciated my "good" advice and "honesty". They promised to reach out to me again if they had any problems with the current MSP provider. I have not heard from them since, so I presume it all worked out for them. Of course now, I regret losing the opportunity to gain a decent new client and I ponder what I could have done differently ... partner with someone, learn on their dime, etc.

My question is not about the technology per-se, I'm sure plenty of you have plenty of experience with this specific technology stack, but what i am curious about is what would you have done in a scenario where you confront a, in your own opinion, steep learning curve. I don't mind constructive criticism, but yes, what would you have done in a similar scenario?

I have not had any time to really reply to this because I have been very busy. Im not today and thus here we go.

I saw this video and it reminded me of this thread. My personal opinion is if you do not want to learn new things you will then become stagnant and then irrelevant in the market place. Just short and simple.

Kinda like this kid below:

 

[johnrobert]

I guess it depends if you have enough business to pick and choose
I have learned the most doing new stuff with vendor support.

 

[GTP]

I have not had any time to really reply to this because I have been very busy. Im not today and thus here we go.

I saw this video and it reminded me of this thread. My personal opinion is if you do not want to learn new things you will then become stagnant and then irrelevant in the market place. Just short and simple.

Kinda like this kid below:

The sad thing is that I actually know kids like this! How the hell they will ever become anything is beyond my comprehension...

 

[Markverhyden]

The sad thing is that I actually know kids adults like this! How the hell they will ever become became anything is beyond my comprehension...

FTFY LOL!!!!

 

[GTP]

FTFY LOL!!!!

LOL!!!