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For Your Computers: Computer Network Caveats – Lowest price not always the best deal

Looking to install your first network or upgrade an aging one? We’ve had some experiences with a recent client assignment that we believe you should keep in mind.

The company had 3 Southern California plants to be connected, with a new business planning and budgeting system and a new system accounting to be designed and installed. Our job was to manage the installation of the business planning and accounting systems, and the client engaged another provider for the Wide Area Network (WAN) that would tie it all together.

The WAN vendor provided the solution requested by the client (who had no previous WAN installation experience) and a price within the client’s budget. The client signed the deal and the system was installed.

Our accounting system provider, Insync Consulting Group arrived to begin their work and found several problems:

  • No room was provided for applications to be installed on the file server (that is, one installation of a program, usable by all on the network), and in fact some programs had already been installed on local workstations, defeating one of the principal purposes for having a network.
  • The setup options effectively prevented workstation users from even accessing the server to run applications or store data if they had wanted to.
  • No backup of programs or data was taking place, and in fact the vendor hadn’t even provided the backup tapes they had included as part of the installation.
  • The equipment was physically installed in such a way that the air flow was not sufficient to prevent overheating and potential damage to hardware and data.

There was more, of course, and ultimately we got it straightened out. Shucks, you may say, this was clearly an unqualified vendor taking advantage of an inexperienced buyer. So what’s the moral to the story?

Most of us are inexperienced buyers when it comes to today’s network technology. There are lots of new vendors in the marketplace, using price concessions and any-way-you-want-it claims to compete for your business. The cost of getting it right if you don’t choose a vendor carefully can be delays and inconvenience, and lots of extra cost. And that’s the good news. Consider the potential damage to your business if data is lost, or corrupted data is sent to customers, regulators, bankers, and others.

The solution?

1. Get qualified help in preparing a complete statement of your requirements before you go shopping.

2. Make sure the "qualified help" doesn’t expect to be a bidder so they’re not tempted to guide the spec in their direction. Ideally, your CFO will have this expertise plus the knowledge of what you need.

3. Invite bidders based on recommendations from associates who have experienced successful installations. Ask your outside advisors for their suggestions.

4. Ask bidders to submit their proposals in writing, responding to each of your specifications so you both know exactly what is expected.

5. Agree on a timetable for completion, how much or little your people must support the effort, and what after-installation support they will provide before the meter starts running.

 

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