There will always be IT emergencies in the computer consulting world, and handling these situations is very important if you want to keep your customer base. They also provide an excellent opportunity to build new relationships. So how do you best handle IT emergencies?
Don’t Over-Book Your Staff
You want to schedule staff at about 75 percent capacity when you’re dealing with staff that don’t have sales or management duties. This will allow you to keep 25 percent of time open for non-billable work, IT emergencies and marketing towards new targets.
There will be peaks you cannot meet, and this is a time when you will need to have everyone’s cooperation to make sure you can appropriately do triage. If you book someone in the field for a full day, schedule him/her eight to 11 a.m. and then do an afternoon appointment from one p.m. to four p.m. You need to leave time open in case something happens.
What Are IT Emergencies? Explain Them Well to Clients
Clients that are engaged in long-term relationships with you will understand when IT emergencies crop up and will be amenable to rescheduling maintenance appointments. They would want you to do the same for you if they had IT emergencies, so they will be very accommodating.
If you have to call long-term clients and tell them you are stuck at a client emergency – a server’s down, lightening struck, a fire broke out – they will probably be okay with lateness. You just need to keep communications open, stay in contact with people, make best use of your resources and don’t over-schedule routine tasks.
The Main Idea about IT Emergencies
Your project work will be predictable because you will know in advance what needs to be done. But make sure you build in some time for IT emergencies.
Added By: Computer Consulting Kit
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