Work Flow

Sometimes I feel like an errant girlfriend, interested in dating but afraid of deeper commitment. Since I'm an old, long-time married lady, I'm not really referring to romantic attachments. Rather, from a business standpoint, I understand that firms can experience highs and lows in the number of project contracts they undertake. I never want to take a project that I'm uncomfortable with because I have a lot of overhead to support. Unfortunately, employees contribute to overhead. I need competent people available when I need them, but don't want to carry them when I don't have enough work to support everyone comfortably. Thus, this generates my "dating versus deeper commitment" dilemma. I'm always afraid that people will tie themselves to me exclusively and then project work will dry up and I'll have to let them go.

How do you keep work coming through the door so that talented people will be interested in working with you on a regular basis? How do you make sure that you have people available to do the work when it comes in without hamstringing yourself when there isn't enough?

This is where strategic partnering can extend to getting work done. Surf's Up has been able to expand its ability to take on many kinds of projects because we use highly conscientious and competent subcontractors. Because of this, we can easily take on multimedia, NT, and UNIX projects seamlessly. My subcontractors and I have all worked together on projects before, so it feels like we are long time co-workers. However, we all understand that we work together when there's work, and when projects can be handled in house, that's understandable, and it leaves these peope free to pursue other projects. If my NT contractor has a UNIX project, I jump in and help him. If I have an NT customization situation, he jumps in and helps me. We shoot each other RFQs (requests for quotes) as they come in and draft bids together, so that neither party gets stuck with a big bill that eats away at project profits. It becomes a virtual organization. However, if there are people that you can trust implicitly along the way, it broadens the scope of the projects you can bid on.

Through strategic partnering and supplying excellent customer service to existing clients, a Web firm can expand the number of projects it's available to bid and is a firm that the clientele will approach again for upgrades and maintenance of their existing Web sites. If I've had a client who was extremely difficult to get through the Web build, I would rather that my firm isn't approached for maintenance. Most likely, it will be unprofitable. However, I'll bend over backward to keep our other clients. I want them to know what we're up to, and if we did their Web site a year ago, there are additional things we can do for their Web site. I'm hoping the client will want my firm to do an upgrade, that they had a good experience with us the first time and will want to work together on an ongoing basis. So you must not consider a project a one-time association. A good Web firm should be in business to earn the client's business for the long term. This generates repeat business and business by referral.

If the Web firm is attracting a lot of business, it's important to keep a list of talented and reliable people to call on for help. Sometimes it takes a few stubbed toes to select good subcontractors. When I first started out, I remember arranging a meeting with an ISP and going on about a graphic designer that I had available. I had seen some of his print work and a little Web work, and I was impressed with what I saw. I was told that he had done Web sites, and I trusted that there would be many to show a prospective client. So I really went on faith. When the ISP asked to see his work, I passed along the request only to find out that when it came down to it, we had nothing to show. This was an extremely talented graphic artist, but how could I get prospective clients to buy into this situation without work that was easily accessible to show them? By this point, I had blown my credibility with the ISP, and I had wasted their time. It took me a little while to understand where and how to use subcontractors. You should have several people in each discipline to call upon and always ask for a broad portfolio. A prospective client will ask for one. Unfortunately, you can't do projects with people because you think they are wonderful individuals and like them. It's not like the garage rock bands that we formed when we were kids-"Well, we need a drummer, so my best friend Jimmy can figure it out-we gotta fit him in." Even if an individual is extremely talented, you have to see that he or she also has the ability to take on a project and deliver it on time successfully.

Once a subcontractor slips a deadline with me, that's the end. I'm not talking about unforeseen circumstances, server glitches, or blowing a few days past the deadline ending the relationship. But if I'm a week or two past a delivery date with a client for no good reason, I'm going to reevaluate whether I will use the subcontractor again. So, over time, you can build up a trusting relationship based on performance.

In the following exercises, you can evaluate how you might handle the various issues involved with keeping a good level of work flowing through a firm and allowing for the ebb and flow of personnel requirements.

Exercises

Keep Business Coming In

a)	How would you generate business among your existing clientele? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
b)	How much effort should you, the owner of the Web firm, spend on generating new business as opposed to working on existing projects? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________

Determine Personnel Requirements

a)	What kinds of questions might you ask a prospective subcontractor? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
b)	When should you bring on employees? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________

Exercise Answers

This section gives you some suggested answers to the questions in Lab 14.3 with discussion related to those answers. Please post any alternative answers to these questions at the companion Web site for this book, located at http://www.phptr.com/phptrinteractive.

Answers

a)	How would you generate business among your existing clientele? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
Answer:	There are several ways to generate business by annuity. A monthly newsletter, either through e-mail or print, sent out to your client base can keep your firm in mind the next time they initiate a Web project. Such a newsletter can be informational for the client and perhaps give the client ideas regarding upgrades and maintenance. The Web is changing all the time. A newsletter keeps your clientele educated, aware of how to keep their Web site successful, and able to determine when it's time to upgrade their site. Another very helpful way to generate business is to print out client Web sites every month or quarter and send the printout to the client with blank pages attached to each printed Web page, requesting that the client review the Web site and make any changes on the pages provided. Some Web firms offer their clients maintenance agreements. The client pays so much for the year, and that covers monthly HTML maintenance.
b)	How much effort should you, the owner of the Web firm, spend on generating new business as opposed to working on existing projects? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
Answer:	At first, it seems like generating new business is all the Web firm owner does. After all, in the beginning, it's time to build a clientele. However, once the Web firm is up and chugging, the search for new business does not cease. Most owners probably spend 20% of their time generating new business for the Web firm. Whether it's evaluating whether to bid a project, following up project bids, or developing strategic partnerships, this is a very important part of the Web firm owner's function. Sometimes if we're going through a very hectic period and have long-term contracts, I will back off on the new business initiative-just because I know that we might need to build in some time for vacations after projects are finished. However, I always give a certain amount of time to it every week. You can do very well on a contract, but if the next job isn't in the offing because the firm is so busy doing the contract, then that contract is not so lucrative. The Web firm owner cannot become 100% committed to the present production cycle. There's got to be some room for lining up the next contract.

Answers

a)	What kinds of questions might you ask a prospective subcontractor? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
Answer:	I would ask the following questions of a prospective subcontractor: Could you supply a list of Web sites that you have worked on? Could you describe your previous work experience? What are your best skills? Do you have references? Will you have any trouble making the deadline? Can you work with the payment schedule that the firm has outlined? If you do not make the deadline and there is not a good reason for not making the deadline, do you understand that there will be a penalty? Where and how can we contact you? When will the work be performed?
b)	When should you bring on employees? __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________
Answer:	I would not bring on employees until the firm has a well-established name with a steady income. Unless the firm has received venture capital and has a big budget to work with, you have to be extremely judicious about the people brought on board as employees, unless you're pretty heartless and don't mind giving people pink slips after the project is over. Don't hire people whom you can see only using on certain projects. You should have a pretty good idea of the type of skill set that is constantly in demand for every project and subcontract the rest. It's best to hire people when you know the need to hire someone for a particular function is long and well overdue. It's easy for the scope of the projects to drive the personnel requirements. However, if the need for a particular type of person is consistent through a slew of projects, you can feel pretty comfortable that this person will have a role in anything that the firm is doing and is necessary. Of course, being the noncommittal type, I still like to subcontract work and keep a small internal staff.

Self-Review Questions

In order to test your progress, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1)	(True/False) The following methods are probably good ways to generate business: _____ Sending e-mails to people who you think have poor looking Web sites, offering your services to improve them _____ Telemarketing _____ Offering a Web workshop for small business owners
2)	(True/False) Web firms regularly use the following types of employees: _____ Project managers _____ Administrative assistants _____ Flash programmers