Starting a small business as an Independent Computer Consultant can provide the progressive and determined IT Professional with 7 Major Perks that would be difficult to come by as an “employee” at most any other IT Job.

 

Major Perk #1: Excellent Income Potential – An Independent Computer Consultant operating under the correct model of Proactive Network Monitoring, Remote Computer Support and Flat-Fee Billing, can:

• Make more than the average salary of working for someone else, while working far fewer hours!
• Know in advance how much revenue will be collected each month… as opposed to hunting for billable hours and battling slow months.
• Choose EXACTLY WHEN to GET paid each month… as opposed to waiting for (or hounding) slow paying clients.

 

Major Perk #2: Benefits – Such as Health, Retirement and Financial

• As a self employed Computer Consultant, you’ll be able to PICK the benefits that are BEST FOR YOU (not settle on WHATEVER an employer would offer… IF THEY EVEN OFFER BENEFITS!)
• Do you prefer low-cost benefits instead? No Problem! You CHOOSE THE PLAN YOU LIKE and you can pay potentially LESS than what you would contribute to a company plan.
• As an owner of your own company, you’ll have MORE savings, investment and tax benefits available to you that are far greater than you could obtain as an employee

 

Major Perk #3: Unmatched Job Security – LET’S FACE IT: In today’s job market (or any other time in history for that matter), just how secure can your position be when you’re working for someone else?

 

As an employee, there are a whole host of reasons why you can lose your job:

• Over 80% of terminations are a result of a poor boss/employee relationship.
• The company may need to cut costs and eliminates your position
• The company decided to outsource your position
• The company changes management or merges with another company, who decides to remove you from your position
• The company is going out of business

 

But when YOU’RE the BOSS, the only one who can fire you – is YOU.

 

Of course, as an Independent Computer Consultant, it’s possible that you can lose a client for some of the very same reasons you could lose your job as an employee.

 

BUT WHEN AN EMPLOYEE LOSES THEIR JOB, THEY LOSE 100% OF THEIR INCOME.

 

However, the Flat-Fee, Proactive Support Business Model is built SO YOU NEVER RELY ON ANY ONE CLIENT BECAUSE no one client should EVER comprise of a majority of your income!
If you were to lose a client, your remaining client base will CONTINUE TO MAKE YOU MONEY until you ADD a new client.
As your own boss, you’ll have the power to temporarily increase your billings and boost your income by adding more projects or work across your remaining client base.

 

That covers Part 1 of this 2-part article on the 7 Major Perks of Being an Independent Computer Consultant. Look for Part-2 for the rest of the great opportunities that await you when starting a small business of your own as an Independent Computer Consultant.

 

 

Starting a small business as an Independent Computer Consultant can be one of the most rewarding career choices a computer support professional can make today.

 

Fortunately, the path to success as a successful Independent Computer Consultant can be an easy one… IF you’re armed with the right information.

 

With so many wonderful perks that come with being your own boss, why do so few computer consultants ever attempt starting a small business of their own, when they likely have all of the qualifications they need to succeed?

 

Achieving success as an Independent Computer Consultant can actually be quite easy today, providing you know the steps to take, the pitfalls to avoid, and the tools to use to make the journey easier.

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If you run a small business, outsourcing your IT needs is probably your most cost-effective means of supporting your computer systems. Even if you’re personally qualified to maintain the systems yourself, your time is likely much better spent running your business rather than monitoring backups and troubleshooting buggy desktops.

 

And of course if something really goes wrong, you’re going to want to have a professional that you know and trust to come to the rescue.

 

I provide computer consulting New York based small businesses. It’s a highly competitive market with a wide variety of IT Service providers, ranging from the Independent Consultant who serves a limited, but loyal customer base, to large firms supporting hundreds of local businesses.

 

A small business in need of a qualified computer consulting firm has several criteria in which to measure their potential future provider. Gone are the days where you simply wait for the computer to break and then call in the computer consultant to perform the repair at an hourly rate. This reactive support model is inefficient and very ineffective at keeping the systems operating at peak performance.

 

To get the most out of your IT Maintenance budget, the best approach is to be proactive and try to prevent problems from happening in the first place. If your Computer Consulting firm is operating under the correct Managed Service Provider (MSP) business model, your ultimate support costs should be approximately the same as if you were paying for hourly, reactive support, yet your performance levels and system reliability should be much higher.

 

The things you should be looking for in a computer consulting firm are:

 

1. Network Monitoring – By installing a small application on your server, your computer consultant should be able to monitor all of the critical components of your network, including:

• AntiVirus updates and activity
• Backup status
• System Event Log alerts and errors
• Security status – are unauthorized users trying to enter the system
• Drive space
• Processor and memory utilization and possible bottlenecks
• Website and communication status – know immediately if a service fails

 

Many of the monitoring utilities in use today are web-based, which could allow you to monitor the network right alongside your computer consultant. Keeping an eye on your own network’s health status is a good way to remain apprised of any issues and to keep tabs on your consultant if need be.

 

2. Remote Computer Support – Your computer consultant should be able to log into your systems (both the server and your user’s desktops) remotely to address problems as they arise. With remote connectivity, your consultant could potentially provide support even faster than an in-house Network Administrator could.

 

3. Service Reporting – Your computer consulting firm should be able to provide you with timely and accurate reports as to what service was performed, for who and how long did it take. These reports will allow you to identify potential problem spots on the network (areas of repeating problems) as well as assist in budgeting for future support needs.

 

4. Inventory Reporting – A current inventory report of all of your technology components is useful for insurance purposes, budgeting for future needs and for identifying possible weak points in your infrastructure. Your data should be collected in real-time and your consulting firm should be able to provide you with up-to-the-minute reports via a web-accessible interface.

 

5. Location – Not every problem can be addressed remotely. There will be times when you need your computer consultant on-site ASAP! Make sure you select a consultant who can get to you when you need him.

 

6. Fees – Selecting the “cheapest” consultant you can find will most likely backfire on you and wind up costing you more in the long run. A qualified, experienced computer consultant commands a respectable salary. If your consultant is charging below-market rates, it’s likely because of his lack of experience or talents. If it takes him twice as long to complete a job than a qualified consultant can do, then you’re likely still paying the same amount, but getting a lower quality of service (which may cause additional problems in the future.)

 

Your consultant’s basic fees should be flat-based as opposed to hourly. This works to both of your advantages.

 

By paying a flat, monthly fee, you’ll be able to budget your expenses more accurately and you won’t have to place restraints on the maintenance of your systems. And unlike with an hourly rate, your consultant’s income doesn’t improve the more your systems fail. Instead, with a flat-fee, the more reliably your systems perform, the less work your consultant needs to invest to achieve the same billable amount.

 

Under flat-fee billing, it’s in everyone’s best interest for your network to perform reliably at all times.

 

7. Dedication – If you want to gain the maximum lifespan and long term performance from your network, you’re going to need someone to maintain it on a regular basis. Someone who is intimately familiar with both the systems and the users. If you’re using a larger firm, you want to have a single consultant plus a backup dedicated to your account. This can often be difficult to accomplish for a consulting firm with a large client base. Qualified consultants are expensive and a large IT Support firm will want to employ only as many as absolutely necessary at a time to control overhead. This often results in spreading the technical talent too thin and you as the customer get a revolving door of consultants who are unfamiliar and take longer to resolve issues.

 

In the dedication department is where an Independent Computer Consultant has an advantage over the larger IT Support Firms. An Independent Computer Consultant who serves a limited customer base can provide a level of attention similar to that of an in-house employee. Assuming he’s monitoring his client’s systems properly, provides remote support and charges flat-fee based billing, a very manageable workload can be maintained, leaving enough flexibility in the schedule to provide equal and necessary attention to each and every client.

 

Ideally, you’d like to find a larger computer consulting firm with diverse resources, yet can provide the level of dedication and attention you’d get from an Independent Computer Consultant.

 

If you’re looking for computer consulting in New York City, you might want to give Perry Consulting a call. I hear good things…

 

 

I think the best IT Job in existence today is being an Independent Computer Consultant. Be your own boss and remove any limits to what you can make, provide yourself with unlimited growth potential and take comfort in knowing that as long as you take care of your customers, your job is always secure.

 

However, no matter how great of a Computer Consultant you may be, you’re simply not so talented that you can be in two places at once. And at times that may be required. Maybe one of the places you’re at is at another client with a down server, or your home in bed with a stomach thing, or perhaps on a much earned vacation.

 

Sooner or later you’re going to need someone to give you a hand. Even if it’s to assist in solving a technical problem that you simply can’t seem to figure out.

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