NET(net), Inc.

To draft service levels and manage relationships well, you merely have to remember that they need to be SMART (as made popular by Peter Drucker): Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-Bound, blending the rationality and romanticism as we go.  Recall from the first part of this series that we were discussing the “S” – Specific of Strategic Supplier Management (SSM).  In this second of five-part series, we’re going to discuss the “M” – Measurable.

Keep Reading…

(with apologies to Robert Pirsig and Eugen Herrigel)

Supplier Performance Management starts with understanding your supplier’s responsibilities in the relationship.  The key to understanding those responsibilities is to draft and manage a solid contractual agreement.  But if it was that simple and easy to do, NET(net) wouldn’t see so many of our clients disappointed in the service they’re receiving from their IT suppliers.

Read the Full Post Here

It’s that time of year when Microsoft convenes their annual partner and sales conferences, and announces their marketing themes for their new fiscal year.  We can expect a blizzard of press releases and articles about innovations from Microsoft.  And that’s good for our enterprise clients who are evaluating their Microsoft investments and innovation is a topic that resonates with them.  More often than not, our Clients are looking for the value from their Microsoft investments.  Our advice to Microsoft:  you’re not in the features and functions business, you’re in the ROI business.  Keep Reading…

Hone your IT negotiation skills with renowned industry experts from NET(net), the world leader in IT Investment Optimization.  NET(net) University’s Negotiation Program, conducted at DePaul’s O’Hare campus in Chicago, is a two-day program dedicated to developing the theory and practice of strategic sourcing, contract negotiations and dispute resolution to reach commercial terms.  With improved skills in these areas, you will be able to give your company the competitive edge it deserves.

The NET(net) University Negotiation Program is designed for organizations that want to gain a better understanding of the Information Technology (IT) marketplace and improve their ability to negotiate with IT suppliers. The IT marketplace is a highly specialized arena where customers often make large purchases, but do so infrequently.  Because many organizations do not negotiate with IT suppliers on a regular basis, they are at a disadvantage when negotiating with IT suppliers who contract these types of agreements more frequently and consistently, with a higher level of understanding about how to structure a favorable outcome.  Read More

Microsoft has quietly launched “Office Online” this week.   Should you care?  Read More

The traditional phone call is becoming less relevant and competing with a variety of  more effective means of communications.   Organizations should be mindful of how employees communicate before making significant new investments in phone systems.  Read More

Simply because data storage is in the cloud doesn’t mean that the data itself isn’t customer-owned.  Customers who make the mistake of believing they give up that ownership may be able to correct this error before it’s too late.   Read More

Each month, Microsoft generates and disseminates an updated master price list via a secure portal.  This list includes every possible permutation of product, license versus software assurance, new versus renewal, 1, 2, or 3 years remaining, enterprise edition, standard edition, level A, B, C, D, Enterprise Agreement (EA), Select Agreement, Open licensing, and on and on and on… literally, tens of thousands of unique line items are updated monthly…Keep Reading

It’s been said there are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.  To this list I propose to add “not really a lie, technically, but it certainly isn’t the whole truth and some people might consider it downright misleading”.  Read More

Many clients we work with underplay or overplay their ability to persuade their supplier to bring them to their way of thinking.  In this four part blog series, we will discuss the four most effective strategies we have seen clients use to optimize their persuasiveness with their suppliers.  Read More