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Genesys engineer - how is your life in your country?

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tony:
Ah - I can see that we are moving from the [i]thoughts of an engineer [/i] to the [i]thoughts of how business operates...[/i]

Most of you probably know that I am a permanent member of staff within a UK mobile telco.  I have my own reservations for using external PS or any external resource for our Genesys Solutions - however this is not because they do not have the right skillset - they probably do.  The problem I have seen manifesting itself is only apparent [i]if [/i] you take on contractors for longer than necessary; they become not only a part of the furniture but they can begin to make things rather, erm, difficult to manage.  Of course, if they are working for another (SI) company or Genesys partner, they will also be looking around to see what other opportunities exist to offer their services - but that's not the problem...

Taking on contractors or bringing in PS for extended periods of time [i]can [/i] culminate in contractors running the Solutions, rather than the permanent members of staff doing this work (of course, the other side of things is that you have no skilled permanent staff to do the work in the first place - and that's another story..!)  You are then faced with short-term fixes for strategic solutions - break, fix, break, fix, break, fix... contractors by nature are concentrating on the job in hand - a project or program to deliver something within the Genesys Framework.  The [i]strategic [/i] viewpoint rarely comes into their head -[i] "I will look good if I fix this quickly..."[/i] is [b]not [/b] the same as [i]"I need to fix this so that it doesn't break in the future..." [/i]  It's a different mindset.

In my opinion, then - you need well trained, good permanent staff looking after the strategic and long-term goals of the future of the Genesys Solutions and you take on PS or contracting staff for tactical reasons or for projects or programs that have a definative end date.  This also means your not paying sky-high rates [i]all [/i] of the time.

In light of the recession, some customer>companies have taken this on board and are beginning to offer contractors the opportunity to become permanent, or contracts are teminated and the work is being handed back to permanent staff - just how it should be! :)

The points being made that [i]good [/i] PS and/or Genesys contractors are highly paid, highly sought after and thin on the ground is true -they [i]are [/i] gold dust.  The fact that Partners, SI's and perhaps even Genesys themselves don't have that many "spare" only perpetuates those facts...  You can win a bid to provide services and staffing but you then have to go find them - and *then* you find out how much they cost... and that's business! :)

Oh - I really didn't mean to rant and rave but I think I just have! ;)

Tony

mark:
I can only echo what TT says.
I am proof of the move to make contractors permanent, having just made the jump back to perm myself.

Happy_Traveler:
Wow - TT, I felt a bit offended reading your post regarding the mindset of "contractors". As an individual working for a certified PS partner of Genesys I know that when I come in to offer consulting I absolutely try to provide solutions that are not simply quick, short term fixes but sustainable, intelligent technology recommendations. My personal experience is that if a solution is implemented which is not appropriate or short sighted its generally because a customer has made the choice to go the "cheap" route. In cases such as those I can only be as blunt as possible (which I'm very capable of) regarding their poor vision and in most cases fortitude to fight the good fight.

With that said I do agree that bringing in contractors for extended periods of time without clear objectives is a major mistake that I see way too often. When your bringing in a specialist you can only expect that person will be a high dollar resource. So its critical to put proper thought into exactly what you expect from this individual and to have clearly defined deliverables with a definitive endpoint identified. I see Genesys PS use this concept of a TAM way too much. Generally its a position where you have no clear objectives other then to be an "official" Genesys onsite resource. If your a customer looking at bringing a TAM onboard your vision on how you plan on supporting and sustaining your garden of Genesys solutions is not being well thought out.

If your a small to mid-sized company, finding an experienced, legit, business partner of Genesys that offers creative support packages which include PS hours for miscellaneous changes can be a quality solution if your not looking to bring on permanent resources. This offers the peace of mind knowing if something breaks there is someone there to fix it without the commitment to having a permanent dedicated resource. With built in hours for PS it also offers the opportunity to leverage an experienced professional who can typically take care of small projects in a fraction of the time a permanent resource might.

And if its the right partner TT - they will not only be quick to deliver but intelligent with the design!

tony:
Hi Happy_Traveller! :)

OK - in context, then... I am not saying that Genesys PS [i]per say [/i] works on tactical fixes - what I am saying is that, in my experience, there are contractors who will look for a quick fix, based on the facts provided to them.  Sometimes, it takes more than a brief overview to understand and/or interpret a problem and see it for what it is - rather than what a business [i]think [/i] it is...  the difference being that a contractor is usually on the outside, looking in and a permanent Genesys employee lives with the problem, day to day.

The other part to my post is that you can keep contractors for too long - and still they are in the mindset of being on the outside looking in, rather than living the problems...

I only wish everyone in the contracting world were of the same mindset as you - again, in my own experience, they are not - sadly! :(

Tony

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