Business Consultants

Archive for June, 2011

Many run into the problem of differentiating between a systems analyst and a business analyst.  The differences in some organizations do not exist.  In other companies, the comparison is almost an insult.  Depending on the business or corporation, there are many differences.  The job title is not the only thing with which to compare these two separate roles.  The problem occurs when the title is not so conclusive.  The business systems analyst or the systems business analyst can actually be one or the other or both.  Job description is the only way to tell when this happens.  There are differences, though.

A systems analyst is capable of looking at a program or utility and see the code.  They can go in and pinpoint where changes need to be made.  They can incorporate the new data into an existing program for benefiting the company.  The systems analyst can collect data and transform it into usable code for a new project or program.  They can recognize where problems may lie in the code itself.  They can rewrite this code to alleviate the problem.  Usually, the systems analyst can consult with other IT members in technical jargon foreign to the business stakeholders.  The stakeholders are just grateful the job is being done.

The business analyst has a more complicated position.  He or she must not only understand the way IT speaks but also how the stakeholders speak.  The business analyst is more of a people person.  He or she acts as a liaison between management and IT.  A business analyst will be able to look at all aspects of the company and discover underlying causes for system failures.  He or she may not be able to write the code to fix the issue.  The business analyst can at least come up with the concept of what the code is supposed to do.

The business analyst can retrieve reports and data from IT and transform it into reports needed to develop a project plan or program.  Further development and research may be needed from another department which the business analyst is capable of doing.  This is not to say the systems analyst can not do the job.  The systems analyst is more black and white when it comes to this.  The true business analyst is more creative and more flexible.

The business analyst is one who can pull teams together to focus on the outcome of a project.  He or she will be good at heading up meetings to present information in an easily understood language.  The business analysis will be motivational, a driving force behind the project plan.

Both are essential for good business.  The systems analyst may need the business analyst to determine what is needed for the code to work effectively.  The business analyst needs the systems analyst to make the code work effectively.  Working together, these two people can accomplish great things for the company.  There are certain companies who have both needs met with one person or a team of people.  It is all a matter of choice.  Trying to decide between the two may cause more headache than just hiring two people, or one who is qualified,  to get the task at hand done.

When providing B2B service, computer consulting businesses’ ideal clients, or “sweet spot,” are companies with 10-50 PCs and 1-10 million in revenue. These “sweet spot” small businesses typically look for four things in their computer consulting businesses.
1.    Response Time
2.    Knowledge (Business and Technical)
3.    Customer Service
4.    Price/Value
In this article we will focus on the top two items, response time and business and technical knowledge.

Speed is Paramount in Computer Consulting Businesses
The more that a small business needs IT, the more likely that response time will be the leading factor. Why? Downtime is money lost. How quickly computer consulting businesses can address their clients’ urgent or emergency IT needs becomes very important.

Computer Consulting Businesses are more Than Just a Bunch of Technicians
Your technicians’ quick response to IT needs is of prime importance to most sweet spot small businesses. Second in importance would generally be your business or industry knowledge. For example, how well do your employees understand the client’s particular industry and niche? Sweet spot clients definitely want technology providers that can really solve business problems, as opposed to just running around doing “screwdriver” kind of work, such as upgrading RAM or loading software.

Computer consulting businesses basically becomes the outsourced IT department for your sweet spot clients. Your company will end up working on hardware support, software support, LAN and WAN support… so you deliver soup-to-nuts, end-to-end solutions.

The Bottom Line on Computer Consulting Businesses
In this article you’ve been introduced to your sweet spot clients’ first two requirements in computer consulting businesses.

Properties are one of the most essential parts in any field and level of business, from small business up to enterprise businesses. Yet occasionally, businesspersons do not quite aware of the fact that their business properties could give tremendous effect on the entire business activities. Hence, they would possibly choose any random building and ended up in regretting it, once they realized that the building gave less benefit than they have expected.

To avoid such incident, it is better for those who are about to start a business and need a new office building to get some helps from commercial property agent. In general, this agent is helping their clients to deal with any property-related issues, such as doing some property surveys, meeting with tenant, reviewing a property contract, and recommend some building. Unfortunately, there have been many property agents available out there, and not all of them are quite dependable.

Businesspersons do have to be selective in choosing a commercial property agent, by knowing what the best agent looks like. The best commercial property agent around is one that has quite long experience in handling commercial properties, because they would know well what customers really need. The best property agent should also provide complete services on commercial properties, from property investment, property rent reviews, up to property management. In addition, to let customers easily contact and choose the service, the best commercial property agent should be accessible online.