So I have pointed out in talks at SharePoint Saturday events, SharePoint User Groups, SharePoint Conferences and….well any where people will let me talk.
“The industry of SharePoint Consulting is not only a specialty, it is full of people that have NO Clue, but it will cost you to find out.”
No I am not going to take this back. Do a search for “SharePoint Consulting” on Google or Bing and you will get a mix of great organizations, companies with name recognition, and then the groups who fake it…very well.
So let’s first talk about the Costs associated to get talent in your corner.
SharePoint Consultant Pay and Fees
The average SharePoint Consultant will cost you between $165.00 to $195.00 per hour depending on location on the globe, some metropolitan locals are going for more due to sheer inflation.
You can get a On-Site visit for 1-5 days from close to $8,000 or less depending on team and scope, not including expenses.
And the price goes up for more team members, and bigger names in the room.
Not all SharePoint Consultants are equal
So while sitting over a martini at a SharePint event I got to site and listen to a few folks “SharePoint Consultants” mind you that were discussion challenges and what makes them so special. I will not call out names, companies, or anything but the challenge is that they kept trying to explain to each other why they could code this or that to solve the clients request.
No this is where we get into the discussion are you a SharePoint Purist, or a SharePoint Developer! Many SharePoint Consultants today will focus on the requirements and keep saying YES to everything the client throws at them. Fine for your pocket book, but is that what the customer really needs. I have to say this is where you need to provide Education on SharePoint Basics, SharePoint Features, SharePoint limits….yes limits. SharePoint is a platform that can achieve epic scale and functionality once you crack open Visual Studio. I am not saying that code has no place…but solve the business problem. Great SharePoint Consultants will look at the problem":
As a employee I would like to be able to get my latest paystub and see my vacation hours available?
This can be approached a few ways for example.
SharePoint OOB
Simple Request form to a List with User level permissions to not allow everyone to see all requests. Alert set for the Payroll person based on New Requests, simple email to the employee and completing the task in the list. Did I have to break out SharePoint Designer, or code…no
SharePoint Designer
Custom Request form to a List with User level permissions to not allow everyone to see all requests. Alert set for the Payroll person based on New Requests, simple email notification workflow to the employee and dynamic update to the task in the list. Just extending a bit.
SharePoint Extended
Custom Request thru the Payroll system allowing the employee view the information from SharePoint in a Self Service Portal. Now we are talking BCS, data connections, extending security….xxxx
The sad thing is that commonly I see clients getting the extended option first because this is what they are suggested.
What is the moral of this point….SharePoint Consultants will drive to their strengths. So make sure you understand how strong they comprehend business, and technology.
SharePoint Consultants Education
Commonly some of the best SharePoint Consultants around have come from the stables of Microsoft. Others
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