A simple message to contractors: Do your homework
A leading government CIO advises contractors to study hard before they talk to their customers, writes Staff Writer Alyah Khan.
Do you homework and then do some more homework. And forget the PowerPoint slide show.
That's the best way to bring something of value to your customers, according to a leading CIO whose agency spends billions each year on IT.
Steven Cooper, CIO of the Federal Aviation Administation’s Air Traffic Organization, said he has found it to be “extremely valuable” when industry representatives have done some preparation before they walk in the door.
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Cooper was asked his opinion on the subject March 1 at an event hosted by the Association of Management Consulting Firms.
When an industry representative can say “'We’ve given some thought about how we’d like to help you' – that creates an entirely different dialogue,” he told the audience.
He jokingly said he is no longer patient enough to sit through a 50-slide PowerPoint presentation. “I used to be pretty polite,” Cooper said. “But that’s not going to develop the relationship.”
Cooper encouraged industry members to do at least some homework so that when they meet with the government they can present solutions.