“What is a Soapbox page?”

As owner and founder of ABS, I enjoy a few, small benefits. One of those is the ability and opportunity to stand on my Soapbox and express my beliefs and philosophy that guide my decisions and actions as the check-signer and chief risk-taker. Even if no one ever reads this, it’s my chance to explain why we do what we do. Here’s my Soapbox Presentation:

1. Provide a quality service with clear expectations at a fair price.
   While this seems like a simple goal at first glance, it can be an elusive goal. The sticking point is usually the fair price. Because technology support can include so many facets, there are many people who claim to be technicians. They may have experience in a narrow portion of the technology support field and believe they can just “figure it out”, when it comes to networking or server support. Because their prices are significantly lower that ours, the perception is that we all provide the same type of support and some are just more expensive than others. It’s very easy to explain this to those businesses that have experienced the pain of less than expert support.
   
   There have been times during the life of this business that I’ve given money back to our customers because we didn’t reach a quality level that I expect. There were no strings attached, no expectation of a reactive gesture from the customer – just the acknowledgement that we didn’t fulfill our promises and thus didn’t deserve full compensation. It’s never fun to give up profits, but there is a certain liberating feeling when you know you have done the right thing. And, often it has proven to be good business as we’ve built stronger relationships by consistently making the difficult, but right choices.
2. Treat customers, employees, vendors as you want to be treated.
   Though this is an ancient principle, it is often lost in the desire to get the best deal or transfer responsibility for something that hasn’t worked out right. If you have your ego in check, accept responsibility for yourself, and are honest in your relationships, you have the ability to treat others fairly. If you don’t have healthy relationships with others, at the end of the day you really don’t have anything of substance.
   
   I believe that this approach is what has fostered the loyalty we find in our customers. We have customers that started with ABS in our first year of business 14 years ago. We have taken executives from our customers on sales calls with us as a living testimonial. How excited are you with your technology support vendor? Excited enough to take a few hours out of your day to answer questions from a prospective customer on their behalf?
3. Sell our services through education, rather than persuasion.
   We’ve all been through the hard sell experience and even though the product or service might have been just what we were looking for, we never felt comfortable giving in to that sales approach. I view every transaction as part of a larger partnership with our customers. I also believe that while what we do may appear to be complicated, it isn’t mystical. My staff and I just have different training and experience than you. Thus, I don’t believe it is right to make what we do seem less understandable to you. If we are developing your software or maintaining your system, you have a right to the documentation and explanation of what we are doing. Anything less is either an attempt to force you to retain our company or an acknowledgement that we consider you unable to understand. Neither approach cultivates an honest partnership. We have had people take advantage of our openness, but we can sleep at night knowing we’re doing business the right way.
   
   Our sales process consists of an honest evaluation of your system; no recommendations because there’s something newer available or because we’re a reseller for a particular technology vendor. If it’s working for you and you’re happy, keep using it for as long as you can. Technology is expensive enough without getting everything you can from your investment. Included in our recommendation is the support plan that is right for you. I often advise new customers to consider a basic or mid-level plan because it’s the best fit. Maybe I’m sacrificing some initial revenue, but I don’t care because my focus is on creating a long-term partnership, rather than maximizing what I can collect from you now.
4. Make decisions in a manner that we’ll be proud to defend.
   If you’re telling the truth, you always tell the story the same way. If you’re committed to certain principles, you make consistent decisions. As this website demonstrates, ABS offers the highest level of customization of services and products to fit our development and support to your needs. ABS has the reputation of going the extra mile to work with businesses that may not have the latest technology or the budget to upgrade immediately. Upgrading in most cases would actually make our work easier, as it takes less effort to support newer equipment and software. But, we also realize that technology is viewed by most companies as an expense, rather than an investment. We have competitors who insist on system upgrades as a requirement for their support services.
   
   ABS does have certain absolutes. We don’t accept every customer who asks for service. If we find that circumstances have changed and ABS isn’t a good fit for an existing customer, we don’t compromise our principles in an attempt to “rescue” the account. We have recommended that our competitors replace us, when we believe it’s the right thing to do. I’m not saying we’re inflexible or eager to turn away business, because we’re not. I’m saying that our principles govern the way we do business – every customer, every transaction, every responsibility.

In closing, I want to present the Value Statement for ABS:

We believe that computers represent one of the most valuable business and personal tools available today. We believe that while our expertise is the result of years of investment and hard work, it is not mystical. We use every opportunity to educate our clients in non-technical terms to maximize their level of proficiency. Our objective is to provide contracted IS/IT services utilizing our combined education and experience in business and technology in a corporate environment that is both challenging and rewarding and provides an outstanding value for our clients.

We recognize and value our clients as our sole purpose for what we do. Our employees ARE Advanced Business Solutions, Inc. Without them we have only leaders with no one to lead and tools that lay unused. Clients and employees give us the opportunity to truly display our contribution to humanity. Our organization is based on sound business principles first, and technical expertise second. We are committed to consistently providing our clients with the perfect fit of products and services for their individual and corporate requirements.

Thanks for reading this. If you would like to comment on this, you can drop me a line. If you would like to discuss how our products and services would support your business, let us know.

Jeff Harrell, President
Advanced Business Solutions Inc.

Mr. Harrell founded ABS in 1994 after a 24-year career in Operations, Marketing, Finance, Logistics, and Technology. He graduated from Regis University in 1986 (Bachelor, Business Science Magna Cum Laude) and from the University of Phoenix in 1990 (Masters, Business Administration Cum Laude). Mr. Harrell earned the Microsoft Certified System Engineer (MSCE) certification in 2000. However, by his own admission, Jeff has gained far more insight by raising six children, working for years in a corporate environment, and guiding his own company for the past 15 years than by going to school and earning certifications. There truly is no substitute for experience – but only if you’re paying attention and learning from the experience!