Hey Boss: Give Me a New Computer (PLEASE!)!
Throughout the year, GovLoop is running a series of "Knowledge Exchanges," sponsored by one of our 2010 Premier Partners. This week's Knowledge Exchange is brought to you by HP.
On Monday, we gave you a virtual bat and invited you to figuratively smash your computer to smithereens through a forum entitled, "My Computer's Jacked Up! Share Your Horror Story!"
Now that you've crushed it (and achieve some level of catharsis with a few good swings), we'd like to be a bit more constructive to help you make the case for a new machine.
We've asked "PC Refresh" expert Bruce Michelson to respond to your questions and concerns about PCs and "PC lifecycle management." Sooo...
Have you begged and pleaded and carefully plotted your path to a new computer...and still got denied?
What were the reasons for resistance/denial?
How else can we help you make the case?
We're here to help!
By the way, here are four really good reasons:
Tags: HP, HP Knowledge Dialogue, PC Lifecycle Management, PC Refresh, personal computer, supporters
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Andrew Krzmarzick on -
Boss says: "If I buy you a new computer, then the whole team is going to want one."
Sounds like an age-old response from parents when their kids ask for shoes or something...
So how do you make the case when your productivity is stuck at 40% capacity because of an awful computer?
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Permalink Reply by Andrew Krzmarzick on
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Another one from ye ol' supervisor: "We don't have that in the budget. Let's wait and see if we'll have some year-end money."
But it's January and you don't think your computer will last until September-October.
Can you estimate the costs of waiting 9-10 months for a replacement?
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Permalink Reply by Bill Brantley on -
It's not so much that I want a new computer as I want admin rights to my current computer. I don't understand the point of locking down systems when you have Internet blocking software, the help team can monitor my Internet history, and even take screen shots of what I do. And I have no problem with even more monitoring if the trade off is that I can download a plug in or free software program to do my work more effeciently.
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Permalink Reply by Robin Johnson on -
One of the things I hate most about working for the federal government is lack of control I have over my own computer. Before they took our admin rights away, I was running Firefox as my web browser. But I can't run it now because IT says it could be a source of viruses. Hello?! Internet Explorer is much more prone to viruses and attacks than Firefox.
And don't even get me started on Adobe reader. At my old job, I was allowed to have Adobe Professional, and it made me much more productive. I could clip, edit, measure dimensions, and write comments on pdf documents. My fed agency won't let me have it because then, "everybody would want it" and "we don't have the budget". Maybe everybody wants it for a reason.
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Permalink Reply by Rob Carty on -
When I worked in local government the city was able to procure a copy of Acrobat Pro for each employee for something like $5 a license because they purchased so many (thousands-it was a larger city). Granted, this was in 2002. If you can find someone at Adobe to prepare a pitch or counter the argument that it's too expensive they can't say no. You could also argue (prepare some quantitative measures) that if your whole team could get Acrobat Pro they can do X, Y, and Z more efficiently and can to A, B, and C that you can't do now (say, save X amount of paper by using Acrobat's advanced collaborative editing features, embed video, etc.). And even if the end reality doesn't match your assumptions you've at least shown a deliberative thought process and that should convince most managers to back you up.
Managers like to say, "yes" but they usually need a reason. Because their managers will ask, "why?"
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Permalink Reply by Shelley McNellis on -
Robin, are you sure you aren't in British Columbia? Because that sounds awfully familiar....
I've managed to use a computer at home since, well, the early '80s and I've never had a problem. And no one manages it for me. Hmmmm....
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Permalink Reply by Candace Riddle on -
I agree with this. I'm in finance, so I understand system security, however, I cart my laptop from home to work every day so that I can get to critical sites to monitor markets.
Since I do not have cable in the office, I need to carry my computer to stream Bloomberg, CNN, or MSNBC news. Last week, when the market dipped 1000 points in one day, I had no access to the news and not a clue as to what was causing the drop. The situation happened so fast that online articles were lagging.
Again, I understand security, but give me what I need to do my job.
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Permalink Reply by GovLoop on -
What happened to me...
-My computer is broke..can I get a new one
-Answer - here's a refurbished computer.
-Me - that's a bad idea. It is old and already broke once. How about something from the last 3 years
-Answer - this is what we have. Deal with it. The refresh cycle is coming in a year
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Permalink Reply by Christina Morrison on -
The most convincing argument for persuading your boss of the importance of the PC refresh may be the financial one. Even as we come out of the recession, CIO’s will still be focused on the bottom line and looking for ways to save money. Even if you can’t put an exact figure to determine the amount of time you may save from working with a more efficient machine, you may be able to estimate the saved money in electricity, or the extra battery time per day you can use to work away from your desk. The older PC’s that many of you work with are actually twice as expensive to maintain than to scrap altogether in favor of new machines.
My colleague, Bruce Michelson (HP Distinguished Technologist and PC lifecycle management expert), has always pointed out how important it is that your technology refresh plans need to keep up with the pace of your business. As our agencies continue to become more mobile and virtual, we can’t be expected to keep pace with technology that doesn’t accommodate these new ways to work.
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Permalink Reply by Peter Sperry on -
One thing I miss about the private sector is working for a boss who simply gave everyone an annual "computer allowance" along with a list of minimum requirements and told us to buy whatever we wanted. I supplemented my initial allowance with some of my own money; bought a top of the line system in year 1 and pocketed the allowance in years 2 & 3. Worked out well for all concerned.
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