Hi Ed,

 

We have just had a case of that here. I ended up taking a month off for personal reasons and all the problems i had brought to light over a year long period actually occured over the month i was away not looking after anything.

The Network Manager doesn't like to get involved - keeps to himself and would rather let someone else deal with the problems. Has become manager due to members of the team leaving.

 

Needless to say i was getting calls whilst i was away asking to get things sorted out. As i wasn't the Manager, they felt i was not in a position to be making decisions or telling the school on what needed to be done.

We hired a new Director of Operations who quickly saw that i was right and did the same thing. Called in an external Consultant who echoed my views + many more management and strategic failures.

Hi - thanks for contributing. It is strange that you say "The Network Manager doesn't like to get involved". The manager should be out front explaining decisions and defending staff. Have you been rewarded or recognised for your views and advice?

Hi Ed

 

Sorry to hear yo have been through this!

 

I to have been though this at a school i used to work at, to the point that I had a mental breakdown due to the stress that SLT were causing me. Whilst off sick, the school got a consultant company in that ripped the IT systems apart, which was ironic as it was that company that had helped me to install them.

 

On the back of the report that they produced, the HT suspended me and asked me to a meeting to discuss the findings, which I had produced a 30odd page response to. At that meeting he brought up things like salary and budget, both of which were out of my control!

 

At the end of the process they had no grounds to get rid of me but offered me a compromise agreement to resign, which due to the breakdown in trust, I accepted.

 

I then discovered that the company that produced the report took over as the managed IT Services and since then they have messed the systems up completely! oh how I laugh!!!!

 

So no, you not the only one to have gone through it, but stick to your guns, be strong and don't let the barstools beat you down!

 

And if you are looking for a company to use to help you, DO NOT USE Commercial IT Services in Cheltenham.....

I have been here, in the end the HT realized that Managed Services wasn't worth it :-)

Hi Guys

 

Don't get stressed over consultants being brought in by SLT, it's common practice. Use them to your advantage, just be prepared with all the evidence you need to get them on your side then use them to put your ideas across. They can be a big crowbar to getting extra funding for upgrades and new kit for your network, don't fear them, use them.

 

I've had three of these experiences in the 13 years I've been at our school, every time ended in vast improvements to network infrastructure, be wary of the big sell though, a lot of these "consultants" are just salesmen with technical knowledge, make sure what they're suggesting is what your school needs.

Don't get stressed......as the one never to have lost his job to a bunch of backstabbing consultants.

 

The consultants that audited my network were the ones that I worked with, took their advice, installed their recommendations and then they slated it in order to sell managed services. I lost the job I loved because of them, so excuse me if I sound bitter and sceptical about your experience.

 

It has taken me 18months to pick myself up and get back to the level that I was at; to rebuild my confidence, and to be honest it is still work in progress. I am managing an IT department again, but I didn't know I was ready when offered the job, but I knew I was ready to try.

 

I'm not saying this will happen to everyone, but I do have to tell my story as a warning that this does happen.

I'm sorry you had a bad time of it cmpwat... my comment wasn't a pop at you.

It must have been frustrating but it sounds like the consultant was reasonable and backed up your view. I think it's good to have the odd sanity check now and again. Did you get to see a copy of the report?

 

I've been asked to do something similar but I'm relatively inexperienced yet the most technical here, so I'll be glad to have someone to work on our strategy with. If you get chance, could you PM me the consultant's details?

I've been on both sides of this, having had consultants brought in and also having been the external person.

 

There is nothing wrong with a critical friend, it is when the consultant has their own agenda that you need to be careful.

 

Whenever I've gone in I generally give the following rules to people. Ensure everything said is factual, backed it up with evidence, there is no such thing as the perfect solution and we are all only human (or mainly human in some cases).