I use a consultant who is a pretty good guy. He works inexpensively, and I try and give him good projects. And, he also manages my entire server. So, I try to give him enough business that it is worth his while. BUT, he isn’t perfect.

1. He “released” my SSL certificate and told me it worked. Well, it didn’t! And, after more patience than I would have liked, it now works.
2. When one thing works, another doesn’t. These aren’t big things, but they do seem to keep me wondering how much testing he does before releasing. But, did I mention he was inexpensive and that my time is “cheap”?
3. IT guys are often not the best communicators. He does okay, but he doesn’t always think, “What would my customer think if I don’t respond to him in 3 days?”
4. He is a shared resource. I am probably his biggest customer, but I am not the only one, so I either need to find a new less busy guy who will probably cost more OR I need to adjust my expectations.
5. A couple of times I have been sold a module for my shopping cart that will do “everything” I need. But, when it is installed, we find out that a couple things that were supposed to be in this release just “didn’t” make it. So, I get the newest and greatest, but my consultant was just overselling what was oversold to him.

Well, if he is imperfect, why keep him?

1. He is honest.
2. When I get him on MY tasks, he is pretty good.
3. When he quotes a price, he sticks to it even if he missed something when he was scoping it.
4. He knows my shopping cart inside and out. He can tweak it, write modules, and fix other peoples broken modules.
5. And, he doesn’t think I am to big of a nag when something is broken….

Good Luck finding the consultant to help grow your business!!