Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with business and consulting

Taxes/licenses required for Nevada company providing consulting services in California?

Jacqueline — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:16:38 -0800

Taxes/licenses required for Nevada company providing consulting services in California? My friend has a small business incorporated as an LLC in Nevada. This business manufactures and sells scientific instrumentation.

Another company/organization is going to pay his business for him to travel to their site in California to demonstrate the instrumentation. They're not buying or leasing the instrumentation (yet), they're just paying for the use of it with the accompanying services of the operator (him).

What State of California taxes or business license requirements apply here? Should we also investigate county or city requirements for this sort of thing?

(I don't even know which California government office to call to ask!)

Thanks!

What do you charge to not do any work, but instead sit around and wait, just in case?

CommonSense — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 13:19:44 -0800

I have no idea what to charge to be "on call" for a year, just in CASE a computer has a problem. I got a call this morning from some guy that works with a company that has a government contract with -- I'm guessing -- the Social Security Administration here in Baltimore. His company does IT for them. Well, they have a couple of Macs that they want someone on call for, and surprise surprise, his company wouldn't know how to spell "Mac" if you spotted them three letters.

I do ONLY Mac support and consulting, on kind of a "boutique" business -- I'm a sole proprietor, and I consider it a strength that small businesses always are dealing with me, the same person, and know they'll get me whenever they call, e-mail, or have me come out to their location. So I guess this guy found my company website on Google and called.

Basically, he wants to know what I'd charge to basically be on call, 24x7x365x4 (I don't know what the x4 is, but I'm assuming four business hour response time), for a one-year contract to cover these two Mac Pro machines their client has. Mind you, they don't need me to come out on a scheduled basis or anything like that; they just want to have someone to call for onsite support/repair in case something goes wrong.

I can do tech support, server work (on OS X Server), networking, and LIGHT hardware (e.g., memory upgrades, hard drive swaps, cloning/imaging). I don't do more hardcore hardware stuff, like logic board replacement, etc., much less do it AT the client site -- but I don't think many companies who DO do that kind of service can do it at the client site, either. (There's just a shitload of tools, workbench, etc. you have to have.)

Now, these are pretty new, high-end machines, and the odds of them having serious hardware problems inside of a year are pretty damn low. Still, say something comes up. Would I be OK by explaining to them that it's a high-level repair that HAS to be sent out, and then coordinating everything (pickup, drop-off at a repair facility, being sole point of contact with said repair facility, picking it up when it's done, and delivering it back to the client site)? All the while, I could give them a loaner machine (not necessarily as high spec, but functional) in the meantime.

I've never been asked for something like this, and I don't really know how these government deals work. Also, I'm really not sure HOW the hell to charge to a company that wants me on "retainer," though doesn't actually need me to even show up unless something goes wrong. Yet, the guy who asked me was looking for a quote, something along the lines of a monthly fee or whatever, even (apparently) if I go months without so much as a phone call or e-mail with these people.

But say something big happens and I have to coordinate repair, etc. Do I have to eat the cost, in light of the fact that I'm charging them a retainer? In other words, are we looking at more of an "insurance policy" model rather than a "service contract" model (wherein the latter actually entails regular onsite visits, etc. -- you know, something that's actually DONE, regularly)?

It kinda sounds too good to be true, but hey, it's the government. Working logically isn't their strong suit.

For anyone who's done this before, I'd love to hear whatever input you can offer. Better yet, some suggestions on what a good ballpark range is, too. These are two high-end Mac Pro machines, probably no more than a year old, pretty nicely souped up. FYI, I normally charge businesses $135 an hour for onsite support.

How do we make sure our client in India pays their last invoice?

davidfitzy7 — Wed, 27 May 2009 10:35:41 -0800

Our consulting company is doing business in India and we need a way to make sure that our client will not skip out on the last payment in our contract. I don't mean to single any country out, but we have a new project in Mumbai and we got burned several times recently by other clients in India.

We have been told it is common practice not to pay the last invoice for a project. Our submission to the client is a digital / hard copy report. Typically we send our report and request our final payment, but we have no real leverage to make sure they pay we just cross our fingers.

Is there any other strategy we could be considering - is there anything like "escrow" which we could use to make sure the transaction happens smoothly?

What kind of records do most sole proprietors, freelancers and consultants keep?

Anonymous — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:39:33 -0800

What sort of state of organization are the financial records of most sole proprietorships in? I've had a small freelance business for about 15 years. About 3 years ago, I was in a car accident that was 100% not my fault. (The other driver admitted fault and there were witnesses.) I am now in the middle of legal dealings with my insurance company, because of the state of whiplash, the effect on my pregnancy and the effect on my ability to run my business and maximize earnings. (I do have a lawyer.) The insurance company is asking for all my financial records from the past nine years. They want copies of every receipt, invoice, mortgage interest statement, etc.

I've never kept a general ledger or anything like that. I just invoice and pay my expenses and credit cards and stuff like that. I've never been very formal about things, although I am excrutiatingly honest. I don't lie on my taxes. However, there have been situations where I just phoned the mortgage company to get the interest amount for my mortgage for the year (for business use of home), because I figured that if I got audited by the government, I would just phone and get a statement sent out. And, as I mentioned, I don't have cash flow statements or anything like that. And sometimes my receipts are in my name, my husband's name or both our names. But I always put money into our joint account to cover everything, usually lump sums throughout the year.

I had planned to incorporate and set up with an accountant, but, because of the car accident, I am just beginning that process now. Going forward, my records will be more diligent, since I'll be incorporated.

But, I'm wondering...what is the typical state of financial records for most freelance and consulting type businesses? My lawyer seems baffled that I have unaudited records...he's not used to sole proprietors. He seemed surprised that I had been doing my own taxes (for all but 3 of the total years, because, honestly, the accountants never got me any more tax back than I got on my own). For the most part, my business records are my personal income tax records, since the sole proprietorship income tax is part of that. I never saw any point to doing balance sheets and neither did the bookkeepers or accountants. Are other freelancers and consultants in a different situation? (Again, I'll be changing this going forward.)

Job Opportunity Gut Check

thinkpiece — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 16:37:38 -0800

What questions should I ask myself in order to decide if I should take a new job in this economic environment? It's basically giant corporation vs. boutique consultancy. I have a stable middle-management job in a large corporation which, although while not exactly exciting, is secure and gives me a certain degree of responsibility and creative control in an area I'm not particularly interested in. The salary, benefits and growth opportunities are all average to good. The soulless bureaucracy, fizzled initiatives, office politics and general no-fun atmosphere leave my entrepreneurial, adventurous side cold. I've been there 18 months, like my boss, feel appreciated. I have recently been approached by a well-established, boutique UK consulting firm committed to building out the NY office. Their core competencies are much more closely aligned with mine, they seem to be on the move, they are well connected and have a dynamic client list with several projects on deck that would immediately fall into my area. Not to mention, more money, more freedom, better title, great events and projects, travel.

My question is: now that we have gone to the next level in discussions, what kinds of economy-related questions should I be asking about their business model? It's obviously a tough climate for strategy consultants -- I want to ask cogent, meaningful questions in order to surface their thinking about the economy and to find out what they're doing to stay strong during this recession.

Escaping the grind

simplesharps — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 01:31:44 -0800

My friend works in database applications each day to create in house reports. He's bored and wants to go it alone. He's mainly interested in consulting local small to medium size businesses on data trends and training staff in time saving strategies. MS Excel is his preferred weapon of choice.

What are some business websites within this field, so he can best learn how to structure his new solo effort?

Closest thing I could come to was this, but it's not really hitting the mark.

What are appropriate rates for computer surveillance work?

Jack Feschuk — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 16:37:08 -0800

I'm currently running a business where I monitor computers for people. I use custom made software that gets by all the anti-malware scanners and through the firewalls. I have been charging $40/hr for the first hour, and $45 for each hour after that. Since most of work may only take 1-4 hours per client I've been told that I'm charging too little. Figures have been thrown at me by friends, family and even clients that I should charge $60, $75 or even $100. What is a fair amount in this business. Yes this involves spying on people at the workplace, churches and spouses. My first question. I've searched mefi for similar stuff and came up empty.

Help an IT consultant find his niche!

thehickmans — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 20:27:05 -0800

I'm an IT consultant with a broad set of skills and experiences, and I need help finding my niche! Here's the background: 18 years in the "industry" starting as an infrastructure grunt, moved to system administration, then to IT management (Mgr -> AVP -> VP in charge of 30 person BA/PM/Dev/Infrastructure team in investment services firm), then out to consulting firm "selling" custom enterprise development. I'm now on my own doing planning, RFPs, project management, implementations, and whatever else they'll pay me for... This is month 7 of this current incarnation of my career, and I have a dream of building something beyond billing my own hours, but I'm still stumbling around trying to define my "niche".

The broad sense of "niche" I have been working with is to be an agnostic source of advice on IT planning and investment. My motivation behind this is that one of my biggest pet peeves is the "consultant" who's looking to solve an organization's business problems with a solution that carries 20 points of licensing revenue, 500 hours of services at 200 bucks an hour and 3 years of sustainment at 15% of total fees. Maybe I'm being naive and that is the way the game is meant to be played, but I'm looking for something more meaningful... if only I could find it!

So, I guess I'm looking for ideas, feedback, random anecdotal information, experiences from others who've done something similar.

Thanks in advance for your input!

Help a business consultant become an editorial freelancer....

moooshy — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 21:37:42 -0800

I am currently working at a consulting firm and consider myself to be a half-decent writer. Before I apply for my MBA, I'd like to enhance my application by writing articles for business magazines. How could I do this? Do you recommend any particular publications that might be willing to take a freelancer? I currently read the WSJ,The Economist and Business Week and would love to become a contributor or freelancer for these publications... Do people cold-call them? Should I send them ideas? Are there other publications I should aim for first?

[more background]
I have a bachelors of engineering, ran and wrote for a lit. magazine in college, and currently work in business. I want to get my MBA, but my grades aren't at the top of the heap, so I thought I could enhance my applications (and be creative) by writing articles for a business magazine.

This is so far from what I did in college that I have no idea how or where to start. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

I know we need income distribution rules in writing. What does the writing say?

andifsohow — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 17:32:25 -0800

How to divide up a company amongst 3 people when 2 people will be doing most of the work for the first 6-12 months. A small consulting firm, built from scratch. We've had almost no expenses thus far and are about to land our first client. Everyone is fine with 1/3 ownership and we all want all 3 on board, but partner C will be able to do considerably less work over the next year or so due to a full-time gig he's committed to during that time.

I know we solve part of this by how we distribute income - i.e., we track hours put into project and pay out accordingly. Problem is, we also want to invest as much into the company as possible, because expenses are on the near horizon. So if we land a 10,000 project and the work is divided 45-45-10 amongst A, B, & C, but A & B want to invest 2000 of their respective 4500 into the company, how are the 1/3 splits best maintained? Is it customary for C to match that contribution out of pocket, for example, or do we need to break it down to represent contributions more accurately?

Feasible? Or cuckoo? Where to begin?

jennyjenny — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 10:12:28 -0800

My business idea...brilliant, or a waste of time? Have you, or your business, ever needed a service like this? Has any company you worked for ever employed anybody to do this? I am about to graduate from Physical Therapy school with a master's degree. By the time I graduate, I will also have earned an ergonomics assessment specialist certification.

I would like to start a small business. I would provide assessment of the working conditions at offices, factories, etc. My services should reduce the incidence of workplace injury, repetitive stress injury, and workman's comp claims.

I would also like to run seminars for businesses -- teaching people who lift a lot of heavy stuff in their jobs to do it in a way that won't lead to injury. This could be applied to baggage handlers, postal and UPS-type companies, home health attendants, nurses, etc.

My questions:

-- Does this seem like a feasible plan?
-- How on earth does one begin something like this? Do I need a business plan, an accountant, a financial advisor? Do I need to become an LLC, or can I do this under my own name?
-- A silly question: Is this "consulting"? Do I call it consulting, or something else? I thought I knew what consulting meant, but people seem to be using that word to mean something different from what I understand it to mean.
-- Are there any books/websites/forums you would recommend that would give me a place to begin?

How do I fast track my way into consulting?

gttommy — Sun, 27 May 2007 04:49:21 -0800

How do I fast track my way into consulting? I'm 24 year old male doing a combined Software Engineering/Int'l studies in Chinese degree. I'm interested in getting into Business consulting within 1-2 years, and believe I have the transferable skills to do so, just not the experience & qualifications.

Things I have considered:
-apply for graduate positions within a large company to work towards software/IT consulting then find a way into business consulting (seems a little tedious)
-go for business analyst roles and wait for an opportunity
-find a managerial job, if possible, and put into resume then apply

Please suggest ways to get into business consulting asap!

-------------
My only work experience is pretty much only around 17 months experience as a paid intern programmer at 2 different software companies (no longer employed by either).

Yes I have tried the search but all I found were questions related to career dilemmas.

What is required for "ethics consulting"?

ontic — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 12:49:05 -0800

I hear that sometimes businesses and other institutions hire "ethics consultants". Does anyone know anything about getting into ethics consulting or the actual day-to-day activities in ethics consulting? If not, has anyone seen an ethics consultant in action at a company? I'm a philosopher/ethicist who teaches courses and does research on issues in theortetical and applied (practical ethics). I'm not planning on quitting my day job as an academic (I like it way too much) but my school allows me to spend a certain percentage of my time consulting.

My experience learning about and teaching business ethics makes me comfortable enough with business, business plans, business practices, and "talking business" that I wouldn't be the typical idealistic academic flailing in the real world. But even given all this, I'm not sure what ethics consulting requires to get started and what most companies would want from such a consultant. Is not having a background in law a major liability, for instance? Do businesses ever want anything more than typical CYA-type policy suggestions?

Growing a computer forensic investigation business

procrastination — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 06:53:22 -0800

How can I grow my DC area computer forensic investigation business? I am a computer science professor at a well-known and reasonably prestigious university in the Washington DC area. By contract, I am allowed to do consulting work one day a week during the school year, and my time is completely my own over the summer and during other breaks.

A couple of years ago, I was approached to help with some computer investigations by a family friend. It was fun to get out and do some work in the real world, and the cases I worked on led me to new areas of research, as well as providing good relevant stories to tell in class. Now I have started my own LLC, purchased equpiment and software and appropriate professional insurance, and have become certified as a computer forensic investigator. The people I have worked for in the past still turn to me when they needme, but I would like to expand my clientele and get more work in the area. I should say that I am focused on civil cases.

Any suggestions how to do this? I have some ads posted through Google, but that hasn't brought in any work, despite costing a fair amount of money. I would think that perhaps advertising in local legal publications might be good, but I don't know what those are. I was also thinking that a good mechanism might be to teach some basic forensics to lawyers, if there is a market for such instruction. Of course, the hive mind will hopefully have other suggestions.

Marketing Guru

growabrain — Fri, 25 Nov 2005 15:04:18 -0800

Any actual, personal experience with famous "Marketing genius", Jay Abraham? Or do you know somebody who actually used his consulting services? I have a knock-out business concept and I need some help in designing a business plan for it. I’ve heard of Jay for many years, but always shied away from calling on him ($5K/hr – 2 hours minimum for the initial consultation! Can it really be worth it?) But I’m tempted to do it now. If you used him in the past, would you re-use him? Can you recommend somebody like him, maybe cheaper? (And yes, I want to get what I’m paying for)

Why should I lose money if you needed to reschedule at the last minute?

Wild_Eep — Mon, 24 Oct 2005 07:19:10 -0800

Should I bill clients for scheduled appointments they missed? Twice in the past month, I've had clients who have chosen to call (or email) me within 2 hours of their scheduled appointment time to say that they needed to reschedule. I take time to mentally prepare myself for their appointments (small amounts of research, listing topics for discussion, etc.), so I feel a bit deflated when things don't proceed as scheduled. Also, as other appointment requests come in, I have scheduled around these clients' meeting times.

A doctor's appointment I had to reschedule a few months ago warned me that I'd be responsible for the cost of the visit personally if I were not to provide 24 hours' notice. (They let me off with a warning this first time.)

I think it's a bit rude (or at best, an imposition) to reschedule things at the last moment, but it's also 'less than friendly' to bill someone for the full hourly rate when you haven't delivered any value to them. Should I just think of the 'fee' as an 'annoyance tax'?

Is billing for missed time a sign of being professional, or is it just being a money-grubbing jerk?

Should I create a business?

k8t — Mon, 05 Sep 2005 19:04:50 -0800

For a friend, "I run a small computer consulting business on the side in my spare time. I have a bit over two dozen clients and do regular work for a handful of them. My question is, does it make sense to go thru the process of creating a business? What advantages or disadvantages would this give me? How much would it cost? Any other uggestions/ideas/comments/etc.. would be great! Thanks!"

Work Phone

omidius — Mon, 06 Dec 2004 18:26:19 -0800

My consulting business has gotten busy enough (knock on wood) to warrant not using my personal cell phone number as the first line of communication. What I need is a service that creates a local phone number, has a customizable voicemail system that can fwd to my cell, office, whereever.

Is there such a thing, or should I just get a second cell phone?

Small-business Web Design

Hankins — Thu, 13 May 2004 07:57:53 -0800

When my company discusses web design service with potential clients, they generally *always* balk and get ornery about the cost. Most of the time, we're working for small businesses, so understandably, $5-$10k is a substantial chunk of change for people to shell out. We don't get upset when we lose bids for being too expensive because we've always been taught that compromising our rate is not the solution... you simply can't meet everyone's budget. That being said, we turn away enough people who expect websites to cost $500-$1500 that I think there might be a market supportive enough to create solutions for. [come inside, won'tcha?] That being said, we turn away enough people who expect websites to cost $500-$1500 that I think there might be a market supportive enough to create solutions for. The most important factor for us, however, is that it also be affordable for us to pursue as well, meaning minimizing deployment time and customer support issues (i.e. hand-holding).

In that light, we've thought about creating a template-based system that we could use to pop a company's logo in, change around the color scheme a bit, and add the site's text. We could then resort to a more "my nephew on geocities designs websites" tactic of charging for "website packages," like "4 pages, contact form, site statistics for $500," or "6 pages, news blog, contact form for $1000," etc.

As designers, we'd have to suck up our pride for not being able to put our custom design work to task, instead rolling out templates like a line-cook at Denny's, but I don't think we'd have a problem with that as long as it proved fruitful. Though perhaps preachy in perception, we fundamentally enjoy working with people and helping them solve their problems, so being able to help a wider audience without having to sacrifice our rent money is essentially the true nature of the beast. Additionally, it would allow us to improve our customer acquisition, which would benefit us in the long-term as well (selling to existing customers is easier than getting new customers).

Has anyone ventured into a similar pursuit? Would it be advisable to stick with the "less customers / higher-paying jobs" perspective, vs the "More customers / less-paying jobs?"

From a technical standpoint, can anyone recommend a good way to minimize the work at the development stage? I've thought about using MT and creating new blogs for each new client, but I don't know if that's overkill. Additionally, mambo & Typepad look like they would provide easier user interfaces for those unfamiliar to online publishing, but I'm not sure that either of these are the best for assembly-line site rollouts. Are there any CMS-like applications available to hosting providers that let them cross-sell web services along with hosting?