Customer Reviews

The Computer Consultant's Guide: Real-Life Strategies for Building a Successful Consulting Career

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book has some excellent information, but it also has whole chunks that are completely out of date and were probably out of date when the 1997 second editions was pubished.

To begin with the kind of "computer consultant" that the book is primarily focused on is the contract mainframe programmer. Even in 1997 that was not the dominant form of consulting, as she suggests it is. Also take into account that one of her favorite resources to recommend is CompuServe. For those of you under 35, that was the thing that AOL put out of business by being easier to use (though not better.)

In fact most of the information in the book is gathered from CompuServe and it's members. Ruhl actually bemoans this new upstart "the internet" because it isn't as good as the bulletin boards people are used to, since it's all static pages, after all.

Not that there aren't great pieces of information in here. It would just be nice to do a soft cover third edition that's about a third less pages. Just include the "timeless" stuff about dealing with clients and not the stuff about how you could earn as much as $35K as a consultant.

I enjoyed the book, and it's extremely well written, but the fact that it's so out of date and sold only in a $20 hard cover edition left a bad taste in my mouth.

This book provides a thorough overview of the computer consulting industry and a good sense of the day-to-day business tasks associated with maintaining a consulting career.

If you are an absolute rookie in the computer field and have little idea of the consulting options available to you, your perspective may widen a bit and you might find yourself having more questions than you did before you started reading this book, which is a good thing. So, you will probably want to supplement your research a bit more once you have narrowed down your consulting career choices.

But, if you are already in the computer field, this book has about all the information you will need to base a career-changing decision on. There are plenty of resources listed to help further your knowledge on the consulting field. If you have the time, you might want to take a look at the author's subsequent book, "Janet Ruhl's Answers for Computer Contractors", which can be a very good supplement to this book.

~ Michael Nigohosian, author - "The Secret Path to Contract Programming Riches"

I purchased this book in 1996 and it has withstood the test of time. A good reference on how to start your business and keep it going. I find that I turn to this book even now when I want a reminder on how to do something (like bid proposals) or something new (like growing my business beyond just me). Ruhl has compiled real world experience from many consultants (mostly on-line) and placed that information in a useful order (with a decent index). Well worth the purchase price, get it for your library!

I found this book very helpful in dealing with such things as dealing with brokers, marketing efforts, written v. oral contracts -- as well as warning about typical problems. Having extensive quotes from real consultants was also very helpful. I recommend it highly.

This book is excellent for new or prospective computer consultants. Ignore a lot of the negatives in an early chapter -- unless you haven't thought of any of them yourself. Nearly worth its weight in gold. Not that it is the best book you'll ever read but that it will save / make you that much money from reading it.

As the founder and president of a consulting firm, I found Janet's book targeted not at the firm, but the independent consultant. This aside, the book is well written and covers all the topics an independent should be exposed to. The section on issues surrounding incorporating is particularly useful, as is Appendix A, which is full of excellent resources to extend your professional development.

Unfortunately, I did not have the chance to read Ruhl's book before becoming a senior management consultant. If I would, probably I'd be an Independent Consultant since then (I am one now). Excellent book for people wanting to make the jump into consulting.

This book is good for a general understanting of the consulting field. And I do recommend it, but if you are serious about consulting/contracting, you should supplement with two other books: "Janet Ruhl's Answers for Computer Contractors: How to Get the Highest Rates and the Fairest Deals from Consulting Firms, Agencies, and Clients" and if you are just starting in the programming field and want to learn exactly what you need to do and do it fast, then read: "The Secret Path to Contract Programming Riches..." Good luck to your career! ;)

This book certainly has its pluses and minuses. The fact that it was published in 1997 makes it somewhat obsolete in some critical areas. None the less there is some solid advice given by the author.

The first chapter defiens the many types of consultants fairly well. However, it does fail to mention much about the Networking Engineer, whcih is a critical part of today's busienss environment. The Meet The Consultants section is fairly user friendly. Earning potential is key but again you must interpret this in terms of 1997 dollars which is more inflated now.

Also critical discussions regarding health insurance and marketing are explored here. Some good advice is given here at the beginning. A little bit overdone in other spots as a person exploring the industry will become overwhelmed. So many of these aspects are situational. The brokering part is presented in such a dry format that its hard to read after 30-40 pages.

The glossary might be of help for those who want to explore more information. However, a new version is definitely in order to bring this book current.

This book was...OK. It was a good intro to how to start a consulting business, but I much preferred Ruhl's other book, "Answers for Computer Contractors." That book goes more into the dirty tricks that clients and brokers play, and is a better "field guide" for someone looking to leave salaried employment behind. My last job hop was to another salaried spot...I'm not that crazy just yet!!