Thursday's class was an intriguing session. His advice was certainly appropriate because sometimes you need to be reminded that, in fact, we are in an economy in which everything - and I mean EVERYTHING - is negotiable. He had a lot of great insights into how technology has enabled the company's success and it was fascinating to hear about the intricacies that are so important for businesses.
I was particularly struck by his comments about his negotiation with Oracle. He stated that the original quote he received for a particular piece of hardware/software was $595,000 - but that he was able to negotiate them down in price to $175,000. I have been on the other side of the transaction - the sales side - and I have a lot of trouble believing the story. First, no one puts that kind of margin into thier products. Second, did he end up buying the same solution he was orignally quoted? I severely doubt it. He may or may not have ended up with a better deal, but I shutter at the thought of a sales person - especially one who would be calling on an account the size of Mortenson - that would drop his or her shorts by discounting a product to such a drastic degree...even if it was possible to drop the price that far, which, again, I doubt. He probably got a cheaper solution with fewer finctionalities in exchange for the lower amount of money he was willing to pay.
Again, this is all speculation, but it is extremely hard to believe the story as it was originally told. But who am I? Till next time...
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