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Sep

Bait and Hook Reversal – Negotiating Strategy #7

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: David Stelzl, Negotiating strategies, sales training, technology motivational speaker

Still working through those gut-wrenching negotiations. You may have read about the Bait and Hook…what happens when purchasing reverses this strategy, using it on you?

First, if you have not heard of this tactic, it goes something like this…
When used by a sales person, they may find one key requirement in an RFP or other request, and put a heavy focus on it to eliminate the competition. Then, once others are out of the way, begin working through the details. The buyer doesn’t want to start over, and feels pressured to stay with their selection, while the seller begins to change the story around that one key provision. Here’s what this might look like in reverse…

Purchasing Strategy

You’ve made your proposal and the client offers you the business…once accepted, they begin changing the scope on you. The details have been left out of the agreement in this case because you are responding to their request, written by them. In order to get more for their money, they begin pressuring you for more while threatening you with a withdrawal. You’ve already committed this business on your forecast, and they know it. It would be hard to go back and tell your managers that the deal is no longer on, so instead you compromise, allowing them to take advantage of you.

Counter Strategy

1. Most of these problems result from not writing up the agreement. The deal happens quickly, so you assume everything is okay and go with the handshake. Always email back the details when you talk by phone, and when signing up to do something, be sure to write up an agreement. Use a change control process on all projects – and get them signed off on by someone with authority. Using a project manager makes this much easier, as it allows the sales person to stay out of change management, instead, focusing on the relationship.

2 When there is a question on scope – get on the phone. I recently had someone email me their side of a misunderstanding…in this case they were not pushing for scope creep but I wasn’t sure at first. An email is not the place to negotiate or clarify. On the other hand, it is a great audit trail once you’ve ironed out things verbally. I responded by phone, reviewed what was agreed to, came to a understanding so that everyone was happy, and then responded back with an email thanking my client for the question and restating what we had just agreed to. He in turn forwarded our discussion to his team and everyone was clear…there’s an archived email to reference if the question were to resurface.

Sep

Promise for More – Negotiation Strategy #6

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: David Stelzl, Negotiating strategies, purchasing agent, reseller, sales training, technology sales motivational speaker, var

Often, when someone can’t afford to buy the whole thing, we break it up into phases, hoping to sell the long range vision, but signing up for just phase 1 with an eye on future phases. On the purchasing side, a similar strategy is common – “There’s more to come…”

Purchasing Strategy

Especially for big accounts, the promise of more to come is a common ploy. You have no guarantees here, but I’ve often had companies offer this in one form or another. In the first case, you propose several items; product, support, services, or perhaps a volume discount. When volume discounts are offered, you in a sense give away your margin secrets, letting the client know how much profit you have in the deal. If I offer to cut my price 30% for volumes of a given product, let’s say I am selling books, the buyer knows I must still have margin in the deal, so why not ask for the 30% on just one book? The purchasing agent is unwilling to buy the entire deal, but looks to receive the same discount. Another version of this approach is to promise future business – “Discount now, if you win this deal and do a great job, there is more to come.” In a third version, the agent looks for a discount for this initial deal. “We’re giving you an opportunity,” they say, “So make this first deal attractive, and we’ll pay more next time.”

Counter Strategy

1. First, in the third strategy, don’t believe it. If you discount the first deal, hoping to raises your rates on future deals, you’ve lost. There are some creative alternatives that can be used. For instance, charge full price on the deal, but offer to perform a one time complementary service along with it to make the deal more attractive. Once you cut price, you have established a precedent. I see phone companies waving their install fee all the time, but keeping the recurring revenue stream whole. I’m convinced the install fee is just there for negotiation purposes. I did the same with my son’s braces. I asked to get a discount on the monthly fee, but they offered to wave the first office visit – xrays, etc. If you paid full price, you might want to go back and complain.

2. On the volume discount issue, the only thing to do here is to show economies of scale before discounting. For instance, if I can group travel or do something with a resource already onsite, I can justify my discount. If not, the purchasing agent is watching your margin. Be careful with this one.

3. On the promise of business – simply don’t do it. Offer #2 as a way to bring the price down, or go to a POC (Proof of concept). Anything else is simply a discount for no reason.

Sep

Bate and Switch – Negotiation Tactic #5

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: David Stelzl, negotiating, negotiation training, sales training, selling, technology motivational speaker, training

Most negotiators are playing mind games – especially when you move to enterprise sales. They train and use professionals whose sole purpose is to save the company money. I don’t like deceptive sales tactics, and I certainly don’t like deceptive negotiators. My intent in writing these posts over the past week is to make you aware of the games being played, and to help you avoid being taken advantage of. Work to establish tangible value, and do your best to meet business needs of those you sell to – but be aware of those who will work to whittle down your price…

Strategy #5 is definitely a ruse…it goes like this:

Negotiation Strategy

Purchasing picks something in the deal they know they can’t have (or at least probably can’t have). Let’s say you’re selling an application and they want one-hour onsite support – not going to happen. They press for this over and over, but there is just no way you can deliver it. The pressure builds – again, it’s their timeline unless you control the milestones. The more they know about your pressures, the more they can time this. Coming down to the wire, the deal must close – perhaps it’s quarter end. The negotiator finally gives in on the one hour support, but suddenly replaces it with the real point of negotiation – something completely unexpected, that must happen to close the deal. Perhaps it’s a greater discount, added feature at no charge, or some other value-add you have not considered. You don’t really have time to think about it, so you give in. In fact, you feel you owe them after not giving in on the support issue. It’s a mind game – bate and switch.

Counter Strategy

Honesty and consistency are your best friends in the sales process. Present your best value and the real price up front. Never give discounts greater than the street price demands, and let your client know right up front, this is the best price and here is why we charge this. Your value must justify the price right up front.

When the negotiator starts demanding things that you just can’t do, shoot straight and let them know you can’t do it. When the switch comes, expect it – always expect them to pull out some new requirement at the end. I find it’s best to have a process or policy to go through whenever a demand comes out. If the price question comes out last minute, I call and work through the value one more time, set price aside and solidify that I am the selected provider, and then go to work on price by pulling out options we’ve probably already covered. Consistency eventually sinks in…at some point they get it. This is the price, these are the options, and I am willing to walk if we can’t figure it out – I can only do this with confidence if I have been forthright through the sales process. The value is there, the price is good, there should be no question.

Sep

I’m Not The Decision Maker…Negotiation Strategy #4

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: David Stelzl, negotiating, sales training, technology motivational speaker, Value Proposition

Buddy! - Our new German Shepard puppy

Here is the ultimate negotiation…returning from my bike ride on Saturday, my wife and half of the kids greeted me as I pulled into the driveway with the other half of the kids and a van full of mountain bikes – with an offer to take me to see a German Shepard puppy. I said no, but a few hours later I was the proud owner of a brand new puppy (pictured to the left).

Continuing on with Negotiations….Last week I briefly mentioned today’s strategy in the context of the Good Cop / Bad Cop ploy, but sometimes “I’m not the final authority,” can be used without a bad cop involved – just by the negotiator referring to someone up above…this works well, so be aware of it…

The Strategy

I find this to be more often used by managers than purchasing people. “The boss will never go for this.” This strategy makes it look like I would choose you if I could, but together, we must figure out how to reduce the cost. You negotiator talks as if his authority does not want to know the details, but will not go for the proposed price. This generally takes place even before a price has been submitted up the ladder.

You may hear comments like, “I’ll send it up the line and see what they come back with,” or you might even get “Looks great, we’ll get back to you once everyone has a chance to review.” In either case, the person you are presenting to is saying, “I can’t approve it.” One of two things can happen at this point; either they’ll come back with a counter offer, or time will pass without any answer, putting more pressure on you, the seller. When the time is right, they’ll come back, knowing you are now out of time.

As long as you think your negotiator is on your side, you are more likely to hand this all kinds of insider information that will help them get their best price. When the come back, they’ll have all the info they need, and you will be desperate and ready to cave in.

Counter Strategy

Like the Good Cop/Bad Cop, giving away information helps them take advantage of you. As a trusted adviser, you want a trust relationship, however when the deal is built on value; your time lines, compensation, and margins have nothing to do with the sale as far as the client goes, so don’t go there. Make the value in this deal all about them, deliver great value, and hold your price.

As I stated last week, refuse to negotiate with those who do not have authority to negotiate. Instead, agree that they don’t have authority and insist on moving up. This really should be done as part of the discovery process where you can leverage your need to cover all the bases and liability by interviewing those responsible for the ultimate success of the project.

Sep

Can You Trust Your IT Contact? Negotiating Strategy #3

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 1 Comment

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: David Stelzl, Negotiating strategies, purchasing agents, sales training, technology motivational speaker

Sharpen that Pencil!

I was talking with one of my mentor program clients yesterday – his deal, like many, has gone to purchasing. The hardware has been approved, but the services are under scrutiny. “Sharpen your pencil,” they’re telling him. “We can get it cheaper – that’s what other firms we are considering are saying.” All of this comes from purchasing, but remember, purchasing doesn’t really have the power to choose who can do the job – only the power to negotiate within a budget they’ve been handed. On the other hand, don’t be so sure your coach from IT isn’t collaborating with them behind the scenes – they do have the power to determine who can and can’t do the job, within a budget they’ve been given. In the past, we’ve put a lot of trust in these influencer relationships…but with the economy the way it is, you can’t really trust what you see.

It may be the oldest trick in the book, but the “Good Cop / Bad Cop” strategy still works well, and chances are it will work on you if you’re not tuned in…

The Strategy

My client thinks his connection with IT is a good one…but suddenly he’s not sure about it. In this strategy one negotiator acts nonchalant, or even aggressive; they may even act down right nasty, “Sharpen your pencil Jack!” They communicate in no uncertain terms that you are a vendor and nothing more, and if you want this business, you’ll have to play their way. Expect the other negotiator to see your side, want you to win, and act as though they really care about your personal situation. This strategy begins to wear on you as the stress builds and you look for insight and empathy in the sales process. It becomes easy to disclose your personal deadlines, income needs, and frustration with the process. The more you reveal, the more ammunition the negotiator has to beat you down. As you share with your empathic listener, every word of it circles back to the hardball guy in purchasing.

In another scenario, there may not actually be another bad guy. In one seminar I attended, the speaker made the recommendation, “Don’t be the decision maker when negotiating.” In other words, continue to refer to a higher authority as you consider options. Admit that you can’t really make a decision without buy-in from above. This allows the negotiator to defer the decision as they continually must go back to someone you don’t see to gain approval. If you’ve bought a car at a dealership, you have probably experienced this. The salesperson makes frequent trips over to the elevated platform in the center of the showroom to check with his general manager. The truth is, he has room to negotiate, but by doing this, he remains your advocate, when in fact, it’s his own commission he’s protecting.

Counter Strategy

The Good Cop / Bad Cop strategy is difficult to win, simply because our emotions want to give in to the good cop. If you have watched war movies that include prisoners being brainwashed and questioned, you have seen some of the best examples. Luckily, we don’t experience this type of testing in the business world (although sometimes it may seem that way).

1. First, in the car dealer example, the negotiator’s power is in keeping the true decision maker out of the discussion. Don’t let this happen. I usually say up front, “I understand you are not able to make this decision, please introduce me to someone who can.” Don’t take no for an answer – continue to point out that you do understand, and so there is no reason to continue talking. Refuse to continue negotiating with someone who cannot make a final decision, but do it with a smile and calmness.

2. In the purchasing example, the power is in the unknown. We don’t know if my client’s inside coach is really our advocate or if they are playing us. We have to assume the latter. That doesn’t mean we cut off the relationship. Instead, it means we continue to add value to their position, helping them achieve their goals, but without disclosing our own personal frustration, deadlines, or personal financial needs. Work to learn more about their internal deadlines and focus on the risk and operational efficiency issues that originally justified writing the proposal in the first place.

3. In the case of services, there is a difference between you and the other providers. Use stories to communicate the difference, and express your concern over your client not achieving their desired results. That must be at the heart of the negotiation. If you followed the right course up to this point, you should have a verbal commitment on what exactly was needed, and how much they were prepared to pay. If you gave them a price before justifying the value, you will have to find a way to make this up.

4. In the end, they may push hard for lowering your price. Remember to always take away value from the deal as you lower the price. The final approver – the asset owner, requires a certain project outcome. If you have quoted this correctly, it will be apparent that they are giving up things they wanted.

5. Finally, remember, you can’t negotiate unless you are willing to walk.

Sep

Hurry Up and Wait – Negotiating Strategies for the Impatient

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Negotiating
Tags: negotiating, negotiation strategy, purchasing, sales training, selling

Photo taken by Hannah Stelzl

“Hurry up and wait,” a common negotiating strategy for those on a deadline…Here’s how it works:

The Purchasing Strategy

First, purchasing needs your proposal, your pricing, details, etc. and they need it now. Then suddenly everything comes to a screeching halt. Dragging their feet often seems like laziness or lack of interest, but it might just be a well calculated strategy learned through their local negotiation expert. The whole reason purchasing is done by a separate department is, they don’t have an urgency to get something, and they are not emotionally involved; perfect for talking price.

IT may need you, but purchasing doesn’t. They don’t really understand your value nor your differentiation; however, they probably do have orders from IT (or whoever is actually making the purchase) to buy from you – with the caveat, “Get the best price.” Keep this in mind during the process. Unless it’s a pure product deal, purchasing in not actually making a decision here.

As long as they don’t really care about you, all the pressure is on you to close the deal. You need them to make the sale, yet they can go elsewhere to get the same thing (or so they say). You see where I’m going here…building on yesterday, if you don’t understand your client’s deadlines, there may be a date out there, but without that information in hand, you have lost all control because you’re the only one with a timeline – one that impacts your personal income.

Once purchasing figures this out, expect them to drag the purchase through days, weeks, or even months of indecision. Every day, pressure is building for you to close as your managers wonder what happened. Purchasing may stall by withholding information, asking for additional time to review your proposals, they may send you off to gather new information, or you may see them looking at numerous comparisons with other possible bidders.

Counter Strategy

When the proposal is handed in early, the deal is out of your control. You don’t have commitment, and you have not been selected – at least you don’t know if you have. Try this…

1. Make sure you know who the asset owners are – those liable for the outcome of this project, and those who will depend on the systems you are selling – ones they will be relying on to perform their work.

2. Once the vision is clear, and everyone knows what is needed, you are sent off to write the proposal. Wait. Don’t run back to the office and start writing. Instead come up with your options, identify the client’s urgent issues based on impact and likelihood, and then call the decision maker to review the need and discuss the options along with price. Gain verbal approval on exactly what they are going to buy, and write down the language the buyer uses in describing what he is buying.

3. Write the proposal using the buyers own words. You now have verbal approval, and you know you are the chosen provider, as long as the pricing can be worked out. You know the urgent issues, and you know what kind of time frame you are working with. Submit your pricing as an agreement, not a proposal, and patiently work through the purchasing process on their timeline, keeping their urgent issues in front of them. Don’t make your quota or your company’s financial deadlines a part of the negotiation process or you are destined to lose.

Aug

From Vendor to Adviser Book Update

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Opportunities and Value Proposition
Tags: author, book writing, David Stelzl, from vendor to adviser, sales training, selling, trusted adviser, writing

Actual picture of my book in process

Several have asked about the new book, From Vendor to Adviser…so here’s a quick update…

First, here’s a picture of the book in process. If you see any errors on the screen, let me know…

The good news is, I’ve completed the first draft. I am now running through it to make some minor changes, update a few things, and adding a some new ideas to make it more practical. For instance, I’ve added case studies to present a better picture of how some of the concepts and recommendations have been implemented by various clients.

By this weekend, I’ll be shipping 13 chapters (the entire manuscript) to my highly competent editor to comb through it. We’ll spend the month making grammatical corrections and adding some structure. At the same time, I will be adding a few pictures and have my cover designer go to work to get artwork and some quotes for the back cover done.

Then, with fingers crossed, and a lot of help from those who support me in this type of effort, we should have a final product by end of month – September that is. And at that point, we’ll have a listing on Amazon as well as my website at www.stelzl.us.

The hardest part of this whole thing is making sure the content is usable. I have lots of ideas, but the challenge is always in keeping the descriptions brief, while providing enough information to actually allow you, the reader, to use what I’ve written. That is my goal for September – to produce a book that provides concrete ideas that will allow you to truly transform your business approach. Stay tuned…it will be out shortly.

Jul

Using Social Media to Sell

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 4 Comments

Categories: Marketing
Tags: David Stelzl, marketing speaker, sales training, social media marketing, social media roi, social media speaker, technology motivational speaker, technology sales speaker

Social Media and The Internet – Marketing Available to You.

When I started my company the first thing I did was build a website. Within minutes of launching I was talking to the entire world for about $30/month. Since then some great tools have been introduced, allowing me to interact, create content, publish, reach out, collect names…and it continues to grow. Many of these tools are free to me as an individual…

By using the right tools, I can reach millions of people no one knows about, reach into countries I’ve never been to, automate interaction, schedule ahead, and broadcast live, and go global. And the great news is, this is nearly free. The key is, figuring out exactly who I really want to reach, and building my program to reach them. Just because the entire world can see me, doesn’t mean they will, or that I want them to. As a sales person, you can also narrow this down, targeting a special group in your region. While the entire world can see you, your content is highly dependent on search criteria, which means you can refine your search-ability or become Google-able (this will likely be in the dictionary before too long) to a niche group simply be setting your content up with your target market in mind.

Now, marketing depends on changing your mindset. Forget about oldschool marketing, and having your marketing department write, print, publish, and somehow build your brand. Online, it’s all about you and the content you push out. You are the thought leader here; the person people buy from because you solve problems. Online you can promote that single-handedly. This kind of marketing is not putting out HTML and banners, or pop-ups that annoy websurfers, but rather content that is searchable, using key words and phrases that people will find as they research problems online.

Becoming the adviser now means something new. It means:

- Moving from advertising to content

- A willingness to put intellectual content online for free

- Believing content will draw new prospects

- Being real – people want you, not some vanilla website

- Participating in blogs and forums

- Writing things that help people – providing real answers

So start writing – interacting, and putting out content that matters.

Jun

Practicing Negotiating Part II: David Stelzl Demonstrates How to Lose

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Customer Service Stories and Negotiating
Tags: call center, Customer Service, David Stelzl, marketing consulting, negotiating, sales speaker, sales training, technology motivational speaker

A few weeks ago I wrote about my vaporizer and how we climbed the ladder to win the free replacement…it was exhilarating and yes, I did get many positive comments on the post! Today let’s look at how to lose…and learn from it.

Last night I nearly had a heart attack when I realized that I had booked my flights to CA using a PM flight rather than the AM flight I was hoping to take. Here I am just a few days from leaving and I discover that weeks ago I made this mistake, and I am taking my wife who is flying on points. What are the chances they have a point seat open and will move me without charging me? Zero. But, we can always negotiate, so I called customer service.

The call started out much better than I had expected. The person serving me was actually willing to change the tickets for free, but only if a point seat were available. Of course, there were none. At this point I new I had to negotiate. There must be a way to override the policy – there always is; however, knowing this poisoned my approach. I learned at this point in the conversation that I was already speaking with the shift supervisor, and she was informing me not only that she could not do it, but that is was impossible.

Now, you and I both know, nothing like this is actually impossible. Certainly the CEO could make this change, and probably someone who reports to him, and likely someone reporting to them – how far down can we go with this (pretty far)? So instead of escalating as I’ve encouraged in past calls, I simply asked her how high up would we need to go to get this changed. Instead of agreeing with her (agreeing that she has no power to make this change), and sympathizing with her, I in a sense, challenged her. She sort of laughed at this point, but I didn’t take the hint, as she insisted that it was in fact, impossible. At this point, feeling proud about my position (another mistake in negotiating), I politely pointed out that I had had a similar situation a year ago and proceeded to boast that I had actually had this type of thing resolved once before when no point-seats were open, therefore it can be done. Big mistake.

She’s not on commission, and she also knows that I don’t really have a choice because there is only one carrier based in my city and there is no way I am flying by connection every week. So at this point she gets sarcastic with me. This is terrible customer service behavior, but I’ve asked for it. I realized I had lost and said goodbye in the friendliest voice I could muster.

THE REST OF THE STORY…part of the problem is, I knew I had a way to escalate outside the system, but I should not have had to play this card. My wife was able to make a call to a senior executive and get this resolved in minutes. She made a call to a friend, who contacted her husband, who then graciously made the change, no questions asked, reinforcing my original belief, that there really is a way; its just a matter of finding that person. What did I learn here?

1. Pride leads to a fall. No matter how confident you are that you’ll win (and you just about always can), you can’t show it. People react to pride, and it always leads to contention. Don’t do it. Meekness is the ability to restrain your power or irritation – this is the proper way to approach the negotiating table.

2. The person you are dealing with probably can’t change the policy, so it’s important to agree with them They also can’t escalate every call up to their manager or lead you to believe they can. If they did, they would get fired. So work with them and make them feel good about the work they are doing. Too many people yell at customer service people (which I did not do), and this never works, so get over it.

3. The servant wins here. The better you make the agent feel, the more likely they are to help you when you begin the escalation process. So help them help you. If they push back, continue to press forward with a genuinely positive attitude. If you have one in a hundred call center people on the phone, it is better to simply thank them and hang up, then call back – you’ll get another person who might be more willing to help. But don’t burn the bridge with any of these people as the word might spread.

4. No matter how hard they insist, “It can’t be done!” it just about always can. Be patient and work the system. Most of the time you don’t have an executive contact to call, so don’t blow your chances in the call center. I got lucky on this one. In fact it was my wife who won – I lost.

5. Finally, when you do win, don’t flaunt it. You have your reward. Express extreme gratefulness to the person who solves your problem, and if there is a way to get word to their management on what a great job they did, do it. Even if it’s an email back to that person that can be passed along. You never know what is going on with that person’s job, so help them as much as you can to be recognized for doing what no other person seemed to be able to to do.

6. An finally, as I am now doing, learn from your mistakes and don’t repeat them. In fact, learn from my mistake, and you’ll avoid the feeling of defeat.

Jun

Is the LulzSec Group a Threat to Your Clients; David Stelzl Comments…

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment

Categories: Sound Bites
Tags: anonymous, David Stelzl, hacker, lulzsec, sales training, security speaker, technology sales speaker

“On Friday the group posted a torrent on The Pirate Bay containing internal documents from the Arizona DPS to protest its anti-immigration policies…,” Are your clients at risk?

This happened today, an attack on the AZ state police department – following a long list of incidents brought to government organizations as well as Sony, Sega, Nintendo, and others, by the LulzSec and Anonymous hackers. Are we less safe all of the sudden? The answer is no…it’s just more apparent. These groups are using the same tools and techniques expert hackers have used for years (I’m not suggesting I know exactly what they used to break in). My point is, companies have been completely vulnerable for a long time. The problem is, the evidence has been hidden. These groups have chosen to make a political statement, while groups such as those who worked along side Albert Gonzales were stealth.

The change here of course is the nature of the attack. Suddenly you are at war if you take a stand that opposes another’s ideology. The issue here:

“SB1070 is a controversial anti-illegal immigration measure in Arizona that makes it a misdemeanor crime for aliens in Arizona who have been required to register with the U.S. government to not have their registration documents with them. It also imposes stiff penalties on people who harbor illegal aliens. “

This could be government policy, your client’s position on a government policy or social issue, or a new product launch or customer service issue your client is involved in that somehow disturbs an opposing group. Suddenly your clients are at risk if they do anything these groups don’t like. The next step will be for groups like these to attack on behalf of disgruntled people who are willing to pay to shut someone down. Of course this sort of thing is not new, but expect this trend to continue, even if law enforcement does manage to track these individuals down. It’s a small scale cyberwar.

What’s at stake? Many companies, when asked, say they aren’t that concerned with security. They don’t have anything worth money, or they don’t really care about down time. What that really means is, they really think something will happen to them. In other words, the likelihood is low, therefore the impact is not worth worrying about. AZ police are suddenly concerned…

“AZ DPS documents …show a mishmash of …files, including various situational awareness bulletins, a complementary invitation to a border security conference, and a street price list for various illegal drugs. There also are personal photos of men holding fish, ostensibly after catching them.

Additionally, the torrent contains a graphic video–apparently taken from a camera inside a police cruiser–showing an AZ law-enforcement officer throwing an unidentifiable metal object across a highway and then being hit by a car. The files are assumed to have been extracted from the email accounts of AZ DPS personnel.”

On one video I viewed online, the issue was security of their officers. Interviews online explain that having stolen documents and personal information put their team in jeopardy. This would be true of just about any company. While the IT people are claiming to have it covered, and company budget approvers are half listening but more intent on saving money, employees are at the mercy of hacker groups who could easily have their payroll and personnel records published online in a few hours.

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

Putting cybercrime briefings together for your clients is likely the highest value you can be providing to those who believe they have it covered. This issue is almost always a belief that they are not likely to suffer harm for whatever reason. If you want to reach decision makers, put your high end consultants on the stage discussing what is happening, showing why, relating possible impact of local business leaders, and offering advice on what to be doing.

COMMENTS and EXPERIENCES WELCOME…

** Quotes taken from InformationWeek: http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/security/231000377