5 ms·

Back when the company I was working for was trying to decide between OS/2 and Windows NT we took a trip to both Microsoft and IBM to get their pitch. Microsoft

Back when the company I was working for was trying to decide between OS/2 and Windows NT we took a trip to both Microsoft and IBM to get their pitch. Microsoft had us meet in Redmond, gave us a tour, free books from their bookstore, brought in an Indian chef for lunch (our boss was Indian), gave a big splashy presentation, etc. IBM met us in a dingy conference room in LA, with a whiteboard, don’t even remember any coffee or bagles. The two guys they sent came across like bad car salesmen, and we were a big IBM customer.

bombcar 4y ago
Yeah, people assume that Microsoft just somehow "won" by default, but they were young and VERY hungry back then, and it showed.
aidenn0 4y ago
I've noticed a pattern where some sales teams treat their existing customers poorly because they assume they are already locked-in.
- jamiek88 4y ago
  It’s always about incentives. If the sales people earned the same for renewals as they did onboard a new customer you can bet your sweet behind they’d treat you real nice like.
tb_technical 4y ago
That's flipping wild to me. I work in the evil defence industry (some sarcasm here). They're so vigilant about bribery that when someone (a general, or someone important) goes to a contractor presentation it's *expected* that there's a little can they put fifty cents or a few bucks into to pay for their share of the bagels. And if this can doesn't exist? Everyone gets very uncomfortable very quickly - literal jobs are at stake. Other industries are just wild, man.
- behringer 4y ago
  Yep that was my thought. This guy and his company fell for literal bribery.
  - noirbot 4y ago
    I don't think you're wrong, but I do want to push back against this sort of bribery being entirely illegitimate as a signal in business. There's absolutely something to be said for a company partner that cares enough to know how to bribe you and cares enough about your business. Even if the financial part is 100% bribery, there's a difference between "here's a check so you pick us instead of the competition" and spending the effort to work out what your company/decision makers care about and providing that. It's like saying if I plan a date with someone at a concert I know they're into that I'm bribing them into a relationship. In a literal sense, yes, but having someone care enough to cater to you isn't exactly meaningless in terms of deciding who to pursue a longer-term relationship with, personally or in business.
- mcculley 4y ago
  My first professional job was working as a DoD contractor. Having the anti-bribery training beaten into me did not prepare me well for doing business with the private sector and in other countries. I had to learn that there are completely different rules and expectations.
  - GauntletWizard 4y ago
    That's exactly it - It's not illegal to take bribes as an officer of a corporation; it's illegal to defraud others while doing so. If you take a personal bribe to tank your business, that's between you and your business partners - a civil matter unless your business partners are John Q public (Which is why the SEC exists). It is entirely legal to enrich yourself at the expense of a business you wholely own, with the obvious caveat that the courts will pierce the veil if you've committed crimes as that company.
    - mcculley 4y ago

bombcar 4y ago

Yeah, people assume that Microsoft just somehow "won" by default, but they were young and VERY hungry back then, and it showed.

aidenn0 4y ago

I've noticed a pattern where some sales teams treat their existing customers poorly because they assume they are already locked-in.

jamiek88 4y ago
It’s always about incentives. If the sales people earned the same for renewals as they did onboard a new customer you can bet your sweet behind they’d treat you real nice like.

tb_technical 4y ago

That's flipping wild to me. I work in the evil defence industry (some sarcasm here). They're so vigilant about bribery that when someone (a general, or someone important) goes to a contractor presentation it's *expected* that there's a little can they put fifty cents or a few bucks into to pay for their share of the bagels. And if this can doesn't exist? Everyone gets very uncomfortable very quickly - literal jobs are at stake. Other industries are just wild, man.

behringer 4y ago
Yep that was my thought. This guy and his company fell for literal bribery.
- noirbot 4y ago
  I don't think you're wrong, but I do want to push back against this sort of bribery being entirely illegitimate as a signal in business. There's absolutely something to be said for a company partner that cares enough to know how to bribe you and cares enough about your business. Even if the financial part is 100% bribery, there's a difference between "here's a check so you pick us instead of the competition" and spending the effort to work out what your company/decision makers care about and providing that. It's like saying if I plan a date with someone at a concert I know they're into that I'm bribing them into a relationship. In a literal sense, yes, but having someone care enough to cater to you isn't exactly meaningless in terms of deciding who to pursue a longer-term relationship with, personally or in business.
mcculley 4y ago
My first professional job was working as a DoD contractor. Having the anti-bribery training beaten into me did not prepare me well for doing business with the private sector and in other countries. I had to learn that there are completely different rules and expectations.
- GauntletWizard 4y ago
  That's exactly it - It's not illegal to take bribes as an officer of a corporation; it's illegal to defraud others while doing so. If you take a personal bribe to tank your business, that's between you and your business partners - a civil matter unless your business partners are John Q public (Which is why the SEC exists). It is entirely legal to enrich yourself at the expense of a business you wholely own, with the obvious caveat that the courts will pierce the veil if you've committed crimes as that company.
  - mcculley 4y ago