[TechRepublic] Devise a business plan before becoming an independent consultant

IT Consultant TechRepublic Member | September 17, 2012

Devise a business plan before becoming an independent consultant The first step in becoming an IT consultant is creating a business plan in which you evaluate why a client would use your services. Here's expert advice on this process. Read more Resource of the day Free 2011 Salary Report IT Professionals - Register on activeTechPros for immediate access Business Professionals - Join the activeBizPros community to view the report Sell clients on solutions not your tech skills Greg Miliates cautions against falling into the trap of thinking that your IT skills are important. Customers care more about the end result than your resume. Read more Additional TechRepublic resources   10 cross-platform tools that can make your job easier With mixed-platform environments on the rise, you need tools that can handle whatever systems you're supporting. Here are 10 invaluable cross-platform applications. Read more The golden rules of IT projects: Ignore them at your peril Having tried and tested rules in place are essential for mission-critical tech projects because when things go wrong you need proper procedures to fall back on. Read more Five common programming mistakes Justin James describes (and even confesses to committing some) programming gaffes and explains why these particular behaviors can be problematic. Read more Mac business users best served by Microsoft Office Erik Eckel explains why Microsoft Office applications still rule on the Mac and why Microsoft needs to bring them to the iPad as well. Read more Lock down sensitive information with Secure Data Manager Secure Data Manager is a handy way to keep your sensitive passwords hidden from prying eyes, yet keep it at the ready for when you need to locate credentials for a machine, a software key, a URL login, and more. Read more 10 things you should do when moving disaster recovery to the cloud If you're incorporating cloud computing into your DR plan, this checklist will help you gain the advantages and avoid the pitfalls. Read more Featured multimedia   Five handy network apps for your portable toolkit From monitoring tools to full-blown servers, here are five good networking apps you can carry with you. View on site Five free anti-malware tools for Windows PCs Protect your system against those insidious malware threats with the help of these reliable removal tools. View on site Featured Webcast LIVE WEBCAST: The IT Factor, Secrets of Outsourcing TechRepublic & ZDNet present, Secrets of Outsourcing, September 20th at 1pm PT, 4pm ET. This webcast will examine how and when businesses should consider outsourcing, which IT functions can be outsourced, pitfalls to avoid, corporate culture, and when to keep things in-house. Today's recommended downloads Free 2011 Salary Report The new workplace: are you ready? The new workplace: are you ready? State of Smart Study: Outperforming in a Data-rich, Hyper-connected World (IBM) Nucleus White Paper - key drivers of high returns on big data investments (IBM) Perennial favorites   10 mistakes that rookie IT consultants make My early years in IT consulting: What I did and didn't do well Sanity saving tips for newbie IT consultants Connect with TechRepublic iPhone 5: What you need to know before buying Wil Limoges says there's a lot to like about the new iPhone 5, but there are a couple of issues to consider before you pre-order. Make sure you read those model specs carefully. TechRepublic newsletters   Get product reviews, tech news analysis, tips, and more in the following TechRepublic newsletters. Automatically sign up today! TechRepublic UK TechRepublic Australia Wrapper Web Designer The Enterprise Cloud Tablets in the Enterprise

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