The Nomadic Developer: Surviving and Thriving in the World of Technology Consulting

By Chris G. Williams and Aaron Erickson

Learn the Real Secrets of Succeeding as a Software or IT Consultant in Any Economic Climate Despite economic cycles, the idea of using technology to make a company more efficient and competitive-or perhaps even reach a new market- is appealing to all but the most desperate and cash-starved companies. More and more often, those companies look to technology consultants to fulfill their needs. There are real advantages to being a consultant. You make contacts with a lot of different people; you get exposure to many industries; and most important, unlike a software developer in the IT department for a brick-and-mortar company, as a technology consultant, you are the profit center...so long as you are billing. Consulting can be hugely rewarding-but it's easy to fail if you are unprepared. To succeed, you need a mentor who knows the lay of the land. Aaron Erickson is your mentor, and this is your guidebook. Erickson has done it all-from Practice Leadership to the lowest level project work. In The Nomadic Developer, he brings together his hardwon insights on becoming successful and achieving success through tough times and relentless change. You'll find 100% practical advice and real experiences-his own and annotations from those in the trenches. In addition, renowned consultants-such as David Chappell, Bruce Eckel, Deborah Kurata, and Ted Neward-share some of their hard-earned lessons. With this useful guidebook, you can Objectively assess whether the consultant's life makes sense for you Break into the business and build a career path that works Avoid the Seven Deadly Firms by identifying unscrupulous technology consultancies and avoiding their traps and pitfalls Understand the business models and mechanics that virtually all consulting firms use Master secret consulting success tips that are typically left unstated or overlooked Gain a competitive advantage by adding more value than your competitors Continue your professional development so you stay billable even during bad times Profit from both fixed-bid and time-and-materials projects Build a personal brand that improves your resiliency no matter what happens About the Author xiii About the Annotators xv Acknowledgments xix Foreword xxi Preface xxv Chapter 1: Why Consulting? 1 Chapter 2: The Seven Deadly Firms 27 Chapter 3: How Technology Consulting Firms Work 59 Chapter 4: Getting In: Ten Unstated Traits That Technology Consulting Firms Look For 97 Chapter 5: What You Need to Ask Before You Join a Technology Consulting Firm 125 Chapter 6: Surviving 157 Chapter 7: Thriving 181 Chapter 8: Your Career Path 207 Chapter 9: Avoiding Career-Limiting Moves 231 Chapter 10: Is Consulting Right for You? 259 Chapter 11: An Anthology of Sage Advice 273 Appendix A: Consultopia: The Ideal Consulting Firm 311 Appendix B: A Consulting Lexicon 325 Index 343

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0321606396
• ISBN13: 9780321606396
• Release Date: May 2009
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
• Length: 361 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.9" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Must read for anyone thinking about consulting

Consulting can be a very lucrative field, but when you are coming from a full time IT position it's hard to see what the plus and minuses are. I think Aaron does a great job of not only explaining what to look for but also why the economics of being a consultant work not only to the consultants advantage but also to the firm hiring them. Even if you decide that you want to stay put with the company you are at, this book will give you a lot of insight into consulting that may help if you are looking at outsourcing development work.

Awesome read for consultants, great read for others

If you're in the software consulting business, or considering going in to the consulting business, then you really, really need to read this book. It's chock full of things too many consultants don't stop to think about before joining consulting firms, or don't pay attention to once they're in. Erickson does a great job covering critical issues like why one would consider going in to consulting, culture profiles of typical consulting companies, critical business aspects of consultancies, and a number of other things I wish I'd known before joining a couple of consulting firms I've worked for. Erickson's writing style is clear, concise, and entertaining. He's also pulled in a number of "annotators" who provide excellent counterpoints and additional insights throughout the book. There's also one chapter of short articles by experienced consultants like Ted Neward and Bruce Eckel. While all of the book is highly useful to readers in the consulting line of work, several topics stood out: * Understanding critical concepts like sales pipelines, revenue, and margins * Learning how to ask questions during an interview, and learning which questions to ask * Figuring out how to survive and thrive at a client and at your consulting company This book isn't just for folks in the consulting line of business, it's also good for independents. Moreover, the career, business, and interviewing advice are great reads for anyone, regardless of the sector they work in.

Wish I had this when I started consulting

Aaron has done something amazing here. He has written a book that anyone getting into consulting/contracting needs to read and own. The advice is really timeless and technology independent. A lot of the advice in here will help those outside of consulting invest in their careers and understand how to relate to the consultants that they work with. Through this book, the reader learns how to take off the rose colored glasses and see a firm for what it is. You learn how to figure out when you are talking to a body shop and should negotiate for a good rate for the current contract. Likewise, if you are talking to a firm like a Magenic, ThoughtWorks, or something similar, the book lets you know that you should be figuring out if you want to stick with this firm for the long haul (because they are doing the same with you!). The book is easy to read and has the detail needed to assist a contractor in navigating their local market, a consultant in understanding how their firm works, and helps independents find good partnerships. If your day job involves writing code or managing those who write code, you should have a copy of this on your bookshelf. Re-read this book on a regular basis-- Aaron has advice in here that you will need to see again and again. Think of the book as a Peopleware for managing your career.

Alot of fun

Erickson takes a humorous and thoughtful look at the IT consulting world (software development). New-comers to IT consulting receive an eye-opening look into the daily life of the consultant. The narrative is written to be insightful, humorous, down-right fun. His commentary is often punctuated with a comrade's viewpoint, often a dissenting view, but I found that those sidebar items lent the book credibility. The commentary is certainly bold, but opens a window into the business which any new consultant would find irresistible to peer through. The seasoned consultant will find Erickson's "formulas" for the consulting business to be downright witty, spot-on, simply entertaining. His terminology and use of analogy are amusing for those of us in the trenches, fighting the consulting battle. His viewpoint is unique, and I found myself considering his advice for my daily routine.

A must read for anyone in consulting

First a word of disclosure: I work in the Atlanta branch of the same software consulting company that the author works for. Mr. Erikson's book, The Nomadic Developer, explained a lot of things about my own industry that I had never completely thought through before. For the most part I just enjoy developing software and my company affords me an opportunity to do it at a very high level. The Nomadic Developer helped me understand how and why my company does this. The book is full of excellent ontologies of different consulting practices (which the author calls The Seven Deadly Firms), different valued consulting traits, as well as common consulting career-limiting moves (modelled on the seven deadly sins: Gluttony, Envy, etc.), as well as advice on how to get ahead in consulting and where one's consulting career may eventually lead. The book is also an excellent guide for those who think they might want to get into consulting. The author paints a vivid picture of what the life of a technologist-for-hire is like and provides recommendations on the sort of people who would thrive in this sort of environment. Having just completed reading The Nomadic Devloper, my main impression is of Mr. Erikson's affection for his topic as well as his hilarious observations on the perks and pitfalls of consulting. One of my favorite sections of the book is the Consultopia, in which the author dissects the sometimes cynical world of consulting while pretending to provide a lexicon of common consulting terms. I've you've ever chafed at being called a "resource," then you need to read the Consultopia. It will leave you in stitches. The book finishes off with a chapter called "An Anothology of Sage Advice" in which various consultants give their best shots at explaining how they have succeeded and, almost as often, how they have screwed up in their profession. The Nomadic Developer provides a guy-on-the-ground perspective on this extremely challenging and lucrative profession. I cannot recommend it highly enough.