1. How To Lose Your Real World Client In 10 Weeks (Client Management) Bettina Bair Ohio State University bair.41@osu.edu http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/~bbair/client_mgmt

2. Rationale Adding realism to classroom projects should be a good thing Students’ effort proportional to the project’s viability We tried to drag-n-drop clients into our regular curriculum  Outsiders are a wild card Learn from our mistakes

3. #1 – Don’t Undersell Your Program Build up your client’s excitement It’s a significant commitment of their time an uncertain process Some selling points 20+ young energetic minds! Focused on THEIR project! FREE Software Engineering work! Pre-trained intern prospects!

4. #2 - Don’t Oversell Your Program Be honest Analysis work is not design or development work Show examples Be reasonable Maybe 20% will be excellent quality

5. #3 - Don’t Pick The Wrong Client Good clients should Be reliable and professional Have an approved, funded project Have a fair idea of what they want Where to find one Peers Family and Friends Industry Contacts University or college corporate liaison Placement or alumni office. Local chamber of commerce. Referrals You can get pickier over time.

6. #4 - Don’t Make Verbal Agreements Ask your client to commit to providing time and resources Protect their interests too Confidentiality and non-disclosure Damage control Impressive for Students Not every question may be answered freely

7. #5 - Don’t Assume Your Client Talks Like You Do Clients talk in the language of their specialty They confuse us What’s ‘conventional’ real estate anyway? We confuse them What’s SSL and do I want it? Be careful of baggage Clients may want to be teachers

8. #6 - Don’t Let Your Students Overwhelm Your Client Forty to one is not good odds Students think up quirky questions Lack real-life and business experience Assume everything said must be relevant and complete Establish expectations accordingly Provide structure to client meetings

9. #7 - Don’t Abandon Your Client Protection is good, isolation is not Schedule follow-up meetings Validate & verify Get details Set expectations before each meeting

10. #8 – Expect the Unexpected Client are unpredictable Announce previously unmentioned, yet critical requirements Reveal that the project had not ever been funded Send a substitute or a committee Fall asleep

11. #9 – Don’t Relax A new grade key needed for each new client Students demand more of you Do a lot more coaching

12. #10 - Don’t Worry Everyone’s a stakeholder in the success of the project

13. OSU’s Collaborative for Applied Software Technology (CAST) Resource to local industry, government, students and faculty Interdisciplinary teaching, practice, and research program E-business, enterprise, and software engineering More information about CAST Dr. Rajiv Ramnath Email: ramnath@cis.ohio-state.edu