Thursday, November 5, 2009

Follow-Up on my Autodesk Rant

AngryComputer Soon after posting my rant about Autodesk products and their relationship with (at least certain) “Enterprise” customers, I received a TON of feedback.  Probably the most since I resuscitated my blog some time ago.  All of the feedback was appreciated (except for the rude comments by a few dickheads and spammers) and were overwhelmingly supportive and in agreement. 

But the most important response, for me, came from Eric Stover at Autodesk.  Not that it contained anything tangibly immediate, but that it even happened.  We had voiced our frustrations with our sales/customer rep for months and were basically placated with pats on the back, a tissue, maybe a lullaby to get us back to sleep.  But this was like someone opening a dungeon door and letting in sunlight for the first time in, well, forever.

As of today, we are scheduled for a phone conference with Eric and his staff with myself and my co-workers next week.  It would have been today, but I had vehicle “issues” and missed work running errands to get it fixed.

I wanted to keep this topic “alive”, so as not to give the impression all is resolved and we can already move on.  That hasn’t happened yet.  But I am (we are) hopeful that our upcoming meeting will be positive and productive.  I think Autodesk understands the value and importance, now more than ever, of keeping their customers happy and interested in their products and services.  The economy is putting a fire under all of the players in this industry, and they’re all stepping up to eat each other’s lunch.  So, if you have a relationship with a particular software vendor and you feel they aren’t stepping up to the plate for your needs, AND if you’re paying for support or maintenance, now is the time to bend some arms.  As you can see, it does get a response if you remain honest and focused.  Don’t let emotion overshadow the crux of what you’re concerns are.  Let the concerns speak for themselves.

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