Warning: This is not for experienced and seasoned records managers but
for newbies who might be tricked by the new trend in the industry.
While there are many high quality consultants in the field of records
management and many projects cannot be accomplished without their help
or at the least will take a lot longer without the consultant's help, I
want to caution this body against a new trend that has shown up in some
markets.
There are a number of consultants that have sprung up recently that
present the case that they will help you re-negotiate your records
storage contracts and will guarantee savings on the contract. They
tell your existing vendor that unless he agrees to a re-negotiation,
then he will not be allowed to even bid on the new contract. That is
unethical for both you and the consultant. It is also an easy way for
a larger company to eliminate a good vendor from even bidding.
Some of these consultants even host seminars to speak to their ability
to set your records management program right by giving you this great
contract for storage.
So if in the last few months you have been approached by consultants
offering to cut your storage bills in half, please evaluate these
proposals carefully. Ironically law firms fall for this as they are
always too busy to pay attention to the small details so they like
consultants.
To show how easy this is to pull off, I myself will guarantee to take
this years storage contract and do the next twelve months for 50% of
what you are paying now!!
But wait until you see the Hostage Fee!! Oh, by the way, I don't know
what I will charge you for next year yet, but you will pay it because
the Hostage Fee will crush you if you try to leave.
Come on people, we got caught with the Hostage Fee in the past and many
of you to your credit, demanded new contracts on renewals that
eliminated them. BRAVO!!
Here is how to spot, phony consultants.........
1) Ask to see the proposals they sent out and the bids that came back
on previous projects. If no matter what the pricing is, one company
always wins the bid...............you should be suspicious. They are
not consultants but commission sales people for certain companies.
2) They fail to eliminate the Hostage Fee from the Contract. It doesn't
matter if you get it for half the price if the fees go up three times
in the next three years and you can't leave.
Alert: They use different terms than Permanent Removal Fees. They may
call it Account Closing Fees, Administrative Fees for Account Closure,
etc. so you have to use your head.
3) These consultants roll into a market, saturate it with
presentations, mailings and sales calls and when they milk that market,
they move on. Legitimate consultants don't roam around like Carny
people.
4) Any contract should have simple terms for breach of contract so that
if service drops off, errors abound, that you have the right to leave.
These consultants do not make an air tight case for you being able to
leave if things go bad.
5) If they host seminars sponsored by potential storage companies, how
can they remain independent and dedicated to your interests?
Consultants are totally independent and focused on your needs and
performance and do not ally themselves with potential bidders for your
services.
6) Fees for storage should be simple and understandable. If you have an
invoice that no one can comprehend then you are being hoodwinked. Good
and reputable companies price things simply. (Example: 20¢ per box per
month, $8.00 for a scheduled delivery, $25.00 for a same day rush
delivery)
If you are seeing things like Dock fee, Wanding Fee, Slotting or
Shelving Fee, Administration Fee, Loading Fee, Data Entry Fee, and on
and on, then you are paying bogus fees.
Many of these storage contract consultants have a sponsor who wins all
the business and their interests are not your interests. The consultant
becomes a commission salesmen for certain companies but in this case
you pay the commission.
ARMA created guidelines for contracts and with these you can sit down
and evaluate one vendor and contract from another. But if you do fall
under the spell of the consultant who promises to cut your storage
costs in half, put in your agreement that the new contract must
eliminate all removal fees and have an opt out for poor service for
late deliveries, or lost boxes and tapes. Also pay attention to the
delivery schedules, your existing contract may state deliveries are to
be within 24 hours, the new contract might extend that to 48 hours and
a 24 hour delivery is now classified as a rush delivery. The service
you expect as standard now will be classified as emergency basis and
therefore triple your delivery fees.
Purchasing agents fall for this new trend so you have to alert them to
avoid them walking into this trap, otherwise you may find yourself in
a new contract with no outs.
We can't stop this new breed of scam artists but we can at least stop
them from hurting records managers on the listserv. As with any scam,
awareness of what people are trying to do to you is the first step.
Also, ask to see their professional liability insurance to insure
against any defect in their contract with the caveat that they be
liable for any removal fees that would result due to errors and
omissions in their contract. Your ability to move your records is a
tremendous guaranty of continued service; but larger companies prey on
small storage companies who in an attempt to be a responsive vendor,
did not include hostage fees. Therefore the consultants flow to
smaller markets where a good quality and high integrity vendors sit
vulnerable to the siren song of half price storage, as these vendors
never enacted a Hostage Fee and relied on quality service to keep your
account.
The truest thing my Mother ever told me is "Hugh, if it sounds too good
to be true! Then it is!"
We need to spread the word about this before it hurts more people.
Hugh Smith
FIRELOCK Fireproof Modular Vaults
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(610) 756-4440 Fax (610) 756-4134
WWW.FIRELOCK.COM
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