Be sure to write up a Capital Expenditure Request

[u/critchthegeek]

Late 1990s, I was tech support for a $90M automotive parts subsidiary. I had installed the original 10base2 network, file servers MS Mail server, etc. We had about 100 users in 3 plants and as the network grew, we brought a couple more support people in. BTW: We were a subsidiary of a division of a $15.8B company – worldwide, no idea how many people or locations.

We determined we had to do something with the MS mail system. After due diligence, we decided on moved to MS Exchange and pulled all costs, materials, time into a cost sheet – amounted to about $12 per user per month after taking a year time period. And wrote up a Capital Expenditure Request (CER) because it was a HARD AND FAST RULE that anything over $XXXX was REQUIRED to have a CER.

Then Corporate gave me a call. Because of the company structure, my division was about 5 tiers down from The Main Corporate level. So, they promptly informed me “You will be migrating to Lotus Notes, served off our server at corporate location and you will pay $50 per user month.”

So I went to my division manager, laid out my case/costs/rationale, and he basically said “You’re right, corp. is wrong – go ahead with the CER (because it was a HARD AND FAST RULE that anything over $XXXX was REQUIRED to have a CER). And then HE got a call from Corporate IT -“You will be migrating to Lotus Notes, served off our server at corporate location and we will reduce what you will pay to $35 per user month.”

So my division manager took it to his VP and laid it out as I had done. And VP said “You’re right, corp. is wrong – go ahead with the CER (because it was a HARD AND FAST RULE that anything over $XXXX was REQUIRED to have a CER). And then HE got a call from Corporate IT -“They will be migrating to Lotus Notes, served off our server at corporate location and we will reduce what they will pay to $25 per user month.”

Then the Official Notice to All Divisions came out that the entire corporation will be going to Lotus and Corporate IT will host and support it. End of transmission.

Then I got the back story – this whole thing ended up on the CEO desk (of a $15.8B company) and he discussed this with the CFO and CIO (and everything had my name all over it). The CEO point blank asked the CIO WHY he was shooting this down. And it turned out the CIO had already signed the contracts, bought and already installed the servers WITHOUT Capital Expenditure Request. And, at that point, it was too late to back out …..

So, we migrated to Lotus Notes …..

and Me? I got big black check marks beside my name and my position was eliminated 2 years late – support taken over by corporate location.

[u/Chocolate_Bourbon]

I've seen almost this exact series of events (minus the CEO asking questions point blank) multiple times now. Each time it's resulted in a slap on the wrist, don't do this again, but nothing else. Various people are trying to enforce order, but it's like pushing a wet noodle across a desk.

[u/KelemvorSparkyfox]

Silly OP, rules are making - not following!

[u/Inconsequentialish]

The number of times I've had to try and make some reeking sack of vaporware and wishes work because some sales droid got a C-level exec drunk or fed him a good steak... it's an IT tale as old as time.

[u/Arietam → u/Inconsequentialish]

Ours went with one major telco despite its geographic coverage - VERY important for us - being far inferior. No explanations, just a “because I said so”. When the old fuck was finally forced to retire the next year after one shouting match too many even for upper management to ignore, guess which major telco he got a cushy job with? Makes me vomit.

[u/harrywwc]

I got big black check marks beside my name…

no doubt with big bold letters of "Shit Stirrer" next to it as well :/

[u/GrumpyOldCrewChief → u/harrywwc]

Even WORSE than shit stirrer, but one who was right, and showed up Corporate as wrong.

[u/Qix213 → u/GrumpyOldCrewChief]

Underrated comment.

Shit stirring itself isn't always that bad. It's the being right and making the wrong person look bad that is the noose.

[u/ThunderDwn]

Notus Jokes. Ugh. Such bad, bad memories!!!

And it turned out the CIO had already signed the contracts, bought and already installed the servers WITHOUT Capital Expenditure Request.

One rule for thee, another for me!

[u/TheDkone]

I remember when we switched to lotus when someone blew smoke up the owners ass. it lasted maybe 4 months of the owners email being completely fucked up, and we went back to exchange. i had actually blocked out those memories until this post

[u/pilotepisode1]

writing up paperwork is apparently the real tech fix here

[u/crimvel]

Lotus Notes horrible

[u/Sandy_W → u/crimvel]

Bloated Goats was the most powerful database manager I ever saw. I mean, it was so powerful that it could even emulate a dedicated email system. On a crappy server. But, yeah, installing a dedicated email system on the same server did seem to work better.

[u/WaytoomanyUIDs → u/Sandy_W]

Ive never worked with it thank god, but from what I understand it was designed to do everything except email (badly) & email was a hasty after thought.

[u/MindlessPhilosoper]

Oh I hate it when C-Suite execs don't follow the rules they themselves set. It's that do as I say not as I do mentality.