Working conditions

I got a little spun up over this short post in Don Parker's blog. It comes across as a stereo-typical view of SAs from management. That Don considers the condition to be an "unacceptable excuse" is a sign that he may not understand what the majority of SAs have to work under.

SAs are considered an operating expense, falling into the category of "minimize whenever possible" so that profit margins are maintained. A typical SA operates under a constant backlog of work, suffers from periodic "priority re-org" from multiple management contacts, and has a budget that couldn't support an off-brand keyboard purchase from the clearance bin at Walmart. (Hint: the time and paperwork used to justify the $10 purchase often amounts to more than $10.)

Don, go back and look at those companies again. That the SA did not have the time or initiative, to view vendor sites, may be a symptom rather than a cause.