Business trip to customer site abroad

[electroRF]

Hi,

I work as a validation engineer in a hi-tech company, and next week I'll be in the customer site abroad for a week.

During that week, the customer (very famous worldwide) will test our product and will decide whether to take our product or not.

So this trip is gonna be a very crucial one.

My job is to test the product along with the customer, support him, and pass any relevant information to the team back in my country.

I'll need to summarize well all that has been through during each day, and as quick as possible, for my team to respond with some fix in case something goes wrong with our product's SW.

I'm very nervous towards that trip.
I'm gonna work with highly-ranked managers in customer's side, and report to important people in my company.

I'd love to get some tips from you.
How to keep everything organized, how to respond quickly, anything..

Thank you very much!

 

[alec_t]

Is the product patented?
If not, has your customer signed a non-disclosure agreement?
You don't want to find yourself in the position of disclosing product details to a potential customer who then simply copies the product and markets it themselves!

 

[electroRF]

hi,
everything has been properly prepared towards that trip, with all the required agreements and forms.

 

[JimB]

How to keep everything organized,

Have a note book of some kind and keep notes as you go along.
Note any questions asked of you.

Is this testing to be done to a predefined test plan or are you just going to "wing it"?
If a pre defined plan - stick to it, otherwise you will be there for ever and not get the job done.
If anyone wants to explore other aspects of the thing, let them do it when the formal testing is over.

how to respond quickly

Be carefull not to comit to anything (changes upgrades etc) without referring it back to the guys in the office. What may seem a trivial change may be difficult and cost a fortune.

I'm gonna work with highly-ranked managers in customer's side

And not a brain cell between them!
Usually as stupid as donkeys and twice as stubborn!

and report to important people in my company

Dont sound so in awe of the "important people".
You seem to be quite important in this little venture yourself.

Above all, DO NOT ********!
If you are asked a question and you do not know the answer, say so.
Make a note in your little book and refer the question back to base for the correct answer.

JimB

 

[ronv]

Sound advice.

 

[electroRF]

Hi Jim
Thanks a lot for your so helpful comment.

There's a defined test plan - it's about 75% defined, and I'll have to see how it goes when I get there and adapt myself.

Actually, it was set that I'll run tests on both our product and a reference product (i.e. a reliable similar product which has been in the market for quite time), which means every test they perform on our product, I do it twice at the same time.

In addition to following my testing, I'll need to support them and listen to everything they experience so I could transfer it to the team in my country (like, if they have any problem, I must take all information / logs they have and let my team work on it so they could provide a fix ASAP).

It's a great idea to have a notebook next to me all the time to write notes and their questions / comments - it's a wonderful idea!

Do you have any tips for what I should do now, what to prepare in advance towards the trip?

 

[transistor495]

Carry a voice recorder, it will sometimes find very useful.

 

[Reloadron]

Be casual but yet professional. Big item per Jim is when you don't have an answer make it clear you will have one shortly. I have no clue where you are going but do your homework! Let those around you know you are familiar with their country and customs. I traveled globally for over 20 years of my career, enjoy the food! Your working with the customer is about you glowing with self confidence. Best wishes for a safe and successful trip.

Ron

 

[JimB]

Do you have any tips for what I should do now, what to prepare in advance towards the trip?

Know your product the best you can.

I have no idea what it is, and you may not want (or be able) to tell us, but lets say it is function generator with an LCD used interface and keypad.
Know your way around the menus on the screen.
If some of them are a bit obscure and hard to memorise, make a "cheat sheet" or "Noddy Guide".
If you are taking schematics or user manuals with you, familiarise yourself with them so that if you have to go looking through them for whatever reason you can go to the right area with the minimum of fuss.
Know what all the connectors do, know where to find the specs of the signals in and out of the connectors.
Know what any knobs and switches do.

When you are there, be aware and guard your stuff.
If you have a laptop computer with you, make sure that it is locked so that no one can can steal the software/data from it while you are at lunch.
This sort of thing is probably more likely in "non Western" cultures than USA or Europe.

Don't allow yourself to be bullied into giving stuff away.
People may ask for information or software which your company does not want to give away.
Just say "No, I cannot give you that, I am not authorised to do so"
or "Sorry, it is licenced software, I cannot give it away.
If necessary tell them to speak to your boss back at base, that will usually shut them up.
All these are usually guaranteed to turn the cheeky smiling face of a freeloader into the look of a kid who has lost his bag of sweeties!

Anything else?

JimB

 

[electroRF]

H Jim and Ron,

wow, I really appreciate your great advicses.
I deeply thank you.
I hope everything will go well.

Thanks a lot.

 

[simonbramble]

Treat this like a job interview - rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. You cannot be expected to know everything and they will not expect it, but they will expect you to know something. Don't overlook obvious things - do you know how to turn the equipment on and run basic demonstration tests? Have you actually done this? Don't rely on reading the manual to know how to do this - actually do it. Manuals are sometimes wrong.

It is worth (if possible) taking a copy of the manual with you - you might be able to answer quick questions there and then - and knowing where to look for answers to basic questions.

As above - observe cultural things. In the Far East, the oldest person is normally the most senior and should be treated as such. Always hand over your business card with 2 hands and accept his with 2 hands, studying it as you do so.

A smile goes a long way (to making them warm to you and making you look more relaxed).

The Germans tend to call people Mr.... The Americans and Brits are more inclined to use first names.

Take a calculator if you think you might need one

Dress smart - even if your audience is a scruffy bunch

Think of possible questions they might ask and possible demonstrations they might want to see. This will go a long way to overcoming your fears as it makes the situation seem less unfamiliar.

Take a spare pen and note pads

Know where you are going and how long it will take to get there. Turning up late will not be a good thing. Better to arrive 30 minutes early than 30 seconds late

I would avoid foreign food before the meeting.

Pack the night before and get a good night sleep if possible

Non technical managers normally try to exert their authority by taking over the meeting when it is the quiet engineer who is the one who is really understanding what you are saying. Don't ignore either. Sometimes the one with the least understanding is the decision maker

 

[electroRF]

Hi dear mates.
I thank you all for your awesome support.
It really meant a lot to me.
I got back from the business trip.
It was rough, my days began at 7am and ended up at 1am.

As for the project, the product's performance was not as expected and the customer is not happy.

I feel that I did fine, but no one seems to give a damn about it as they care more about their product than me giving my heart and soul during the last week.

So for them, it doesn't matter, the customer is not satisfied.

What I feel right now is that I don't care about them (my colleagues) and their desire for the project to work.
I care about me and my job.

I just hope to be there next time this product is tested, 'cause as much as it's hard, being abroad brings much satisfaction.

The only ****ed up thing about business trip is that you usually gain weight while you're there, 'cause you're stuck with local people who find McDonalds a good place for lunch, and you have no time for exercising and you tend to eat more 'cause you need to be concentrated at hours in which you'd be in bed normally.

I really thank you again for your support.
You were wonderful to me.

Cheers and happy new year.

 

[JimB]

Welcome to the exciting world of business travel!

Contrary to the popular belief that it is all a wonderfull experience, seeing foreign places and eating delicious exotic foods in top restaurants and hotels.
You often get those trips where you are jet lagged and have to be the number one guy who is completely on top of the job.

You will now be stronger for your next foray across to the dark side!

JimB

 

[electroRF]

hahaha
Hi Jim
Great hearing from you!

Yes, after all, it's wonderful.
It is actually my 5th business trip, so I'm pretty experienced in it, but still, not all the trips are that crucial in the sense of customer taking the product or not.
As a validation engineer, I more like the trips where you're own your own performing tests, and not in the customer site.

I like these trips 'cause my job pretty sucks, I rather move to programming position than staying in validation, so the trips are my chance to enjoy this work.

Have you had experience with such trips?

 

[jpanhalt]

Despite that rejection, be sure to send thank you notes to the people you spent time with. One is not needed for every person you simply met, but for those with whom you spent time, a short note is appropriate and never hurts. Who knows, your next trip may be a job interview.

John

 

[electroRF]

Hi John,
Thanks, didn't think about it.

What shall I say in the email?

Considering that I'm already at my country since yesterday and that it's weekend now.

 

[jpanhalt]

It is not important what you say. Just thank them for their time and add something personal, regardless of how trivial. The cost of a stamp is unimportant compared to the value attained, but I am old school. Check with a supervisor whether an e-mail would be acceptable today. A note on paper gets saved. It is given to a secretary to put in the "file." An e-mail may simply be deleted.

John

 

[atferrari]

Every time I complete a job in a new place, usually abroad, I thank people for something they did right and helped me. Try to be sincere in what was good for you.

Mentioning that you found "team spirit" is good.

Email started to be common long time ago.