Mena, who has been Orange County’s CIO for almost 25 years, kicked off the discussion by saying, “One of the most important things, for me and CIOs in general, is to find the right partner to do business; it is something that we take very seriously.”
With that said, below are a few tips vendors should consider when doing business with the county, according to Mena:
- Reflect information in bids accurately: “When you respond to RFPs or bids, make sure that you are responding accurately to what the cost is going to be. If you try to lowball the cost, we’ll figure that out, and those contracts don’t end well.”
- Do your research: “Let’s say that I’m interested in a product or service you provide, and I invite you over to discuss it. Please do your research. The first question I will ask you is, ‘What do you know about Orange County?’ Sometimes I hear the answer, ‘Well, I know Disney is here.’ Do you know how long that meeting is going to last? Thirty seconds. I’ve done the research on you and your company. I take the time to do that, so please do the same.”
- Come prepared: “Everything is out there on the web. Go to Orange County’s website, look at our budget and do your research. Look at what projects I’m working on so we can have an intelligent conversation. We appreciate that as CIOs.”
- Don’t pitch free services: “I don’t want free services. I want to pay for what you guys are trying to sell me. Free is never free, and the other thing I’m cautious about is that I like to provide everybody with the same opportunity. One thing we do not like in Orange County is sole sources. It sends a really bad message, and I know we’re not unique; it’s the same across the country.”
- Know your customer’s business: “What catches my attention is if there’s something in the title or at the beginning of an email that indicates that you have knowledge about my business. That grasps my intention, and I’ll read that email. Another thing I will say is that you don’t want to find me on social media, and I bring this up because when I meet vendors at events like this, I get a lot of requests on LinkedIn. I’m not on social media because of what I do; I’m pretty paranoid about security; plus, in my position, everything I do is public record and open to the public.”
More information about doing business with Orange County can be found online.
*The Central Florida Digital Government Summit is presented by Government Technology, a publication of e.Republic, Industry Insider — Florida’s parent company.
