Gilded's Requirements of it's Partners...

Here at Gilded Pendulum I’m capable of selling and implementing over 200 products and services for businesses nationwide. But I don’t actually SELL everything I have available. Why? Because they fail to meet certain criteria necessary to be considered a “Gilded Partner.” Some of those organizations have gotten too big and can’t provide the level of support and attention necessary that I expect of them after passing them the torch to my client’s technical well being. And although I’m willing to fill the gap on the attention aspect, the following things are non-negotiable:

U.S. Tech Support

Local tech support right here in the US! As companies grow and become more and more corporate it becomes solely about profit, share price, bonuses, and cutting corners to save a buck. I’m not going to call these companies out by name, but rest assured I’ll never sell their services to my clients. Ever. Numerous companies, many with extremely familiar names, have decided to outsource their tech support overseas. Unfortunately too many of their customers are stuck dealing with people on the phone they have a hard time understanding and are trying to comprehend their buildout in a minute or two. Unacceptable. I expect all tech support to be located here in the US and those jobs going to Americans who built and programmed those networks themselves and can therefor troubleshoot them appropriately with minimal effort or downtime to the end user. Full stop.

High Tech Global Security

Another thing I expect is attention to detail for security. Whenever you have a cloud product of any kind, security is a hallmark of that product’s excellence. Things need to be constantly patched and maintained on a 24/7 basis. Like many non-tech businesses, there are a handful of actual tech businesses that are not serious about their own security. This isn’t the case with actual security firms as they’re attacked daily, and if they’re not up to snuff on their cybersec, they’ll be breached and sued into oblivion in most cases. A few can weather that storm, but not many. I’d rather just not have to have any of my customers deal with a devastating breach to begin with. Therefor I will only engage with businesses whose products and services meet or exceed my expectations for keeping my client’s data and sensitive information secure. Nothing is guaranteed in today’s digital age, but adhering to high level security standards and practices typically produce outstanding results for years and years of service.

Precision and Excellence

One of the last things I’ll mention here is precision and being exceptional. I work with some of the best and brightest minds in the industry but have also had the unfortunate experience of working with the opposite. Ergo, when I started Gilded a few years ago I always said I would never work with an organization that couldn’t get it done right the first time. There are far too many instances of companies coming out to do cabling work, phone installations, routing and switching, etc that have to keep coming back over and over because they consistently keep doing it wrong. This is also unacceptable, so when we get someone to come do a site survey and then eventually perform labor intensive work at a job site, it’s going to get done right the first time, period. Even if it has to be done piece by piece due to building constraints or permit issues, what has been installed is going to work on the day we turn up service.

I hope this has given you a little further insight as to how I conduct business operations both internally and externally with my partners and clients. I already know what the red flags are and which companies are choosing to cut corners to save a buck, focusing solely on profit instead of quality and level of support. They pay well on their commissions so some consultants might use them for that factor alone, but I never will. Doing shoddy work and having angry clientele whose issues never get resolved is a sure fire way to not be in business very long. I will never stoop to those standards for the almighty buck. Gilded was built for you, the client, not my providers. I just honestly got sick of seeing things never being done right, support being horrible, and security an afterthought. I knew I could do things better and from day one, Gilded Pendulum has never missed the mark and we’ll always keep finding ways to become even better.

Lastly I’ll close with this. The partners I do work with are phenomenal. I’ve met most of them in person at our conventions and summits. I’ve had dinner with some and just great conversations with others. They’re hard working people who love their jobs and love what they do. There’s never so much as a second thought when I go to them with a new project as to how it will turn out. I know that from beginning to end they’re going to only provide the highest level of service to each and every client of mine they interface with. It’s always a pleasure working with them and my clients soon find out the same. I’m quite thankful they’re there as they’ve helped pull many business owners out of some very dark places at a moment’s notice. They are the very definition of a “Gilded Partner” and I’m happy to know them.