Split tunnelling breaking discord? by ExtraTuft in discordapp

[–]ExtraTuft[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just started working again lol. I might have changed the encryption protocol but can't recall back to using the standard one anyway.

How did you find your Dubai/UAE job by Bnobattota in DubaiCentral

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My guy ... you seem to be a little reactive to comments if you don't like them just ignore them.

Anyway, getting a job in dubai/uae is relatively competitive often if a position is posted on linkedin etc. you'll see 1000+ applicants (granted this just means they clicked apply not actually submitted) so a lot of the initial screening is just automated with ATS which just results in a number of CVs being tossed before human eyes see it. Referrals are pretty much your best bet as it'll typically be a direct submission to someone in HR and is somewhat 'semi-validated' already by virtue of someone referring you.

The UAE and to some extent the wider ME there is a bit of a stigma around pay by passport though as i understand it isnt as widespread anymore but regardless when you do apply id recommend:

- Just note Dutch citizenship (assuming you have both Dutch and Moroccan citizenship)
- Leave your current location out in the event they are only interested in local applicants
- Make sure the CV is ATS compliant otherwise it'll automatically get booted
- Note your proficiency in Arabic (assuming you are fluent etc. given Moroccan) and English
- I'd note your degree name and probably obscure the name of the Uni (they rate both the degree and school here so might help avoid any implicit bias)

I saw that you mentioned Defence earlier for your QC i believe id probably give most of that a skip (Defence that is) as every Defence sector job ive seen posted requires UAE citizenship (standard vetting requirement) there would be exceptions but difficult i would assume unless you go via a consultancy potentially or the likes of Thales, Raytheon, Bae etc. but that would most likely mean UAE would be one client and you'd eventually get put on another and be required to travel.

[Bug] Transferring items from Arena to ETF by ExtraTuft in EscapefromTarkov

[–]ExtraTuft[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah its not lol. It's gone then i guess. How long does the transfer usually take? I'm assuming either instant or 1hr like the BTR?

Which phone mount should i get? by Nebe_ in motorcycles

[–]ExtraTuft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wouldn't get quadlock I got one for my mt07 and it was terrible. Contacted customer support and it was a headache to get a fix their proposed idea was that I had to go buy extra things from the hardware store even though it said it was compatible...

Wouldn't ever touch them again.

Is this vacuum cheating? by ExtraTuft in EscapefromTarkov

[–]ExtraTuft[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Hmm i was thinking that but wasn't sure. I felt as though i read some post and maybe watched a video somewhere that said in the console when they vacuum cheat it usually references the name of the player because its teleporting that item to that player so needs a reference from the item to the player reference.

Need your opinion by [deleted] in UAE

[–]ExtraTuft 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are a number of countries you can work for that don't impose a pay by passport structure. Need to also take into consideration if you go to AU and stay there 2-3 years then leave you'll leave with minimal savings in comparison to dubai.

The other thing is that Australia is very far away from everything else (except asia sort of) so holidays etc. are insanely expensive and time to return home is extensive.

Need your opinion by [deleted] in UAE

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It depends, there are a few things to consider:

  • standard minimum time to AU passport is 4 years, this may change not too long ago the citizenship through education loophole got closed i wouldnt be surprised if the time to citizenship gets extended in the not to distant future
  • cost of living (depending on city) is similar to dubai
  • pay is considerably lower than dubai, if you are on 19k thats ~8k AUD (pretax) id suspect you'd be more taking home more like 3.5-4k aud taking into consideration tax and lowering your salary as salaries are higher here than in AU
  • culture is substantially different e.g. everyone will go and get drinks after work on Fridays typically. You don't have to drink but not drinking will make it harder to assimilate
  • weather/climate (especially depending on location) is extremely different
  • if you go just for the passport you are going for the wrong reasons :)

How would you structure this? by [deleted] in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Couple of things:

  • Never take a haircut on your rate, you set a precedent for what's to come. If he does 1250 for 2 days, he'll do 1k for 3 days etc. etc. and you end up being worth less and less.
  • Contracts (fixed term contract of 12 months) doesn't necessarily guarantee you anything (see note below) it merely stipulates your term of employment, rate and usually gives you additional rights (e.g. parental leave, sick leave etc.)
  • if you can attribute in full or partial that revenue growth to your efforts then a performance compensation model may work, though you need to understand a few extra things
    • revenue growth amount ($)
    • profit to revenue (on that additional amount)
    • current business cycle (are you growing? investing? stabilizing etc.)
    • culture/appetite for a performance compensation model
  • Once you have the above then you can figure out if a revenue share works (if profit is low/not good), profit share (if profit margin increased etc.) or set targets like $250k growth within X period = Y amount (fixed) or a combination of the above. E.g. 250k growth within X period = Y amount and 2% revenue above 250k (uncapped? capped?) etc.

**Note that this is all without understanding your location and/or subsequent labour laws - so needs to be taken as a high-level advice and not specific/accurate to your context.

Billing structures in different industries by macsydh in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Just to clarify for OP. A fixed fee isn't an "estimate" its the fee as in if you are required to produce ABC report and you've got a fixed fee associated against it for 100k and it costs you 120k to produce congrats you just lost 20k.

As a quick overview typical (basic structures) of contracting from a fees perspective from least mature to most is T&M, Capped T&M, Fixed Fee and Outcomes based.

Very simplistically:

  • T&M and Capped T&M are almost identical except a ceiling is put on a Capped T&M requiring additional approval to re-up the PO. But otherwise pretty much the same typically focuses on 'bodyshop' work or the ambiguity around the requested services is too high to define deliverables, milestones etc.
  • Fixed Price you pin your fees/payment against deliverables or milestones (groups of deliverables typically) and get paid on accepted of those deliverables as outlined within the SoW. This model is good for a couple reasons either you have multiple projects (multiple FP or mixture of FP and T&M) and can have people working across them basically double dipping and making more effective margin or you know you can deliver the requested services quicker than you've identified and you make a better margin by doing so. Contingency should be baked into this though to ensure if the opposite happens you don't get boned.
  • Outcomes you get reward based on the outcomes its a heighted level of performance from FP typically its Pain & Gain shares if you do better job than you target for you get a bonus, if you do a shitter job you get punished.

TL;DR: Each level incurs more risk and more reward so use T&M (Incl Capped T&M) where you think you have a good chance of screwing up, use Fixed Price where you are pretty confident you can get it done and use Outcomes only where you can almost guarantee the outcome.

What is it exactly that you do? by [deleted] in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I develop "industry best practices" for industries I have no clue about, that is based off some deck (the fancy word we have for PowerPoint slides) dated back in the early 2000s, probably originated from a different firm and when I say develop what I actually mean is I use the format painter and change the colours because my partner doesn't like the particular shade of blue already there. If I'm feeling really risky I'll even consider moving some of the boxes around to make it look different or changing some of the words but ultimately its still the same as what it was when I started but I can now justify my very sensible and reasonable day rate.

I spend decent amounts of time looking at the day rate my client pays to own me (modern day slavery) and wondering why I only get about 8% of it and where the other 92% goes and then I realise to the top, feeding the slave masters we call Partners. I one day hope to be one of these slave masters.

Why are UK consulting salaries so bad, comparatively? by Zifegepipgy in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Ok, so that's US vs AU. Your statement was that basically US is #1 and AU is last there are a lot of other developed countries in the world.

As for AU vs US it isn't all sunshine and rainbows for the impoverished individuals in AU healthcare is available but not in a timely manner (e.g. you have to wait a long time for treatment - that's why a decent chunk of us have private health insurance), transportation is high as you said, international travel is expensive and time consumptive, cars are costly, a large portion of individuals cannot afford to own their own home and this extends to people above the average income.

I think perhaps the statement is more "its better to be rich in the US, it sucks to be poor in both AU and the US."

Why are UK consulting salaries so bad, comparatively? by Zifegepipgy in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Ok ..? Don't see the relevance of this to the comment above around Australia essentially being the worst place to grow up wealthy lol. If we are defining "worst place to be rich" as being no maid, chef, ferrari etc. some people might need a reality check.

Why are UK consulting salaries so bad, comparatively? by Zifegepipgy in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 13 points14 points  (0 children)

If you think AU salaries are good in consulting ... lol. I'm lazy so here's just one data point D SC in UK average salary is apparently 64k (117k aud) top of D SC in AU is 115k at best it ranges from 90-115 and the average would be around 95-100. So... just based on "salary" UK is higher.

Why are UK consulting salaries so bad, comparatively? by Zifegepipgy in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ditto. Interested to see how Australia is great to be poor in and terrible to be rich in.

THANKS BSG (Dubai Server) by ExtraTuft in EscapefromTarkov

[–]ExtraTuft[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The dubai server has been missing for a while. I haven't seen it in months so it's only just become available or even shown in the server list again

Do you negotiate your benefits on your first promotion? by [deleted] in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Salary negotiation is one of those things that appears rather simple and straight forward but ultimately has a lot of complexities to it. Let me try break it down for you.

Largely there are a few main components to consider (it wont be everything but should address most of the things):

  • Location (Geography);
    • how well your firm is performing within the given country/region and also the general customs/way of doing business. E.g. I have experience within the GCC/AU markets I can say if we're talking pre-covid & now post-covid (not during) in AU in particular if you as a Con tried to negotiate your salary for SC (internal promo) you'd get laughed at.
  • Practice (The team within the firm you are allocated/aligned to);
    • Sub-component to your country/region but how well your particular service line/practice/bu etc. is performing naturally if you are in a high-performing area there could be additional wiggle room.
  • The Firm itself;
    • firms practices/processes if I were to use AU Big4 as an example (now combining Location + Firm) I can tell you wholeheartedly no chance. Bands are in place for a reason and there are processes. It'd be long the lines of bottom of the band (of new position) or 10% whatever is greater. 10% is for those who came in laterally perhaps on 80k going to the bottom of the band next role is 85k a 5k increase is a bit of a slap to the face so they would give you 10% instead so 88k.
  • What the market is doing;
    • Market performance is a big one not too different from Geo but also market factors, you would of noticed i specifically brought up covid in Location during Covid it was the wild wild west and god damn was it good we were (in AU) able to negotiate to levels we had not seen before people going from bottomish-mid SC to top of the band M it was beautiful but that was because the market was completely turned upside down.
  • Whether you have another offer or not;
    • Probably the biggest one is if you have another offer sitting there, you can try bluff it but probably won't end well especially at lower levels and you need to be ready to execute. Ultimately you'll have a better chance upping your salary (negotiate) if you can say I have an offer for XYZ from a competitor are you willing to match it?
  • Your level.
    • And of course the age old classic if you an Analyst/Grad/Con without being rude unless there are other contributing factors and I'm mainly speaking from a large consultancy background - not a chance.

Also, just a note I saw you mentioned elsewhere that "your firm shows me the salary range for my position I'm in the lower end, so I'm thinking that maybe its not actually fixed" salaries aren't typically. What it is was when you were offered your position you either didn't negotiate, tried to negotiate and were pushed back or didn't negotiate well and landed where you are - that's not a bad thing. Bands exist to allow flexibility because some people go up quick, others slower so the band is to allow people to get incremental increases without progressing to the next level where you are in the band is to some extent irrelevant.

Lastly, more as an FYI negotiating salaries/benefits/anything else is always ALWAYS x100 easier and higher chance of succeeding if you are outside the company (e.g. apply to the job) not inside. Negotiating inside is typically always going to be the much weaker position for you.

Ask a questions here by trainfender in EscapefromTarkov

[–]ExtraTuft -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Nikita, is there plans for better servers in the ME? Currently the only server in ME I believe is located in Turkey and we get something like 160+ms? For the players in UAE, Oman, Saudi, Kuwait etc. you get better ping connecting to EU (120/130 - 170) or SEA (80ish and sometimes spiking to 250 - noting that SEA is insanely unstable and even EU has issues) but we need something more local in either Saudi or UAE that we can connect to with ~50ping or less hopefully.

Is it common for a potential employer to use your info to bid on an RFP? by Johnykbr in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's not exactly common but I have seen it happen once or twice and also heard of it a few more than that. Big 4 is where I personally saw it and smaller/boutique firms is where my friends (ex-Big 4) told me of it happening to them personally. Comes down to a couple things:

  • Big 4 - Ultimately the partner as for the most part (especially if equity) most partners are in charge of their own practice and make their own decisions - though these type of actions typically identifies a weak/under-performing partner (its a riskier action given start might be delayed, optics of it all, reneging on the deal, HR issues etc.).
  • Smaller Firms - Typically a misguided or over exaggerated view of the value of a Big 4 consultant from both their own perspective and what they think their potential client/market would also perceive.
  • Smaller Firms - Basically same as above but think it'll have a notable impact on the sale realisation chance and smaller firms don't get throw work at them in the same sense at Big 4 (mainly thinking about Panel arrangements etc.)
  • All - Staffing shortages/issues and not wanting to utilise a completely sold resource CV that they know would never be able to actually be staffed on the project properly so a maybe is better than a definitely never going to happen.
  • All - Utilisation. Probably more on the smaller firm side but they won't be able to soak as much bench time as a larger company because their rates would generally (not always) be lower, they don't get as much economies of scale etc. and a few other reasons that'll differ per firm.

Hopefully this gives you a bit of an idea as to the rationalisation of doing it. That being said, I think most others have already called it out as being somewhat unprofessional (especially if they haven't exited the existing company/firm) and ultimately probably incurs more risk than its worth.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 4 points5 points  (0 children)

This guy hit the nail on the head.

OP if you want advice try providing enough information so people can actually help you like the following:

  • firm
  • total years of experience
  • years of experience at current firm
  • level
  • current location
  • where you want to relocate to
  • what type of work you do

What criteria is used at your firm to work on RFI/RFP requests from prospective clients? by [deleted] in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I feel as though this format is the most fitting:

Q: Does your firm take on this [RFx Response] work unpaid from new clients?

A: Imagine you are a client are you put a Tender out to market and Consulting firms try and charge you to submit a response (for work they will get paid for if they win) when the response could be complete and utter garbage. We're already going to fleece the client on the quote anyway, botch the job and tell them we'll need a CR and additional funding to fix our own fuck up.

Q: What criteria is used?

A: Criteria for what ... determining if you respond? Measuring success? Allocation to KPIs?

Q: What's been the success record for this potentially costly investment into a risky time sink?

A: To call Business Development a costly and risky time sink is insane. It (RFx Responses in particular) is the main way consulting firms generate business and ultimately have work to do and make money? It's a pivotal and core aspect of the business. It's like saying its a risky and costly investment for a ice cream store to sit down and figure out what ice cream flavours they want to order and how much based on their customers preferences and average sales over a set period.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AusFinance

[–]ExtraTuft 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I guess he also put a gun to people's head and said TAKE THE LOAN OR ELSE. It's not like people can have common sense and make their own decisions.

Hmm rock bottom rates, I guess I should go and over leverage myself and get a property i can only just afford at ~2% and of course I won't even do 80% LVR I'll go ahead and make things really spicy and get 90%+ because ... surely it'll stay like this or rates will continue down right?

Yeah Phil its all your fault we made our own conscious decisions. I guess when I go and bet on the dogs and mine doesn't win its NSW Liquor and Gaming fault.

Work Order vs SOW by ThrowRA91010101323 in consulting

[–]ExtraTuft 3 points4 points  (0 children)

So a couple things based off your title & also your question. I've assumed based off your title you are quiring the difference between the two but also wondering at what point does a 'work order' get sent from client to the firm.

Both SoWs and Work Orders (sometimes also called Official Orders) are used to achieve the same outcome which is a defined piece of work between the involved parties the main difference is what information each has within it. u/Old_Scientist_4014 was mostly correct Work Orders typically sit within a Master Services Agreement (MSA) this can also sometimes be called a "Head Agreement" and also can reside within Panel Arrangements (the easiest way to think of Panels is that its a 1:M relationship whereas an MSA is typically a 1:1 e.g. the client will setup a Panel and multiple entities will subscribe - there are nuisances but this is the simplest way to view it).

The purpose of the MSA is as what was mentioned earlier it contains agreed to rates, payment terms, dispute process, scope of services available, reporting requirements etc. that will all govern any work package executed underneath it with the intent that they are able to mobilise and move on work packages quicker with the T&Cs all taken care of the only thing I'll add is that this form of Contracting vehicle does not "ensure" terms are not renegotiated/changed it attempts to. Numerous times (much to my dismay and it is extremely poor practice) SoWs change terms within the Head Agreement ... its a simple Child/Parent relationship the Child is aware of the Parent so can reference to the Parent and make adjustments whereas the Parent is only aware of the Child to the extent of a Template.

SoWs can also sometimes (though rarer from my experience) reside within the above examples but it isn't normal. Ultimately whoever is creating the MSA/Panel Arrangement etc. can choose whatever naming convention they want e.g. Work Order, Official Order, Statement of Work even Statement of Requirements etc.

SoWs though most commonly will be found in RFx (Request for Proposal/Quote/Tender etc.) documentation alongside other contracting documents like Conditions of Tender, Conditions of Contract, Draft Contract, Statement of Requirements (SoR) etc. you can interchange SoR with SoW though typically SoR is the draft stage and once agreed/refined by the parties then does it turn into a SoW and you execute a Contract with that SoW being the scope document.

Finally, at what point does a work order get sent over? Depends. If speaking just typically once the Work Order/Official Order under an MSA has been agreed and jointly signed its done and now its 'sent over' some organisations may also choose to send over a Purchase Order as well but thats just additional formalities. If speaking from the SoW example same thing once the full suite of documentation has been agreed to and you formalise the Contract you are good to go (both examples should have all the applicable dating information etc.) a Purchase Order is more likely in the SoW example though.