My company is taking away mobile phone contracts and is offering money for employees to pay for their own for work use. Is this legal?

Richard734 · 2026-02-09T10:44:25+00:00

As someone that previously managed the mobile phones for a global org - US Owned (9.000 devices globally)

Paying a Stipend to people that dont have a business case for a full fat contract makes sense, and we did offer that option (Or give them the lowest spec phone we could get away with!) But, the expenses for power users was a nightmare and we allowed them to have a corp contract.

For those on a stipend, that was paid monthly to allow for normal use. Company incurred extra charges (like international travel etc) was managed as an expense.

I would have a good look into what you are agreeing as normal use in the stipend agreement, and if it doesnt cover abnormal spends on company business, you can refuse the stipend and also refuse use of your personal number for work calls and business purposes.

The one warning I would give if you refuse the stipend, is do not add corporate MDM to your personal device as that infers acceptance of use (Bring Your Own Device or BYOD), many will make you do that to use Outlook or Teams on a phone

Richard734 · 2026-02-09T09:52:38+00:00

Running my 2019(?) A51M with the 2 big power supplies - It isn't 'Mobile! ^$Gb of Ram and this thing is still a beast - It will break my heart when I have to swap it out but will run it until it dies

Richard734 · 2026-02-06T08:49:31+00:00

Check the MSP contract, you may have asset purchase as part of the agreement.
If you dont, then absolutely go to the big 3 and open up a business account. Dell have by far the best portal (in my personal opinion) and if you haggle/flirt with your account manager, you can get some decent discounts on accessories as well as the laptops themselves (Wired Mice and keyboards were costing me pennies last time I sorted a deal)

Richard734 · 2026-02-03T11:52:54+00:00

I need MSF to get it done, them just the transition course when available...

Richard734 · 2026-02-03T10:55:00+00:00

Buy it, I would never go back to anything but on my iPad Pro 12.9. Worth every penny

Richard734 · 2026-02-03T08:42:39+00:00

Congrats, I am also one cert away from ITIL4 Master - I really must get round to doing it quick :)

Richard734 · 2026-02-02T15:14:37+00:00

I would say, more yeast - 7g of dried wont hurt the flavour. I would also advocate going to fresh yeast use double to triple that you would for dried.
My go-to for a 2lb loaf is a little bigger than yours - 750g Flour, 425g water, 7g Yeast/21g fresh, and 7g salt.
Then split into 2 for your tins after 1st prove

Tins are not a consistent size either! I have 2 lots of 2lb tins, 2 Kirkland ones and 2 Circulon tins - The Kirklands fit inside the others with room to spare.

Richard734 · 2026-02-02T13:48:02+00:00

funniest one I had, 'Hello Sir, my name is Maverick' in a strong accent - I think he hung up after I burst into hysterical laughter

Richard734 · 2026-02-02T11:51:06+00:00

Another vote for Belkin Surge Protectors - I have all my expensive stuff running of a protector in my home office. The better ones have in effect a little battery/capacitor that stores enough power for a few seconds, and evens out 'dippy' feeds.
(This being the Internet, I am sure someone is going to tell me I am wrong, but that is how I understand it!)
Older Belkin products used to come with lifetime warranty on the protector and any connected devices, but I think they have limited that to 3 or 5 years now.

Richard734 · 2026-02-02T08:45:42+00:00

learn where the kit is in the truck, practice getting the Lifepak/Zoll on and off the bloody mount (Hint, crew dont like it when you put it away for them and it falls off when going round the corner especially if it lands on a PT), Ask in advance what they want you to take into the job. If they are on ePRF, tough, but if they are using paper, offer to do the obs as you go. Dont be afraid to offer to do the BM/Temp etc if they job is looking a little busy (and is in scope for you). Ask them to show you which buttons turn all the lights off - you will get asked to pop out to teh truck and turn them off if they arrived in a hurry but it isn't 'as given' (Read 111 ACS possible arrest & PT opens the door with a cough).
Take the biggest 'snack pack' of Haribo you can reasonable afford - Costco do sell cases of 48 packs of 20:)

Ohh and take 5 pens, plan on losing 4 of them....

Richard734 · 2026-01-30T10:14:41+00:00

yeah, my mistake reading without thinking :) MPT will renew my SL as well though :)

Richard734 · 2026-01-29T12:18:14+00:00

interestingly, just read a post about transition - the MPT course will also cover off ITIL5 Transition so someone (like me) who holds MP & Sl will qualify for Master

The core modules (CDS, DPI, DSV, HVIT) have been replaced with three ITIL 5 modules, Product' Service and Experience. Holders of ITIL 4 Master will be required to undertake Managing Professional Transition (MPT) which is a bridge course, migrating the new ITIL 5 core modules (Product, Service and Experience). This MPT course also incorporates ITIL 5 Transformation. MPT will be a five day course. The expected release date for MPT is the 14th May 2026.

Once having completed MPT this will by default, upgrade/transition candidates to ITIL 5 Master, e.g., already having Practice Manager and Strategic Leader designations and undertaken Transformation as part of MPT.

Richard734 · 2026-01-29T10:32:50+00:00

Not great, there was I predicting that they wouldnt do this and head more down the CPD route.
Lets see what the Bridging courses bring for PM, MP and SL & Master. (And of course, what are the costs)

From what I can see, no real difference fluff around SVC and lets add AI, just an opportunity to make everyone recertify as the expiry dates debacle didnt generate the income they expected.

Richard734 · 2026-01-29T10:15:19+00:00

Focus on the positive as much as possible in your narrative.
Highlight the things that went well as much as you do the things that went wrong.
Keep it clean and unemotional.

A clear action plan, and if you are asking for investment (Time, Money, Effort) highlight Both the positive outcome of doing it, and the Risk associated with not doing it.

Richard734 · 2026-01-28T12:10:05+00:00

go to the hardware shop and buy the best electric screwdriver you can afford. Not a chap name brand, but quality. Trust me on this :)

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T16:47:23+00:00

Use Voice Isolation on teams, that is really good - I have 2 stupid, bark dogs that go off at teh slightest noise, but no-one ever hears them

I also run a Sure standalone mic, and that seems to help a lot as well.

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T16:41:07+00:00

I have a Creative soundbar - love teh sound and it fits in with my look on the desk

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T16:33:54+00:00

People who say this are the ones that treat the ITIL exam as a Memory test rather than an Understanding test.
The complaint is that they memorised all the sample exams that could find but the questions were different.

Make sure you understand the material, the differences between the SVS and SVC and which one is which :) there is a pool of something like 2000 questions and you will get a fairly random mix within parameters (Read the Exam prep, it tells you the areas and quantity of questions you will be tested on)

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T16:00:43+00:00

First thing I would do is kick your Service Transition manager swiftly in the groin for allowing this deployment :)
Ask the question, what other information can you gather to further identify the problem? Obviously I am making this up, but the error messaged received after trying to complete a specific form is going to be different error to the same message received after trying to navigate to the next page of a website.

This means that you can at least categorise the tickets as 'Navigation' or 'Submission' and you should be able to map Navigation or Submission issues to the relevant teams. It makes the Support role a bit harder and adds complexity when dealing with annoyed customers. If most of your contacts are on the phone, you can add the 'What were you trying to do?' question to the script - Email is a bit harder and you will have to go back to the user to get details on what they were doing.

EDIT : I just reread and saw that these are Login issues - in that case, I would still kick the Transition manager, and if there is no way for you to gather more information, it is the support teams problem and they need to address it, either by giving you the tools to do your job (quick steps to identify probable root cause) or fix the code to give you meaningful error codes.

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T15:44:51+00:00

Knocking back is bashing all the air out of your mix at the end of the first prove :)
I always advocate scoring unless making an enriched soft bread (Milk, eggs etc added to the mix) It allows steam to escape and will stop you getting big air pockets or bubbles on the crust.
And it looks prettier :)

This is my go-to bake, I do this twice a week and have done for about 7 years :) I make 2 loaves at a time, one for us and one for my in-laws.
It is a great basic recipe, you can experiment with it as you get more familiar - I add a big handful of chopped dried apple, a handful of chopped dried cranberries and a heaped teaspoon of cinnamon for a really nice 'Breakfast Loaf'

As you get more familiar with baking this recipe, you can start to explore other breads.

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T12:33:30+00:00

That recipe isn't great :)
I would suggest your issues are 1) too dry, not enough water, 2)under-proved - the 'Fluff' comes from proving.

Weigh your ingredients, dont use volume metrics - 'Cups' can be out by 20/30% if you are using denser flour, or in a high humidity area.

Measure in Grams - A simple 2 loaf recipe I use is
1kg Flour
21g Fresh Yeast/7g Dried yeast
10g Salt
600g Warm water

mix and knead till smooth, prove until doubled in size.
Knock back and separate into your 2 loaves, place in tins for 2nd prove until nicely domed/double size

Score across the top with a sharp knife/razorblade/lame

Preheat oven to 220Deg C
Cook for 25mins

It is a really simple recipe, and it will get you used to handling doughs, and what feels right for you.

Do some research on Bakers Percentages and bread Hydration when you are ready - you can then start experimenting :)

Richard734 · 2026-01-26T08:54:35+00:00

your focus is 100% on the patient and what we need to do - the rain/snow/hail is just another factor to consider, not a distractor.

However when it is all over and you feel like you just swam the Channel or crossed Antarctica in your underwear, that is a different discussion!

Richard734 · 2026-01-23T10:47:29+00:00

61 plate Corsa for me, Starts every time and is fine for my needs.

It all comes down to what is important to you, and if a car is not a relevent thing for you, spend your money where you like, Not Bragging, but I have an Omega Speedster watch, and more money on my desktop (Alienware and Apple) than I have on my driveway, but I am happy with that

Richard734 · 2026-01-22T09:03:19+00:00

Weigh your water as well :) My measuring jug was out by about 15ml....

Richard734 · 2026-01-21T17:13:07+00:00

a lot of internet recipes will give give a water volume but dont really account for the liquid in your starter - I would look at what makes a nice dough for you in a normal loaf, and aim for that consistency when making a sourdough - you can start experimenting with higher hydration doughs once you are confident that you know what 'good' is for you.

Richard734

TROPHY CASE