Provide same service for competing clients
Provide same service for competing clients
(OP)
As a consultant, is there anything unethical about providing the same engineering service (as a professional engineer) to two clients that work in competition to one another?
I do not have any proprietary data from the client that I am currently working with. They have not provided training for the work that I do or otherwise invested in my professional skills. I can't think of a good reason why I shouldn't provide the same service to another client.
However, I'm not thinking that they would be very pleased if they found out I was also working for a competitior.
Thoughts?
I do not have any proprietary data from the client that I am currently working with. They have not provided training for the work that I do or otherwise invested in my professional skills. I can't think of a good reason why I shouldn't provide the same service to another client.
However, I'm not thinking that they would be very pleased if they found out I was also working for a competitior.
Thoughts?





RE: Provide same service for competing clients
Fe
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
Regards
Pat
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RE: Provide same service for competing clients
Then, they should so stipulate in their contract, i.e., demand your exclusivity, for which you should be compensated accordingly.
I would also be concerned whether either of them is particularly litigious, since they can certainly wrap your business around the axle by claiming (suing) that you've passed proprietary information to their competition, which difficult to disprove.
TTFN
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RE: Provide same service for competing clients
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
The only area where I have to be careful is work that is covered under an NDA. Once I was developing something for a client under an NDA and another client had a very similar problem. I went to the first client and asked if he was interested in splitting the cost of my time with another company (that he is in direct competition with) and after kicking it around with the lawyers, we modified the NDA and I billed half of my time to each client. Everyone was happy, but it only worked out because I talked to client 1 BEFORE mentioning this new technology to client 2. Otherwise I'd probably still be in court.
I don't see any problem with working for competitors as long as you keep everyone's secrets secret.
David
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
Regards
Pat
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RE: Provide same service for competing clients
The whole concept of buffer selling is based on being able to show that the competitors of a potential client already use your product/services.
Look at any company website that posts a client list or project list and they will show competing clients in their list.
JMW
www.ViscoAnalyser.com
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
I would have billed 60% of my time to each client. That way they get a 40% discount but you get a 20% bonus. That sounds like a pretty fair way to split the savings to me.
Regards
Pat
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RE: Provide same service for competing clients
John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Design Solutions
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
http://www.siemens.com/plm
http://www.plmworld.com/museum/
To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.
RE: Provide same service for competing clients
I probably could have swung that if I'd thought of it. Maybe next time.
David