Firing Your Storage Vendor

We've all heard the stories: The guy who picked the wrong vendor and lived to regret it; the whole storage team that was fired when their new SAN didn't work; the world-class service provider jettisoned from a high-stakes contract when things didn't pan out. And we've all wondered: How often does it happen? Could it happen to me? How would I handle it?

Awhile back, Byte and Switch examined the ins and outs of swapping out one storage vendor for another. It can be tricky: Vendors aren't above shoulder-climbing and other dirty tricks in pursuit of lucre. But that article treated situations where relations were still viable, more or less. What happens if you come to an impasse and actually need to fire your vendor?

We think there are situations in today's storage market where customers live to regret a storage implementation, large or small. And we'd venture a guess that the war stories aren't all to do with startup companies who can't live up to their claims, but include large suppliers as well.

Have you had to fire a vendor? How did you handle it? What can you tell other storage managers about your experience that might help them in a similar situation?

We'll be looking at all these questions in an upcoming feature, and we'd like to hear from you. If you have anecdotes, testimonials, or anything else you'd like to offer, we're all ears. Write to us, call us, or hit that message board below.