Recently I had the chance to chat with @mfranz from Softline about how he makes the best use of the Flexera community for Softline’s customers. I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly he has made use of the insights and information that are easily accessible on the community. The following is a short excerpt of our conversation; it may help you get greater value out of your contributions and use of the community.
What has been most valuable about the community?
The overall quality of the information that can be accessed in a timely fashion. The in-depth technical explanations are particularly helpful. These explanations provide me with an efficient way to solve my customers’ problems quickly and accurately. The community provides a place to get to the right information right away.
How much time do you spend on the community?
My primary role is assisting Softline customers and ensuring they can be successful with their own technology. I have to be efficient with my day, so the community is an excellent place for me to quickly engage with thoughtful and expert individuals about the challenges my customers face. I generally use the in-between times, like if an appointment ends early, to pop into the community to learn and/or share new insights. I will share webinars and other insights with colleagues that I find will be helpful to them. It’s an excellent way to
stay productive.
Can you tell us about a time where you were able to use insights from the community to solve a specific customer problem?
Yes, recently I had a customer who wanted to know how he could report on installer instances. I remembered there was a thread in the community with different examples of how others had done this, and I copied the link to the thread and sent it to him directly. I have been impressed by how open and helpful contributors are, even sharing SQL scripts.
How do you learn about activity in the community?
I am subscribed to the FlexNet Manager forum, so I get an email alert when new conversations are occurring.
I will contribute when I feel like I have a good understanding of the issue and can offer insight from
my experience.
What advice would you give to someone just getting started with the community?
It is in everyone’s hands to build a quality community. I would recommend asking quality questions in order to get quality answers.
