Dalkeith (7/9/2014)
I must admit I like to give users an opportunity to attempt to solve their own problems as I see this as having several benefits..1)They quickly get a better appreciation of the problems and difficulties involved.
2)They tend to then ask better questions.
I work with a lot of intelligent people - that intelligence should give them the flexibility to learn new things even if they are outside their direct remit.
I see my role as tackling the problems that they really can't solve or steering them in the best direction to solve their own problems.
and yes never give up
I usually have a number of really tricky issues that I periodically review as new products come on line that show potential for solving a perceived issue or could massively improve things. They are often good topics in the pub at conferences.
Complex Event Processing is something I am mulling over at the moment.
The problem I have with users solving their own problems is that they usually do so in an Excel spreadsheet and when that breaks guess who gets called to fix it? And of course it will break within an hour of a critical deadline.