This is the time of month when we usually post our preview of the previous month’s sales numbers. Due to problems with the new system adopted by ARMLS however, those numbers are not available. Instead we’ll post the following, sent out to agents by Bob Bemis, CEO of ARMLS: [Thanks to everyone that forwarded this.]
ARMLS Subscribers:
As you know, we have had connectivity and performance issues with the new flexmls® Web system since we made the cutover on Monday, July 28. The technical team at FBS continues to fine tune the system in order to reach the performance standards they committed to when their product was selected. The details are of interest only to the most technically inclined, which I am not, so I’ll spare you that. Please be assured that both ARMLS and FBS recognize that the system is not performing up to either of our expectations. I would like to share the comments made by Michael Wurzer, the President of FBS, the company that provides flexmls® Web. The following is an excerpt from his response to ARMLS Subscriber concerns posted in a recent blog:
“ (I)…wholeheartedly agree with everyone that the performance of the system has been deplorable. We also know that words mean little and only performance counts…. I also want to say that your leadership has no blame in this situation. The problems were not caused by a lack of planning or investment by FBS. The issues are not lack of servers or bandwidth; we have plenty of capacity. The problems are being caused by one or more of our network appliances refusing connections, despite the fact that they are under no load. For anyone who’s managed huge systems before, they understand such issues are non-trivial to trouble-shoot. As I stated above, the details and the words surrounding them are irrelevant to you but I am hoping to explain why this is not some blatant or idiotic error that should have been avoided by ARMLS leadership. FBS has a proven track record serving MLSs for over 30 years. We all planned this conversion very thoroughly and your leadership did an enormous amount of due diligence. That doesn’t excuse the results and I take full blame for the situation and will ensure that the problems are resolved one way or another very soon.
We acknowledge that this has been a serious disruption to your business and a major handicap to you as you try to service your clients and customers. The FBS team is committed to doing anything and everything necessary to deliver the fully functional and fast performing system that they promised and they are working around the clock to meet that commitment. FBS’s dedication to delivering a quality product is second to none. I’ve worked with them for months getting this system ready and have every confidence they will solve these problems very quickly. We do not have a specific timeframe when we can promise you the problems will be solved, but we’re hopeful that a resolution is near and that we can put these system issues behind us and get on with the business of real estate.
Read the rest of this entry »
