The right technology can improve your productivity.
IT optimisation is all about mobility and connectivity at the moment. ‘Anywhere, anytime’ is the mantra, but is this really the future we want?
Don’t get me wrong – I love being able to use my mobile broadband card on the train to work while tweeting a picture via twitpic from my mobile of how gorgeous the harbour looks on the way through. I think there are some fantastic use cases developing that have streamlined and optimised businesses.
In the back of my mind is a niggle, though: do we really need to be any more connected? Does society actually need to go faster? I have a friend who is starting his own little revolt against this trend. He freely admits he is an email junkie and can’t resist the sound of the beep on his mobile when a new email arrives. However, for the sanity of his non-work life he has decided to change that. When he got his new phone, he got a high-end entertainment one and made sure it couldn’t do email! I worry these days that we are too connected and that taking a break is now difficult, if not impossible, with mobile networks reaching ‘97% of places we live, work and play’.
Putting aside my small niggle though, I believe the software world is where we will see the biggest gains in terms of business optimisation. Generally businesses will always need their HR systems, their CRM systems and their communication systems. But within those systems we are seeing niche players springing up to assist with the everyday chores. Today, I want to talk about a couple that have caught my attention.
My friends all know I am a huge cloud computing fan, so things like the cloud-based CRM tool Salesforce.com just make absolute sense to me. Ribbit (www.ribbit.com)is a Salesforce partner that is gaining momentum quickly. It brings voice functionality to your CRM, so busy road warriors out in the field can quickly add memos and other information straight into the Salesforce database without having to type. This solution appeals to me because I find the hardest issue in implementing new systems like CRM is the time it takes to enter information. The value you get from these systems is reflected by the quality of information that goes into them. Anything that makes it easy for people to put information into the system will return great value.
Next up is one of the big guns: the much-hyped Google Wave. Wave is the communication system that should have been invented if email hadn’t got there first. It’s centred around real-time communications and tracking conversations, and the big hit for me is, it does collaboration in real time. I believe collaboration is the keyword you should be focusing on when considering any business optimisation system at the moment. (By the way, Google Wave is still in development, but you can add yourself to the list to see when it’s available – wave.google.com.)
Finally, a personal area of interest for me is ‘innovation management’. In the current economic climate, focusing on innovation and the optimisation of current products and services is the way to go. Getting more ideas in and managing them properly is a smart move. Inside your organisation there are probably dozens of ideas your staff come across every day, but how do they voice them? Your customers would probably also love to have a way to ‘talk’ to you about improvements. Spigit (www.spigit.com) is an innovation management tool with a simple yet effective framework. Ideas submitted can be voted on and progressed using a clever combination of collaboration and meritocracy tools.
As I reflect on effective business optimisation tools, I am reminded of a company that projected a whopping 80% increase in utilisation of its on-the-road staff by giving them tablet PCs and little wireless printers. This meant they didn’t have to come into the office three times a day to exchange paperwork. Unfortunately the idea fell flat on its face. Why? Because they didn’t take into account that the people on the road were usually more senior members who had been doing business the same way for years and most certainly didn’t like computers, never mind tiny, fancy tablet PCs! Not coming into the office also meant they couldn’t sit down with their mates for a cup of tea and a sandwich several times a day. The moral of the story is, of course, that just because the technology exists doesn’t mean it will actually work for your business. Make sure you carefully check all the possible outcomes before just throwing more technology at the solution!
Karen Monks:
Karen Monks is a technology strategist with 10 years' ICT experience. She is passionate about emerging and breakthrough technologies and their possibilities. Monks is currently consulting on cloud computing, green IT, social media, innovation management and enterprise collaboration. She balances her Internet addiction through a sustainable lifestyle in the Wairarapa. Monks has a blog, GeekGirl, and can be found at twitter.com/Rdiva. Phone: +64 272 734 553Email: karen@karenmonks.co.nzWeb: www.geekgirl.co.nz