Featured Article - Foundation for Success
By Doc Pratt
For the most part, success in a business does not happen overnight.
It takes time, effort and various other elements that work together
and that are all positioned on a solid foundation. Webster
Dictionary defines a foundation as “that
on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the lowest
and supporting layer of a superstructure.” When you look at a
building you don’t see the foundation, but what is holding the
building up is a very strong one. Without a strong foundation, the
building would never stand.
Many
businesses make the
mistake of trying to build their success on the wrong foundation.
They look at software as being the
foundation. Software is as important to success as steel girders are
to the building, but it is not the
foundation. The software, whether accounting software, contact
manager, CRM, or anything else, must be tailored to the business and
meet its specific needs. Even with all that, the software is not the
true foundation.
So what is the foundation for
success? The foundation for success in today’s economy is
technology. Well, not just technology, but solid technology
that continues to run and does not hamper the business. Have you
ever called a business and the person on the other end complained
about how slow
their computer is, or even said that it is down
completely? Over the past couple of
years technology has gone from just being office equipment to being
an important tool integrated into the arsenal of weapons that
businesses use to be more successful. Technology not only
makes a business more competitive but also more efficient and
the employees more productive. The changes in technology occur
daily, and any examples of technology
mentioned here will be outdated by the time
it is read. Everyone is becoming more easily connected in a wireless
world as all of the products become faster, smaller and more
efficient. Unfortunately, the exponential
changes in technology have outpaced many businesses’
ability to even understand the changes and why they are important.
Some CEOs are plodding along in a “business as usual” mode,
with their head in the sand when it comes to technology. Jay Conrad
Levinson, the author of Guerrilla
Marketing, outlined 18 differences
between Guerrilla Marketing and
Traditional Marketing. Number 16 is that you can’t ignore technology
in marketing (or anything else in
business): you need to be “techno-cosy;” and if you are
“techno-phobic,” you need to see a “techno-shrink” because
“techno-phobia” is fatal (to success) these days.
Almost
every business thinks that they have a handle on technology, but
that is not necessarily the case. There are three dangerous trends
in technology that can have a devastating
effect on any business’s ability to be competitive. These trends
were a more acceptable practice just a few years ago.
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The dangerous trends are:
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Trying to save money by using old
out-dated hardware. Last year, Intel ranked this as the #1
technological threat to businesses today. The outcome can be
excessive downtime, limited upgrades, and substantial
security threats. A desktop computer in business should not
be used for more than three years, a notebook no more than
two years and a server no more than five years. Those are
maximum numbers. In order to take advantage of changes in
technology, you need to upgrade sooner.
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Relying on ineffective tech support for
your computers and network. “Ineffective” can be an employee
who has too many other responsibilities, a support firm with
too many clients, or just incompetent technicians. The
outcome can be unnecessary and excessive downtime waiting to
get problems fixed or for someone to show up. Keeping up
with technology is a full-time job. More and more tech
support people are seeing their skill set challenged by
newer technology, sometimes with disastrous results.
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Not having access to knowledgeable and
professional technical consulting. It is virtually
impossible for anyone to be a network consultant today if
they are not full-time in that portion of the industry. The
outcome can be making bad decisions or not making any
decisions at all. Just as the medical profession has
specialists, technology has specialists also. Anyone who is
a jack-of-all-trades truly is a master of none and
businesses need to make strategic decisions based on the
opinions of someone who has mastered that particular area of
technology. Making the wrong decision, as well as making no
decision, can cause a business to be crippled and fall
behind its competition.
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All three of the trends were once more acceptable but so was having the “shade tree mechanic”
work on your car. The exponential changes in technology have altered
the competitive landscape, and the formula for success as a business has
been re-written. On an individual basis I believe that the foundation
for success is ATTITUDE, everything else can be acquired. On a business
level, TECHNOLOGY is the foundation for success. Even if you have the
best employees and the best software, a slow and unreliable network will
cause your employees to be less productive and your business to be less
efficient. As long as all of your competitors stay the same, you have a
level playing field. With mergers, acquisitions and start-ups, there
inevitably will be a competitor who jumps ahead with stronger technology
and then the level playing field is gone.
The next time you are on the phone with someone and they complain about how slow their computer
is and you have to wait; just think about how strong your foundation for
success is. What kind of impact does your technology have on the way you
serve your customers? If you asked your customers, what would they
say? How does technology affect your employees, and is it helping them
be more productive? Would your employees agree with you?
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Doc Pratt
