Customer satisfaction surveys are very much a part of the world we live in today. Frequently we are asked to fill these out. We see them all over the place in a variety of formats. We see them come through email, on websites, in the mail, and even placed on tables in restaurants. I used to wonder, “What good it will do if I fill this out? Will it make a difference? Will anyone even read it? Will it really matter?”
As a Director of Client Services, my main concern is always the perception of our clients and how they feel in regards to the services we deliver. We always want to know the answer to a very simple question…..
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Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are not the latest and greatest technology out there. In fact, they were first seen in the late 80′s as a means to carry private information across the public network. Today, VPN is primarily used by organizations to securely connect remote employees to internal applications, such as email or file servers. Like all technology, VPN has evolved over time and now offers different methods of connecting remote employees.
So, how does one decide which solution will best fit their needs?
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In the news recently there has been talk of the new price war between Amazon’s “Kindle” and the Barnes & Noble “Nook”. It’s always interesting how fast pricing on technology products drop based on competition and/or innovation. I suspect the pricing on the “Kindle” and the “Nook” will drop even further by the holiday season because ultimately these products are just vehicles for Amazon and Barnes & Noble to sell more of their core product…..books.
This is just one of the differences between products and services.
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In the IT industry, buzz words and trends come and go with alarming frequency. On occasion, a trend will come along with the staying power to reshape our thinking. It’s difficult today to read any tech industry news without hearing about “clouds” or virtualization. The ambiguous and often interchangeable definition of these terms can often be a source of confusion for IT decision makers in the SMB market.
It seems no one can agree on what the cloud is or isn’t. There are in fact several types of cloud computing models. The three most popular are….
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In IT Services industry, there is always a debate over what type of IT provider to choose for your small to medium-sized business. I have often heard from prospects a desire to go with a small, “Mom and Pop” provider to get that “more personal” touch. At face value, a five to ten person shop may seem attractive. You will have less people to communicate with and see the same engineer each week. In theory, your dedicated engineer will REALLY know your account inside and out, right?
Well, maybe…
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I love gear, Top Quality Gear. It don’t care what it is, as long as it solid. A 1970 Oldsmobile 442 W-30, an 18-volt cordless Impact Driver, The White Album, the iPad, Japanese cutlery, Band of Brothers Blu-ray edition and LOST. I don’t just like quality, I’m addicted to it. If it’s not quality, I don’t want it.
This brings me to today’s point: Solid State Drives, or SSD. What is SSD? Is SSD ready? How good is it? Is it worth the money? All very important questions, so let’s see if we can answer them.
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Does the Head of Cardiology at a Hospital also work in the Neurology department?……No!
Is the Quarterback ever asked to play in the Secondary?…… No!
How often does the Weatherman also double as the Cameraman on the news?….. Never!
Why is this?…. Well, because heart surgeons don’t operate on brains, Tom Brady isn’t tackling anyone, and Al Roker does not know the first thing about how to work a TV camera.
Enter the CFO. The poor CFO….
He or she does not understand technology. So why then, in a small business environment, does the IT department always seem to report up to the CFO? CFOs know dollars and cents, not bits and bytes. How does a CFO know whether or not the $100,000 Purchase Request that just came for a complete network overhaul is a good investment? To make matters worse, this Purchase Request seems to be written in some strange language that only uses acronyms.
Here is the conversation that inevitably ensues:
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If you have a large number of computers in your business, you already know that there’s more to keeping them running effectively, legally, and safely than other assets your business may require. For instance, your inventory of desks don’t generally require patches as often as your inventory of laptops; and changing a light bulb at end of life is arguably simpler and less risky than replacing one of your application servers. In fact, if your business is run on more than a trivial number of IT devices, the business of managing the information about these devices may, at times, seem like it requires more effort than the actual running of your business.
Want to get the most out of your IT investments?
Here are a few suggestions that can make a big difference:
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Want to see greater value from your IT provider or IT department? Start by aligning your business strategies to your IT investments and initiatives.
Perhaps we are all casualties of the “new gadget of the minute” syndrome (did you just get the new iThing, its so much cooler than the Robodurdur that came out last month don’t you think?). The reality is that new technology is perceived more and more as a list of specs on a marketing slick or a set of features mostly comprised of numbers that are larger (throughput, memory, processing power) or smaller (physical size, weight, amount of dollars lifted from your wallet) than other competing products. While this increasingly commoditized view of technical innovation certainly has its place, particularly at the consumer level where it could be argued that this approach leads to a competitive landscape amongst vendors to build better devices at lower cost, when considered in the context of technology selection within an SMB IT strategy, it can lead to poor overall results and a low return on investment.
To effectively identify and select technologies that should be brought to bear in a small-business IT environment, it is always preferable to begin the conversation at the business process or business operations level. When we meet with clients to discuss their plans for the upcoming year, we often ask about the competitive landscape in their industry and how they are positioning themselves. In response the questions, we get answers such as “we’re just a small shop of 35 people” or “our operation is pretty basic, not a lot of interesting things to discuss on that front”. Opting not to review business operations in the context of IT strategy is a missed opportunity. IT initiatives can be a springboard to greater business growth and differentiation in your particular industry.
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