Here is really a straightforward question for just about every executive and small business owner: What's your definition of technologies, as a topic, and as a sensible resource involving the way you run your enterprise? The answer to that query reveals a wealth of information and facts, in the way a small business operates and manages the flow of info to how an organization collects and analyzes data, too because the investment priorities a organization sets for itself.
My answer towards the same query, which can advantage executives in all manner of industries, is straightforward and frank: Technologies will have to by no means be an abstract, complicated and highly-priced concept - the province of a handful of professionals - due to the fact this topic is also important and too useful to become purely academic.
Technology must enlighten, unite and reveal, period. These 3 factors are direct, concrete and measurable. To that finish, they will have to permit executives to see, in real-time, exactly where and when workers make deliveries, meet with customers, and obtain and transport goods and solutions.
This proverbial “last mile” is, in fact, a route of a lot of miles: For, technology need to, once more, enlighten (explaining how efficient or productive a approach is), unite (building a focused mission for everyone to fulfill) and reveal (displaying how lots of workers are vital for the day-to-day completion of specific tasks).
That brand of technologies is neither pricey nor tough to activate; it can be as very simple as - it currently exists as an application for - the smartphones and tablets workers use continually. I challenge this statement from my own professional knowledge, where I serve as the Vice President of Sales and Advertising and marketing forDigitalDispatcher.com, an revolutionary developer of solutions for the fuel delivery and HVAC service business. Extra for the point, as this can be exactly where the bigger discussion about technologies really should begin,DigitalDispatcher.com shows the routes, instances and numbers of deliveries, as well as the variables (for example accidents, automobile breakdowns and targeted traffic) responsible for any redundancies or inefficiencies.
Technology inside the Service of Operations
This emphasis on technology within the service of operations and savings is the most quantifiable way - in the course of and soon after a single workday - to calculate savings, due to the fact a manager can see and after that measure no matter whether he demands six drivers as an alternative to ten, or five trucks or vans in place of seven. That savings can translate into numerous a large number of dollars, simply because a corporation no extended needs to insure, fuel and sustain a fleet of vehicles. Nor does that firm need to spend at the least $100,000 in salary, advantages, disability charges, workers’ compensation, and overall health insurance and pension contributions. Now, let us broaden this principle as a metaphor for how corporations perceive and use technology as a communications resource.
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Do not Isolate or Sequester the Individuals Operating Your Technologies
In the event the above example teaches us something, and it educates us about quite a few issues, there is a reminder regarding the worth of technology. That is to say, a company ought to never ever treat technology as an afterthought to its core business enterprise, as hardware to become stored in a makeshift information center or assigned (so as to become forgotten) to junior IT personnel. That approach, which is, sadly, too prevalent among a diverse array of business enterprise owners defeats the extremely goal of technology.
Let us, consequently, remind - and repeat, and repeat once more - what technology isn't. It's not a collection of servers, multicolored wires, cables, monitors and printers - mere accessories to a company’s principal mission, which could range from promoting clothes or meals to manufacturing industrial gear or servicing coolant systems. Technology can be a practical application; it shows and tells, supplying executives together with the relevant figures necessary to make the best decisions.
But for technologies, how can a small business owner know which staff will be the most productive or which delivery routes will be the most lucrative, or which purchases are superfluous or outdated? Without having technologies, how can a firm communicate internally and broadcast a message externally, to its customers, of unity and purpose? And finally, how can an organization simplify invoicing, accelerate payments and boost morale without technologies?
Embrace and Educate Your Workforce
Asking these concerns is both a fiduciary duty - no executive should forsake substantial savings - as well as a sign of clever leadership. The technique to make the answers rewarding starts by embracing technologies, in word and deed, complemented by educating staff regarding the benefits on the application or applications, which make them a lot more productive and eligible for increases in pay.
So, yes, technologies is definitely an ally and an asset. Enterprise owners need to embrace this reality, because it will guide them towards greater outcomes, more intelligence and a great deal deserved reassurance. Technology is, indeed, a company’s most important pal.