While I don’t agree with some of Chuck’s predicted trends in Next Generation Data Centers, this post isn’t about those disagreements. I think it’s important to highlight the value of his observation about Information Technology (IT) at significant scale.
We move data centers of all sizes. The difference in these data centers, regardless of physical size, is stark when someone was worried about what it means to architect, design, and implement Information Technology with scaling in mind. You don’t have to be a large IT shop to worry about scale. You do have to understand why investing in point solutions can be very costly for your organization versus investing in something that is designed to scale.
This means often actively resisting the marketing themes that make instant trade press architects out of technical and non-technical people alike. You’ll find Chuck Hollis talking about these themes also — most recently in his Adventures in Server Marketing.
Scale matters.
If you live in the C-Suite, make sure you understand scale even better than your IT Division.
DataCenters, Lessons Learned
Succeeding in Business means evaluating your existing processes for improvement. All businesses use spreadsheets for many tasks mainly because it’s quick and easy and doesn’t involve a complicated Information Technology cycle to deploy. How many tasks do you recognize in your own business?
- Travel Expenses
- Invoices
- Project Tracking
- Orders and Quotes
- Sales Prospects
- Workflow Checklists
- Vendor Management
The issues with spreadsheets manifest almost immediately and typically when there are more than three employees.
- Who has the current spreadsheet when multiple copies are sent via e-mail and stored in various places on the file server?
- Only one person can update at a time and often changes are overwritten when multiple employees are working on the same sheet.
- There’s no auditing and no way to tell who made what change.
The proliferation of spreadsheets is often a symptom of a business that needs to establish procedures and implement systems that can enforce the desired work flow.
If you recognize these issues in your business, what can you do to improve your efficiency?
The simple answer is that you need to assess your business processes and implement the appropriate technology to change those processes. The practical answer is that life and business is not that simple. Almost every business process change is resisted by employees who are comfortable with the legacy methods of running the business with spreadsheets. Perhaps they invented those clever sheets and feel some separation anxiety?
And that’s where spreadsheets are killing your business. You can’t move forward chained to a legacy method that doesn’t scale as your business grows.
Here’s a quick list of solutions that can help with some of your needs:
- Timesheet and Expense Management
- Automate Time and Expense Approvals with Electronic Submission
- Reporting for Billing and Invoicing
- Ability to Assign Time to Projects and Tasks
- Web based to support a Mobile and Distributed Workforce
- Ability to Assign Users to Approvers and Delegate Approvers
- Full Expense Management including Travel, Mileage, and Employee Reimbursements
- Order Management System
- Customer Service Management
- Customer Relationship Management
Kill the management by spreadsheet before it kills your business.
Assessments, General, Lessons Learned
Since posting about the Comcast Broadcast storm, a steady stream of e-mail continues to arrive about Comcast’s other troubles…specifically DNS. Preston Gralla asks Why can’t Comcast run DNS? I don’t know why Comcast continues to have DNS issues, but you can switch to a free DNS provider such as OpenDNS.
I’m still trying to figure out other Comcast business mystery decisions. For example, Comcast decided in Colorado that it will only issue 5 usable IP addresses per business account. That makes it impossible to recommend Comcast business to businesses. Somewhere there’s a Comcast business executive that understands businesses use static IP addresses and are willing to pay for them. Not offering an option to buy more is treating your business customers like your consumer customers.
General, Lessons Learned, Networks
SunRocket, a VoIP provider, ceased operations and stranded all of its customers. Unfortunately, many of those customers pre-paid for their service. That means not only did their phone service stop functioning, they are unlikely to see any refunds for pre-paid service. And while Vonage is often mentioned as a replacement option, it looks like Packet8 actually did the heavy lifting to become the preferred provider.
See Rich Tehrani’s post on the topic for details.
Assessments, General, Lessons Learned, Networks
A quick web search should give you a taste for both the horror and success stories that a Vista upgrade brings. Before your IT staff decides that Vista is your standard, make sure they didn’t forget to test these items:
- Does Vista work with your VPN solution? (Specifically, does your VPN software even support Vista and did they test it?)
- Does your Vista machine still print correctly to all of your printers? (You know the drill…did it actually get tested?)
- What’s the roll-back plan? (No excuses for not imaging user machines in case a roll-back to XP is necessary).
Assessments, Lessons Learned, Networks
Intuitively, you already know most of it is wrong. You’re jaded enough to mistrust what seems like millions of online experts peddling ideas that prey on a simple truth.
Every business can use more effective marketing across all channels (not just online).
The paradox is that when you are small you need the most help when you can least afford it. When you are large and flush with cash, you can afford to chase all the wrong wisdom…kind of like betting on every horse on the track.
Even before the dawn of RSS, I was subscribed to far to many listservs, newsletters, and blogs. One thing I noticed among the marketing/copy writing/effective selling crowd was how quickly untested claims became Conventional Wisdom. Entire campaigns are created at light speed and you can track the cross-promotion, undisclosed relationships, insider clubs, and even some insider dissension as the experts race to exploit the very businesses who need the most help.
I don’t personally know Charlie Cook or Marcia Yudkin and certainly don’t make a nickel from any cross promotion with anyone (we move datacenters). Both of these individuals have free marketing tips and unique perspectives that are worth a visit in your quest to improve your results.
Assessments, General, Lessons Learned
Cisco announced it will acquire WebEx for $3.2 billion dollars. Now it’s time to play the Connect the Dots game where everyone struggles to understand the deal on a number of levels and backs up the speculation with a series of dots (including unrelated dots) to bolster their thesis.
1. Did they pay too much?
2. Are they brilliant or clueless?
3. Who is next?
4. Who does this threaten? Who does this help?
I’m enjoying the TechChrunch speculation from readers where you can decide which dots you’d like to connect to understand the deal.
My take is that Cisco has a history of acquisitions and the track record is mixed on their brilliance and valuation of the companies. Today, they bought a great brand name. Let’s wait and see what they do with that purchase or if it becomes yet another tombstone in their acquisition graveyard.
Assessments, General, Lessons Learned, Networks
Is Consensus Decision-making the only method you use? It’s easy to fall into this trap. We are taught early and often to involve all members of the group in decision-making. The idea is that a better decision comes from gathering everyone’s input.
However, consensus decision-making really just makes the acceptance of the decision easier since everyone involved had a voice. It doesn’t necessarily make it the best decision or the right decision. It also has the unique property of insulating the decision from its maker and removing the accountability.
Organizations spend a lot of time, money, and frustration in meetings organized around consensus decision-making every single day without understanding any of the alternatives. I’m not advocating so-called “Effective Meeting” training which simply reinforces the consensus model. Instead, Stanford’s course on Strategic Decision and Risk Management is a better investment if you wish to truly develop decision-making as a core skill within your organization.
Assessments, General, Lessons Learned
You probably vaguely remember the study on the effect of lighting on productivity at a Western Electric plant in Hawthorne, Illinois (1924, Elton Mayo). Productivity went up for the group where illumination was increased. Interestingly, productivity also went up in the control group where the lighting was left as is.
Mayo concluded that productivity simply increased because attention to the workers increased. Illumination was not a factor.
Now, over 80 years later, isn’t it simply amazing to learn how stunning productivity gains can now be attributed to implementing the right technology? Is it possible that information technology has negated the Hawthorne Effect?
Perhaps.
Others suggest that the hyperbole surrounding most information technology projects is best understood in the context of the law of self-interest.
Perhaps they’re right, also.
Ivan Hoffman argues we’ve been conditioned to believe that acting in our own self-interest is bad. However, claiming outrageous productivity gains only serves to damage the credibility of those involved. Unfortunately, this practice is rampant in trade press articles hyping technology.
If even a small fraction of the hype can be believed, it does make you wonder if the Hawthorne Effect still exists.
General, Lessons Learned
Microsoft made changes to its browser to avoid infringing on Eolas patent, essentially forcing users to click to use ActiveX controls. Maybe you noticed something different with the 11 April Microsoft updates applied to your computer?Â
Microsoft argued (and lost) that Eola’s patent actually should not have been awarded since examples exist that pre-date their claims. All of this seems to support Brad Feld’s arguments to abolish software patents.
Real reform seems unlikely. Microsoft has to pay $521 million and change their browser. Their lesson learned is likely the notion that they need more software patents in their portfolio to be able to invalidate others claims.
General, Lessons Learned
