"CORPORATE CHANGE AND MODERN TECHNOLOGY AT THE CUTTING EDGE OF
THE NEW FRONTIER"
"The next information revolution is well under way... It is not
a revolution in technology, machinery, techniques, software, or
speed. It is a revolution in CONCEPTS." (Drucker, 1998)
"Corporate or organisational change". Big words, but what do
they mean?
Within an organisation there is a culture, sometimes good
sometimes bad. Some of it is subtle, like how does an
organisation and the staff adopt and use technology?
This article concentrates on Technology Adoption and Change.
It strikes me, having worked with computers since the early 80's
and used email since the mid 80's that some people have not
reached the 20th century let alone the 21st century. I liken it
to a car. Most people drive a car and use all the gears; with
technology most people seem to use 1st and maybe 2nd gear but do
not even know that it has 1 maybe 3 more gears.
Technology seems to be a big mystery still to a lot of people.
Well what do we do?
Technology can make an organisation and staff so much more
productive; make internal and external communications so much
easier and efficient. Reporting on events, finances are so much
easier with the use of technology. That is, save time and money.
Technology is providing a revolution in the workplace and at
home. The problem is that most humans have not caught up with
10% of it yet.
I have some suggestions and plans about how we can make
organisation and staff much more in tune with the latest IT
(Information Technology)
Information Technology (IT) Plan Each organisation really needs
an IT plan. What technology do you need, what training do you
need, how will you implement IT across the organisation? What do
you need and what can you afford, or can you not afford not to
have the time and money involved? If you are still doing things
manually and have a mountain of paperwork, will your
organisation be around in 2 years time? Should you buy or lease
some our all of your IT needs? Staff Training and awareness One
critical thing I have found is that an organisation can provide
the latest technology but staff need training in how to use it
and on an ongoing basis. It is not good enough to have one
session on some new technology and then say that is it! There
seems to be some fear of IT and some reluctance to learn and
adopt sometimes as well, this can be for an individual or an
organisation as a whole. I believe one should use and reflect IT
internally so that externally you will be seen as a user of IT.
Computers and Networks Are the computers you have adequate or
should you look at an ongoing replacement plan? Should the
computers be networked so you can rationalise resources like the
Internet and printers, scanners etc? Are there better ways of
doing what you are doing? Should you not review current policies
and procedures in the light of advancing IT and adopt new
methods for doing things? You could for instance abandon a lot
of face-to-face meetings, paperwork etc if you adopted new
technology like Web cams and an online briefcase! Common
software Is the software you are using common across the
organisation and is it adequate for the tasks expected, not an
overkill or an underkill? Is the software legal and what is the
plan to keep up to date with software and related issues? Agreed
process for communication and reporting of information Does the
organisation have an agreed internal and external communications
and reporting procedure? And more importantly is it used every
day by everybody? Training should be given to all staff on an
ongoing basis as to the processes for communications and
reporting. Internet The Internet is such a wonderful tool for
research, communication, software, updates, ebusiness, b2b, etc,
but how little it is understood and used! The Internet should be
your first choice, for communication, to look up a phone number
or to find software or information, the cost and speed is
usually much better than by any other means. Things that should
be used on the Internet; * Email * Online Banking * Organisation
Website * News Groups * Briefcase * Information * Software *
Support * Sales * Virtual Office Like today, I had a bid in on a
LAN card, I have won the bid, contacted the seller and expect it
will be at my address on my return from my current business
trip. All done online and some 400 miles away from usual office.
What would we do without the Internet. Email Perhaps one of the
most widely used part of the Internet is Email. But it is one of
the most abused. I spend Monday mornings downloading the
weekend's email; this is usually round 150 to 200 emails of
which 95% is spam and or junk mail. Most un-solicited mail turns
me right off in a big hurry. The other way email is abused is
friends and associates sending large attachments. When I would
far prefer the idea of sending me a link to the file and then I
will decide whether to download it or not. Perhaps the last
thing is all the viruses sent by email. Personally I do not use
or recommend Outlook Express or MS Exchange as they constantly
attacked with viruses. I use Incredimail from
www.incredimail.com as it is fun and also recommend Foxmail, or
Pegasus etc. I do not recommend Outlook Express or MS email as
these are the ones attacked most often with viruses and anyway
the are dumb programs. WWW: World Wide Web (or sometimes Wait)
Well this is the new toy on the block, but is only a real small
part of the Internet. There are other things like the newsgroups
at http://groups.google.com and like ftp, try
ftp://ftp.paradise.net.nz/VideoClips/ has some great movie
clips, etc.
However the WWW is great for getting info, buying some stuff
and getting info out there! Just remember please that it and
email are only 10% of what the Internet actually offers. But hey
have fun out there! Security: Viirus and Firewall as well as
Encryption. I use a free virus checker as I do not like Mcafee
or Nortons and of course you must have a firewall to stop
attacks on your computer and people looking at stuff or
obtaining stuff they should not have access to. This does not
stop everything so precautions are still needed. I spent several
hours today tracking down and eliminating a Casino Worm, a
program that was always trying to get me to enter a Casino
Online. I think I probably got it from a friend and they are "a
bugger" to get rid of. There is also a case for encrypting
sensitive data and using the Internet as a Virtual Office, if
you have the right systems and procedures in place and everybody
has the skills, software and willingness to use the Internet for
video conferencing, email, document sharing etc. It means that
meetings can be arranged globally and time is saved to get the
job done. This is at www.pgpi.org Meeting people face to face is
important; but so is saving time and money. Data Mining This is
the art of collecting information you already have and now
mostly on computer, to use in other ways. Perhaps list of
creditors and debtors as a target market for your products and
services. Or perhaps information you have collected or developed
as a new and different product. Most organisations have a
mountain of information and data, but do not use in different
and innovate ways. Information Gathering Is similar to data
mining, but is the idea of say, having a free newsletter on your
website, a means of gathering nformation and potential
customers. E-Business Nowadays you just need to be part of the
IT revolution whether your organisations is for profit or not. A
website is a real tool to get information out there. To talk to
potential and existing clients and to perhaps sell products and
services as well. Knowledge Management This is the idea that
organisations and the staff of the organisations gather a raft
of information. Not many organisations actually manage the
process of storing that information and protecting the
organisations from brain drain or loss. A disaster plan would
identify critical areas, of data protection and backup and of
human knowledge. If your main IT person leaves or departs,
particularly due to some sudden event, have you captured that
information?
Use of Templates for common repetitive tasks see a sample at
http://eastcoast.hypermart.net utor Human Element/Interaction Do
the people using the technology have a say and are familiar and
use the technology? Each staff member should have a clear file
with printouts of flowcharts and processes for the use of IT.
Each staff member should have a personal development plan
particularly in the use of IT, tailored for their needs and the
organisation needs.
Human fear of change, of going out of ones comfort zone, of
accepting life as a challenge and obstacles are things to be
overcome.
Some useful sites are:
http://eastcoast.hypermart.net utor
www.novelty-gift.com/courses.html www.yahoo.com
messenger.yahoo.com briefcase.yahoo.com mail.yahoo.com
www.pwcglobal.com http://www.software602.com/index.html
www.freewarehome.com www.incredimail.com www.nzenterprise.com
USE Information Technology with all the amazing powers of the
web , but strive to keep your life in BALANCE. With the web and
e-mail, we must always keep technology in perspective - by using
it for 'ease of communication at the click of a mouse', to make
our lives easier and market products and services around the
globe efficiently and cheaply. MANAGE IT WELL, OR IT WILL MANAGE
US in the early days of this "New Age of Wisdom"!