intelligent
implementation
Bringing a new technology system on board is never easy for a manager. Here are things to make the process smoother.
By Roman Lockshin
During
the last 10 years, revolutionary advances in computers and networks have
brought about an unparalleled explosion in technology solutions, completely
changing the way we create, process, manage, store, and communicate information.
Engineering information is no exception. However, many managers remain
bewildered by all of the turnkey solutions, comprehensive software packages,
gadgets, and gizmos that pop up in the engineering field like party balloons
and then deflate just as quickly, often with a bang.
Occasionally, the news media report a horror story about a disastrous
technology decision—or indecision—made by managers at a
now-extinct company. The disaster creates an opportunity for the business
community to learn that technology is a double-edged sword, the media
reasoning seems to go.
Keep yourself from becoming an example! Here are several points to consider
when deciding to accept or reject a technological solution:
Use Common Sense
Your good business and management sense served you well so far. Use it,
together with your intuition, to choose a system appropriate for your
engineering operation. Don't be overly influenced by a flashy presentation
or intimidated by techno lingo. Do be aware that, although the salesmen
may look like scientists, what sounds like an objective report is, in
fact, a sales presentation. It's worth repeating: If it sounds
too good to be true, it probably is.
When considering the price of the solution, don't ignore hidden
costs, lest they come back to bite your amended supplemental statement
of income. For example, it will cost you to upgrade hardware and networks
to run the new software; to train your engineers to use it; to maintain
the system and exterminate bugs; to commit resources to the project.
Every manager is acutely aware of the limited-resources-allocation dilemma,
which says that a scarcity of time, capital, and workforce ensures that
undertaking one project means abandoning another, or even several others.
Be sure to allocate your resources wisely. Keep in mind that a project
with a certain outcome is greatly preferred to the project with a hoped-for
outcome. Stay open to new ideas, but stick to what you know.
Be very, very skeptical if you're told that a proposed technological
solution will save you a fortune over a 10-year period.
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| Will that investment in microcircuits make or cost you megabucks? |
After all, in two to three years, your competitors or customers will
force you to upgrade your system just to keep up. Most technological solutions
become obsolete within two to three years, and with the way things are
going, it looks like the interval will continue to shrink in the future.
If you can't say the system will soon benefit your company tangibly,
find a better use for your time and money.
There's a fine line between the top-of-the-line and the budget
solution. One solution consists of experimental products, which feature
sky-high prices and the privilege to be the solution vendor's favorite
test subject; the other is so obsolete that you shouldn't implement
it even if the vendor pays you to do it. Fortunately, most feasible solutions
pass through a period in their product life cycle when both the time and
price are right.
The most advanced solution is not necessarily the best one. It's
best to let someone else be on the bleeding edge and to serve as the test
subject while the bugs are being worked out. Being the second to implement
a system is infinitely better than being the first or, at the other extreme,
the last.
Is It Exactly What You Need?
Electronic system integration between supplier and customer is quickly
becoming a standard in many areas, engineering included. You can beat
the competition and improve your margins by making it easy for your suppliers
and vendors to work with you, so be sure to inquire what system they are
using. Strive for compatibility and integration as much as practical.
System integration will increase the cost of switching technologies, making
it harder for your suppliers and customers to leave you. Tie everyone
together if you can.
Many software packages that you'll be looking at will include every
imaginable feature offered by the system designers. These features can
be a problem, because the system will be harder to learn, slower to function,
and less stable. Be sure that you are not buying bloatedware.
As your company grows and evolves, expect that your information technology
requirements will change. A scalable or modular system is better suited
to keep up with your growth.
Remember, after the system you pick is implemented, the consultant will
pack up and leave. Before that happens, make sure that your staff receives
the training necessary for system operation and routine maintenance.
Even the best system will add little value to your engineering organization
if your staff is reluctant to use it. Your staff will feel enthusiastic
about the new system and will work with it properly if it's easy
to use with a user-friendly interface.
Develop It Internally
Not every company can afford the luxury of maintaining a full-time information
technology staff. At the same time, however, if everyone on your team
is ignorant of technology, your enterprise may be at the mercy of a highly
paid IT consultant whose interests and goals don't always coincide
with yours, and whose skill is not always proportionate to the fee that's
demanded.
Although it's not realistic to recommend that every firm hire and
maintain an information technology staff, it is within your power to see
that at least one team member is sufficiently well-informed to help you
choose a feasible and reasonably priced solution, track project progress,
and keep a keen eye on the consultant.
Keep your old system running until everyone is convinced that the new
system does what it should and works reliably. Companies have perished
by making the fatal error of discarding the old system for a new one that
didn't work as promised. It's vital to maintain the capability
to roll back to the old system at any time. Keeping your old system ready
to go gives you the option of keeping your operations intact and of firing
your consultants should they fail to deliver on their promises.
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| Technology can enlarge the effects of the right—or wrong—decision. |
When selecting any vendor, diligent managers must check track records
and contact several former clients. This rule goes double when it comes
to selecting information technology vendors, because an error in judgment
in this area can wreak chaos on your operations and cause more damage
then any other undertaking.
Don't rely on a legal contract alone. Litigation will tie up your
resources and even if you win, you're very unlikely to collect
because most IT consultants are poorly capitalized. Lawyers are like nukes:
You have yours because they have theirs, but pray you won't have
to use them.
Be sure to protect your client list, business plan, pricing, and other
confidential material. Keep in mind that your competitor may hire your
former consultant. Again, don't rely on non-disclosure agreements.
Make sure that your files never leave your facility.
Protect your networks from unauthorized access from both within and outside
your company. Implement firewalls, passwords, and encryption, but at the
same time try to achieve a good balance between usability and security.
Back up your files and scan for viruses at night, when system usage and
load are low.
Did You Get It Right?
Here are some questions you should ask yourself to determine if you are
getting all that you can from your chosen system:
What goals did you have in mind when you decided to implement the solution?
Measure your progress toward these goals.
It all comes down to the bottom line. Is your operating cost lower or
higher than before? (Don't count the sunk costs of implementation,
but do include operating costs of the new system.)
What is the value added by the new system?
Did you acquire new customers and get larger orders from established customers?
When figuring out the answers to these questions, listen to employees,
suppliers, and customers, and evaluate what they say.
Don't be reluctant in announcing your new capabilities
to all of your current and prospective customers as well as your suppliers.
Find new uses for the system. Leverage technology to increase your margins
and reduce costs. Train your staff to use it fully.
Be aware of the various technological trends in engineering, but take
advantage of innovations only when you can clearly see how an upgrade
translates to a significant positive contribution to your bottom line.
Technology is a powerful lever, capable of amplifying the effects of both
correct and erroneous decisions. Thus, it's a double-edged sword.
Used intelligently, it can give you a significant competitive edge and
contribute to the success and prosperity of your enterprise. Good luck!
With a background in proprietary trading, Roman
Lockshin holds an M.B.A. from the City University of New York and is a
Chartered Financial Analyst. For leisure, he plays classical violin, practices
yoga, and rides a motorcycle (but not all at the same time).