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TechTrends e-Newsletter I July 2004 Page 2 of 6 designed to protect sensitive files—such as individual employee H.R. records— routinely failed. The problems nearly sank the operation. After trying for nearly 0 , three years to salvage the system, the company finally junked it and invested in an entirely new software (from a different vendor). In short, tech-related investments are never an easy decision. Make the right • move, and you can open up a realm of new possibilities—productivity, profits, F untapped markets, and the like. Make a misstep, however, and, well, the above example offers a hint at what can happen. With that in mind, here are expert strategies and ideas to mull over before you plo w (word choice) money into invest in a new piece of software or machinery. Beware of the bells and whistles At their core, all technology purchases should be guided by existing business strategy. Do you want to improve customer service? Do you want to automate internal processes to boost efficiency? Do you want to penetrate a new market? "Make sure the technology you are contemplating aligns with strategic objectives," says MTI technology consultant Sam Gould. "Those objectives dictate what types of gains are necessary." The above company would have been wise to follow such advice. It allowed the s• software vendor to sell it a system that had a number of extraneous bells and whistles—cool features that looked seductive on paper, but which didn't necessarily • fit with the company's larger aims. At the same time, management also didn't thoroughly check out the vendor's references; they later discovered that the y supplier had only done one such project in the past and thus was largely unprepared for such a large-scale undertaking. ' Manage the project As any smart manager knows, the real work starts after you take the plunge and make the investment. A poorly planned implementation is a recipe for disaster. At If best, it can dilute the technology's benefits; at worst, it can create new problems and costs. Gould stresses the importance of determining what each component of a :: new system will provide , or and what effects it will be responsible for. "That's • where a lot of people mess up," he says. "You have to know what each piece delivers and you have to know the risk associated with each piece if it doesn't deliver." In a similar vein, it also pays to assign a capable person to oversee the project— • and make sure that he or she has the resources and time to do it right. In the case of the above firm, management gave major implementation and vendor- management responsibilities to a pair of bright, computer-savvy, but extremely busy employees—without lightening their overall work levels. The predictable go result: The employees couldn't handle the increased load, and the software implementation process bogged down. • 1 Patience matters • http://www.minnesotatechnology.org/publications/techtrends/2004/July/printVersion.asp 7/23/2004