Monday, November 29, 2004
Doing IT the right way
Doing IT the right way
By Aloysius Choong, CNETAsia
26/11/2004
Dell, HP, IBM, Oracle and SAP--these are just some of the big names making a splash in the small and medium-size market in 2004.
HP launched line after line of products and solutions as part of its Smart Office initiative, touting a complete package that includes low-end servers, portable computers and flexible payment schemes. IBM expanded its Express push with new notebooks and printers, while SAP broadened its product portfolio, and Oracle cut prices of its 10g database. Elsewhere, Dell and EMC collaborated on a storage device for the mid-market.
Why the interest in the SMB market? The answer is simple: It's a growing market that multinational giants cannot afford to ignore. In March, Forrester Research predicted that SMB IT spending in 2004 would increase by 6.6 percent from 2003. This was much higher than the 1.7 percent that was projected for larger companies.
In October, HP revealed that SMB sales are expected to yield a whopping US$24 billion during its fiscal 2004--representing almost one-third of its total income. IBM's revenues from SMBs have also been rising every quarter.
What does this mean for SMBs? The vendors will continue to target this segment by offering more options, cheaper solutions, and SMB-friendly sales models.
Yet it's not all a bed of roses. In a survey of 279 small and medium-size businesses conducted by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI), it was found that companies had only moderate levels of satisfaction from IT investments.
Expectedly, accounting packages and office automation were rated the most useful investments, with approval rates of over 55 percent. However, over 20 percent of respondents indicated that the usefulness of investments in security, e-business, as well as mobile and wireless either "could be better" or were "bad experiences".
What's going wrong? In the same survey, companies provided a few answers, such as disputes with vendors, lack of technology awareness, and the lack of training.
Throughout the course of the year, CNETAsia has spoken to several business owners with varying successes with IT implementations. Here are some of the key lessons they've provided.
1. Business over technology.
Business owners have consistently emphasized technology has to take a backseat to business. IT can help to increase revenues, like in the case of Accord Express Holdings, where the use of an in-house supply-chain management system catapulted it from the ranks of an SMB.
It can, at the same time, reduce costs and increase efficiency--both important benefits for smaller businesses. For instance, for FarEastFlora.com's Ryan Chioh, the firm's ERP and CRM systems have dramatically increased productivity, especially for mundane tasks such as record keeping.
2. A good grasp of IT is always helpful.
Echoing a common complaint of SMBs, Straits Partners' Ben Bleicken told us earlier this year that vendors often spoke "a language that we couldn't understand".
From the SMB's perspective, getting past the technical jargon is important, as a lack of common understanding can quickly give rise to disputes. PlentyRooms.com's Samson Goh talks about how his programming background helps him to understand vendor-speak, but few business owners are as savvy.
Even if a business owner is not naturally inclined towards technology, he or she should be interested in the business of making money--and technology is essential to that.
The point here is, even if a business owner is not naturally inclined towards technology, he or she should be interested in the business of making money--and technology is essential to that. Look at hiring an IT manager who can evaluate the pros and cons of each solution, but at the end of the day, for most SMBs, the final decisions rest on the business owner.
3. Know what you want, and be assertive.
Vendors may talk about how difficult it is to implement this feature or that, but it is up to the business owner to push for the features that are needed.
This was also something that Foodbex's Shahrin Bin Surif learnt. The IT process has to suit your business, he told CNETAsia, you should not be changing your business process to match your IT implementation.
Matex's Doris Lek revealed how she insisted that the implementation timeline of her new IT system be shortened. She implemented a system of incentives to encourage the vendor to work overtime. In the end, she successfully minimized the hassle of dealing with two systems during the changeover period.
4. It's about the people.
Many good companies view their staff as their most important asset, and rightfully so. However, IT implementations, especially for non-tech industries, can meet with stiff resistance.
For instance, restaurant chain IndoChine found it hard to gain acceptance for PDAs in the workplace, while PestBusters had five resignations after rolling out its own handheld solution.
Therefore, setting up the solution isn't the end of implementation. Business owners constantly have to pay attention to staff training and morale.
By Aloysius Choong, CNETAsia
26/11/2004
Dell, HP, IBM, Oracle and SAP--these are just some of the big names making a splash in the small and medium-size market in 2004.
HP launched line after line of products and solutions as part of its Smart Office initiative, touting a complete package that includes low-end servers, portable computers and flexible payment schemes. IBM expanded its Express push with new notebooks and printers, while SAP broadened its product portfolio, and Oracle cut prices of its 10g database. Elsewhere, Dell and EMC collaborated on a storage device for the mid-market.
Why the interest in the SMB market? The answer is simple: It's a growing market that multinational giants cannot afford to ignore. In March, Forrester Research predicted that SMB IT spending in 2004 would increase by 6.6 percent from 2003. This was much higher than the 1.7 percent that was projected for larger companies.
In October, HP revealed that SMB sales are expected to yield a whopping US$24 billion during its fiscal 2004--representing almost one-third of its total income. IBM's revenues from SMBs have also been rising every quarter.
What does this mean for SMBs? The vendors will continue to target this segment by offering more options, cheaper solutions, and SMB-friendly sales models.
Yet it's not all a bed of roses. In a survey of 279 small and medium-size businesses conducted by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI), it was found that companies had only moderate levels of satisfaction from IT investments.
Expectedly, accounting packages and office automation were rated the most useful investments, with approval rates of over 55 percent. However, over 20 percent of respondents indicated that the usefulness of investments in security, e-business, as well as mobile and wireless either "could be better" or were "bad experiences".
What's going wrong? In the same survey, companies provided a few answers, such as disputes with vendors, lack of technology awareness, and the lack of training.
Throughout the course of the year, CNETAsia has spoken to several business owners with varying successes with IT implementations. Here are some of the key lessons they've provided.
1. Business over technology.
Business owners have consistently emphasized technology has to take a backseat to business. IT can help to increase revenues, like in the case of Accord Express Holdings, where the use of an in-house supply-chain management system catapulted it from the ranks of an SMB.
It can, at the same time, reduce costs and increase efficiency--both important benefits for smaller businesses. For instance, for FarEastFlora.com's Ryan Chioh, the firm's ERP and CRM systems have dramatically increased productivity, especially for mundane tasks such as record keeping.
2. A good grasp of IT is always helpful.
Echoing a common complaint of SMBs, Straits Partners' Ben Bleicken told us earlier this year that vendors often spoke "a language that we couldn't understand".
From the SMB's perspective, getting past the technical jargon is important, as a lack of common understanding can quickly give rise to disputes. PlentyRooms.com's Samson Goh talks about how his programming background helps him to understand vendor-speak, but few business owners are as savvy.
Even if a business owner is not naturally inclined towards technology, he or she should be interested in the business of making money--and technology is essential to that.
The point here is, even if a business owner is not naturally inclined towards technology, he or she should be interested in the business of making money--and technology is essential to that. Look at hiring an IT manager who can evaluate the pros and cons of each solution, but at the end of the day, for most SMBs, the final decisions rest on the business owner.
3. Know what you want, and be assertive.
Vendors may talk about how difficult it is to implement this feature or that, but it is up to the business owner to push for the features that are needed.
This was also something that Foodbex's Shahrin Bin Surif learnt. The IT process has to suit your business, he told CNETAsia, you should not be changing your business process to match your IT implementation.
Matex's Doris Lek revealed how she insisted that the implementation timeline of her new IT system be shortened. She implemented a system of incentives to encourage the vendor to work overtime. In the end, she successfully minimized the hassle of dealing with two systems during the changeover period.
4. It's about the people.
Many good companies view their staff as their most important asset, and rightfully so. However, IT implementations, especially for non-tech industries, can meet with stiff resistance.
For instance, restaurant chain IndoChine found it hard to gain acceptance for PDAs in the workplace, while PestBusters had five resignations after rolling out its own handheld solution.
Therefore, setting up the solution isn't the end of implementation. Business owners constantly have to pay attention to staff training and morale.
# posted by MiDBA @ 11/29/2004 06:24:00 PM 
