Master Your Technology, Master Success
Wouldn’t it be nice to spend less time at the computer? I help staff understand the technology they use.
Organizations are focused on the products and services they provide. People are busy and under pressure show results which can lead to hasty decisions.
The Challenge
In the new Web 2.0 arena, there are many people out there claiming to be “Social Media Experts” and lack basic computer skills so they fall short in helping business embrace this new technology.
I Deliver Results By Making Technology Easy To Understand
- Explain
- Teach
- Train
- Show
- Discuss
- Monitor
- Evaluate
Measure Twice, Cut Once
Doing research before your company moves forward with a new website, piece of software or computers for the HR department can mean the difference between success and regret. Staff who are not technical or overworked IT folks are asked to make decisions they may not fully understand.
I help companies:
- Identify technology needs before purchase
- Define the scope of projects before proposal requests go out
- Review vendors and proposals before contracts are signed
- Interview applicants for IT staff positions before they are hired
Identify Needs
Word of mouth is a powerful medium to spread ideas. Often someone in a company will go, “I heard Company So-and-so is using Blue Widgets; we should get Blue Widgets”. There will be a meeting about Blue Widgets, people will approve the idea and off the staff go to happily find someone to create Blue Widgets for them. This often leads to dissatisfaction, misunderstandings and frustration. I can help you identify technology that fit your organization’s goals so in this case, Blue Widgets could be right but maybe Yellow Widgets are a better fit
Define Scope
Technology projects can be like “kid in a candy store” where everything looks right and immediately necessary. A great way to start here is to understand how your company’s staff start, work on and complete their tasks each day. We can then look for ways to streamline their work with technology, much like a custom pair shoes that fit perfectly.
Review vendors and proposals
This is a nightmare for most companies. They need something like a VOIP (Voice Over IP) system and tell their phone company who sends out a sales rep. They may call or email vendors, ask other business folks what they use or pray for a miracle to deliver the phone system. Any way you cut it, many companies feel ambushed, pressured and unsure of why they finally choose a vendor or specific proposal. I will help you ask the right questions, understand what to look for and ensure you provide clear guidelines in your RFP’s (Request For Proposal).
Hiring IT staff
Many companies with less than 100 staff have just one IT person. This means if the person leaves, is fired or falls ill, the responsibility of hiring a new IT person falls on the shoulders of someone who does not have any IT experience. The challenges here include making sure the job opening describes the actual job duties and identifies current skill sets needed. I have seen positions posted that have not been updated in 4+ years since, “The last IT person left”. This can create huge problems when the resumes start coming in. The second challenge is the interview process. While an HR person or the manager can interview an IT person in general, they are often unable to ask them questions related to their experience. This leaves the company at a disadvantage because they cannot ask specific questions like,
“If the web server had power loss and only internal staff could see the site, what would be your first steps to fix it?
If you needed to migrate data from one laptop to another, how would you do it and what tools would you use?
We would like to add a calendar of events to our website. What are our choices?
Someone in the field cannot get their email. How would you start helping them?
What certifications do you hold and how have you been able to utilize them at work?