Is it possible to imagine a future where computers are so small we shift from wearing them to implanting them?
We are already implanting technology to repair hearing faults. No doubt eye sight will also be repaired by devices, and it is only a matter of inevitable miniaturisation before we begin to implant other nano computer devices.
As we improve genetic engineering and as technology shrinks, it is likely that we will internalise IT systems.
As we learn how the brain works better and understand the electro chemical reactions that occur, it is feasible that we will develop a brain technology bridge that allows us to surf the web for information with a mere thought or communicate globally using wireless networks.
Imagine thinking an abstract thought such as: “I wonder what the weather will be like tomorrow?” – and the data is fed into your brain by a nano bot connected to the weather bureau.
What if you are curious about your bank balance? Presto! The facts are delivered.
Cloud computing is just a step on the path. We have so much more to fear later!
David Markus is the founder of Combo – the IT service company that ensures IT is never an impediment to growth. We win awards for the service we offer, so If your IT environment is slowing you down, contact Combo on 1300 726 626 to organise a complimentary consultation with David.
As an entrepreneur, one of my greatest fears is losing a good idea – mine or someone else’s. Be it a business idea, or an idea for a story, or an idea for a painting.
Innovation in SME businesses is vital to growth in flat times as innovation is simply the enactment of ideas and creativity. Ideas themselves don’t have to be new and they don’t have to be carried out in a way that is different to drive results.
There is a common belief that process-driven organisations are unable to be creative, as they are bound by their procedures. I would like to argue that it is quite the opposite. Once we have the process to deal with a recurring task, it frees up our minds, and our time, to allow us to get creative about solving another problem.
Processes are about controlling the quality of delivery of existing concepts, be they products or services. If we have no processes to structure our business, we must solve every problem as if it is a new problem – which is far from efficient.
So when we have an idea and can capture it in a process, policy, or design, we are then free to have ideas on improvement in new areas of the business.
It is of course important that our processes are live, and this is where an intranet such as SharePoint has huge advantages over paper-based solutions. We’re able to capture a process in an instruction set, and then iteratively update the process each time it is run to ensure that it is constantly improving. Encouraging your staff to get involved in the level of creativity is bound to drive ongoing success.
When running a helpdesk, the objectives are pretty simple, yet so often poorly implemented and managed. Simply put, a helpdesk should quickly capture a client’s problem accurately and then move the problem off to the department or individual that is most capable of solving that issue the fastest. Targets for helpdesks should revolve around minimum resolve times.
However, if there is no process for solving a particular problem when it arrives at the helpdesk, then someone needs to use their creativity to solve the problem from scratch. On the other hand, if the work done to create the solution is captured in the knowledge base, then next time the issue can be resolved by the person who answers the call quickly and efficiently.
The concept of capturing ideas in processes so that more calls can be resolved by the person who answers the phone is an empowering one.
Having clients appreciate that it is not always possible for the best person to answer the phone before the nature of the problem has been defined can be tricky. It is, however, up to thought leaders in the IT community to educate the customer base on call logging as detailed information of the problem really is the best way to solve issues.
So in your business where are you failing to capture your creativity and harness it for future efficient use? Are you constantly making up new solutions to solve old problems?
Who could help you to better capture your creativity and so become an innovative process driven growth company?
David Markus is the founder of Combo – the IT service company that ensures IT is never an impediment to growth. We win awards for the service we offer, so If your IT environment is slowing you down, contact Combo on 1300 726 626 to organise a complimentary consultation with David.
As we look forward to the year ahead, the Gartner Group has released their predictions for the “Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2012”. The following complex ideas evolved from the Gartner Symposium held recently in Orlando.
The definition of a strategic technology is one that may have a significant impact on business in the next three years. Significant impact can be a high potential for disruption to IT or the business, the need for significant investment or the risk of being a late adopter.
The top 10 strategic technology predictions for 2012 include:
This is mobile technology, the assumption being that it is wirelessly connected and will take multiple forms, from a user’s own smartphone or tablet to custom corporate platforms.
The strategies to be considered here are the business-to-employee scenario and also the business-to-consumer scenario. The strategy must consider impact on behaviour, content, and importantly, security. This will have a bigger impact on the larger players who are delivering applications to the consumer market, but will also create new opportunities for start-ups based on innovative apps.
We can expect to see new interfaces based on touch, gesture, search, video and voice. This will drive the need for new development skills creating simpler small apps. By 2015, mobile web technologies will have advanced sufficiently so that half the applications written as native apps in 2011 will instead be delivered as web apps.
The contextual application will anticipate our requirements based on information such as our current location, temperature, activity calendar or even current TV show being watched, plus much more.
Social information is also becoming a key source of contextual information to enhance delivery of search results or the operation of applications.
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a concept that describes how the internet will expand as sensors and intelligence are added to physical items, such as consumer devices or physical assets, and these objects are connected to the internet.
As more things are connected and measured we will see more live data feeds, so this connection is reaching a critical point to become commercially viable. For example, imagine your car service centre monitoring your car continuously and knowing you have a flat tyre as quickly as you do.
Key elements of the IoT include:
Embedded sensors:
Next-generation analysis:
Big data:
In-memory computing:
Extreme low-energy servers:
Cloud computing:
Much of the technology discussed in this report is going to deliver us services and information, rather than devices. Therefore, my interpretation is that we now have an interconnected world with portable connected devices in our hands, laps and desks. From now, the major frontier in IT will be around how large organisations will structure and deliver information to us.
Essentially, what we’ll be given over the next few years will be more information, better focused to meet our specific interests and needs.
There will be very exciting opportunities for niche players to exploit these new rich veins of information and communication. There will also be risks of missing opportunities to change to new business tools and being left behind by your competitors.
David Markus is the founder of Combo – the IT services company that ensures IT is never an impediment to growth. We win awards for the service we offer, so if your IT environment is slowing you down, contact Combo on 1300 726 626 to organise a complimentary consultation with David.
