Ah, there is nothing better than spending hours and weeks trying to solve one little annoying problem only to stump the technical support engineers so badly that the only thing they can say is that we need to upgrade our software yet again… I am told we are pretty far behind, and it would be advisable to upgrade!

Geez, I just loaded “the latest” software in December, and 3 months later I am pretty far behind? Now, I am used to recommending customers stay up-to-date with patches and security holes, but to have a major release for core infrastructure stuff - business affecting systems - is, well, a tad agresssive.

Needless to say, I can’t go forward with my technical support issue until this is put to bed so let’s hope the upgrade process goes smoothly (crossing my fingers)…

Does anyone else get a little frustrated with this? Is the breakneck pace of software upgrades in your buiness, well, breaking your neck?

Well, it looks like Scoble did it again. In his article ‘Why enterprise software isn’t sexy‘, Scoble sends a shot across the bow at Bill Gates, calling him out on whining about the lack of enterprise software coverage in the blogosphere. Albeit an older article, I found it compelling, so here are some thoughts…

Scoble asks:

Well, how many people in the world actually buy business software? … Instead, let’s look at the business of journalism or even of blogging. We’re paid to deliver page views. Advertisers call it “CPM” (cost per thousand viewers). Now, what’s going to get more of you interested? Consumer software that you actually have a role in adopting or purchasing or enterprise software where some CIO somewhere else in your organization decides on?

Scoble bemoans having to use SAP because some CIO in his ivory tower made a business decision and forced him to use it. Why not look at end user adoption as a key metric? Can you live by the subjective metric of customer satisfaction? Embrace this simple fact, when you really meet the needs AND wants of your customers, it becomes a game changer… it’s ultimately the greatest metric for true success (see my previous posting Are You Focused on What Your Customers Need, or What They Want?)

Scoble also asks:

Any of you have any ideas on how to make business software sexy?

Sexy? Some of the pundits are asking why make enterprise software sexy? That’s not the point… well not exactly. Maybe I’m sick in the head, but I think it’s uber-sexy to get paid well to help a business run well and keep customers (internal and external) happy!

My contention is business software doesn’t necessarily need to be sexy, but it definitely needs a PR make-over!

SFA, CRM, ERP, ERM, DMS, CMS, MPS, and SaaS… Wow, we hear these acronyms and probably use some versions of them in our daily business - and even to run our business. So what’s in a name?

Well, evidently a lot according to “them”, the software manufactures and industry experts alike. We hear all about the wonderful productivity enhancements and time saving tools there are, and don’t get me wrong… “they” may be on to something there. It’s a wonderful commercial the salesperson puts on for us, and we blindly subscribe to the fantasy while skipping lightly through strawberry fields.

Oblivious to the pending chasm we are hurtling towards, a reality of costly acquisition and lengthy integrations eagerly awaits the unwary. This grim picture painted, what really boggles my mind is how often companies do not have the stomach to keep down the ugly truth that you must understand where you stand before you can decide where you must step.

What does that even mean? What I see time and again is that companies fail to comprehend software alone cannot solve their problems, only focus and attention to aligning business goals and metrics to actionable and corrective plans. Software is much like a coat of paint. If you have spent time sanding and priming and buffing then a good paint job can bring new life to something; however, if you simply slop new paint over old to cover some rust spots the paint job will always look splotchy and eventually the rust spots will resurface.

My advice is to spend what is the hardest, but arguably the most rewarding, time in understanding why you run the business the way you do. Create metrics to help measure your business, like a report card, but do not let the metrics dictate success alone, as they are simply an indication of what is working and what is not. If the metrics indicate something is working, ask, “Why?” If the metrics indicate something is not working, ask, “Why not?” Perhaps, the most important advice I might offer is that change is inevitable and on going.

Remember, there is no magic bullet, but I’m sure you can find a silver lining if you know where to look.

Regards,

Ken