My co-workers–and some of my clients–are tired of this story. So of course, I’ll tell it once again. It has to do with the Gladys principle. Gladys was my first boss, at the ripe old age of 15. I worked in a Concession Stand at a local “Mini-Golf” business. The business is long gone, as I would assume Gladys is, but the story still works.
Here’s the crux: If Gladys gave me 100 things to do, and I did 99 of them perfectly, the one I left out was

• The most important one (and it didn’t matter which of the 100 it was), and
• The first thing she noticed

Businesses fall prey to the Gladys Principle all the time. In first meetings with businesses that are sure they need to replace their software, they usually have a list of all the things they need software to do that their current software doesn’t do. They ignore all the things the software they have does well.
The assumption is that if the current software is 10 years old, or only cost $100, or was put in by their next door neighbor’s dog’s owner’s friend, ANY new software will have all these features and then some.
Here’s a good example: In businesses that move from QuickBooks to something else, the most common question I get is, “How do I change the invoice once it’s been printed (or posted, etc.)? In QuickBooks, I could do that.”
Yep. That’s right. You can change invoices even after they’ve been printed…even, for that matter, after they’ve already been paid. And accountants all over the world are turning over in their leather chairs and pulling their hair out over this. “What about the audit trail?” they ask.
And the accountants are right. For most businesses, it would be a disaster if the employees could go back and change things after they have been finalized. Invoices sent to customers wouldn’t agree with invoices in the computer system. So “better” accounting software makes you issue a credit or debit memo (another transaction) to change the amount of the invoice. It’s been business practice for years, but…for the small business it’s somewhat annoying.
From their perspective, they lose a feature. But wait, didn’t they change software to get features they didn’t have. Yep. If you looked at the list of things they needed from software, this one wasn’t there. Because it was one of the 99…they only listed the “ones” they didn’t have.
It’s why Needs Analysis is critical to the selection of a business software product. It’s the place to start.

This isn’t another article about virus protection and anti-spyware. You know you should have those in place, and most careful businesses do.
I just have one question: Where is your backup from last night, and if your building burned, do you have a way to recover the data you use on a daily basis? If not, you might want to do some disaster planning.
Take it from me, standing outside your building and watching smoke pouring from the windows on the floor your office is on (happened to me in 1998), or the floor above (happened last year) makes you ask this question. But the stress induced by the answer is much less if you actually have a good answer to the question. In both cases, DGG was in good shape. Are you?

I entered the business world as a CPA, working for a local Memphis, TN CPA firm. I worked there for 5 years, starting out as a CPA on the general staff doing tax returns, audits, etc. I learned a lot about what I didn’t know–like how to run a 10-key adding machine. Then the firm started giving me work to do for clients that needed computer systems work.
Then five years later, I started Data Guidance Group. We were very clear about what we did: computer technology for business. We offered expertise related to selecting, implementing, and using computer systems in business. And we still do.
As I read this blog–my blog–I realize that some days I need to think a bit more about the average businessperson and how they use technology. For most businesses, technology is a cost center. Not that it should be that way…it just is.
I’ve spent the most of my career trying to help businesses see the applications of technology that would produce the best return on investment for them, and trying to help technologists focus on business, not on the technology.
In working on this blog, I’m well aware that the folk that I could potentially benefit the most (at the top of organizations) may be the last people who will read it. That’s a terrible thing, but it’s more about how I write for the blog than whether they read it. I take the general approach that if I write it, you will come. So give me some feedback…is this stuff useful? What would you like more of?
And so…expect more of a focus on business applications…we may have to slip in an occasional tech piece, but business will be the focus.