This month, I've been kept busy consulting with business executives that are less than thrilled with the first quarter results they’ve achieved, as it relates to Information Technology (IT).
My business connections over the past 25 years give me the luxury of knowing a lot of very smart people who run incredibly successful businesses. At least once a week – if not more – I get a call from one of them asking me to get together for coffee or lunch. The meetings are frequently technology related, but not always.
This month it seems that issues are consistent across many companies – business executives are trying really hard to understand how they may be able to get better technology results than they have in the past, and they are beyond frustrated.
Many times in these conversations, it comes to light that their expectations are out of sync with the possibilities – they expect too much from one or two people.
An example I use to help them with this concept is related to the medical industry. I asked a buddy of mine this question last week: “Would you want an Orthopedic Surgeon performing your heart surgery?” He chuckled and said, “Of course not, that would be crazy.” My response was, “Then why do you think your IT Manager should be able to do your Web Marketing too?”
The point is: IT disciplines are similar to the medical or legal field. You just can’t be an expert in everything.
Getting to “Aha” moments like these this month were really fulfilling to me, and helpful to my executive friends who were able adjust their course for better results.
