Don’t Leave Me A Message After the Tone: The Beginning of the End for Voicemail?

Is it time for your business to update its use of technology?

The world of work continues to change – I often wonder how are we are supposed to keep up! It seems only yesterday that voicemails were a new and exciting innovation in the office. However, I recently discovered through an article in The Financial Times, by Lucy Kellaway, that JPMorgan have just scrapped their voicemails and that Coca-Cola decided to “press 3”  and delete their voicemail system last year.  It seems that voicemails are no longer regarded as a valuable or essential communication tool in the modern office.

I also learned that over 100 years ago, it was actually JPMorgan who were one of the pioneers of telephone use in the office environment. Whilst other banking institutions were shunning this new gadget, JPMorgan's London office was placing their first major telephone order.

 

The Technology Evolution - Can Your Business Afford to “Wait and See”?

The example of JPMorgan sums up the nature of both business and technology – evolution is never ending (some would say relentless).  The real question is at what point do small and medium-sized businesses adopt new technology and move from the old (or should it be “less new” ) to the latest?  Should your business strive to be an early adopter, or be a more “wait and see” type of organisation?   In the past, the “wait and see” principle had some merit. Wait for the prices to fall, and in the meantime, see your competitors make the mistakes.

These days the risk of the “wait and see” approach may be too great.  Those business that don't embrace new technology may fail to attract customers, employees and investors.  Companies that adopt new software solutions are able to be more efficient and more customer-centric. See how Ingimex has become more efficient and is now out-stripping the competition as a result of changing its ERP* software. 

 

"We’ve got a much, much shorter lead-time than our competitors”  Jeremy Gallen, Engineering Director, Ingimex

 

How do you know if your business would benefit from new business software?

Running a successful business is already full of external challenges – winning new customers and keeping them, being better than the competition, wondering if consumer confidence is really picking up or what the impact of the “The Great Fall of China” will be.  If, in addition to these external challenges, you’re finding that internal challenges like -  financial reporting, processing orders, managing suppliers - are draining your time and energy, you might want to read: 15 Red Flags: Is Your Accounting Software Hurting Your Business?

 

Life is Complicated - But Running Your Business Shouldn’t Have To Be

Running a business shouldn’t have to feel complicated. You should be able to connect your people, processes and systems. You should be able to have control over your financials, simplify your supply chain, and streamline business operations. You should also be able to seamlessly link all this with managing your calendars, emails, files, and spreadsheets. You should be able to access your information anywhere, on any device at any time, and be confident it’s up to date. You should be able to know that, as your business grows, your technology will continue to support you and grow with you. Learn more about what you should be able to do.

 

Why not take a leaf out of JPMorgan’s book (probably an ebook by now) - let go of the old and embrace the new.

 

*Enterprise Resource Planning - Often called ERP, ERP system, or ERP software, enterprise resource planning helps organisations manage their financials, supply chain, manufacturing, operations, reporting, and human resources.