Weekly Editorial
It Is Time To Rethink Your Technology Strategy
Written By Rob Kirkbride, Write Office • July 25, 2022
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Let’s talk about technology. It can be an uncomfortable subject, especially for people of my “vintage” (by that I mean old). Since I saw you at NeoCon, I know most of you fall into the same age bracket.
The only technology we grew up with was the video games we fed quarters to at the Aladdin’s Castle arcade in our local mall. I sent my first email as an assignment — yes, an assignment — in a communications class when I was a senior at Michigan State University. The assignment was to sign up for an email account with the university, pick a friend or fellow student in class and send them a single email, which we had to print and hand in to receive credit.
Still, Generation X and late Baby Boomers understand technology surprisingly well. I feel completely at home working on just about any computer, tablet or mobile device. I can find my way around most programs, social media platforms and other high-tech tools as well as any youngster out there. I know most of you and from what I can tell, you feel about the same way about technology as I do.
So why is it that our industry is so slow to adopt technology? Here’s my guess: A lot of us tried to be early adopters on a variety of technological platforms that ended up failing us. Simply put, we were burned by early tech. It was expensive, frustrating to use and ended up being a waste of money. There’s nothing worse that investing in technology that doesn’t pan out.
I’m here to tell you it is time to rethink your technology strategy. There is a movement afoot to bring together some of the best technology offerings in our industry into a single platform with all the tech tools you love in a single place (thanks INDEAL! I hope it’s OK that I’m spilling the beans). You are already using tools like CET Designer, Project Matrix, KiSP, KITS Collaborator, Yulio, Hello Raye, Align, and Mortarr to name just a few. Imagine when those tools can be accessed in a single place. Just such a platform is being worked on as we speak.
And when it comes together, expect fireworks my friends. Our industry is always slammed for being slow to pick up new technology. There is some truth to that if we are honest with ourselves. It is also true that technology has been slow to come to our industry, probably because of its relatively small size and the conservative nature of it. Now is the time to pay attention. Start looking into the brands I mention above. See how their services might fit your company.
Be patient and know there will be a learning curve, just like there was when you slipped a quarter into the slot of a Donkey Kong machine for the first time — it takes an investment of time and money to get your name on the leaderboard.
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