Should we Fail Fast or Methodically Plod Forward in our Organizations & Businesses? 06/30/2011
Posted by mritsema in business intelligence, cloud computing, government, web.Tags: Business, entrepreneurial, IT services, IT support, Management, Productivity, Technology
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I’m back from the Everything Channel XChange Public Sector 2011 conference. I learned a few things and here are my thoughts enlightenment.
I’ve been to a lot of conferences over the past couple decades. I’ve come away with reams of notes. My goal now is to come away with 3 – 5 primary concepts and action items – less than one page. I accomplished it at this conference and my notes surprise me.
i3 integrates technology solutions to accelerate business results
This slide – from Bill Eggers – jumped right out at me. It paints home exactly what I’m looking for as a business owner, what business owners and executives are looking for and what government entities are looking for:
- - Help me accelerate business growth and profitability
- - Help me lower costs and increase efficiency
- - Help me manage my business risk.
Again, most business owners and executives don’t really care about technology. They just want it to work. They want technology ReliabilITy.
i3 integrates technology solutions to accelerate business results
XChange Public Sector 2011
I took away an unexpected concept from this conference: agile I.T. spending requires the ability to fail fast.
First I heard Bill Eggers, Global Director, Public Sector Research – Deloitte, speak about their study of government problem solving in a monolithic bureaucracy. The challenge or opportunity progresses from idea to design through a <stargate> to implementation. So many government programs fail and a few succeed right at the ‘magical – inexplicable’ stargate that there must be a better way. Did you know that the IRS modernization project has been underway for over 25 years and countless billions of dollars? NASA has turned to crowd sourcing. NASA is posting their technical challenges to the internet and 180,000 people are signed on. Congress authorized payment for viable solutions!
Vivek Kundra, US CIO, has implemented a stock symbol chart for government projects. Vested individuals can buy virtual stock in the project’s success creating a type of odds view. People know! They chart the red and green ticker tracking on government IT projects! Vivek’s objective is to move toward success or failure faster. Pull the plug and move on! See which ones stick and move on.
Rishi Sood, Vice President, Government at Gartner, spoke. Government is reprioritizing to cloud solutions and agile I.T. Budget constraints and declines are roiling and changing everything. Bring fast – flexible – agile solutions to government problems to set yourself apart and win business.
Michael Humke, Vice President at Ingram Micro stated that Government entities typically define the solution to their problem with an RFP. Then they go acquire the product or services. Is that how Apple works? Is that how Apple iPads are showing up all over government departments? Did a government entity write an RFP looking for a small rectangular device that would accelerate productivity and decisions? No, Apple created a platform – a solution, then application solutions are built on top of it – fast and flexible – to solve business and government problems. This is the big switch. Bring innovative services and solutions to your customers and prospects to deliver fast flexible solutions. This is how we drive change in business and government.
This was a government conference. Government procurement is changing due to financial mandates – political mandates – federal cost cutting. Therefore, government technology acquisition is changing. Rather then writing massive RFP & RFQs for specific predefined criteria and solutions – they’re open to new – innovative – cost saving solutions.
My i3 technology lesson: workability – fast prototyping – fail fast is the lesson that I took away. Did you know that Facebook was prototyped / beta for 2 months? Did you know that Twitter was prototyped / beta for 2 weeks? That was Bill Egger’s point. Execute – succeed or fail and move on. You should know that, “i3 comes from an enterprise heritage from an IBM Premier Partner foundation – not a couple of IT guys stringing networks and PCs together.” This enterprise quality and class technology is now our strength and weakness. In today’s competitive and fast changing business environment we must move to fast – flexible – innovative implementations and solutions. This is the big switch in my head – we must execute business and technological improvements expeditiously and be willing to fail, start over and move on.
Technological innovation is delivering new and different ways to accelerate your organizational results. I suggest that you open your mind to new and different ideas. Try a few out to see what works and doesn’t work.
Succeed or fail fast – because three years from now – it all changes.
Michael Ritsema i3 Business Solutions, LLCMike takes you on a tour of i3 Business Solutions 03/13/2011
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Technology Marches On – Accelerating Business Results 02/21/2011
Posted by mritsema in business intelligence, government.Tags: Capitalism, entrepreneurial, Inspirational, Leadership, Management, Motivational, Productivity, Technology, Wealth
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i3 Business Solutions accelerates business results by integrating intelligent information. Here’s a fascinating read about the impact of technology on productivity and jobs. Bad news: a recession is the shrinking of our economy (Gross Domestic Product – GDP) typically involving a loss of jobs. Good news: disruptive innovation typically involving technology accelerates our economy growing GDP and pulling us out of a recession. Bad news: this process doesn’t always add jobs quickly. That’s what’s happening right now in America.
Andy Kessler states in the February 17, 2011 Wall Street Journal, “So where the heck are all the jobs? Eight-hundred billion in stimulus and $2 trillion in dollar-printing and all we got were a lousy 36,000 jobs last month. That’s not even enough to absorb population growth. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that in December some 4,184,000 workers (seasonally adjusted) were hired, and 4,162,000 were “separated” (i.e., laid off or quit). This turnover tells the story of our economy—especially if you focus on jobs lost as a clue to future job growth.”
Is Your Job an Endangered Species?
Technology is eating jobs—and not just obvious ones like toll takers and phone operators. Lawyers and doctors are at risk as well.
Technology marches on creating productivity in different areas of our economy. That’s the business i3 Business Solutions is in. We help organizations do more with less. We help improve productivity within organizations. We help organizations spend less money and make more money. Organizational leaders don’t really care about the technology. They just want to be more productive. Fear not: Kessler concludes, “Ultimately the economic growth created by new jobs always overwhelms the drag from jobs destroyed—if policy makers let it happen.”
The economy is heating up and we’re feeling it. We’re buried to swamped here at i3! I’m optimistic about 2011! Companies are screaming at i3, “Help me be more productive and profitable.”
We’re answering that call in a timely and efficient manner.
Michael Ritsema i3 Business Solutions, LLCSave Time, Save Money, and be more productive. www.i3reliability.com 01/18/2011
Posted by mritsema in business intelligence, cloud computing, development, healthcare, ibm, managed services, microsoft, security, virtualization, web, web services.Tags: Cloud Services, Cloud Support, IT, IT support, IT Support Services, Network Support
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Thoughts from Mike Ritsema (a man addicted to personal and professional growth.) 01/17/2011
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Team:
I’d like to see you meet your personal, financial, physical, mental and spiritual needs. That is, I’d like you to thrive at work and in your own lives. Are you getting what you want from work? Are you getting what you want from your life?
I received this invitation to the TEDx Macatawa meeting this Friday:
About this talk
To find the path to long life and health, Dan Buettner and team study the world’s “Blue Zones,” communities whose elders live with vim and vigor to record setting age. At TEDxTC he shares 9 common diet and lifestyle habits that keep them spry past age 100.
About Dan Buettner
Buettner, a world-renowned explorer and a writer for National Geographic, travels the world seeking out new Blue Zones (he’s found five, to date) and speaking at seminars and on TV, sharing the habits that lead to long life. He is the founder of Quest Network, and has set three world records for endurance cycling.
I then surfed out to the web site to find this:
The Power 9 are specific lifestyle habits shared by the world’s longest living people. These lessons, discovered during Dan Buettner’s research in the world’s Blue Zones, emphasize making changes to your environment that will influence your habits. It’s much easier to promote good habits through environmental change than it is to force changes to long-standing behavior. Everything we do here at Blue Zones is in some way related to the Power 9 concepts.
The Power 9 breaks down into four domains:
Move Naturally – Gain 4 Years
1. Move (find ways to move mindlessly, make moving unavoidable)
Moving naturally is the idea of making low-intensity, daily physical activity an unavoidable part of your environment.
Right Outlook – Gain 4 Years
2. Plan de Vida (know your purpose in life)
3. Down Shift (work less, slow down, rest, take vacation)
A healthy outlook is an important component of longevity. The Okinawans call it “ikigai”, and Nicoyans call it “plan de vida,” but in both cultures the phrase means “why I wake up in the morning.”
Eat Wisely – Gain 8 Years
4. 80% Rule (stop eating when you’re 80% full)
5. Plant-Power (more veggies, less protein and processed foods)
6. Red Wine (consistency and moderation)
You know it’s true: you are what you eat. We want to explore not only what you eat, but how, when, and with whom.
Connect – Gain 4 Years
7. Belong (create a healthy social network)
8. Beliefs (spiritual or religious participation)
9. Your Tribe (make family a priority)
Belonging to the right group of healthy-minded, supportive people might be the most powerful thing you can do to change your lifestyle for the better.
“Accept the challenges, so that you feel the exhilaration of victory” – General George S. Patton
Lifelong Learning | Wisdom 10/18/2010
Posted by mritsema in business intelligence, tangents.Tags: Business, Cloud Management, Education, Leadership, Productivity, Technology
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This poster from www.SuccessWallpapers.com resonates with me. I talk to my children about it a fair amount, too. It’s especially applicable in the technology industry. This industry is roiling and churning. It’s changing and catapulting forward. The inexorable wheels of technology grind forward. Are you keeping up? Am I keeping up?
How does one define wisdom anyway? Is it the highest IQ in the room? Is it the most degreed individual? Is it the most ‘professional’, coiffed, presentable person? Could it be the most effective person? The person who gets things done? The person who figures it out?
I mean, how relevant is the knowledge acquired in the mid ’60s, ‘70s or ‘80s? Thomas Edison and Bill Gates never graduated from College! They’re fairly well respected. Isn’t the ability to learn, enjoying ever learning and choosing to learn new things of significant value?
Wisdom
Regardless of your or my definition of Wisdom, one thing is certain: continuous learning has significant value – especially in the technology industry. George Santayana said, “The wisest mind has something yet to learn.” Amen, teach me something I don’t know.
You’re contributing to your organization. You’re contributing substantially and measurably. Seek to learn more – seek new ideas, observe, study and apply your daily experience. Trust yourself as your wisdom grows.
Bring your great and unique wisdom to the ever changing world of business and technology.
Michael Ritsemai3 Business Solutions, llc
Selflessness & Service 09/20/2010
Posted by mritsema in advertising, business intelligence, ibm.Tags: Business, IBM, Leadership, Management, Technology
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Last Wednesday, September 14th, 2010, I went to Kent Country Club in Grand Rapids, Michigan to hear August Turak speak for the American Marketing Association (AMA) West Michigan. I went because he was speaking about his recently published Business Secrets of the Trappists in Forbes.com. This four-part series topped the charts as Forbes’ most highly rated article. August draws on his experience as the protégé of the man who founded the IBM Executive School, 14 years working alongside the Trappist monks of Mepkin Abbey, and over 30 years of business experience. I had to hear this guy.
August Turak and The Trappist Monks
August delivered a metaphorical message about transformation as it relates to movies, marketing, business and life. I found the message compelling. Do you know that a MegaTrends 2010 is spirituality? August spent a lot of time developing our attraction to movies like Avatar. He discussed Joseph Campbell’s book The Hero with a Thousand Faces, which lays out the spiritually transformational journey of life. It is the journey from selfishness to selflessness. It is this fundamental human condition – reflected in the movies and books that we love – that is the longing for transformation. August Turak says:
“It’s in our own self-interest to forget our self-interest.”
Then came the tie to business and marketing. There are 3 transformations in life, marketing or business – a change of:
- Condition
- Circumstance
- Being
Pepsi’s marketing hit the change of condition with “refreshing,” then hit circumstance with “think young.” Coke nailed it with their successful commercial – some of you may not recall – 4 decades ago, “I want to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony …” – sung on the mountaintops of life. A lofty goal suggesting a change of being. I saw that commercial, with our family, 15 years ago at the World of Coca-Cola tour on the way to Florida. Wow, did that bring back memories.
And what do you deliver to your customers? Do you deliver a change of condition, circumstance or being? The question I have is:
“How do we convey that we do more than fix or improve – we fix and improve life or business?”
August’s message reminded me of the book, The Go Giver. How do we move from selfishness to selflessness? How do we convey the selfless transformational overarching mission that includes a culture of excellence, integrity, faith, trust and performance? Suggestions, ideas, comments? Bring them on.
That, it appears to me, is the challenge of life, business and marketing.
Michael Ritsemai3 Business Solutions, llc
EMR: What is the current status of “meaningful use”, and what does it mean for your practice? 08/03/2010
Posted by tbc4thaadsma in business intelligence, development, government, healthcare, ibm, managed services, microsoft, web.Tags: EMR, healthcare, IBM, Managed Services, Medical Records, microsoft
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Some improvements in the “meaningful use” final rule sought by the AMA were accepted, but the Association says many practices still face barriers to adoption.
By Chris Silva, amednews staff. Posted Aug. 2, 2010.
Washington — While the final rule determining what constitutes “meaningful use” of electronic medical records provides some needed leeway for physicians, barriers to EMR adoption and implementation remain for doctors, according to the American Medical Association.
The AMA said in a July 21 statement that it had helped effect some positive changes in the final rule, including a reduction in the total number of measures, from 25 to 20, that physicians have to meet in order to qualify for Medicare and Medicaid EMR bonuses in the first two years.
The minimum thresholds for meeting several measures also were reduced. For example, the requirement that a doctor use an EMR for computerized physician order entry of medication orders decreased. Instead of mandating that more than 80% of patients have at least one drug ordered through CPOE, the threshold will be more than 30% of patients. Thresholds also were reduced for transmitting electronic prescriptions and implementing clinical decision support tools.
EMR bonus program poses tight deadline for physicians
But the AMA says physicians still face several challenges in becoming compliant in time. There is no EMR system on the market now that offers the capabilities needed for physicians to become meaningful users. Federal officials expect such systems to become available this fall, which would give practices only a few months to install and test the technology before the Jan. 1, 2011, start date of the incentive program. Physicians who already have invested in EMRs now must upgrade their systems to meet certification criteria.
In addition, the total number of measures that physicians have to meet is still too high, the AMA says. The final rule divides the initial 25 meaningful use objectives into two categories: a core group of 15 objectives and a “menu set” of 10 objectives, from which they can choose any five to defer in 2011-12.
Also, some of the thresholds for meeting the objectives remain high, the AMA says. For example, one measure requires physicians to maintain an up-to-date problem list of current and active diagnoses for more than 80% of patients. In addition, there is no mechanism for physicians to appeal any decision made during the incentive program.
“The final requirements for the meaningful use of EHRs are an improvement over previous drafts, but challenges still remain that will make it difficult for physicians to meet the requirements — especially physicians in solo and small practices,” said AMA Board of Trustees member and Secretary Steven J. Stack, MD.
During a July 20 hearing, members of the House Ways and Means health subcommittee probed the administration’s progress so far in shaping an EMR incentive program that is user-friendly for physicians and hospitals, yet that also yields a maximum benefit for taxpayers and patients.
Some lawmakers expressed concern that the administration may have gone too far in watering down the requirements in its final rule. But officials said the changes to the final rule were necessary to ensure that doctors and hospitals do not become overwhelmed.
“We wanted to make it possible for a small rural practice to become a meaningful user just as much as a large urban practice,” said David Blumenthal, MD, the national health information technology coordinator. “It is not fair to hold accountable individual physicians who desperately want to become meaningful users.”
Eugene Heslin, MD, a family physician in Saugerties, N.Y., testified that EMRs can be an effective and vital tool for small practices, despite some of the barriers they may face during adoption.
Dr. Heslin explained how paperless records may have saved the life of one of his elderly patients. The patient showed up at an emergency department with shortness of breath and had given paramedics a list of medications that Dr. Heslin determined from his home computer were incorrect — it was actually a list for the patient’s wife. If the patient’s EMR had not been available to him at home, the outcome may have been a lot different, he said.
“Is meeting the criteria going to be easy for physicians and hospitals? Absolutely not,” said Dr. Heslin, who is head physician at Bridge Street Medical Group, a six-physician practice. “But they will help me persuade my colleagues that there is critical mass, it is doable at the community level, and that they need to move now along the same pathway to benefit patients and their community.”
The print version of this content appeared in the Aug. 9 issue of American Medical News.
Surprising truth about what motivates us | RSA Animate 05/17/2010
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Video is becoming a real option for organizations of all sizes to talk with customers on the Web. Here’s a clever use of whiteboarding animation used to enhance an audio-only presentation, making the concepts really compelling and coherent. It’s like a 10-minute version of those UPS whiteboard ads on TV.
Oh, and the subject matter is fascinating, too:
Twenty Trends For The 2010s | Digital Rules | Rich Karlgaard 01/27/2010
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GR Press photo of Rich Karlgaard at Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, Jan 2009
Rich Karlgaard is the editor of Forbes, a prolific witer, and talks all over the country, and isn’t always right. However, he’s one of the brightest business leaders out there in the publishing world.
Last January he spoke at the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce annual lunch and went out on a limb by saying that already he saw signs of recovery from The Recession– when most everyone else was still in shock, fearful and reeling from the financial meltdown of the preceding months.
Rich has an intriguing list of predictions for the coming decade, and all are worthy of a read.
Me, I’m thinking over number 9:
“9. One Cloud Company Or Another Becomes the Most Valuable Company on Earth
“Moore’s Law continues at the pace of 2x every two years. Bandwidth improves 3x every two years. These trends predict ubiquitous cloud cover for planet earth. Who will own the giant fog machine? Google? Cisco? Microsoft? Amazon? Huawei?”
via Twenty Trends For The 2010s « Forbes.com: Digital Rules By Rich Karlgaard – Forbes.com.
Capitalism: the movement of capital 07/11/2009
Posted by mritsema in business intelligence, government.Tags: Business, Capitalism, entrepreneurial, Management, Wealth
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Have you ever heard of Ann Landers, Hillary Clinton or Bill O’Reilly? If so, then you’ve heard of Creators Syndicate.
Creators Syndicate is under assault by the the City of Los Angelas, CA to feed its budget deficit. The city is running out of money and arbitrarily changing tax classifications to raise more money. Read more about the drama in the WSJ, July 10, 2009 edition:
Why We’ll Leave L.A.
The business climate is worse than the air quality.
Capitalism by definition is a social – economic system where private investment and profit motive are a foundation for societal progress. In a free society, like the USA, capital can and does move to its most profitable return on investment. This movement can be city to city, state to state or country to country. About 20 years ago the business / ministry called Focus On The Family moved out of California to Colorado Springs, Colorado to lower their tax burden. Creators Syndicate is considering a similar move.
Private enterprise moves to the lowest cost of capital. These costs include, taxes, borrowing, social stability, security and more. The change that the federal government makes has intended and unintended consequences – as do city and state government decisions.
And in a free society, private investment, private industry, private capital will move to its highest return on investment – be it in another city, state or country.
Therein lies the political and philosophical differences between conservatives and liberals: are the consequences of our various political decisions improving or hurting America?
Michael Ritsema i3 Business Solutions, LLC10 reasons to purchase new hardware during a recession | 10 Things | TechRepublic.com 04/30/2009
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In tough times like these, it’s tempting to put off urgent IT hardware purchases. But you can shoot yourself in the foot by doing so, for a number of reasons–
10 reasons, to be precise.
I really think one of the most important is that your best people may be less productive, and productivity and results are the name for the game right now. Reason #2 from the list at TR:
“When PCs, displays, or network switches fail, it may be tempting to visit an old parts closet to dig out replacements. Old, entry-level Celeron- or Pentium-powered PCs with 256MB of RAM and rattling power supplies won’t help managers (now often responsible for production tasks, too, due to departmental layoffs) efficiently complete expanded task lists. Nor will such machines enable overworked colleagues to run QuickBooks, CRM applications, or proprietary programs smoothly. Nor will a 15″ CRT enable productivity gains when replacing a 22″ widescreen monitor used to display customer information alongside order entry software.
The same is true for network equipment. Outdated hubs and routers were decommissioned for a reason. They were either too slow, failed to operate properly, or didn’t meet the organization’s needs. They certainly won’t improve productivity now, when staff sizes are smaller, remaining employees must absorb the workload of laid-off staff, and stress levels climb ever higher. The subsequent delays and inefficiencies translate to lost opportunities, poor customer experiences, and less revenue.”
We’re working with our i3 Business Soultions customers every day who realize the only way to recovery and success is making good deals now for critical business systems.
Read all 10 business reasons at the TechRepublic blog:
via 10 reasons to purchase new hardware during a recession | 10 Things | TechRepublic.com.
