A Perfect 10?

As the use of technology shifted from support of mature products to the delivery of new ones. It is also moved from a cost cutting position to one of profit generation. It is appropriate, because of this shift in emphasis, to examine some basic concepts which can help ensure that IT can maximise its contribution.

There are usually a wide range of options available when examining how a computer system can assist the organisation. This range of options can be visualised as points on a scale which ranges from a manual system through to the most comprehensive and complete system possible.

A problem which has to be faced is that almost everyone, users and IT staff alike are drawn to the most complex solution. It is perfectly natural to aim for this type of solution, indeed, there are some situations when there are no alternatives.

The real question is whether the 'perfect' solution is something which should be viewed as the first system to be delivered, or more realistically, viewed as something which should be aimed at, but delivered in more simple guises over a period. If it is accepted that the 'perfect' solution is something that should be worked towards, then the way it can be achieved is by going through a series of evolution's. This evolutionary process has considerable business benefits and, as we shall see later, matches the product life cycle approach.

Cows?

The next area where IT was used, again in a cost cutting role, was in that of well established cash cows where the low market growth left cost reduction as the only way of increasing profits. Increasingly, however new products and services require computer systems from their inception through to potential stardom.

Who let the dogs out!

Although not always followed, the classical product life cycle starts with 'wild cats' , hopefully some of these will take off and become 'stars'. These 'stars' will eventually fade and become 'cash cows' , and if the cows are not careful the may end up as dogs.

One of the historical fact of IT life is that it was seen as a convenient way of cutting costs, and which of our matrix boxes provides the prime candidate for cost cutting? The dogs! Thus it was that the early days of IT were concerned with payroll systems, ledger systems etc.