Northfield Technology Group, LLC

New Use For Collaboration Tools

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:53:00 +0000

Today, members of the IT organization and HR interviewed a candidate using Live Meeting. The feedback on the process (and the candidate) were positive. The participants were in several cities. Nobody had to travel, we didn't have to pay for airfare and hotel rooms, and we were able to get more people involved in the process more readily.

This has been a great week to showcase the value of the new tools we have implemented. This weeks snowstorm didn't slow down progress for a day as it would have in the past, we were able to use the tool to vet a candidate, and our company is conducting sales meetings using web conferencing (instead of having the sales team on the road losing time and productivity).

These tools offer real flexibility and introduce new ways to work and connect to colleagues in the office. This really is changing the way we work for the better.

Unified Messaging and Collaboration

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:23:00 +0000

Over the past six months we implemented the full unified messaging suite from Microsoft. We have instant messaging, live meeting, round table video conferencing, speech access to Outlook, and voice mail in your inbox. Today we are experiencing blizzard conditions and there are a many of my co-workers working remotely.

This technology has changed the way we work and it makes days like today seem like just any other day. I am sitting on my couch using Office Communicator to chat with fellow employees and take calls from vendors and partners. Last night I used speech access to listen to my email messages and respond to senders by sending my comments back in a recorded waive file. Very easy and it made my drive home more productive and the time past very quickly.

This really isn't about technology for the sake of technology. Unified messaging is changing the way we work and it is for the better.

Cool app

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 03:45:00 +0000

I posted this using BlogPress on my iPhone. Very easy and the price (free) was right.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Cloud Computing...Is this something new?

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:01:00 +0000

I see a lot of buzz on the web about cloud computing. People ask; Is this the end of IT departments?, Does cloud computing put a stain on IT departments?, Which applications are best suited to the cloud?, etc.

From my perspective, cloud computing has been around for a very long time, albeit by other names. I worked for a bank service company and we provide thousands of banks with all of their business application over a secure network (before the Internet) and eventually over the web. In addition, I worked for BNY Clearing where we provided a brokerage workstation platform that was 100% web-based to hundreds of investment companies in the late 90's and early part of this decade.

I don't think cloud computing is a terribly huge deal for IT departments and I dont think there are too many applications that wont work well in the cloud. IT departments should approach these opportunities just as you would any outsourcing decision. The good news for IT is that there is an ever growing list of service options to consider.

The key IT challenges will center on security, identity management, and compliance issues. From an end-user perspective password management will be huge. Your users wont want to have to remember dozens of passwords.

Connecting the dots...

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:54:00 +0000

Strategic planning can be complicated. There are a ton of methods and processes available to map strategies and align initiatives and goals. It is easy to get caught in the details and to focus on internal issues. One thing is for certain, markets are brutally efficient at torpedoing misguided plans.

I always start planning efforts by examining what is happening in the marketplace (e.g. competitors, regulatory environment, customers and consumer behaviors). Once you have a sharper view of marketplace trends and drivers, see how your company aligns to those trends and where it doesn't. That will give you insight into potential strategic initiatives. Over the years, I have seen many firms that get away from market drivers when building plans. It is easy to let this happen. As IT leaders, we can add value to organizations by helping business partners see these connections. Make sure your IT plans connect to your business partners plans, and make sure you understand how your IT plans help your firm respond to market drivers.

If you do this well, you will achieve the sought after "trusted advisor" status in your company.

Read This Every Morning To Get Focused on Whats Important!

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:46:00 +0000

"You're time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life and don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become."

Steve Jobs - 2005 Stanford Commencement Address

Budgets and Options

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 18:50:00 +0000

As we work on the budget for next fiscal year, I am reminded of the importance of providing options to business partners. This means thinking about the best investment options and weighing them against "good enough" options. You certainly don't want to compromise on choices that require high support costs downstream, even when the choices are less expensive to implement initially.

Often business partners don't understand the nuances between options. It is tempting to explain them in great detail...avoid this if you can, just stick to the basics. High level trade-offs and benefits are all you need. I try and get it down to one page. Much more than that often leads to impatience and misunderstanding. I had a collegue that used to say - "Dont build a rocketship to the moon when all you need is to get around the corner". You get the idea.

When taking a consultative approach and providing options you have a much better chance at building stronger ties with business partners. They will see you as trying to understand and support their business. Taking this type of approach is especially critical when working with business partners that haven't had a lot of exposure to IT. New-to-IT partners often have little exposure to the costs of creating or buying solutions. They also don't think of the downstream support implications of their needs. Be patient, take your time and answer all of their questions.

It is these little things that can make or break a strong partnership.

Reflecting on 9/11

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 04:59:00 +0000

It is hard to believe that 8 years have gone by since 9/11/2001. Watched some of the specials on cable. A colleague and I were scheduled to be in New York and in the trade centers that morning but we changed the plans the prior business day. We were one of the lucky ones.

Hard to think about all of the lost lives and the overwhelming impact that the tragic event has had on so many people. For a short period of time after the event, New Yorkers and the country as a whole were warm and friendly, and upbeat. It seems like that warmth is missing today. The pressures of the economy and the political climate have taken their toll. Still, however, I remain optimistic about the future. This is a great country where anything is possible and I believe the American spirit is still alive and well.

Better days are ahead!

Another Milestone

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 11:43:00 +0000

Well, tomorrow my daughter is getting married. Life moves quickly at times and this is one of moments. I really like her choice of husband so that makes the milestone an even more fun and exiting one. I like this time in my life...it is good to see your kids grow up and take the next step in their life journey. I have been given a lot of advice about the wedding...the best advice is just relax and enjoy it. I intend to do just that.

Twitter Update

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 22:01:00 +0000

So back in April I was feeling a big fatigued with the volume of daily tweets. I spoke to a good friend and colleague about this and he shared his philosophy regarding tweets. He said the mistake a lot of people make is they treat Twitter as another inbox to check. If he is off the grid for a time and there is an accumulation of Tweets, he gives himself permission to ignore them.

I have adapted this approach and it has made the experience a bit more tolerable. Thanks Kevin!

It's Budget Season Again

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:31:00 +0000

Time once again for the annual budget process. We try to keep things simple at our firm. We ask our business partners to provide two priority lists. One list that includes strategic projects; defined as those that help them meet annual plan goals. The second list a includes projects that are important but could wait if time and money were constraints.

This approach works. It typically means that only ballpark estimate the strategic projects. The initial proforma fiscal year project portfolio includes only these projects. This is the list that gets vetted with business partners and management. Projects that survive the cut are the ones that need to be executed well. We typically don't ballpark estimate the second priority list because there are generally more projects in the strategic list than we can afford or handle.

This year we have added another category of project activity. Since there are always projects that aren't anticipated during the year, we are adding a contingency of dollars to handle ad hoc projects. This category of projects comes under the heading of "reactive capacity". The amount of resources reserved for reactive capacity can be elevated to a management discussion. The key points are how much can we afford and how do we reduce the need for reactive projects. In other words, how do the businesses do a better job anticipating market demand, and operation improvements.

This is a challenging and thought provoking time of year. It makes you ask the right and most basic questions. The key questions are; What projects help position us in the marketplace, which give us a competitive advantage, and which give us sustainable cost advantage.

This year will be more challenging given the economic pressures we and our customers face. All the more reason to get the projects right. Good luck with your planning!

Living Off the Grid

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:59:00 +0000

I have been in my new home for almost two years now. Google Maps still doesn't recognize where my home address is. I always have to send directions to people, not to mention the pizza delivery guy. I wonder how long it will take to become googlized.

Keeping Up On My Blog

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:03:00 +0000

I have a goal of trying to get at least one blog post per month. I typically don't have a problem coming up with ideas to write about...my problem is I haven't been good about writing down the ideas when they come up and then taking the time to organize my thoughts in preparation for a blog post.

I have come up with a way to develop and maintain a list of topics - now all I have to do is make time to write. I am open to ideas...perhaps I should reserve time on my calendar to take a topic or two and post to my blog. Anyone have any great ideas on how best to do this?

Good Book on Leadership

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Thu, 28 May 2009 16:10:00 +0000

I recently read a book called "Leadership and Self-Deception" by t he Arbinger Institute. The book was published on 2000 however the message and lessons are excellent. From the Book:

Self-deception is the root of most interpersonal problems. When we fail to do something for another that we know we should do, we betray ourselves and begin to resist the other person; to justify that resistance, we begin to blame. When we blame, we begin to see others in a way to justify that blame, and then we are "in the box." When "in the box," we cease to see reality (we deceive ourselves) and instead create negative interactions with others, shifting focus from attaining mutually beneficial results to blaming one another for failing to achieve results. In short:

1. An act contrary to what I feel I should do for another is called an act of "self-betrayal".

2. When I betray myself, I begin to see the world in a way that justifies my self-betrayal.

3. When I see a self-justifying world, my view of reality becomes distorted.

4. So - when I betray myself, I enter the box.

5. Over time, certain boxes become characteristic of me, and I carry them with me.

6. By being IN the box, I provoke others to be in the box.

7. In the box, we invite mutual mistreatment and obtain mutual justification. We collude in giving each other reason to stay in the box.

So What About Twitter?

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 15:01:00 +0000

I have been thinking about the value Twitter brings. I am leaning on the side of TMI...For me it takes too much of my time to actively participate. I see value in some circumstances but it is hard to wade through so many tweets to get it.

Jury is still out for me. What do you think?

Virtual Work Place Update

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 13:29:00 +0000

We are completing our pilot of Microsoft Office Communicator, Live Meeting, Roundtable, and Office 2007. Feedback has been very postive. People are amazed at the simple elegance of the solutions. Presence awareness has made it easy to contact one another wherever people are. You control who can contact you via communicator and under what circumstances. If you calendar says you are in a meeting, only your designated teammates can contact you.

This technology has been a lot of fun to implement. I have received almost 1oo% positive feedback. We did hear from a small minotity regarding the conversion to Office 2007. It does take a bit of getting used to. We provided training aids including an integrated Office tool that lets you see how something in Office 2003 was done and where it is in Office 2007. A nice and cost effective tool (free from Microsoft).

Live Meeting and Microsoft Roundtable have been a hit too. Our business partners indicate that this will save on trips between factories in the U.S. and China.

Later this year, we are tackling voice integration and speech access. More fun and great productivity for people on the go!

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

Is building an Ecommerce Site More about Technology or Business?

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 00:12:00 +0000

This is a question that IT professionals ask every time the topic surfaces. Of course the answer is that ecommerce site creation is both about business and technology. Business leaders often start the process of an ecommerce site by tossing the project over the wall to IT. As IT leaders, we need to guide our business leaders and focus them on work flow, inventory, customer support, and customer issues first.

Very often business decisions have to be made, new workflows, and customer service functions have to be designed. Thought has to be given to thinking through how to maintain or even enhance the customer experience on ecommerce sites. Business leaders should be concerned with maintaining customer intimacy and replicating the in-person experience of buying in more traditional venues.

Technology leaders have to think about the resiliency of the site. They need to ensure that their site is designed for ease of use and maintainability. They think about recoverability in the event of a disaster; is a hot site platform needed? How quickly does the site need to be recovered? This represents an area where IT and the business need to be in sync. Too much infrastructure makes the site costly; too little means your firm may be a risk if recovery in a disaster is too difficult or time consuming.

In tackling these issues, it is best to begin with the end customers; the ones that will be using the site. This is best accomplished through field research. This means getting out in your customers natural habitat and seeing how they operate. Try and visit a customer that uses a competitor site. See what works and what doesn’t work. If you don’t have this luxury, site visits are still crucial. In this case, conceptual design models are a good way to test ideas with clients. In the user-experience world story-boards and paper prototypes can be used to determine the viability of your ideas. Site visits and direct customer involvement will also help you develop a site roadmap. You will begin to get a picture of what features are must haves, and which are not.

Operationally, ecommerce sites bring new challenges. If you traditionally serve your customers through brick and mortar locations as an example, you have to think about how you can replicate the in store experience or the in branch experience of a bank or brokerage office on your web site. For consumer sites, supply chain challenges need to be dealt with. How will returns be handled? Will clients want to return products to your physical locations? Will you pay for return shipping if they send the item back via USPS or FedEx.

Bottom-line, building a successful ecommerce site must be orchestrated where both business and technology requirements are discussed in concert. When contemplating a business case for developing a site, make sure all of the relevant start-up costs, on-going support costs (including software maintenance, hosting fees, incremental staff, etc), and benefits are taken into account. Benefits may take the form of new revenue, revenue loss prevention and soft benefits (e.g. better customer service).

As with many projects, building ecommerce sites is a blend of both solid business and technology requirements. Work with your business partners to make sure they know what is needed to succeed. Get the right project management and team resources in place and don’t skip the field research. If you do these things, your ecommerce project will be successful.

For more in-depth information or how-too's, contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

A Post From the Past

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 00:54:00 +0000

Someone reminded me of this post...I thought it was worth mentioning it again especially in light of the many job cuts that are occurring these days.

http://northfieldtechnology.blogspot.com/2008/05/when-you-leave-firm.html

Closing in on a year at Red Wing

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 00:23:00 +0000

In May last year I blogged about my first impressions of the culture and spirit at Red Wing Shoe Company. I was impressed then and I remain even more so today with the firms commitment and passion for the business. The passion permeates all levels of the firm. I meet with many vendors and partners and they are intrigued by the firm and our success.

It is fun to see their reaction to our products...most look forward to a trip to the company store. They almost always buy boots or shoes. I get emails months later with reviews...all are positive.

I am thankful to be working for a firm that cares about the town, its employees, and its products. Looking forward the next 100 years of success.

Time Off

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 02:06:00 +0000

I am relaxing in Asheville North Carolina this week and having a great time. It reminds me that taking time away and recharging the batteries is a crucial part of staying sharp and contributing to your team's and company's successess.

I find it hard however not to check in every so often...I have to remind myself that the team back at the office is enjoying the break too...Talk about a win-win :)

Remember to disconnect while you are away...it does a body good..

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

Leadership Self-assessment

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 16:00:00 +0000

Here is a helpful tool that you can use to assess your leadership skills. This is based on work done by Harvard a number of years ago regarding Emotional Intelligence. I refer to it frequently and it helps to keep me grounded and focused on my performance as a member of the many teams that I work with.

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

Setting Project Goals

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 15:36:00 +0000

First, let me say I believe the discipline of building project plans, mapping resources, planning and scheduling tasks is the best way to establish project milestones and completion dates. Sometimes however, setting goals for projects prior to formal planning can get creative juices flowing. This approach has shown to be a value catalyst to getting things done, especially when the project stakes are high.

Project goal setting encourages creative and innovative thinking regarding project phasing and resource planning. While at RSM, I established a 90 day goal for a datacenter move, employee intranet launch, migration from Lotus Notes to Exchange and more. We marshaled resources and developed a phased approach to getting all of this done – there were many that initially thought the objectives were too aggressive and not doable. We had to work to get people to think openly and creatively about what it would take to get everything done. I asked people to put their reservations aside and focus on the notion that if you were going to try and do the impossible – what would it take …

Frankly I had my doubts about the amount of work, the risks, and the impact on people, and on IT's reputation and my longevity if we failed. Once people focused on the possibilities – knowing that they had my commitment to adjust the date if there were too many roadblocks or risks – they came up with a realistic and doable plan to make it all happen. I think even the naysayers were surprised by the fresh ideas that emerged when given the chance to think without constraint. In the end, we accomplished all we set out to accomplish at RSM. It was fun and we all had a real sense of accomplishment.

A big part of our success was establishing a common goal and asking the team to act as one. I think this approach is repeatable. You have to have the right team and circumstances. I do at my new firm and we are embarking on a series of strategic project and where we are establishing some aggressive goal. Let the fun begin. I will let you know what we do over the coming months.

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

Happy New Year!

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 07:20:00 +0000

Have a happy and prosperous new year in 2009! I am very optimistic that the economy will begin to recover in the second half of the year and things will be look good for IT professionals. Thanks for reading my blog in 2008, see you in the new year.

Happy New Year!!!

Surprising Relief!

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 13:44:00 +0000

I carry two cell phones, one is my home phone and the other is my work phone. Both are PDA's, well until last week when I decided to swap out my home PDA for a standard flip phone. My home phone was a windows-based device that I connected to all of my email accounts. My office PDA (an iPhone) is of course connected to my office email and more.

I was tired of carrying two bulky devices. I decided to take a gamble and let go of the personal email and Internet on my home device. Besides being a bit more cost friendly, it also gave me a surprising benefit, an incredible sense of relief. I am no longer compelled to pick up my phone for each email message or alert that I received because my new phone doesn't have any of those features. I feel more relaxed...A friend of mine use to tell me to put down my "date" every time I got am message or alert. Funny right! But seriously, I don't think I realized how connected I had become to my personal phone. I was addicted to it.

It has been a week since I swapped out the phone and I have to say, I am more relaxed! Life is simpler somehow.

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.

When Expectations Are High!

jtopinka@northfieldtechnology.com (Northfield Technology Group) — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 03:50:00 +0000

When you are fortunate to secure a growth budget in this economy managements expectations will be high and so will those of your business partners. This is a great opportunity to show your company what IT can do when management supports strategic initiatives. People will ask, do you feel the pressure! Of course you will, but what better time to demonstrate what you and your team can deliver.

The key is to stay focused on your top initiatives. Pursue them with energy and rigor. Stay close to projects, issues, and staffing challenges. Conduct regular project status meetings, know where things stand, and communicate with stakeholders and management. Transparency is key. Regular update meetings with project team members sends a message that you are committed to getting things done.

Good luck, and learn to eat pressure for breakfast - because success will bring higher expectations.

For more in-depth information , contact Northfield Technology for a consulation.