Are you still using a generator to power your server room?
You are not alone. With the most recent spate of load shedding ravaging our country, many businesses in South Africa find themselves at the mercy of harmful, smoke-emitting, diesel-powered generators. These generators, though once a reasonably efficient method of offsetting the effects of load shedding, are now considered costly, intrusive, and ineffective. The utter damage that can be caused to the electrical and IT infrastructure of your business by these unpredictable power surges and their effects are a major concern for organisations. Of course, organisations also have the alternative to employ costly backup batteries to help quell the side effects [...]
My basic purpose
I'm often asked why I do what I do. I know the answer deep down, but I rarely publish it. During the global shock of COVID-19, I had no choice but to confront the question again. This is a very personal post that deliberately focuses on me. From a young age, I knew I enjoyed making a lot from very little. I loved working to get as much value from something as I could. Given a little, I see the opportunity and I make magic. Growing up, I worked at my gran's shop during school holidays. With my [...]
Seriously, is that a lawnmower? Basic etiquette for online meetings
During a time like this, virtual meetings are a necessity. These can be agonising if not done right. I used to work from a Dubai office while my extended team sat across many countries. The rules that follow are a result of lessons learned during this time. Online meetings come with peculiar liabilities. Basic etiquette can solve these. This post applies more to meetings than webinars. Both call for different sets of conduct. 1. The Golden Rule: Treat your online meeting like a regular meeting Arrange your day so that you can be present during the meeting. If it [...]
Raising the game in IT
IT has come a long way from the days of merely supporting the business from afar. At the risk of sounding like an IT zealot, I must remark that IT is, today, a means by which all business is done. Try to remember the last time you were involved in a business transaction where technology did not form any part of executing the transaction. Let’s say you walked into a grocer, picked up a bottle of milk, paid for it in cash and left. Even in such a limited and simple transaction, it is likely that the till-point was automated, [...]
Changing IT buying patterns
Today's IT sales journey stands in stark contrast to the traditional IT "single go-live" mindset: "Let's go-live with our monumental project in 2 years!" followed by a period where users struggle to adopt and get used to the system. Everything happens in one fell swoop. The IT sales journey described below inverts this. It's all about lean methods: iterating and about learning through the life of the project. It's about a journey, not a final destination. Customer Expectations are shifting IT buyer expectations are shifting along the lines in which cloud is sold. Customers tend to favour smaller upfront purchases, [...]
Exploiting the power of content
Imagine Matt, he's a used muscle-car salesman. He wants to sell used muscle-cars. He gets decent traffic on his website via word of mouth and through print advertising, but he wants to increase that traffic and turn it into actual sales. Matt isn't sure where to start. How does he effectively enter a marketplace? How does marketing work in the digital era where options are plenty and bright lights are common place? How does he reach his audience, in particular, in ways that his competitors do not? How does he get his potential customers to want HIM to contact them, [...]