Is the bar too high?
December 30, 2005
In my last post I talked about Open Source Business StartUp - I may have set the bar too high. No sooner had I hit the post button and Vinnie Marchandani pops up with this gem . In talking about his 12 year old son, he says:
"He started asking me this week about investments and I offered to give him a small budget if he did some research. I fully expected him to pick some electronic or fast food company as his first stock. He picked Delta Airlines. I reasoned they are in bankruptcy and have lots of problems (as I have written often on this blog). He stuck with his decision…"
Maybe I set the bar too high. Maybe I should be asking 12 year olds what they think?
A platform for new business
December 30, 2005
Here’s a common problem plus a possible fix:
New businesses want as easy a ride as possible when they’re starting up. Administration is a pain in the backside - that’s one reason why professionals are needed.
But what would happen if there was a platform where, from day one, all the essentials a client needs to be in 21st century business was simply there - as an easy to use, maybe a ‘pick ‘n’ mix package?
What if your clients could try it out for nothing and only had to sign up on a pay as you go basis?
What if that meant you’d be able to do what really matters - like advise on the business of business?
How about if there were resources you could simply pull off the electronic shelf and that those resources could be refined for best practice and shared among your client community? A sort of Open Source Business StartUp package. Ok - I know there’s plenty of information resource out there but quite frankly, most of it sucks.
How for instance do any of us know whether the ’standard’ startup packs so many dish out is of real value? Surely what people need are simple tools where the purpose is obvious and where they add value. Not paperwork. Even better. If the community can help shape resources then they own it - how good is that?
I’m looking for two sets of opinions here - one from professionals and one from tech savvy 15-24 year olds. Why? It’s about getting perspectives from those that work with new businesses and the largestr growth group for this medium.
Last time I saw the numbers I was told around 480K new businesses start up in the UK each year. That’s a huge market that has to be worth at least £240-385 million in annual fees - using current average estimates. And the majority will have more than a passing knowledge of technology. That’s worth tapping into - I only want 1% - for the moment.
More on this next week but it’s an idea I’m going to develop with a client in early 2006.
In the meantime - have a great New Year celebration. 2006 is going to be a turning point for business and the way professionals operate. Hang on for the ride.
The day my bacon was saved
December 30, 2005
Today, my professional bacon has been saved by Near-Time.net . Here’s the story.
I’m deep in project planning and execution at the moment. Clients are coming from all directions and keeping all the balls in the air is becoming a bit serious. On one project, I’m creating collateral that explains how the role is more important than the function. In the first one, I’m looking at the CFO/FD. This is not an easy trick to pull off.
My client operates almost exclusively for service industries and has business across both public and private sectors. I need to address each sector in the terms and language they understand. And we have to demonstrate a passion for the things this client does. In addition, we’re exploring how we could use podcasting as a way of emphasising and supporting the message in client engagements. The idea is to get the customer to speak.
In and among all this, the kinds of question I raised caused issues around how brand values are defined and demonstrated. This led to an extension to the contract while we went off and sorted that one out.
Apart from the logistics involved in receiving information, undertaking research, figuring out the timing for getting things done, understanding who is in the team and their roles - deep breath - I’ve also got to organise the documentation so everyone can see what’s going on while switching courses temporarily in midstream.
I did one stupid thing. I didn’t think through clearly enough the issue of how to share what is an ever deepening pile of electronic data. And sod’s law being what it is, my machine got hosed and the collaboration tool we were using became totally inaccessible to me - period - forever - gonzo.
We rescued the situation but it was a pain in the backside comparable to having severe piles. So as I’m getting close to completing the first full set, it struck we’d wasted time because I only got certain critical information after the first cut, we were using email where we could not be sure who was in the loop at any particular point in time and I was never certain whether I had everything I need. Today, I found the answer to that kind of meyhem.
Near-Time.net is a virtual, collaborative service that’s available by invitation only. I can get you invitations if you wish but you’ll need to let me know. Here’s what I think so far:
- It isn’t perfect but to me it’s the dog’s nuts because it gives me 95% of what I need to manage even the simplest of projects among a handful of people.
- It’s a bit quirky in the way it does postings but I’ll figfure out the bits I don’t understand and provide feedback to the developers. Because it is worth the effort.
- Information can be gathered and disseminated in a fraction of the time it takes to do stuff over email.
- Document version control is a snap. The only place you can find the master document is on the site. And rather than have comments smeared all over a Word doc, I request comments to a page where the document is attached. Exactly as you would do with this medium.
- There’s no reason for people not to use this tool because everyone has a vested interest and the faster we can work, the more productive we all will be.
- Everyone on the team can receive automatic updates. I don’t have to do a thing - it’s built in functionality.
- It’s free (at the moment) - but I would gladly pay for this facility on a use case basis.
- It’s a very safe environment that is password controlled and where access can be restricted to different classes of user.
Highly recommended and perfect for things like year-end tax planning among specific client groups or the dissemination of information erlated to an acquisition. Think of the time savings alone of having an interactive, multi-media environment? What about inviting clients in? Now that’s radical.
Winweb achieves ICAEW accreditation
December 30, 2005
I received a call today from Stefan Topfer, CEO of Winweb. His Winweb AccountsOffice product is the first hosted accounting service to achieve ICAEW accreditation. Good for you Stefan!
For those that don’t know it, Winweb can be as simple as a ledger system of the kind most will be familiar. Or, it can be as complex as a combination product that brings together the common requirements of email, accounting, invoicing, file storage and calendar.
The company offers an unbelievably generous 30-day free usage account for users to try the system and see if it is for them.
I’m test driving this at the moment. When I’ve taken Winweb through its paces I’ll let you know what I find. First impressions are…impressive.
