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cazh1: on Business, Information, and Technology

Thoughts and observations on the intersection of technology and business; searching for better understanding of what's relevant, where's the value, and (always) what's the goal ...

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Fast ticket to getting left behind

Fast ticket to getting left behindFast ticket to getting left behind

We're contemplating some significant system changes / updates / re-entrenchments, and finally forcing the organization to deal with some "elephants on the table", simmering old disputes or differences of opinion that were just benignly put away, but kept in reserve until "the future".

Well, for some of these topics, the future is now, and what fascinates me is the vigor with which some folks hold on to their ideas and wants. Project justifications from the dot-com boom are coming up as valid ("if we web enable it, revenue will pour in") - just a total lack of connection to a meaningful, measurable tie to current objectives. But what is really interesting is the level to which the blinders cloud the vision ...

I'm trying to have a conversation yesterday with someone who just cannot see things in a different way. In act, I'm actively trying to incorporate something important to them in the overall "pitch" - but in a roundabout way (ie. while we're at it, we'll be able to ...). Unfortunately, this person can only see things their way, and trying to convince them otherwise is an ongoing struggle.

I think I'm being more patient than most, still trying to get this person to take a different view. In the end, however, there will only be one answer, and folks will get disappointed simply because they refused to develop any level of flexibility, to see things in another way.

In most organizations, including this one, this is a sure way to get marginalized and left behind.

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