WELCOME

I have been a partner in a successful software and technology consultancy for almost 6 years now, and I’m blessed to have great loyal clients and fantastic partners. The things I’ve learned from them along with my experiences in this best of all industries have inspired me, and I have a lot to write about!

 

OUR COMPANY

Our company, D’Mention Systems, is a general technology consultancy. Over our tenure, we have had a wide breadth of experience in many areas that include specific line-of-business application software (in industries such as automotive and construction), custom web applications, technology partnering (helpdesk contracts and remote on-call support), business development, website and video/animation development, foundership investment contracts, software training, and business development (there are probably some I neglected to mention, my partners constantly remind me how bad I am with buzz words). Our clients have ranged from the individual looking to quit his/her job and follow a dream to major universities looking to cut cost.

 

WHAT I ACTUALLY DO

As my perspective on my own career evolves, I’m assessing more and more that my job in the company is really not about software, tech products, or technology. The path to realizing this has not been easy for me, as I love to be “close to the metal” in terms of code, development details, programming languages, and new technology.

I’ve come to realize that my partners and tech staff actually lead me in those areas. In doing so, they allow me to be good at what my actual job has always been–I am a business development expert. I just happen to deploy computers, the web, software and technology to solve business problems, because in today’s business climate–those tools are the most cost-effective option we have for operating a business.

For years, I have performed the role of product manager on a wide range tech projects, websites, multi-media productions, and software projects (most I’d deem successful, and a few not–all worth writing about). I feel that the role of manager in any business sense of the word requires a knack for being able to “see the whole picture,” and to gather that picture in any situation QUICKLY.

Half or more of our tech projects that we took over were projects that were stalled in some way, for whatever reason. I happen to be one of those people who can enter into a situation that is difficult, behind schedule, politically hostile or otherwise, and begin progress toward problem solving and project completion almost immediately.

Like many published professionals, after having done this over and over, I’m at a level where I feel inspired to reflect back at what I’ve done and analyze how I’ve done it to see if there’s anything notable that stands out in the way I do things that I can share with others. As I do this, I’m intrigued that I actually do have a philosophy for looking at businesses and business units. This philosophy makes up the platform for which I will write my posts.

 

MY PHILOSOPHY–HOW I SEE BUSINESS IN A NUTSHELL

THE FRONT & THE BACK: As I see it, EVERY business (or business unit within a larger organization like a department or division) has what I simply call a front and a back. The front of a business encompasses everything that is outward facing: the name, the logo, the tag line, outreach, marketing, mantra, store-front, mission, definition of product and customer, sales people, and image among other things. The back of a business encompasses infrastructure, accounting, finance, budgeting, planning, corporate office location, plant & equipment, management, servers, computers, tools, product development, quality control, supplies, and employees among other things.

During my tenure as a professional consultant, I have observed in nearly every instance that one of the main problems with the business we were consulting was that there was not a sufficient balance in the owner(s) focus of attention, management, and resources between the front and the back. In most cases, I have observed that most entrepreneurial small and medium business owners (our largest client group over the years) have a tenacious focus on the front, and an absence of focus on the back, as well as in some cases a dislike for the back compounded by an overall misconception about what it takes to create and manage a strong back.

In an odd way, this may define why I’ve been successful in my career, because despite being an entrepreneurial business owner myself, I have oddly always been a back - focused business owner (my dad is a CPA, that may have something to do with it). In fact, I would still consider myself more of a student of the front at this point in my tenure as a business owner, especially since the way a business’s clients arrive at the front door of a business is changing so rapidly today.

I would consider myself a pretty solid expert at the back of a business as defined above, and this balance between myself being back - focused and my clients being largely front - focused may explain my success and longevity as a consultant, as well as our clients’ success as a result of utilizing our services, so I’m grateful for this peculiar sort of reality and balance between myself and our clients.

What I have learned so far is that there are 3 main ingredients to building a successful “front” of a business:

  1. Clearly defined product(s) and customer(s) – This should really go without saying, but it is really amazing how many of us in business really have not taken the time to identify our products and customers, both to the outside world as well as to ourselves as business owners
  2. Continuously employ several forms of marketing — Continuously be utilizing more than 1 form marketing at all times (preferably 3), and NEVER stop marketing at any interval, no matter how busy you get      

  3. Control from the back - Those who influence sales, make commissions, and drive the company’s front need to have limited policy & decision-making abilities. It is such a commonality that this causes problems, and nobody ever seems to point it out. Look at some examples–the U.S. government budget committee, Enron, the bursting of the “real estate bubble–” do you think there may have been some “front-focused people” influencing “back-end policies,” like in accounting perhaps?      

I have also learned that there are 3 main ingredients to building a successful “back” of a business:

  1. Proper Infrastructural Investment — The right amount of energy, attention, and investment in the back. This is a moving target from the day a business is born throughout the business’s life      

  2. Proper overall management — Realization that proper management is constant, an ever-lasting challenge, and ever-changing such that there is no point where any business “runs itself–” EVER      

  3. Respect for the front – Often, a good back in an organization over-controls the people in the front without recognizing the energy, charisma, and weirdly enough–the chaos required to sell and drive sales and enthusiasm, so it’s critical to strike a balance and not to drown or stifle the front with controls and policy imposed by the back  
 
 
 

 

THE PLATFORM FOR MY POSTS

My posts in this blog will mainly center around this philosophy and using it to define and solve problems that arise in typical businesses.

My hope and dream is that my audience includes the following:

  • My colleagues, clients, friends, family, partners (and weirdly–myself) to get a good insight and understanding of me and what I do.
  • Business owners and managers who struggle with trying to manage tech people and employ technology–so many of us wake up every day think we automatically know how to invest in and employ technology because we can use a mouse, keyboard, and M.S. Windows until we actually invest in a business and realize it’s not that easy–I want to empathize with those people and share what I’ve learned and overcome.
  • Aspiring tech professionals who are up and coming in this best of all industries, who may not realize how young and new this industry really is. Maybe you’re thinking of entering this industry and think that everything’s been invented already just because Microsoft, Google, and social networking explosions appear to have cornered everything and there’s no more room to have any new ideas or make any more money. Oddly, I ponder that for just a moment many mornings myself as I order my tea at Starbucks, and then I remember that a huge percentage of business professionals refer to any one of us–developer, DBA, or designer-alike as a “computer guy” or a “geek,” and that their neighbor down the street who “retired from IBM” is going to help them “set up their computers for their business” just because he “retired from IBM–” even though he was in sales. Your opportunities in this industry are endless, boundless, and infinite, and I’m your biggest fan, so if you’re in the Tucson area, I hope we can have coffee some time and talk about it. My posts are for you, too.

Enjoy my blog posts, I look forward to some good conversations. :-)

 

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If you liked this blog, here are some other sites that might interest you:

Do you know anyone who has a technical project–large or small, such as a website, software project, or network setup that is stalled or half complete? I’m never too busy for a referral, so if you think I could help–feel free to drop us an inquiry by clicking here…

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