The Business of IT Building the Economy

February 2007
By Mary MacKinve

From the Business to Business Magazine
www.btob.co.nz

The business of information technology (IT) has been transformed from the days of the dot com bubble-burst to the darling of the decade, to our very salvation in the next era.

Sandfield provides tailored information systems rather than "out-of-the-box" software.

Knowledge industries and smart people driving them are where New Zealand pins its economic hopes (after farming).

Sounds like a heavy responsibility for the boffins, and scary for the non-techies who have to understand this stuff so they don’t get ripped off.

Conversely, IT companies have to know just as much about their clients’ businesses, to do a good job and retain them, says Bruce Copeland, founder and director of Sandfield Associates Ltd in Karangahape Rd, Auckland.

"There’s so much mind numbing specification work up front but we try not to put clients through that. They must have confidence we understand their business!"

The former accountant set up Sandfield 18 years ago to develop software, and now employs 33 staff – comprising 20 programmers/analysts.

In these changed IT times, rather than being glamorous the industry is very informal and down to earth, he says. The dress code at Sandfield is tidy casual and clients are put at ease from the start.

"A lot is done on a shockingly informal basis. There might be a white board involved."

The company operates with a system of "agile methodology" which is more about discussing and collaborating over software requirements and contracts than the old approach of specifying in detail every aspect of a software system up front and signing off on it.

"Answers only come once the client and [our] staff have built up a trusting relationship. The first meeting: it’s almost the kiss of death for the job if you try and force the client into a proposal.

"Their intellectual property becomes part of the software, it’s embedded in it, so there’s a natural tension around ownership of each."

A lot of businesses sell IT as difficult and costly, he says.

"We might even tell someone to buy a package off the shelf, saying "you’re not ready for more".

"Part of what we try to do is make IT manageable for non-IT people. MDs and boards are asked to make decisions and they need stuff presented in a way they understand."

And while Sandfield staff are at their computers all day, they keep in mind there’s a time to quit email and pick up the phone.

IT is a competitive business.

"We have had some great clients for a long time, using our applications for 10 or 15 years, but no-one really knows about us," says business development manager, Steve McKee.

"It’s our 10th anniversary of working with a Japanese shipping company that handles 60 per cent of cars landing in and out of Australia, plus containers…we have been providing full business systems for container control, accounting, sales, etc."

A growing field for Sandfield has been developing mobile computing systems, such as 500 mobile applications for a client’s truck drivers that alters the way they pick up and deliver goods. The truckies run their businesses with a hand held device that gives them access to head office support on the road. This mobility means less down time, greater productivity and profit for the drivers.

"There’s been much ado about mobile computing for some time now, but the technology has matured to the point that Kiwis can see it in action daily and businesses can go mobile with confidence.

"Businesses should consider going mobile with all their head office computing systems."

This has been made possible by key developments in the last two to three years, such as the hugely increased power of hand-held computers. "We used to built systems to fit the tiny capacity of the device, but now we have to expand systems to utilise the full capacity of the device."

Mobile coverage is extensive and the mobile networks are stable. Systems have the simplicity to be efficient and easy for all users. Mobile computing platforms have matured, making integration with existing office systems simple.

But Copeland believes much publicity about mobile computing has missed the point.

"Mobile computing isn’t about getting office workers out on the road (or as in Telecom’s ad, out to the beach house), but in getting the power and support of the office out to the thousands of kiwis already working on the road."

A client’s ferry service now has a web booking engine to replace a complicated fare calculation system that required a three-month training programme for call centre staff.

In another case, Sandfield’s custom-built bar code freight tacking system put data in-putters out of jobs overnight. But this allowed the freight company to put more money into training and customer service.

"It’s not like you make a third of staff redundant, it often just changes it. Data inputting now has to be managed rather than done."

Says Copeland: "Technology really can transform businesses."

And the future?

"Microsoft always comes out with the latest version but it’s interesting what doesn’t change: applying systems and delivering value is still a challenge; how to use IT in business to get value out of it."

The web will become much more ubiquitous and dynamic, a virtual TV; and licensing of TV frequencies will raise its ugly head just as unbundling the local loop has been for developing broadband.

He recommends small and medium enterprises (SMEs) keep a steady eye on what they want to achieve. "Just like using an adviser or anything, if you can’t see the point, don’t spend the money."

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