The Attivo Blog

Last month the Attivo Group launched the official charitable arm of our company, Attivo Cares.  While we have been giving back to the community for years, the Attivo Cares program offers our customers a chance to get involved as well, without having to do anything differently than what they already do now.

Our first official partner in the Attivo Cares program was the American Wheelchair Mission.  Today we are proud to announce our second partner, the Reo Backpack Company. This organization is doing wonders in the Southern California Community by providing free backpacks and school supplies to homeless children throughout the region.

For every new user of any software program sold by the Attivo Group, we will donate 1 backpack full of school supplies to a needy child.  This is in addition to the donation already being made to the American Wheelchair mission and comes at no extra cost to the customer.

There are roughly 51,340 homeless people in Los Angeles County alone.  Of that figure, 20% are families with school aged children.  The Reo Backpack Company donates backpacks to these children filled with notebooks, pencils, colored pencils, an eraser, a ruler, two glue sticks, and pens.

These school supplies are vital to a child’s ability to thrive in a school environment and also eases the burden often placed at the feet of teachers, who on average spend $900 of their own money on school supplies for underprivileged students.

In addition to providing a backpack full of school supplies to needy children, a portion of all donations will go to the Maria Luisa Lara scholarship fund.  This scholarship is granted every year to a homeless child or foster child who will be attending college or a trade school.

We are so proud to at the Reo Backpack Company to our list of Attivo Cares partner charities.  And we are thankful to you, our customers, for allowing us to contribute to such a worthy cause.

Businesses are becoming more ‘mobile’ without really considering what it means and how their business processes should change. Maribel Lopez of Forbes.com recently tackled this issue in an article that looked at some of the current services that are available that can support the new and growing mobile business world.

One aspect that she does mention is how IT can’t simply just ‘move-over’ software applications to mobile devices without first looking at what is the essential information that needs to be there. I found that using the Exact Synergy app was very well developed in that respect: I can easily access important information, such as ‘Calendar’, ‘Workflow’ and ‘Contacts’ with just a few taps.

image by gailjadehamilton on flickr

More of the article is quoted below:

Mobility is about more than wireless connectivity. Mobility combined with cloud computing is changing business – to make it more immediate, more relevant, and more intelligent. But to reap the benefits, companies must rethink computing and business-process strategies and move away from old paradigms. Mobility will change business by:

Connecting Phones, Tablets, and the “Internet of Things.” Mobility and the “Internet of Things” require a company to modify its network-connectivity models as well as prepare for a massive increase in real-time information. These devices may support high-bandwidth, latency-sensitive services such as video streaming or more frequent small streams of data such as motion sensors on equipment or RFID tags. A new set of connected devices also require firms to consider different interaction models such as people to people, people to things, and machine to machine (M2M). Firms should look for new or updated M2M solutions from carriers such as AT&T, Verizon and Vodafone that will wirelessly connect millions of diverse devices to a network, enabling two-way communication into back-end systems.

Rebuilding Business Processes to Work in a Mobile World. New operating systems and mobile devices will force companies to change how applications and business processes are designed. PC systems were designed with deep menu navigation while mobility-optimized systems are task oriented. Users typically want to access relevant information in one to two clicks on a mobile device, which means IT can’t simply port an application to a device. The screen size, the content, and the process aren’t optimized for the device. In the future, applications will be device-aware, location-aware and network/cloud-aware. Mobile provides real-time access to sensory information such as location, direction, vibration, humidity, and sound. For example, a transportation company can use sensors in trucks to ensure that it delivers fresh produce on time by monitoring temperature and humidity during the delivery process as well as capturing GPS and signature data at the delivery site.

Creating portable services. We’re moving from a world of one device per person to multiple devices per person and numerous wireless connections. Mobility will take on a new meaning because not only will devices be portable but so will content and services. For example, RIM’s BlackBerry Bridge app allows you to take documents, web pages, emails, messaging and photos that appear on your BlackBerry smartphone and display them on your BlackBerry PlayBook for optimized viewing and editing. Or, with a tool like the Citrix Receiver application, an entire virtual desktop environment can be accessed on tablet devices. The next wave will include fully portable services that use a combination of cloud storage, SaaS, cloud media and remote desktop access to store, retrieve and consume content on the go. Two-factor authentication services from companies likeSymantec and Trend Micro will be used to verify that the person attempting to access the content and services is authorized to do so. Instead of business services being locked to the device or to the business location, employees will be able to authenticate to corporate services on any device (e.g. a desk phone in a client’s office or a screen at the hotel) and at any location (e.g. hotel, home, client’s office). Devices will be intelligent, but decoupling of software and services from the hardware and the location will be possible.

Supporting Multiple Personas Per Individual. While services are following the individual, IT still needs a way to separate personal data and applications from corporate data and applications. This means that software service providers will change product offerings to include at least two personas, –corporate and personal. . The division between work and personal content is transparent to users unless they try to perform actions prohibited by company policy. Companies likeVMWare offers “container” solutions that isolate personal data on Android devices while Enterproid recently announced a solution that works with iOS and Android devices. Meanwhile RIM offer the BlackBerry Balance to present a unified view of work and personal content on a BlackBerry smartphone while keeping the work content separate and secure. This type of technology will evolve over time but the function will be critical to supporting a Bring your Own Device (BYOD) policy to both protect the individual’s right to privacy and address IT’s need to manage and secure corporate data.

Read more of Four Ways Mobility Transforms Business.

It’s not a matter of ‘if’ when it comes to Cloud Computing and the mobility of business, but ‘when’. Many companies are considering the costs and time-lines involved in moving to a cloud-based system. How about you?

Learn more about if you should move your ERP software and system into the cloud by downloading a free eBook: 35 Questions Every CFO Needs to Ask About ERP Software in the Cloud.

Wondering what Cloud Computing is? Watch the short video below:

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Rachel Pradhan, Director of Marketing for The Attivo Group, is NOT an expert in anything ERP related, nor does she play one on this blog. Instead she takes a fresh look at softwares, business processes, and profit improvement practices - and how to help your employees embrace them. As a marketing expert, she'll also share how she uses CRM systems to fill the funnel and make sales happen. 

I came across a great blog post while checking my LinkedIn news this morning. It’s an article by Jeff Haden, who worked his way through college in a manufacturing printing plant as a forklift driver and gofer. He worked his way up to Bindery Supervisor after a lot of years and hard work. He even helped the company start their first On Demand printing facility. Now he’s a ghostwriter and has written over 40 non-fiction books, 4 being number 1 on the Amazon Business and Investing list.  

What struck me about the article was how blunt it was. He just laid it out there – including our excuses, our fear, and all the reasons why we may not be successful. 

So, my question is: how many of these 9 beliefs of highly successful people do you hold? (article quoted below)

1. Time doesn't fill me. I fill time.

Deadlines and time frames establish parameters, but typically not in a good way. The average person who is given two weeks to complete a task will instinctively adjust his effort so it actually takes two weeks.

Forget deadlines, at least as a way to manage your activity. Tasks should only take as long as they need to take. Do everything as quickly and effectively as you can. Then use your "free" time to get other things done just as quickly and effectively.

Average people allow time to impose its will on them; remarkable people impose their will on their time.

2. The people around me are the people I chose.

Some of your employees drive you nuts. Some of your customers are obnoxious. Some of your friends are selfish, all-about-me jerks.

You chose them. If the people around you make you unhappy it's not their fault. It's your fault. They're in your professional or personal life because you drew them to you--and you let them remain.

Think about the type of people you want to work with. Think about the types of customers you would enjoy serving. Think about the friends you want to have.

Then change what you do so you can start attracting those people. Hardworking people want to work with hardworking people. Kind people like to associate with kind people.

Successful people are naturally drawn to successful people.

3. I have never paid my dues.

Dues aren't paid, past tense. Dues get paid, each and every day. The only real measure of your value is the tangible contribution you make on a daily basis.

No matter what you've done or accomplished in the past, you're never too good to roll up your sleeves, get dirty, and do the grunt work.  No job is ever too menial, no task ever too unskilled or boring.

Remarkably successful people never feel entitled--except to the fruits of their labor.

4. Experience is irrelevant. Accomplishments are everything.

You have "10 years in the Web design business." Whoopee. I don't care how long you've been doing what you do. Years of service indicate nothing; you could be the worst 10-year programmer in the world.

I care about what you've done: how many sites you've created, how many back-end systems you've installed, how many customer-specific applications you've developed (and what kind)... all that matters is what you've done.

Successful people don't need to describe themselves using hyperbolic adjectives like passionate, innovative, driven, etc.

Remarkably successful people don't need to use any adjectives at all. They can just describe, hopefully in a humble way, what they've done.

5. Failure is something I accomplish; it doesn't just happen to me.

Ask people why they have been successful. Their answers will be filled with personal pronouns: I, me, and the sometimes too occasional we.

Ask them why they failed. Most will revert to childhood and instinctively distance themselves, like the kid who says, "My toy got broken..." instead of, "I broke my toy."

They'll say the economy tanked. They'll say the market wasn't ready. They'll say their suppliers couldn't keep up.

They'll say it was someone or something else.

And by distancing themselves, they don't learn from their failures.

Occasionally something completely outside your control will cause you to fail. Most of the time, though, it's you. And that's okay. Every successful person has failed. Numerous times. Most of them have failed a lot more often than you. That's why they're successful now.

Embrace every failure: Own it, learn from it, and take full responsibility for making sure that next time, things will turn out differently.

6. Volunteers always win.

Whenever you raise your hand you wind up being asked to do more.

That's great. Doing more is an opportunity: to learn, to impress, to gain skills, to build new relationships--to do something more than you would otherwise been able to do.

Success is based on action. The more you volunteer, the more you get to act. Successful people step forward to create opportunities.

Remarkably successful people sprint forward.

7. As long as I'm paid well, it's all good.

Specialization is good. Focus is good. Finding a niche is good.

Generating revenue is great.

Anything a customer will pay you a reasonable price to do--as long as it isn't unethical, immoral, or illegal--is something you should do. Your customers want you to deliver outside your normal territory? If they'll pay you for it, fine. They want you to add services you don't normally include? If they'll pay you for it, fine. The customer wants you to perform some relatively manual labor and you're a high-tech shop? Shut up, roll 'em up, do the work, and get paid.

Only do what you want to do and you might build an okay business. Be willing to do what customers want you to do and you can build a successful business.

Be willing to do even more and you can build a remarkable business.

And speaking of customers...

8. People who pay me always have the right to tell me what to do.

Get over your cocky, pretentious, I-must-be-free-to-express-my-individuality self. Be that way on your own time.

The people who pay you, whether customers or employers, earn the right to dictate what you do and how you do it--sometimes down to the last detail.

Instead of complaining, work to align what you like to do with what the people who pay you want you to do.

Then you turn issues like control and micro-management into non-issues.

9. The extra mile is a vast, unpopulated wasteland.

Everyone says they go the extra mile. Almost no one actually does. Most people who go there think, "Wait... no one else is here... why am I doing this?" and leave, never to return.

That's why the extra mile is such a lonely place.

That's also why the extra mile is a place filled with opportunities.

Be early. Stay late. Make the extra phone call. Send the extra email. Do the extra research. Help a customer unload or unpack a shipment. Don't wait to be asked; offer. Don't just tell employees what to do--show them what to do and work beside them.

Every time you do something, think of one extra thing you can do--especially if other people aren't doing that one thing. Sure, it's hard.

But that's what will make you different.

And over time, that's what will make you incredibly successful.

Read more from 9 Beliefs of Remarkably Successful People...

What I noticed is that it’s really about being an over-all great person – one that cares enough about others to do a good job, to do more than what’s required, and to be like that consistently.

And a retro video from Stephen Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, talking about Character Ethic and Personality Ethic. 

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Rachel Pradhan, Director of Marketing for The Attivo Group, is NOT an expert in anything ERP related, nor does she play one on this blog. Instead she takes a fresh look at softwares, business processes, and profit improvement practices - and how to help your employees embrace them. As a marketing expert, she'll also share how she uses CRM systems to fill the funnel and make sales happen. 

There are always a million reasons to talk yourself out of doing something.  Some reasons are more legitimate than others.  But at the end of the day, sometimes what is best for the long term health of your company and what is financially feasible in the short term don’t always align.

With the advent of cloud computing, ERP solutions are becoming more affordable, even for mid-sized to smaller companies. The Attivo group will host two live webinars on June 26th and June 28th dedicated to the distribution and manufacturing industries respectively to outline the benefits of cloud computing, as well as do a live demo of ERP software hosted in a cloud environment.

We have covered the benefits of cloud hosted ERP solutions in past blogs, and next week’s webinars are the next natural progression, focusing specifically on two industries and the software solutions geared for them. Two Exact Software products will be on display, Macola Distribution Pro and Macola Manufacturing pro.

Like the cartoons depicting a character trying to plug a hole in a dam with their finger, there really is no stopping the transition that businesses will make to the cloud.  Within the next four years, Gartner estimates that 43% of all businesses will have moved entirely to the cloud.

The purpose of next week’s webinars will be to take some of the guess work out of the ambiguity of the cloud and help manufacturers and distributors determine if cloud computing is the right solution for them right now.  Whether you already have an ERP solution implemented in your business or are a growing business looking for an ERP solution, these webinars will go a long way towards answering any questions you might have about cloud computing.

For quick registration for either of the webinars, follow the links earlier in this blog post or you can click here for the distribution industry webinar and here for the manufacturing industry webinar.

It’s the first rainstorm of the year.  About an hour into it, you feel a drop of water hit your head.  You look up and sure enough, you have a leaky roof. You run into the kitchen and grab a mop bucket to put under the leak.

You’ve temporarily prevented the leak from ruining the carpet or furniture, you’ve identified the bigger problem, but now the excuses start to come in.  How big of a problem is this really? How often does it rain where you live? That temporary solution and minor inconvenience seem like a pittance when compared to the financial outlay required to fix the roof. But as time goes on, the roof gets worse and worse until it caves in.  That’s a whole lot of mop buckets.

Mop Buckets Have no Place in Your Business

A lot of businesses, large and small, often times find themselves in a similar position – trying to justify a temporary fix as a long term solution. Quite frankly, solving business problems often times involve a large investment of resources that sometimes aren’t available in the short term. But in the long term, the cost of not making that initial investment will exceed whatever the fix would have cost. 

Identifying the main problem typically isn’t all that difficult.  You have too much inventory sitting in your warehouse.  Costs to produce items leaves you with razor thin margins.  Project management has become too much for one employee to handle, but you don’t have the funds to hire support staff.  Customer relations are suffering.

These are common problems that businesses face today.  But identifying the root causes of these problems isn’t always that simple.  Often times this requires a comprehensive business process analysis before you can truly begin to start working on the bigger problem.

Get Back in Black

There is a line in the classic AC/DC anthem that goes: “I’m let loose, from the noose that kept me hanging around.”  In business, getting back into the black financially can be a matter of segmenting your financial reports and identifying product lines or processes that are either costing you money or are redundant.  Addition by subtraction can be a way to quickly increase profits and productivity, freeing up your employees to focus on higher revenue generating tasks.

This is sometimes easier said than done, and a robust ERP software package or business consulting company can often times be a one-time investment that pays for itself multiple times over in the long run.

Solving Customer Complaints

For the most part your customers are happy, but from time to time you do receive complaints. Don’t treat these as anomalies.  They could be that first loose thread that unravels the entire sweater, or they could help you identify other problems within your company.

Listen to each complaint and try to see if there are any common themes.  Perhaps people are generally happy with your service, but complain that service requests take a little long to be handled.  This could mean that you simply need to upgrade your CRM software to one that is more efficient at handling a large volume of service requests.

Perhaps you have a national company and you notice that all complaints are coming from a specific region.  That could mean that there is an issue with your shipping and distribution in that area.

Even one or two customer complaint can be an early warning sign of a bigger issue.  Listen to your customers as they are often times your greatest source of unbiased information.

What are some of the biggest challenges you face in your business?  Click the button below for a Free Needs Analysis!