We bank with the Bank of New Zealand for two dominant reasons. The technology platform they have is superior, and they are great at managing our business relationship.
The BNZ seem to be continually reinvesting in their technology platform. There are no “quantum leaps” or anything startling, but instead what appears to be a staggered approach to improving the client experience and backend processing. An example of the client experience is that you can now get balance and transaction information from other major trading banks within the BNZ system. A smart feature, which makes it just that little bit easier to do business.
On the backend system improvements, BNZ have just begun giving notices of incoming foreign exchange transactions through the online platform. Previously these were generated by a separate system and physically mailed through the postal system. The savings in transactional costs for the bank must add up. The challenge I give to everyone is to ask “can you do what the BNZ has done, using your technology more productively”? Can we help?
Some internet surfing aids productivity
A study of 300 workers conducted at the University of Melbourne showed that whilst it is often assumed that people who use the internet at work for personal reasons are less productive, it actually increases their productivity by 9%. Addicts excluded.
A break to surf the web can provide a cognitive refresh, making the person more productive when they return to the task at hand. This study was reported in HBR.
My view is that I agree with the study, and if combined with awareness of accounting for time, is probably doubly beneficial. So, when looking at deploying web monitoring software, look at what options you have to report on the makeup of time spent on the internet. Giving staff feedback that increases their awareness of what they spend their time on is probably the best action you can take.
Over the break I was asked a lot about social media by family, especially Twitter. I find Twitter great for getting a quick read on what is going on, and being updated on things that I track (technology, world news, politics etc.). I don’t think I did a very good job of convincing anyone, however the scary thing is that I believe tools like twitter are creating a digital divide in the economy. Those that can use the tools will be ahead in economic terms through greater productivity (in both a personal and business sense).
An example from yesterday I came across a tweet for a new app, that I would have never have known about otherwise. Shoebox is an app that is designed to take a photo of receipts or business cards from your Smart Phone and email them back to you in a format that you want. Have a look at the site. The app is free and very easy to use. I think it will be great for many firms, especially those who travel!
A few things made going on holiday easier this year. Xmarks and iCloud made sure I had the same favourites across all my devices. LastPass helped make sure that I could access those sites that needed a password. The iPad helped keep both the kids entertained and helped me stay in touch with work when needed. Lastly having Dropbox made it possible to access work and personal documents effortlessly. I find it particularly good for when you need to have meetings away from the office, and I use it instead of carrying massive amounts of paper.