SME Blog

Technology vs staff cost

Occasionally, as part of work, I get out to the odd awards ceremony.  The last one was the Financial Sector Technology awards in Park Lane.  This is very much an event for large companies.  Big IT teams.  Projects with budgets of £100m are quite possible. Normally, not my kind of event, but we were nominated this year.  RBS won, but the event was worthwhile as I got to meet fellow SME nominee Paul Turner from Advantage Finance.

That's Paul in the picture (right) with comedian Fred MacAulay. Paul's a lovely guy who deserves a lot of credit for saving his SME some serious manpower time - three people full time.  He helped turn a largely manual process into an automated one by the use of a redesigned website; reducing manual processing and unnecessary duplication.

Paul's SME is not the only one that can benefit by the use of technology to save costs. In the past this type of technology was only cost effective for large companies, but costs have fallen dramatically.  Staff cost (especially in the UK) is now often more expensive than the technology.

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Retail and the Good Life

A long break was just what the doctor ordered and now the New Year has well and truly begun it’s a pleasure to get back to the blog.

While I’ve been away Tesco have been hard at work.  Not content with their shops being open day and night for most of the Christmas Break, this retailer also has a new website called Talking Tesco.

It’s a fascinating concept; a content rich website completely dedicated to gathering views from the public on Tesco and the company giving a direct response.  Let’s not forget that Tesco takes 30 per cent of everything spent on UK groceries.  Is this a case of Tesco being innovative and leading the way to get a real understanding of their customers’ needs and concerns?  Mmm, well not exactly. 

Taking Graham Hoenes comments he must think it is more of a place to worship at the church of the holy Tesco than a place for balanced and informed views. He comments:

“They should rename it Talking B****ocks”

Tesco view it more of an opportunity to “put the record straight”. 

Depressingly anyone wishing to leave a comment on the Talking Tesco site must first agree to their legal terms and conditions.   The entire site has the feel of a PR vehicle to promote Tesco and help its case before the UK Competition Commission.  However, it is an indication of how large companies are adapting and using new technologies to communicate with customers.

On a lighter note one couple will definitely not be in any rush to visit Tesco.  They are taking the route of self sufficiency.  Noteworthy in this case as they actually live in the original property used in the Good Life series.  For those who don’t know this comedy series contained four of the UK’s best loved actors and actresses and made self sufficiently famous in the UK 30 years ago.   

I remember watching the series thinking the whole idea of self sufficiently was quite barking mad.  It’s strange that with the Eco and Organic movements how things have changed.

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Philip Woodgate

You want publicity?

One thing a SME will never receive is the level of bad publicity Wal-Mart is currently getting. Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer and unofficially the most hated company in the world.

Wal-Mart has it’s own film and if you read the director’s (Robert Greenwald) blog you’ll realise he did not make it to praise the low prices and friendly checkout smile.  Does Wal-Mart care? Yes, the bad publicity is costing them money. Do they really care? The jury is out.

What really surprised me was Wal-Mart is planning to go organic in a big way. This is the company whose UK subsidiary Asda is the worst UK supermarket for farm animal welfare according to the CIWF. Another case of the PR machine in operation or is Wal-Mart about to do something that will really please the people at Corporate Watch. Only time will tell.

These global corporations are rising in power and are having a huge impact on society and SME’s.  Max Barry wrote a book called Jennifer Government which creates a world where huge global corporations are bigger than governments and countries.  It’s very entertaining, but I wouldn’t want to live there.

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