ISM 3004 Presentations Project

This week was our presentation project on a business subject of our choosing. We were given 4 different scenario's to choose from in which to base the project subject. I decided to put together a sales pitch for a pharmacy to solicit business from Assisted Living Facility and Nursing Home residents.

After looking at my final production, I feel I did a pretty good job. I feel that my presentation had a natural flow and had a sense of direction to it. I began with a picture of a jar of pills with dollar signs floating around it. It had a caption above it asking if my audience thought they didn't spend enough money on their prescriptions. That heading with the picture was intended to grab the attention of my audience. I quickly followed it up with a baby face that had an astonished look. I feel by this second slide I definitely had all eyes. Who can resist a cute baby face?!

I did try to anticipate questions by filling my presentation with subjects that matter most to seniors. Subjects like money and medications, insurance billing, and the benefits of using my service. In this format, it is difficult to know what questions would be asked if it were a live presentation. Yet, I feel I presented material on things that would have been logical to ask. For example, I made sure to cover competitive pricing, insurance billing, and most importantly the Medicare Part D prescription plan. I know the "doughnut hole" issue is very important to seniors.

I also tried to make sure that my slides were clean. I chose a stylish background and was sure to only have no more than two pictures in one slide. That coupled with a nice heading to give an overview of what that particular slide was covering. I also wrote out a script so I could give more information than what was presented on the slide. I did this, not just because it was in the directions, but because I hate when a presenter just reads from their slides. I tried to keep the wording to a minimum and hopefully to the point.

At the beginning, the project was a little intimidating. However, once I got on a roll, I started to feel a little more comfortable with how and what I was going to do. It did help to view other presentations and to critique one. I critiqued the Skittle's Travel Agency. Her presentation was very clean. I realized then that I needed to make sure I didn't overcrowd with too much information. Also, the elevator definition really helped me to focus on what I wanted to get across before the elevator stopped.

In the end, I feel I was able to present good information in a concise manner and to communicate my core message. In fact, I feel I would have had a good response if I were presenting to a live audience. Well, it is time to allow you to view my project. Just click the link below and off you will go to the world of long-term care pharmacy services.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bK1noxfMO8Y

Til next time, Go Gators!

Week 7 Muddy (Kind of) Application Software 2

                      SaaS, PaaS, DaaS, VDI, OLPC, SQL, SLA, IaaS...........................OMG!!!!!

http://trinities.org/blog/archives/category/housekeeping

Oh how things change from week to week! Riding the high from week 6 lasted as long as it took to begin this weeks lesson. Which, since I am trying to get ahead to concentrate on the presentation project, was all of a hot second.

This week's topic covered a lot of interesting material. Open Source Software was one topic I enjoyed. While I have heard of the term before, I was unaware how widespread it's usage has become. It is free software available to anyone that can download it. This is just about all I knew on the subject. That companies download it for use was a surprise to me. Yet, now that I understand that they modify it for their use makes a lot of cents. When you're competing with big companies, saving money anyway you can is key. It also allows for a firm to get their product to market considerably quicker. Below is a short video on Open Source Software to help give anyone not in this class an overview.



Another topic of interest to me was the subject of cloud computing. Again, I was familiar with the term but didn't really have a firm grasp on what it actually was. I felt a lot better while reading the textbook when Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison was asked to define cloud computing. He said, "Maybe I'm an idiot, but I have no idea what anyone is talking about." In a nut shell, cloud computing is replacing computing hardware or software resources with services provided over the Internet.

http://cloudcomputingcompaniesnow.com/

Cloud computing is the trend toward the future. However, there are two key issues of concern for programmers to consider. They are security and access and they both go hand in hand. No other time in business history has a firm considered putting their vital information on a server that also houses it's competitors vital information. Who can access that information and how are two important questions. What security measures are needed to prevent a competitor's or hackers access is also vital to address. Take a look at this video to understand a little better what cloud computing actually is.



As you can probably tell, it is the future wave to explore for business information specialists. Computer geeks are very excited about this technology and rightly so. If it is what it portends to be, business computing will forever be changed from how we currently view and use it today.

I will close this week with a quote about cloud computing from Vivek Kundra, Federal CIO of the United States Government. She said, " There was a time when every household, town, farm or village had its own water well. Today, shared public utilities give us access to clean water by simply turning on the tap; cloud computing works in a similar fashion. Just like water from the tap in your kitchen, cloud computing services can be turned on or off quickly as needed. Like at the water company, there is a team of dedicated professionals making sure the service provided is safe, secure and available on a 24/7 basis. When the tap isn't on, not only are you saving water, but you aren't paying for resources you don't currently need." 

I don't think it can be put any simpler!

Week 6 Clear Application Software 1

http://www.wetakethecake.com/9-strawberry-layer-cake.html

Finally! We have covered a topic that I get 100%!

 This week we covered Application Software and I feel Mr. Olsen's layered cake analogy was the concept that really brought it home for me. It allowed me to visualize how the user, application, operating system, and hardware were individual parts coming together to create a whole. It is easy to view the whole cake as one, but once it has been sliced for consumption you see the different sections within.

http://facultyweb.cortland.edu/connellm/cap100web/Unit4/Unit_4.htm

One area here that I didn't know anything about was the Application Programming Interface, also known as the API. This is the mechanism that allows the user, the applications, the operating system, and the hardware to communicate with each other. What I found most interesting was that each layer does not need to know what the other layer is doing. The API is in control of when and if another layer needs to be involved.

Extra Credit Avatar

Today I was finally able to get to the Avatar extra credit assignment! Never having done this before, I was a little intimidated by the thought have having to create a likeness of myself. I chose to use the Doppelme online tool. It was my first choice as a tool and I ended up staying with the avatar I created once I finished.

  So......without further ado, I present my Avatar!

Now, I must say, I think it actually looks like me. Well, close enough anyway. If you were to see me out and about, I would most likely be dressed exactly as I'm portrayed above. I may have a little gray in my beard as compared to the Avatar, but overall, I'm pretty satisfied.

Using the Doppelme tool was very easy. It immediately got me started as soon as I accessed the site. I was able to put the avatar together from a selection of facial features, eye color, and clothes. The only bit of information that I needed to provide was my email address. This was only so I could be able to customize him with extra features and also to add him to any websites or my blog.

So, for anyone still needing to create an avatar, I would immediately recommend Doppelme as the tool to use. Not only was it easy and free, but no private information will need to be transferred. And these days, that alone is a rare quality!

Week 5 Clear Presentations

 "In giving presentations, use the 10/20/30 rule....use only 10 slides, take 20 minutes maximum, and use at least 30-point fonts." - Guy Kawasaki, formerly of Apple

Well, this weeks lesson on Presentations was one that I needed. All the presentations that either I have done or seen as an audience member, have pretty much been the "standard" presentation that I now find is really an attention killer. I guess I really shouldn't be surprised by this. Looking back on those presentations, I see that I was bored right off the bat or read ahead and became bored waiting for the next slide. I won't even talk about when the presenter pretty much reads from the slides!

This weeks topic also brought to the forefront for me the over used method of cramming a bunch of PowerPoint "tricks" to give the illusion of a professional presentation. While this may have been the way of doing things previously, there is now a "less is more" kind of approach to PowerPoint presentations. The video "Life After Death by PowerPoint 2010" really showed what NOT to do in your presentations. For those of you not in this class, I have posted the video here for your viewing. It is absolutely hilarious as well informational.



One area that I was totally unaware of was the use of Storyboards. Storyboards are a layout or plan for your presentations. They include all the details of your presentation like the images, audio, and script notes. Storyboards help you organize your thoughts and give the presentation its structure. They also provide clarity to your topic while also keeping it concise. This will be much appreciated by your audience!

The biggest takeaway for me this week was a bit of  advice from Chip and Dan Heath, authors of "Made to Stick".  They said to tease your audience. Make them curious about what your presentation is about. Don't start out with a bullet list of what your topic is going to cover. Grab their attention with a story or an example. They referred to stories and examples as "the building blocks of presentations". They will enhance your presentation by forcing the audience to listen instead of expecting everything to be displayed in PowerPoint.

While I am about to step into uncharted waters with the Presentation Project, I look forward to the challenge of trying new techniques and creating a presentation very different from the old ways of bullet points and clip art.   So to borrow from an old saying, it's time to teach an old dog new tricks!

Week 4 Clear Strategy and Technology

      "Sooner or later the Internet will become profitable. It's an old story played before by canals, railroads and automobiles." 

                                                          Paul A. Samuelson

Mr. Samuelson, who has been called "The Father of Modern Economics", was able to see this statement become reality before passing away in 2009. Though, at the time he made this remark, he didn't realize how prophetic his statement would later turn out to be. 

I believe that it takes this kind of visionary to see technology as an opportunity and then to be able to formulate a strategy to use it in a business setting. This weeks lesson is really a lesson on how tricky the business environment is with regard to competitors and how easily one can fall behind without knowledge of your competitors and the technology available.

The best example of this is the story in the textbook about FreshDirect and how it became a market leader by knowing the market and understanding how technology would help position them as a leader in that market. FreshDirect didn't just become a leader, they dominated the market so decisively in such a short period of time, it left many competitors in it's wake.

While this is an extreme example, it does point out that sustainable competitive advantage comes from operational effectiveness. That is, doing the same thing but doing it better. By adding technology, you now become positioned to shape a new landscape. A landscape that many will attempt to follow, and imitate, but one that will have few successes.

As stated in the lectures and in the text, technology alone will not guarantee success. Understanding technology will also not guarantee success. Knowing how it fits into your business scheme and how/if competitors are using the same technology is the first step. This is the where a successful business owner and/or manager incorporates technology into a strategy to benefit the organization. 

Of course there are many other factors for success such as knowing your hidden and switching costs, having a solid value chain, creating networks, and having a differentiated product. These factors are not exclusive to any business but universal to the business environment. Finding that "thing" that separates you from the pack is what made companies like Facebook, Google, and Apple industry leaders. In 21st century business, technology and how it's utilized will be that "thing".