Nesbitt points to the example of the company's document-management system, which helps attorneys and paralegals organize and find files. Nesbitt says the system has only about a 40 percent utilization rate. "People haven't taken the initiative to see how they can use this wonderful piece of software to help them work smarter, better, more efficiently," she says. The attorneys feel they can't spare the time to explore a new system, but taking the time would help them in the long run, she says. "It's an argument I haven't been able to win yet."
Stand and Deliver
IT organizations that don't have to spend time nurturing a culture shift in the way technology is perceived have a definite leg up on the competition. At Smith Drug, a 300-employee pharmaceuticals distribution company that serves independent pharmacists in 13 states, the 13-person IT staff has long been critical in growing the business. "The CEO came out of technology sales, so he knows what technology can do," says IT director Chuck Hudson.
Hudson sits on the senior staff team and reports directly to the CEO. Business strategy is planned during the team's weekly meetings, so IT is closely aligned with what the billion-dollar business needs. The IT department recently deployed a new voice-based picking system that helps warehouse employees find products and fill orders faster. The system so boosted productivity, Hudson says, that even with a 30 percent increase in business, Smith Drug hasn't had to hire new warehouse employees. Hudson and his staff are revamping the company's Web-based ordering system to get a competitive edge by making it easier for pharmacists to place orders and check inventory levels.
Back at H&M Bay, communication between IT and the business-management team is seriously encouraged, and Walker and other senior IT staff play the game for all it's worth, to everyone's advantage. The company's IT department, for example, plans to replace a paper-based delivery-verification system, known as proofs of delivery, with an electronic one. It's an initiative championed by both Walker and the CFO, because the paper PoDs are troublesome. "Dispatchers and customers could access PoDs electronically, which reduces a lot of time dealing with paper copies, digging stuff out of filing cabinets and so on," says software development manager Walker. "We can also send copies by fax or e-mail and eliminate postal costs."
The company is also migrating to a new Web system to upgrade its accounting and dispatch application. Once the migration is complete, H&M Bay can use the system to launch new initiatives, such as a driver-incentive program to retain good trucking contractors, and a rebate program for repeat customers.
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