Within our company, I am known as the grumpy contrarian: the person that encourages everyone to take a slower and more cautious approach when adopting new technologies (the Andy Rooney of Anduro, as it were.) This is in contrast to most people in the technology industry, who I think seem to perpetually inhabit the bleeding edge and feel they rock dangerously on the cusp of irrelevance if they fail to take this stance.
Even within Anduro there are two camps: the more enthusiastic adopters of Web 2.0 and my own cantankerous self. I am pleased to state however that within Anduro we almost always meet in the middle with our discussions and debates.
Though it must sound remarkably so to many that I have just evolved from the Crustacean period, it is really more about aligning myself with the primary principal that has kept Anduro in good stead through the years: by sticking to the core fundamentals and adapting carefully and deliberately to new things, rather than hitching our wagon to every new flighty whim that comes rolling down the T1 cable.
By inhabiting the bleeding edge, I have seen many companies indirectly force their clients to also become beta testers for each new fad that comes along: to me, this is egregiously unfair to the client; unless the client knows and is aware that the platform is still in its formative stage and there is a risk involved. There is something said about being cutting edge and taking risks, it simply has to be stated and accepted ahead of time.
I should also clarify that I do indeed see benefits from the information sharing, synergy, and interoperability that Web 2.0 offers via its robust video sharing, wikis, social networking and blogs (I would not be writing in one if I did not) – but I do stress for any company out there to stick at least somewhat with the core basics and be judicious in their adoption.
So far, Anduro does a good job of this – to the benefit of our clients.
So lest it be misunderstood, let me state again for the record that I am infinitely thankful for technology – heck, one day I reckon I may even venture out to buy my first cell phone. Baby steps first though, baby steps first.
Damon James
Anduro Marketing