My CEO Life

Now that i have moved on from the REA Group, i am setting up a new business.  In the process of doing this, we have decided that we will try our hardest to use new technologies to make the business run.  The first decision we took was to get right of the old telephone system and to use skype alone.

The theory is simple.  The business the we are setting up is global in focus and therefore we will need to be contacting people around the world on a regular basis.  Everyone has a PC so this is not a problem and all we do is give each of them a head set and away we go.  We are using Skype Business software that works like a dream.  We now have 20 people working off it and there are no problems.

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I am not sure how many of you regularly listen to podcasts however i am an avid fan of them.  When i go running, i plug the ipod nano in a listen to podcasts from around the world.  I also take my iPod nano with me when i am travelling so i can keep up to date.

Now what are the sort of podcasts is listen to.  Well they tend to be news, views and opinions from the US and the UK and generally relating to business as well as current affairs.  it allows me to stay on top of what is really happening rather than spending time in front of the TV wading through rubbish.  I am particularly interested in the more insightful analysis podcasts such as the Economist provide.

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A while ago we made a decision to give as many people as reasonable a Blackberry.  Now the cost conscious out there will argue that this is a waste of resources, however i think for what is a relatively small investment ($800 for the handset and ~$35 per month for the plan) it meant that the team members were able to become more productive and in their own time.  What we also noticed was that people embraced the new technology and also the freedom it gave them.  Often people could go home to attend to their kids but were able to stay in touch with what was happening in the office. 

However there are some tricks of the trade. 

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I was recently asked a question on what i think about outsourcing (to India)?  Well i thought  would talk about outsourcing in general rather than just to India.

Firstly i think outsourcing is a great idea for certain jobs, not all of them.  In particular i think outsourcing in the technology space makes alot of sense.  However, what is required to make outsourcing work?

To me outsourcing is like any other relationship - it has to be built on mutual trust, understanding and respect.  When selecting an outsourcing partner, no matter where they are in the world, they must have these characteristics, as well as the skills, to complete the task at hand.

At the REA Group, we used the team at EarlySail in India to do a chunk of the IT work.  Now this relationship has been built up over a couple of years and was started based on a relationship between my CIO, Chris Vulovic, and the owner of EarlySail - Push Mohta.

We started the relationship by giving them relatively simple work in doing express changes and then slowly ramped it up from there as they became more and more familiar with the REA Group systems and processes.  In addition, we had a team at the REA Group head office that did QA on the work from EarlySail.

The relationship has progressed now to the point where the EarlySail guys are helping with QA and are considered as part of the team.  They have visited Australia and some of the team in Australia have visited them.  Above all, we treat them as any other team member, including inviting them to the annual conferences.

I have so much confidence in the EarlySail team that i am commissioning them to build out the next generation of my latest site www.propertyportalwatch.com.

So any approach to outsourcing takes time and has to be built on trust, understanding and patience.

Well the business i run is spread across multiple countries and multiple time zones. We have offices in some locations and people working from the trunk of their car in others. How do i keep in touch with what is happening?

I have 7 essential tools - messenger, skype, outlook, VAIO (10.1 inch screen), wireless lans at home and work, an XDA II Mini (& Treo) and iPod.

1. Messenger is an essential part of the organisation’s culture. We encourage all employees to have a messenger account and encourage everyone to share their messenger account details with other employees. At any point in time i can see who is online, ping them a quick question and get quick decisions. We also use the messenger conferencing function to get people around the world to quickly solve a problem.
2. Skype is also critical. It has cut our phone bills enormously and allows us to conference call around the world. I can have a 60 min call with the UK and at no cost. We use Skype to call customers and other contacts in other countries for next to no cost. Who would want to be a telco? www.skype.com
3. Outlook - ok this is not rocket science but email is critical to our future success. What is interesting is the culture around email usage. While some in the business copy too many people, we tend to work on the approach that short and sharp emails are acceptable. We prefer candor and informality rather than long emails. I also work on the theory that if i am copied rather than the direct recipient - i can delete it - and that if it is more than a screen in length - i will not read it - and finally - if it is critical - they will call or messenge me!
4. My VAIO is my life blood. It is as small as possible and has everything i need in it. Critical is wireless lan so that i can hook in everywhere. I love to pinch band width from open wireless nodes and when flying around the world, Boeing Connexions is critical.
5. I have a wireless lan at my 2 homes (so i just open and surf) and also at the office. This means i am always connected and always able to get on line. (DSL is taken as a given!) I also have a wireless lan SD Mini card so i can search from my XDA II Mini.
6. My XDA II Mini is critical. It gives me great email browsing, mobile phone calling globally and some games to pass the time
7. Finally, iPod - why? You have to have some down time plus i subscribe to some cool podcasts. I listen to my favourite shows on the run. I actually have 2 - a nano and a video ipod. The video ipod is loaded with ripped TV shows and series to that i can relax and watch what i want on long haul flights.

In the beginning i tossed up between allowing microsoft messenger in the business and blocking its usage.  In hindsight - that was a waste of thinking time.

Microsoft messenger is now the communication’s tool of choice for the business.  Most employees are registered and everyone is actively encouraged to share their messenger id with others in the business.

I personally have around 70 contacts in my including employees, customers and suppliers.  I find it a great way in which i can quickly connect with the right people no matter where they are in the world.  It also allows us to see who is on line and who is not.  The tool becomes even better when i am traveling as my hand held device (an O2 Pocket PC) has mobile messenger installed - so i can contact who i want, when i want.

Here is a classic case of where free technology is helping us reduce the costs to the business.  If you dont use it, then give it a go.

As many of you know, i run a business the operates in the internet space. We do a number of things incuding publish a number of sites.

There are often great ideas that blossom on the internet including such well known names as google, amazon and ebay. However, over the years there have been the real duds - i am sure every one remembers pets.com and the sock puppet.

So it was with interest that i was reading an article in the Wall Street Journal about “The Best of the Worst” of the internet. Do you remember cyberrebate.com, flooz.com, ismell, cuecats, iLoo, Audrey or point cast?

• Cyberrebate worked on the theory that people would be happy to pay up to 10 x the value of a product on the conditiion that they received a 100% rebate. The company worked on the theory that not all people would claim the rebate and they would make money. They closed their doors $83 m in debt

• iSmells was a product created to enhance the web surfing experience by engaging the users’ sense of smell by plugging the device into the USB port. Enough said …

• In May 2003, Microsoft announced the plans for iLoo - an internet enabled toilet! The UK office announced plans for a portable toilet complete with a computer, waterproof keyboard and wireless Internet connection, to be used at summer music festivals in England.

And we all remember pointcast - the technology to automatically deliver news and headlines over the web to the user’s PC … well the company knocked back $450m from News Corp and was eventually sold for $7m.

For more information check out the full Wall Street Journal article and enjoy … http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB114424637699117715-OO16F7Ov3DMZcs1xpbu5ksPDTl0_20070503.html

Ok - how many of you out there have an ipod and use iTunes?  If you are like me, you would be a heavy user of both, especially for podcasts, and you would be absolutely pissed at this point in time.  Why?  For the simple reason that Apple got it wrong and released a new version of iTunes (version 7) and it didn’t work.  In fact, it wouldn’t even open on my machine and it got to the point where i had to delete it, re-install version 6, install version 7 and it didn’t work again and so on …

Eventually they got it right with release 7.0.1 but by then alot of brand damage had been done.  More to the point, they are shooting them selves in the foot especially when Microsoft is launching the Zune and you can pre-order it today.  Perhaps i will give it a try.

But the above rant is not my real point.  The real point is that when you create a walled garden, the expectations for customer service go through the roof.

So what is a walled garden.  Well, quite simply, it is a proprietary system or process that means you are reliant on one provider (or a small group of providers).  AOL is the classic example of a walled garden as is Apple.

Therefore, if i am to sign up with you for a proprietary system, you have to get it right and you have to make sure that the customer service is second to none.  The reason is simple, i just cant plug and play third party software or hardware to get around the problem. I am reliant on one provider.  For iTunes, the problem gets harder as they have their own DRM system (DRM = Digital Rights Management) and therefore i cant even transfer my songs to another player.

All in all this is what they call a great suff up … if only they had taken the time to test is properly.

Now … how much is the new Microsoft Zune again?

I received a great email today with some more tips for the tech charged Chief Executive Officer. Here are the reader’s suggestions … A good pair of headphones for flying. It’ll reduce fatigue as you can turn off the music and it’ll still attenuate the noise. With the music on, since the engine noise is softer you’ll turn the volume up less and protect your hearing. I like the Shure E2C’s but there’s a bunch of them out there.

A travel router so when you work you don’t have to sit at the desk but can work from anywhere in your hotel room. I like the Linksys WTR54GS.

A pair of powered speakers so that when you do conference call in your hotel room you can use it like a speakerphone and still use a pair of headphones plugged into the mike port of your PC (for Skype) as the mike (don’t forget to talk into the LEFT headset). I carry the Think Outside Boomtube but that may be heavy for you.

If you’re into international business like I am, I’d like to suggest a new magazine: www.worldbusinesslive.com which is an HBR for the international set (published by INSEAD).