One thing I’ve come across a number of times in the last little while is a bit of disillusionment about IT companies and their practices. It’s a trend that somewhat worries me to be quite frank, because every time I come across this particular trend, I often find that I have to end up challenging the trend head on. And sometimes people are a bit skeptical, nervous, or otherwise suspicious when I do.
What I’m talking about here is the tendency in IT to be very guarded, close-mouthed, and to force solutions on people that they neither understand, nor want. Here’s why it worries me…
The fact is that for many years, IT has seen itself as something of a walled garden; you know it’s there, you have a rough idea of what’s in there, but no one let’s you in to have a good look around. IT people have seemingly been a secretive bunch for a long time, and they’ve always trended towards being protective of their dominions. Phrases like “it’s technical” and “I’m not sure I can explain this to a non-tech” are all too common.
And as a business owner, I find that this attitude has also moved over to the Business to Business (B2B) realm.Over the past couple months I’ve seen a lot of surprise coming from business people when I give them options. And the discussions I’ve had indicate that many tech companies take the position that “you must do things this way” when it comes to troubleshooting and repair. This is a position that I honestly have trouble understanding.
There was a time when computers, systems and network were, in fact, so complicated that you needed a degree or two to understand them. Of course, this is also back when computers were the size of a small house, were still new to everyday use, and belong to a select few. Like any other technology, as computers became more commonplace, people started to have a better understanding of some of the general principles behind them (just look at TV, or mobile phones). Today, computers are so common in the Western world that we’re surprised to find someone without one at home, and workplaces almost all have at least one, even coffee shops. And people simply understand computers better. They’ll try things at home, ask friends, or what have you, but they won’t be intimidated by computers the way they once were. So why do so many IT people feel that computers are their providence, and theirs alone?
It’s about the control. If people understand their own systems, then the IT people no longer have control. The tech support people are no longer indispensable if customers have knowledge of what’s going on. Which to many computer support people is an untenable situation. It means their meal ticket is in jeopardy. So they continue to promote the fear, uncertainty, and doubt that they always have, since the times of the first mainframe computers. If the client has fear or uncertainty, they won’t want to make any changes because “something might break and what if the new people don’t know how to fix it? The old guy must know how to fix it because look… it’s running…”. It just becomes a perpetual cycle.
However… which do you think is stronger? A relationship based on fear, uncertainty and doubt, or one based on openness and trust?
When dealing with your computer support people, whether it’s in-house or an external provider think about staying away from people that give you answers that don’t really tell you anything. If you can’t understand the basic principle of what they’re telling you, ask them to simplify it or use an analogy. Answers that leave you feeling uncertain or apprehensive are good examples of this.
The best relationships are those based on openness and honest communication, regardless of whether it’s personal or business. And your relationship with your computer support people is no different. So ask the questions, get the explanations, and start to take control of your own technology.