Small biz goes high tech.

The tools are readily available, but a technology plan is crucial, for success in today's business environment

For Jeanette Sanderson Patterson, integrating technology into her business was not a choice, but a necessity. Patterson, Owner of Sanderson Design, an interior design firm based in Oakland. California, was prodded by a customer to upgrade the technology in her firm. "One of my clients told me point-blank, `you've got to get rid of the dotmatrix printer,'" she says with a laugh. But it was no laughing matter. Patterson, who had just opened her business in 1993, realized it her materials didn't look as professional as those of larger, more experienced firms she couldn't compete with them. Facing the grim reality of losing customers or failing to attract new clients. Patterson invested in more than just technology; she invested in a new way of doing business. She realized that finding the right software was even more critical than the hardware.

Patterson's story is nor unique. Small and large businesses are realizing the benefits of integrating technology into their operations. While the initial capital outlay may make some business owners chafe, the return on investment will save you money in the process. From accounting applications that help manage your finances to presentation software, technology can help make your business more efficient and more profitable. It is imperative that you prepare your firm to do business in the digital age, especially those businesses that supply government agencies. State and federal agencies are rapidly moving toward electronic bids and contracts to reduce overhead and lead time.

WHERE DO YOU START?

Research is very important in deciding which technologies fit your business plan, your budget and your staff while making your organization more effective and efficient.

"There are three key areas that business owners should look to integrate technology into their organizations: communications, data storage, and retrieval and accounting," says Noland Joiner, a partner at Business Systems Engineering Inc. (BSE), a Chicago-based information technology firm. But before you implement any hardware or software solution, you must understand where technology fits into your business and which processes are best served by automation.

He suggests the following three steps for small businesses before they buy any technology: Review your business plan and determine your goals for the next three to five years from an operational, marketing and human resources standpoint. Interview your staff to understand what they're trying to achieve and which tools will help them work better. It's important to make sure you assess the level of computer skills in the organization before you make any purchases. "You can have the best software package in the world, and it won't do you a bit of good if your staff can't use it," says Nathan Paige, CEO and managing partner at BSE.

CORE OFFICE FUNCTIONS

The first place to begin integrating technology is your core office functions such as word processing, desktop publishing, spreadsheets and presentation software. Creating customer databases and internal and external correspondence via phone, fax and e-mail is also important Unless your business is highly specialized, an office suite such as Microsoft Office 97, Lotus Suite or Corel Office Suite, generally in the $300-$400 $400 range, will be enough BSE suggests small companies use industry-leading products. "Stick to the standard bearers because you'll eventually have to deal with those companies [products] for better or worse," says Paige. "We rarely recommend that small businesses invest in a custom application unless it's absolutely necessary." Most small businesses can make do with a product that is commercially available as long as it can be tailored to fit their needs.

Patterson's needs were few when she started her business. With a staff of one, and working from home, she made do with Microsoft Office, using Word and Excel to handle her invoices and accounting. But as her clientele grew, she realized that using the invoice templates from Microsoft Word was not sufficient to keep track of her income and expenses. "[Office] was fine for a while, but then I needed something more targeted to accounting," says Patterson. Intuit's Quickbooks Pro was just what she needed to handle all of her books--for a while anyway.

When business picked up in 1994, Sanderson Design moved into its first office space, and Patterson hired her first employee. She purchased a Gateway 2000 PC for about $2,500 and another copy of Quickbooks for her assistant to use. "That's when the problems began," recalls the 34-year-old interior designer. Sharing information between the two computers was not as easy as she'd hoped. Patterson employed the infamous "sneaker net," transferring files and sharing the printer by carrying a disk between the two computers--an inefficient method of sharing data and peripherals.

But there was an even more compelling reason to connect the two computers. "I had to make sure that my assistant and I had not worked on Quickbooks at the same time," says Patterson, who often worked from home on her laptop. "We would often have two sets of books because both of us had entered information into our accounting system." The only way to make sure the accounting was right was to delete the entries and start from a common point. That was when Patterson decided it was time to get a new accounting system.

"Quickbooks worked for a couple of years, but it had outlived its usefulness," she explains It also lacked the security she needed as her company grew to a million-dollar business. "It was too easy for someone to access the passwords in the system and manipulate my financials."

A recommendation from her business manager prompted Patterson to purchase Impact International's Paradox, a design industry-specific accounting package. She'd polled other design professionals who used the program. "Most small businesses should stick to off-the-shelf software that can be customized to suit their needs," says N.D. Brennan, vice president of marketing and consulting for Atlanta-based NT Communications Consultants. "The companies that need an industry-specific or custom software package will likely already know it." Otherwise, they can ask other professionals in the industry what they use.

Patterson knew that no off-the-shelf program would adequately tie together all of the components of her business, which had grown to include retail furniture sales. "Paradox allows me to enter a client's information just once and generate an invoice, purchase order or proposal with no additional input," says Patterson. The $4,000 program also allows her to keep closer track of design projects and make accurate forecasts about the company's cash flow at any given time. She believes the new tools she has integrated into her firm have added mightily to her bottom line. This year she expects to top 1997 revenues by several hundred thousand dollars.

Unlike Quickbooks, Paradox allows Patterson to create access profiles for each of the users on her network. Employees are given specific privileges that let them view, alter or print only certain files. Information that is updated on the program is simultaneously transmitted to other users on the network, thus maintaining an accurate accounting system. But before she could install Paradox, Patterson needed to implement a local area network (LAN) that would allow her staff--which had grown to three employees and three computers--to share files, peripherals and information.

BUILDING A NETWORK

Far from just connecting computers, networking also facilitates group collaboration through calendar sharing and centralized contact management software. Client-server and peer-to-peer are the two basic kinds of networks (for more on networks, see "Look before you LAN, Techwatch, January 1998). Like many small business owners, Patterson turned to a friend who "knew about computers" to help her install a network. And, like many small business owners, she found out how bad a choice that was.

"When we take a job, our first assignment is to undo the work of someone who supposedly knew what they were doing and ended up doing more harm than good," says Brennan. Patterson's would-be consultants recommended that she upgrade her laptop with memory and a new hard drive, at a cost of several hundred dollars, only to find out that the software she needed wouldn't run properly on the laptop because of an incompatibility with the display.

To make matters worse, her initial consulting team had day jobs and often left her computers disassembled for days at a time. Finally, Patterson hired a full-time consultant who suggested that she install a peer-to-peer network since she had only four computers, including her laptop, and minimal shared applications. "I don't foresee needing anything more than a peer-to-peer network," says Patterson, who plans to hire up to three more employees within the next few years.

Since Patterson is often out of the office and does much of her work on her laptop, she purchased PC Anywhere, a software that allows her to access a network remotely via telephone lines. "I can dial into the network when I'm on the road and have full access to my company's data," says the designing woman, who also uses Microsoft Outlook to communicate with her staff. Outlook lets the employees keep track of each other's whereabouts and also facilitates interoffice e-mail. She uses a docking station with a network adapter to log on using her laptop when she's in the office.

COMMUNICATIONS

External correspondence is just as important as interoffice communication. Whether it's e-mail, faxes, phone calls or, letterhead, there is a technological solution chat can help your business thrive. A desktop publishing program and a quality printer can give all of your written correspondence a professional look. Patterson upgraded her printer a second time to a color model, although she continues to use a commercial printer for her letterhead and logo.

To save even more on printing, Patterson uses her Internet e-mail account to interact with customers that are computer-savvy. "Every business should have access to the Internet," says Brennan. "Not only does e-mail save time and printing costs, it allows you to research competitors, trends in your industry and keep close ties with your customers."

Access to the Internet doesn't have to be costly. Brennan recommends a program called I-Share from Artisoft. I-Share lets you connect up to 32 sessions to a single analog modem and telephone line. He recalls a client who bought 25 modems for the 30 or so PCs in his office. "If he had just done a little research or asked someone, he could have saved himself a lot of money," says Brennan. "Implementing technology without a plan is as bad as going without it."

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1. Create a technology plan that is consistent with your business plan.

2. Ask your staff which tools will help them do their jobs better. Are they using the tools to their full potential?

3. Identify the specific areas where you think technology can help.

4. Ask others in your industry, as well as information technology (IT) professionals, which plan is the best for you.

5. Plan for growth. It's better to grow into a system than out of one.

6. Seek the services of a consultant.

7. Be sure to engineer technology around your business and not engineer your business around technology.