#legacytechnology

[finnoex]

The Great Mainframe Debate: Why Legacy Technology Refuses to Die http://dlvr.it/TT6bPL

[brandonfluhartyblog]

Don't Let Legacy Technology Be Your Legacy

Estimated read time: 3 - 4 mins

The Bleeding Edge Needs To Become The New Status Quo

There was a time, and for a very long time, in fact for far too long of a time, you could bank your career on choosing the safe choice [insert status quo technology provider here], and keep progressing, or at the very least, keep your job.

Now, the risk is playing it too safe, clinging to the lone hope that your dated legacy systems will bring you to a false promised land.

"Risk more than others think is safe. Dream more than others think is practical." Howard Schultz, Starbucks

Adapting to change, being nimble and obsessively figuring out how to delight an increasingly technology-crazed customer and employee base is how high-growth, coveted brands think of normal.

The Proof Is In, Well...Really Successful Companies That Take Big Chances

You don’t have to look far to find one of the best stories; one of incredible success, increasing market share and powerful customer loyalty than Amazon. You can read more on that here: Behind Amazon’s success is an extreme tolerance for failure.

Amazon makes a good reference point, because for one, it’s so well known, and two, it topped Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies 2017 list “because it has continued to be nimble even as it has achieved enviable scale.

”Sales have reached over $100 billion, and that was back in 2015, while the stock is up more than 300% over the past five years.

Fast Company highlights three initiatives that drive Amazon today:

Prime, the company’s rapidly proliferating $99-per-year membership program

A move into the physical world with brick-and-mortar stores, something the company has long resisted

A restless rethinking of logistics, epitomized by a new fulfillment center an hour outside Seattle that features high-tech robots working alongside human workers like a factory of the future

"Our mobile-first, on-demand world finds its roots in Amazon’s founding idea: that digital commerce will radically reshape our marketplace." Fast Company

Easier said than executed, but for restaurant chains and retailers, there is a repeatable blueprint that can be interwoven into your own DNA:

Build an “exclusive” club that rewards loyalty

As the lines between in-store and digital become further blurred, set your brand up for omni-channel capabilities through technology that supports it now and is adaptable to what’s coming next

Never rest or stop improving the logistics behind the scenes that reduce the friction points for your customers and employees

Keeping it simple

Building out your tech stack alone is reserved for just a few, so choosing partners that understand where the future is heading, how to bridge to that future now and implement at speed without disrupting operations becomes crucial.

At the recent fourth annual Mobile CX Summit, Jayson Tipp, former Senior VP of Strategy & Chief Development Officer of Papa Murphy’s International outlined 3 simple questions to ask when investing in tech, which I find fitting to close with:

Does this effort help us acquire more customers?

Does this effort help us increase visit frequency?

Does this effort help us prompt higher spending?

I sit on the Enterprise team with award-winning San Francisco based Revel Systems, a select Apple Enterprise Mobility partner. I work strategically with large restaurant and retail chains to implement a best-of-breed technology stack that will make a positive impact to their brand. Follow me on Twitter @BrandonTechExec and read more about Revel news here.