It does not matter if you are a Technophobe or a Technophile; you will have a mixed relationship with technology. Some annoy you, offend you, make you smile or even laugh. Regardless of what the technology is, we form a “personal” relationship with it. Attributing human characteristics to technology or anthropomorphising is not uncommon; at the very least, it implies someone else is at fault for us being annoyed when we cannot get catch-up TV services to work for us! In business, we suddenly have Copilot or ChatGPT to “help” us.
A data-driven company will be all about the technology that can support the business processes that drive success. Those of us who live and breathe data see how similar processes can make or break a business or even how identical processes can have opposing impacts in different organisations. It is almost as if there is a missing component. People – it is so easy to get swept up and to think that we must adapt to technology, but the technology must also adapt to our people.
People are inherently illogical (no matter how much we data folk want to claim otherwise), while computer systems are inherently logical. This is why we must get the two working together to deliver ground-breakingly illogical logical processes. It is too logical, and a process will fail when people are unable to apply it. The reverse is just as true, too illogical, and the technology will be unable to capture what happened. Somehow, we have to find that “Goldilocks” zone for our processes.
In our eyes, we see the two moving forward together. Why? The AI tools that are available are helping to bridge the gap between the logical and the illogical. This will make it easier for people with technology to come together and collaborate. We do not see it as a threat to the workplace; rather, it is an efficiency benefit that will streamline how things are achieved. Finding that finely tuned balance where the technology enhances the skills of an organisation’s employees leads to growth.
Next week, we will look at the third wheel in our People and Technology relationship, still, rather than being awkward. A Process is the glue that binds the Process and Technology, yet it cannot exist alone either. The power Throuple of People, Process and Technology is the bedrock of your business.
As with most things in life, the power is in the awareness, and after that comes good change.
