MindScape

“Severe migraine attacks during Sunday evenings…”
“Six million people per year take sick leave from work…”
“Maximum number of heart attacks during office hours…”

These are some of the headlines published these days in the Health column of daily newspapers. Research studies have proven that the only reason behind these unhealthy situations is the Workplace Stress. According to a survey, ‘63% employees say that the job pressures interfere with their personal life and 60% say that the job is negatively affecting their physical and emotional well-being.’ Read the rest of this entry »

It was the last day of ‘2008’ and we all were eagerly waiting for ‘2009’ as we were anxious – what New Year is bringing for us, GOD knows!

But the Vinove team, so optimistic as usual was totally geared up for the New Year. There was one more reason to celebrate- we all were going to ‘Fun town’- A beautiful resort near Bahadurgarh on Jan 1st, 2009. Read the rest of this entry »

Like every Diwali (the festival of lights and a long weekend for most) everyone at Vinove was looking forward to a day of fun and revelry. It was more special since we were a larger number than the last year. With a 100% growth in manpower it was going to be great to have extra hands to engage in our most popular activity “decoration of our cubicles”. As always, we were eagerly waiting for the missive from the HR team containing the schedule for the day. A few of us had also decided on the color scheme for the rangoli. However, the mail from the HR team came as a pleasant surprise. Unlike the previous years, this year there was a proposal to celebrate Diwali in an Orphanage that is home to children who are mentally challenged or who belong to the economically weaker strata. “But what about the decoration”, asked a few inquisitive ones. To answer these and other such questions, the mail further explained that this was a voluntary trip and the non-participants could go on to decorate their cubicles (there was a collective sigh of relief).

The response took the HR team by surprise. Everybody in the office wanted to participate. The response was so overwhelming that the HR Team had to restrict the participants, and the team leads were designated to recommend the names of the participants. After all there were a few people needed to decorate the cubicles too, reasoned the HR team. Rakesh was deliberately left behind to ensure that the kids do not get scared by his bulging arms and bushy eyebrows.

After collating the names of the participants, the Admin team got down cracking. They went and compiled a list of items, which the authorities of the orphanage wanted assistance with. All these items were sourced by funds gathered from contributions from our employees and the Office Funds. The response was so encouraging that we ended up giving more than the actual requirements.
The Admin team worked out the modalities, and the last working day before Diwali weekend, was stipulated for the visit. On the designated day we were ready and the excitement was palpable. We joked with Manish to behave lest he be mistaken for one of the residents, and detained. We all trooped into the designated vehicles and were on our way.

After some confusion on the way (thanks to the chaotic Delhi traffic), we reached the venue, just a few minutes late. We were greeted by a clamor caused by continuous banging of steel plates. Mr.Anupam, the Manager of the orphanage, explained the cacophony to us. He told us that the clocks in the stomach of the children triggered this phenomenon, and this was how the kids expressed their displeasure, if the food was not served on time. He further explained that the clocks in their tummies were always on time (such precision could put any watchmaker to shame).

Without wasting any more time, we got down to business. As we entered the room we were greeted with cheerful namaste. It was amazing to see the discipline amongst the children (with an average of 4 years). Each of them knew the order in which they would be served and there was no snatching or fighting (as could be expected by such toddlers).

The only snatching witnessed was between Sanjeev and Shyam (our team members), as both of them wanted to bet he first to serve Pooris!! Thankfully this was promptly resolved.

It was a pleasure to serve the children and heartening to see the participation of our team in this endeavor. Ankit was struggling to convince a kid to eat first and drink water later, while Deepti tried to use her charm to persuade a kid to eat first and talk later, but failed. Ankit won but Deepti lost. Ankit-2 (yes, there are two of them), got so engrossed with the kids that he started to throw tantrums when we were to leave!!

After the meal, we were taken around the premises and also visited the section which houses the critically ill children. It was poignant to see these children, but heartening to see that they were being looked after well by the attendants. The compassion with which the children were being looked after was indeed commendable. The surroundings were clean and impeccable, and any violations of toilet training were promptly cleaned!!

The highlight of the day was the performance by the tiny tots (from the mentally challenged wing), who presented a well orchestrated dance performance. A big round of applause was followed by distribution of gifts that we had brought for them. Manju (our Systems Analyst) grudgingly presented a doll to a young girl (I suspect Manju wanted to keep it for herself).

After spending a few hours with the kids, it was finally time to wave the kids goodbye. Hugs and kisses were exchanged with the kids and we thanked Mr. Anupam for giving us the opportunity to visit their establishment. As we trooped out, I noticed that Manish was also coming with us (thank God he had not been detained).

All of us reached the office in time to resume decorating our cubicles, followed by other events.
As we reminisced about the trip, we were unanimous in our admiration for the unsung heroes-The staff of the orphanage who go on discharging their duties without being acknowledged for such selfless service. Hats off to them indeed.

The visit was indeed very humbling for all of us and it left us wondering if all the material gains that we chase all the time are worth the effort. After seeing the kids so content being in the First Level of Maslow’ need, our pursuit of Esteem needs appears flippant.

This awakening did not however, deter us from going ahead and participating in the cubicle decoration contest!!

As a fall out of this trip, each one of us has requested the HR team to arrange such nobel outings more often. I am sure that the next mail from the HR inviting the names of participants for such an event, would lead to a server failure, what with the entire organization volunteering for it.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a concept that integrates two or more functions of a firm for smoother operations.

Almost every organization has several departments with individual responsibilities. The commonly encountered classifications are :

• Manufacturing
• Human Resources
• Inventory management
• Customer Relationship management
• Accounting

and others. Each of these has separate databases, the complexity of which increases with the scale of the organization.

ERP’s power lies in in its ability to integrate these multiple databases and processes into one coherent entity accessible by all departments, thereby improving cross-functionality, cutting time and escalating productivity.

For Example:

A shipping firm bags an order to deliver 100 crates of wine in 5 days. The departments engaged to accomplish the objective would be:

• Sales : the one that bagged the deal
• Inventory management : keeps an eye on the supply of necessary equipment(carts) for delivery.
• Finance : handles all the associated finances required, including payments from the customer.
• Logistics: takes care of the proper shipment and tracking of the crates.
• Customer relations : keeps in touch with the customer during and after the project.

It clearly calls for extensive coordination among all the departments for the project to be completed successfully. Any inter-departmental can have a crippling effect on the final delivery.

However, ERP systems are configured to smoothen such situations. Employing an ERP system for the above situation would bring about the following change :

The moment the sales team bags the order, it updates the order in the central database. From there it is instantly accessible to all other related departments. Inventory studies the order and checks its related stocks. In case it runs short, it notifies the in-house stock procurement dept. to make additional purchases.

Next, Finance steps in and estimates the costs to be borne by the firm for delivering the project. It also works on the billing details that will be sent to the customer(Billing dept.).

Logistics simultaneously checks transport availability to ports and also works on tracking the consignment till it is safely delivered.

Additionally, the Customer Management System keeps in touch with the customer and keeps him informed about the progress of his order, till it is delivered and beyond, for future projects that he might decide to entrust to the firm.

Thus, employing an ERP system greatly improves inter-department co-operation, and results in much better operational efficiency.

All the departments that ERP integrates and can be applied to are known as ERP Modules.

Advantages of ERP

1) Reduced Data entry and redundancy : this is the prime objective of ERP. It integrates all data under one centralized database that makes repeated data entry unnecessary, and facilitates easy access by all departments.

2) Easier Inter-department communication : which follows from a centralized database.

3) Reduction in time and cost

4) Security : ERP systems come with in-built computer security systems that are useful in preventing crimes like industrial espionage and intellectual property embezzlement.

Criticism against ERP and new developments

ERP has generated criticism due to its extensive integration costs. ERP costs can be roughly broken down into :

• Configuring(Revamping) existing system according to ERP requirements.
• Reconfiguration of hardware, work-flow, data transfers etc
• Training of personnel on ERP’s functional dynamics
• Expert ERP consultation for installation, training and post-installation maintenance and trouble shooting.

To avert this, two news trends that have witnessed encouraging responses are Online ERP and Custom ERP.

For Online ERP, any firm that wishes to avail the ERP services contacts an online vendor, who in turn provides the services for a pre-decided charge.

Custom ERP entails the integration of particular ERP modules that are relevant to the existing business’s needs, rather than revamping the business itself.

These two alternate approaches to ERP have found reasonable acceptance as they eliminate the much criticized stage of existing business revamp and the huge costs involved in on-site ERP installation.

Conclusion

ERP’s success can be gaged by the widespread popularity of firms like SAP AG, Ramco ERP, Oracle Applications and Microsoft Dynamics, that are the biggest players in this field. Having been introduced only a few years back, ERP systems have helped organizations both big and small integrate their functions for better productivity and profits.

With constant improvements being introduced and the scope of application widening to cover almost all industry sectors, ERP systems are here to stay and rule.

Not all guidelines are meant to be restrictive. Quality standards, the guidelines for web development, are meant to establish a semblance of uniformity in all web services delivered.

Issued by W3C, Quality Standards stipulate the various parameters any web development service/product must match up to, to be considered up-to-the-mark The Internet today is a beehive of all sorts of web services. Some are good, some are top-of-the-line, and some are a waste of time.

Quality standards aim to eliminate this discrepancy by promoting researched standards so that all web products and services are user-friendly and make good sense to invest in.

The need for standards

Web designers and developers are humans, which means their work reflects their viewpoints to varying extents. These viewpoints can be broadly classified under:

• Scripting of Websites
  

Using XHTML standards

XHTML is an extension of HTML that is cleaner and leaner. It allows websites to be viewed on various devices (mobile phones etc.) which was not easy with HTML.

Using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) standards

Websites have varying degrees of complexity in their underlying codes. With HTML <font> tag, re-writing or changing the content of the website becomes tedious as it involves extensive re-configuration of the existing code.

To overcome this, W3C Quality Standards stipulate the use of CSS standards. It is a potent way of separating the style of a webpage from its content. In doing so, it enables very easy re- configuration of the page’s content.

Using CSS greatly improves the browser compatibility of a website and also improves its readability, while the lesser development time involved cuts development costs.

• Readability of websites

Text used in website content varies widely in terms of font size, color, font style(bold, italic), character/line spacing etc. Thus, the same block of text :

“Einstein had bad grades in school.”

can be written as :

“Einstein had bad grades in school.” or Einstein had bad grades in school.

Reading both the types requires concentrated effort. This hampers easy readability of websites.

Thus, Quality standards decree the use of easier text representation (font, color contrast, spacing etc.) for maximum readability.

• Website Accessibility

The spectrum of Internet users ranges from the top-end users with the latest technologies at their disposal, to the other end of users with the bare minimum required for browsing.

Clearly, websites designed to hog system resources are viewed best only on high-end systems. Such websites deny accessibility to the rest of the users, which in a way harms the website owners themselves as they lose out on the bulk of the potential visitors.

Quality Standards save the day here by stipulating user-friendly web development guidelines that maximize the website’s accessibility. The more the visitors, the better the business opportunities.

• Internationalization of Websites

Most modern browsers use the internationally accepted Unicode (UTF-8, UTF-16 etc.) character set. However, not all documents transmitted over the Internet conform to the standards of this set owing to the uniqueness of language scripts used. This results in a discrepancy among the browser being used and the text to be displayed on-screen.

Quality standards thus recommend the labeling of each document used with the character set in use for easier identification and representation.

Also, other commonly experienced discrepancies like which format to use while writing dates is taken care of by W3C guidelines. Thus, the accepted date format is yyyy-mm-dd. (letters with their usual meanings).

Eg. : 04-05-1984 could either mean 4th May 1984 or April 5^th 1984.

But with the use of quality standards, 1984-05-04 can only mean May 4^th, 1984

Although not exhaustive, this brief overview of the prevailing quality standards in web development is an endeavor to give you a better understanding of the guidelines we, at Vinove, while designing web sites for our clients.

Introduction

A CRM system is more than a software package to manage a firm’s customer database. Its purpose is to help manage a firm capture customers, retain them, nurture them and serve them as best as possible. This aim is realized through operations classified under different heads, known as CRM Modules.

CRM system modules

Operational Module

• Campaign Planning : planning promotional campaigns as per the firm’s core competencies and the profile of the target customer.
• Campaign Execution: through channels like email marketing, online advertisements, phone marketing, print ads, television ads etc.
• Lead generation and classification: any prospective customer who responds to the firm’s campaign is a lead. He is then questioned and the information received (type of product/service wanted, price range, contact details etc) is analyzed and classified as Hot Lead (genuine prospect) or Cold Lead (false information/bogus interest).

Sales : All sales made are documented in the central database along with information like customer contact details, calls, emails, faxes, sales quotations etc.

Service : It deals with all the services a customer is entitled to as part of the firm’s contract. This includes :

• Warranty management
• Knowledge management (How To, tutorials, User manuals)
• Back end/ after sales support
• Installed Base Support (support for tools installed onsite) etc.

Collaborative Module
It handles direct interaction with the customers. Emails, phone calls, websites etc. are used for the purpose.

Analytical Module
It focuses on analyzing the database towards:

• Analysis of customer behavior patterns
• Emerging trends that may be profitably exploited
• Taking key decisions on developing new marketing strategies for better promotional opportunities etc.

All the information collected builds up an exhaustive customer profile with data ranging from bare essentials like contact nos., to analytical segments like patterns in purchase history, preferences, significant deviations from established patters, shift in trends etc.

Example: Call centers have records of previous purchases made by customers. So every time a profiled customers calls up, his information is available to any executive attending the call, no matter which department he is from. This slashes customer processing time and instead of starting from scratch each time, it sends out a favorable impression of the firm.

The shift in CRM systems implementation
Traditional CRM packages have been tricky into integrate into already existing systems, on account of hardware re-configurations, workforce training and establishment of back-ups.

However, On Demand CRM Systems have gained popularity by virtue of the following advantages :

Hosted, not installed : cuts costs due to lesser ownership of infrastructure on the user’s part, which is hosted by an outside firm, and the elimination of complicated installation procedures on-site.

No hassles of troubleshooting ad upgrades : The organization using the service does not have to bother with any glitches that the system might develop. It is taken care of by the service hosts themselves.

Going live is much faster : Hosted services obviate the need to install CRM systems on-site, thus drastically reducing “go-live” time.

Conclusion
CRM systems have greatly simplified customer handling across many industry sectors. That it enables all arms of an organization to access and analyze detailed information means better understanding of individual roles, and the customers too feel important when being catered to professionally.

In short, it’s a win-win for all involved. With the word spreading, CRM, especially On-Demand CRM will become the definitive tool for customer management in a matter of just a few years.

When a bush fire starts, it spreads with devastating speed. It feeds on everything on its path and bludgeons into a nearly unmanageable conflagration until after days of back breaking work, it is finally brought under control.

The destruction it leaves behind is often severe. But when investigations into its cause commence, it is often found that the cause was a tiny spark caused by a seemingly harmless source.

A bush fire is a perfect allegory to a problem that has been plaguing businesses all over the world. It’s called Negative Publicity and it drives firms into having daylight nightmares.

What it is
Negative Publicity is the adverse publicity that a firm may incur due to a particular reason, which may lead to potentially disastrous consequences. It results in the firm’s reputation among its customers and competitors being badly tarnished. Needless to say, it hurts business real bad.

What causes it
Like the tiny spark that can start a bush fire, the causes of negative publicity can be various:

• Disillusioned (ex) employee
• Angry customers
• Misleading interpretations of blogs/forum posts/interview excerpts
• Mischief mongers spreading unsubstantiated rumors.

While an allegation might be true, more often than not its the unsubstantiated rumors that inflict more damage.

Why it spreads
This is a classic quagmire. A firm spends millions on promoting itself online through endless publicity campaigns. It places advertisements, sponsors discussion boards, forums et al till its name is well known to all those who matter. Then all of a sudden, one stray comment on how the last blog post by the firm’s CEO hurt the sentiment of a potential customer surfaces. Like all things that should not spread, it snowballs and garners attention from everyone who thinks he is somebody. The forums are now pasted with hate mail and the firm loses face overnight. The very tool of publicity, the Internet, has stung back and stung deep.

As Winston Churchill once said :

“A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.”

That is the problem with Internet. It gets word around faster than anything else. In the good old days of verbal communication, negative publicity was not the worst that could happen. It could be quarantined. With the Internet, the only way that is possible is by plugging out the entire world.

Another important factor is people’s vulnerability.

Eg: Imagine a firm that sells baby diapers. Its product is popular and soaks up more than half of its customers’ discomforts. Unknown to its customers, it had to let go one of its employees who claimed mistreatment at the hands of the firm’s administration. He was unsuccessful at proving himself but had to be let go because he was now ‘malware’ for the firm.

Jobless and disgruntled, he vows to get back at the firm and starts a rumor about the potential health hazards of its diapers. The rumors claim unhealthy amounts of bleach to be present in the diaper linings. If exposed to frequently, it may result in irreparable skin damage and chemical poisoning in both the baby and its caretaker.

For a scientifically informed and inclined population, such rumors are meaningless. But just how willing the average mother is to let science disprove the rumor, especially when it concerns her baby’s health is well known. Every mother in the country is shocked. The husbands too are alarmed at the dangers their wives and babies will be exposed to. The diaper firm is sued for millions within a week.

Effects

• Clearly, business does not flourish under negative publicity.
• Firms may have to call back all their products.
• Shares of the firm may take a frightening dip.
• All of the above may even lead to the firm having to shell out millions as compensation, and the venture might even go bust.

How do you counter it?
The golden rule is- Don’t Panic! Here’s what you should do if ever if you have to :

• Look into the problem

Identify the cause if it’s not obvious. Get experts to verify/debunk any claims/rumors before making a public statement.

• Work out a plan of counterattack

Get the best minds from within your firm and if need be, hire professionals from outside(say, a professional negative publicity management firm) to come out with convincing statements to counter allegations.

• Give out concrete proofs of safe-practices

The best way to gain face is to quash unsubstantiated rumors with hard hitting facts. Stage numerous public demonstrations proving your point. Use the power of the Internet to reach out. This might be tricky if you really are the defaulter. In that case, get the best minds to mitigate the damage as best as possible.

• Follow up progress continually

After the initial storm has subsided, do not let up with re-building your image. Come out with attractive offers, make the customers take a tour of the production plant if relevant, get experts to vouch for your products, the works. Once dented, your image will be vulnerable to attacks for some time to come.

Prevention always works better though

“A stitch in time saves nine”

Of course, your aim should always be to steer clear of such occurrences completely. Dedicate a team to keep a sharp eye on all fronts, including the Internet(blogs, forums, social networks, search engine rankings, websites of competitors etc), for any comments or developments that might turn ugly. Although it can never be all-encompassing, it’s better to be aware of possibilities than being caught unawares.

P.S: We have been receiving numerous e-mails enquiring if we offer negative publicity management services. We do offer negative publicity management and have been doing so for a number of our clients - please get in touch with us on sales [at] vinove.com for further information.

Having discussed the overview of link popularity in our last post, we would now delve further into the challenges associated with development of that coveted link. Going by the adage that “a job well begun is half done”, the identification of the potential link page is imperative to the success of any link building campaign. In view of the fact that the identification of the links is the most time consuming and challenging part of the link development process, we would confine the purview of this post to this fundamental part of the Link Building process.

In the present context, link development has become more quality based and quantity of links is no more a determinant. This change is manifested by the higher ranking on SERPs of a lot of websites with fewer links, than those with scores of links. Thus, identification of the appropriate link page for link sourcing assumes further importance.

There are various factors that influence the identification of the potential web page for obtaining the link.

Links can be assessed on the basis of two broad parameters, and the link page should qualify on both these counts. The parameters to consider are:

Relevance

The relevance of the page from where the link is sourced is paramount, and the criteria for qualification are -

• The page to get the link from should be good for visitors of our site.

 

• The Links should be sourced from sub pages of the sites that have symmetry to the theme of our website. e.g. If a site sells high altitude shoes, then the extreme sports gear shop that could be a potential link partner, should place the link of the high altitude shoes, on the page that features the specialized footwear.

Authority

The next step after identification of the relevance is the authority of the respective website. The authority of the website page is determined by the number of times the pages of the website have been referenced by the search engines. Since such pages are often referenced, they are likely to get maximum traffic and click through as well. To qualify on the standard of authority, the links should -

• Be from the page that have the most external back links. This would result in more traffic arriving on such page, which would in turn benefit the page for which the link is developed.

 

• Another factor of consequence is to determine if the potential website is worthy of being linked to. This implies that when you link to a website, you are linking to everyone else that the target site links to. This assumes importance in view of the fact that Google does not punish for bad links from sites, but for links to bad sites. This contention is further corroborated by the fact that Google is not just looking at trusted link sources but, also ignoring sites that are getting an influx of unrelated, low authority links.

Adhering to these points while identifying the potential link pages would result in development of the link that has value, and which augments the authority of the website.

Identification of the ideal link page requires skill, objectivity and continuous research. These are traits that most available software are deficient in. The development of links manually, thus assumes greater significance. Link development is an art which requires a combination of SEO knowledge, analysis, and a penchant for deal making. These characteristics make link building a tedious exercise loathed by most webmasters.

Developing links manually delivers maximum benefits. The process would involve manual search, manual emails and manual checking. While this requires extended efforts, the benefits are worth it.

The points detailed in this communication are intended to provide a perspective on the way links pages should be identified. The identification of the link page is a continuous process and requires constant efforts and commitment.

It should be known that there are many resources, and pages where the links could be sourced from, and continuous research would help identify the best links from the best places. The only distinguishing factor is the knowledge of how to look, and how to choose the best pages to get the link from.

The conventional practice of searching for link pages that feature the competitors links is passe. This has become redundant and the present context calls for a smarter search requiring an out of the box approach, which expert agencies are adept at.

However, we hope that the points highlighted in the preceding paragraphs help you with your pursuit of the coveted link.

Business Software Development is essentially a branch of software development that concentrates on developing software applications primarily for commercial needs.

Being a part of the IT revolution that has redefined the way organizations functions and interact, Business Software is a huge resource for any firm that employs it. Over the past decade, this offshoot of Information Technology has dug itself in, so much so that it has established itself as the backbone of efficient functionality.

There is of course a difference in usual software development and developing business software.

• System software like an operating system (Windows, Linux) allows the user to interact with his system. Its features include system tools, utilities, drive management etc.

• Programming software helps the programmer write/create programs or software for various purposes. It includes tools like editors, compliers, debuggers, linkers, interpreters besides different programming languages to help the programmer achieve his target. er to write programs and software for varied needs. However,it is limited to developing software.

• Business software on the other hand is different in its field of application. It consists of several in-built modules like editing, accounting, resource management, inventory control et al that are meant to help the organization with the respective departments. It aims at synchronizing the operations of individual departments by bringing them under a centralized command.

Business software’s primary goal is to enhance productivity of an organization. Industries have come a long way from the days of rudimentary logistical requirements of trading agricultural produce. Up until the last century all businesses relied heavily on human control and supervision. Different divisions had individuals or trained groups looking over their operations. But just as the Industrial revolution changed the dynamics of the world forever, the coming of age of business software has been no less of a revolution.

Advantages of Business Software:

Although the possibility of absolute elimination of human inputs and supervision in business functions seems remote, what business software dies have to its credit is the immense increase in productivity and efficiency.

1) Reduced Time requirements : the ease of data creation and modification/editing/sharing/storage is phenomenally enhanced with the use of business software. Manual operations in comparison are time guzzlers.

2) Enhanced efficiency : The use of software is always preferred over manual work when it comes to commercial needs. This is simply because of the above mentioned time advantage and the numerous options that such software provide which make manual labor cumbersome in comparison.

3) Ease of Inter-departmental communication : many software meant for large scale business operations simplify inter-departmental communication and database management. This is a major advantage in large,complex corporate entities.

Types of Business Software:

• For small organizations/home users:

Many fledgling firms and/or individual entrepreneurs use software like Microsoft Office or OpenOffice.org or simple accounting software for their daily operations. These are developed and priced in a way that makes sense to purchase for regular low-key business needs.

• For medium scale business enterprises:

These include a broader range of operations like Customer Relations Management(CRM), Inventory Management, Human Resource Management, shopping carts etc. These arms call for extensive database management and coordination. Such enterprises use software like NetSuite, Sage Accpac, SAP Business One, Sage Abra HRMS,Taleo Business Edition, ABS Accounting Systems etc.

• For large Enterprises:

Software packages like SAP All-in-One have become extremely popular with large corporate entities for the advantages they bring into everyday operations and the time they save in activities that are usually lengthy and tiresome. More examples of this type of software are Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0, Onyx Software CRM, Microsoft Dynamics NAV etc.

The Major Players:
The skills required for developing software that can take on the needs of a business organization, small or large, are immense. Therefore, there aren’t many scattered development centers that work to churn out such software. Instead, there are development firms that employ professionals to identify potential business sectors and develop software for them.

A few such organizations are SAP, Microsoft, Google(OpenOffice), Sage Group PLC, Agresso Limited and CedarOpenAccounts(COA). Most firms around the world use software released by these firms. The popularity of Microsoft Office is a fine example. So is the advent of SAP systems that has found decent success with organizations and industries alike.

Conclusion:
Business software development is becoming the nerve-center of businesses all over the world. Understandably so, with the priceless advantages of time reduction, efficient documentation and smooth database record management. The present trend is however toward online business software use. This has been prompted out of the necessity to cut costs further and avail the same services as a marketed software would provide. The fact that developers and vendors are turning to the Internet to market their products, albeit at a much lower price, shows just how popular and how important business software has become for individuals and conglomerates alike.

Alec, a young sprog in Firm A, hits upon a brilliant concept that could revolutionize the way his firm handles clients. The idea needs extensive web solutions to make sure it takes off and succeeds. He approaches his seniors and gets the nod to go look for a professional firm that’ll give them what they want.

Before leaving, Alec is mildly apprehensive about the idea. Although it looks grand, its details are foggy. “I’d better find someone good who know their craft”, he muses.

Scenario 1:

Firm Acme, well established and reputed in web solutions, accept Alec’s project and promise to deliver within a time-line of 4 months. Acme prides itself on its methodical, no nonsense or deviation approach to completing projects. And they have their stellar record of their past to back them up. So Acme proceeds with the project overflowing with self assurance , convinced it has understood Alec’s concept better than he could ever do himself. Alec is hesitant about voicing his concerns. “They’ve not earned a good name for nothing. Maybe they can grasp the unsaid as well”. “You’ll hear from us in 3 months, Sir” is all he is told.

Weeks later, with the project very close to completion, Alex and his boss are called for a demonstration. Acme wasn’t keen on this, knowing they were good with their work. But company policies stipulated it so they had to.

The demonstration proceeds and progresses well, until Alec’s boss comes up with an innocuous query. Innocuous to him, that is. Acme professionals look flabbergasted. “ Why would you want to do that?” they retort. “Why not ?” goes Alec’s boss. “Well if that’s what it is, you should have told us about this before !” Alec squirms in his seat, uneasiness dripping from his face. “You never even let us talk to you about the project while it was being drafted. You guys were so smug about your abilities you didn’t think it would be advisable to keep us in the loop!” was all he manages, afraid those were the last words he’d get to speak for his firm before being thrown out.

The whole debacle inflicts major financial losses on everyone, and a blow on the head for Acme’s tested work ethics.

Scenario 2:

Alec approaches a relatively inexperienced firm, The Upstarts, a young group of web solution experts. What draws him to them is their willingness to listen to him pour his heart out, allowing him to understand and define his idea even better.

“We’ll see it through in a month , Sir, and we’d like you to be in constant touch with us till we have it ready”. “Okay, that sounds fine” says Alec. “Infact I like it”.

Work at The Upstarts proceeds with gusto, with their small team of developers, designers, managers, technical writers and testers working simultaneously. What Alec notices surprises him. Instead of going for the whole idea at once, The Upstarts fragment his brainchild into small chunks. “We like it small”, they wink. They all sit together, with Alec in the middle, each one voicing his opinions and ideas, until everyone present knows precisely what is wanted and which way the spurt of action is to be directed.

This goes on everyday, with the testers rounding up each day’s produce with a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Thumbs up, they hit the next chunk. Thumbs down, The Upstarts dash back to the drawing board. Finally, with a lot of re-working and intuitive improvisation, the whole project is pieced together, chunk by perfected chunk falling into place. On D-Day, exactly one-month from the start, the project is complete and comes out sparkling. It works flawlessly.

Alec comes up to his boss smelling like roses. Firm A has got its money’s worth (and how !), and hits industry folklore for revolutionizing client management. Needless to say, Alec does not remain a sprog in the firm for much longer.

For all you lesser mortals who haven’t already figured out what made The Upstarts beat Acme, it’s a dynamic web development approach called Agile Web Development.

What makes Agile web development successful is the way it goes about a project. Here are the aspects:

1) Manageable chunks: Agile web development breaks a project into fragments, each small but essential, and works on its every aspect, from designing to development to de-bugging to documentation, until it is fail safe and ready to be a part of the big picture.

2) Multiple Iterations: Each fragment is taken through multiple test sequences to make sure it is fault free. Every time a fault is encountered, it is re-worked, its guidelines altered, and its process of development re-visited to make sure it is improved upon.

3) Constant Interaction with the source: Having the originator of the idea in the loop at all times enables the developers to make sure their progress meets his approval and is headed in the way he’d want it to. This eliminates any last minute surprises and blame gaming, which could potentially cripple a project at the very last stage and ruin weeks of effort.

4) Extreme Flexibility: Rather than walking along a fixed path of pre-agreed steps, the key to Agile Web Development is its constant leeway to improvisation as and when needed. This effectively takes into account any sudden changes that might have to be incorporated into the scheme of things. Without this, crippling setbacks are an ever present threat.

Having arrived on the scenes almost a decade ago in the mid 1990s, Agile web Development has had its fair share of followers who swear by its practicality and resilience. Some of the well known Agile Software Development methods are :

i) Adaptive Software Development (ASD)
ii) Feature Driven Development (FDD)
iii) Agile Unified Process (AUP)
iv) Extreme Programming (XP)
v) Scrum

Criticism about Agile:

Puritans have nonetheless greeted Agile gruffly. Agile for them is equivalent to “Cowboy Coding”, signifying a lack of discipline, and the absence of a systematic, well defined approach to possibly complex assignments. Many argue Agile to be unsuitable for large projects, calling its methodology too shaky to encompass all the aspects of a complex task on the go.

Also, Agile’s minimal documentation, made so by constant actual contact with the client, has also drawn flak.

Conclusion:

Whether arguments put up by skeptics are valid remains to be proved or proved otherwise. But for now, web development solutions have a radical tool to help them along. So as long as Agile delivers, the only complaining will be from the ones who don’t get the contracts.