The Merchant Stand a blog by Bob Williams

TMobile – Bold and Driven

Posted on November 30, 2013 by Bob Williams Posted in Agile Organization, Customer Focus Leave a comment

Disclosure: I am an active TMobile subscriber. A bold and driven business leader. Are you keeping track of movements in the mobile phone industry in the United States? In the two most recent reporting quarters TMobile, once headed for the history books, reported subscriber growth in half million chunks. While not profitable in the most recent quarter, the company reported a nine percent growth in revenue. It seems likely that the growth in revenue will lead to profitability and investors have responded by driving up the stock price. Yes, this is the same TMobile that Deutsche Telekom wanted to sell. It’s the same TMobile that AT&T was ready to buy but denied by the government. Enter John J. Legere as Chief Executive Officer. James Stewart of the New York Times calls him brash and disruptive. I see Mr. Legere’s actions as bold and driven. You have to admire someone that

Death to the Office?

Posted on November 24, 2013 by Bob Williams Posted in Career, Ideas Leave a comment

Do interconnected electronic devices eliminate the need for the traditional office? I read “Death to the office” and stopped to think. Wait, did I read that right? Yes, it said “death to the office” because of commute to work options in the new digital age. The traditional office of the 20th century is history. Then I read it again in a piece by Andrew Keen of CNN entitled Five reasons the office will become redundant. Keen’s argument is that advancement of technology, ease of access to the internet, and increase in commute times, make the office unnecessary as an everyday place to conduct work (My one sentence interpretation and summary). The argument reminds me of the paperless office idea from the 1980s. Remember when the latest buzz was the traditional office would become paperless? The amount of paper may be reduced, but we certainly are not paperless. In addition to

Programming to simplify work flow

Posted on November 16, 2013 by Bob Williams Posted in Career, Technology Leave a comment

Everyday programmers go to work to create new shiny custom pieces of work that have the bling and entertainment value to satisfy consumer’s digital appetites. The objective is to turn the bling into dollars. In some circles I’ve heard it referred to as creating the “sexy stuff” while playing with the latest and greatest programming tools and techniques. But. There are also programmers that go to work everyday to solve problems for what I call the plumbing and work flow areas of the business. This is the non-sexy stuff. Yet it’s the essential stuff. This is the programming that automates business process, eliminates manual workflow, and connects disparate systems so they can trade information. Some of these programmers work on computing platforms with computing languages originally developed over 30 years ago. These are the programmers that wade through years-and-years worth of business rules and customizations to determine how to put

The IT Salary Equation

Posted on November 10, 2013 by Bob Williams Posted in Career Leave a comment

The salary conversation. Bring it on. I get it. Certain IT skills command a premium salary in the marketplace. But there is so much more to this conversation than base salary. I have this discussion frequently and I’ve developed what I think is balanced viewpoint. Some skills grow in demand as recapped by James O’Brien in this article on the The IT Salary ‘Wave’. IT professionals need to do their homework on their full compensation package, soft benefits, and needed skills before making their case for a raise. The bigger picture. I advise colleagues to consider the bigger picture of their employment package when they ask me about their salary. They should consider the following: Work from home days. Not every job type is eligible for this. What’s that worth? Commute. For those who work close to the office, they should think about the trade-off of a higher salary if

What’s the value of a good book?

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Bob Williams Posted in Career Leave a comment

I love getting lost a in a good work of fiction. A good book will take me away from many of my normal routines like reading blogs, news, commentary, and even social media. This week, I missed my weekly writing time because I was head-down in a great novel from Ted Dekker. It was a complete distraction to many of my normal daily routines. I need distractions from time-to-time. I think all of us do. They help us to see something new. They help provide a break from routine. They help us think in new ways. In this sense, a distraction isn’t bad. It’s good. Find a good book this weekend and let your imagination stretch out a little.