Sep 25, 2002
By Al Cooper
In my previous column, I talked about the importance of impartiality and analytical thinking to an Output Study.
Here are a couple more attributes necessary to the successful review.
Another major hurdle that the Output Study must face is the creation of recommendations. As such, the person
controlling the Output Study must have access to knowledge of the solutions that are available. I emphasize the
phrase ?access to knowledge? because I do not believe that the person performing the study must have ?direct knowledge?
of these solutions. It is important that the study have access to people that do have that knowledge.
In many cases, a simple phone call to a vendor sales rep can get information about products or solutions that are
available. Is this enough? If the vendor offers the ?perfect solution?, then one phone call may suffice. However,
most people want more assurance than that of a single vendor.
Ideally, knowledge of the appropriate solutions would be found within the same company or organization. Personal
experience is always the best source, but the experience of those that you work with is next best. This is especially
important if the solution has been implemented elsewhere within the organization. However, should the Output Study
only make recommendations for proven solutions? If all companies used only proven technologies, then new technologies
could never become proven. Sometimes, the Output Study must recommend something that has not been tried before.
What other sources are there for potential solutions? A major source of solutions is conferences, professional
organizations and user groups as well as the Internet. Organizations like Xplor International and On Demand provide
a venue for demonstrating products and solutions at major annual conferences as well as regional sessions.
Although you can search the Internet for computer output solutions using traditional web search engines, another
major source of information about these products is through the web page that brought you this article -
OutputLinks.com. This web page contains links to literally hundreds of
vendors offering products in the computer output industry.
Access to knowledge of solutions is important to the success of the Output Study.
Another significant factor is the ability of the person performing the review to present the findings to management.
The culmination of all Output Studies has to be the formal presentation of a report to management. If that report
is not well presented, even the best solutions may be ignored because management is not convinced of the significance
of the findings.
As such, the report must be written so that it clearly defines the scope of the review as well as the recommendations
and must provide sufficient detail to convince management of the need to make a change. Obviously, the person writing
the report must be capable of writing clear and concise business reports and must be able to communicate ideas clearly.
Also, the person must be comfortable making the formal presentation to management and must be able to ?think on their
feet? in order to respond to questions pertaining to any level of detail in the report.
One major mistake made by people making formal presentations of study findings, is to ?read the report word for
word.? The management attending the presentation are capable of reading the report at their leisure. The purpose
of the presentation is ?to sell management? on the need for change. This requires knowledge, confidence and the
ability to respond quickly and clearly to questions.
The next article will delve into the use of committees and/or teams used to perform these reviews.