July 16, 2008
iWant an iPhone
It's true. From the first murmurings on one of the varied Mac rumor sites to the day it was officially announced, my lizard-brain kicked in and put a check so firmly in the "I want" column that it blurred over the edges into "I need". To my credit, I've honored my commitment to my current cellular service provider, but now that the end of my contract is pending (and a new iPhone is coming out), my wallet is getting itchy and my pockets are getting hungry for some high tech gadgetry.
I pride myself on thinking through my purchases before I make them, but it has required a Herculean effort to keep from shredding my contract, gritting my teeth through the early termination fee, and handing my credit card to the nearest teal-shirt in the Apple Store. However, since I'm not an early adopter in this case, I have the luxury of a little time before I need to make a choice. I've decided to take a real look at my purchasing decision and truly weigh my options.
In my professional life, I frequently work with organizations that have serious business decisions to make. They are evaluating platforms and technologies that could require substantial time, effort and investment to implement, and have to weigh both quantitative and qualitative measures to make their final decision on what approach to follow. It seems incongruous for me to entertain the thought of making a hasty technology purchase simply because I had a knee-jerk reaction to an innovative and exciting product with a well articulated marketing campaign.
Whether at a personal or institutional level, the steps of the evaluation and decision process are largely the same. The following list is a rough outline, with some examples taken from my immediate buying decision needs:
- Define requirements, high level (coarse) and detailed (fine) Coarse: nationwide coverage, integrated email, keyboard for text entry, etc. Fine: size/weight considerations, camera, Bluetooth, etc.
- Anticipate and plan for risks and change management issues Risks: coverage quality in frequently visited areas Change management: big thumbs/little keyboard (virtual or otherwise)
- Filter service providers (vendors) based on high level requirements (coarse filter)
- Filter vendors/products based on detailed requirements (fine filter)
- Financial considerations- TCO and ROI as applicable TCO: calculate based on specific model/provider plans
- Final decision
- Purchase
While the order and degree of detail of some of the steps may be on a different scale for enterprise level decisions, they still come from a common philosophy. The goal is to make sure to select the best fit solution taking into account any constraints. Planning beforehand can save a significant amount of wasted resources and effort down the line.
Maybe an iPhone isn't in my future, maybe it is. I hope it is, since my caveman self has already made the decision, but I'd much rather wind up with the most appropriate tool for the job. I guess I'll have to give up my spot in line outside the Glendale Apple Store and not be one of the first to snatch up the new model, but it will be worth to have made the right choice.
Posted at 06:20 pm by Craig McEldowney
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