Computers - invest in training.

• Author: Ender, Richard L.

Last month I was listening to a talk by an Anchorage information systems manager when he noted that during the past 15 years, we have spent some $3 trillion in the United States on computers, software and other technology, and that some $1 trillion has been wasted.

In thinking about this, I visualized an Anchorage businessman buying computers, much like an Alaska fisherman buying a boat. He doesn't know enough about boats, but he has to have one. He maintains his boat with more hours and money than he ever planned. While the exact investment totals can be debated, there is no doubt that businesses spend a lot on information technology and don't always get their money's worth. Why?

Part of the reason is the rapidly changing technological work we live in. Many people, myself included, have paid a premium for the "best" computer technology, only to find it surpassed at a lower price by the latest innovation. Of course, we haven't really wasted money, if our "best" computer, which is now outdated, does the job. The problem is that computer and software solutions don't always solve the business problems we face. That is true due to several problems. The one I want to cover in this column is training.

A businessman who pays out tens of thousands of dollars for hardware and software but scrimps on training his employees in using the technology is creating false economies. Computers and software are complex tools that require training to produce value to the company. Training moves the employee from an inefficient worker using technology to mimic current manual systems to an effective exploiter of technology adding value to the bottom line of the company. This training can be as simple as templates for wordprocessing so you don't keep typing the same stuff over and over, or budget models in your spreadsheet to create in minutes those monthly reports that used to take two days. Technology is supposed to free workers from repetitive chores in order to be more productive in analysis, management and decision-making tasks. But this doesn't happen if you spend 30 minutes trying to remember how to set a font, write a formula...