Some readers may recall my first blog post where I discussed various companies that have achieved tremendous success by being innovative in just one or two particular aspects of their business, rather than trying to break completely new ground. Companies like McDonalds, Google and Starbucks all fit into that category. Sometimes I'm surprised by the excitement that innovation creates and the unexpected sources that it comes from.
Last week, all of the employees at KACE headquarters in Mountain View, California were enjoying a company-wide lunch. As I grabbed a plate, I found myself struggling to locate which container held the spoons. “How could the caterers deliver soup to a whole office of employees yet neglect to provide spoons?” I grumbled out loud to nobody in particular. One of our salespeople chuckled and replied, “Take a closer look at your plate, Rob.” Sure enough, glued to three of the four edges of the plate were my spoon, fork, and knife. Not only did they come conveniently packaged to the edge of the plate, but each of the three utensils featured a notch in the middle of the handle that allows you to refasten it to the plate if you decide to take a break from eating. There was even a notch that could support a wine glass -- too bad there wasn't a bottle of Longboard Syrah in sight!
I thought, “What a cool idea!” Leave it to a company with a clear focus. CaterBrands' self-proclaimed focus on convenience is paying off and showing well in their product. CaterBrands didn’t invent plastic disposable lunch accessories, but they are breaking new ground with products that deliver extreme convenience for the end-user. In this case, that value comes from not having to juggle all sorts of utensils in your hand while you’re trying to serve yourself, and from making the dining experience a bit more pleasant and easier to manage once you finally get a chance to sit down and eat. The innovation comes less from what the product offers (it's a plate, fork, knife and spoon), but the convenient design of the product.
This -- of course -- reminds me of what we've been working toward with our KBOX Systems Management Appliances. We knew that we could develop a product that had lots of features and capabilities and, yet, we knew we'd need more. We knew we had to focus on something special for our customers -- ease-of-use, all-in-one, low cost of ownership are our calling cards. Through Appliance-based Software Delivery, we have achieved these design goals and, consequently, we're taking market share from the other guys and we're saving our customers a tremendous amount of time and money.
Sometimes it can be very hard to see the opportunities that exist to create value where none existed before. Our minds are wired to take it for granted that catered lunches will come with a stack of plates and three separate cartons filled with knives, forks, and spoons. And although most of us don't enjoy the balancing act of having to manage a plate full of slippery utensils before we even arrive at the food, we get conditioned to the inconvenience until a product like the CaterPlate comes around and presents a superior alternative.
For busy IT professionals, the headaches that they experience with difficult and expensive systems management products like Microsoft, LANDesk, and Altiris are still on their minds, but they may not yet realize that there is a better way. If your systems management solution is causing you more problems than it solves, it might be time to make the switch. Click here to meet some of the people who have implemented the KBOX in their IT environments and used it to save their compay time and money.
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