The People
Sue's success with the technology has been rapid, in part because of her own background, learning and experience, and in part because of the support and advice she has had available to her during the implementation.
Prior to starting Planet Skin, Sue had a background in various business areas, including experience in the insurance industry and as part of large marketing team. She has also undertaken some tertiary education courses in management. This background has provided her with quite an extensive knowledge of business systems and marketing. Without it, the business may not have been as successful as it has been. Her business knowledge enabled her to see that technology could improve parts of the business, and she has systematically and strategically implemented use of the software package Hair Ware 2000 to do this.
As well as her own experience, Sue has family and friends who act as business mentors, advising her in areas of technology and business planning which are not necessarily within her scope of expertise or experience. Access to this sort of advice and mentoring is considered significant in the success of small and medium-sized New Zealand businesses (SMEs) adopting ICTs. Locke (2002) 2 finds that for these businesses, "a friend is the preferred advisor in contrast to accountants for business advice". Furthermore, Locke finds that the most reported barrier to SMEs adopting ICTs is a lack of "knowledge about what e-commerce is about and how to use ICT to advantage". Through her personal networks, Sue has been able to access advice in the areas that she felt were beyond her competence. Whilst she may be fortunate to have such access, the case study illustrates what can be achieved when the factors that Locke identifies as important can be lined up for a specific business.
Sue's husband Ian runs his own business supplying services, including consulting, software and hardware, to small businesses (he saw the benefits of adding Hair Ware 2000 to his portfolio after seeing its success at Planet Skin). Ian has been an important source of advice particularly on technical matters. Another important business advisor is a close friend whose specialty is business management and strategy. The combined broad base of knowledge of these three individuals, which seems to cover every facet of business, has contributed significantly to the success in the use of the software at Planet Skin. However, in the ultimate, it is Sue's own knowledge and ability to apply it on a daily basis that makes her business stand out. An example of this advantage is Sue's use of a "test and measure" concept. This entails analysis of any investment and the result of that investment, hence evaluating the extent to which the investment has added value to the business. This technique results in a very systematic approach to business, and Ian's experience is that very few beauty salon managers in New Zealand use a similar approach to their investments in any part of the business, let alone marketing and technology.
Sue has also ensured that her staff are trained, skilled and valued as part of the business operations. Sue encourages a business culture of learning, co-operating and skill-sharing. Although the majority of the firm's staff were not computer literate before the software was implemented or when they joined the firm, they have all been very willing to learn, and the culture within the organisation is one that encourages and supports learning to use the system. This staff motivation is an important factor in the extent of technology success.
Planet Skin has thus embraced the key factors of being clear about the business, the value that information adds to the business at both a strategic and operational level, and applying ICTs progressively and only when and where it is perceived benefits are achievable, in accordance with the business plan. Investment has been made in the complementary systems required to make the technology work (e.g. staff learning), but most importantly of all, Sue has been prepared to be involved in continual learning and investment in complementary systems and strategies, as a result of her business practice of "test and measure". In this way, Sue is in a position to identify not just the successful implementations, but also the unsuccessful ones, and remove them sooner, thereby limiting the costs of such mistakes.
In summary, the firm's core business activities are beauty services and the sale of beauty products. Information and technology are used to support these core business activities, but information itself is not a core input or output of Planet Skin's business process. This means that technical knowledge and skill are not inherently essential in the business, but they are important in order for the full benefits of the technology to be realised. This provides a strong example for other similar low-technology SMEs.
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