#Apple Has Become What They Once Hated

It's happening. Ignoring reality,  the Establishment hierarchies are taking a hard stance with employees pushing return to the office protocols, policies, and edicts. 

For all of us providing office technology services, there is nothing more important than getting the workers back in the cubes, back to the office, computer, printer, desk phone, electricity, coffee machines, fax lines, and Wifi.  Nothing is more important.

"We're going to get you in here three times a week, at first.  You're going to love the new expresso machine and the monthly, themed lunches so much, you'll want your old desk back in no time."

Walt's Words Week 16

Walt's Spin 

This week, HP hits the market with 23(!) A3(???) devices - in color. 

Not to be outdone, Toshiba puts hope in the cloud when it comes to printing. The Apple Watch continues to help manage your health as Amazon buys big in healthcare. A convergence of print, telephony, and managed print services for a London firm, Queen sets a record (in records) and here in the US, nobody wants to work on Fridays.

#Journalism is dead.

"Both Michels and Kleefisch falsely claimed the 2020 presidential election was rigged, a lie Trump has pushed in an effort to overturn his loss to Joe Biden."

Tell me what's wrong with this sentence from an article in the Press Democrat written by SARA BURNETT AND SCOTT BAUER, AP., regarding the Wisconsin Rep primary -

"Both Michels and Kleefisch falsely claimed the 2020 presidential election was rigged, a lie Trump has pushed in an effort to overturn his loss to Joe Biden."

What two words destroy the journalistic credibility?

I'll answer: "falsely", and "lie".

Here is a better version of this one sentence:

"Both Michels and Kleefisch claimed the 2020 presidential election was rigged, an ARGUMENT Trump has pushed in an effort to overturn his loss to Joe Biden."

Can you feel the neutrality? And I'm not a journalist.

Amplify this by all the channels - social, TV, cable news, print, radio, and other information outlets - and you've got a propaganda machine, not a news service.

There is more.

Inject a narrative into entertainment vehicles - like Star Trek Discovery, A Million Little Things, or Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and you've got an insidious, almost subliminal, indoctrination program that would make Goebbels proud.

Gladwell's Views Sum Up most of the Old School, Establishment Mindset.

No. No. No.  #WFH is not casting people out, it is unleashing the most potential possible.  

The office is the plantation fields of the 20th century.  

His thoughts and words of the past are all now in question - his upbringing sounds like a smorgasbord of villages and communes.

He grew up without "broader anxieties".  

Well, get ready for more anxiety than you've ever experienced.

Gladwell, "...the people who have tended to leave are the ones who are the most socially disconnected from their organization, who came into the office the least or who were not based in another city and we hired them largely to do remote work..."

"...it's very hard to feel necessary when you're physically disconnected and ... we Face the battle..."

Mr. Gladwell assumes that getting to the office is desirable.  This is not the case, as the current #WFH movement continues to prove.

New to Copier Sales: How to Sell at a Higher Price

For the SMB, “How do I sell my stuff now that pricing has increased?” is a classic question, if not a timeless one. In the post-COVID era, rising costs across the board for everyone is the new reality.

First off, we’re all in the same boat when it comes to cost increases so broaching the subject with your prospect should not be a surprise.  But in selling, it all comes back to value balanced against “costs.”

Here are some ideas to help you sell higher price.

Acknowledge the issue – internally.

Your prospect is experiencing higher rates everywhere, so you don’t need to mention supply chain issues or rising fuel expenses as it applies to their specific solution. I’m not suggesting you ignore the realities of the economic challenges; rather, it is safe to assume your prospect already knows about rising expenses, so don’t be intimidated about talking about the stressful concepts...

Read the rest, here.

Higher Ed Is Out of Touch

"Five Skills College Students Will Need for Their Future Careers" - WSJ. #Paywall: but come on!  

New classes in AI ethics, climate-friendly design and how to be an entrepreneur in the metaverse are coming to campus

No Way is higher education future-ready by promoting TOPICAL curriculum.  By the time the TA gets a syllabus together, it is obsolete.

Arm your students by teaching them the basics. Teach them HOW TO LEARN real world, on the street, business acumen, instead of empty course work designed to increase tuition, and sell professor's books.

Maybe the fall semester should include, "How to deal with a Recession.", "How to lay off employees during an economic downturn." or "Keeping the Social and Business Issues Separate."

But what do I know...

Week 15 - July 15

Walt's Spin

"What's old is new." A statement uttered by countless generations before and leagues to come. For me, and I am sure many timeline-compatriots, today's world seems eerily reminiscent. Certainly not identical, and more than nostalgic. More like a Renaissance.

Managed Print Services is still alive and experiencing a bump. Partly due to some pent-up demand and a reduction of IT resources.

The demand is provisional. I still believe pivoting into IT services is possible, not strictly because of an existing print-centric relationship as much as the supporting infrastructure of MPS practices is a solid foundation for the transition.

Sales and marketing will shift demographics and talk tracks, but needs assessments and proposals are parallel paths. But again, the demand for IT services has a shelf life.

Consolidation runs rampant, and the larger, establishments remain overconfident in their temporary position.

Smaller, more agile companies bite at their ankles, stirring up turbulence and poised to disrupt the onetime disruptors.

 

On a more celestial stage, the Webb telescope released stunning photos of our both crowded and sparse galactic neighborhood. The pictures are sure to give a great perspective.

The DOTC Office Technology Partnership Ecosystem continues to grow as we welcome All Associates to the realm. These guys have been measuring office output usage and Running Up That Hill, since the 80s.

Have a great weekend!

Week 14 - July 8

Emus, Hybrid Work, Fog Machines, The shoulder of Orion and ITIL/Lifecycle Management...

Walt's Spin

This week Stephen King is Stranger Things, the cost of space flight is dropping, and the Hybrid office is now real because it is a victim of satire. Don't be agnostic, be neutral, when supporting devices; "it's the only way to be sure."

There is more...

Keep your office/disco clean and healthy with a groovy fog machine but never go to war with Emus. Never.

The lowest person on the org chart gets to walk around campus counting IT Assets - by hand. Not the coolest thing in IT. I found something that will help.

Tigerpaw talks, the cost of spaceflight is a victim of gravity, and is Service Now recession-proof?

Cybersecurity is hot, Hybrid eats culture, Apple's 'Lockdown Mode', Elon reduces as rivals pick up his pieces, and 25% of people will spend 1 hour daily in the metaverse by 2026, according to Gartner.

Thank the stars for Sci-Fi goodness; 8 books for the summer.

The summer is in full swing, 170 days away from Christmas. Dark days ahead, stay strong.

Enjoy the weekend.

Read the rest, here.

Bullies Pick On Who They Perceive as Defensless -

Hello Echo Chamber. 

There are those who criticize without offering a better way. They couch hollow intelligence in sage advice. 

There have always been flim-flam men - grifters. But the best con-men are smooth, disarming, and possess a degree of congeniality. 

Artful persuasion sometimes includes satire. 

First Person Shooter Games have Paved the Way for Meta...

The E*Gaming movement is fascinating to me - I started 'late', in 1999, playing Doom, then Quake, and beyond.

In 2001, I was online with other players from around the world - my age group, BTW - it became the 'poker game' of the late 20th century.  I dedicated many hours and became good enough to be highly ranked in my 'clan' (Quake PowerWeapons mode).  But back then, EGaming as a sport was a pipedream.  

Who would watch others play 'video games'?  Although our server would only allow 25 players on at a time, a good number of 'Spectators' could join just to watch.  And they did.

It was weird, knowing somebody was watching your screen/view as you played - like having a group on your shoulders as you shot your way through the digital landscape(Meta b4 Meta).

In the 2010's I started to play DoD just for fun - it was more difficult and takes a long time to get better.

But then I quit. I slipped back into a WW2 FPS, Day of Defeat after a ten-year hiatus - the same people are playing.

Week 12 - July 1

Tigerpaw, Xerox, Meta & Psychedelics

Walt's Spin

This week, Tigerpaw moves forward, robots are causing stress at the 'Sarah Conner' level, and Zuke tells it like it is, predicting rough waters ahead. Mark my words, Meta, Alphabet, Tesla, Netflix, Disney, Hulu, and dozens of other high-tech darlings will transform beyond relevancy to be replaced by up-and-coming Young Turks.

Studies continue to reveal back to office mandates are harmful and serve only the plantation bosses of the 21st century.

Currently, six out of ten US workers are remote, yet our cousins to the north, Canada, report a mere one out of ten working from home - how very obedient of them.

Trying to understand the brain can be a trippy escapade and big-headed scientists are using data and Psychedelics to help understand what goes on between our ears. 

Take a trip and find out.

More DOTC Office Technology Partnership Ecosystem Influencers discovered. This time in the realm of Sales Acquisition. Firms inside and out of the office technology niche contribute to helping sales move with the times and remain rooted in proven, foundational relationship concepts. Turbulence demands smarter, more worldly, selling professionals comfortable with meeting face to face AND nurturing through every channel.

A saddened industry mourns the loss of a Xerox power player - Ichan may leverage to reignite options and opportunities.

Far from an HP Fanboy, but...Have you seen their Managed Print Services Push?

"HP Sucks"

One might say, "I haven't seen office technology advancements like these since Panasonic."

Far from an HP Fanboy, but - there is more data-based content about Managed Print Services, and the Hybrid environment in one marketing piece than the rest of the OEMs, combined.

Yeah, I know HP thinks EVERYBODY  is their customer and yes working with them can be tiresome.

But not only is HP a player, but they are also still the biggest guy on the block.  Who in their right mind would square off against Blue in the A4 market?

Regardless.  MPS Deniers take note.