Get IT Done - Nimble by Design

Nimble by Design...

If you are an EV owner, or just observing the nuances across different EV manufacturers, you might observe what I have, some manufacturers produce vehicles that are designed to be more nimble than their competitors. I’m not referring to nimble in the sense that the vehicle is better handling through the curves on mountain roads in Vermont, but that the vehicle platform can be adapted and upgraded.

If you own a vehicle from a legacy manufacturer such as Hyundai, Ford or Volkswagen, does the manufacturer respond to feedback about a feature you’d like to see improved? Would you expect them to implement that change on the vehicle you own, or in the next model year? Probably not likely with the vehicle you own. Many owners find that when there are important functional updates or recalls to their vehicle, it requires scheduling a visit to the dealership and may involve replacement of parts. While these brands do provide some over-the-air updates, it’s often been things like the format of the navigation screens, or changes to the menus. Both Volkswagen and Ford have provided one or two efficiency updates over the air. Even though all three of these manufacturers are utilizing their own new EV platform since 2021, they all have repurposed parts of their electronic dashboard that was previously used in gas vehicles, so you might see a message to “check fuel level” on your EV – even though you a are fully charged. These manufacturers have designed vehicles that are each great and have leading edge next generation products.

By comparison if you own a Tesla, Rivian or other “next generation” car company product, the feedback you provide could result in future changes to how your car functions. Recent examples include Rivian adding the ability for their vehicles to “kneel” when parked to make it easier for both people and dogs to get in and out. Tesla also continues to push out over the air updates to its cars, sometimes weekly. Sometimes they break things and correct it the next release. Tesla recently had a recall that was addressed by a simple over the air update, it did not cost them millions of dollars or owners the inconvenience of scheduling

get IT done an appointment. In an article published November 8th, 2022, the website Teslarati reported that Tesla’s filing of the mandatory recall included the following statement “As of November 1, 2022, more than 97% of the affected vehicles installed firmware release 2022.36.5 or a later firmware release. No further action is necessary from owners whose vehicles are equipped with firmware release 2022.36.5 or a later firmware release.”

Because both the manufacturers and vehicles are nimble by design, they are better able to respond to their customers’ needs, address safety concerns, and provide us with better products. I prefer purchasing products from organizations that are responsive, nimble, and service oriented. I look for these attributes when recommending and implementing solutions whenever possible.

Focusing on IT systems for a bit, there are many legacy applications that still function well, but they have not yet been adapted or upgraded to meet the latest mainstream privacy or authentication features that are expected in modern organizations. In today’s IT systems, developers of solutions cannot afford to sit back, they need to be both nimble and responsive to the ever-changing environment that is driven by customers, regulators, and communities demanding increased security and privacy.

Over the next few years, I’m hopeful that more organizations will embrace the value of being nimble by design, not only within their products and services, but also how they operate.

Think About IT!

Paul Bornemann, VP Consulting, Entre Computer Services, Inc. www.entrecs.com