Meet the Expert: William Ho

“Technology must be like oxygen: ubiquitous, necessary and invisible.”

– Chris Lehmann

Most companies view technology this way. Crucial to survival, technology powers growth and enables people to do great things. Getting to a place where technology is ubiquitous, necessary, and invisible is no easy feat. Obviously, it requires great technology. But, technology alone can’t solve problems or achieve amazing things.

Organizations need to bridge the gap between having great technology and using that technology in great ways. I help turn technology into outcomes you can care about.

I’m currently helping this bank think through using real time communication tools to help customers, removing the need to pick up the phone at all. These real time communication tools help improve other the overall banking experience, allowing the bank to move faster to approve loans and serve customers.

It’s easy to notice technology when it lets us to do amazing things, but technology becomes that much more noticeable when something goes wrong. I advised a large retailer to help ensure uptime within their distribution centers. For this specific retailer, if the technology failed in one distribution center they’d lose $500,000 in net profit every hour it was down. You could see why making sure they have technology that works was important to them.

I experienced the ubiquity of technology first hand when I travelled abroad to help advise companies in Europe. Traveling between offices meant my office (and the tools I needed to do my job) couldn’t be constrained between four walls. As I rode the train, my calls, meetings, and communication followed me.

I’m amazed by what humans have been able to accomplish with technology and excited to see where technology will take us. I’m especially excited for advancements to come in areas like data science, business analytics, and the Internet of Things.

When we bridge the gap between technology and people, and make it invisible, ubiquitous, and necessary, we accomplish great things.