Away and back. 2008 2009.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, friends and family...

Family and friends, boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen...

My final week of work for 2008 ends this Friday, hopefully.  Congratulate me.

Spain awaits me.  I'll be back in early Jan 2009, ready for more work.

Don't think there'll be anymore updates till then.  Busy for the final dash this week.

Go go go... fire in the hole... cover me... storm the front!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year..

Strasbourg, France, winter 2008

ERP. No no no, not the gantry.

Everytime I mention ERP, first thing Singaporeans think of is.. yes.. that's right.. Every Road Pays.. oops.. I meant Electronic Road Pricing.. explained clearly by LTA here..

Well, my interest is not so much in that ERP.. but in Enterprise Resource Planning.

ERP = Enterprise Resource Planning

Perhaps you should read the following article to understand more about it. This is one of the best written article introducing ERP to the masses.

"Enterprise resource planning software, or ERP, doesn’t live up to its acronym. Forget about planning—it doesn’t do much of that—and forget about resource, a throwaway term. But remember the enterprise part. This is ERP’s true ambition. It attempts to integrate all departments and functions across a company onto a single computer system that can serve all those different departments’ particular needs."
- Thomas Wailgum, "ERP definition and solutions", updated April 2008, CIO.com.

Read on here...

How Technology Caused the Financial Crisis

Hey hey hey... before you start bashing technology.. read on.. Joe Skorupa wrote on his blog about how technology could have lessen the damage done by the financial crisis.  Well, not exactly his idea, but our dear SAP co-CEO, Léo Apotheker.

"Here's a hint to all of these experts: computer systems actually provide automated oversight of financial institutions if you install them and run them appropriately. These systems provide "an absolute, real-time view" of a financial balance sheet with impeccable precision that can generate reports for either internal or external transparency.

And if you don't believe me, I suggest contacting Leo Apotheker of SAP. I believe he can point you in the right direction to find the right system you are looking for."

- Joe Skorupa, "How Technology Caused the Financial Crisis", September 2008, Retail Insight.

Read on here...  no registration required though ;)

Don't stop spending on IT in downturn

IT has always been a cost center for most organizations, but it shouldn't be.  Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) with necessary modules for your core business coupled with Business Intelligence (BI) to source out more opportunities or improve weak areas can be an option.  I believe it all boils down to 4 words for the basic set up (let's not talk about governance, etc. first):  

Data, Tools, Process, People

"Companies that face less severe capital constraints and can navigate through the recession cycle should not only cut costs but also seek out additional opportunities to improve business performance. They can use IT to increase revenues and reduce operational costs in the short term. Often, these improvements can be made with modest investments. Companies can use data more effectively and optimize processes through technology. IT, for example, can be vital to improving supply chains by enhancing logistics and inventory management. Similarly, better data can sharpen insights into customer segments, pinpointing opportunities to change prices or focus sales efforts. Over 12 to 18 months, these projects may return up to ten times the bottom-line impact of simple IT cost reductions." - James M. Kaplan and Johnson Sikes, "Managing IT spending", Mckinsey Quarterly, December 2008*

*You must register to read the full article

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Updated on 11th December 2008:  Download this in PDF from here

Fallen in love with in and out of love

Armin van Buuren ft Sharon den Adel - In and Out of Love

Addicted to surprises

I'm so addicted to kinder surprise that I have to buy a box every week.. this time.. got a nice surprise again...

One box has 3, there must be something decent in it...

I like the excavator the most!

Maybe 3 small ones isnt enough now.. I decided to go for Maxi!!

See mini versus Maxi!

I'm gonna have a good time munching this egg..

This reindeer hatched from Maxi... what a surprise..