More about IT

Computers have become an integral part of our lives. Most businesses use computers for many of their routine administrative and managerial functions. Many people have computers at home. Computer development continues exponentially - machines six months old are considered obsolete by their manufacturers. Software development, tightly linked to machine development, continues in parallel. As users, we are swamped by a barrage of information - new, better, faster versions of machines and software, new components, new applications - designed to make us think that our existing machines and software need to be thrown out and replaced. By implication, anyone sticking with their old system is doomed to failure.

The cost of computing

For most businesses the true cost of computing is not in the hardware or the software, but in making the change. The cost of training. The cost of learning. The cost of making mistakes - going too far down blind alleys, buying software of no value to the business, of being persuaded that someone else has the solution to your problems.

A vast amount of expensive software sits on computers all over the world unused, underused, or used in such a way that it damages the business.

It has been estimated the problem world-wide has cost well over 360 billion dollars. It happens to companies and organisations of all sizes, from one-man businesses to multinational companies.

System development

Many of the best systems are developed in-house, with the involvement at each stage of the people who will have to use them. For small businesses much of the key content of extensive proprietary systems can be modelled using standard database packages and can be carefully tailored to the needs and understanding of the users. At one level it is to do with empowerment - people will be much more willing to use a new computer system if they have been involved in its development.

Implementation

The problem with IT is not technology, but implementation. It is the aim of CBRP Ltd to help implement efficient and cost-effective IT solutions to the practical day-to-day problems of running a business.