How Important is Your IT Person to You’ TechRepublic Can Help

With computers, networks, extranets, intranets, mobile computing, telecommuting and information systems now a necessary part of everyday business, I have to ask: “How important is your information technology (IT) person or staff to you?”

The reason I ask is that IT spending is going up at astronomical rates and more and more agencies and businesses are going to be needing experienced IT personnel to service and support all of the technology that helps agents do their business.

In 1999, IT spending was estimated to be $2.2 trillion worldwide and is projected to be $3.3 trillion by 2002, according to Gartner. As for North American businesses, they spend approximately 2.9 percent of their revenues on technology. That may seem small, but we’re talking about almost $8,000 per employee per year.

With that kind of money being tied up in technology, many smaller businesses, including insurance agencies, find themselves woefully understaffed in the IT arena. I’ve heard a number of agents and agency office personnel tell me that they double as the IT tech, or that they have to train the office in software or that they are studying to become more proficient in running the technology in the back office. And with all that time devoted to patching up the present, who has the time to research new, up-and-coming technologies?

That’s where a site like TechRepublic (www.techrepublic.com) can really come in handy. Here are three good reasons why:

Reason 1: Research
I’ll let you in on a little secret. TechRepublic is one of the first stops I make when I’m looking at technology and implementation or if I’m surveying ideas for my next column. Since TechRepublic is owned by GartnerGroup and has access to research and knowledge of more than 1,200 Gartner research analysts and more than 250
contributing authors, this site is a great starting point.

Plus, the research takes a number of forms, not just the traditional cursory level of information that is usually found on the Web. TechRepublic offers white papers, market research and reports on topics that range from business operations and operating systems to connectivity options and information security.

Reason 2: Tools
When you become a member of TechRepublic, you suddenly have access to a wide array of tools. They provide templates for office use, applications to help users learn new protocols or languages, checklists and surveys for training employees on new technology, and step-by-step guides for networking home offices.

This can be especially helpful for smaller firms that need help. TechRepublic’s design encourages a sense of community among its members as if there exists a virtual “support group” for IT professionals. The tool I really like is the “Technical Q&A.” Similar to a bulletin or discussion board, the pages make use of the 1 million TechRepublic members for their knowledge.

I even found a Kansas City-based insurance brokerage’s IT person asking others recently on the site about the options for maximizing the capabilities of two new telecommuting field marketing people and its effect on their network. A number of IT pros from all different kinds of industries provided him with a number of solutions.

Reason 3: Content
They say that to be forewarned is to be fore-armed. And that is true when it comes to managing technology. It is very important to have the latest information as well as information that you can rely on. Quality content is probably the most important factor for my use of TechRepublic.

While they do have their share of frilly and sometimes useless items for business/IT professionals (TechPoints, e-mail/calendar) they have a strong knowledge base and wide base of expertise. Take a look at the “Browse by subject” pull-down menu to see what I’m talking about. This stuff is not just culled from sources around the web but well-researched and well-written. And it’s put together by IT people, not marketers trying to sound technical.

Content is geared for a number of different audiences-CIOs, IT managers, systems administrators, support personnel, trainers and recruiters-with an eye toward making sure that all skill and knowledge levels are accounted and provided for. It is easily found and laid out. While 95 percent of Tech-Republic is free once you obtain your free membership, you can fork out around $10 a month for TechPro Guild service to add even more. Signing up to be a member also lets you custom select areas of interest and applications for your perusal.

You know, there are a number of sites out there that I bookmark as references. I consider them my online library of information. I use them for education to learn about advanced topics like remote, wireless networking. I use them for reference to make sure I’m troubleshooting a system correctly. I use them for increased productivity, making use of tips, techniques, templates and checklists.

TechRepublic has fulfilled all of those needs. Put it this way: if the TechRepublic site were a traditional book, the cover would be missing, the pages would be dog-eared and marked on and I’d be hesitant to let anyone borrow my copy. But what the heck; it’s a website, so I’ll share.

Technocracy is a regular column designed to examine and explain new technology and how it applies to the insurance industry. Readers are encouraged to e-mail questions or comments to John Chivvis at ijwest@insurancejournal.com.

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