Great Service is Simple

I recently visited a Baja Fresh Mexican Grill for the first time and had a great lunch. I asked the server what she liked on the menu and got a great “tour” of the menu. I later responded to a web survey request and made a comment about the availability of salsa to go with my chips. I had missed the unlimited chips and salsa bar, and probably ignored the hostess when she directed me to it. Within a few hours of making the comment on the survey, I received this response:

My name is Billy Pilawski and I am the regional operator for Baja Fresh in Ohio. I would like to apologize for the lack of "sauce" you received recently at our Olentangy location. I am hoping that the team directed you to our bottomless salsa bar. We also offer unlimited chips. Were you aware of these features? We pride ourselves on great food, excellent customer service and sparkling clean restaurants. I have addressed the situation with the team. I would like to invite you back in as my guest. Please send me your mailing address and I will drop some free meal coupons in the mail. We appreciate your feedback and value you as a guest. We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Sincerely,

Billy Pilawski

Regional Operator

What a pleasant surprise! I don’t often fill out surveys, and did this one as I was waiting on something else. I had no expectations of a response. Needless to say, this kind of service and attention to detail is rare. I would have gone back based on the great food, now I will absolutely go back and encourage anyone I know who likes eating at Baja Fresh Mexican Grill's competitors to give them a try.

So, stop by Baja Fresh Mexican Grill today and enjoy unlimited chips and sauces, and ask the person waiting on you what they like on the menu.

Let me know when you go, what you ate and what you think about the excellent food and great service.

Enjoy lunch and dinner!

"Test" is a four-letter word

This is a guest blog from Platform Lab Director Steve Gruetter

Ever since elementary school when we learned what 'Test' meant, we have always approached that word with trepidation. About the same time, we learned that unwillingness to invest in proper preparation would lead to another four-letter word with a much nastier emotional response: 'Fail'.

In our professional IT world, 'Test' still inspires apprehension, often to the point of avoidance. When budgets get cut, one of the first processes abandoned is testing. When business is booming, testing is something to get to later. Everybody knows they need to do it; very few want to do it. Unfortunately, one cannot improve the quality of their work without knowing what is wrong - validation is the key to quality. In today's IT environment, where a reputation can be ruined in milliseconds, a firm without quality solutions is quickly exposed as a fraud.

Robust testing leads to better processes, better people, higher quality applications, fewer mistakes and less waste from under-utilized assets. Organizations with a true commitment to quality invest the time, effort and resources into validation that their solutions and processes will work as expected. Firms that test gain the competitive advantage of knowing what will work and what will not work.

The story in the link below is one of an organization that had been facing media scrutiny and knew they absolutely could not fail at their key moment in the spotlight. This organization focused their efforts on improving their quality, and then proved it prior to their crucial event. As you read it, consider if your firm has a commitment to improving quality - and if you could take similar steps to gain an advantage.

Steve Gruetter
Platform Lab
614-675-3711 x1


IT testing proves instrumental in reporting election results


1-13-09 addendum:
Platform Lab gets great mention in David Strom's latest article for CIOUpdate.com

Popular Science Looking for Creative Inventions that Make a Difference

Popular Science magazine is looking for inventors to showcase in its third annual "Inventions of the Year" issue. PopSci wants people who have spent their own time in a garage, backyard or basement lab on a personal quest.

The inventions should pose creative, tech-driven solutions to real problems. This isn't about finding a better mop or a more refined can opener – it's about developing a more natural artificial foot, or a sewage-proof suit for hazmat divers, or an electric moto-unicycle. In other words, something that makes a difference like never before.

This is Popular Science’s third year for the awards. The previous winners make for interesting reading:

2007: http://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2007-06/2007-popsci-invention-awards
2008: http://www.popsci.com/taxonomy/term/43300/all

Guidelines:

• Inventions should be new and not just incremental improvements on existing items.
• Inventors should have had to overcome some technological hurdle or challenge.
• There must be a working prototype or some technology demonstration.
• The invention should be a physical object – no processes or concepts.
• Inventions must come from the work of independent inventors or small teams; outside funding is fine, but inventions created solely from universities or R&D labs will not be considered.
• PopSci will not publish an entry online or in print without notifying the inventor first, but we will seek third-party verification of the technology and significance of the invention. All intellectual-property protection is the responsibility of the entrant.

PopSci editors will pick 10 inventions to showcase the homegrown spirit of ingenuity that solves real-world problems in practical and innovative ways. These inventions will be presented to PopSci's seven million readers in the June 2009 issue.

All final entries must be received by February 1, 2009.

If you think you’ve got a winning invention or know of an invention that meets the above guidelines, please send a pitch no longer than a few paragraphs to . The pitch should explain what the invention does that nothing else has done before, what problem the invention solves, and the technological innovation behind the invention.

Send your short pitch to Jeremy Hsu at jmichael.hsu@gmail.com and let me know when you do, so we can watch for it in the June PopSci. Thanks!

2009 Predictions and Outright Guesses

2009 Predictions and outright guesses

I have jotted down a few predictions for 2009 just for kicks. Let me know what you think.

1. The US economy will continue to sputter through a recession despite repeated congressional attempts to inject $billions into specific sectors. Downsizing, layoffs and economic woes will make headlines throughout the year. The taxpayers will not realize their money is being wasted (or won’t care) and will clamor for more ‘bailouts’ throughout 2009. Recession will ease and/or end 4Q 2009, but we won’t know it until late 2Q or early 3Q 2010. The economic turmoil will spell opportunity for creative, forward thinkers.
2. US auto companies and suppliers struggle throughout 2009. GM and Chrysler will struggle to reinvent themselves and make little progress stipulated in December’s ‘bailout’, so will beg for more. Unsupportable fixed cost structures will mean plant closings and layoffs. The media will continue to shriek about the failure of the entire auto industry and play interest groups off of each other for a piece of the government largess pie. Foreign automakers quietly will gain market share, despite industry wide production cutbacks. Ford will stay on the sidelines of the begging, capitalizing on ongoing reinvention, and be the only viable survivor of the big three.
3. Central Ohio startup activity will increase during 2009, and funding opportunities will expand for worthy central Ohio companies via TechColumbus, The Ohio Tech Angels Funds and other public/private sources. VC funding will be scarce in 2009 in Central Ohio, but funding events will occur for the best opportunities.
4. A few Central Ohio startups will begin to make it big and already successful companies will flourish. Strong growth will occur in the companies that have strong leaders, dedicated employees, capable advisors and/or experienced and active boards. Several will benefit from our data voracious economy. A few will capitalize on environmentally friendly business models.
5. StartUp Weekend Cbus 2,0 will be attended by 200 people making it the largest in the nation two years running. It will again be hosted by TechColumbus and made successful by a large group of technologists and entrepreneurs working together. Several people from out if state will attend bringing their ideas to Columbus for validation. SWC2.0 will spawn 12 new companies, 2 of which will still be viable at the end of 2009.
6. Mobilization and instant access to media and information will continue to grow in importance and influence for business and entertainment purposes. Newspapers and traditional media outlets will continue to suffer, and fail to adapt with copy cat attempts at innovation. Interaction with technology will begin to move beyond keyboard and mouse. Voice recognition, gestures, inference and anticipation technologies will gain ground as personal technology integration increasingly relies on mobile devices. Mainstream technology users will benefit. Winners will be innovative device providers and carrier networks.
7. Social media will continue its expansion into everyday life and become the primary source of information, news and business innovation communication. It will begin to solidify its position as the vehicle for distributed collaboration and innovation. The collaboration and reputation economy will grow deeper roots during 2009 and be a part of the consumer / business economic recovery that helps end the recession. Several applications will attempt to help keep us from drowning in the torrent of information via FaceBook, Twitter, Digg, Ning, Meetup, wikis etc.
8. Green Initiatives and Technologies will grow in importance and acceptance. Corporations will continue to embrace green as both a cost reduction tactic and public relations strategy. Green initiatives that make economic sense will thrive while those made popular via emotional appeal will be found wanting. Individuals and families will incorporate more pro-environmental activities in their routines as long as it makes time and economic sense.
9. The Soviet military will step up global activity and test the new administration’s resolve and ability to respond in both hemispheres ala Georgia during the summer of 2008. Threats to freedom and national security will abound globally. Ukraine and other former Soviet occupied states are a likely target for Soviet intimidation. Cuba, Iran and Venezuela will benefit from increased Soviet global activity and interest in reasserting itself as a superpower. Low oil prices will limit the success of these efforts, but not until US resolve is gauged. Iran will continue to grow its nuclear program funded primarily by Chinese energy demands, and threaten its neighbors and the region’s stability.
10. Less than half of my predictions will be accurate at the end of 2009. Nothing like hedging your bets! Which ones do you think will be right?