Techno-dependency

I have become outrageously dependent on my Blackberry.  It is my mobile office.  That has become painfully clear to me because the e-mail has not been feeding to it correctly this week.  I don't know if it is a problem with the local cell provider or something bigger -- like a problem at ATT.

Normally, I am "buzzed" throughout the day by a steady stream of electronic communications hitting my Blackberry which is perpetually in "vibrate" mode.  Some of them are newsletters and things of that nature, but many of them are e-mails that keep me informed about what is going on within the company that I manage.  Yes, I use my Blackberry as a key piece of my management communications.

I get brief e-mails from personnel making sales calls, or if something out of the ordinary occurs at one of our seven locations.  I also receive frequent e-mails from key suppliers about various things going on in the industry.  I sometimes am involved in groups putting together meetings or other functions where coordinated activity results in frequent e-mail communication.  At certain times each day, I receive reports from each of our locations which let me know their activity for the day.

All of those things are important but, there is one that to me is critical.  I receive e-mails from many customers that expect rapid responses.  I'm not getting those in a timely fashion and therefore can't respond as quickly as I should.  To me, one of the keys to the success of our business is exceptional customer service.  When I don't get those e-mails almost immediately, I can't deliver the kind of service that they have come to expect.

Fortunately, I still carry a laptop.  I spent a good deal of time last night dealing with e-mail which normally I would have handled through the day.

I suspect this dependence on technology is not such a good thing but, it does make me more efficient when it is working!