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Technology signals positive change, so stay on track
By Dave Evans - 21 July 2011
Network Rail has, believe it or not, been in the news for more than one reason this week. The reason it’s ‘trending’ (as they say on Twitter) for many people this week is because of the potential industrial action that could place after it gaps in pay between men and women were exposed. Bad news. But, the other, perhaps less known reason it’s hitting the headlines is down to the fact that Network Rail has decided to yank itself into the 21 Century and completely modernise the way it manages the railways.
The impact that the new technology will have is enormous, and will probably lead to annual savings for the organisation of around £250 million, according to reports. The way these stories are handled and put together always fascinates me, because news items are arranged in terms of news value – the juicy parts of the story at the top, and then just fill the white space with anything else. The Times led with the jobs that will be sacrificed because of the new technology, and stuck in a huge picture of the ‘good old days’ and a man operating the old signal boxes.
The cost savings for this huge organisation, that could well be pumped back into the company so it can grow and employ twice as many people that lost their job, is mentioned towards the end of the third or fourth paragraph. By this point, the point had been made.
The coming of new technology doesn’t have to always be under a dark cloud, with the potential downsides always highlighted ahead of the advantages and benefits. Where training management software is concerned, the power to automate and streamline, just as huge organsiations like Network Rail are waking up to, has never been greater.
It is always important to focus on the positives and the savings, rather than dwell on the negatives – or perceived negatives in most cases. The forward-thinking companies are the ones investigating new technology and working out which features and services most suit their needs, instead of holding on to the “way things used to be done” and allowing their business performance and profits to suffer as a result.
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