Managing THE LIMITATIONS OF COMPUTERS

“First get it through your head that computers are big, expensive, fast, dumb adding-machine-typewriters. Then realize that most of the computer technicians that you’re likely to meet or hire are complicators, not simplifiers. They’re trying to make it look tough. Not easy. They’re building a priesthood, their own mumbo-jumbo ritual to keep you from knowing what they — and you — are doing.” — Robert Townsend So far, computers have not lived to their promise of being important aids in management decision-making. The reason is that, until now, computers have been unable to combine flexibility with sufficient power. To be a valuable tool in decision-making, a computer must be able to handle large amounts of data while being easy to operate and flexibile in its use. It’s obvious why a computer must be able to store, retrieve and manipulate large amounts of data, but why is flexibility important? There are several reasons. A manager needs access to a variety of information at different times. A manager needs to be able to manipulate information, in graphs or reports of varying formats, and present it in a variety of creative ways. These needs can’t be predicted but are only discovered while working with data. To be truly effective in helping a manager make decisions, computers must interact with a manager and provide information the way he wants it at that time.

Up to now, powerful computers haven’t been very flexible. In order to provide the necessary storage and processing power to handle the large amount of data a typical company uses, we have had to rely on mainframe computers. These are large, expensive and centrally located facilities. They are often shared at once by several users who gain access to the computer through several terminals. The use of mainframes causes the following difficulties:

* Report formats are a compromise between the needs of many individuals;

* Since several users may be gaining access to the computer at the same time, computer response time is often slow;

* Programmers have such a large backlog of requests that, in large companies, it can take up to two years to make programming changes; and

* Managers often do not understand what programs and information are available and find the system awkward and difficult to use.

Many companies spent enormous sums of money and effort developing computing systems, only to find that the information generated was not very useful and that the system was hard to use. Managers were buried under a flood of paper and numbers generated by their computing systems, most of which was of no interest to them. In an effort to encourage better use of computers, managers were sent to computer training courses. But they still failed to use the systems effectively.

The next step in computer evolution was the personal computer, or microcomputer. Everyone had to have one of these. It became quite common to see a desktop computer on a business executive’s desk. Most of these microcomputers collected dust because they were either too hard to understand or, in most cases, they weren’t powerful enough to do anything useful. Managers used them for daytimers or other activities that could be equally well recorded on paper.

Now, finally, the situation is changing. As a result of advancements in computer technology, the concept of a mainframe computer being “accessed” by several users is becoming passe. It is an old idea that since processing power is expensive, it must be shared by many users. With the advent of new microchip technology, microcomputers are becoming as powerful as the mainframe computers of only a decade ago. For example, IBM recently reported that one of its new Personal System 2 microcomputers, with the new Motorola 80386 microchip, has the raw processing speed of a 370/168 mainframe computer, built in 1975, which at that time cost $3 1/2 million. We are now able to put flexible, mainframe computing power on the desk of every manager, at an affordable price.

Although it sometimes seems hard to believe, microcomputer hardware and software are becoming more standardized. This is certainly true of IBM, which has set the standard with its popular personal computing line. Most hardware is compatible with IBM. As a result, the vast majority of programs available can be run on many different makes of machines. This wide selection of software and hardware enables managers to select a program off the shelf that is already written and will closely fit his needs. He doesn’t need to be a programmer to use it or understand it.

With microcomputers becoming as powerful as mainframes, a manager can finally do something useful with his computer. In the past, microcomputer limitations meant that they collected dust. When I bought my first personal computer several years ago, the hardware and software were so limited that I ended up using it exclusively to catalogue my fishing flies. That has changed. In the future, I’ll be able to use a desktop computer at work to tie into our firm’s main database and extract whatever information I want and use it however I want.

Computers are becoming easier to use, too. This wasn’t always so. When I bought my first personal computer, I took it home and plugged it in but couldn’t get it to print. The dealer said I needed a different card, for another $125. After buying the card, the printer still wouldn’t work. The dealer thought some switch might be wrong and he called the customer service department in Toronto. Some of their top problem-solvers became involved. While all this was going on, my son came downstairs one night and asked me what I was doing. I told him about all my troubles. He typed a few commands in and — presto] — the printer started printing away. I was frustrated and angry, but the incident taught me a lesson. It’s far better to learn how to use a computer and have one on your own desk than to rely on a distant group of “complicators” to solve your information needs.

The major challenge for computer manufacturers and users over the next few years will be how to “network” together all the microcomputers in use. Putting microcomputers on a lot of desks will make it far easier and faster for anyone to respond to customer requests or to access information. However, it will make it harder for a company to manage information. There will be problems of security and confidentiality and problems of accuracy and consistency.

The mainframe will probably not die. The future may see mainframes which service a network of microcomputers. Mainframes will act as nerve centres, providing basic data storage and system-monitoring, while microcomputers will become more flexibile.

These changes will make for an exciting future for computers in business. The new technology offers the promise that, finally, after all these years, managers will begin using desktop computers to manage. It’s quite possible they will begin to find them an indispensable part of their decision-making. William Stanley is director of national mine services at Coopers & Lybrand Consulting Services.