Context Note: Edward Laprade wrote this letter to introduce ADNET’s WorkSmart 2013 Technology Summit, held on May 16, 2013.
We all come from different backgrounds, but everyone here today has one thing in common – we know the importance of asking “How can this be better?” Over the years, we’ve asked countless times how technology can help us do our jobs better. We’ve asked for information to be delivered to us faster. We’ve asked for the ability to connect back to work from wherever we happen to be standing with whatever device we happen to have with us. We’ve asked for better control, better security, better bandwidth and better devices. We’ve built complex systems capable of handling all of these demands and better than anything we could have imagined decades ago.
So, why aren’t we satisfied yet? The problem isn’t inadequate or inferior technology – the problem is that technology has evolved at a pace that the business community hasn’t been able to keep up with. The amount of information available to us is staggering, and yet the impact to our policies, our processes and our laws has just begun. It is true that as organizations, we are more exposed than ever. Sometimes it feels like until we figure out how to control the risk, we should block access to everything, but we know that we can’t afford to go back in time if we want to stay competitive and relevant. We wanted things to be better, and in many ways, they are. Now it’s up to us to adapt.
These are exciting challenges to have, and the more informed we are, the better prepared we will be to address them. That’s why we’ve hosted this event every year for the past eight years. We’re here today to learn from each other, to share ideas and to make connections. I’m thrilled to welcome you to WorkSmart 2013, and I look forward to our discussions!
