Vendor Lock-In

Here is an interesting blog entry on vendor lock-in.

It lists three types of vendor lock-ins each based on some component of the application: platform, data or tools.

Antipatterns and Code Problems

Here a few resources for antipatterns, which are patterns of behaviour or architecture which tend to create problems. First of all, there is a well known book on the subject. There is also a web site for the books: http://www.antipatterns.com/. Here another resource about Antipatterns in the software development: AntiPattern in der Softwareentwicklung (Note the text is in German). Also in addition a resource on symptoms which call for refactoring: SmellsToRefactorings.

Customer orientation

customer orientation is the regular acquisition of the wishes, needs and expectation of customers as well as their realization in products, services and interactive processes. The purpose is to ensure stable, reasonably economic relations with the clients. Two levels:

• Information level (what do we know of customers, which information collected, how are they organized, and how can they be used in processes: marketing, production..)
• Customer level
  • quality of products,
  • of services,
  • flexibility of services realization,
• qualification of salesperson as well as their
  • flexibility,
  • reliability and
  • friendliness,
• treatment of
  • sales
  • complaints
• interaction between customers and employees

Success formulas:

• personal interaction with customer
• knowledge of the customer (needs, expectation, desires)
• check customer satisfaction
• problem solving suggestions
• customer oriented organization
• customer oriented employees