Love Is The Killer App

By Susan Nunziata
OK, I confess, I am technically "a child of the '60s" (although demographers would place me in "Generation X").

But I'm not waxing nostalgic about hippie-dippy "love." This is, in fact, the title of a fantastic book  by Tim Sanders, published in 2002: Love Is The Killer App: How To Win Business & Influence Friends.

In light of recent conversations I've had with enterprise executives, vendors and industry analysts about strategies for surviving the current economic conditions, the message of this book seems more spot-on than ever.

"Men and women across the country are trying desperately to understand how to maintain their value as professionals in the face of rapidly changing times," writes Sanders.

He (presciently) posits that the most important new trend in business is the "downfall of the barracudas, sharks and piranhas" and says that the days of looking out for No. 1 are over. He talks about the ways that technology is changing the world of work.

As we all know, mobile technology is among the many agents that are changing the world of work. But there's no one mobile technology that is our "killer app."

Rather, as Sanders suggests, the "killer app" in any profession comes in how we help those around us grow --  whether they're our co-workers or customers -- and, in so doing, help ourselves and our businesses grow as well.

If there's one resounding theme I've heard repeated recently, it's this: The secret to survival will lie in improving the service you provide to your customers and the value you add to their organizations.

Whether those customers are patients in your healthcare facility, or purchasers of your large-scale manufacturing equipment, the message is the same: wireless and mobility solutions can help you super serve your customers and, in the process, polish up your brand image and add to your bottom line.

Is this rocket science? Certainly not. But it's a concept worth reminding ourselves of as we navigate these turbulent times.