Early Adopter

Having an engineering degree is a curse.  Whenever there is new technology available, I feel the need to investigate and, if warranted, implement it in our business model.  While not as quick as an innovator, the early adopter is well ahead of the pack.

The problem with this process is that the late majority typically sets the standards that we all must follow.  Think Beta vs VHS back in the video tape days.

Right now we are seeing it in the GTIN labeling of products.  We have had those special barcode labels for almost 2 years now, but we are now getting besieged with requests to take the standard format and customize it for each customer.  There goes the simplicity and cost savings of the standardization.

I’m sure it happens in every industry.  However, I feel particularly downtrodden since we have another food safety audit next week – remember how those were all going to be standardized as well?