1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,320
Episode 20 Cheap, Fast, and Good. Choose Two.

2
00:00:06,560 --> 00:00:12,000
Welcome to Acceptable, Proper, and Reasonable, a podcast about technology and education.

3
00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:17,600
I'm your host, Dr. Gary Ackerman. Today we're exploring a harsh reality for many school leaders.

4
00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:23,760
When it comes to technology, they want cheap, good, and fast. But the reality is, they can't have all

5
00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:28,640
three. They must choose two. Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you needed something

6
00:00:28,640 --> 00:00:34,800
done quickly, but you also want it to be of high quality and affordable? If so, then you've encountered

7
00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:40,880
the cheap, good, and fast triangle. The concept suggests that you can only achieve two out of

8
00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:48,000
these three qualities at any given time. Let's break it down. First, let's talk about cheap and good.

9
00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:53,600
Imagine you're planning a technology installation in your school. You need enterprise-grade devices

10
00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:57,520
and proper configuration to ensure that it works the way you need it to work.

11
00:00:57,520 --> 00:01:03,760
But you're on a tight budget. In this scenario, you might find a skilled engineer who offers reasonable

12
00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:09,840
rates, but the trade-off is time. Quality work at a low cost often means that you'll need to wait

13
00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:15,360
longer for the project to be completed. You may have to wait until your vendor expands their staff,

14
00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:20,880
until they have a slow time between projects, or can otherwise meet your available price point.

15
00:01:20,880 --> 00:01:28,960
Patience is key here. Next, we have good and fast. This combination is ideal when quality and speed

16
00:01:28,960 --> 00:01:34,160
are your top priorities. Think about a technology upgrade that needs to happen during your school

17
00:01:34,160 --> 00:01:40,320
break. Systems need to be upgraded, tested, and ready for production before students and faculty

18
00:01:40,320 --> 00:01:46,320
return. To achieve this, you might need to hire a team of experts or invest heavily in short-term

19
00:01:46,320 --> 00:01:52,240
human resources to get the work done. The result? A high-quality product delivered on time,

20
00:01:52,240 --> 00:01:59,760
but at a premium cost. Speed and quality come at a price. Finally, let's consider cheap and fast.

21
00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:04,320
This may seem the go-to option working in schools, because you need things done quickly

22
00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:09,520
and affordably. If an event is scheduled and you need to quickly expand capacity, for example,

23
00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:14,960
you might find it necessary to complete work quickly, use inexpensive and available solutions.

24
00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:20,720
When speed and cost are priorities, quality will often take a backseat. When thinking about

25
00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:27,440
IT systems, cheap and fast is rarely a good idea. In schools, we have a particular responsibility

26
00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:34,640
to keep our users and their data secure. So cheap and fast is rarely a good option for school IT

27
00:02:34,640 --> 00:02:40,640
professionals. As it compromises security, and that's never a good idea. So why is it so challenging

28
00:02:40,640 --> 00:02:47,280
to achieve all three qualities simultaneously? It all boils down to resources. High-quality work

29
00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:54,800
requires skilled labor and high-quality hardware and software. It all comes at a cost. Speed demands

30
00:02:54,800 --> 00:03:01,520
efficiency and often additional human resources, which all drives up expenses. Balancing these

31
00:03:01,520 --> 00:03:09,040
factors is a delicate act and compromises are inevitable. In conclusion, cheap, good and fast,

32
00:03:09,040 --> 00:03:14,640
that triangle is a valuable framework for managing expectations and making informed decisions.

33
00:03:15,360 --> 00:03:20,800
Whether you're installing IT from scratch in a school, updating what you already have,

34
00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:26,960
or just trying to understand IT in your schools, this framework can help you define and understand

35
00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:32,640
your priorities. Hey, thanks for tuning in to appropriate, proper and reasonable. And remember,

36
00:03:32,640 --> 00:03:40,240
you want it cheap, good and fast, but you must choose only two.