I was sitting down with Julian Pisani from Rhumbix and talking about the industry, where it’s going, how it might get there, and how stacking tech will be part of what fuels the process and an analogy took form. We started to compare tech adoption to baseball. I’m sure we’ve all been told “we need more base hits (small wins)” and not to focus on the home runs.

While we all repeat this mantra, it is easy to get into the details on some new process or technology and suddenly feel like it’s the bottom of the 9th, there’s two outs, the bases are loaded, and you’re down by 3! One swing of the mighty bat and you can deliver the grand slam that propels you to victory!

And the crowd goes wild!

But how did we get there? One perspective might go into analyzing how you got yourself in the mess of needing a moonshot grand slam to win in the first place, but that will most likely be the topic of another post. Another perspective might to rewind back just to the 9th inning. How did those runners get on base?

I am often not good at sharing or articulating my Mad Scientist’s grand vision when I am talking internally about a particular tool, problem, solution, or data set, but what I am attempting to do is to get the bases loaded so we can work the count on that pitcher in the ninth and they groove us a fastball that we can just mash. I do have a plan in mind. I am trying to set the lineup a certain way for a reason.

I try to have small, manageable goals like this.

So back to getting the bases loaded. What I am looking for are those small base hits, small wins that start to build the tech stack to get into a position to bring it all home. Ideally I want to find something that I can get a champion to buy in enough on that not only does the implementation get a runner on base, but the next at-bat gets on base even easier, and then they execute a double steal on their own!

That was one of the other threads of discussions we had over a litre of bier (it was German so it has to be spelled that way). I’m enjoying the moments more and more where I’ll demo and test something and take it to a PM, PA, PE, foreman, pipefitter, tinner, or anyone in the company and tell them “Here is the thing. The thing does A,B,C and X,Y,Z. It’s meant to address this problem. How would you use it?”. Often times they see it, they get it, then they turn around and say “I bet I could also use it to do 4,5,6, too”. These are the folks who just 10 minutes into meeting me will tell me they aren’t that tech savvy so be patient as I teach them how to use the tool.

Those are the steals. If I can take that tech and get them to first base with the initial use and then watch them suddenly sliding into third all on their own, well that just makes my job that much easier. Then I just need to stand in the third base coaching box and wave the runners home. I’m getting there. The industry is getting there. Just get some more base hits and prepare yourself for your Gatorade shower and the shaving cream pie in your face when you’re interviewed on the ESPNs.