I am not sure whether this is a trait born into man or not, but I am a tool junkie. As I look back, I think this "trait" has existed since I was a young boy. If I am cutting grass, I need a zero-turn mower, and if I am going to make a box I need an air nailer. If I am making wine, I need an automatic bottle capper; when I go for a boat ride, I need a GPS map - the list goes on and on. The one thing I have come to discover is that a zero-turn lawnmower doesn't make me a landscaper and an air nailer doesn't make me a cabinet maker. And, an automatic bottle capper sure as heck doesn't make me a vintner.

My point? While tools are important, they only tell a part the story. It is the skilled craftsmen who make the tool produce great things. This is the way I look at PICS, our staff members and business partners. Each and every person who works with PICS is a skilled craftsman. We also have great tools, but without knowledgeable,senior people behind them, these tools are more of a hindrance than an asset. Our competitors may have tool sets that allow them to occasionally win at a boardroom level, but they rarely surpass our craftsmen in the implementation playing field.

In this newsletter, you will read about our successes in implementations over the years. Whether it is an Internet application, a software project, or an MFG/PRO implementation, the rubber meets the road when we have to fashion a complete solution for a customer. Take a look at your technology partners. If they are looking back with glassy eyes, perhaps you should give us a call.

Many people have heard the term 'Getting Back to Basics' applied in business scenarios. In a business sense, getting back to basics means to focus on the core processes of your business and what made the business successful in the first place. Earlier this month I had an opportunity to spend a week in New Orleans to help with the Hurricane Katrina disaster recovery that is still ongoing in that area. During this trip, 'Getting Back to Basics' took on a whole new meaning for me. The first thing I couldn't believe was the scope of the devastation. We drove down one road for an hour and every home on both sides of the road were destroyed, unlivable. Every shopping center was destroyed and deserted, as was every gas station. Another day we drove an hour in a different direction, and again, every home was ruined. We went and stood next to the levee that flooded the Ninth Ward. The homes in that area of the Ninth Ward will not be rebuilt, but bulldozed. It is now home to rats and cockroaches.

The folks in New Orleans, Mississippi, and other areas affected by Hurricane Katrina were forced to 'Get Back to Basics' with the basics being shelter, food, medicine, family, everything we just take for granted in our day-to-day lives.

What amazed me was the spirit of the people I met as we walked around different neighborhoods and spoke to them. Not one of these people complained. They have more hope, more faith, more love, more generosity than those of us living in privileged areas.

If you can picture grabbing just your cell phone and your car keys, leaving your home, and coming back to complete destruction, that is what they have lived.

Getting Back to Basics now has a new meaning for me.