Lesson #5: “Where’s the extra value?”

"To start, you are not looking at the replacement of simple things," he says. "So, for example, if I said to a business person ‘I have really good news, I am speaking to you through a Voice over IP system,' well big deal, I can do that over a traditional phone network. Where's the extra value?"

The bottom line for Matthews is delivering a product that will in turn deliver real benefits to his clients. "Yes, IP is lower cost but I could do that same functionality before. On the other hand, if I can, with a click of a button, add an entire team [into a conversation] quickly and easily, that's new," he says.

Under Matthews' leadership, Mitel introduced a product called Your Assistant, which won accolades across the board precisely because of its unique added value. Matthews explains how it works:

"If I am on a call from my desk I can say ‘Hold on for a second, I'd like my workgroup to be in on this' and I can look up my workgroup contact list and drag and drop it in Your Assistant and all those people would be added immediately. And all the files and discussions associated with the call would pop up. So what are we talking about here? We're talking about secure instant messaging, knowledge management, and a simple drag-and-drop process that can bring in a whole group of people."

That, he says, is the added value that he brings to the table. "But again, if you say ‘I've got Voice over IP therefore you must buy it because it's new technology,' that's bullshit."

Demonstrating value to clients is one of the biggest challenges companies face, says Matthews. "Every different vertical has its own set of killer apps, but the important thing is that IP broadband has created a killer environment for new apps. During 2004 the conditions that allow getting killer apps were there, but the confusion as to how to get there and what they could gain was not present. Companies want to see benefits in a substantive way."

That is why Matthews is not about talking. He is about demonstrating how his products can offer real-time, practical opportunities to companies, which his competitors cannot.

"Anything you can introduce that, one, speaks to revenue growth and, two, reduces costs and improves customer satisfaction - that's all good," he says. "If you're talking to a hospital and you come up with apps that save lives that is their most important thing. If you prove that, they'll buy it."

Matthews has reached new heights of success because he has not just pushed new technologies in peoples' faces. He has created products that open new opportunities and offer added value to companies. By focusing on the end results, he has been able to stay at the forefront of the industry, and always one step ahead of the rest.