Dave Evans: Tis the season to be worried
Just 17 days to go, then. And no, I don't mean before you're nursing a monumental New Year's Day hangover or wishing you'd asked granny to shave before kissing her beneath the mistletoe. Besides, nursing a cheese grater of a cheek or, worse still, having to visit the doctor because grandma's tongue is still wrapped around your tonsils is no way to start 1999. Say Arghhhh!
No, I'm talking business here - euro business. For 1 January is when the EC's new currency kicks in and if you trade or plan to trade with the Continent, then you'd better get your head around the euro.
Apart from anything else, there's a good chance Emu can cause havoc with your accounting, given that any EC corporate customer can demand to be invoiced in euros, or settle their accounts in them, even if your native abode isn't - like dear old Blighty - one of the first participating countries.
That means understanding the niceties of triangulation, ie the mathematics of converting from, say, sterling to euro and then to the franc, all within prescribed decimal rounding up parameters.
Just programming the accounting software can itself be a nightmare, without the hassle of keyboard changes etc, unless,of course, you're one of those canny resellers which has been making a nice little earner out of Emu consultancy.
The alternative to fighting Johnny Foreigner is to see Europe as an opportunity, especially if your business is skills intensive and, for the time being anyway, you can take advantage of our relatively low labour costs to help propel you into new EC markets. If you do go down this path, however, make sure you remember the adage, think big or think niche.
A good example is RBR Networks which, while expanding into Europe, has thought niche - its strategy of being a Cisco-only vendor has seen its turnover almost double in the past year.
Compare that to the fortunes of more broadline distributors such as Azlan and Ilion, both of which have had their fingers badly burnt on the European front. But perhaps another line should be added to the think big or think niche adage - think change.
In particular, think how the internet is rapidly changing all business models. US broker Merrill Lynch has even gone so far as to warn that online trading is akin to gambling in Las Vegas. Yet here is a company with an elaborate global IT infrastructure, backed up by an army of computer consultants and Vars, and which could easily become a significant player in online trading. Instead, like King Canute, it tries to command the tide to retreat amid bleak warnings that internet 'execution-only' trading services could seriously ruin investors.
The channel might take heed from this tale as we head towards the final millennium countdown. If you're not big and you're not niche and you haven't adapted to the challenges posed by the internet, where do you think your business will be in five years' time?
Dave Evans is a freelance IT journalist.