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cazh1: on Business, Information, and Technology
Thoughts and observations on the intersection of technology and business; searching for better understanding of what's relevant, where's the value, and (always) what's the goal ...
Thursday, May 01, 2008
RSS: Underappreciated Web 2.0 in the Enterprise
RSS: Underappreciated Web 2.0 in the Enterprise
We added RSS capabilities to our internal PMO systems this past month, and traffic & content is already building up to become a valuable resource. Some have [correctly] noted that this increased visibility puts a bit more pressure on project managers and team members, to keep updating project blogs with pertinent information. This "time shifting" of communication should develop into the most effective way to let the rest of IT know what is happening in all areas.
There are some very interesting threads and conversations going on ... for example:
One Supply Chain systems team informs us of process improvements in product development - nothing to do with IT, but interesting nonetheless
Another team is putting together ideas that will take some significant IT costs out - that's a very active thread
The SAP application team is debating with the Basis team on the merits of a Unicode upgrade - and onlookers from Supply Chain Planning and Data Warehousing are noting dependencies on Unicode in their platforms
These spontaneous, organic, and very impactful "conversations", between people still experimenting with a new technology, show me real potential for spontaneous innovation and idea sharing. More evidence of the value of [judicious] experimentation with new technology - no silver bullet, but just enough spark to start a few fires.
Interested in learning more about RSS? There's lots of good reading out on the Internet ...
Voyage is an imaginative RSS-feader which displays the latest news in the "gravity area". Interesting navigation - I don't think this is practical for internal use, but it sure looks good!
Newsmap translates news feeds and frequeny to a variable bar graph approach.
Universe DayLife is, well, spacey. Translates the universe of news and connections to stars ...
posted by James P. MacLennan at 7:48 PM
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Friday, April 04, 2008
Branching Out: Writing for the FEI Blog
Branching Out: Writing for the FEI Blog
Yet another interesting way that the Internet has broadened my connections and collaborations ...
After connecting over LinkedIn and exchanging common interests via e-mail and blog post, the fine folks over at The Front End of Innovation blog asked me to do some posting there as well. They have a different posting style - shorter, a bit more volume than I can generate, and definitely focused on innovation (I know that I wander across many different areas of IT and business). However, I've got a series of post ideas I'm working on in the area of "innovation" - defintely a buzzword for 2008. I should easily be able to cross-post between the two.
Be sure to check out the other authors at FEI - interesting stuff, definitely worth adding to your blog roll!
posted by James P. MacLennan at 9:55 PM
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Tuesday, April 01, 2008
The Innovation Generation - Communication Styles
The Innovation Generation - Communication Styles
There've been many articles in recent weeks about the tech-savvy Millennials and their impact on future work. I concede, even welcome the changes that business will need to introduce in response to these new expectations, but I don't see the massive change that some writers seem to think is inevitable. The world will not change to accommodate the Millennials, but relevant and effective new working styles will definitely be adopted where they make business sense.
I will certainly agree that communication styles will change. For example, there will be a greater reliance on (and expectations of) instant and ubiquitous connections - with people, information and technology. IM is already on the way out, and texting is the way to go; my high-school-aged daughters think nothing of racking up thousands of text mails every month.
Unfortunately, this kind of freewheeling message content is going to run headlong into the litigious real-world. Many companies are still struggling over records retention standards and expectations. Public companies will need to maintain some control over messages that could contain proprietary or inside information. Corporate survival and protection from liability are clearly not on the minds of students as they post embarrassing pictures on Facebook pages, and even adults get trapped by unfortunate text messages that come back to haunt them.
Don't get me wrong - I'm a huge believer in alternative messaging styles and flexible collaboration. I've managed and/or participated on multiple "collaborative" teams - people from different companies, zip codes, time zones and countries. Separation by time and space has been a business challenge for years, but you could set up a shared FTP folder, or swap e-mails about projects, as long as I've been working. The teams that succeeded understood the differences between working across the hall and working across town, and moderated their communication styles accordingly, using the best tools available.
The value the Millennials bring is a de facto openness to collaboration tools. To them it's not something new that they need to learn; they expect the rest of us to already be there. Their rude awakening will come when they need to invest some change management time getting us "old folks" to catch up to their fast twitch messaging style; they won't be able to pass us by because we've got the organizational and process knowledge. (that's why we're on the team, right?)
posted by James P. MacLennan at 9:38 PM
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Monday, March 03, 2008
The Best Way to get Web 2.0 Into the Enterprise
The Best Way to get Web 2.0 Into the Enterprise
There are a few ideas circulating in the blogosphere as to what will bring Web 2.0 into the enterprise, including ...
The Influx of the Millennials; recent college graduates who have come to expect social networking, instant messaging and collaboration via the cloud. This groundswell of pressure will force IT to implement these new technologies.
Consumer High-Tech; populist technologies like Apple hardware and Google's suite of software has taken hold in our homes; folks who expect interoperability with their employer's network will create the demand.
The Innovation Imperative; apparently, the only way for IT to demonstrate relevance and appear innovative is to slap Ajax and some pastel colors into their enterprise projects.
I suppose these things will start some conversations, but there are entrenched forces within the business that are tough to overcome -
The Millenials will be in the minority, with low positions on the corporate totem pole, for a few years still. There is still a critical mass of folks who only know how to communicate / collaborate via e-mail - folks who still own the decision-making power.
Consumer gadgets change too fast, and sport an ever increasing array of connection technologies. Savvy corporate IT groups have standardized on a small number of technologies, so they can keep overall costs down. Few businesses will want to explode their IT costs just so folks can check corporate e-mail on their iPhones.
Innovation based on a fancy look-feel probably delivers nothing to the bottom line. Words like wikis and blogs are fun to say, but most executive management teams prefer terms like 30% annualized growth, category killer, lower inventories with higher customer service, and market outperform.
Still, all is not lost. For those who dream of seeing more FOSS and Web 2.0 offerings on the corporate servers, the door is cracking open, due to the economic pressure we all feel. It gets tougher and tougher to justify increasing maintenance fees and license costs for the traditional software vendors, when competitive alternatives exist at little to no cost.
If you're trying to get Web 2.0 into your company, sell the economics - not the ergonomics.
posted by James P. MacLennan at 11:04 PM
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Saturday, February 02, 2008
Anthropology of LinkedIn Answers: Five Days of Posts
Anthropology of LinkedIn Answers: Five Days of Posts
I have seven RSS feeds from LinkedIn Answers in my blogroll for a few months now. I'll answer a question every once in a while, haven't posted one yet, maybe some day. As I scan these questions, I can see this social network exhibiting multiple personalities, interesting patterns.
So this week, I let my blog reader pile up the questions for five straight days without marking any as "read". An entirely unscientific analysis (warning: I am not an anthropologist), but here's what I found as I sat down to catch up with the posts ...
Overall Statistics
The volume of unsolicited traffic in my voicemail and e-mail inboxes tells me that sales reps and recruiters are aggressively using LinkedIn for opportunity prospecting. However, the numbers below seem to show that the rest of us are looking to the network to solve technology problems (primarily), followed by a smattering of management issues ...
Technology
338
52%
Management
112
17%
Staffing and Recruiting
72
11%
Business Operations
66
10%
Professional Networking
29
4%
Offshoring and Outsourcing
20
3%
Mergers and Acquisitions
8
1%
Total
645
Scanning the questions, I found a number of interesting themes coming through ...
Ask a Simple Question ... some of these have been asked a millian times before - others are sound quite urgent. I can't imagine waiting for a response ...
posted by James P. MacLennan at 11:59 PM
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Saturday, January 26, 2008
My Networking CV (or, What's In It For Me?)
My Networking CV (or, What's In It For Me?)
As social networking sites proliferate and mature, we're all learning how to use these interesting new resources. True, it is just a modern take on "professional networking" - purposeful connections with different special interest groups, to share ideas and lay the foundation for current or future "opportunities".
I'm involved with a couple of organizations like this - I like to connect with peers, and I like to know what's going on in my city and in the industry. Recently I was talking with the organizer of one of these groups, and he asked what we could do to make our periodic meetings more valuable to the people that participate.
Most business meetings start the same way - a quick trip around the table, where everyone introduces themselves, gives their title and role, and typically talks about their expectations for the meeting, or what they want to get out of this next 60 minutes. That might be helpful at work, but when I'm at a networking meeting, there's a different dynamic involved.
To tell the truth - I don't really care what other people want to get out of the meeting … I'm trying to find out how they can help me. I'm looking for somebody who …
… has experience in the technology I'm struggling with - or knows who I might call
… can connect me with an interesting new job opportunity
… has been at the company I am currently interviewing with, so I can get some inside information
… is in the market for the goods or services I need to sell
… has done whatever it is I'm trying to do and can tell me all the shortcuts
Yes, I'm here for myself - and I'm not all that interested in what you want. I'm interested in finding out what or who you know - not what you want to know.
In fact, if the meeting is large, I'll probably tune the rest of you out, spending more time thinking about what I'm going to say (so I don't sound stupid) than listening to you, because (again) I don't care what you want, but I know I don't want to sound silly when I speak.
Hmm, a room full of self-centered louts … how to warm up a crowd like that?
So, my idea for the Meeting Organizer was to turn the whole thing around; as we go around the table, everyone needs to present what I called their Networking CV (or Networking Resume). I need to explain to the folks around the table what I have to offer:
Companies I've worked for
What industries … pharma? manufacturing? financial? not-for-profit? high-tech?
What business models … privately held? public? closely held? venture capital? entrepreneurial startup? Fortune 50?
Roles in the business … developer? DBA? PM? Unit leader? Product Manager? Sales? Strategy? Operations?
What technologies, and how deep is my experience?
What kind projects have I been exposed to?
Remember, you only should take a few minutes to go through this - so how might I find out more?
If you've got a detailed resume on the web, give out your site name - or give me a simple Google search term that will find you every time
If you're in a social network already (ex. LinkedIn), let folks know that you're out there, tell them to send you an invite and you will accept it
If we went around the table talking about this kind of stuff, I'd be listening intently to what everybody else is saying - because they're telling me exactly what I need to hear.
It might be a good idea to set some structure and ground rules around what people can and should say. You don't want folks to start bragging or going into too much detail. You just need to give out enough information to let folks know how you might help them. Not your accomplishments, but what you've been exposed to.
Now, at first blush this approach sounds both selfish and egotistical: I don't care what you want, just listen to how great I am. That's the stealthy, Zen trick behind this approach. By quickly identifying folks that I want and need to have conversations with, I will have more conversations, I will make more connections.
And the nice thing about those connections is that I'm coming to you for information - you're not trying to push yourself on me. I'm interested in the stuff that you know, but since you told me what you know, I'm coming to you. I am initiating the connection; you may be here to sell something, but I'm going to you to talk about your experience in this industry.
All of the first conversations are me asking you for something freely offered
Why is this important? Because when you start asking me for stuff, the ice is already broken. You may be trying to get new business with my firm. You may be asking if I know of any positions in my company.
Some of our multiple, future conversations are you asking me for something I may not want to give (money, time, or reputation)
However - the relationship has already been started, and it's built on mutual, opportunistic benefits, freely given. I know it's much easier to "do business" with folks you know - maybe that's the Chicago way …
So next time you're at a networking event, or putting yourself "out there" on these social networking platforms, try to make it clear what you have to offer. Your first visibility into the network, your first conversation, your first post on the board should focus on what you have to offer, what you will add to the network.
It might be a good thing - altruism, pay it forward, power of positive thinking …
It might be a bad thing - cynical manipulation, selfish, giving a little and getting a lot ...
posted by James P. MacLennan at 9:12 PM
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