management & leadership
While trawling around on YouTube recently I came across a 1980s video of Tim Finn's There's a Fraction too much Friction and it got me thinking about the things that annoy me in dealing with businesses. I concluded that the source of my irritation is friction.
privacy
As companies embrace the notion of a reputation economy fueled by the power of social platforms this brings a new set of challenges for management and employees. I was at the Salesforce #cloudcrowd event in Sydney recently and we were discussing this issue with guest speaker Peter Coffee. The issue
ideas
This video of Dr Deming discussing the state of management in the US from 1984 is strangely prescient. I think this is rather important! Definitely worth watching and pondering for all of us ... [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehMAwIHGN0Y&w=420&h=315]
future
The old style company, that is the company circa 1880-2000, had firm boundaries and fixed hierarchies in order to function efficiently. But with the advent of digital technology and the consumer social computing revolution there is a seismic shift in how technology is used within companies. There are also significant
ethics
I came across an article in Wired Science by Jonah Lehrer titled Do Nice Guys Finish Last?. It had plenty to get me thinking. Apparently: "... levels of 'agreeableness' are negatively correlated with the earnings of men" Then: "There are six facets to agreeableness: trust, straightforwardness,
future
This week I spoke at the Recruitment Technology Evaluation Convention in Sydney. The topic was navigating the hyperconnected world from a recruitment and human resources perspective. The key issues facing businesses now include: * Hyperconnectivity and the digital revolution * New rules for engagement and recruitment * Why community matters more than ever
future
Steve Hopkins was telling me recently about an interesting law firm he'd come across in San Francisco - it's called Robot. Where lawyer and junior partner Tim Hwang and his senior partners, Apollo Cluster and “Daria” XR-1029, work to merge legal and technical systems. It was
management & leadership
In response to yesterday's post someone on Twitter, @dmanww, raised the very sensible issue of the triple bottom line, or as some might call it, corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, having worked in a number of organizations that took the triple bottom line and corporate social responsibility very
ideas
It is interesting to think about this now that we see Occupy Wall Street spreading around the world (even to Occupy Sydney). Back in 1976 Michael Jensen and William Meckling argued that the solution to the principal-agency problem — business leaders advance their own interests not those of shareowners — was to
management & leadership
It is sad to hear of Steve Jobs' passing. Not unsurprising news given his long battle with cancer. But the heartfelt responses to his death made me think. How many other leaders of big companies would elicit similar responses? Hardly any I suspect. His was a remarkable career, and
ethics
I have worked with a number of great leaders and managers over the years, some of them are famous for this but others are quiet achievers. Watching ABC's Four Corners program about St Ann's Secret on television tonight made me think about what makes a great
future
Free people offering their labour in exchange for monetary reward has been fundamental concept for western society. Since the mid-nineteenth century we have not really used forced labour for production. But two examples in recent times make me wonder if that assumption still holds true: 1. Prisoners painted room for