Saturday, December 22, 2007

Mr. Rogers Goodbye

Mister Rogers Plays Video Games

Mr. Rogers talks to the US senate

I think this video is worth watching, just because. It might make you feel good watching this with an open perspective...I'll post two more that I think are in a similar vein...

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

And now for something completely different...

...a chimpanzee washing a cat. Because.

"I think that whole 'Internet-thing' is going to be big..."

Etta James.

She is timeless. Every time I hear her sing, I'm there in a jazz club in San Francisco, (1950-ish) and I can see the piano behind her a little bit, off to the right...the bassist on a small riser behind her on the right, low lights with cigarette smoke slowly wafting through the room...

That's Web 2.0, for you. One of my friends on Facebook (someone I literally haven't spoken to in 8 months, and at least a year before then) put together a song list that loaded up when I added Pandora to my Facebook page. Pandora's a music-suggestion generator from the Music Genome Project, where it will suggest music based on a variety of inputs (i.e. - tunes my friends suggest, tunes I've previously played, etc.). The bad news for me is that I already have over 98GB of music that I have purchased over the years (mostly CDs that I've converted to .MP3s) - not including all of my vinyl that I'm starting to convert. I can see that I'll be discovering and buying more music, in the coming months...

What does this mean (other than an increase in spending for me?!?! :P )?

Organization - the usual organizing principles we've used will increasingly matter less, and instead how we think about our organizing principles will matter more. "Technology" is an enabling catalyst. It's not just something with an On/Off switch and lots of blinking lights. The how we think of things...the organizing principles...the constructs and frameworks...the models - many of the current ones will become irrelevant with each new version of software, hardware, refined service offering, or social network. I think these will increasingly based on a combination of individual and group tastes...

Process - what won't become obsolete so easily is the process one uses to create these frameworks and constructs. I only see these becoming more refined with each new interaction. This iterative refinement will eventually yield entirely new processes to create new organizing principles. Due to human Nature, Behavior and Comprehension of these changes, assimilating new process(es) will take longer than assimilating technological advances and new organization structures. An effective juxtaposition of Creativity and Discipline (at both the individual and group level) will likewise be increasingly valued as a means for creating economic value.

Relationships - just like my friend can create a themed music list to share (either passively as it's stumbled upon, or actively by sending it to others or others to it), so to can anyone share more of themselves and their identity with "anyone else" - thus creating the potential for a new relationship. I think we will need a new way to manage these relationships (see "Organization" above). "Tags" if you will, for the various people and organizations that each individual knows. But even these are uni-dimensional and fail to adequately show the interactions and inter-relationships (their "inherent value", if you will) that contribute to an accurate measure of Value.

Capital - As momentum in these areas builds, I think this naturally gives rise to a redefinition of Capital. No longer is Capital in and of itself the only means to an economic end. Access to Capital - whether directly by the people and firms you know, or indirectly by the people or firms your contacts know - will become a more valued resource and leverage point. I think that's part of the reason why China (still a Communist nation) gave The Blackstone Group (a Private Equity firm - one of the large, bastions of Capitalism) $3 Billion USD this past May.

How does this tie in w/the Pandora application? It was through that application that I discovered a new dimension to two existing relationships, as well as expanded the possibility that I could create new ones along that same or similar dimension (musical interests).

Being able to understand and capitalize on this individual and community behavior will be directly tied to ones level of security, happiness and overall well-being as we move forward. This is how new markets, competitors, etc. will be discovered.

Monday, November 05, 2007

One Gamer's Dream...? Cool, nonetheless...

When I was in college, I thought a "Kegirator" was a cool idea. I never dreamed I'd see this.

Another cool example of convergence, in my mind...

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Cmuoniactoin

This is cool. check this out...this works ok w/human-to-human communication; I don't think it would work so well (yet) in creating computer programs (unless you had some good AI involved)...

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too
Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.
i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs forwrad it

(...and yet, while I can comprehend this, I'd still feel bad if I sent somethign out that was missspelled...)

:P

Monday, October 29, 2007

Facebook

I just set up a Facebook page - check it out and let me know what you think. Make a comment, post something, express yourself (or something like that)...

Sunday, October 28, 2007

What's Your Proposal?

Where do you draw the line between “the things you teach your children so that they can take care of themselves” and “letting them be a kid”?

I see these as two parallel tracks that intertwine, not two separate things...

And although I do not conduct regular quarterly performance reviews w/my wife in lieu of “regular” conversations about our relationship, my children (all under the age of 10) are not so lucky! I've been teaching my two youngest ones negotiation skills since they could form their thoughts and desires into a semi-coherent sentence, and will start teaching my son (the middle child) project management skills this year (he is in the second grade).

My hope is that:

  1. they will be easier to manage & relate to when they are teenagers (I am an optimist, and of course, I think all of my children are mature geniouses...!)

  2. they will feel more in control of their thoughts, actions and behaviors, and be more willing to be held accountable for the consequences of their actions (I told you I was an optimist!)

  3. Worst case scenario - they will at least be more marketable and ready for the work place when they are older (and not living on Mom & Dad's couch post-college).

Most of the people I've told this to have laughed nervously and told me that they think it's overkill. I just look at it as imparting the benefit of my experiences to them – I've managed projects, and from a certain perspective (and allowing for the many contextual differences), what's the difference in the disciplines and thought processes one has to apply in successfully managing a 9-month server consolidation and a 9-month course load?

In school, they give you the guts of the project plan (called a Syllabus) with defined milestones (various exam and project due dates, etc.). Why shouldn't I help my kids get 10 years of project management experience and thinking, by the time they enter college? Franklin Covey even makes time management tools targeted specifically for the college demographic, so I don't think
I'm entirely alone in thinking this way...


My wife (who is definitely my better half!) has been very supportive of this approach. And the neat thing is that the kids have really responded to it...


Their earliest negotiations comprised them making a proposal of pre-bedtime activities, where they had to give us at least 3 (but no more than 5) options of something they wanted to do before going to bed (e.g. - reading story A, reading story B, playing a video game, playing with a certain toy or watching a certain video). Mom & I then had the option of either accepting those alternatives and picking one, negotiating with them on their proposal, or else we could say that none of their proposed options were acceptable and they had to formulate a new proposal. This gave them control over their own lives and showed them a pathway to success in getting what they want.


What about when they can't agree w/each other, like having the same story read to them, or watching the same movie? I make them negotiate w/each other (and I provide some supervision to that process, now and then, so one sibling doesn't feel like they always get the upper hand).


What about whining? Early on we established a rule: “If you whine the answer is “No”.” End of story. No discussion (and yes, I made the assumption that if they were in pain then they wouldn't be whining...). As a result – any time the kids start to whine all we have to do is ask the question, “What's the answer if you whine?” and they either say “No” or they reformulate their statement in a more acceptable manner. We don't yell, raise our voices or negotiate w/them on this; they understand the rule and live by it.


The lesson for them is that – from a very early age – they know that if they are going to get what they want in life, then they had better be prepared. Part of my job as a parent is to prepare them to be successful the best way I know how.


Will this work? Is this the right approach? Am I being too hard on them or too demanding? Will they still be able to “be a kid”? Who knows...I am sure that in the course of my parenting I will give them plenty of neurosis to sustain a wealthy lifestyle for some therapist in the future.


Until then, I'll gage my results (in part) on the behavior and demeanor of my kids – they are happy, they absolutely love each other and my wife and I, and they seem to like doing “grown up stuff” like negotiating and project management. I've recently started talking to my second grader about how the world of work is changing, and that people in other countries, whom he's never met, are already trying to work much harder and smarter than he is, in order to get ahead and compete in the Global Economy. Those are the people he is competing against, not the other kids in his class. And do you know what he said?


“Dad, if the kids in India, Japan and China, and the kids in Europe and Germany and France are all good at different things, then why can't they all just work on different parts of the same project with me? Because then we could all work together and we could all be happy and and help our families...”


I think I'm getting through to him...I hope I am open enough as I grow older to let him get through to me...

Friday, October 26, 2007

Easy, Entertaining, Informative Read - Check It Out!

One of my favorite books of the last 12 months is Bangalore Tiger by Steve Hamm. I bought it when it first came out and couldn't put it down. Well written, it describes Indian Outsourcing firm Wipro (specifically) and gives a detailed review of what's behind Outsourcing / Globalization (in general). I definitely recommend reading it. I'd consider it required reading for anyone providing Outsourcing services to customers, and am disappointed when I see that it's lessons aren't applied.

One of the best takeaways I enjoyed is how Wipro pragmatically applied disciplined approaches to production and quality, and saw great results. Were there failures & setbacks in their approach? I'm sure - but they learned from them and re-adjusted their approach. The examples they highlighted really aligned with what I have seen first-hand from Wipro consultants CMM, Six Sigma and Lean Sigma provide a good framework and set of tools (much like ITIL does), but it takes some skill to understand when and how to apply what tools for what effect.

There are other great points conveyed throughout various chapters in the book - "Growth: Keep a Thousand Fires Burning", "Adopt Ultrastrict Ethics to Build a Sterling Brand", "Reward Employees with Recognition and Respect", "Measure Everything Constantly", "Plan Three Years Ahead to Prepare for Rapid Growth", "Adopt the Best Ideas, Then Make Them Your Own Way", "Be Obsessive About Customers"...and there are others...

It's not so much that there were a lot of new or novel insights in the book - and that's the point! Much of what I read I have read before elsewhere - and so has Wipro. Wipro has tried, applied and "refried" these ideas to affect a positive force for consistent growth at their company, growing from $500 Million USD in 2000, to realizing a market capitalization of more than $20 Billion USD 6 years later - surpassing EDS' market capitalization of $13 Billion at that time (now at $10.91 Billion USD, as of this writing).

"We have a feeling that the platform we're on, offshoring, with price arbitrage, is a burning platform. It's only good for a few more years," says Chief Strategy Officer Sudip Nandy. "We need to do things differently to compete against international competition." (p. 69)

Well said, and a point that is easily lost on American Nationalists worried about "offshoring of work" - which (I believe) is itself a myopic, misanthropic term that prejudices the speaker into an inaccurate way of thinking about how the nature of work is changing.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

N'est-ce pas, "NES Paul"? Oui, oui...

As much as I enjoy both guitars and games, I think this is going a little too far! :)

I gotta hand it to his creativity, though...wonder how it sounds? Still, it's his original machine...that just seems wrong on so many levels...maybe he fried the motherboard from too much playing!? Still, it is a creative way to join the genres...

I wonder how this would work w/Guitar Hero or Rock Band??? Or even a blind-folded piano player played it(...BTW, I saw him live as part of Video Games Live (...very worth while show; gives you a different perspective on the industry, and a deeper appreciation for the art in the entertainment...) and he was awesome!).

Also, check out Tommy's house here...he's composed music for over 200 video games, so odds are you've probably heard one or two of his tracks...Enjoy!

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Vacation

I'm wrapping up "a week of vacation" w/my wife and two youngest children, out in North Carolina (technically, I did do some work this week, so it wasn't a "real" vacation...). We stayed in Charlotte for a little bit, and then went down to Oak Island to check out the Atlantic for a few days. It's still there. And I forget how warm it was (I'm used to the colder Pacific)...


The more connected we become, as individuals and as a society, the harder it seems to be to have true down time. I make it worse b/c I travel a lot for my job, so it's very easy to let work bleed into any down time I would otherwise have if I were at home and spending it with my wife and children.

So, what to do about this?


I'm picking up my guitar again. Literally.


About 7 years ago I bought a Martin Backpacker Travel Guitar. It sounds great and after about 5 minutes of playing you get used to the size and feel of the guitar. It's a great way to decompress and get out of the left-side of my head, and back over to the right. I also found this page, which is a nice little homage' to this fine instrument.


Which means I'm also always looking for great tab sites. If you know of any, please share.

And also pass along your thoughts on what you do to decompress and get away from the things that stress you out. These are always great to share!

Monday, July 02, 2007

Are VCs LinkedIn?

Why not?

I haven't used my network for this, and others I've spoken to in this regard told me that they primarily use the tool to "just network" w/other potential interested parties (either as capital sources or as potential employees / free-lance resources). Presumably, any requests for capital still take place of line...

Let's explore this idea, for a moment...I have a number of smaller companies and some VC / private equity firms in my network...Why not host a virtual “capital review meeting / auction”, whereby capital providers and requesters could come together to review plans, make a case for capital infusions, etc. The best opportunities could (theoretically) go to the capital source that values it the most.

Someone is already doing this - at least on the consumer-side. This is a place where individuals (and even some small companies) post requests for funding, and it seems that just about anything can qualify. Most people seem to use it for personal financing of small business ventures or debt consolidation. There is obviously a need that is being filled here...what about for business?

As more technical capability continues to reach larger numbers of people, at an ever-increasing pace, we will continue to see innovative and creative combinations (who would have predicted that the Government of China (Communist) would have given the Blackstone Group (Capitalist) $3 Billion USD to invest???).

Bottom-line: this will be another barrier that will erode and break down...but not tomorrow.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Technology's Unintended Consequences

I recently had a conversation with a consultant the other day, who (about 6 weeks ago) had to immediately drop everything he was working on and temporarily relocate from New York to San Diego. to take care of his sick mother. Her condition required her to have constant care and family attention. Because of how he used technology, not only was he able to do this, but he began to look at his current approach to work in a different light.

The technologies he took advantage of were:
* laptop computer
* wireless Internet connection
* cell phone
* Skype
* office productivity suite

When I spoke w/him, he was sitting on the deck of his mother's house, over looking the pacific ocean. And he sounded pretty happy.

Other than Skype, everything I listed above has been available and people have been using them for a number of years. Technology becomes interesting to me when I look at how people and process interact w/technology. You start to see new possibilities that didn't exist before. Take my friend from above, for example, and let's go back 10 - 20 years:


20 years ago:

* laptop computers were concepts and the 386 desktop was leading edge

* wireless Internet connections did not exist for the mass market; Internet connectivity was still largely limited to academics, Geeks posting on a cryptic BBS somewhere...and then there was DARPA and the Department of Defense...

* cell phone technology existed, but only for a limited market and it was very expensive to use

* IP telephony was not available for the mass market

* office productivity suites largely didn't exist. Apple had some word processing and graphics capabilities available; Lotus Notes was the standard spreadsheet program for PCs, and Word Perfect (remember that one???) was one of the larger players int eh word processing space

Bottom line: he would not have been able to support his mother and maintain / increase his business; one or both would have had to materially suffer


10 years ago:

* laptop computers were becoming more widely available, but they were pretty homogeneous offerings, with a small set of features relative to desktop PCs; most laptops did not have the same "horsepower" (in terms of graphics acceleration, chip speeds, hard drive capacity, monitor visual acuity, etc.). Laptops were for "road warriors" who couldn't afford to be away from their computers

* the Internet was starting to move into the mainstream. America Online (now known a "AOL"
* see Trout & Ries' work on Positioning for some thoughts on that name change...). Netscape was a fledgling browser and not an Alliance w/anyone. America Online was going to bring the Internet to the masses

* cell phone technology became more wide spread; car phones (phones actually built into the arm rests or dashboards of cars) were a status symbol available only in high-end vehicles,m and as an expensive option. In my view, pagers were still more ubiquitous & cheaper than cell phones. So, your boss could push a button on your "electronic leash" but you still had to find a phone to respond back

* IP telephony was experimental technology, and only among the Geek inner-sanctum. Most of the people I knew who were using it were Chinese and Indian ex-pats who wanted to call their loved ones back in their home country

* office productivity suites were really starting to come into their own, as was the notion of bundling different software packages together in general. Microsoft Office had really established itself at this point, and along with some of their other products (do you remember Microsoft Works?), started defining the space and what the market would eventually demand / accept as "the Standard".

Bottom line: he probably could have made it work, it would have been very expensive, and he would have increased mobility relative to his predecessor of 10 years earlier.


Today, all of these technologies are taken for granted. Here's an interesting thought:

One of the next 5 presidents of the United States will most likely have played a Nintendo or Atari game system.

But that's for another blog...