Content
6 July 2010 -
Filed under
Creativity + Emerging Technology + Open Sourciness + Product Development
reprinted from scottilevy.com
I gave a talk last year to a group of enterprise software executives entitled “Paper is an Information Technology.” The point of the talk was to get people thinking outside of enterprise software boxes and realize that software changes drastically, and “enterprise software” will follow suit in short order. The industry is beginning to publically push in this direction, as evidenced by this article (sent to me by Will Bunker) :
http://scobleizer.com/2010/03/10/the-revolution-at-work-the-industry-reacts-to-salesforces-moves/What I think is profoundly important to people who seek to work together (i.e. transact business, start a company, gain customers, etc.) is that organizations – particularly those people who consider themselves ‘technologists’ - need to think in terms of human interactions, and how to facilitate and enable those interactions through technology *without casting the interactions in terms of technology”
There was a time a time where a good geek could impress executives by setting up some working software that did ________ automatically. “Wow, that’s cool!” is what you’d hear for getting a simple database driven Web site up. Those days are gone, and technology is now ubiquitous. It’s not longer enough just to put a system together. Today startups with no money have access to the types of automation that cost six figures and months of implementation time 5-10 years ago.
The challenge for “IT” is to stop thinking in terms of “IT” and start thinking in terms of human relationships and interactions: within the organization, between organizations, relationships between the organization and the people it serves. Doug Levy (friend but no relation) and my friends over at IMC2 highlight these changes by talking about “the Relationship Era” in marketing (check it out at IMC2.com).
I think this idea applies far more broadly than how we market; it has always applied to collaboration and every aspect of business – we just have not been able to focus on it the way we can today. If you look at the companies performing like champs right now – the Amazons, the Googles, Zappos, Facebook – they all share an approach that focuses on how they interact with people. This focus leads these companies to make decisions that “traditional IT” would not even consider – decisions that place human interactions above technology. What’s fun to see is that more and more companies are doing this today. We are witnessing evolution, the kind Seth Godin describes in his great book <u>Survival is Not Enough</u>
Here are some things going on that I think are helping drive these changes in thinking for more and more companies:
1. Today there are folks driving technology who do not recognize traditional departmental prejudices that exist in most corporations. IT, Sales, and Marketing typically are all at odds. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard people in one department express frustration with “_______ types” (fill in one of the departments). This happens because people refuse to grasp the idea that I have worked, and continue to work in all three areas. If I can speak their language in sales, and sell, they presume my technical skills are limited. If I can show them high quality code I have written, and discuss pen-protector grade geek fu, they presume I cannot sell. Same things happen on engagement where I do marketing consulting. I know I am not alone on experiencing this. In any case, here’s a news flash: prejudice has limited utility to say the least.
The companies that maintain such prejudices have been selected for extinction and will be outmaneuvered. It’s happening now – perhaps these are the companies the build up employee numbers rather than employee skills….so that when a downturn happens, they have to cut people.
Either way, the take away: If you work in an organization and make decisions on its behalf in any of these three areas (sales, marketing, IT), you have no excuse for not understanding as much as you can about every aspect of the business – including the two areas you don’t think of yourself as knowing At the end of the day these distinctions exist to help us divide and conquer many different types of concerns. They are not in place to allow us to be lazy and neglect understanding things critical to the business.
2. Open Source has matured, and is now part of business strategy. How do todays industry leaders get amazing things done in technology? They help build communities that share innovations. I had a client once tell me he would never use open source. His vendor of choice is now forcing him to because they have rolled jQuery into their Web development platform. Additionally, look at Google, Yahoo, NetFlix (and a host of other companies). Guess what else they have in common: they sponsor open source projects that help them develop more with less. It’s brilliant. Immanuel Kant would be proud
3. Furthering point number two, there are open source technologies available that offer the type of architectural conventions, flexibility, performance and security required for “enterprise grade” solutions, without being burdened by closed source constraints.
4. No one ever bothered to teach younger, up and coming professionals that they had to rely on your favorite technology vendor. And fewer people have had to rely on one software vendor to learn about practical business technologies – we can all learn technology on the Web.
The moral of this story: KEEP LEARNING, and stay focused on people interactions. There are going to be constraints in technology, each will carry a cost to overcome, but if you are literate, you have the best chance of finding real ways to help people through innovative uses of the Web.
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2010-07-06 ::
scottilevy
17 May 2010 -
Filed under
Project
We just took a new Web site live for Diem Technologies based on our WMS – Website Management Platform. The new site (see www.diem.com) features more accurate messaging/branding around Diem’s offerings. On the administration side, it features tools for SEO, including keywords and site maps, and the ability to update all content (and build out new pages) using simple, dummy-proof screens. The launch coincides with a new blog for Diem – new content coming soon.
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2010-05-17 ::
scottilevy
17 May 2010 -
Filed under
Emerging Technology + Product Development + The Usable Web
Interesting announcement – both Lotus and Lawson are creating cloud-based offerings. It has been fun to watch startups and small companies capitalize on Amazon’s EC2 offerings, and build entire services on it. It’s an impressive platform- perhaps the real pioneer in this area. It seems Amazon is moving yet another valuable offering across the chasm and into the mainstream. The idea of “crossing the chasm” in the diffusion of innovations curve was evangelized by one of Lawson’s (former?) board members, Geofrey Moore. I am thinking Iris/Lotus was one of the companies he referenced in the book, but I have yet again loaned out my copy of the book only to forget to whom I loaned it – so feel free to correct me. Check out Amazon’s newsletter in any case.
http://developer.amazonwebservices.com/connect/entry.jspa?externalID=3811&categoryID=42
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2010-05-17 ::
scottilevy
15 April 2010 -
Filed under
Creativity
For the visually, spatially and inclined: The Dallas Architecture forum is presenting it’s third annual Dallas Design Symposium this Saturday from 1-5 pm. Speakers include innovative, award winning architects, artists and designers. If design and/or environment play a role in your vocation or avocation, this is a great value at $50.
In particular, I recommend designers from the electronic arena check this out. Most of our metaphors for design on the Web and computers are representations of visual/spatial relationships in the real world. This is true in the software world as well. Stepping away from the screen and listening to architects, artists, and designers in other mediums is a real way to boost your creativity and innovation.
More information is available at the forum’s Web site: dallasarchitectureforum.org
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2010-04-15 ::
scottilevy
19 February 2010 -
Filed under
Product Development + Productivity
Outsourcing effectively allows you manage risk in ways that give you an unfair advantage over your competition.
Here are some tips for successful outsourcing, courtesy the 200+ projects and numerous teams I have managed remotely with team members in Europe, Asia, South America, North America and Australia.
1. Be specific – as in step by step specific. Leave no assumptions. Most of my projects have something like “I will rate you a perfect 10 if you __” at the end (I am not being trite the sites I use to assemble team members solicit ratings). You’ll be happy with the results, the team members will be happy you are happy.
2. Start with microprojects – small chunks of work that allow you very quickly get successes or make course corrections
3. Outsourcing is very inexpensive, create an experiment budget. Some approaches may not work, this model is inexpensive enough you can build that in to your budget and sill be ludicrously under budget
4. maintain focus through each iteration. Wait until an iteration (a microproject) is over before you make adjustments (for example, changing your mind about requirements). Create a new microproject to make the adjustment. This will keep your team sane and force you to think through your ideas in a healthy way
5. Stay literate – ideally you should be able to perform quality assurance yourself. Otherwise hire someone in-house who can
6. Check the results diligently. If you don’t, you will wish you did later when its too late to address issues
7. Keep the projects small unless you have developed a very high degree of trust over time. Even then, small easy wins are great for morale and rapport building.
8. If you are a programmer, don’t fall in to the “I can just do it myself” trap. Create a bunch of ‘selfs’ working in concert to accelerate your ideas. Use your expertise to define the architecture and test that everything works.
Tip of the hat to Will Bunker who first introduced me to RentACoder.com
and some great techniques. Thanks to John Humphrey of Pariveda
Solutions for encouraging posts on this topic.
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2010-02-19 ::
scottilevy
19 February 2010 -
Filed under
Creativity + Nonlinear Growth + Sales and Marketing
By 1954, a Denmark-based toy manufacturer called “The LEGO Company” had established a reputation for making high quality wooden
toys. Some five years earlier they had introduced a plastic toy called
“the automatic binding brick.” It met a poor reception that spawned
prophesies of failure in the industry press. LEGO made good wooden
toys; this brick just was not happening.
Then, something funny happened. A junior managing director of the
company, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, had an idea. He had just spoken
with a toy store buyer who lamented the fact that certain things were
missing from toys of the day. Toys didn’t work together - there was no way for toys to interact with other toys. Toys did not provide a system of play.
In retrospect we might think “of course that’s just what’s needed.” But this was just an idea. One idea in a toy company that had been around for quite a while doing it’s (toy) thing.
Kirk Christiansen’s idea grew into a new vision for LEGO
products. Initially it was outlined in broad terms, without a specific
product in mind. As the idea developed, then, the entire LEGO
product line – some 200 different toys – were scoured to see which had
the best chance of measuring up to the That vision was summarized,
according to LEGO, like this:
- Unlimited play potential
- For girls and boys
- Fun for every age
- Year-round play
- Healthful, quiet play
- Long hours of play
- Development/ imagination/ creativity
- The more toys, the greater their value
- Extra sets available
- Quality in every detail
LEGO found one product with a real chance to live up to the vision.
The time of the automatic binding brick – a failure according to some
- had finally come.
The brick was refined. The company developed a precision mass production system around it. The idea spread and grew.
As of this writing, 5 billion hours per year are spent playing with LEGO bricks.
The brick has twice won the award of “Toy of the Century.” LEGO based
video games are big sellers on systems like the Wii. The bricks are
featured in YouTube stop motion video remakes of Star Wars. There are
new character lines, and entire movies in an world of LEGO There is
LEGOland.
The LEGO brick may be the most widely known – and loved – toy in
the world. It is certainly the backbone of one the largest toy
companies in the world. The “binding brick” has become synonymous with
the company itself.
I say “LEGO”, you see a picture of the brick in
your minds eye.
It’s another example of the idea put forth in so many other
disciplines and arts: that any given idea grow in value over time; that
a good idea is worthy of refinement and development. This doesn’t
mean EVERY idea is a good idea. It does mean that even simple ideas can
have their value compound the way interest compounds on an investment.
When the time is right, those ideas can offer tremendous returns. Just think about that little brick.
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2010-02-19 ::
scottilevy
19 February 2010 -
Filed under
Collaboration
Telephones are a social utility. They are social media. What can we learn from Telephones? Here are some ideas.
1. Every thought is not worthy of a phone call.
2. The use of outbound calling for sales is great if there is structure, a well honed value prop and a targeted list of people
3. Professional phone edicate goes a long way (I am still trying to translate this idea to Web based social media)
4. Misuse burns valuable time
5. Every call is not worth taking
6. Just because it was said on the phone does not make it true.
7. Phones are invaluable tools for collaboration – internally, with customers, with partners, vendors etc.
8. Phones are not the only tools for collaboration
Send your ideas for the list.
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2010-02-19 ::
scottilevy
17 February 2010 -
Filed under
Sales and Marketing
Marketing is helping people define whose problems you are going to solve, and how you fit in to the world such that you are seen as a solution to those problems. There are a lot of ingredients and processes that go into it, but there is the essence.
Sales is helping individuals in the group you are trying to reach understand that you can solve those problems mentioned above. It is also helping them understand what that can mean for them, and how best to make decisions they will feel good about.
I don’t deny the power of influence and persuasion in sales and marketing - but those are tools and means to and end. If you are not working with people, and helping them, what the eff are you doing exactly?
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2010-02-17 ::
scottilevy
17 February 2010 -
Filed under
Open Sourciness
If you want me to buy your licensed widget – any little piece of code you want to productize, it better be perfect. Otherwise give me access to fix problems that may come up it (i.e. open the source). This is critical. It also begs a question of market – some developers are not confident enough to get into the source code for JavaScript object or a Ruby gem. And those guys may not need access.
My colleague Will should get a kick out of this since he’s seen me freak out in the past when I had to dive into source code for the first time.
In any case, if you close your source, make sure it works and throws zero errors. It just seems easier to open the source up.
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2010-02-17 ::
scottilevy
11 February 2010 -
Filed under
Creativity + Nonlinear Growth + Product Development + Sales and Marketing
There are Steps You Can Take to Increase Web Success whether you have a site that uses a blog platform like blogger or Wordpress, or Joomla, or a custom application written in programming language like PHP, Ruby, or frameworks like .NET or Ruby on Rails. Here is part 1 of the series.
Read the rest of this entry
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2010-02-11 ::
scottilevy