Improving the known, exploring the unknown, and innovating to be well-known
"The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency." - BILL GATES The statement by Gates underscores the importance … Read More»
How Social Technologies Contribute to a Better Customer Experience
This post is on behalf of the CIO Collaboration Network and Avaya During each interaction with a brand, organization, or institution, the person on the other end of the interaction has a perception of how things went. Over time, the accumulation of these touch points deepen the customer's … Read More»
Global CEOs chart the course into unchartered waters for the Next Generation Enterprise
The average time that a company spends in the S&P 500 is 15 years, continuously trending downward over the past 80 years. In fact, as recent as 10 years ago, the average lifespan was 25 years. Perhaps a decade from now, the average lifespan could be as short as 10 or maybe even 5 years. Change is … Read More»
A Heroic Story – and a Powerful Social Business Metaphor
In the early morning of September 11, 2001, I was driving through downtown Los Angeles, shocked at what I was hearing on the radio, and awestruck by the police and military helicopters circling and protectively watching over the City of Angels skyline. Like many of you, as that day progressed, I … Read More»
Your organization 8 years from now
Wayne Gretzky is by most accounts the greatest hockey player ever. His father gave him a piece of advice that has been almost immortalized in business circles over the past several years. "Go to where the puck is going, not where it has been." So, where will the puck be 8 years from now? … Read More»
Movements, Mashups, and Metamorphosis: The Rewiring of Institutions
Corporation. Non-Profit. Community. Business. Cause. Platform. Government. The clearly defined borders that have traditionally enveloped the institutions above are blurring and we're trying to make sense of it all. The music industry is still trying to figure out what … Read More»
Customer Relationship Innovation for the Emergent Social Business
Speaking at an event hosted by SugarCRM and IBM Social Business this week, I informally polled the audience. "How many of you are NOT on facebook?" No hands were raised. "How many of you have a twitter account?" Most of the room raised their hands. "LinkedIn?" Most of the room again raised … Read More»
In an era of crisis & revolution, is your company the next target?
We are living in interesting times indeed. Geo-political revolutions, financial crises, economic uncertainty. Try as we might to ignore them, the fact is that the very fabric of capitalism is being re-evaluated, and perhaps even rewoven. What we have assumed and known for at least 150 years is at … Read More»
Empowering Human Movements: 7 Observations about the State of Social Business
This week, I've had the privilege to participate in the Sales 2.0 and Enterprise 2.0 conferences in Boston, MA. It's been good to see old friends, meet new ones, and/or insert a handshake or hug into a previously only virtual relationship. The conference(s) also provided a great chance to check … Read More»
The Future of Customer Relationships: Where is all this heading?
Shifts in technology and human behavior are rapidly changing customer's expectations of companies. Things are moving so fast, that most executives are not only trying to catch up with the changes, but identify what some of the changes are. Understanding what those changes mean to each business is a … Read More»