I thought it was wonderful for Peter to fly in from San Fran to share his thoughts with us. He has a fascinating business--and he is a very likable guy. I thought it was particularly interesting talking about the struggle monthly magazines face with now continuous streaming content--and how to market their magazines online.
I'm still a big fan of actual print and publications, receiving several magazines each month from Businessweek to Domino, Dwell, and Metropolitan Home. Then again, maybe I'm a little old school...but there is just something about curling up on the couch and reading your magazine. It doesn't feel the same with a laptop.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Knowledge Management
I was thinking in class today that knowledge management and knowledge exchange are not mutually exclusive. A truly successful knowledge management system would facilitate knowledge exchange. Companies struggle with creating a system that employees will actually take the time to use...and the "system" does not have to be all electronic. Why not create a system that connects you with someone based on what issues you are facing and automatically schedules that cup of coffee for the two of you?
It's not just the tacit nature of the knowledge that makes knowledge exchange difficult. It's also the timing. You need to hear the right information at the right time for it to be relevant. Otherwise the information is just noise...which is usually how I felt in my previous company's "best practice" sharing at national conferences. It wasn't the right information at the right time. It wasn't relevant.
Knowledge management is difficult but it's important for companies to keep trying.
It's not just the tacit nature of the knowledge that makes knowledge exchange difficult. It's also the timing. You need to hear the right information at the right time for it to be relevant. Otherwise the information is just noise...which is usually how I felt in my previous company's "best practice" sharing at national conferences. It wasn't the right information at the right time. It wasn't relevant.
Knowledge management is difficult but it's important for companies to keep trying.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Mine mine mine...
I get where we were going in class...especially separating the task from the process. We would always get so hung up on internal complications because someone external asked us to do something--provide a service--that our "process" wouldn't allow. We certainly had the capabilities to do what was requested, but it was sometimes damn near impossible to execute what the client was asking for.
What it really came down to is that people didn't want to break the process--the rules of engagement, out of self protection. If they let go of something, a process, a piece of information, whatever it may be--in some way they were losing power. If you lose power you are more vulnerable. So even though someone else within the company might be able to do it better, they don't give. They hug and protect whatever has been granted to them by the ivory tower as "their thing". To quote Office Space, "I take the specs to the customers"...
I do believe that companies need to operate in this way to be more flexible, but the difficulty beyond identifying what each component should provide isn't the only problem...it's getting people comfortable with their value and how they are valued by the company. Think about it--if you are really successful at making your value a component, isn't it that much easier to replace your component entirely if there is a cheaper option out there with close to the same performance? No wonder you get shot down because it's "someone else's job"...Can you blame them?
What it really came down to is that people didn't want to break the process--the rules of engagement, out of self protection. If they let go of something, a process, a piece of information, whatever it may be--in some way they were losing power. If you lose power you are more vulnerable. So even though someone else within the company might be able to do it better, they don't give. They hug and protect whatever has been granted to them by the ivory tower as "their thing". To quote Office Space, "I take the specs to the customers"...
I do believe that companies need to operate in this way to be more flexible, but the difficulty beyond identifying what each component should provide isn't the only problem...it's getting people comfortable with their value and how they are valued by the company. Think about it--if you are really successful at making your value a component, isn't it that much easier to replace your component entirely if there is a cheaper option out there with close to the same performance? No wonder you get shot down because it's "someone else's job"...Can you blame them?
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
The Promise of Enterprise Software
I had the pleasure of working through several software implementations in my previous career...not from the side of IT but from the user side. Yes, I was one of the guilty ones in marketing that found the work-arounds and messed up the program for everyone else.
We would get caught in the day to day demands...the squeakiest wheel gets the grease right? It seemed any software package the company introduced that was supposed to make us more effecient took TWICE the amount of time as it did before. Oh it was such a pain.
SAP and a package with a CRM tool named LSP was the worst. We had so many glitches and problems...so many orders that didn't show when they were supposed to. Split shipments. Missed deadlines. Etc. etc. etc.
To the credit of my previous employer they stuck to it. They MADE us use the software...they forced it down our throats. It took longer to begin with, yes...but it's funny how when something becomes a performance criteria you suddenly find a way in your busy day to make it work. It turns out all the extra time was just because it was different and I didn't know how to use it. Once I got used to it, it took the same amount of time or less...
As more and more of the company discovered the same fact I did, it's also funny...there were less problems with split shipments...missed deadlines...and inaccurate forecasts.
Wow. It stinks to find out you are part of the problem...and that the folks in the ivory tower do know what they're doing...sometimes anways.
We would get caught in the day to day demands...the squeakiest wheel gets the grease right? It seemed any software package the company introduced that was supposed to make us more effecient took TWICE the amount of time as it did before. Oh it was such a pain.
SAP and a package with a CRM tool named LSP was the worst. We had so many glitches and problems...so many orders that didn't show when they were supposed to. Split shipments. Missed deadlines. Etc. etc. etc.
To the credit of my previous employer they stuck to it. They MADE us use the software...they forced it down our throats. It took longer to begin with, yes...but it's funny how when something becomes a performance criteria you suddenly find a way in your busy day to make it work. It turns out all the extra time was just because it was different and I didn't know how to use it. Once I got used to it, it took the same amount of time or less...
As more and more of the company discovered the same fact I did, it's also funny...there were less problems with split shipments...missed deadlines...and inaccurate forecasts.
Wow. It stinks to find out you are part of the problem...and that the folks in the ivory tower do know what they're doing...sometimes anways.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Thursday class...
Some people thought that Thursday's class was the "best ever"...others not so much. Really all I could think of was I would hate to sell to that guy.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Culture
It was an interesting discussion on culture in class. It reminded me of this past Thanksgiving. I went to Detroit to spend the holiday with my future in-laws. They moved to the U.S. in the 70s from India.
I brought cookies that my mom made called Bruschacka (sp?). My fiance's mother asked me where the tradition came from. My only response was, "it's either Irish, English, Swedish, or French". I'm a "mutt"--as in my family has been here a few generations and we didn't hold on to any one culture. It's too bad really. Other than food there isn't much we hung on to.
My fiance on the other hand speaks fluent Bengali--fully bi-lingual. His upbringing was so rich in culture...stories...traditions...and don't even get me started on how amazing the food is. I think sometimes he is taken aback at how fascinating I find his culture...how much I want to learn. When we have kids it is going to be such a struggle to keep his rich Indian heritage. I just bought my first book to try and learn Bengali. It's going to be a stretch for me to say the least.
We all have a subculture that we work in. I've blended really well with his family--we are learning from one another. We are all open to the experience and see the common threads that make us more similar than different...but sometimes what's lost in the melting pot is something really beautiful. And you have to work hard to not lose it.
I brought cookies that my mom made called Bruschacka (sp?). My fiance's mother asked me where the tradition came from. My only response was, "it's either Irish, English, Swedish, or French". I'm a "mutt"--as in my family has been here a few generations and we didn't hold on to any one culture. It's too bad really. Other than food there isn't much we hung on to.
My fiance on the other hand speaks fluent Bengali--fully bi-lingual. His upbringing was so rich in culture...stories...traditions...and don't even get me started on how amazing the food is. I think sometimes he is taken aback at how fascinating I find his culture...how much I want to learn. When we have kids it is going to be such a struggle to keep his rich Indian heritage. I just bought my first book to try and learn Bengali. It's going to be a stretch for me to say the least.
We all have a subculture that we work in. I've blended really well with his family--we are learning from one another. We are all open to the experience and see the common threads that make us more similar than different...but sometimes what's lost in the melting pot is something really beautiful. And you have to work hard to not lose it.
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