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CLEAR SPACE THINKING - the original - lipscombe.richard@gmail.com
Monday, 13 September 2010
You choose your workplace experience?
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

The following is a blog by Seth Godin - the marketing guru.  I thought it off the mark when I first read it but upon reflection you might find a really important message in it just for you.....

Why jazz is more interesting than bowling

Bowling is all about one number: the final score. And great bowlers come whisker-close to hitting the perfect score regularly. Not enough dimensions for me to be fascinated by, and few people pay money to attend bowling matches.

Jazz is practiced over a thousand or perhaps a million dimensions. It's non-linear and non-predictable, and most of all, it's never perfect.

And yet...

when we get to work, most of us choose to bowl.

 

 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 12:17 PM NZT
Wednesday, 16 September 2009
DigitalCore....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

DigitalCore is my term for the heartbeat of social networks/media business models. 

At the core of any digital business model is a pro-active feedback desk.  The feedback desk is at the core of any digital business.  It is where action is taken.  It is where consumers interact with providers.  It is where the next iteration of the network is shaped.  It is where success or failure is decided.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 4:52 PM NZT
Wednesday, 5 August 2009
how do you fit Zappos into Amazon?
Mood:  d'oh
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Zappos is unstructured, free flowing, bound together by core values, outward looking, innovative, a little weird, and yet robust and reliable. I see Zappos as a growing Clan (my term) as opposed to Amazon which is a growing Tribe (my term and not to be confused with my friend Seth Godin's version of Tribes).

Clans are inclusive, they are porous, they attract early adopters & innovators, they have themes, they prototype, they explore, they learn and develop, etc. Tribes are exclusive, they are purpose driven, they have shared values and beliefs, they actually turn "group think" into a positive asset, they have conventions, rules, regulations, they have rigid structures, etc.

Clans and Tribes coexist easily within every aspect of modern business both on and off the web. On the web most people see Clans and Tribes as alternative social networks or channels for social media. Combining Clans and Tribes is feasible but fraught with difficulty if you want to maintain what is best in both cultures.

Combining the Clans of Zappos with the Tribes of Amazon will be a hugely challenging yet fun project.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 6:23 PM NZT
Updated: Wednesday, 5 August 2009 6:25 PM NZT
Tuesday, 30 June 2009
Re-organisation....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Starting to apply what I have gleaned about social networking and social media (past 3 years) to what I have always known about Organisational Culture. So here we go with some easy questions.  Simple answers to the following 3 questions could put you and your colleagues on the path to a useful re-organisation without too much cost, fuss, or fanfare.

 1)  What impact has social networking/media had (is having) on your culture at work?

2) What HR practices would you like to change to better accommodate web-based conversations?

3) Who is listening to the feedback from talented employees and consumers at your workplace?

 

 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 11:58 AM NZT
Thursday, 4 June 2009
I will just Google YOU in ......
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

Are you having fun yet with social networks and social media? 

As many of you know I have spent the past 2 years trying to understand what these new technologies will mean to you and me.  Things will change but not in the ways that most gurus, experts, workshop speakers, journalist, authors, etc suggest.  The pace of change in technology is swift and increasing.  The pace of change within communities and social entities is glacial and reducing.

But there will be changes.  Here is one idea for change that I have come up with since the release of Google Wave over the past few days.  This idea is all about how we get a job, who recruits us, and who ultimately defines our job. I am not suggesting this will suit all jobs but it will suit some. Here is my text to an Executive Search professional yesterday.

"I see great changes coming to the Executive Search Industry over the next 2-5 years as open source connectors like Google Wave* enables better collaboration between provider, executive search facilitator, and customer.  Not all jobs, but some very important ones, will be put into an Online Community as a concept - the process will be given a deadline of say 10 days - where the customers will help your client (say BHP) define/redefine the role. In the process the best candidates in the Online Community (it will grow quickly to include all interested parties) will become self-selecting applicants for the job on a contract or permanent basis.  The major inputs from you and your client will be to provide the details on prevailing/future revenue models within the organisation and the regulatory provisions of employment for the position. These Online Communities will be formed in a nano-second and disappear just as quick if there is no perceived reason (cost, revenue, productivity, or developmental role) or benefit that would have them prevail. Good fun ahead in your industry.

* Google Wave - Just released as a Beta open source platform, product, and protocol for global developers to "plug and play" with and make it work smarter than email, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc" 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 1:44 PM NZT
Updated: Thursday, 4 June 2009 1:56 PM NZT
Wednesday, 3 June 2009
Adults and kids are social networkers....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

I am rewiring the draft of my book Sundays in the Park.  This book was first conceived as Chattering Clusters but, it has moved backwards since then.  Moving backwards is not what a digital warrior like me is prone to do I know, so I probably need to explain myself a little.

The book has been my research project for the past 2 years.  It was my way of getting into the digital transformation from a people, not a technology, perspective.  As I did that I found that most of the change was happening to the technology not the people.  Even the Net Generation as Don Tapscott refers to our teenagers are not really that different to their parents or grand parents.  I proved that point to my own satisfaction with a simple empirical study.  I went to my 15 year son's school yard at lunch time.  It is essentially no different to the one I went to lunch at all those decades ago.  Sure the technologies are different - way different - but the people and their need to form "coalitions of interest" are essentially the same.  They are the same because these kids have the same needs and wants as we did back when.  They need to be part of the social networks that facilitate their enjoyment or otherwise of life.  They need and want to be, first and foremost, social beings capable of making the right connections so they can best pursue their interests while at school. School dominates their life so what they do there is vital to their fulfillment in life.

Adults do not shed these needs and wants - perhaps they become even more acute as they form families and become fully engaged in their life at work/home.  Adults display their social networks too.  They are just as clear and present as those I observed amongst their kids in the schoolyard.  Sundays in the Park is their yard.  There they mix and match to find a social platform - as opposed to a technological platform - that works best for them today or on a series of days in the park. 

Those of you who have read this blog, under former titles, will be familiar with my claim that "Sundays in the Park" is the perfect laboratory for those who want to test or better understand human behaviour on the Internet. On the net we act the same ways we do on Sundays in the Park.  Sure the space is virtual.  Sure the technology is full of changes and surprises. Sure there are many quirky aspects about being socially accepted on the net. BUT in essence, we are the same on the Internet as we are at Sundays in the Park.

Posted by richard-lipscombe at 1:48 PM NZT
Monday, 4 May 2009
Online communities....
Mood:  d'oh
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Can "online communiites" be managed? What does "online community" mean to you? Do you want/have a Director of Community?

Is an email conversation merely an extension of a comment online? When is an email purely spam? When do you consider an "unsolicited email" is integral to an ongoing online conversation?

What are the shared values of your online communities and how do you honor them? What passes as an acceptable signiture, name, or identifier within your online community? What rules of argument, discussion, and debate are followed within your online communities?

I have been grappling with those sorts of questions over the past 2 years. Answers anyone?


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 10:27 AM NZT
Put people first when tackling digital age problems....
Mood:  d'oh
Topic: Organisations vs networks


People today are basically the same as always but the technology is different. That's what makes the challenges of leadership so different today versus 1950s, 60s,70s, 80s, etc. We need new frameworks for action or models for our leaders now as much as we ever have in the near or distant past.

Perhaps there is no more compelling example of the need for new models of leadership than Barack Obama. Senator Obama crafted a new model, framework for action, or leadership mould before he ran for the White House.

Call it what you will but the essence of Barack Obama the candidate was drawn out in stark contrast to his rivals by the fact that he embraced the challenges that new technologies pose for his constituents and the world. Barack Obama is a man focus on "people first" but he also understands that in order to put "people first" a leader has to deal with the challenges of this digital technology revolution.

Senator Barack Obama was totally unlike past candidates. Why?

No one can be absolutely sure exactly why but here are eight simple suggestions:

1) He presented a relevant and a remarkable message - 'Change we can believe in'.

2) He found the key to new age politics - it is about ideas not experience.

3) He raised money online from the masses not from the usual power players in politics - it is about inclusion not exclusion.

4) He is a preacher not a doer - it is about inspiration not perspiration.

5) He had a message based on faith in a world of doom and gloom - it is about what you think can be done not what is currently being done.

6) He talks about his faults and weaknesses because he knows himself well - it is about transparency in thought and action not image.

7) He has tapped into the conversations of his electorate - it is about what people aspire to be not what they are told they are.

8) He offered electors a new sense of hope - it is a time for new beginnings not a time to refine old continuities.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 10:24 AM NZT
Sunday, 5 April 2009
Remember the home phone?
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Do you have a home phone?  Do you use your fixed phone to communicate with people or to connect to your Internet Service Provider?

The home phone has been an institution for more than 100 years.  It was our connector to friends, businesses, and community workers.  Today it is being replaced by a computer - most mobile phones these days are small powerful hand held computers.  The extent to which you use one of these hand held devices to provide you access and connection to your social networks depends on 1) availability of the technology where you live 2) the price of buy in and use of it.

A lot is being written about social networks today due to the arrival of Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn. What is not written about is how these tools help you organise your life around hand held computers rather than your home phone.  So what is the key issue you should consider before you design and implement your new organisational arrangements around a mobile rather than a fixed phone.  How accessible do you want to or need to be?  How much time do you want to stay connected to the world?


My tool for handling all these issues is DigitalCore.  It is a filter.  It is designed to filter your access and connections.  It is designed to enable you to facilitate your life work balance.  It is not a management tool - most of what you see on the web are tools to help you manage your new digital networks but they can not be managed they have to be facilitated.  You are at the centre of your social network now whether you like it or not.  You are the facilitator whether you like it or not.  You are responsible for your social network outcomes whether you like it or not. 

Don't you wish you still had a home phone and the simple life?


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 12:43 PM NZT
Updated: Sunday, 5 April 2009 12:46 PM NZT
Monday, 30 March 2009
DigitalCore is a filter....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

DigitalCore is my notion of a simple organising tool for our times.  As we move beyond the people-based systems to information-based networks we need to invent and innovate our traditional notions of organisation. Networks are real-time organisations that thrive on use. Twitter is a good example of what we are heading for within our organisations  as it provides a constant conversation.  Conversations are the lifeblood of web-based networks because they sustain clusters, clans, and tribes (read earlier posts for my thinking about why/how these entities form and why/how they might be important).

(More on this later...) 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 1:41 PM NZT
Friday, 27 March 2009
You can not manage your social network, full stop....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Facilitation is a core talent for organisation. 

As we all move from an analogue to a digital world the art of facilitation will replace the art of management.

Why so?

The art of management is about control - it is about who takes responsibility or who is accountable for what.  In an analogue world the control mechanisms were designed and built for people-based processes.  These processes are sequential - they run in series and so they are organised into convenient silos.  These silos are controlled by a range of mechanism ranging from legal authority over people to the influence of an organised culture.  The biggest challenge for most managers was whether to centralise or a decentralise their control mechanism.  If they centralised then they organised their people processes into functional units.  If they decentralised then they organised their people processes into areal units.  Either way their management challenge was how best to control the output of their people-based processes.  Of course you know all this and you live with it, for better or worse, every day.  But like it or not part, large or small only you know really, is about to change in ways that mean the art of management is defunct. 

Problem is we still have so many managers around that they are going to use their particular skills, tools, mindsets, etc whether they are appropriate or not. Believe me when I tell they are not appropriate when you are dealing with a digital networked economy!  Today we have an emergent social network formed by digital tools like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc that are being treated as if they were analogue silos of people.  These silos are called 'communities' and are being managed.  Guess what?  They are not communities and they can not be managed.  They are digital clusters of information that need to be facilitated if they are to survive and prosper.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 5:35 PM NZT
Updated: Friday, 27 March 2009 5:37 PM NZT
Monday, 23 March 2009
Meeting face-to-face gets a new meaning....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

You probably laugh, as I do, when you read a traditional print journalist trying to explain Twitter.  Most of what they have to say is negative because they just do not get it.  First they focus on the trivial.  Second they miss report the big picture.  Third they are not even wrong in what they say so they are hard to criticize.  I had one of those, oh yeah that is truly hilarious, moments recently while reading about Twitter in my local paper.

So what is Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Ning, etc positively about for you both today and tomorrow.  Simply put each of them is about providing you with a much more efficient and effective organisation of all your information via your conversations online.  The importance and the impact of this new organisation to you is that you can now have much shorter yet much more meaningful face-to-face meetings.

Why is this so?

Let us suppose your current face-to-face meetings have become less and less meaningful over recent years.  They have become this way for you because they were more and more about information sharing and less and less about people's interactions.  You met people and shared information but you did not share insights into each others' world or life.  You have become robotic at meetings because you have learned to focus on the information not the people.  You have learned to be there, like all the other robots, to sort through the information being shared.

The good news is that today you can use your various digital networks to share information in ways that 'free' you up to be yourself at your next face-to-face meeting.  If you run into some robots there you can defuse them by offering to share all the information you and your digital networks have on the web.  Allow them to 'chill out' for a few moments and then you can all interact as human beings once again.  That is what social networking has brought you. You have more free or human time coming to you too so watch this space. Meanwhile, happy face-to-face meeting times to you and yours.

Posted by richard-lipscombe at 3:55 PM NZT
Updated: Monday, 23 March 2009 3:57 PM NZT
Friday, 20 March 2009
DigitalCore....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Most C21st global business models have a DigitalCore - it is a simple connector. It is your connector.  It is programmable.  It contextual.  It is individual. Thus each connector is slightly different yet still does the same things. It provides access to content, product, service, or people.

Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace are all digital connectors.  If you use them regularly they can quickly become your DigitalCore.  Twitter provides you with instant connections to networks of people, content, and services.  People tweet you.  Content is linked to some of those tweets.  Services like Guy Kawasaki's Alltop which provides you with an aggregation of news items - somewhat like a digital magazine - is accessible on Twitter. In similar ways both Facebook and MySpace connect you to people, content, and services too.

2009 is a year for renewal and redesign as the world sorts through the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. This could be the perfect time to design, prototype, and build your DigitalCore. 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 4:44 PM NZT
Monday, 16 March 2009
The culture of collaboration....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

There is a persistent myth about - it has to do with collaboration.  The myth is that it is what is needed to keep your workspace alive, innovative, and cutting edge.  Simply it is not.  Why?  Simply, again, it does not work.  Collaboration never works when it is mandated.  What do I mean?  I mean collaboration can not and will not be organised.  The moment you begin to think that your organisation is collaborative then it is not.  Collaboration is instinctive - it is usually informal and thus not really recognised for what it is when it is occurring.  Indeed the mere act of observing that you and I are collaborating on the part of our 'boss' or of a significant other ensures it does not and willing not happen.  To imagine you, or we together, could shape a culture of collaboration is pure nonsense.  Yet many today point to a collaborative culture within their organisation. They claim in the process they have a way of doing things around here that is collaborative. 

So what is going on when people claim they have collaborated, or will do so in the future, to produce a certain outcome. Most likely they are referring to a group of people who attained a high level of cooperation to achieve a desired outcome.  Cooperation is commonplace in modern  workspaces fuelled by 'group think'.  Within the silos of modern organisation the degree of cooperation is indeed often high.  But the degree of collaboration between silos is low to non-existent.  So there is often a culture of cooperation within the modern workspace but not a culture of collaboration.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 5:26 PM NZT
Updated: Monday, 16 March 2009 6:19 PM NZT
Organise in 2009....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

Organise your information for real-time access and action.  Digital technologies present you with new capabilities for instant action.  In 2009 the emphasis is on speed and accuracy when you act.  To ensure you are fast in your action and reaction times you need the appropriate level of detailed information - not more not less.

You live in a bubble of information - much of it is useless.  Your bubble connects with other bubbles with equally useless information floating around within them.  Which bubble to access and when is a key consideration for you 24/7 in 2009.  If you are randomly connected to all the bubbles you were in 2008 then these strange times of slow growth, risk aversion, and inept actions with infect you and may even paralyze you.

Are you connected to too many information bubbles?  Can you access just the right amounts of information from each of your own and other's bubbles at just the right time to make clean, quick, and risk appropriate decisions? What do you have to do today to start organising your information bubble and those that connect with you so that you are able take full advantage of the digital technologies you own or will purchase in 2009?

Posted by richard-lipscombe at 12:39 PM NZT
Updated: Monday, 16 March 2009 12:41 PM NZT
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
The more things change the more they stay the same...
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

So you have decided to respond to the current economic crisis with an aggressive change program.  Fine.  The starting point for you is to recognise that you have decided to keep most things the same.  Oh no!  I hear you saying that is not true we are pursuing a sea change.  We are determined to change the culture of the place. Well therein lies the rub.  You have a culture - the way things are done around here - which you are going to attempt to change, oh alright, which you are determined to change.  At this point I should simply say 'good luck with that'.  But while I am thinking that way there is more to say.  I could tell you stories about change programs and projects I have led or been part of and the great successes we had.  I could tell you about some of pitfalls ahead if you seriously attempt culture change.  But all I will tell you is this - the more things change the more they stay the same.

Why?

The answer is simple.  When you decide to change something - like a corporate culture - you have a future state in mind.  Indeed you have two future states in mind - the most desirable and the most feasible.  Those who set off for the most desirable future state are usually the most ambitious.  They take on many aspects of the current state and try to change them.  This becomes a complex project and so it takes much, much, longer than ever expected.  Meanwhile the current culture with all its faults and flaws limps on.  Eventually these ambitious projects are terminated or folded back into the existing state with much more modest goals. So the more things change the more they stay the same.  Those with modest aims and feasible changes to make to the current state begin with the assumption that the basics will stay the same.  They make incremental changes only and thus the feasible future state is an extension of what exists not a dramatic change at all. 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 12:02 PM NZT
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Digital clusters, clans, and tribes.....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

You know what is changing and you know what is staying the same in your life.  Your challenge is to line up those two events in ways that you works best for you. 

You might like to start with what stays the same.  Can I suggest you look at your world as three inter-related communities that form the core for all your activities.  First there are clusters - informal gathering from picnics to concerts.  Second there are clans - semi-formal gatherings from classrooms to collaborative teams at work.  Third there are tribes - formal gatherings from workplace to family entities.  If you take a closer look at each of these communities you will notice that there are core ideas, frameworks, values, etc that do not or have not changed substantially over your lifetime.  If you compile a list of these facets of your life you will know where and how you are anchored to your modes of thinking, your habits, and your ways of being in your world.

You are now perfectly placed to assess the 'real impact' of digital age technologies on your work and home life.

Digital technologies are now available to help you reshape your clusters, clans, and tribes.  These technologies offer you new ways to organise your world.  First there are what I call 'digital clusters'. Digtial clusters can be organised swiftly and simply on Twitter. For example, you might stay in touch and thus form your unique (but temporary) 'digital cluster' at a rock concert in Central Park when 100,000 people have turned up.  You can be in touch with the 150 of those people who you know and share their experience of this special event. Second there are 'digital clans'.  For example, you can join Facebook and form clans where you explore different aspects of your life and times - you share and collaborate on this site with your community of friends.  Clans are informal networks that hang together around an ideas, a shared passion, experiment , or inquiry.  Third there are 'digital tribes'.  For example, you can form a tribe on MySpace that is very specific in its musical or video clip tastes - these tribes have a common or shared purpose and are focused on that purpose to the exclusion of other social interactions that help sustain your clusters or clans.  Your digital tribes are the anchor to your work, family, and playtime lives. 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 9:56 AM NZT
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
So what would Google do about the Googleplex?...one answer...
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

[Google would stop being a traditional organisation and become a digital network. Google would focus on the strength of the links between its people not the management of projects. Google would open up the Googleplex to the public - it would invite the public into its free canteens to ensure they have an open forum for discussion of search (eg what Twitter is doing for 'real time search', what Facebook Question is doing for facilitated search or survey, what Ning is doing for networked search, etc).]

What Google would do to fix the Googleplex is simple - it would open this concrete jungle to the public, it would network key R&D projects on search around the globe, it would become more a social network than a traditional organisation, and it would look for new revenue models to support its future moves into the development of 'real time' search capabilities. Well that is what I think Google would do....

What do you think Google would do to make the Googleplex a more Googlie workspace?


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 5:39 PM EADT
Updated: Monday, 9 March 2009 11:56 AM NZT
What would Google do about the Googleplex?
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

Google has been a great success - no doubt about it.  I love what it has brought me and I love the price tag.  I love the fact that Googlers get it - the web and its "use value" to the mob. I love that Google Health Care is tackling the issues of patient records and supporting a free-flow of healthcare information to users and practitioners alike. I love the ethics of Googlers.  I love the intellect of Marisa Mayer and the research Googlers.

BUT, here is the rub, I hate the Googleplex and its moribund C20th management team.

Jeff Jarvis has the perfect question for you and me to pose to Google's management team about the limits of their organisational model and the Googleplex.  Jeff's quetion is the title of his new book "what would Google do?"  and that is my question for Eric Schmidt.

What would Google do about the Googleplex?

[Those who are regulars to this blog know my answer.  Google would network the Googleplex.  I know they have done that to some extent but more can be done.  All that should remain at the Googleplex should be those who run their revenue models - there is even a good arguement for networking them too!] 


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 5:37 PM EADT
Sunday, 15 February 2009
2009 strengthen your tribal culture....
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Organisations vs networks

 

2009 is crunch time for many businesses.  Some must go digital but not all.  If you are going digital you must confront and overcome the strength of your tribal cutlure.  If you are not going digital but staying analogue then you must strengthen your tribal cutlure.

Those who seek to strengthen their tribal culture must tell stories.  Stories about past successes - in company history - when the staff overcame recession and difficult times.  You have to enuciate your values and make sure they are shared within the tribes.  You have to ensure that your revenue model is aligned with the needs and motivations of each tribe within your business.  You have to firmly reject the claims made by those who want to modernise the processes of your business.

2009 can be an exciting time for those who decide to strengthen not change their tribal culture.


Posted by richard-lipscombe at 12:01 PM EADT
Updated: Sunday, 15 February 2009 12:10 PM EADT

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