Taking a step back … enterprise

From my last post you may have sensed that a Narrative approach has a concern for those that fall short of our “buzzwords�. In more depth, this is about dominant stories and subjugated stories. The thinking goes that a story (remember: a way of relating to the world) gains air play and becomes dominant. E.g. how the information era story began to gain precedence over the industrial era story. The problem here is that a dominant story subjugates other stories, and in the process squashes value that that story may have to offer. Think of how, after having a reasonably good day, a negative event ‘tips’ you and your internal world becomes inundated with thoughts and emotions regarding this event – somewhere you’ve forgotten about the rest of the day.

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From Hero to Zero

He came, he saw, and he conquered…well almost. SA swimming sensation Ryk Neethling was the star of the Mr Price gala in Durban this past weekend. The world record holder swam 7 races and won 7 races. He was cheered, mobbed and (mainly by the females present) goggled at. But there was a problem.

Swimming like any sport has its own etiquette and as in any sport, respect for one’s competitors is paramount. His swimming credentials beyond question, Neethling let himself, the sport and those watching down in his total lack of respect for both the code of conduct and his competitors.
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Taking a step back … change

I have said previously that words are not innocent (see Taking a step back …). What I mean by this is that words are not flippant indicators of meaning – they are value laden and play huge roles in the way we see our world. This is especially true of our workplaces. There are buzzwords that reflect the culture of the workplace that shape people’s thinking and doing – they tell us what counts and what does not count.

Change, change, change – it’s everywhere!
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Change

Eddy Gibbs is a change growth consultant, well known in the USA for his excellent insights into how the world is changing and how organisations (in his case, specifically churches) can adjust appropriately. Here is an extract of something I received by email from him.

“In many areas of the world we are aware that we are in the throes of unprecedented changes, both locally and on a global scale. During previous decades these changes came at a slower pace and were somewhat predictable. In such contexts we could make our five and ten year strategic plans, and establish our goals to ensure their fulfilment. But now we have moved from an era of comfortable change – continuous and incremental – to discomforting change that is chaotic and mostly unpredictable.
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Taking a step back …

There are many buzzwords that we use to describe our approach to business and how we think commercial activity should be, or shouldn’t be, run. Every now and then I like to stake a step back from my language and that of my colleagues (you included!) and listen out for the “storiesâ€? that are indicative of our position/s.

So, what do I hear?
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What part of ‘they aren’t going to stay’ don’t you understand?

In TomorrowToday.biz we have an ongoing debate on the issue of retaining today’s talent (we call them Bright Young Things). Some of us say you can (although not like it used to be) and some of us say you can’t. I belong to the ‘you can’t’ lobby. I do feel like I’m outnumbered, because when I look at who’s writing what, inside and outside of our business, they’re mostly taking a ‘you can’ stand, albeit differently to how it was done before.

I could lose some friends here (both inside and out) but I think that any consultant that says it can be done can’t be trusted, because they’ve been hired based on the fact that they say ‚we can help retain your talent that’s leaking through all the holes that you just don’t seem to be able to patch.‛ Right now there’s an opportunity a mile wide for any consultant with an answer, to walk through and generate enormous fees. Let’s face it, losing your talent is hurting more and more each and every day.

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7 Things Savvy Leaders Do in order to Be Great Leaders

They recognise and cultivate healthy habits

Savvy leaders understand that character outweighs personality every time. Leadership, as so many presume, is not about personality, it is about character. And character is developed over the long-haul. Developing character is a series of intentional acts be those of success, failure, adversity or achievement. Developing character is to know your values � what you live for and what you would be prepared to die for � and to fashion continues acts from those values. Real character cannot be mimed, imitated or acted out � it is something that is consistent, recognisable and trusted. Consciously going about building those habits that lead to character is what savvy leaders devote themselves too. It isn’t something that happens all at once but rather builds over time and in such a manner that it is acknowledged by others before it is recognised by the carrier.

What those habits are will vary from person to person, the trick is to cultivate those habits that are true to you. To do those things that will make you a better person and not compiling a list of things to do because of their ‘show and tell’ value. A perusal of great leaders will reveal a backbone of personal habits that provided them with strength, relief, perspective, humility and courage. Developing habits that build character will necessitate a review of how you spend your time as you might need to find the discipline to change things around in order to do those things that are important, those things that really matter.

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Beyond the Algorithm

I’ve just read an article in a recent copy of Wired Magazine about the last 10 years that changed the world. They look at the 10 years since the Netscape IPO (1995) and the people/companies that changed the world (from an internet perspective). Obviously Google is a company they look at, and there were a couple of thoughts that captured my imagination. They spoke about the algorithm that created Google. Two dudes at Stanford looking for a doctoral thesis that turned into Google. What captured my attention was not the algorithm, but what Google is becoming. Google has left their algorithm and moved to leveraging what they’ve created. Let’s face it, if you visit Google’s web site you quickly realise that they’re so much more than the amazing search engine they’ve created.

And I started asking questions of companies I work in and with. How many of them successfully move beyond their ‘algorithm’, the thing that made them, to leveraging the opportunities they created? It seems to me that success doesn’t sit with improving the algorithm, but what you do down the road. There’s nothing wrong with bettering the algorithm, and I think that’s where most companies play. But if you want success you need to move beyond.
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The A – Z Of HyperNetworking In The Connection Economy

From developmental stages to mainstream technology

Companies around the world have already begun to experience the power of third-party Web sites (e.g. www.hellopeter.com) and any self-respecting marketing department commits staff to monitoring them. But that’s not enough anymore. Clients want to be involved and interact, not just comment and complain. In today’s Connection Economy, where information is being democratised, and stakeholders and clients alike are demanding more interaction and transparency, the use of a new range of HyperNetworking technologies is becoming imperative. Lets put some of the most important of these new business tools under the microscope.

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Designed for life ‌ or Design for LIFE!

It’s pretty obvious that the way we work is changing. Nowadays � the office is that nice comfy chair in Starbucks. With the advent of ‚mobile‛ technologies our office space followed suit and became mobile too. So now you see a ‚wireless hotspot‛ sign on the menu at the local coffee shop ‌ it’s not just the latte and cappuccino they are selling. (But those still remain very tasty indeed.)

I’ve found this very nice little coffee chain in London which makes an excellent coffee and a very nice chocolate croissant! Every morning I pop in for my fix � and the place is crammed ‌ with suits and laptops. There is a group of chaps that huddle round the table every morning and conduct their business meeting. But this is nothing new and while that option still remains increasingly popular, tucked away in the heart of Soho is another growing trend ‌ eOffice.

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Intimacy or Integrity: Can Leaders Walk Both Paths?

The well-known contemporary comparative and cultural philosopher Thomas P. Kasulis not too long ago published a book entitled ‚Intimacy or Integrity: Philosophy and Cultural Difference.‛[1] His book lays out a compelling argument about how cultural generalizations between Asian and Western philosophies can be employed to discover deeper cultural insight about these disparate environments. He focuses on the cultural differences between Japan and the Unites States arguing that Japan is a culture based on ‘intimacy’ while America is a culture that is based on ‘integrity.’ Utilizing these two generalizations Kasulis illuminates cultural differences between Asian and Western values that help to demystify the Far East as well as teach us important cultural lessons we can apply in more familiar settings.

While generalizations aren’t always healthy (or accurate), they do serve as a lens with which to better understand the unknown. As one generalization leads to a better and more accurate generalization, one can gain deeper insight into a culture. And, as Kasulis writes, ‚[t]he only way to refute a generalization is by posing a better generalization (one that is a more effective heuristic, one that can account for more of the data‌).‛[2] Kasulis makes a helpful point here. As we get to know a particular foreign culture we begin to peel off layers of generalizations like we peel off layers of an onion, each time a new layer comes off we are provided with fresh new insight into that particular culture (admittedly sometimes making our eyes water). In saying this, it may be worth time spent to think critically about the way generalizations can be mined for deeper cultural understanding.

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Diversity: So how should we do this?

Written by Jean Cooper and Graeme Codrington.

The previous e-zine had a great article by Barrie Bramley and Dr. Graeme Codrington, entitled: Loving and leading diversity. In this article they explain the business benefits of deeply embracing diversity in the workplace. They also touched on how NOT to do diversity.

However, if the way to approach the opportunities diversity opens to our organisations is NOT to force people into a room where we expect them to talk to each other and like each other, how then should it be done? In a longitudinal study (over 12 years) by the University of Pretoria, they came up with an interesting framework for making diversity work. I call it the “3 spaces-framework”, based on the research of Prof Hannes De Beer (2002).

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2010 Soccer World Cup: Coming Ready or Not

Written by Gary Bailey and Graeme Codrington.

Press release: Sept 2005

Not many people know that some restaurants and pubs went out of business during the 2002 World Cup soccer co-host country, South Korea. This was a sector that should have thrived. Not many know why it didn’t. Neither is it common knowledge that most countries that have hosted a World Cup or Olympics have had a two percent or more GDP spike two-years ahead of the games, and a one or more percent drop below their average for the two-years after the games.

‚As we look out of the window at the world that lies ahead, looming large on the horizon is the 2010 World Cup. Over half the world will tune in just to watch the final game alone, nearly 400 000 people are expected to tour South Africa during the six weeks of the competition, and estimates of GDP growth range from R 20-billion to staggering figures that defy belief,‛ says TomorrowToday.biz Head of Intellectual Property and GamePlan 2010 consultant, Dr Graeme Codrington. He adds that some companies are already feeling the benefits, especially in the construction industry, others will feel benefits closer to 2010, but there will be some surprise losers as well. ‚It is not a license to print money ” it requires careful planning and a creative strategy to ensure success from World Cup 2010‛.

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What on earth is Google doing?

If you’re plugged into current tech news you know the stories around Google taking on Microsoft with net based applications. They’re also taking on Skype with Google Talk. And now have plans to offer free wireless access to San Fransisco. Yes that’s the entire city. Google is making a bid to build a San Francisco-wide free wifi network, according to company officials. The company today filed documents in response to San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s request for information for the city wide network.. For the full story go here.

From 2 guys at Stanford trying to find something to submit for a doctoral thesis to world domination. It’s an inspiring and impressive story. Go Larry and Sergey go. If not just for the disruption you’re creating on the way.

Nuf Sed

Men and women aren’t even funny

Its fairly clear that men and women are different. In the world of connection – marketing, PR, comms, sales, etc – we don’t often take this seriously enough. So, I found it interesting to see a survey done on men and women and their responses to comedy. Apparently, men don’t find female comedians funny because their sense of humour is intrinsically different.

“In the week that readers of lads’ mag FHM voted the funniest women as ‘none of them’, research by global advertising agency JWT points to a divide in what the genders find funny.”

The main point of difference: “Women’s main source of humour is from the everyday, the little issues, stuff they observe and that happens to them. Men want to be funny to show off and to get people to admire them. It’s all about scoring points, whereas with women humour is much more a way of creating an attachment, bonding and getting intimacy with people.”

Read a report about this from the UK comedy guide here, or something from UK The Independent (online edition) here.