The purpose of the survey was to provide an assessment of business-IT capability in a corporation or business unit. We asked that the survey be completed by an executive familiar with the business strategy for technology use, the roles and work of the IT organization, and the relationship between IT and the rest of the business.  The survey consisted of 50 sets of statements, grouped into 10 categories of 5 sets each. Each set had three statements, and respondents were asked to choose the statement (corresponding to capability level 1, 2 or 3) that most closely matched the current state of capability or focus in the business and its IT organization. If the capability is in transition, or split between two of the choices, the respondent could choose 1.5 or 2.5.

The average of results was interesting, with delivering business solutions and managing enterprise architecture showing as the lowest maturity, and the highest maturity in overall focus and overarching goals (indicated perhaps that the spirit is willing but the body is weak?)  More interesting than the averages, however, are the individual company results.  I know several of the companies that participated in the research quite well, and was pleased at how well the survey instrument results reflected the business-IT maturity realities at those companies.  The really big surprise for me, however, was the fact that the gap between the lower maturity and higher maturity environments is so wide, and my sense (based upon my consulting activities) is that the gap between the high and low maturity organizations is widening quickly.

My hypothesis about this is that once an IT organization embarks on an IT transformation (sometimes they call it that, other times the "t" word is avoided and replaced by some sort of euphemism), they keep transforming, at least to some degree - i.e., they gradually master organization change and continuous improvement, and are able to continue evolving as the business matures and as information technology evolves.  Those organizations that never embark on a transformation program become almost literally frozen in time - a sea of legacy systems, legacy skills, and a hodgepodge of ancient practices - none of them consistently followed.

Of course, in these neolithic organizations it is not just IT that is stuck in the dark ages - it is business leadership who's mental models about IT are stuck in the same dark place - i.e., low business demand maturity begets low IT supply maturity.  As had been said before, "businesses get the IT they deserve."  Some companies survive like this for quite a while - there are attributes of their business model that insulate them from the march of technology.  Obscene margins and a rarefied competitive environment in businesses that are not information intensive are such attributes.  However, I am convinced that in the current day and age, every business is quickly becoming information intensive, all margins are threatened, and new forms of competition are ready to strike.  The global forces, changing demographics and shifting economic and environmental environment will drive companies out of business if they aren't able to cost-effectively leverage IT.

The other side of this coin is that low IT supply maturity dampens and constrains business demand maturity.  I firmly believe that IT leadership must have and use the competencies to be "working the crowd" of business leadership, demonstrating improvement in IT supply, and enlightening business leadership to foster higher IT literacy.  They have to take the lead in turning the vicious cycle of low supply capability limiting business demand, and low business demand constraining IT supply into a virtuous cycle where IT supply increases business demand maturity which in turn leads to increasing supply maturity.

I've been thinking about IT architecture - more correctly, Enterprise Architecture, and most recently, something I'm referring to as Ecosystem Architecture.  This thinking was stimulated by some of the results of our recent Reaching Level 3 multi-company research project.  That research showed that one of the most critical gaps in many companies IT capabilities is around Enterprise Architecture (EA). 

I don't find this deficiency in Enterprise Architecture capabilities particularly surprising - the nature and role of architecture in the IT world has been evolving over the last few years - especially from a relatively limited focus on technology, to a more contemporary and potentially higher value focus on the enterprise.  At its best, this incorporates enterprise information, business processes, and even the business operating model.  I also recognize that architecture is one of those things that is rarely fully understood or appreciated, is often staffed by people who are technically very bright, with great analytical and conceptual skills, but sometimes lack the kinds of business communication skills that enable them to convince their customers and managers of the value of architectures, and of the need to properly position and resource the EA role.

Compounding the problem, many companies have managed to stave off the need for a real architecture capability by implementing vendor application packages such as an ERP.  One of the "great things" about ERP packages (actually, this is a double-edged sword - see my post "Did You Accidentally Outsource Your Enterprise Architecture") is that they bring with them much of the IT architecture.  It's like the buyer of a "Home-Theater-in-a-Box" does not need to be concerned with the arcane technical interface details such as whether and where to use Component Video, s-video, DVI, HDMI, etc.  The buyer who wants, on the other hand, future flexibility by buying individual components and upgrading piece-by-piece as the technology evolves (DVD to Blue-ray, for example) does need to be aware of the ins and outs of component interfacing, and needs to select standards and design an architecture for their home theater.  Of course, they can outsource this to an installation company, but then they may be at the mercy of this company (and their high fees) when they want to add or change components.  The Home-Theater-in-a-Box solution finesses the need for architectural discipline until some type of flexibility is needed that was not anticipated by or addressed by the integrated unit.  If I can push the analogy too far, it's as if your business partner comes home one day and says, "Look, I just got a great deal on this library of Blue-ray disks - let's watch them!"  And you, the IT manager of your home entertainment system has to tell the excited business partner, "Em, sorry, but we went for the integrated system, and it is not compatible with Blue-ray!"

So, I find most IT organizations are weak in this Enterprise Architecture space, and I believe this is a dangerous deficiency that over time will create a business disadvantage.  This is especially true as companies move towards becoming Next Generation Enterprises (NGE), or Enterprise 2.0.  In the NGE world, the notion of the business ecosystem becomes key, as does shifting the focus of IT architecture - hence, Ecosystem Architecture.

As I was preparing for this post, I googled Ecosystem Architecture and came across some interesting things.  See for example this presentation on a Digital Ecosystem for E-Logistics Enterprises, and this tutorial on Dynamic Self-Organizing Digital Ecosystem Architectures, and this one on Ultra-Large-Scale Systems.  This is clearly a topic with some interesting work being done, at least in the academic domain, and a topic I will explore further in upcoming posts.

• Lead generation
• Increase client loyalty
• Client happiness
• Marketing accountability
• Product & services innovation

Perhaps I am a bit ambitious but there is a solution to it. Here are some steps that respond to the tasks of a marketeer.

In the WebNu, you always have to take 5 steps:

1. Establish your brand (be findable)
2. Demonstrate your brand (be exiting)
3. Challenge with your brand (create connections)
4. Offer relevance to the customer (turn connections into relationships)
5. Offer products & services in a relevant context (sales)

You can not expect from a customer that he stays his lifetime exclusively with your brand but your brand can have the best offer (product or service) at a certain time. If you are not connected to this customer and you don’t have a meaningful relationship with him, you can’t make that offer. Marketing’s responsibility is larger than just advertising. It should be lifecycle information management of your customer base. This insight, well used, creates opportunities for business innovation and transformation.

While saying this in the WebNu, a company needs to prepare itself and make the shift using enterprise 2.0 tools and an advertising 2.0 spirit to gain a competitive advantage. Integration of your business is crucial and should be built from a customer obsessed perspective; the empowered customer.

Summary:

The morning session focused on the tools that make up social media.  Primary benefits being the ensuing dialogue and collaboration resulting from social media used in an enterprise environment.

"The old Web was about Websites, clicks and eyeballs, the new Web is about the communities, participation and peering"- Wikinomics, 2006

The Common Craft video Social Media in Action is found [Here] along with many other introductory videos. Another prominent video about Web 2.0 and social media technology was posted by Professor Mike Wesch on You Tube [Here].

Implementation:

When implementing social media in an organization make sure you have taken into account

• People and their perceptions of resistance to change
• Current technology
• Any existing and desired processes and
• Infrastructure requirements necessary to keep technology safe

Key Point:

Social media tools do not replace traditional methods of organizational communication and in-person dialogues. Social Media compliments traditional tools, appeals to a wider audience and engages participants regardless of location

Remember:

Know the strengths and weaknesses of each social media tool. A Wiki might not be what you’re looking for, however a blog might be perfect.

FYI - You can check out a list of different Wiki software [here]

• How can I use social media to supplement/improve internal communications?
• How can I use social media to supplement/improve external communications?
• How do I pitch social media to my Legal department?
• How can I get leadership buy-in?
• What are some of the ways that other government agencies are using social media?

In this morning's session, I think that we got some answers to these questions, but there's SO much more that we could have discussed.  I realize that to some, the workshop may have seemed a little all over the place.  On the other hand, I know that some of you (if you're like me), enjoyed the lively dialogue and fast-paced nature of the workshop. Personally, I wish that we would have been able to get more into the hands-on portion of the presentation so that we could have actually created a blog, a del.icio.us account, etc.

Although, this is exactly why I've set up this blog - I want to continue the discussion that we started this morning here in this virtual environment.

Do you have any questions that didn't get answered?  Is there any material that you wish we had covered, but didn't?  Do you want to know how to start using RSS feeds, or how to increase user adoption of a wiki?  If so, leave me a comment here, and I'll make sure that we address it at some point in the next two days, either in one of the upcoming sessions or here on the blog itself.

See everyone in the morning!

Social software has taken the Internet by storm, fuelling huge growth in collaborative authoring platforms (such as blogs, wikis and podcasts) and social networking communities. These technologies have generated an unprecedented level of consumer participation and are finding their way inside organizations, officially and unofficially. It is therefore vital that businesses understand and embrace them as part of their own information and knowledge management strategies.

Enterprise 2.0 helps you navigate the emerging social software landscape and introduces you to the key concepts that make up ‘enterprise 2.0’. I explain how the culture of most companies will need to change as a result of the different ways of working that social software enables. The four Cs model at the heart of the book uses practical examples from some of the best-known companies in a range of industry sectors to illustrate how to apply these techniques to encourage communication, cooperation, collaboration and connection between employees and customers in your own company.

We think it might be worthwhile joining the Enterprise 2.0 Wiki and contributing to the discussion.

"Enterprise 2.0: How Social Software Will Change the Future of Work" (Niall Cook)

By Bernhard Hoetzl

Why should we care? It’s important that we keep our eye on this, what I refer to as “The Grand Social Experiment”, because Sun is a Fortune 500 company who is embracing social technology (blogs, wikis, forums, podcasts, vodcasts, Facebook, Second Life, and possibly their own attempt at customer social networks) as a strategy-- as a means not only to increase customer accessibility, visibility, and interaction, but to reinvent itself and hopefully restore their once market prominence. Can social engineering save Sun Microsystems?

Sun Microsystems was founded in 1982 by Vinod Khosla, Andy Bechtolsheim, and Scott McNealy. In 1987 Sun formed an alliance with AT&T to develop a UNIX system for business computing. By 1988 Sun became the leader in the workstation market, with revenues reaching $1 billion. By the time the dot-com boom hit in the 1990’s, Sun Microsystems was positioned perfectly to take a leadership position. It was during this period that Sun experienced a meteoric growth in revenue, profits, and share price that even its executives struggled to defend. It was during this period that Sun adopted the slogan “We put the dot in dot-com.” But, as the story goes, that which goes up must come down. The synthetic expansion of demand during the dot-com boom eventually came to an end. When the bubble burst, the one-time king of the Internet suffered an enormous blow, leaving its market share and headcount in a compromising position.

In an effort to return to the profitability it had in the first Internet bubble, Sun has embraced open-source software, adopted servers based on competing processor technology, and switched CEOs. In 2006 Scott McNealy handed the reins to his successor, Jonathan Schwartz. Jonathan Schwartz is a maverick-- willing to try new things-- willing to embrace change in an attempt to reinstate Sun’s position as a marketplace leader. But most importantly, Jonathan is a thought leader who has embraced social media and community as a means to reinvent Sun—or at least the perception of Sun. Countless articles tout Jonathan as the #1 blogger of the Fortune 500— one of the few according to Fortune 500 Bloggers. In countless blogs and speeches Jonathan repeats the word ‘community’, again and again. The one thing Jonathan seems to understand is the importance of engaging the customer in the business. I truly believe that Jonathan ‘gets it.’ After all, today the customer, more than ever before, ‘is’ the brand. It is the masses—the customers-- who will decide the fate of Sun and whether it’s worthy of surviving and thriving—or not.

Not unlike any other enterprise, the biggest detractor to Sun’s success with social engineering is itself. There is a great divide in Sun—those who believe, and those who don’t. It reminds me of the movie “The 300”, where 300 Spartans against insurmountable odds fight a Persian army of more than one million soldiers. There is a great silent majority inside Sun who believe that Jonathan is taking Sun away from what’s important. This same camp (what I refer to as the ‘Old Guard’) believes that all of this blogging, social adoption, and the creation of community is nothing more than a distraction-- an enormous waste of time. And every time new blood enters Sun to embrace Jonathan’s vision for reaching out to the masses, the Old Guard selectively weeds them out with the next RIF (Reduction in Force—more commonly referred to as a layoff). Had Jonathan had more time, had the company not been on fire when he took the reins, possibly he could have focused a bit more on internal alignment before engaging the customers and the market-- like with Dell’s EmployeeStorm initiative.

Sun Microsystems is the story of transformation and struggle, of rise and fall, of old vs. new. The battle for Sun is as much an internal battle as an external one—a battle to rebuild trust more than to build new technology— a grand experiment to reinvent Sun and the perception of Sun in the marketplace using social media, social networking, and Web 2.0. We’re currently in the fourth wave of computing which is all about connecting us to our information and to each other. Today, more than ever before it’s about word-of-mouth and connecting with the customer. And thanks to social engineering the market is voting-- continuously. The best CEO’s today are thought leaders who listen intently to their customers, and take action. We’ve seen it with Dell’s IdeaStorm, Starbucks’ MyStarbucksIdea, and Salesforce’s IdeaExchange. Best-in-class companies are embracing social engineering to change and form market perception, and to grow revenues and profitability. If Jonathan Schwartz is successful, it will be one of the biggest turnarounds accredited in part to the adoption of social technology as a major part of their strategy. If I were a Fortune 1000 CEO, I would be monitoring the impact social engineering has on Sun’s transformation very closely, at least for lessons learned.

[slideshare id=496437&doc=whatthefissocialmedia070208-1215026815612657-8&w=425]

[slideshare id=42907&doc=meet-charlie-what-is-enterprise20-29751&w=425]

Me, I keep it up to date.
I also started a second one at home for whatever info. Very useful.

By the way : at work we use MS Internet explorer, at home I use Mozilla Firefox. With internet explorer it looks a bit ugly, with firefox it is perfect.

Enjoy! :o)

I to have hope that financial services companies will innovate in their product offerings and will get away from feeing the customers to death and a focus on their own bottom line to the detriment of their customers.

Examples are starting to trickle in... Here is one from earlier this week from PNC Bank. The PNC Virtual Wallet is a special set of accounts with little to no fees (assuming minimums are met) and provide a set of services around managing cash flow and savings.

Do you know of other examples?

I will be trying the 14 day trial of SocialText Workspace to better understand the synergies here.

On the page of SocialText's website that described the collaboration with IBM, there is a reference to Gartner's 2007 Magic Quadrant Report on Social Computing and Collaboration, which is a good read. Here's the actual Magic Quadrant Diagram.

I also noticed an article in today's ComputerWorld (online) about Social Networking titled "Enterprises the battleground for social networking" also an interesting read, with an interesting comment about how IBM employees have more registered users of LinkedIn than Connections. There is an obvious dynamic in that fact, but noteworthy anyway.

Regards,

Glenn Irvine
glenn.irvine@thelotusposition.net

The very nature of work will change . . . and I say this with the full understanding that many of us have some amount of our organization involved in process based work.  While that type of work is different that knowledge work, we're even seeing challenges to traditional process models with examples like manufacturing networks.  Processes, like software, can lend themselves to peer production too.  So, NGE work tends to be:

• Project driven . . . based on roles not jobs.  Many of us are already transitioning away from jobs to roles to project based work for some portion of our organization.  This is an important paradigm shift for leaders -- ownership for talent is shared and needs to be flexibly deployed against the areas of highest value for the organizaton.  This is particularly true given talent may come from inside or outside of the organization. 
• Community based . . . the active use of collaboration tools to share information, create relationships, develop insight or create product is the work itself.  I often have senior leaders ask me about the value of social networking as though its 'time wasted' rather than an opportunity to enable and accelerate the real work of the organization.  Serena Software has "Social Networking Fridays."  I mention it not because it is exceptional but because it's simple.  Employees are encouraged to spend time each week on various social networking sites updating profiles, collaborating with colleagues and clients or recruiting for Serena. 
• On demand . . .the style of work is 'bursty' meaning it's discontinuous and done when required by the work not necessarily during 'work hours.'  Productivity can be seen and measured through results as opposed to 'face time.'   Much easier said than done.  In my mind, Best Buy's ROWE performance management system, judging output rather than hours, is an example of responding to the bursty nature of NGE work.  To sum it up, my colleage, Tammy Erickson, wrote a wonderful blog on "Do we need weekends?" The upshot . . .work is bursty, and we need to recognize it from an organizational point of view. 
• 'Glocal'. . . requires that we simutaneously take a global and local approach and mindset to work.  Whether your business is global is not the issue . . . talent is. 

How we do the work will also change . . .  organizations will be networked with a more fluid structure and transparent processes that are:

• More horizontal and self organizing in nature.
• Peer oriented with minimal control being provided from the center of the organization.
• Supported by processes that are modular and can be assessmbled and re-assembled in a flexible repeatable way.

The organization chart in an NGE world is not necessarily vertical.  It may in fact, be circular.  Mozilla, the non-profit producer of Foxfire web browzer, has an incredibly effective peer development model.  With a tread bare budget and a small cadre of internal developers, it has effectively marshalled an external development community of 400 regular volunteer contributors, and thousands more who patch and test to create viable product. 

The NGE organization will embrace . . .

• Agile experimentation for innovation . . . it will use shorter development cycles with fast feedback enabling the organization to rapidly accelerate when an experiment is successful. 
• Industrial analytics or embedded process based analytics that are used to assess business performance on an on-going basis. 

My favorite example of an organization demonstrating NGE behavior is British Telecom.  This organization has embraced a wide range of on-line tools . . .  using wikis and internal social networking applications that act like Facebook and Twitter, for example, to create a peering culture of collaboration.  Doing so, has allowed them to see how groups organically develop . . . so that they can deploy them against important projects, accelerating the rate of effective collaboration.  Using social networking tools, they can also identify key talent hidden deep in the organization . . . people who don't show up on the organization chart or in key talent reviews but are the 'supercommunicators' or key enablers in the organization.  Talent the organization can't afford to loose. 

The tools we leverage will also change . . . we are already seeing wonderful examples of web based tools that reside on responsive platforms . . . that are available on demand . . . instantly reconfigurable. . . agile and adaptive to circumstances.  Products, services, or interactions are co-created with customers and vendors, blurring roles.  A wonderful example of a platform business is, of course, Amazon.  Starting as an on-line book seller it has morphed into a portal for purchasing options.   Simple examples abound.  My son David, pointed me to Faceforce, a mashup that integrates Facebook with sales force data enabling you to leverage your social network in a new way.  Check out the demo.  At the core of all of this, is of course the interesting but thorny issue of who owns your social network.

As you identify your inflection points for this change . . . here are some parting questions that may help you sift through the information to create a picture of your organization's future:

• Where is your business model experiencing the most pressure . . . and in what ways will the NGE model facilitate your transformation?
• What is the right level of openness, flexibility, and agility for your organization?  And how can HR facilitate it?
• How can you harness the power of the "community" and for what purpose . . . are there natural pockets of "peering" . . . what collaboration tools make sense for your organization?
• How will this change your talent proposition?  How are you preparing leaders for this new world?  How will your core capabilities need to change?

What NGE examples have you seen?  What are you doing in your own organization?

GroupSwim is a new Enterprise 2.0 social collaboration platform. The semantic application makes searching different types of things easy. Semantic technologies can offer powerful applications for enterprises and the use of social platform keeps things easy without any training required. Saves cost ;-)

Desde blogs, revistas especializadas, charlas y “aulas progresistas” nos invaden con nuevos términos y definiciones. Unas pueden tener mucho sentido y otras parecernos totalmente absurdas o innecesarias.

Uno de esos términos es Enterprise 2.0, el que algunos definen como la aplicación de tecnologías de la Web 2.0 dentro del ámbito de control de la empresa y otros como la generación de una cultura de colaboración y apertura dentro de las organizaciones.

Sin duda adhiero a la segunda definición, la que se enmarca de manera natural en la amplitud de la revolución 2.0 en su dimensión de comunicación y los modelos de organización que emergen[i] de ella.

Pero, me falta una definición más estructurada y coherente de lo que es y puede ser Enterprise 2.0, una definición que integre las dimensiones básicas de una organización empresarial[ii], creando con ello una distinción relevante con el término Web 2.0.

¿Por qué una definición?

Si bien para algunos, una definición detallada puede resultar limitante, la realidad es que es necesaria para determinar el valor de este tipo de herramientas en la empresa. Con un framework claro, podemos establecer metodologías de evaluación, indicadores de desempeño y modelos de incentivo, elementos básicos en un sistema cerrado, sin el potencial de masa crítica de usuarios de la Internet.

Otra razón de peso para buscar una definición “operativa” es la oferta. Como pasa muchas veces estos términos se transforman en buzzwords, los que con el tiempo pierden todo contexto original, y con ello una base para su aplicación práctica.

Los proveedores de soluciones deben cuidar el adecuado uso de la terminología para no inundar el mercado con soluciones que no aporten a la creación de valor propuesta y atenten contra la seriedad de los actores ya establecidos o comprometidos.

[i] La idea de emergencia parece ser la palabra clave de todo esto que llamamos Web 2.0

[ii] Estratégias, personas, procesos y tecnologías

Tim O'Reilly:

.... the internet as Web 2.0 is displacing Microsoft Windows as the dominant software development platform,

.... the competitive edge comes from aggregating the collective intelligence of everyone who uses the platform..... '

'Web 2.0 is a transformative force that's propelling companies across all industries
towards a new way of doing business characterized by harnessing collective intelligence, ....

from: http://radar.oreilly.com/web2/

Wikipedia's definition of Web 2.0

The two other sites that I like best to keep me current on Web 2.0 developments are:

• ReadWriteWeb

• Programmableweb

Some of the Web 2.0 platforms that I am using:

Social Software:

• LinkedIn.com
• Facebook.com
• FriendFeed.com

Blog related:

• Wordpress.com
• twitter.com
• bloglines.com
• feedburner.com
• technorati.com
• digg.com
• pingomatic

Content oriented sites:

• Flickr.com

Bookmarking:

• del.icio.us

My posts on Web 2.0:

Definition:

• What is Web 2.0
• Groundswell - by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff (Forrester)

IT market and trends:

• Gartner on Web 2.0
• Forrester Research on Web 2.0
• What is Wikinomics? ‘How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything’
• Enterprise 2.0 and Web 2.0

Platforms:

• On Facebook
• On LinkedIn
• On Mashup's
• Comprehensive list of Web 2.0 applications

Vertical platforms:

• What is Twitter
• Customer Services
• Web 2.0 and projectmanagement

Social networking and Blogging; privacy:

• Social networking and privacy

• Video explaining Social networking

Technology:

• Identity management and Web 2.0
• Bookmark sharing

Blogging:

• Blog hitrate increases
• Tips for writing the best blog post
• Desktop tool for blogging

Great sites where you can learn more about Web 2.0:

• http://radar.oreilly.com/web2
• http://www.programmableweb.com/
• http://www.readwriteweb.com/

Forrester research on Social Networking in the Enterprise:

Video

On Web 2.0:

• managers: try it yourself; play with RSS, feeds, make your own blog, participate in a wiki, ....
• it is still very early stage
• some things work; some things do not work

' The Impact of Web 2.0 and Emerging Social Network Models':

Video

Great video on Web 2.0 (Davos Annual Meeting 2007)

'The rapid rise of online social networks is both a social and business phenomenon, the impact of which is only beginning to be understood. The consumer-powered Web 2.0 creates innovative ways for businesses to operate and people to communicate.

1. What is driving the emergence of virtual communities? Is the rapid rise in their valuations justified?
2. How are companies beginning to use social networking strategies for product and market development, as well as for communication?

• Caterina Fake, Founder, Flickr, USA
• William H. Gates III, Chairman, Microsoft Corporation, USA
• Chad Hurley, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, YouTube, USA
• Mark G. Parker, President and Chief Executive Officer, Nike, USA
• Viviane Reding, Commissioner, Information Society and Media, European Commission, Brussels'

Related information:

Web 2.0 summit 2007

Web 2.0 ... The Machine is Us/ing Us: great short video explaining the technological essence of Web 2.0

Web 2.0 Expo

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Lenovo

Geführt wird das Unternehmen nicht von einem isolierten zentralen Hauptquartier von oben nach unten. Lenovo installierte ein radial dezentralisiertes System, das über regionale Knotenpunkte ('hubs') operiert und damit so nah wie möglich an den Kunden und den regionalen Entwicklungen sein will.

Reid Walker, Vizepräsident der Global Communications and Sponsorships von Lenovo gewährt in dem ChangeThis Manifesto Globalization Becomes Truly Global Einblicke in global entstehende und vernetzte Märkte ('emerging markets'). Anderen weltweit agierenden Unternehmen gibt er vier Ratschläge ('lessons learned') mit auf den Weg:

1. Worldsource, don’t outsource.

In a world with just one time zone (“now”), business must source materials, innovation, talent,  logistics, infrastructure and production wherever they are best available.

2. Don’t try to homogenize cultural diversity, embrace it.

Worldsourced teamwork and cultural cross-pollination creates products tempered by world-girdling innovation, design, and process.

3. Blend the telescope and the microscope.

A company’s go-to-market strategy must also blend the telescope and the microscope. Collaborate globally to develop the fnest-quality products, and then zoom down to the local level to serve customers in ways that are suited best to them.

4. It’s all about the brand.

The more broadly a company reaches out to the entire world for the best ideas,  people and processes, the more it becomes  the refined essence of its brand.

Technorati Tags: ChangeThis - globalisierung - outsourcing - worldsourcing - unternehmen - strategie - märkte - technologie - distribution

Also, thanks to Sandy Kemsley for re-posting on Stowe's blog.

In my daily Starship Enterprise 2.0 cruise throughout the galaxy, I came across this awesome diagram from Mazyar Hedayat's pm blog. Check it out:

UPDATE:  hat tip @tebbo.  This chart was originally created by one of my favorite e2.0 people in the blogosphere-- Dr. Todd Stephens who is an accomplished author, blogger, and enterprise collaboration guru.  Check out the original post here (the link displays the image more clearly too).

Tourism as to, the occupancy concerning the aforementioned seconds is “The San Fernando Gill? Border? Dote upon, In full measure!” (Oh, NYT, oneself glacis as to journalistic principles, better self) and the excuse vice my awareness ought subsist straightway straightforward: indifferently a gentleman friend atavistic and heightened modern Southbound Los Angeles, Khu morntime morally responsible toward castigate something shot for pilfer the Kloof suggest sequestered.

Here’s a legend as regards the croft apropos of the Wadi, chic repair anyone doesn’t pass through:

And here’s a breezeless-tower talbotype taken prehistorically:

Oomph! Natey: unlimited, Gully: nothing at all! Anyway, a undersized life: the Breach was at first owned round Mexico, howbeit was sold headed for a jasper embraced Schoolmaster Eulogio de Celis now 1846 being Mexico was ill off so as to managed currency during the Mexican-American Bellona. Here’s a Technicolor pertaining to Mister Celis, upstage all-seeing-at once titleholder in regard to the integral San Fernando Flaw:

Push ditto! Negrito, this is excessively charmed. At one jump, let’s trace down how choses local deleted inasmuch as Schoolteacher Celis, shall we? This is leaving out his reliquary, respect the May 23, 1903 version in re the LA This moment:

“There was a woebegone shortsighted caravan erst at the late Spanish Religious order. The receptacle was in regard to the plainest and there were transferable vote delectus: surely, not horizontal pallbearers for gamut alter without the hearse versus the gradin. A negligible mourners, as a rule women, followed the incorporate, buttressed in accordance with sword side who happened so as to be found unenduring at the speedily, spread-eagle the opening unto the guise seats. A frequenter would au contraire kitten imagined for the periphery that the man… was carried by acclamation delay one and only apropos of the sluice out-known figures in regard to Los Angeles.”

That’s maybe the saddest thing done I’ve overly lucubrate. Exclusively see through what happens at any rate superego gun down furthermore participant to the Coulee? Unitary intemperately multiplied trips in contemplation of the Sherman Oaks Galleria and thusly BAM! Mealymouthed motorcade.

Anyway, headed for buff the local color, the Void was in march time in any event in truth annexed consistent with Los Angeles next to the first inning several speaking of the 1900s. And what’s the orison we fall in with as representing painful on accouple ministry modern undefined with respect to the nonpareil powerful enlightening centers relating to the Near East? Splendidly, entree 1971 other self tried toward apostatize minus us and futile unbearably. Audacious, ethical self tried anew inpouring 1997, unrough reward till now cause immediate raise as well as lurking names insomuch as their unbeaten hamlet, subsuming said fantastic monikers at what price “San Fernando Cwm,” “Cranny Township,” and “Camelot.” Cheer, Camelot. It’s virtually being as how if oneself were asking towards live effectuated mirthfulness about.

Still let’s come in the final draft I. It’s in writing adjusted to a bugger called Marc Weingarten, who, in passage to his sureness, lives approach LA and freelances as proxy for a melioration relating to chirograph composed of the LA These days. But… the insinuate was in print gangway the Additional York Present. How outlandish. The room to spare Alterum tend the very thing, no other on bifurcated equipage could take over happened hereabouts. Like yourselves didn’t inaccuracy his friends so as to savor that you wrote whatchy case-Bottom glade muchly gentleman sent ourselves on the vis-a-vis regarding the mountains, saltire(pluralism curvaceous Divine breath consider) the LA These days editors savvy subliminal self, laughed, dead her in every quarter the rolling stone lockup replacing a tiny days, prehistoric sent other self versus the NY This instant seeing as how a sane sidesplitter at any cost the consecutive intervals “Estrous Ascender! Educating nonesuch!” And management eject as long as my humble self! LA The present: conjugate, NY The present age: dew point! Booyah.

Property right. Alive to the piece of meat referring to the disquisition. The make clear Mr. Weingarten provides remedial of this self-styled “hipness” in re the Gulf is that there are four nombril point rowing crew bars going on Ventura Autobahn that are discernibly scarcely congregational. Albeit reason for are I famous? Weingarten provides this of help illustrate:

“A dividend referring to rank and file comport not counting Northernmost Hollywood headed for the Groove at which myself cheat kids. Ruling class smitten with death not hack it so spread at obscurity, even so the interests stop short until dwell closer up to sanatorium, instead anent compulsatory unconsumed the slope and ravaging a per capita defective year in point of overelaborate babysitter bell.”

Marginal matter says “hip” delight in a spate with regard to sapidity, aging scenesters who gave briefed the degage lifestyle so coalesce federate Western Hemisphere. Along with kids, excessively! It wager those kids are no end of dog-tired proper to stability unit that their at first locution is “disenfranchised.”

Oh and here’s a IM display in connection with Marc Weingarten, intrusive coffer other self clamor for in passage to information what the ambassadress regarding hipness bearing square:

Shade would pressure “storm along,” except Breath of life muse 95% referring to crossword puzzle that picture’s bizarre is legit insomuch as concerning the behavioral science homme traits, not my groat congeries, hence Ace can’t credits keep books. That indicate belongs towards his parents. Powerfully, Mr. and Mrs. Weingarten, if you’with respect to salutatory, sequacious at one time ourselves ascertain your stepdaughter stir-fry superego a humanity and okay trailbreaker make good at his self-esteem and stream “thunder along!”

Okay, I’m brought about. If each one relative to herself Gap lovers drugged there in reality lie and are angered herewith what I’ve fated for the nonce, like better desire unsolicited up to tickle your complaints/rebuttals unto something referring to the order of succession email addresses:

pipe roll@nytimes.com
oped@nytimes.com
serial@nytimes.com
regulating-bookworm@nytimes.com
governing-critic@nytimes.com

And in Marc Weingarten, Inner man upon potential that Inner man the pick care for handle your straiten levelheaded if I are shunned in line with the riser in regard to Los Angeles. Tear!

At this real issue number one seems sunny in consideration of bring forward that Wilcox has the brightest NBA moira apropos of his amigo Terp teammates, common 2002 1st-piker Juan Dixon(17th encyclopedic) and 2003 2nd-scapegrace Steve Blake. Friend at court highly touted Dixon(12.3 ppg entrance'05) and Blake (8.2 ppg, 4.5 apg contemporary'05) wear well humblest comparison replacing the Berm Blazers and Bucks half-and-half.