Tag: LinkedIn

Twitter and Twister

The later brought destruction to the Mid_West, but its impact is immediate, albeit regional.

The former more dangerous, simmering and long-tailed.

140 characters are more than enough to assassinate a character, his/her reputation which is built up over a life time.

Be careful.

Social malaise not social media in the wrong hands.

Not enough post, people don’t recognize your brand.

Too much, they are bored and become anesthetized.

We are living in parallel worlds: Twitter‘s and Twister‘s.

Digital and analog.

Both are real, as real as what’s floating and flowing through our heads.

With Twitter, we can edit, and control.

We leave our marks in the world.

140 characters at a time.

( I am at an internet cafe near Tan Son Nhut Airport. A baguette vendor just walked by to take order. Talking about digital and analog!).

Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn have become part of our digital life. The trinity came on the scene only half a decade ago.

During that time, we have had the housing crisis, and its reverberation.

Nature shed its blood, shakes its fist and shred some fat.

Survival of the fittest (MySpace, Kodak).

I must give it to Levis. During and after the Gold Rush, the unintended consequence was Levis jeans.

Winners and losers, but Levis always wins.

Now, gold diggers and gold traders are wearing them to.

We play the game of Island survival to exercise “forced choices”. Jeans always is a must-pack.

In five years, Facebook and Twitter will still be here.

Twister will come and go.

Still, be careful of both.

Its impact might be long-lasting. More than any of us is now realizing.

Just ask the scribes. They had no idea what they were doing when copying the Bible and later, print them.

A well-placed thought and well-said line becomes a saving line for someone in need and in search of truth, on or off-line. But ill-thought and ungraceful comments stay digitally and eternally.

Sur le pont

Oakland Bridge that is. The one got fixed by a China-based sub-contractor.

Now, down the dock and downtown, Occupy pledges to stay for the long haul.

Gertrude Stein once said of Oakland: “there is no there, there” (hence, no center to be occupied.)

When crossing that bridge, I thought of New York City (sprawling California only has a few thriving city centers such as San Francisco.)

Mark Zuckerberg mentioned that he would have liked to start again in Boston (too cold for T-shirt?), perhaps due to its proximity to Harvard.

We all grew up and felt attached to a certain place, whether it’s a city or  a village.

What drives our decisions often comes our sub-conscious: a graceful face or a soothing sound. For instance, when I listen to classic rock, I am transported back to high school even though geographically it’s an ocean apart.

I am sure it was similar with the Greatest Generation, when they saw something French (WWII) or Baby Boomers, when they saw “War” (e.g. associating War in Afghanistan with War in Vietnam).

American went abroad (unless they defected to Canada and stayed) and came home a different person e.g. Hemingway in Europe, or Hanoi Jane/Joan Baez back from Vietnam (Diamond and Rust). They have a changed view of looking at the world, at materialism and spiritualism, at family and country.

I still remember a striking title by Alan Paton “Cry my beloved country”.

Being immigrant, we lost our sense of patriotism (of the land we left). Yes, we voted and outsourced (to politicians) our freedom every four years, just like we outsourced the fixing of the Oakland bridge.

They in turn appropriate what part of the budget that goes to defense. Then men and women in the uniforms are deployed, many might not come back (offshoring the fight).

The closest thing we have to patriotism these days  is to watch Gen Y protest, 3 years after the Wall Street and Detroit debacle.

Our sons and daughters’ generation is at stake.

They have been told to stick to the screen and stay out of trouble.

When the internet connection got cut off, or their dorm rooms vacated, they turn indignant.

Not even Facebook can keep them in. This time, it’s Occupy Everything, except for the old job.

In Iowa, our Maytag man got laid off by the very sturdy machine he helped created (the quality and longevity dilemma).

Things got cheaper for a while, before interest rates kick in and push up the price on clothing, tuition and housing (rent).

What can be digitized and commoditized will be.

Our problem (high costs) = someone else’s opportunity (low labor).

Si tu n’existait pas. If we could disappear somehow (telepathy), there wouldn’t be such a big problem.

In fact, studies showed a decline in immigration population in Southern States.

One of the banners in Cannes this week is “people before finance” (in French).

Ironically, Cannes enjoys the showing of movie stars more than politicians’.

Conversely, stars couldn’t help crossing-over to politics (Some have likened Occupy to Flower Sixties with Peter w/out Paul and Mary).

I am glad the digital generation finally got off their PC chairs and hold up some signs (of protest).

No one expects them to pour gasoline over themselves (as I once eye-witnessed the burning monk doing just that).

Just get out and see the world as it is. The real should trump the virtual, since what’s out there is crueller and colder than what’s in our head and on the screen.

Just try to cross that Oakland bridge with windows open. Then you might discover, as Gertrude Stein did, that “there is no there, there”.

My 555 plan

Get back to your roots.

Eliminate waste and accessories.

Differentiate and make it relevant.

Actually, 555 is just a self-branding attempt, after a cigarette a friend of mine used to smoke.

I had to attach a numeric code to differentiate (sticky and trans-cultural)  my Yahoo log-on ID.

Now we hear of 999 plan etc…

It’s hard to stand out among Earth’s 7 Billion.

During a town hall meeting on LinkedIn, its CEO was ambitious to convey its vision i.e. to connect people to people, and people to opportunities.

Now we have the way (technology that connects millions at 2nd and 3rd degree separation), but we lack the will.

I heard of a new book entitled “Lean Start-ups”. The author mentioned “rentorship” of the means of production (Google Adwords, Amazon rack space etc…).

Even when the barriers to entry (means of production) are lowered, new entrants still get cold feet (catch 22: low consumer confidence leads to low spending, hence reduces the size of the pie, in turn, weakens the pull factor).

Even our Greek demi-gods need bail-out.

In education, we heard of “Waiting for Superman“.

Now, it’s waiting for Superman everywhere from EU zone to the O zone.

No, I don’t have a 555 plan to come to the rescue. It’s all in the unwinding.

And this takes time and belt-tightening (the 60’s protest was a rage against the machine i.e. inhumane,

now Occupy WS couldn’t articulate its distress i.e. wanting things back to the way it used to be in).

One thing is clear: we are in this together (dark side of globalization).

Vacationers from Europe couldn’t afford to travel to Hawaii. A resort in Hawaii got shut down (Michael Dell lost a lot of money there along with his Santa Monica hotels).

A Chinaman decided to shop in France (instead of Florida).  A Filipino street vendor just got flooded and went under. A Korean caterer LA tweets about his lunch site. And a Vietnamese man tweaks his latest app to share photos (Color) while Japan nuclear power plants striked a deal for two more reactors along the Vietnam coasts (this time, with Fukushima lessons learned).

There will be a lot of sorting out inside our hot and crowded sandbox.

The age of oligarchy has just dawned, not only in broadband, but in all sectors.

We can’t remember and choose among too many offerings (as BRIC countries export themselves e.g Tata in England, Huawei in TX).

Consumers always say they want more choices, while in reality, they pick the default option (organ donors in Europe were too lazy to opt out ).

So we are back to our roots (As of this writing re-shoring is on the rise with Albany getting $4 B pledge for chip facilities, and Pitts a huge endowment).  After all, America got talent, right!

I read somewhere that Youtoo is doing just that: to offer everyone a chance to submit their own video and to broadcast their 15-seconds of fame.

There will be enough bandwidth for everyone. Everyone is a star, because each has lived a wonderful life. Irreplaceable and invincible.

When your heart still beats, the cursor still blinks, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. There are zillion of stars in the Universe whose 7 Billion are here on Spaceship Earth, wading water to school, landing a plane at near miss, or coding all night to finish version n.0.

There is no better time to live, to invent and to round people out of their slumber. Victim no longer. Victor all the way. Brain bubble is the kind that never bursts. What’s your 555 plan?

Selling rain gears on sunny day

I still remember watching “Les Parapluies de Cherbourg“, a French musical film.

Of course, more umbrellas are sold when it rains. But when it “never rains in Southern California“, how would marketers manage?

The answer: rain making. And yes they did!

I was sitting on the top bleacher of Sea World, San Diego. And there they were, selling rain gears on a bright sunny day.

Those merchandise sold like popcorn. Even had the Sea World logo on them.

The catch: so you don’t get wet when Shamu splashes water all over you (supposedly a VIP treatment).

American capitalism at its best:  selling ice-cream to Eskimo.

Value-creating.

Young people finally say something: they are “Occupying Wall Street.”

Never too late (if there were to be a double-dip Recession).

The floor has been primarily occupied by the likes of Mr Buffett, who deserves and got a tax-hero medal.

But UBS?

Today’s culture of Wall Street makes yesterday’s Gordon Gekko look like an altar boy.

Greed is good. More greed is better.

At least, Mark Zuckerberg is still seen in his signature T-shirt (the only time he was seen in suit and tie was on Facebook town hall with President Obama).

Now, it’s LinkedIn’s turn to hold a virtual town hall (The Age of Participatory).

Hint: you can send in a lengthier question, at least, longer than 140 characters.

And maybe, promote yourself into a job.

After all, it’s LinkedIn.

I sold school magazines, defunct currency and fax machines when I first started out.

I can always tell when customers are satisfied (after-sales gratitude, or landing my first date after pitching our school magazine).

The decoupling of bankers-borrowers, buyers and sellers have led to current debacle. We need rain makers, not rogue traders. But most of all, we need satisfied customers who will act as evangelists.

The culture of commerce had existed long before technology or currency came along (Silk Road).

Technology only facilitates and accelerates the exchange. By no means it should replace the handshake or  trust-building.

I saw the joy of those people who put on Sea-World ponchos that day. They still had them on when the show was over.

They inadvertently acted as Sea World’s walking bill boards. Now, that’s capitalism at its best: a win-win proposition that is sustainable.

When you are happy, it’s a musical, like “Singing in the Rain” or as I can still recall Les Parapluies de Cherbourg or Sea World. In the Last Lecture, Randy recalled his childhood trip to Disney World that had turned career-forming for him. Help people experience, and they in turn,  help you with yours.

The future, never in past tense

Peter Jennings took a smoke break, his first in years, from 9/11 live coverage. It was the beginning of his end. The Canadian co-author of “The Century” must have studied the Wright brothers, whose invention could lift itself up into thin air albeit for just a few blocks. But he had never seen anything like the two planes that aimed low that morning.

In the decade since, from Steve Jobs (the I-series) to Steve Chen (Youtube),

from Facebook to Twitter founders, we have seen a new breed of inventors.

Instead of fixating on the hunt for an old man, wrapped in blanket with a remote control, watching makeshift propaganda videos of himself (BL), these digital natives followed the trail to the future.

They limit data transmission to short bursts (140 characters) or miniaturize play-back device (I-pod) while charging only 99 cents per song. Search has evolved from generic to semantic and shopping from global E-Bay to local (Zagat).

Rattled? Yes.

Deterred? Hardly.

Five stages of grief, processed in one fell swoop (in less than a decade).

What evil didn’t plan, was for the very invention in the West, be used against dictators in the MidEast.

(Arab Spring propagated and went tweet-viral in Egypt, birth place of caliphate).

You can take down a building, but not its blueprint.

Yes, there were people who ran down the stairs to safety, and stayed there in the past.

But there were also 343 heroes who ran up the stairs, 43 more than at Gates of Fire, to “fight (fire) in the shade” .

Just as the analog stairway (Encyclopedia Britannica, book stacks) shows the way down, the digital one (Wikipedia, Skype) points to “the sky is the limit”.

In the decade since, we have started “friending” each other, made possible by another Harvard drop-out, whether we were from NYC or not, just because we all share in a future, that will never be conjugated in past tense.

How I wish to have “followed” Peter Jennings on Twitter to read his post-9/11 reflections!

If you could read me

You would find that I am surprised by the number of employees Google and Apple employed only 75,000 combined (compared that with HP, GM or US Government‘s).

You would find that I still remember “the jumpers” on 9/11, and that we lost good men and women on United Flight 93, as well as Peter Jennings of ABC News.

You would find that after the ATT and T-Mobile proposed merger (or blocked, if DOJ won), I would be at a total loss in a post-telecom world (now they call it Information Technology, once convergence is completed). if Bill Gates, then, at the top of his form, couldn’t see the relevance of the Internet, then who would? Now, people are rolling out 3-D TV‘s and Google glasses.

Speaking of which, the price of contact lenses never dropped in the 30 years.

If you could read my mind, you would say I am crazy to be bothered with world events.

With technology and its ever-shortened cycles (Editor of Techcrunch even stepped down to handle CrunchFund), we need algorithms like Summl to sort out relevance for us.

I forgot to plug-in the landline wire after the Cable guy had installed my video, broadband and phone. It’s a sign that I am so used to wireless devices.

If you could read my  mind, you would know I long for “Yesterday” , not so much for the brick phone (Motorola) with accompanied battery pack. A lot of people still enjoy having their 2500 phone set, with its loud and reliable ring tone for incoming calls (for outgoing calls, the ringing  was “manufactured” by the phone company while waiting for the call to be connected). BTW, a friend noticed that in the US , graves sites are often hidden among well-manicured lawn. Yes, it’s a country that looks forward to  the future, unlike in Italy, where there is a profession called Restoration (Art).

If you could read my mind, you would know that I respect my colleagues who day-in-and-day-out , post relevant and professional tips that pay-forward.

If you could read my mind, you would know that I have never been good at being a fake, so I might as well be authentic.

If you could read my mind, you would know that you and I have been bystanders watching systemic and structural changes (outsourcing and automation).

It happened even when we were asleep. It’s like when your kids all of a sudden need new uniforms, a set of bras, a larger pair of shoes. Before you know it, the frog could no longer flex its muscles having enjoyed a slow-heated bath for too long.

If you could read my mind, you would know I dread the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

I can’t explain to my kids what Post-traumatic stress is e.g. exiling from home, a marriage break-up, a job disappearance etc….  I might be over-protective, but I know they grow up with situation awareness, limited options, forced choice, like the jumpers’ on 9/11 as they escaped the towering inferno, even for a brief few seconds of free-falling.

Wonder if we could read their minds on that fateful  day!

Out with the self check-out!

Albertson is your store. No wonder you just walked in, took the items, and walked out (after paying the machines).

http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/officehours/2011/jul/12/albertsons-will-take-self-checkout-lanes-out-stores-doesnt-affect-area-albertsons-stores/

I still remember having lunch at Woolworth, or stopping at full-serve  stations back East.

“coffee refill?” ” oil check?” We are heading toward a self-serve nation (or as in a recent feature in the WSJ, a Retail applicant outsourced his job search to an online resume service in India. The service uses automated software that sent his resumes to, among other things, adult entertainment companies.)

Back to customer service.

Not only customers bring friends, they are also an important part in the feedback loop (for future product development and marketing).

Face time is important. And productive face time is expensive.

Even in our hyper-connected world, people are still isolated and lonely.

The neighborhoods have changed. Old friends have moved on.

So we bowl and golf alone.

We time shift, LinkedIn with people who start their days when we end ours.

The last thing a tired worker needs is to argue with or be harassed by a machine “put your item in the bin”? I thought I did (I found out there was a scale underneath, so leave your bag there, not on the floor).

Meanwhile, I-phones, cosmetic items and travel kits are sold via vending machines.

I can understand the necessity of acquiring these in a hurry, let’s say in an airport.

But neighborhood groceries should foster a sense of community, where we look someone in the eyes, or start a quick conversation (weather, news event, or just venting).

On Charlie Rose, Stephanopoulos said when he interviewed people, he observed their silence, their non-verbal communication.

We still walk around inside our bodies. And we will send our signals via facial muscles and body gestures.

This means we still need a person on the receiving end to decode.

Yes, it’s expensive. But, it’s worth it.

Nordstrom and Four Seasons know this.

Giving people what they want, how they want it. While technology enhances efficiency, a customer-centric organization always wins and keep its customers. Maybe, I should skip the automated resume-blasting company.

Why relying on poor salesmanship to sell me, when I can do it better and save money. Out with the mechanistic transaction (we already got Amazon), and in with “Hi, how is your day?”.

Fallible leadership

Former Google CEO, in a recent interview, admitted that he was too busy to see Social Network coming.

Former Microsoft CEO, at the turn of the century, admitted he too missed the significance of the Internet.

The Vatican, after years of floundering, decided to settle sexual abuse cases ( as of this edit, Pope Francis now personifies simplicity and humility).

In Japan, the advisor to the Prime Minister on nuclear issues resigned, saying “there is no reason for me to be here”.

Leadership fails too, as we do.  It’s just harder to publicly acknowledge it.

(yet in NY and S Carolina, politicians are trying to give their career a second life, with Clinton as role model).

There are forces at work, no matter who is in charge: innovator’s dilemma, creative destruction, perfect storm.  Mike Malone speaks about a new organizational model (core leadership team, and boundary-less around the edges) in ” The Future Arrived Yesterday”. Essentially, he speaks of being nimble, adaptive with a core group as curators of company experience and memories.

I would add to that: even within a core leadership team, I wouldn’t surround myself with a team of Yes men.

Look at Nixon. They had said Yes for a while, until they were asked to testify before Congress.

Then, we know what happened from there. Colson was conveniently born again while others went on to publish best sellers.

I’d rather agree to disagree, or went so far to appoint an office of “Devil’s advocate” within the organization.

Organization development often expounds the homogeneous unit principle (HUP) i.e. organizations grow best when members are ethnically alike. But when it comes to business, especially in current global climate, customers are found in every corner of the Earth 24/7. They are just a click away from your virtual doorstep. Who would you like to be your “receptionist” then? (SI model a few years back came from Russia, while Miss America a Muslim American).

Even Buddha himself , purported to be born in King’s Palace, walked among commoners to compare what’s on the ground vs what’s in the blueprint. Seeing so much “reality”, he turned inward, examined himself and found Enlightenment. Conversely, not everyone is on the path to Nirvana: dictators in the Middle East stay on and continue their personal enrichment.

Gaddafi not only surrounded himself with Yes men and his sons, he added an entourage of female bodyguards.

Talking about busy!

MCI taught me one lesson well: Reorganize even while the going is good.

I remembered management meetings on the East coast, right after I had just finished up a series of successful festival events on the West coast. No rest for the weary. And we discussed splitting up into three regions (instead of organizing along ethnic niche). Just to shake things up and cross-train our leadership team.

That same team now went on to do us proud: we were graced with meetings held all over the country, so all of us got exposed to the nuances of geography and zip code life styles. After all, we were a Mass Market organization: diversity, energy and can-do attitude.

I respect Eric Schmidt‘s forthrightness. Only it’s so ironic that I read his interview on LinkedIn Headlines, his competitor par excellence. Now only if LinkedIn Jeff Weiner would watch his rear view mirror. It’s not what you do that hurts you, it’s what you know you should do, but didn’t.

The genius of LinkedIn

Verifiable profiles.

Matching up people of similar professional stature and standing.

Enlarging the network beyond geographical boundaries.

Crowdsourcing that creates valuable content and demographics.

Most solid Who’s Who list on Earth.

In and of itself, LinkedIn could be the greatest company on the planet, if all members contribute their wisdom and help second degree connection connect. The content from various discussion boards by itself invaluable since these were experience from the trenches.

Personally, due to the volatility nature of my post dot.com telecom career, LinkedIn helps me stay in touch with past colleagues who themselves moved around in or outside of telecom.

LinkedIn is poised to grow into one of the biggest online professional continuing education sites , if it wants to. A gold mine for HR and talent management.

Even in this 8% unemployment environment, it still commands decent IPO. Wait until the next convergence i.e. rise of the rest, then we will see the true value of “first to the field” advantage of LinkedIn.

Remember, when President Clinton was dancing at his inaugural ball (Don’t stop, thinking about tomorrow),

there were only 50 web pages in the world. Now, LinkedIn itself has millions and counting (and each of us tends to our own as if it were our “FarmVille” garden). It’s our personal WikiMEdia, since each of us has a narrative worth telling, a horn worth tooting, a puzzle yet to emerge and a life worth connecting to.