By the third vendor demo of the week, every pitch promised to transform the customer experience, and nobody had said what the customer actually needs. Customer Obsession is AI's real sweet spot, but only if you work outside-in. A leader's lens for evaluating AI customer initiatives, focused on creating AI value for customers.
It's 3pm Thursday. You need a decision by Monday. You know the frameworks, but your situation is messier than any textbook. What if you had a virtual executive advisor with 40 years of experience available when you're stuck? Here's how applied wisdom bridges the gap between knowing and doing.
Breakthrough ideas often emerge at the very end of a focused conversation - as an afterthought, an "oh, by the way", just "one more quick thing" that slips out just when you thought it was time to go. The first in a series - real stories of breakout ideas and insights that happened in the last 5 minutes of the meeting.
Conflict in your organization is actually an early indicator that change is imminent, necessary - or happening around you whether you want it or not.
What can be disrupted? How real is this threat / promise? It's not a deflection tactic - it's more about opening your eyes to the possibilities, and getting focus on the priorities.
This story dates back to my college days, and I use it to illustrate the idea that IT people are not entirely comfortable with other functional areas of the business - and the "shades of grey" that mysteriously guide the thinking and actions of Sales & Marketing, Strategic Planning, and Upper Management (especially when those IT folks are fresh out of school). Ok, quick aside - it's been a few years since my undergraduate days, so if I get any…
"That could be fixed in the system", I said to the weary auditor, "with a one-sided journal entry". Her brow furrowed slightly. "A what?" "A one-sided journal entry. You know, add a debit amount to one account without crediting another." Her frown deepened. "I don't understand". "Well", I said, "this system normally doesn't allow a one-sided journal entry - or at least I don't know how to do it. But it should be possible, I've seen it in other systems."…
I really do like networking events - group meetings with other with other IT professionals, discussing topics of common interest, with a reasonable amount of vendor / consultant-sponsored gentle selling, and/or some solid job networking with fellow techs looking for their next successful step along the career path. However, I admit to a wee bit of boredom with buzzword-laden presentations or war stories focused on project successes that mean so much to you (but nothing to me). We are all…
Another great example of tilt-shift / time-lapse film making - thanks to Photojojo and It's Nice That ... httpv://vimeo.com/37157187 I like the helicopter rescue at about 1:20, a mini-flashback to a previous video from this guy ... http://vimeo.com/3156959 ... which was featured on the Guggenheim site (what a great site to wander through for inspiration!) Take a quick look at the filmmaker's web site - the home page has a video of samples that are just stunning!
Hmm, not quite ... how about I Hate "the Business" More specifically - I really am getting uncomfortable with the whole "IT and the Business" meme: ... demonstrating IT alignment with the business ... IT's relationship with the business ... IT and the business need to work together / build partnerships ... the Project is made up of the IT team and the Business team ... and so on. It's an unhealthy mind set to get into; when corporate IT,…