Category Archives: Change Management

Implications: NSA Email Monitoring

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The ultra-covert U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) finds itself in the public eye from news alleging they monitor the world’s email.  This news, however, should not be a major surprise given many predictors (i.e., rumors), including a few listed below.

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It will be of interest, however, to see how this allegation permeates into the following discussions:

  1. Organizational Security (i.e., NSA as victim):  It is a mistake to believe organizational security is only about keeping foreign hackers out of the network.  This case, and other famous leaks (such as Wikileaks) makes clear that employees, or other attackers with access, have always posed a very real security threat (see “Ultimate Insider Attack” link below). 
  2. American Citizen Privacy:  Growth in technology capabilities combine with terrorism realities to make domestic discussions of individual privacy both interesting and complicated (see also related topic:  The USA Patriot Act)
  3. Diplomatic Niceties:  It will be tough, diplomatically, to accuse another country of cyber-attacking the US if, in fact, the US itself cyber-attacks others (see “China Hacks US” link below).
  4. Open Source Intelligence:  Critical intelligence is increasingly gleaned from large growth in social media communications, such as email, twitter, and SMS, making this what is known as a “big data” problem.

In 1929, Secretary of State Henry Stimson’s stated elegantly, but not practically, that “Gentlemen do not read each other’s mail.”  His opinion changed greatly, of course, when in WWII Secretary of War Stimson depended on cryptanalysis to decrypt enemy communications  

Reading other’s mail continues to become more interesting!

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    Book Review: Information, Technology, and Innovation: Resources for Growth in a Connected World

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    “Futurist” John M. Jordan’s Information, Technology, and Innovation: Resources for Growth in a Connected World is encyclopedic in coverage of trends and effects from digital transformation.  As a seasoned instructor, novices will benefit from Dr. Jordan’s introduction and topic development.  However, advanced readers will also benefit both from the breadth of discussion, as well as the notes that accompany each chapter.

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    As an early fan of futurist George Gilder, I was pleased to see the book begin with the “second half of the chessboard” story.  Further insight into the book can be divined from its five sections:  Foundations, Work and Organization, Business Model Disruption, Technology Landscapes, and Some Big Questions. 

    Many will agree that our economy moved from industrial to automation with the transistor invention.  This book helps support the important notion that we are now transforming from automation to a subsequent economy.  In particular, leaders and educators should pay heed to Dr. Jordan’s “some big questions” section.  Here Dr. Jordan summarizes implications ranging from identity and privacy, to innovation.

    Life in the Entrepreneurial Fast Lane

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    Greatly enjoyed IST’s week hosting fabulous alumni currently pursuing innovation dreams.  Now might be a good time to review reasons for and against becoming an entrepreneur.

    One reason against becoming an entrepreneur is the goal to be fabulously wealthy.  I do not know the exact statistics, but I suspect they are similar to becoming wealthy as a professional athlete or entertainer (i.e., slim).  If wealth is the only motivation, I recommend instead reading Stanley and Danko’s Millionaire Next Door.   This research suggests true wealth is attainable with a “good job” (i.e., a regular, albeit modest, paycheck), frugality (i.e., no regular Starbucks), and avoidance of advertising traps encouraging ostentatious expenditures.

    On the other hand, one reason for becoming an entrepreneur is the freedom to pursue a dream.  If you enjoy hard work and have pride in your abilities, then you might want to consider becoming an entrepreneur.  Startups require a broad range of abilities, and each participant wears several hats.  Note that technical ability is necessary, but not sufficient.  Other important abilities include communications, organization, networking, financial, and legal, just to name a few.

    As the speakers mentioned, you will also need persistence and a willingness to initiate action.  The path to create “faster, better, cheaper” disruption includes surviving failures.  Thomas Edison viewed failure elimination as a necessary path toward success discovery.  For example, Col. Sanders endured over 1,000 rejections on his path to Kentucky Fried Chicken success.

    For those fortunate, the new enterprise will eventually generate revenue.  This will be accompanied with pressure to make payroll.  However, this is not a bad thing.  In fact, I would argue that only the most successful entrepreneurs get this experience!

    Some of the entrepreneurship allure stems from the headline grabbing “flip.”  This is where a new venture is acquired, or experiences a successful public sale (i.e., an IPO, or “initial public offering”).  The current news example is Facebook’s purchase of photo sharing app Instagr.Am.  Although publicized flips can generate tremendous wealth for startup pioneers, they are not representative of the more common, and frugal, investments that focus on business value.

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    @NickBilton uses the Instagr.Am case to describe the disruptive force of entrepreneurs to create value, first described by Harvard’s Clayton Christensen (disruptive innovation).  He notes that established companies, such as Polaroid or Kodak, could not create the Instragr.Am app, nor did more recent powerhouses, such as Facebook, Apple or Google.  Disruptive innovation is the reason society needs to encourage entrepreneurs, while established organizations need to simultaneously recruit intrapreneurs.