Friday, October 17, 2008

The world the Google way...

Just attended a fascinating session with the General Manager of Google Aus and NZ, Kerim Temsamini.
He was speaking on the speed of change and how he even finds it "scary" to see his own kids doing things on the internet which at their age would have been unthinkable 10 years ago.
There are now no delays between the news and the story. You can no longer totally control your message.
There are 183 Billion emails sent every day - that is 2 million emails every second. On Youtube over 100 000 years of video has been watched. And yet only 15% of the world's content has been digitised.
The internet has truly democratised our access to information - for the first time the mass exchange of text is possible. A true "revolution" as never seen before.
So what are the further changes for the future?
1. At the moment mos of the web is in English - this is set to change and other languages are entering the web. But, fear not, as Google translator is being further refined and developed to be able to translate for you.
2. Mobile phones will be the next major point of access for on-line information.
3. People will be spending more media time on line.
4. There will be more consumer engagement with on-line and off-line marketing working together.
5. There will be more customisation and personalisation available - think of shopping carts that will guide you around the supermarket to the correct aisle and give you the information you need on your purchase.
6. Devices will be built that anticipate what we want - we will receive advice that there is a sandwich store around the corner and we had a sandwich yesterday - do we want another one?

So what do we extract from this session for our own organisations:
From the perspective of Management Consultancy International, it all comes down to innovation and being aware of what the trends are - taking these trends and translating them into your own business strategy and models.
Google itself as an organisation makes use of the LEGO Serious Play methodology to ensure that they remain in touch and engaged with their own workforce.

Monday, October 13, 2008

LEGO Serious Play

In the Financial Review Education Section (13/10/08) there is a great article entitled 'Lego-like plan creates thinkers' by Alexander Symonds.
The article is based on a discussion with Mitchel Resnick who is the Head of the Lifelong Kindergarden Group at MIT in Boston.
Prof Resnick makes the point that when we talk about learning we cannot use the term 'delivery' of learning as this implies that there will not be much interactivity. For true learning to take place, you need to ensure that there is more than just access to information or to content.
By allowing children to design and create things we ensure that they have a better understanding of the world and that they become creative thinkers.
This line of thought is just as applicable for all levels of an organisation - which is where the adult application of LEGO - LEGO Serious Play - becomes so valuable in moving an organisation towards a culture of innovation.
LEGO Serious Play sessions hinge on all participants actively creating the world and their perspective of it - and sharing that view with others. Sessions also ensure that learning takes place when the participant is in 'flow' and knowledge is not 'delivered' by the facilitator. As participants engage in play, meaning becomes more clear and learning happens through constructing models and sharing stories.
The technology side will soon appear when LEGO Robotics is introduced next year for use in the adult and business environment. This will create further opportunities for learning in a dynamic way and with positive outcomes for the organisation.