It’s What’s Under the Skin that Counts with ICT
It’s What’s Under the Skin that Counts with ICT
The launch of Apple's new iPad, on March 7, 2012, may have seemed rather inane, possibly disappointing for some people.
Actually it was very clever, and was as much about what was not said as what was said on the day.
The enhancements were there, new high-resolution Retina display, 4G capability, a new camera, and the ability to run very high-resolution 3-D content. Quite a list really. Yet still people were disappointed. Disappointed? Well, you see - it wasn't a new iPad that was announced, it was THE iPAD in its newest guise. The device that no one knew how to categorise two years ago has carved itself out a huge niche. Evolution personified.
So what wasn't said? Well quietly behind the scenes, Apple launched an application that large users of the iPad, the iPod, and the iPhone will be asking for for ages. They call it the Apple Configurator. What does it do? Well, in a nutshell, it allows the management of numbers of IOS devices, simply, quickly, securely. Now one can imagine my education was looking for such a control application. But what about business? The enterprise? The Apple Configurator is close enough to the very solution that will make the iPad acceptable to mass ICT business implementation. But it goes further than this.
Apple also announced the new Apple TV. An interesting product, and one that was often cited as being Steve Jobs 'hobby'. Between the last version of Apple TV, and this version just announced, there aren't huge differences. Yes, Apple TV now delivers full HD 1080p, but frankly the previous version at 720p was really rather good. Most people don't really know what Apple TV does. Of course it delivers "TV services", over the Internet. But it is also a media hub. Typically for Apple, it's incredibly simple to set up, and very elegantly allows content to be shared among users. Its real claim to fame though, in my opinion, is its ability to receive "Airplay" content streaming from Apple IOS devices. Very soon, in the next iteration of the Mac OS, it will be able to receive Airplay content from Macs as well.
So what is this Airplay? Well but simply, it allows you to share what you see on your screen. It just works. Now if like me, you've been party to many attempts by people to get presentations, and slideshows working with projectors and screens, you'll know that very often, certainly in the public sector, you end up screaming for the technician. It's either the software, the cables, the screen resolution, you name it it gets in the way. The bane of ICT farce is finally tamed. Once Apple TV is set up with the appropriate screen, controlling the content is a cinch. At a price less than the cost of a couple of decent HDMI cables, you have slick, high-definition, easy to operate presentation facilities.
What you saw on the day of launch of the new iPad was just part of an unfolding story that has been at the centre (core) of all that Apple stands for for as long as I can remember. They take technology; they make it do what people want it to do. It is Apple’s ability to engineer a complete end-to-end system and control performance that brings the who experience to life.
That is something that Apple does with its eyes……………………open.
John Rudkin B.Ed (Hons) is an ICT and eLearning Consultant with experience of working in the public sector, education and private industry. He currently works with the Schools, The Open University, the Third Sector on the Fylde Coast. He was an employee of Apple Computer for 9 years, and is an Apple Distinguished Educator. http://www.johnarudkin.net
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Apple Configurator app gives businesses tools to manage iPad deployments
Apple Configurator app gives businesses tools to manage iPad deployments
thanks to Dante D'Orazio March 7, 2012 06:05 pm
Very quietly, sometime over the last 24 hours, in the shadow of the iPad launch, Apple let lose a very important, new piece of software.
That software was the Apple Configurator. The world of Business as well as Education have been screaming out for a solution that goes beyond the configuration of iOS devices in numbers, and finally sorts out so many of the concerns and necessities required to be truly flexible with the management of Apple suite of world shaping tools. Now a business, an ICT Manager, a Dept Head, a Support Assistant can manage these devices simply and flexibly, and guess what? For free.
The value of the Apple Configurator cannot be underestimated, and it lends itself to uses in Business really well. This is the application that can make for no holes barred entry of iPad into business. ICT administrators are going to love the functionality, and the simplicity to manage and deploy iOS devices with ease. The capacity is there to manage up to 30 iPads, iPhones, and iPod touch devices at once, and these can be configured, updated, and supervised.
What appears to be a very much sought after solution utilises the flexibility of the devices to be multi used by many students in many subjects. An iPod or iPad can be a science tool one lesson, and a writing tool the next….. and that makes them ultimately versatile. Backups, restoration, the ability to apply custom settings (accessibility for instance) can all be changed when and where required.
An Apple fanfare was heard just a few months ago dedicated to the iPad applications in education. It was focused on new, multi-touch textbooks (iBooks). 
Apple Configurator is available now as a free download from the Mac App Store.
Bargain.
Of course, not everyone is ready for 1:1 deployments, or even with Apple iPads and iPods, but there is a great deal of experience to be shared. I can help.
Give me a call and learn more.
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Excuses are no longer accepted. Period. End of..... Excuses are no longer accepted. Period. End of.....
Excuses are no longer accepted.
Period.
End of.....
Excuses are no longer accepted. Period. End of.....
Isn't it time your ICT department (in the public sector) stopped pussyfooting around?
Just think from moment about that ICT Department.
Have they been open to new ideas?
Have they been accepting of new technologies?
Have they encouraged people to bring forward ideas?
Or do they stick to the old, well-known, well tried, old solutions?.
For many years Apple has been the butt of many jokes. Apple users are referred to as 'fanbois'. They took it on the nose. Those same people have been passed over as irrelevant because they were treated as 'different'. No matter how much evidence there has been that Apple's technology is has delivered in terms of results, it has never really been taken seriously in mainstream traditional ICT departments.
Why? I'll give a viewpoint on that sometime in the future.
For now I want to talk about something no one can argue about.
The iPad.
On March 7, 2012 (yesterday, as I write this article) Apple launched the new iPad. No doubt by now everybody is used to the hype surrounding the launch of Apple products, but this should be a wake-up call to all those CIOs and Heads of ICT Departments in the public sector who thought that it was all a passing fad. That wake-up call is that Apple has arrived, is changing the face of ICT, and is having a resounding effect on the customer base of every organisation in the world. The arrival of the iPad has brought with it the successful reinvention of the ICT consumer device, and the public simply love it. So, how much money was previously squandered on other 'tablet' PCs? It would make any CEOs blood boil if they knew. But this is not just the public or consumer love the iPad, it is education - teachers, students, it is home users, and for the purposes of this article most importantly it is business users.
Business?
Yes indeed, and there can be no doubt that the evidence points to this category of user growing very rapidly indeed. But surely the ICT Heads and CIOs saw this coming? IDG connect, have just released the results of a survey of business from around the world.
http://www.idgconnect.com/download/8007/ipad-business-survey-2012?source=connect
What they discovered was really quite plain for everyone to see, but hard for others blinkered by the past. Business professionals are turning to the iPad and using this new form of device in very important ways. What the survey does say is that iPad media consumption among those IT and business professionals is predominantly textbased and work related. The usual web browsing news consumption, and reading the mergers the three most intensive usage types. And as the report of the survey goes on to say these are the killer's the business. The report goes on to say that the iPad is get used on the road, but of course they do; they get used with Wi-Fi; they get used with 3G, although not as much as you might think (and that has a lot to do with the quality of connectivity provided by 3G services). What is most intriguing is that 59% of the users, when on the move, use them in off-line mode. Nothing from moment about off-line mode. They're being used to catch up and to read documentation. So those reports of iPads saving money on printing, and on the need to carry documentation around start to look more promising. It's only about a year ago since people were poking fun at one of the reasons to move to iPad, which was reducing printing costs. Well it now makes sense. According to a new report by an organisation called inMobi, as many as 29% of respondents to its recent US poll looking to buy an iPad three. Oh well over 50% of these people don't currently own any form of tablet. It seems the exponential growth is set to continue.
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/inmobi-study-reveals-nearly-30-of-mobile-web-users-intend-to-purchase-ipad-3-141169183.html
Another recent survey of over 1000 chief information officers across 11 countries (carried out by Vance and born for Citrix) states that the UK leads the world in flexible working. There is no point in slapping each other on the back though, unless you are willing to admit you are one of them that really does openly lead.
http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240146402/UK-leading-in-personal-device-use-in-workplace
Does your public organisation count among those go-ahead organisations? Citrix states that the findings can be attributed to the service led nature of a lot of the UK industry and public sector with 84% of businesses implementing a work shifting policy to support workers who may have to travel or who need more flexible conditions. And it seems one of the driving forces behind the change is the relative simplicity, and the potential for cost savings when organisations allow workers to use their own devices at work. It may come as a bit of a shock to Microsoft biased ICT departments that Microsoft itself says that despite allowing flexible working it tends to fail because companies don't provide the right technology to enable it.
http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240118199/Survey-reveals-flexible-working-shortfall
Microsoft's survey which quizzed 1500 business leaders across Europe said 90% of UK businesses now allow flexible working, but unfortunately it also revealed that a lack of the right technology and poor policies are holding back the benefits for organisations.
Then go back to where I started. Apple launched a new iPad on March 7, 2012. The popularity of this device, along with other devices that don't necessarily fit the mould of traditional Microsoft products are not just beginning to change the world, they've done it. We are now in the age of post-PC.
Look around your public sector organisation, and start to ask some relevant questions.
What is the policy for people bringing devices into word?; What is the reaction from IT staff?; Has been any attempt to study the impact of new technologies within the workplace, and if so, have they been truly open in terms of the range of options that are considered?
If your organisation is languishing in the past, they are letting you and your customers down, it's time to kick some butt. And when I say 'butt' I really mean ask the question; "but why not, but why the delay, but why don't we explore it, but how can that be an excuse?"
In the last quarter alone, Apple sold about 15 million iPads in the UK. iPhones, don't get me started.......
You have been warned.
As appeared at: http://www.publictechnology.net/sector/central-gov/public-sector-cant-stop-ignoring-non-microsoft-world
The public sector can't stop ignoring the non-Microsoft world
John Rudkin, an independent ICT consultant, says last week's launch of the iPad3 has significance for the public sector beyond the hype
Isn't it time public sector ICT Department stopped pussyfooting around?
Just think from moment about that self-same ICT Department. Has it been open to new ideas? Has it been accepting of new technologies? Encouraged people to bring forward ideas?
Or does it stick to the old, well-known, well tried, old solutions?
I raise these issues on the day Apple Computer says it will detail how it will spend it’s massive $98bn cash hoard. As I think this is related to the above problems.
For many years, Apple has been the butt of many jokes. Apple users are referred to as 'fanbois'. They took it on the nose. Those same people have been passed over as irrelevant because they were treated as 'different'. No matter how much evidence there has been that Apple's technology is has delivered in terms of results, it has never really been taken seriously in mainstream traditional ICT departments.
For now I want to talk about something no one can argue about. The iPad, whose latest version was launched last week. No doubt by now everybody is used to the hype surrounding the launch of Apple products, but this should be a wake-up call to all those CIOs and Heads of ICT Departments in the public sector who thought that it was all a passing fad.
That wake-up call is that Apple has arrived, is changing the face of ICT, and is having a resounding effect on the customer base of every organisation in the world. The arrival of the iPad has brought with it the successful reinvention of the ICT consumer device, and the public simply love it.
Wasted opportunity
So, how much money was previously squandered on other 'tablet' PCs? It would make any CEOs blood boil if they knew. But this is not just the public or consumer love the iPad, it is education - teachers, students, it is home users, and for the purposes of this article most importantly it is business users.
Business? Yes indeed, and there can be no doubt that the evidence points to this category of user growing very rapidly indeed. But surely the ICT Heads and CIOs saw this coming? IDG has just released the results of a survey of business from around the world. What it discovered was really quite plain for everyone to see, but hard for others blinkered by the past. Business professionals are turning to the iPad and using this new form of device in very important ways.
What the survey also says is that iPad media consumption among those IT and business professionals is predominantly text-based and work related. The usual Web browsing news consumption, and reading the mergers the three most intensive usage types.
And as the report of the survey goes on to say, these are the killer's the business. The report goes on to say that the iPad is get used on the road, but of course they do; they get used with Wi-Fi; they get used with 3G, although not as much as you might think (and that has a lot to do with the quality of connectivity provided by 3G services).
What I find most intriguing is that 59% of the users, when on the move, use them in off-line mode. They're being used to catch up and to read documentation. So those reports of iPads saving money on printing, and on the need to carry documentation around start to look more promising.
It's only about a year ago since people were poking fun at one of the reasons to move to iPad, which was reducing printing costs. Well it now makes sense. According to a new report by an organisation called inMobi, as many as 29% of respondents to its recent US poll looking to buy an iPad three. Note: over 50% of these people don't currently own any form of tablet. It seems the exponential growth is set to continue (see more here.)
Another recent survey of over 1000 chief information officers across 11 countries (carried out by Vance and born for Citrix) states that the UK leads the world in flexible working. There is no point in slapping each other on the back though, unless you are willing to admit you are one of them that really does openly lead (more here).
Are you one of these?
Does your public organisation count among those go-ahead organisations? Citrix states that the findings can be attributed to the service led nature of a lot of the UK industry and public sector with 84% of businesses implementing a work shifting policy to support workers who may have to travel or who need more flexible conditions. And it seems one of the driving forces behind the change is the relative simplicity, and the potential for cost savings when organisations allow workers to use their own devices at work.
It may come as a bit of a shock to Microsoft-biased ICT departments that Microsoft itself says that despite allowing flexible working it tends to fail because companies don't provide the right technology to enable it: see here).
Microsoft's survey, which quizzed 1500 business leaders across Europe, said 90% of UK businesses now allow flexible working, but unfortunately it also revealed that a lack of the right technology and poor policies are holding back the benefits for organisations.
Then go back to where I started. Apple launched a new iPad on March 7, 2012. The popularity of this device, along with other devices that don't necessarily fit the mould of traditional Microsoft products are not just beginning to change the world, they've done it. We are now in the age of post-PC.
Look around your public sector organisation. And start to ask some relevant questions.
What is the policy for people bringing devices into word? What is the reaction from IT staff?; Has been any attempt to study the impact of new technologies within the workplace, and if so, have they been truly open in terms of the range of options that are considered?
If your organisation is languishing in the past, its is letting you and your customers down, it's time to kick some butt.
And when I say 'butt' I really mean ask the question; "but why not, but why the delay, but why don't we explore it, but how can that be an excuse?"
In the last quarter alone, Apple sold about 15 million iPads in the UK. iPhones, don't get me started…
Time to wake up and smell the Apple juice?
The author is an ICT and eLearning consultant with experience of working in the public sector, education and private industry, currently working with schools, The Open University and the Third Sector on the Fylde Coast (Lancashire). He was an employee of Apple Computer for 9 years, is an Apple Distinguished Educator, and has a website of his own here
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Is the old model of Public Service Broken?
Is the old model of Public Service Broken?
Firstly, the question. Is the old model of public service sinking?.
Answer, yes and slowly. Like the Titanic it is holed and going down, that is a certainty to those with the vision to see beyond their nose ends.
The band, of course, will play on and those in charge will hang by the belief that the inevitable will never happen. Someone, somewhere will come to the rescue. When it finally does dawn that the ship is inching below the surface you will find that certain individuals had a tactic, dashed for safety, taking their buoyant piece of the ship with them that they think will keep them afloat. They were first to the lifeboats, and the lifeboats had “reserved” written on them.
In the current climate of cuts and redundancies, what else would you expect to happen?
So how do I come to my conclusion? I ‘ve witnessed first hand the way in which 'consultation' can be twisted (seeing to be doing, but retaining control) and the way in which individuals can wield power and 'command and control', at the same time as decrying that very approach. I can only speak from an ICT perspective, and from where ICT touches other services, but wherever a language can be used to differentiate expertise and belittle others into thinking they are lacking in understanding, command and control exists in its most tenacious, and is used to retain control.
At least that is what I have observed.
Transparency and honesty should be the norm across the public sector, not just between ‘customer and service’, but between services that act as a whole to represent their organisation. To see opacity being taken advantage of can be rather disheartening, because it is so obvious. Huge amounts of time and energy can be wasted by protagonists having to create strategies that keep them at the centre of a safe haven. I'll cite an example if I may, one that was very real. An ICT team create a new software package that could usefully replace some mass market, standards based products used in house. It offered a new ‘bent’ on the way things had been done before. The development was all "public", 100% paid for by tax payers, and the outcome was valued. Departments were encouraged to adopt it; they become tied in to the unique "in-house" solution. It was "sold" many times over in the organisation as "the replacement" pushed by ICT and by policy. It was sold outside of the organisation (by organisational staff) to a third party which opened up a huge potential external market for the product. Up to this point, it all sounded good - indeed it sounded exactly what a go - ahead organisation would seek to do. It was maximising a public investment. The organisation had the talent and potential to see a market that could bring in revenue.
Then the ICT Department sought a very different relationship with organisation, and effectively went arms- length, with the in-house team tendering for the very business it created. The internal advantages were neatly packaged, but the external opportunities were kept quiet.
Half a million pounds later (the team won its own tender in effect)……. something seems top be very wrong with this whole thing. Did the people served have a say in all of this? Where was the open consultation? It never seemed to happen.
A second real example. The organisation is creating a new Web Site to replace a tired, dated version. After mistakes of the past, it is decided that the next one would one should be created "in consultation" with the public (the people it serves), but in reality there is one favoured outcome. As a result a consultation is set up at a cost, but very few people actually take part . By presenting a 'biased' offering, it is enough say that the final result required a great deal of rework and cost, but was a success in that the right boxes were ticked. Surely it makes sense to be "better" by design than it is to blame the quality of the customer advice!
This is all cynical and rather obvious, but it happens.
How can this sort of thing be prevented? How can fairness and openness be preserved?; how can these dubious sorts of actions be made eradicated and customers really be consulted realistically?
The Public Sector - the “unsinkable” leviathan ship is not safe. It needs a good lookout or two, but lookouts with a view from the customer's point of view. That way, the great icebergs can be avoided.
Otherwise it's everyone for themselves..............
As appeared at: http://www.publictechnology.net/sector/central-gov/comment-are-we-losing-vital-part-public-service-ethos
Comment: Are we losing a vital part of the public service ethos?
Posted by Gary Flood on Fri, 09/03/2012 - 11:27
John Rudkin, an independent ICT consultant, wonders if the old model of public service is disappearing – which could be a problem for all of us
Like the Titanic, an older view of how to do public services is holed and going down. The band, of course, will play on, and those in charge will hang by the belief that the inevitable will never happen: someone, somewhere will come to the rescue.
And when it finally does dawn that the ship is inching below the waterline, you will find that certain individuals had a plan all along, will dash for safety, taking whatever buoyant-looking pieces of the ship with them that they think will keep them afloat.
In the current climate of cuts and redundancies, what else would you expect to happen?
Lack of openness
How do I come to my grim conclusion? I‘ve witnessed first hand the way in which 'consultation' can be twisted (seeing to be doing, but retaining control) and the way in which individuals can wield power and do a lot of 'command and control' - while decrying that very approach.
Transparency and honesty should be the norm across the public sector. Not just between ‘customer and service,’ but between services that act as a whole to represent their organisation.
To see opacity being taken advantage of can be rather disheartening, because it is so obvious. Huge amounts of time and energy get wasted by players creating strategies that keep them at the centre of a safe haven.
Here’s a real world example that I know all too much about. An ICT team created a new software package that could usefully replace some mass market, standards based products used in house. It offered a new ‘bent’ on the way things had been done before. The development was all also 100% paid for by taxpayers. Great - departments adopted it, it was "sold" many times over in the organisation as "the replacement" pushed by ICT and by policy, even outside of the organisation to a third party which opened up a huge potential external market for the product.
Up to this point, it all sounded good - indeed it sounded exactly what a dynamic organisation would seek to do. It was maximising a public investment. The organisation had the talent and potential to see a market that could bring in revenue.
Then the ICT Department sought a different relationship with organisation, and effectively went arms-length, with the in-house team tendering for the very business it created. The internal advantages were neatly packaged, but the external opportunities were kept quiet. Half a million pounds later - the team won its own tender in effect - something seems top be very wrong with this whole thing. Did the people served have a say in all of this? Where was the open consultation? It never seemed to happen.
Where was the consultation?
A second example. The organisation is creating a new website to replace a tired, dated version. After past mistakes, it is decided that the next one would one should be created "in consultation" with the public (the people it serves), but in reality there was always one favoured outcome. As a result, a consultation is set up at a cost, but very few people actually take part. Let’s just say that the final result required a great deal of rework and cost, but was a success in that the right boxes were ticked. Surely it makes sense to be "better" by design than it is to blame the quality of the customer advice!
This is all cynical and even arguably obvious. But it happens and it’s not helping our cause in public sector ICT.
How can this sort of thing be prevented? How can fairness and openness be preserved? How can these dubious sorts of actions be made eradicated and customers really be consulted in a true, open fashion?
All this makes me truly worry that the ethos of our public sector - the “unsinkable” ship - is not safe. It needs a good lookout or two, but lookouts with a view from the customer's point of view.
That way, the great icebergs can be avoided. Otherwise, it may be every one for themselves...
The author is an ICT and eLearning consultant with experience of working in the public sector, education and private industry, currently working with schools, The Open University and the Third Sector on the Fylde Coast (Lancashire). He was an employee of Apple Computer for 9 years, is an Apple Distinguished Educator, and has a website of his own here
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The GREAT Employee
The GREAT Employee
Great employees are reliable, dependable, proactive, diligent, great leaders and great followers... they possess a wide range of easily-defined—but hard to find—qualities.
A few hit the next level. Some employees are remarkable, possessing qualities that may not appear on performance appraisals but nonetheless make a major impact on performance.
Here are eight qualities of remarkable employees:
1. They ignore job descriptions. The smaller the company, the more important it is that employees can think on their feet, adapt quickly to shifting priorities, and do whatever it takes, regardless of role or position, to get things done.
When a key customer's project is in jeopardy, remarkable employees know without being told there's a problem and jump in without being asked—even if it's not their job.
2. They’re eccentric... The best employees are often a little different: quirky, sometimes irreverent, even delighted to be unusual. They seem slightly odd, but in a really good way. Unusual personalities shake things up, make work more fun, and transform a plain-vanilla group into a team with flair and flavor.
People who aren't afraid to be different naturally stretch boundaries and challenge the status quo, and they often come up with the best ideas.
3. But they know when to dial it back. An unusual personality is a lot of fun... until it isn't. When a major challenge pops up or a situation gets stressful, the best employees stop expressing their individuality and fit seamlessly into the team.
Remarkable employees know when to play and when to be serious; when to be irreverent and when to conform; and when to challenge and when to back off. It’s a tough balance to strike, but a rare few can walk that fine line with ease.
4. They publicly praise... Praise from a boss feels good. Praise from a peer feels awesome, especially when you look up to that person.
Remarkable employees recognize the contributions of others, especially in group settings where the impact of their words is even greater.
5. And they privately complain. We all want employees to bring issues forward, but some problems are better handled in private. Great employees often get more latitude to bring up controversial subjects in a group setting because their performance allows greater freedom.
Remarkable employees come to you before or after a meeting to discuss a sensitive issue, knowing that bringing it up in a group setting could set off a firestorm.
6. They speak when others won’t. Some employees are hesitant to speak up in meetings. Some are even hesitant to speak up privately.
An employee once asked me a question about potential layoffs. After the meeting I said to him, “Why did you ask about that? You already know what's going on.” He said, “I do, but a lot of other people don't, and they're afraid to ask. I thought it would help if they heard the answer from you.”
Remarkable employees have an innate feel for the issues and concerns of those around them, and step up to ask questions or raise important issues when others hesitate.
7. They like to prove others wrong. Self-motivation often springs from a desire to show that doubters are wrong. The kid without a college degree or the woman who was told she didn't have leadership potential often possess a burning desire to prove other people wrong.
Education, intelligence, talent, and skill are important, but drive is critical. Remarkable employees are driven by something deeper and more personal than just the desire to do a good job.
8. They’re always fiddling. Some people are rarely satisfied (I mean that in a good way) and are constantly tinkering with something: Reworking a timeline, adjusting a process, tweaking a workflow.
Great employees follow processes. Remarkable employees find ways to make those processes even better, not only because they are expected to… but because they just can't help it.
Jeff Haden learned much of what he knows about business and technology as he worked his way up in the manufacturing industry. Everything else he picks up from ghostwriting books for some of the smartest leaders he knows in business. @jeff_haden
Five Leadership Lessons From James T. Kirk
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Captain James T. Kirk is one of the most famous Captains in the history of Starfleet. There’s a good reason for that. He saved the planet Earth several times, stopped the Doomsday Machine, helped negotiate peace with the Klingon Empire, kept the balance of power between the Federation and the Romulan Empire, and even managed to fight Nazis. On his five-year mission commanding the U.S.S. Enterprise, as well as subsequent commands, James T. Kirk was a quintessential leader, who led his crew into the unknown and continued to succeed time and time again.
(Image via Wikipedia)
Kirk’s success was no fluke, either. His style of command demonstrates a keen understanding of leadership and how to maintain a team that succeeds time and time again, regardless of the dangers faced. Here are five of the key leadership lessons that you can take away from Captain Kirk as you pilot your own organization into unknown futures.
1. Never Stop Learning
“You know the greatest danger facing us is ourselves, an irrational fear of the unknown. But there’s no such thing as the unknown– only things temporarily hidden, temporarily not understood.”
Five Leadership Mistakes Of The Galactic Empire
Alex Knapp
Forbes Staff
How to Reboot Star Trek for Modern TV
Alex Knapp
Forbes Staff
Captain Kirk may have a reputation as a suave ladies man, but don’t let that exterior cool fool you. Kirk’s reputation at the Academy was that of a “walking stack of books,” in the words of his former first officer, Gary Mitchell. And a passion for learning helped him through several missions. Perhaps the best demonstration of this is in the episode “Arena,” where Kirk is forced to fight a Gorn Captain in single combat by advanced beings. Using his own knowledge and materials at hand, Kirk is able to build a rudimentary shotgun, which he uses to defeat the Gorn.
If you think about it, there’s no need for a 23rd Century Starship Captain to know how to mix and prepare gunpowder if the occasion called for it. After all, Starfleet officers fight with phasers and photon torpedoes. To them, gunpowder is obsolete. But the same drive for knowledge that drove Kirk to the stars also caused him to learn that bit of information, and it paid off several years later.
In the same way, no matter what your organization does, it helps to never stop learning. The more knowledge you have, the more creative you can be. The more you’re able to do, the more solutions you have for problems at your disposal. Sure, you might never have to face down a reptilian alien on a desert planet, but you never know what the future holds. Knowledge is your best key to overcoming whatever obstacles are in your way.
2. Have Advisors With Different Worldviews
“One of the advantages of being a captain, Doctor, is being able to ask for advice without necessarily having to take it.”
Kirk’s closest two advisors are Commander Spock, a Vulcan committed to a philosophy of logic, and Dr. Leonard McCoy, a human driven by compassion and scientific curiosity. Both Spock and McCoy are frequently at odds with each other, recommended different courses of action and bringing very different types of arguments to bear in defense of those points of view. Kirk sometimes goes with one, or the other, or sometimes takes their advice as a springboard to developing an entirely different course of action.
However, the very fact that Kirk has advisors who have a different worldview not only from each other, but also from himself, is a clear demonstration of Kirk’s confidence in himself as a leader. Weak leaders surround themselves with yes men who are afraid to argue with them. That fosters an organizational culture that stifles creativity and innovation, and leaves members of the organization afraid to speak up. That can leave the organization unable to solve problems or change course. Historically, this has led to some serious disasters, such as Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
Organizations that allow for differences of opinion are better at developing innovation, better at solving problems, and better at avoiding groupthink. We all need a McCoy and a Spock in our lives and organizations.
3. Be Part Of The Away Team
“Risk is our business. That’s what this starship is all about. That’s why we’re aboard her.”
Whenever an interesting or challenging mission came up, Kirk was always willing to put himself in harm’s way by joining the Away Team. With his boots on the ground, he was always able to make quick assessments of the situation, leading to superior results. At least, superior for everyone with a name and not wearing a red shirt. Kirk was very much a hands-on leader, leading the vanguard of his crew as they explored interesting and dangerous situations.
When you’re in a leadership role, it’s sometimes easy to let yourself get away from leading Away Team missions. After all, with leadership comes perks, right? You get the nice office on the higher floor. You finally get an assistant to help you with day to day activities, and your days are filled with meetings and decisions to be made, And many of these things are absolutely necessary. But it’s sometimes easy to trap yourself in the corner office and forget what life is like on the front lines. When you lose that perspective, it’s that much harder to understand what your team is doing, and the best way to get out of the problem. What’s more, when you’re not involved with your team, it’s easy to lose their trust and have them gripe about how they don’t understand what the job is like.
This is a lesson that was actually imprinted on me in one of my first jobs, making pizzas for a franchise that doesn’t exist anymore. Our general manager spent a lot of time in his office, focused on the paperwork and making sure that we could stay afloat on the razor-thin margins we were running. But one thing he made sure to do, every day, was to come out during peak times and help make pizza. He didn’t have to do that, but he did. The fact that he did so made me like him a lot more. It also meant that I trusted his decisions a lot more. In much the same way, I’m sure, as Kirk’s crew trusted his decisions, because he knew the risks of command personally.
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4. Play Poker, Not Chess
“Not chess, Mr. Spock. Poker. Do you know the game?”
In one of my all-time favorite Star Trek episodes, Kirk and his crew face down an unknown vessel from a group calling themselves the “First Federation.” Threats from the vessel escalate until it seems that the destruction of the Enterprise is imminent. Kirk asks Spock for options, who replies that the Enterprise has been playing a game of chess, and now there are no winning moves left. Kirk counters that they shouldn’t play chess – they should play poker. He then bluffs the ship by telling them that the Enterprise has a substance in its hull called “corbomite” which will reflect the energy of any weapon back against an attacker. This begins a series of actions that enables the Enterprise crew to establish peaceful relations with the First Federation.
I love chess as much as the next geek, but chess is often taken too seriously as a metaphor for leadership strategy. For all of its intricacies, chess is a game of defined rules that can be mathematically determined. It’s ultimately a game of boxes and limitations. A far better analogy to strategy is poker, not chess. Life is a game of probabilities, not defined rules. And often understanding your opponents is a much greater advantage than the cards you have in your hand. It was knowledge of his opponent that allowed Kirk to defeat Khan in Star Trek II by exploiting Khan’s two-dimensional thinking. Bluffs, tells, and bets are all a big part of real-life strategy. Playing that strategy with an eye to the psychology of our competitors, not just the rules and circumstances of the game can often lead to better outcomes than following the rigid lines of chess.
5. Blow up the Enterprise
“‘All I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by.’ You could feel the wind at your back in those days. The sounds of the sea beneath you, and even if you take away the wind and the water it’s still the same. The ship is yours. You can feel her. And the stars are still there, Bones.”
One recurring theme in the original Star Trek series is that Kirk’s first love is the Enterprise. That love kept him from succumbing to the mind-controlling spores in “This Side of Paradise,” and it’s hinted that his love for the ship kept him from forming any real relationships or starting a family. Despite that love, though, there came a point in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock, where Captain Kirk made a decision that must have pained him enormously – in order to defeat the Klingons attacking him and save his crew, James Kirk destroyed the Enterprise. The occasion, in the film, was treated with the solemnity of a funeral, which no doubt matched Kirk’s mood. The film ends with the crew returning to Vulcan on a stolen Klingon vessel, rather than the Enterprise. But they returned victorious.
We are often, in our roles as leaders, driven by a passion. It might be a product or service, it might be a way of doing things. But no matter how much that passion burns within us, the reality is that times change. Different products are created. Different ways of doing things are developed. And there will come times in your life when that passion isn’t viable anymore. A time when it no longer makes sense to pursue your passion. When that happens, no matter how painful it is, you need to blow up the Enterprise. That is, change what isn’t working and embark on a new path, even if that means having to live in a Klingon ship for awhile.
Final Takeaway:
In his many years of service to the Federation, James Kirk embodied several leadership lessons that we can use in our own lives. We need to keep exploring and learning. We need to ensure that we encourage creativity and innovation by listening to the advice of people with vastly different opinions. We need to occasionally get down in the trenches with the members of our teams so we understand their needs and earn their trust and loyalty. We need to understand the psychology of our competitors and also learn to radically change course when circumstances dictate. By following these lessons, we can lead our organizations into places where none have gone before.
Follow me on Twitter or Facebook. Read my Forbes blog here.
Trust
Trust...
Trust the Right Ones.
Read the published version of this article:
http://www.publictechnology.net/sector/central-gov/viewpoint-more-trust-could-lead-less-wasted-ict-effort
Over the last 30 years I've experienced many developments in the use of, what we today call, but in nearly all cases it wasn't the use of ICT that interested me, but the people who designed and who supported the more, or the less successful ICT – mostly the ones who should shoulder the burden of ICT’s failures. These people have destroyed trust, and in allowing that poor design to be popularised – many Public Sector and Private interests, ICT Departments and consultants have helped create the digital divide we see today. There, I said it. It’s off my chest.
No matter where I experienced the use of ICT, in education, private industry, or the public sector; there were always those who seemed happy to blame anything but their choices. So how do you avoid the “unavoidable” pitfalls?
I TRUST what works, as well as those who deliver . Do you?
In the 1990s the Department for Education were developing virtual learning on a big scale, a growing demand surrounded the idea of Managed Learning on Computers. One appeal was lower cost, but “finger burning” resulted, as did the huge losses because programmes faltered. The attempt to develop a global e-university ended in public failure in 2004 *1. The birth of the ‘University for industry’ was a long time political dream. The possibilities were huge. The implementation ideas presented were bold. Bold, that is, with a small “b”. All solutions were implemented with ICT as a core component, if not a leading vehicle. The eventual implementation chosen went for the “safe” rather than the innovative (See innovative *2).
Things haven't changed in major ICT programmes today, there is a lack fear of getting it wrong, or wasting funds. It is ICT after all – we are used to that. That excuse is no longer good enough. It keeps happening. It is the fault of a system, wher e, invariably organisations, people, ICT teams stick to what they know at the detriment of a wider exploration, progression, sense and intelligence. Failure seems to prop the industry up by providing for remedial measures or costly rework.
Is it too much to ask that new ways of doing things are openly considered alongside those things that are already known? Focus on the need and the task in hand, but do not do that without opening up to all of the realistic alternatives. It is crazy reason to leave experience outside the door and try to reinvent everything – that is tantamount to pouring previous investment down the drain. It just takes intelligence, and a willingness to be “different” when it matters. This is where I bring in the most important term which is often missed when discussing ICT, and that is the word TRUST. Stop trying to convince us that programmes are successful, when they are not. Share real experience transparently and honestly. Trust will follow.
Back to the DfE . Whenever considering the idea of distributing learning content I would suggest that they look to successful models Not models that companies said they could produce (of which many were heard), but those that really did!. Around that time Apple had successfully put in place the infrastructure needed to deploy millions of downloads of film trailers. “Why not ask them how to do it?” I suggested. Why didn’t they do it? Was it because Apple had never been seen as “Trusted”? But Apple delivered! At the time they were flagging their first 1 million Star Wars Trailer downloads.
Today we talk about the provision of services online to, not thousands, but millions of people. How many public service organisations look out above the Microsoft walled garden into the world of ICT beyond and ask the question, “Who is doing this (something closely akin to what we want to achieve) already?” If they do, how many fear talking to organisations that they don't know well because they have never been bothered to open their minds to alternatives? How many have burned bridges by adopting “never will touch them with a barge pole” attitudes? Surely if you can prove that the solution, albeit not the solution you would normally look to, is being successfully delivered, then what is stopping the questions being asked? By the way, I do mean really delivered, not having somebody telling you that they can deliver it and giving out free tee shirts!
Moving forward, let me pose a question or two. Do you bury your head in the sand each time you hear someone wants to bring an iPad into work? Some do. Do you laugh when your hear that saving on print costs can be huge when adopting tablet devices? Apple is expected to sell its 100 millionth iPad this year. How deep can you bury your head on hearing that without suffocating?
Apple has just announced it’s App Store passed its its 25 billionth download? At the same time a certain other company has just lost it’s cloud service for the Government in an embarrassing way. Who do you trust? More importantly, who will your customers trust? What about your Chief Executive?
With the passing of Steve Jobs so recently, reflect for a moment on trust. Jobs goal was to make the very best products, the easiest to use products with style and functionality at their core. If one person, one company have gone out of their way to prove that they care about the customer, look no further than Apple and Steve Jobs.
Now, think about your own ICT strategies and goals afresh. Do you trust yourself?
*1 http://www.virtualcampuses.eu/index.php/Lessons_to_be_learned_from_the_failure_of_the_UK_e-University
*2 http://rubble.heppell.net/papers/onLine_learning.pdf
John Rudkin B.Ed (Hons) is an ICT and eLearning Consultant with experience of working in the public sector, education and private industry. He currently works with the Schools, The Open University, the Third Sector on the Fylde Coast. He was an employee of Apple Computer for 9 years, and is an Apple Distinguished Educator. http://www.johnarudkin.net
Would you Trust This Man?
As appeared at: http://www.publictechnology.net/sector/central-gov/viewpoint-more-trust-could-lead-less-wasted-ict-effort
Viewpoint: More trust could lead to less wasted ICT effort
Posted by Gary Flood on Mon, 05/03/2012 - 10:18
John Rudkin, an independent ICT consultant, on why we need to learn to be more open to alternatives in public sector ICT
Over the last 30 years I've experienced many developments in the use of ICT. In that time, I’ve become more and more convinced that what’s led to an often poor impression of ICT has been poor design (in both the public and the private sectors, by the way).
To be frank, to matter where I experienced the use of ICT, in education, private industry, or the public sector; there were always those who seemed happy to blame anything but their choices. So how do you avoid the “unavoidable” pitfalls?
I think the issue comes down to one word: trust. And we're not very good at it.
Use and trust what works
In the 1990s the Department for Education was developing virtual learning on a big scale, a growing demand surrounded the idea of Managed Learning on computers. One appeal was lower cost, but “finger burning” resulted, as did the huge losses because programmes faltered.
The attempt to develop a global e-university also ended in public failure in 2004. The birth of the ‘University for industry’ was a long time political dream. The possibilities were huge. The implementation ideas presented were bold. Bold, that is, with a small “b”. All solutions were implemented with ICT as a core component, if not a leading vehicle. The eventual implementation chosen went for the “safe” rather than the innovative.
Things haven't changed in major ICT programmes. Today, there is a clear fear of getting it wrong, or wasting funds. And you know, we’ve now got an attitude that, It is ICT after all – we are used to that.
That excuse is no longer good enough. It keeps happening. It is the fault of a system, where, invariably organisations, people, ICT teams stick to what they know at the detriment of a wider exploration, progression, sense and intelligence. Failure seems to prop the industry up by providing for remedial measures or costly rework.
For example, I once worked on a project where a major Department wanted a big distributed project. But around that time Apple had successfully put in place the infrastructure needed to deploy millions of downloads of film trailers. “Why not ask them how to do it?” I suggested. Why didn’t they do it? Was it because Apple had never been seen as “trusted”? But Apple delivered! And soon were flagging their first 1 million downloads.
Is it too much to ask that new ways of doing things are openly considered alongside those things that are already known? Focus on the need and the task in hand, but do not do that without opening up to all of the realistic alternatives. It is crazy to leave experience outside the door and try to reinvent everything – tantamount to pouring previous investment down the drain. It just takes intelligence, and a willingness to be “different” when it matters.
This is where I bring in the most important term which is so often missed when discussing ICT, and that is the word trust, like I say above. Stop trying to convince us that programmes are successful, when they are not. Share real experience transparently and honestly. Trust will follow.
Today we talk about the provision of services online to, not thousands, but millions of people. How many public service organisations look out above the Microsoft walled garden into the world of ICT beyond and ask the question, “Who is doing this (something closely akin to what we want to achieve) already?” If they do, how many fear talking to organisations that they don't know well because they have never been bothered to open their minds to alternatives? How many have burned bridges by adopting “never will touch them with a barge pole” attitudes? Surely if you can prove that the solution, albeit not the solution you would normally look to, is being successfully delivered, then what is stopping the questions being asked? By the way, I do mean really delivered, not having somebody telling you that they can deliver it and giving out free tee shirts!
Moving forward, let me pose a question or two. Do you bury your head in the sand each time you hear someone wants to bring an iPad into work? Some do. Do you laugh when your hear that saving on print costs can be huge when adopting tablet devices? Apple is expected to sell its 100 millionth iPad this year. How deep can you bury your head on hearing that without suffocating?
Apple has just announced its App Store passed its 25 billionth download! At the same time a certain other company has just lost it’s cloud service for the Government in an embarrassing way. Who do you trust? More importantly, who will your customers trust? What about your Chief Executive?
With the passing of Steve Jobs so recently, reflect for a moment on trust. Jobs goal was to make the very best products, the easiest to use products with style and functionality at their core. If one person, one company has ever gone out of their way to prove that they care about the customer, look no further than Apple and Steve Jobs.
Now, think about your own ICT strategies and goals afresh. Do you trust yourself?
The author is an ICT and eLearning consultant with experience of working in the public sector, education and private industry, currently working with schools, The Open University and the Third Sector on the Fylde Coast (Lancashire). He was an employee of Apple Computer for 9 years, is an Apple Distinguished Educator, and has a website of his own here