An outlet for musings, observations and futureneering from the company helping you to transition into the connection economy
Accenture released an excellent report last year entitled “The Multi-Polar World”. In it, they argue that right now we live in a world going through major transitions, caught between different “poles” of focus, interest and power. I think they are spot on the money.
You can read the full report online for free. Just go here.
I have reproduced their summary below if you don’t have the time for a 2Mb PDF download and 36 pages of reading.
Our global research has long been indicating that companies who concentrate more on who they are and less on what they sell will gain the competitive edge over their competitors.
The “who you are” is defined by the values a company lives by and how effectively the company’s values connect with the talent staff that work for them and the valuable customers that continue to shop with them.
One of the values that companies need to be demonstrating today is that of being ethically conscious. And this means more than just changing to efficient green light bulbs! It means living by the value…making business decisions, both strategic and operational, against the value even if it hurts the bottom line.
I came across a company that is doing great stuff in this sphere. Have a look at their marketing campaign The Co-Operative Bank is really promoting who they are and what they stand for, and most importantly their claims are back by some substantial meaningful and significant claims. They have turned down over £700m in revenue based on ethical decisions… now that is putting your money where your mouth is and living by the values they subscribe to. Impressive!!!
I’ll be reviewing this campaign and the company’s operations over the next few weeks and trying to find out more about their results, but I’ll stick my neck out here and make a prediction that their values based campaign is having a fantastic response from the Millennial, Gen X and Boomer generations, a unique achievement.
The latest edition of Strategy+Business has a great article on a new book looking at USA, Europe and China. Here is an extract:
What can the U.S. do to maintain its competitive position against the E.U. and China? Foreign policy scholar Parag Khanna believes the answer lies right under our noses.
Only 30 years old, Parag Khanna has spent more than two years traveling to more than 100 countries, hoping to see firsthand the flash points of geopolitics and globalization. From his observations emerged a book, the recently published The Second World: Empires and Influence in the New Global Order ???????? ????? ????????(Random House, 2008), a thought-provoking look at the future of global competition. Khanna posits that the struggle for global economic and diplomatic influence over the coming decades will pit three empires — the United States, the European Union, and China — against one another on a battleground that he calls the “Second World.” This group comprises countries in five critical regions — Asia outside China, Central Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Latin America — that hope to achieve full industrial development through economic and strategic alliances with one or more of the three major blocs.
Dr Graeme Codrington offers insight for South Africans (and others) on how not to be left in the dark when it comes to strategic planning as well as attracting and retaining talented young people with creativity - particularly when traditional solutions aren’t working. Consider how you could use the current load shedding to your advantage!
Continue reading ‘Load shedding lessons (and opportunities)’
I write this entry as a South African. I say that because we’re extremely hard on ourselves on this end of the planet. We often compare ourselves to the resources, experience and might of the ‘developed world’ when we open our world class attractions. And when things don’t work the way they’ve been billed to, we simply blame our ‘African-ess’ on our inability to deliver to the standards and levels that were expected.
This week British Airways opened Terminal 5. Since the opening it’s been on the news, flighted as the greatest travel achievement the world has ever seen.
You can imagine my amusement at the e-mail I got from our travel agent this afternoon. Even with truck loads of cash, and wheelbarrows of experience, getting it right isn’t as easy as one imagines. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you come from : )
“Learn lessons from nature”. That’s what the world’s top thinkers all say. We need to learn from the natural, interlaced connections of ecosystems. We need to learn from the complex communication systems and overlapping symbiotic creatures, and find lessons there for new ways to structure corporate systems. I agree. But the problem is that most of these theorists only talk about the “good” side of nature. They never seem to mention that nature is brutal, violent and unforgiving.
One example of this caught my eye in the latest Economist magazine, about a controlled flood of the Grand Canyon. Conservationists have long argued that seemingly devastating events are necessary for the proper long term functioning of ecosystems. Some seeds only germinate after a fire. Rivers need floods to wash them out. In nature, death always brings life. I wonder how that applies to the emerging “quantum” and “fractal” workplace?
Read the article at The Economist (subscription may be required), or see an extract below.
Continue reading ‘Learning from Nature (and disaster)’
I’m a great fan of so-called Web 2.0, and what it’s going to mean to our way of interacting and doing business.
Today I came across a wonderful database of Office 2.0 apps nicely arranged into useful categories. For those who are dabbling in this world, or would like to, you need to take a look at this database.
About the Office 2.0 Database:
The Office 2.0 Database is developed and maintained by Ismael Ghalimi [LinkedIn], a passionate entrepreneur and fervent industry observer, founder and CEO of Intalio, creator of BPMI.org, initiator of Office 2.0, and author of IT|Redux. Ismael is an advisor to several high-tech companies, including AdventNet (a.k.a. Zoho), EchoSign, EveryTrail, Open IT Works, ThinkFree, and 3TERA.
Small, rich and stable countries tend to be the most globalised, at least according to an index of 72 countries by A.T. Kearney, a consultancy, and Foreign Policy magazine - to see a graphic of the 2005 index, click MORE below, or follow this link.
Their index uses 12 measures which cover economic integration, personal contact, political engagement and technological connectivity. As The Economist said, a little disparagingly, actually, “The index may be most useful for starting debates.” But, for what it what’s check it out below…
This past week, ICBC, the world’s most valuable bank (valued at $319 bn) took a 20% stake in Standard Bank, Africa’s largest bank by assets. The deal is worth $ 5.5bn.
This is the largest foreign investment by a Chinese bank anywhere in the world. And it is the the largest ever foreign-direct investment in South Africa. The transaction is the latest example of China’s growing interest in Africa, and also illustrates the expanding web of trade and investment that links together emerging markets and their growing weight in the world’s economy. Other deals are now in the pipeline, with China’s mobile industry looking at African heavyweights, such as MTN.
Where are the American banks and telecomms companies? They seem to be focused on the Middle East - a much higher-value-per-person market. But, the future is likely to belong to those companies that seek the “fortune at the bottom of the pyramid“.
The Economist concluded,
Earlier this month, researchers at a medical conference on respiratory diseases in Stockholm, reported that MP3 players with built in microphones are better than traditional stethoscopes.
In addition to picking up many respiratory noises better than the stethoscope, they have the added advantage of being able to record the sounds they’re listening to. These digital sound files can then be scrutinised and sent to others for a second opinion, as well as stored for later reference or comparison.
If this is accepted by the medical fraternity, it won’t be long before computer programmes are written to do the analysis of the breathing sounds automatically (similar to how blood tests are now done by machine, and not by lab coated technicians peering into microscopes). This is one step closer to complete home diagnosis, and just another reason why doctors need to understand (like everyone else in every other industry) that these days your value lies less and less in what you sell (or what you do), and more and more in who you are, the connections you make, and how you do what you do.
As part of the trend towards more transparency and an interesting rise in spirituality (or is it just SQ - spiritual intelligence?), I have noticed companies using spiritual advisors. The Economist has noticed this trend too…
Praying for gain
Aug 23rd 2007 | WASHINGTON, D.C.
From The Economist print edition
A fad for piety infiltrates the realm of MammonDOES your job seem pointless? Are problems at home draining your zest for work? Is your boss a blithering idiot? Then why not consult the company chaplain?
Corporate chaplains are a booming business in America. There are roughly 4,000 of them (precise numbers are hard to come by) working everywhere from giant multinationals to tiny family firms. And their numbers are growing. America has several thriving rent-a-chaplain companies, and two seminaries that offer degrees in corporate chaplaincy, yet demand still exceeds supply.
Some companies prefer to rely on in-house chaplains. Tyson Foods, a meat-processing giant, employs 128 chaplains to minister to 85,000 employees in the United States, Mexico and Canada. John Tyson, the company’s boss, also employs an ordained minister as an executive coach to help him wrestle with ethical questions.
First published in Cover magazine in Oct 2006.
We all know that change is now a constant reality. But, less obvious, is the fact that the daily changes we encounter are merely symptoms of an irreversible, radical transformation of our society. As we chart a course into the 21stcentury, we discover that consumers are no longer simply passive recipients of our products theyre involved, knowledgeable, powerful and discerning. And that changes everything.
The Digital Revolution?
In virtually every industry today, were generating more products and services than at any point in history, delivering better quality through an ever-growing number of channels, at prices that constantly put pressure on our margins and profitability. At the same time, cellphones, websites, and a proliferation of media sources all combine to give consumers increased access to more information, at greater speed and lower cost than ever before. There are two major implications of these shifts: (1) there are less and less ways by which competitors can differentiate themselves, as they sell similar products at similar prices in similar ways; and (2) detailed comparisons between competitors are easily achieved and are now a matter of course for consumers.
SIDEBAR QUOTE
The surplus society has a surplus of similar companies, employing similar people, with similar educational backgrounds, coming up with similar ideas, producing similar things, with similar prices and similar quality.
Kjell Nordström and Jonas Ridderstråle, Funky Business
You only get one chance to make a first impression. The old cliché could not be more true, or more important, in a world where we compete constantly for customer’s attention and connection. Dr Graeme Codrington looks at some first impressions you may not be considering, and suggests that this is so important that it should be a top strategic priority.
Congrats to Nedbank. Their outdoor billboard has just won the top rated global advertising industry award in Cannes - the Lions Outdoor Grand Prix.
The “Power to the People” billboard was erected on a school property in Alexander township in Sandton (Johannesburg, South Africa). The solar panels built into the billboard supply the school with electricity. I believe the bank also pays the school R 2,000 (about US$ 300) rent for the billboard space each month. Together with the money and the saving in electricity costs, the school has been able to afford to provide every student a hot meal at lunch time every day. In the impoverished community of Alexander this is nothing short of miraculous.
This is a great example of what companies need to be doing in the “Connection Economy” - where its more and more about WHO you are, and less and less about simply WHAT you sell.
To learn more about Nedbank’s sustainability drive, read their 2006 report.
A founding father of public-opinion research explains why shareholder value isn’t enough.
I found this in my archives recently. It is dated 2007, and comes from the McKinsey Quaterly. I have no idea how I got it. It is an excellent read, and supports much of what we do at TomorrowToday. Enjoy!
As a founding father of public-opinion research and its preeminent practitioner, Daniel Yankelovich has been probing attitudes toward business and other issues for more than four decades. Yankelovich, 82, introduced the New York Times/Yankelovich poll in 1975, has written 11 books, and served as a consultant to business and political leaders. He has also established four companies, including his latest, Viewpoint Learning, which helps organizations to develop special-purpose dialogues to expand their options, anticipate obstacles, and broaden support for difficult decisions. Yankelovich is no stranger to the boardrooms of large enterprises, having served as a director of Arkla, CBS, Educational Testing Service, Meredith, U S West, and other companies, as well as foundations, universities, and nonprofits.
Throughout his career Yankelovich has unwaveringly stressed the need for organizations to embrace ethical integrity in their operations and their ties to the outside world. He recently sat down at his home in La Jolla, California, with Lenny Mendonca, a director in McKinseys San Francisco office, and Matt Miller, an adviser to McKinsey, to discuss the current and future contract between business and society.
The Quarterly: What does your research show about businesss standing with society today?
Daniel Yankelovich: The social contract with business is in a state of flux. Milton Friedman has had an enormous influence on the outlook of US business, especially his interpretation of Adam Smiths concept of the invisible hand, which argues against a corporations broader engagement with society. Friedmans view is that social good comes about automatically when companies make a profit. So its a narrow adherence to the bottom line.
But McKinseys own research is in complete agreement with the idea that you need a broader engagement.HYPERLINK “1 And thats where we are now moving. Friedmans influence and the ideology of shareholder value reinforce each other and cater to only one constituencyshareholders. Now there is growing agreement that the engagement has to be broader and that profitability doesnt always automatically enhance the public good. In other words, a more pragmatic approach.
Continue reading ‘Exploring business’s social contract: An interview with Daniel Yankelovich’
In a surplus world, filled with similar goods and services, sold in similar stores which reside in similar looking strip malls or warehouses, sold at similar prices by staff who swap companies every few years, we need to do more than just offer quality, fairly priced, convenient goods backed up by “customer service”. Its becoming harder and harder to obtain and maintain a competitive advantage.
One of the ways to do so is to create an experience around your product. There are many ways to do this, and the companies that use their creativity to do so are reaping huge rewards. One such company is IKEA, the ubiquitous furniture store. Whilst there products may fit perfectly into the “little boxes on a hillside” standardisation approach to modern life, some of their sales techniques are revolutionary. In particular, their understanding of the male shopper has helped raise them to one of the leading furniture retailers in the world. Here are a few ideas from the legend that is IKEA:
Continue reading ‘IKEA Experience: We make men feel like men again’
The opening line of the best selling business book of all time is as succinct as it is true: “Good is the enemy of great”. Jim Collins’ 2001 bestseller, “Good to Great” explains how most companies never become great because they are already good. They have become prisoners to their past – not feeling any need to push boundaries, innovate, prepare for the unexpected, stretch themselves or make necessary changes to ensure sustainable success. Dr Graeme Codrington argues that this is a recipe for disaster, that only future-focused leadership - who have the guts to look forward and not back - can avert.
In this article, Keith Coats, our resident leadership expert, visits one of his favourite themes: the company as a village. He explains the four key requirements for developing successful and resilient organisations: belonging, mastery, independence and generosity.
Continue reading ‘The New Village: Building Courageous Companies’
For those who travel regularly to different cultures, you know the nightmare of arriving in a new country and realising that you don’t know some important local customs. I’m not talking about the customs officials at the airport, but rather issues like do you tip the taxi driver, and if so, how much. Do you tip the porter at the hotel, or the waitress at the restuarant?
Then, you probably also know the frenzy of trying to work out the power adaptors and trying to get your laptop juiced up (its battery-life died somewhere over the Indian Ocean, right in the middle of an important email).
OK, so maybe you don’t care, but I have just found two great websites, and need a place to put them so I can remember them:
While doing the research for the above sites, I came across a great one that seems to list everything in one place: http://www.kropla.com/.
The first time I heard about the AACS ’secret’ code (AACS is the anti-copying system built into HD-DVDs) being aired on the net, was the user revolt on Digg that made news on the blogosphere.
Then this morning while browsing through BoingBoing I came across another post with images, songs, tatoos and other fun things people are doing to basically lift a middle finger to the establishment.
Whether you agree with what’s happening or not, the lesson sits in a changing business environment where you can’t behave like you used to. While officials were threatening to sue every web site that carried the code…..
“The AACS Licensing Authority, which controls the anti-copying technology underlying HD-DVD, sent out hundreds of legal threats to sites that had posted the key, including Digg.”
…the code was being spread everywhere.
“Right now, 368,000 pages contain the number, up from 36,000 yesterday. Good luck getting the food coloring out of the swimming pool!”
You need to know that I am grumpy. At 1:29am this morning, my electricity was turned back on - after 3 days of being off. I mean completely off - nada, nothing - since Monday night at 3am. Then, as I dragged myself out of bed for a 4am wake up to get to the airport, I discovered that the municipality, in order to make up for actually supplying me electricity, had shut my water supply off. So, sitting on an airplane next to some poor soul, I have not yet had a morning shower. And, to top it all, when I arrived at Joburg airport, the check in system had crashed and the queues were out the building. Remarkably, it looks as if we land in Cape Town on schedule. But more of that below, with some lessons for everyone.
The facts
The suburb I live in (most of the time), Bedfordview - on the east of Johannesburg - is serviced by two major electrical supplies - a primary supply and a backup cable. These are underground cables, laid in 1978.So, what lessons can be learned…
Joost is the new internet TV concept being developed by highly successful entrepreneurs Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis, the founders of Skype which they sold to ebay for $2.6 billion cash!
Joost pronounced ‘juiced’ is an interactive software for distributing TV shows and you will be able to watch whatever you want, whenever you want. Joost has signed up providers like MTV, National Geographic, The Soccer Channel, Warner Brothers Music and IndyCar Series and by the sounds of it FOX TV will soon be a partner.
Joost stands to revolutionise marketing and the way in which we watch TV. Have Niklas and Janus done it again? I have to wonder how much they will sell Joost for, it definitely appears to have all the right ingredients to be a huge success.
There is speculation that the launch is scheduled for 1st May 2007, but as clever marketers Joost is letting the internet community speculate and blogs have been set up to monitor the “countdown!”
Joost itself is not revealing when they will go live, but you can leave your email details with them and become part of their community and be amongst the first to receive the software.
Go to www.joost.com and sign up. You need to get involved in the joost community so that you can get an invite code from a community member. This invite is required before you can download the software – another clever marketing trick…Joost is getting future clients to engage with the brand on a number of different levels. There are hints on how to get an invite!! Sign up and watch out for the launch and get your daily Joost!
Dean van Leeuwen is a TomorrowToday UK partner and expert on talent, innovation and business connectivity
Every business has customers who are convinced they can design a new product that is better than the product they are being sold. So the question is why not let them? Crowdsourcing is a new and innovative research methodology that allows customers to help design the products they want online. It’s a methodology that is saving companies thousands of pounds on research bills and is proving highly effective because customers are getting the chance to mould and shape the products they are going to be buying. And because products are not being designed by remote head office R&D teams the chances of product flops are greatly reduced.
MIT’s Sloan Management Review recently published a paper, written by Susumu Ogawa, a professor of marketing at Kobe University in Tokyo, and Frank Piller, a professor at TUM Business School in Munich, on the concept of crowdsourcing. This is how these two professors put it “Forecasting the demand for new products is becoming increasingly difficult in many markets. But collective customer commitment (crowdsourcing), a new method to decrease the flop rate of new products, offers a solution by integrating customers deeply in the innovation process and asking for their commitment to purchase before development is finalized and manufacturing starts.â€?
Incredible, can you imagine the benefit in cost savings of getting your customers to design the products they want and then getting them to pre-order the product before it’s manufactured? 

This really is harnessing the power of the “connection economy!�
Continue reading ‘Cheeky companies with happy customers and even happier bottomlines!’
This report from The Economist, 15 March 2007 (may need subscription):
Of slips and video clips
Candidates for 2008 are racing to master a new mediumDURING the presidential campaign of 1800, partisans harnessed high-speed technology to spread their message. Like today, that message was often scurrilous. Unlike today, the technology they harnessed needed real harnesses. When Thomas Jefferson’s enemies wanted to distribute pamphlets accusing him of atheism and adultery, or to spread a premature report of his death, they used horses, which could outrun even the most rapid rebuttal.
As the most powerful woman in advertising, and one of the most powerful business women in the world, Shelly Lazarus, CEO of Ogilvy & Mather, is someone to listen to. Recently, in a variety of different interviews, she reflected on her 35 years in the industry.
Her most recent personal intervention in the advertising industry was to oversee a campaign for Unilever’s Dove Cream Oil body wash, that culminated in a 30-second spot flighted during the Oscars. The ad was a screening of the winning entry in an online contest in which consumers were invited to create their own advertisements (see some of the entries - and some spoofs - on YouTube). This follows on from Dove’s award-winning campaign, “Campaign for Real Beauty”, that featured ordinary-looking women (see example at YouTube) and departed from conventional notions of beauty and beauty advertising. Unilever has also established a “self-esteem fund” - a worldwide campaign to persuade girls and young women to embrace more positive images of themselves.
The advert screened at the Oscars captures something of the spirit of advertising today, with its combination of old and new media, consumer-generated content, social software and an effort to engage the consumer rather than simply push a product.
Continue reading ‘What’s changed in advertising - Shelly Lazarus speaks’
