I’ve written so extensively on the need and benefits of collaboration over the past few years, that I felt unsure about the title of this very simple blog. But the intent is a simple reminder of the ‘why.
The ability to work collaboratively in terms of workplace skills sits right alongside critical thinking and problem-solving.
About five years ago, I had a less than pleasant encounter with an arrogant, known Johannesburg business personality. In the meeting, while presenting Indigo’s digital platforms, he asked ‘why pay for collaborative space when it’s free on Google Drive’? I hope for his sake, that he has not built his platforms, community engagement and knowledge repositories on Google Drive. Here's why.
Sounds a little bizarre because neighbours have always been a community right? Well, it’s only right if you’re not behind high walls, locked doors and security-monitored streets.
Platforms, The Platform Revolution, Communities and customer retention, the building of smart connected ecosystems – there’s a wealth of topics, yet I still managed a fortnight of blog writer’s block. Then I listened to Reid Hoffman interview Caterina Fake, one of the co-founders of Flicker. “We need a more human internet,” says Fake (and yes over the years this surname has apparently caused pain, including the cancellation of travel tickets, social media reporting and more.)
Blog 2 in the Platform series. Your customer of days past was in the dark. If they purchased an item, they had no idea what the profit margin may be. Endeavours to understand where the best price may be was an onerous task. Consumer responses to new and more competitive products were not broadly available.
The Platform disruptors Blog Series – Blog 1
Just take a look at where disruption has come from over the recent 10 years or so. Do you think taxi, hotel and music disruption are about new products? They’re not, they’re about platforms.
Let’s talk about the healthy BIG C in CRM and it’s definitely not customer relationship management!
Traditional CRM as we know it is really about customer attraction and retention. ‘Relationship’ has always seemed a massive misnomer for me. The R in CRM would have been better served with a new nomenclature – something like ‘revenue’, or ‘retention’?
Like me, from time to time, you possibly feel that the pace of innovation is pretty insane and sometimes even overwhelming. In just a few years we’ve probably changed over 50% of the way in which we consume stuff. The Collaborative Era thinking, that ‘access’ triumphs over ‘ownership’, coupled with the management of excess, has driven disruption in many areas including, transport and accommodation, among others. With access to a world of talent, the acquisition of skills and services in business today is so radically different and would have been unimaginable just 10 years ago. Creative destruction caused by technology is rampant. Are you still asking WHY you need a community?
Lego had helped kids build cool stuff since the 1930s but they may not have built their firewalls quite as well as their product. In 2005 their software tool, the Lego Factory, got hacked by some tech-savvy LEGO enthusiasts.
Communities are without a doubt becoming more and more critical to business, civil society and non-government organisations, and to government. For the past few years, we’ve curated content and written prolifically about collaboration. A few months ago I decided on a reboot as collaboration is a strong outcome of shared-purpose communities and it seemed prudent to, in some ways rewind to the basics and in other ways fast forward to how communities are built, nurtured, measured and sustained.
