the Great Disruption

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11
Dec 12

Apple’s China Syndrome

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I think there’s several things going on here, none of which has to do with a good operational decision. Is Apple moving some manufacturing to the United States a move from weakness or strength?

First and foremost this is a political statement. Apple has been lamenting the ability to manufacture in the US due to a talent deficit. There’s plenty of talent here, but the problem is that China can simply iterate and pivot faster due to the geographic proximity of design, manufacturing, and labor. Look at how quickly they are able ramp-up production of new products or tackle the initial quality problems with the iPhone 5, labor problems not withstanding.

Then there’s the uncertainty with corporate profits and taxes. One of the legitimate beefs is that profits are offshored to avoid paying taxes. I’d bet this is a token offering to quell those complaints.

Lastly is the China problem, in general. The Chinese excel at reverse engineering, far better than say the Soviets during the Cold War but not as good as the Japanese. I’d say they have climbed learning curve far better than either. All of those manufacturing concerns who fled to China for cheap labor have ended up building factories for their competition (most are joint ventures partially-owned by the state), training their future competitors workforce, and formally and informally transferring their intellectual property. I’ve made this complaint previously with regards to automakers, but I think it applies across the board.

One need not look any further than the frenemy situation between Apple and Samsung (noting that Samsung is a South Korean company). Apple has long partnered with Samsung for chips, processors, and screen technology. This has allowed Samsung to rapidly build the competencies needed to rival their own client, a situation that is causing Apple to frequently go it alone and take their relationship to the courts.

Put me down that a small shift to US manufacturing is a defensive move.

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21
Sep 11

Kindle goes to the library

Amazon’s Kindle (as a service) is now available at 11,000 libraries, via this press release.  You can get content delivered to any of a variety of devices and apps (such as Android, Apple apps, and Kindle Cloud Reader).  I’ve tried most of those apps, and they are great.

The week link here is the library’s webpages (and eBook inventory as managed by Overdrive). To the later, every eBook I would conceivably read is ‘out’.  To the former, good luck figuring out what you are supposed to do, where you login, how you find books, and getting them on your device.   I’m looking at you, Delaware County library system. 1996 called, and it wants its website back.

Culture / Education / Government / Politicking / Technology / the Great Disruption / Web 2.0 / Webculture — Comments Off
07
Dec 10

Michelle Rhee and the Education-Industrial Complex

Michelle Rhee has announced that she is going to Florida to champion school reform and that she’s starting a student advocacy organization (with her as CEO) to advance  same.   Says WaPo (note, owned by for-profit Kaplan education):

Rhee said the new group, StudentsFirst, will pressure elected officials and bankroll candidates at all levels of government who support her approach. The agenda includes recruiting high-quality teachers who are held accountable for student growth, swiftly removing those who do not perform, offering merit pay to reward top educators, expanding school choice and fostering parent and family involvement.

“We’ll support any candidate who’s reform-minded, regardless of political party, so reform won’t be just a few courageous politicians experimenting in isolated locations,” said Rhee, a longtime Democrat, in a first-person essay in Newsweek. “It’ll be a powerful, nationwide movement.”

The announcement marks the widely anticipated next chapter for Rhee, 40, who resigned in October after Mayor Adrian M. Fenty’s Democratic primary loss to Mayor-elect Vincent C. Gray.

While she made news last week by accepting an unpaid position on the education transition team of Florida Gov.-elect Rick Scott (R), her new venture will be her principal vehicle to promote educational change. StudentsFirst was rolled out in a carefully coordinated media blitz on Monday that included the Politico Playbook, the cover of Newsweek, a segment on Oprah and a new Web site. Rhee will be the group’s chief executive and public face as it tries to raise $1 billion from corporations and individuals.

Which takes me back to Rhee’s announcement for StudentsFirst –  where would this $1,000,000,000 come from?  I see her politically nibbling at the edges by taking money from the “Education-Industrial Complex” and attendant ideological partisans (who benefit by the reduction in the power of teacher unions and a weakening in the Democratic Party).  Keep in mind, if Rhee gets 1% from that $1,000,000,000 collected by StudentsFirst, she earns $10,000,000.  That ladies and gentlemen, is how this game is played.  Actual achievement of ‘reform’ is incidental icing-on-the-cake.  Consider her a smarter Sarah Palin, who will similarly make more money talking about doing something than actually doing it.

While I feel reform is a noble and necessary endeavor (previously here and here),  Rhee is not a fit leader.  Anyone who finds it necessary to demonize a partner and stakeholder (which Rhee’s has done repeatedly with ‘teachers’ unions’) and not as partners (see infographic) lacks the essential leadership skills. She is creating a “Tea Party for Education”.  What is this reform?  What does it look like?  Mind you, I am 100% pro-reform, but I doubt it looks like Rhee’s vision.  I will say this – the same reductionistic education approach that got us into this mess will not get us out.

I’m continually shocked that no one sees the endgame here – the privatization of education (funded by Government dollars).   The private sector – those same CEOs who brought you British Petroleum and Enron – is salivating at the chance for public dollars and “private” education.  Before we discuss privatizing elementary and secondary education, we should look at how for-profit higher education has worked thus far.  I see an explosion of student debt, an even less-prepared workforce, failed schools, higher loan default rates, and lower graduation rates.  How is the push for privatized primary and secondary education be different?  This is also not to say that there are similar problems – especially regarding an “education bubble”  - in established Colleges and Universities (see this infographic).

‘Deregulating’ education will not lower taxes, will not make the system more fair and equitable, will not reduce teacher compensation, and will not result in better outcomes.  You will however now have a choice on how to waste your tax dollars by subsidizing yet another industry while trading away accountability at the voting booth.  Like most things involving deregulation, they will be counting on consumer ignorance, where fools and their money will soon be parted.

There have been no greater cheerleaders for school reform than the nation’s newspapers.  I can’t help but wonder what part the idling presses of the United States will take in the Corporatization of Education?  Will it be supporting of better marketing for schools (as I suspect is the case in New York with Bloomberg’s appointment of a magazine CEO as school head?  Creation and distribution of materials (as corporate welfare for the print industry)?  It’s certainly within the realm of possibility.  They aren’t doing this “for the kids”, they are doing it “for the profits”.

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30
Sep 10

404 Company Not Found

I’ve been thinking about what comes next for me, as to where can I employ what I can do and have learned for maximum benefit.

I’ve been scouring LinkedIn, looking for individuals, companies, and opportunities that match what I know and what I like.  I searched for a variety of keywords, like “Organizational Development”, ”Organizational Dynamics”, “Organizational Culture”, “Organizational Behavior”, “Enterprise 2.0″, “social media”, “social software”, and “change management”.

What I envisioned was a company that would audit and diagnose an organization, find opportunities to maximize innovation and engagement, and implement appropriate change strategy using people and technology.

Each time, I received one of two results – either the job, person, or company was in some far away place where I would be unwilling or unable to locate, or, this:

This is either an omen or an opportunity.


Privacy / Technology / the Great Disruption / Webculture — Comments Off
12
Feb 10

Thoughts on Google Buzz

  • Just like Facebook has done “ repeatedly “ Google has miscalculated privacy implications as well as the literacy of its total user base.   Fortunately, they have an opportunity to recover, an opportunity they would be well advised to take advantage, which I suspect they are.   So far, they’ve made a number of small but meaningful changes.
  • I really like the ability to use the keyboard shortcuts from Google Reader.   You can call them up by pressing [Shift+?] or view them here.
  • gBuzz has changed my sharing patterns “ as in I share less “ not at all on Buzz and less everywhere else.   I’ve taken my Google Profile BACK to private.   There are a couple of reasons for this.   First, the circle of REAL people who now are exposed to the ONLINE me has gotten larger, and I’m not entirely comfortable with that.   There are a couple of reasons for this:
    • I share a lot (of curated content, not personal details),   something that I think turns off some people and intimidates others.
    • You have no control of said content after you share it.
    • Frankly, I doubt the REAL people in my life will use gBuzz.   I am not most people, but they are.
    • My energies are better spent encouraging others to create a contribute, rather than add another service and another stream for myself.
  • Your privacy is only as good as its weakest link.   My email connect the online me, which is largely pseudonymous with the REAL me, such as my Facebook and LinkedIn.   Google Buzz surfaced those connections, which were previously obscured (not private).
  • A related thought on chatroulette “ it is a   thoroughly enjoyable freak show.   The masks, the memes, the reactions, etc.   I think my experience is degraded since I don’t have a webcam “ people need to know that you are sharing the same amount they are.   It really is a matter of “I’ll show you mine if you show me your’s , evidently in all senses of the words.    In order for Buzz to have maximum value for Google, your participation must be public.   That public participation, if people were literate in the consequences, may make participation for the individual less valuable.
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