Who? Me??

If you have read Mario Puzo’s Godfather, then there is a lesson to be learnt on Knowledge Management. Don Corleone knew the best methods of collaboration. One of the first scenes in the book is when a pall bearer comes to the Don with his problem. The Don welcomes him with open arms, and listens to his problems. Then he chides him about not coming earlier and most importantly not recognizing Don as his friend. He accuses the man of becoming the Don’s friend only in the time of need. Then he solves that man’s problem. The same guy comes to the Don’s use when his own son (Sonny) needs a proper funeral. But that’s not the point of this post, is it.

Successful collaboration between multiple people requires – co-operation amongst the people who have proper skillsets. Don Corleone knew whom to choose for which task, and how to get it done.

During brunch today with a good friend, we were discussing about the sad tale of his failing computer. The fact that every computer part that he was purchasing was a cheap replacement part from China, without being aware of the authenticity of spare part was rattling his nerves. This includes from the motherboard to the power cord. How they manage it to produce it at such a low cost was a puzzle to him. Rightly so, imagine buying a power cord from China at Rs. 20.00, this includes the manufacturing cost, the shipping and the distribution cost.

Imagine the power wielded in such numbers, a country which can change global markets due to the sheer power of its manufacturing. Economies evolve, some do this gradually and some jump the gun. India was an agrarian economy … come the 20th century, and we are a service-based economy. We jumped the gun of becoming a manufacturing economy. Boon or bane?

Bane I say. Without the right set of manufacturing infrastructure, our service economy is an overhyped case of derived demand. A nation depending on the global markets to survive its burgeoning service industry. Almost all the infrastructure for this service comes from outside. What happens when the economy which is providing the manufactured goods suddenly decides to evolve further and move into service industry? They suddenly become more poised to take on stronger service economies simply because they can deliver end-to-end value.

People have been saying it all the time, that the Chinese are better at technology, they are hard workers, intelligent even. The only advantage that we had was previous engagements and our ability to speak english. Languages can be learnt, learning can be multiplied. Sooner or later, the Great Indian Outsourcing Dream will come to an end and turn into Comrade Mao’s Technology Farms. Service has to be differentiated upon quality and not cost. Wake up India!!

I first came across the Hype Cycle in 2008, immediately, I posted about it here. Back then, the Web 2.0 and SOA was considered to be a market failure. Everyone who was anyone in the web development arena was claiming to create “Web 2-point-oh” applications, without knowing what that term meant. I know about an entrepreneur who pitched the idea of a Web 2.0-based e-commerce portal to a VC. In return, the VC asked one simple question – “Do you know what Web 2.0 means?”

Hype cycles are just that, they indicate the evolution of the system and its mainstream adoption with the amount of hype it is creating among the society. They also are an indication to future market leaders – companies which are poised to take off due to the right adoption of technology.

So, what do you think you should invest into now? Do you think you will buy “the Kindle””? How about that power saving infrastructure? What to do with KM?

Kudos to Gartner for coming up with this framework.

I just came across the Greiner Model for evolution of organizations. Pretty cool, needs no explanations!!

Forgive me, this post is going to be a long one.

In the brief span of its existence, the web has evolved at such an alarming rate, that it outstrips evolution of any living organism. Even as Indian web users and web development companies are creating (and using) Web 2.0 platforms, the more developed nations are already talking about Web 3.0, the semantic web.

Not so surprisingly, I have found to my chagrin that 80% or more of the Indian populace associate Web 2.0 with client side technologies instead of a collaborative technology. People associate it with all the wrong ideas … I do not blame them. Awareness has always been the bane of comprehension. Having said that, I decided that it would do some good if we can somehow capture the evolution of the internet in these already popular phrases, and somehow manage to extrapolate what the next stage could be – so that we are prepared when it comes

Or even better, a host of Indian companies could bring in the era of Web 4.0: The Enabling Web. So what are these evolutionary milestones?

Web 1.0: The Information Superhighway

This is the internet of yore. Those were the days when people would make separate HTML pages and upload it on the net. Content was written within these pages and uploaded. It was authoritative in nature, since most of these sites were a one way communication stream. People came to different sites with the sole aim of gathering information – hence the name, the Information Superhighway.

Web 2.0: A Collaborative Medium

This is the internet that we see around us these days. The web is more social now, its a place to meet interesting people – to collaboratively create content. Content is not written within pages, content is created by the users themselves. The more the users, the more the content. What the developers create is a platform which enables this co-creation between the users. A great example of this is Wikipedia or IMDB.

Web 3.0: A sense making layer

The new era of internet is coming, this can somehow make sense out of the user’s inputs and act accordingly. So when I say “Show me a blue lotus”, the internet should show me the image of a blue car instead of a blue flower. How does it do this? It already has my preferences for cars over flowers somewhere. This is where collaborative filtering mechanisms and business intelligence algorithms are used to correctly profile the user. The internet is capable of understanding what the user is speaking. It differentiates a Gandhi from a Hitler. Some examples of this would be WolframAlpha or Amazon.

Web 4.0: The Enabling Web

So what happens when the web begins the “understand” the user. The sole question is – “What’s the point?”. If it can understand the user, it can also understand the purpose with which the user is driven to visit a particular web application. And, if that can be done, then it won’t be too difficult to understand and provide what other resources would help the user reach his outcome. The web suddenly becomes a more intertwined place with each web application talking to others, so as to provide the best experience to its user. Not only experience, but to ensure that the user is enabled with the right set of resources to get his job done. The purpose of the user is kept at the center. That’s my vision for web 4.0 akin to a more evolved Ubiquity extension of Firefox.

Last weekend was IIM-Indore’s alumni meet. Unlike the older IIM’s, we at Indore have this event every year for all the batches. And generally its one huge event in the calendar of the institute. This time was no different. For me, it was a whole new experience altogether.

My first alumni meet was in 2006, when I was a newly graduated “distinguished” member of my alma  matter. I knew everyone of my juniors, and even quite a few of their juniors. I knew all the seniors as well, so for me the meet was one big jalsa. I have fond memories of that meet … until this year.

Due to some reason or the other, I was unable to go to the next three alumni meets. During that time the institute had grown, it had doubled the intake of its students, teachers had changed, traditions had changed … and so had the culture. A young IIM does not have it’s fair share of P&G’s and BCG’s. Now we are not the youngest anymore … needless to say, things have changed.

I was aware of this, yet I decided that it’s time that I pay the alma matter a visit. As always, this involved talking to a lot of friends and rounding them up for buying tickets to Indore … some agreed straightaway (notably Amit Sharma amongst them), some complained that they already had other plans, and some said they will make it. Nevertheless, I had decided to go … and go I shall.

So off we go, October 3^rd saw Amit and I in Indore going towards the mole hill. Lo behold, from far off, it looked still the same, a little bit weathered, but still the same old mole hill. I had big plans laid out for the weekend, in a nutshell it involved friends, loads of nostalgia, liters of booze and some good music and drunken dancing on the Melting Pot. Registration was fairly quick, there was some minor hassle about getting clean rooms and some beds and bed sheets … but that’s okay, we weren’t supposed to sleep anyway!! We were here to dance the night away!!! Except for one teensy-weensy hitch … apart from us two, no one else form my batch of 2006 had shown up … and the same for the batches of 2005 and 2007!!

By evening that day it was apparent that we were the most senior alumni there!! Brrr … I still get a shiver up my spine when the realization strikes me again … and again. All the traditions that we were a part of, were suddenly no longer being followed … the feeling instead of being one coming back to one’s home changed to one intruding someone else’s home. The alumni committee and the students were a welcoming lot though, all credit to them. But as someone has said, the people make the place … I couldn’t agree more. Just that those people were no longer there, the place wasn’t the same.

The feeling of loneliness in a throng of people was even more pronounced when we were asked to inaugurate the event. An honor generally kept for the most senior alumni, the oldies. OMG!! That’s me right there … lighting the lamp. In a tumult of emotions I realized that this was one thing which I would have relished doing had I been some guru in management, or atleast with enough grey hair on my head. Not when I am in my late twenties!! At least let me deserve it before I get to claim it

I do not have the guts to go on, possible Amit can tell you more on this experience. Or I might come back and finish off this post some time later. Yes, and the photo that you see above is the academic block’s main entrance taken by Amit.

PS – The world’s best phirni is still available at Nafees, Indore

If I have to go by the entertainment shows on TV these days, then I think the society is slowly going to the dogs. So many of them, and all of them are just so wrong … they involve celebrities, big and small that people worship. That people want to emulate, that people look up to … and all of them so fucked up in the head.

Sadly my wife watches all of these brain-dead shows. (Sigh!!) Sitting at home can kill those grey cells. So one of the shows currently involves one small time celeb emotionally harassing a German girl who happens to be one more small time actress. The guy has gone on a pseudo-satyagraha until the girl doesn’t say that she loves him!! The nation which laid the foundations of non-violence and proving your point by sheer will power is now stooping to these tactics? And, the media is broadcasting this?? And people are lapping it up???

Then you have MTV and other youth channels who bring together idle and adrenaline charged youngsters to come together and scheme against each other. Are we as Indians really that idle and shallow that we derive entertainment out of watching all this?

- a sad and dejected Indian

If you are a trekkie, then you have to watch this movie. The main difference between all movies made previously and this one, is about how the legend was born instead of some one off story about the legend. Seeing James T Kirk become James T Kirk was indeed a treat.

PS – This is not the post that’s so much awaited, but I had to eek this through