I recently read an article where it described the U.S. Mint’s challenge in producing pennies and nickels at a cost more than their actual value. In 2011 it cost the US Mint 2.4 Cents to produce a penny and 11.2 cents for every nickel produced. I guess the old adage “A penny saved is a penny earned” does not apply to the US Mint. Ironically, every penny has put the Mint 1.4 pennies in the hole.
With yesterday’s announcement of Steve Jobs stepping down as Apple’s CEO, the first thought that crossed my mind is the critical role leadership plays in any organization. As the story goes… after building Apple into an industry giant, Jobs was ousted as its leader in 1985. Following his departure, the company slowly deteriorated and by 1997 the company Jobs’ built was running at a loss of $1 billion on its $7 billion in revenue. Almost 15 years later, under Jobs’ leadership Apple has not only transformed its own DNA, but has revolutionized the music industry, the smart phone and the Read More
In recent weeks, the media has been inundated with stories about political turmoil in the US and Western Europe. We have not only seen the recent news of the US’s downgrade in its credit rating and its mounting budget deficit but we have also seen unprecedented social unrest in the UK, the French economy at a standstill and the Euro taking a hard hit due to Greece’s recent instability. Although a lot of these events are partially due to poor planning by governments, the reality is (and this should not be ignored) partisan politics, self-interest, and poor communication among stakeholders Read More
In the digital age where the average person has 130 friends on Facebook and are plugged into to numerous other social networks, we tend to forget that many of the connections and relationships that live in these social are networks are limited to their virtual origins. Most people can probably attribute only a couple dozen connections to real relationships that live outside this virtual reality. In fact, in a recent research study coming out of Oxford it has been said that the human brain cannot manage more than 150 people in their social network and no more than 50 of Read More
We often hear in software development circles how Agile development is taking hold of the industry. Created as a grassroots framework by developers for developers, the origins of Agile methodology began 10 years ago with a group of progressive software developers at a Utah ski lodge that established the Agile Manifesto aimed to establish a more inclusive, democratic and efficient system for running software development projects. As result, multiple Agile methodologies emerged including Crystal Clear, Scrum and Extreme Programming all designed to establish self-governing project teams that place equal accountability on all members that touch the project.
As this is Read More
The other day I read an article on how Charlie Sheen set a new Guinness World record by reaching 1 million followers in the shortest amount of time. With the power of technology, Sheen opened a Twitter account and hit the “1 million” milestone in 25 hours and 17 minutes. My first thought was – it is amazing the incredible appetite people have to be connected to latest news covering their topic(s) of interest. Although the Sheen example is an extreme scenario, it does provide insight into the cyclical nature of humanity and the dynamic between people’s wants and needs Read More
I recently read an article that suggested that even the untouchable Google may face trouble ahead with its automated approach to Search based purely on its use of algorithms. The article suggests even the most sophisticated machines do not have the ability to prevent its power users, SEO experts, from finding creative ways to outwit Google by developing “content farms” that produce Spam-like content that dilute the relevant results found on its coveted first page. Consequently, human powered content is moving ahead in providing better search results. In fact social media content produced and developed by its own end users Read More
As I look out my office window in Montreal I see the familiar Canadian wintry landscape with snow covered trees and buildings. At the same time I hear the buzzing activity of small and large snow removal vehicles clearing the streets to keep the city moving and allowing the city’s activities to continue uninterrupted. Although this scene is very familiar to me, I know the impact snow days can have in other cities south of the border where an inch of snow can cause havoc and shut a city down. You may not realize this, but for us Canadians snow Read More
For those who are not familiar with Tony Hsieh, at the age of 24 he sold his first internet venture LinkExchange to Microsoft for $265 million in 1999 and in that same year launched today’s biggest online retailer for shoes Zappos.com with the philosophy that people come first. From its beginnings, Zappos focused on the customer experience. When most online retailers were drop shipping goods to reduce costs, Zappos very early on invested in warehouses to improve their delivery time. Moreover, their primary goal was and is still today to offer the best service in the industry by providing free Read More
With the baseball’s playoff season fast approaching, it is worth a moment to consider how the best get to be the best. It’s no accident.
Most people know (Wesley) Branch Rickey, the legendary baseball manager and general manager being most known for helping break the color barrier in baseball back in 1940’s, when as General Manager for the Brooklyn Dodgers he signed Jackie Robinson who ultimately became the first African American to play professional major league baseball.
What many do not know is one of his other contributions to baseball, and something that should be well studied, especially in the business world. Read More
