Business Interaction Management

"Especially we, people with an IT-background, live too much with the illusion that we can capture our reality in bits. Unfortunately, what we are capturing is only a poor representation of a far deeper and far more complex reality."

"In the context of social business, too much of the thinking is focused on creating homogeneity, a level playing field for all participants. Instead, it should embrace diversity and complexity."

Customer-centricity or getting closer to customers is often the focus of many executive meetings I attend these days. The question always arises, "how can we use new media to get closer to customers?" The answer is not, develop a social media strategy to start engaging with customers. The answer is, change.

Economies of scale are well understood. Bigger factories are more efficient, bigger distribution networks are more efficient, bigger ad campaigns can be more efficient. It's often hard to defeat a major competitor, particularly if the market is looking for security and the status quo. But what about the economies of small? Is being bigger an intrinsic benefit in and of itself?

Case studies show us an example. It is up to us to judge upon the relevancy of the example for our own context. However, with Social Business this is becoming a lot harder.

With Enterprise 2.0, we are trying to solve some of the problems of today's business organisations. However, we must not forget that our business environment is rapidly evolving and therefore, we might be solving the problems of the past instead of those of the future.

"Nicholas Christakis discusses some of the ways in which our influences are shaped by the social networks we live in. These networks can be so vast, that the connections often go unseen. Christakis uses the example of depression, showing that a person's stress often rubs off on those around them. "

For Enterprise 2.0, the main challenge is getting the workforce to adopt the new tools, business practices, and philosophies. But is it only a challenge or just an impossible dream?

""…we talk about technology and get excited about it, but changing processes is the only way to get productivity … so I think you've got to align with people who can help you with process and cultural change because those will trip you up or prevent you from getting the technology benefits"."

Technological solutions often only address the symptoms of a problem. Clearly understanding the root causes of the problem and identifying the correct remedies for removing these causes are threfore the mandatory, preliminary steps for choosing the right solution.

A couple of weeks back I (Gary Hamel) provided you with a synopsis of Vineet Nayar's new book, "Employees First, Customers Second," which has been recently published by Harvard Business School Press. In it, Vineet, CEO of HCL Technologies, talks about the progress his company has made in making managers more accountable to those on the front lines. Having posted my summary, I invited you to submit your questions to Vineet, and many of you did, along with plenty of piquant comments. Herewith, Vineet's reply. He begins by providing a bit of context, and then takes on a few of the most-asked queries.

The "real" Enterprise 2.0 is not a technology or marketing plan, but the reinvention of the enterprise itself. It's a rethinking of the structure, process, culture and even, in some cases, the very purpose of the enterprise. With technology erasing barriers to participation and communication, we're seeing a change in the nature of how we go about running an organization.

We are living times with a growing focus on NOW. Increasingly, we have access to information anywhere, anytime and increasingly, our interaction behaviour asks for anywhere, anytime, now. That is evolution. However, is it also progress?

Let's talk efficiency, let's talk simplicity and leave the big words to others. Bottom line, from all the available pieces of technology on my laptop, nothing -- and I mean nothing -- compares to e-mail. We can reach anyone around the world in a split second, send any file, share ideas and get feedback. E-mail is our way to communicate and work together daily that is always tied to a business process being carried out in the organization. But in all actuality, e-mail is a problem. Basex Research recently estimated that businesses lose $650 billion annually in productivity due to unnecessary e-mail interruptions and overload.

As high-tech supply chains increase in complexity, they become harder to manage. Collaboration between OEMs, suppliers, and retailers is the answer.

Recent events in the news have inspired a thought experiment: I asked myself what I would do if I were put in charge of IT as part of the turnaround effort at a big US automaker. To be a bit more specific, I imagined that one of the big 3 American auto companies was taken over tomorrow by enlightened and aggressive new leadership whose only goals are to restore the company to operational and financial excellence. This leadership is enlightened (in my book) because it believes firmly in the power of IT to help businesses achieve their goals and differentiate themselves in the marketplace, and will fund and fully support whatever initiatives I propose (this is a complete fantasy for several reasons, but thought experiments aren't supposed to be constrained by reality.).\nSo what would I propose?

Business is about process, typically starting with a customer calling, then proceeding through a sequence of tasks and activities ending with the delivery of some value.

Tacit interactions are becoming central to economic activity. Making those who undertake them more effective isn't like tweaking a production line.