notes and views on crm, social media, and the human side of information technology

Quote of the day

Hansson’s view of freedom is seemingly based on a somewhat European, Design-led, view of the world. [on reflection that may just be my philosophical roots showing - Asian thinking also tends to be fairly comfortable with constraints.] Markets, for example, are not absences of rules. On the contrary a market is impossible without clear rules of engagement. A market is a set of constraints. Constraints are thus not a bad thing- they foster creativity. Even the hideousness that is digital rights management can foster creativity…

James Governor writing about DHH’s rather disparaging remarks on Windows programmers.

Which doesn’t interest me nearly as much as the often neglected notion that placing limits on choices can lead to better choices, and I suppose the million-dollar question is, who should make these decisions in business / marketplace. The producer, in his infallible wisdom? The consumer, ever so reluctant to give up his freedom these days?

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February 29, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

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February 24, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

Relationships With Limits

Whether the President of the USA or the CEO of a large corporation, building relationships requires a conversation rather than a policy. Too many policies get in the way of having open and honest conversations from which both parties can learn the perspectives of the other and hopefully find common ground from which to establish a relationship.

Whomever we individually or collectively think we are none of us could possibly know everything needed to understand everyone. Arrogance is the fallacy of fools who believe they have learned and experienced everything life has to teach us. Sometimes, actually a lot of times, our own attitudes are our own worst enemy and until we can learn to have conversations with open minds nothing can be learned or gained. - jay deragon

Jay is good at writing easy-to-read, idealistic posts, and I wouldn’t otherwise comment on this had he not used the US policy of not having a “relationship” with communist Cuba.

Sorry, Jay, there are limits we have to apply to our relationships, in business and politics, especially if we want to live by certain values. A policy is certainly appropriate here.

A company can decide to not do business with certain people/parties. That implies not having a relationship of any kind. For a gentleman’s club, that involves anyone not dressing properly and having an advanced degree (or somesuch). For a lending company, it’s people with bad credit. I could go on.

It’s a business, after all. An exchange of values that has to benefit and create meaning for all involved.

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February 22, 2008 | Filed Under CRM | 2 Comments 

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February 20, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

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February 19, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

Demographics aren’t what they used to be

Are operators going to get this, some day?

“So, why do Web 2.0 services work? Because they mirror the user’s social graph and focus on user generated content (UGC is a form of communication). In contrast, the mobile services do not in most cases. All your friends are not on the same Operator – you don’t live your life like that! Since mobile services are not interoperable(excluding voice and SMS) – they do not reflect the social graph.” - ajit @ Open Gardens

(But the same really applies to online communities - hence the need for inter-operability between all the facebooks of the world. I am more and more pained every time I ponder asking my friends to confirm me as their friend, again, when I sign up for yet another service.)

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February 17, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes, Rants | Leave a Comment 

Sugar on the Rocks

So, enterprise software doesn’t have to be boring, apparently:

“That said, this was not just a good party but the conference itself was extremely well planned and well done and had some of that high spirited sense of community. What was particularly interesting to me was to see the genuine interest the customers, the partners and the developers had for the company, the people and the product itself. They liked it, sure, but they were INTERESTED in it and where it was going . They seemed to feel they had a stake in its success, which is as Shakespeare said somewhere, a “devoutly to be wished” position for a vendor to be in. Part of that was there seems to be an open culture and I hear from my friends at SugarCRM that they enjoy the ride they are on. Not something I’ve been hearing from too many of the CRM companies these days. Now I hear all the time that they are well run or they are producing excellent products or that they are doing some great things (and all of that, for the companies I hear about that - is true) but I don’t hear much about enjoyment of the work and the ride. I hear it with SugarCRM now (and with Workday) and used to hear it with other companies a few years ago. But to hear startup excitement and rocking in a company that’s no longer a startup is exciting unto itself - and for that, SugarCRM, I salute you.” - Paul Greenberg, writing about his experience from SugarCon 08

I have to look into that.

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February 16, 2008 | Filed Under CRM | Leave a Comment 

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February 15, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

Quote of the day

Not so familiar to me since Southwest does not operate in Czechia:

That’s the real power of corporate culture: When you’re distinctive in the workplace, it allows you to be disruptive in the marketplace. There is an iron-clad connection between how your organization competes and why and how your people collaborate. So the next time someone dismisses corporate culture as fuzzy, or soft, or not “real” business, point them to Southwest Airlines, which continues to thrive in the worst business in the history of business. And suggest that they report to work the next day in high heels and a pink dress. [emphasis mine]

(by Bill Taylor - commenting on original NYT article)

PS Although when I gave it a second thought, I could imagine a cross-dressing boss as the ultimate tumor of the Dilbertian corporate “culture” (as in “Hawaiian shirt day” from Office Space), which may not be Southwest’s case; all things considered, what the CEO does and how he behaves has little to no relevance to what it really is like to work in that particular company; what really matters is whether or not you can cross-dress, and not just on Halloween. (Not that I would want to, obviously… :-)

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February 13, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes, Rants | Leave a Comment 

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February 13, 2008 | Filed Under Links and Quotes | Leave a Comment 

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