Comments on: More on social software and consensus http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/ a blog about information Mon, 06 Feb 2012 01:37:12 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Tyler Fonda http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/comment-page-1/#comment-7712 Tyler Fonda Wed, 13 Sep 2006 21:05:05 +0000 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/#comment-7712 What I find interesting is how the generation that I represent, 20-30 year olds, is reacting against this top down mentality. My generation is recognizing that keeping your head down is not a path to success and career stability. The tools that are gaining precedence online: blogging, social networks, wikis are the ones that my generation and future ones will utilize to support our independent minded efforts to stay in profit centers and not be left behind. My greatest fear, and one that may permeate my generation, is that if we do not iterate rapidly enough our career goals will become unachievable. The expansion of the global economy has created vast new layers of competition and we are taking unacceptable risk if we rely on the hierarchy alone to protect our jobs. Of course that may be youthful idealism and over time the risk of raising a family and upsetting the status quo, may outweigh the risk of being left behind economically. What I find interesting is how the generation that I represent, 20-30 year olds, is reacting against this top down mentality. My generation is recognizing that keeping your head down is not a path to success and career stability. The tools that are gaining precedence online: blogging, social networks, wikis are the ones that my generation and future ones will utilize to support our independent minded efforts to stay in profit centers and not be left behind. My greatest fear, and one that may permeate my generation, is that if we do not iterate rapidly enough our career goals will become unachievable. The expansion of the global economy has created vast new layers of competition and we are taking unacceptable risk if we rely on the hierarchy alone to protect our jobs.

Of course that may be youthful idealism and over time the risk of raising a family and upsetting the status quo, may outweigh the risk of being left behind economically.

]]> By: Anne 2.0 » Blog Archive » links for 2006-09-12 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/comment-page-1/#comment-7671 Anne 2.0 » Blog Archive » links for 2006-09-12 Wed, 13 Sep 2006 13:05:29 +0000 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/#comment-7671 [...] Confused Of Calcutta » Blog Archive » More on social software and consensus “People who raise their heads above the parapets tend to get shot…. But I can’t help feeling that this is changing, and that the change is being brought into existence by the openness and transparency that social software affords us.” (tags: social wisdom-of-crowds enterprise) [...] [...] Confused Of Calcutta » Blog Archive » More on social software and consensus “People who raise their heads above the parapets tend to get shot…. But I can’t help feeling that this is changing, and that the change is being brought into existence by the openness and transparency that social software affords us.” (tags: social wisdom-of-crowds enterprise) [...]

]]> By: John Dodds http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/comment-page-1/#comment-7670 John Dodds Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:56:35 +0000 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/#comment-7670 I wholeheartedly agree with your last paragraph JP and sense some changes in this direction, but such an attitude just like the adoption of social software is liable to the same slow take-up pattern as for any innovation. Groupthink is just one element of the inertia. See Diffusions of Innovation for more on this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations. I wholeheartedly agree with your last paragraph JP and sense some changes in this direction, but such an attitude just like the adoption of social software is liable to the same slow take-up pattern as for any innovation. Groupthink is just one element of the inertia. See Diffusions of Innovation for more on this
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations.

]]> By: alexis http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/comment-page-1/#comment-7659 alexis Wed, 13 Sep 2006 10:24:24 +0000 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/#comment-7659 I agree with you on this JP. Well, another example from academia is the relationship between String Theory and funding for work in mathematical physics. Some people are saying that other theories are getting underfunded relative to String Theory and moreover claiming that String Theory has not delivered on its initial promise. Others disagree. In any case it does look an awful lot like another 'elephant in the room' to me. Recent books by Lee Smolin and Peter Woit talk about this. Also, Peter Woit has a blog: http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/ In my own experience, in the case of both work and academia, one of the biggest causes of disaster is groupthink: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groupthink Groupthink is really pernicious but hard to prevent as it is so often only obvious after the fact. It's one reason why companies hire external consultants, although personally I would prefer to not do that. I agree with you on this JP.

Well, another example from academia is the relationship between String Theory and funding for work in mathematical physics. Some people are saying that other theories are getting underfunded relative to String Theory and moreover claiming that String Theory has not delivered on its initial promise. Others disagree. In any case it does look an awful lot like another ‘elephant in the room’ to me.

Recent books by Lee Smolin and Peter Woit talk about this. Also, Peter Woit has a blog: http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/

In my own experience, in the case of both work and academia, one of the biggest causes of disaster is groupthink:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groupthink

Groupthink is really pernicious but hard to prevent as it is so often only obvious after the fact. It’s one reason why companies hire external consultants, although personally I would prefer to not do that.

]]> By: Dennis Howlett http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/comment-page-1/#comment-7639 Dennis Howlett Wed, 13 Sep 2006 00:13:45 +0000 http://confusedofcalcutta.com/2006/09/12/more-on-social-software-and-consensus/#comment-7639 I'd love to say that you're correct here JP but at this time, it's not realistic. Show me more than the handful of examples we all know and maybe I can be persuaded. You/we're up against powerful vested interests. Big iron etc has a seat at the boardroom table. Joe Blow blogger doesn't. That's the difference. A friend reminded me of the thinking behind Hammer's original BPR ideas. As he put it Big R got sidelined for little r. That's what is more likely to happen. It's not enough to blog and bitch - we don't have the processes or culture on place to make this work, except in very rare cases which are both top down driven and top down monitored. The antithesis of what you're suggesting but the business reality nonetheless. Unless of course you have an alternative approach that can work bottom up? I’d love to say that you’re correct here JP but at this time, it’s not realistic. Show me more than the handful of examples we all know and maybe I can be persuaded.

You/we’re up against powerful vested interests. Big iron etc has a seat at the boardroom table. Joe Blow blogger doesn’t. That’s the difference.

A friend reminded me of the thinking behind Hammer’s original BPR ideas. As he put it Big R got sidelined for little r. That’s what is more likely to happen.

It’s not enough to blog and bitch – we don’t have the processes or culture on place to make this work, except in very rare cases which are both top down driven and top down monitored. The antithesis of what you’re suggesting but the business reality nonetheless. Unless of course you have an alternative approach that can work bottom up?

]]>