Collaboration Web

Consumers are leading the way in collaboration through social networks in a manner that allows growth and resilience through a web type structure.  Due to these events, I think its time to change the reference to a social web to better describe both the method and the structure of collaboration.  This web structure supports the robust consumer practices interacting both with friends, businesses and information gathering.  The young are leading these practices through imaginative and experimental use of technology and communication tools and software.  

The young have embraced the practice of ‘why not’ that I have previously discussed.  What I mean by this ‘why not’ practice is when a new challenge or question arises, ‘why not’ views a previously untried method and says ‘why not’ try it.  This is leading to new methods to communicate and collaborate with a frequency that is sometimes breathtaking.  Think about this as an example; just when you get comfortable with texting to communicate with your children you find out that they have been using Snapchat with their friends for months and ‘nobody texts anymore’!  The interesting point about this particular example is that Snapchat is one of the most secure methods of communication because the message is deleted after it is read by the recipient.  

The work web perfectly describes the utilization methods and connectivity of these tools and also the communication practices.  The variety of tools provide a failsafe method of communication to others through the web  linkages supported by the Internet.  This self-healing technology allows and supports the communication methods that best support the communication requirements.  Simple text communication for quick messages to video communication for complicated discussions and collaboration.  How many times have you been proud of yourself for embracing a ‘new’ technology only to find from your kids that they have moved on to something else?

Its no wonder that business has difficulty keeping up with these advances.  Business must first try to keep up with the new practices and then they are saddled with a technology framework that may not be conducive to the new technology.  We have entered a time when I do not think it possible for business to stay ahead of these developments and as a result business must embrace flexibility.  This flexibility is best supported through a strategy of continuous improvement supported by continuous investment.  

It is impossible to determine where the technology will lead and especially how the technology will be used and integrated into the consumers’ collaborative web.  The changes are driven in an increasingly rapid cycle and supported and encouraged by both new mobile technology and new means to use this technology via apps.  Because of these changing practices The only option available for business is to react to the changes as rapidly as possible.  The best method to support the required speed of reaction is to embrace a strategy of continuous improvements supported by a strategy of continuous investment.

 

And now for the audience participation portion of the show…

ECommerce will have wide ranging impacts on both the retail and manufacturing sectors.  How can you focus these abilities to improve the consumers’ experience?  Improving the consumers experience will require a re-evaluation of the sales channels, the manufacturing channels and practices and the supply chain channels and practices from the raw materials to the consumers’ homes.  In order to ensure and maintain success in this new reality you must harness the tools and capabilities in many new areas.  How can you support these continuously changing requirements?