Knowledge Strategy

Knowledge: To Have and Have Not

13 May 2021  

The value of knowledge was in the news again this week. Not my book by that name — but (even better) the thing itself. The world’s knowledge haves and have-nots A heroic and near-miraculous push has been made to get Covid vaccines designed, produced, and delivered within one year of the realization that we were in […]

Knowledge Strategy

The Speed of Knowledge

6 Apr 2021  

When I speak with student groups, which I do as often as possible, I count it as an extra-successful engagement when I’m asked a question I haven’t thought of — and even more so if it’s one for which I need to really think through my answer. The other evening I Zoomed with the students […]

Analytics and Forecasting

The Year the Earth Stood Still

12 Mar 2021  

“Citizens of earth, we come in peace” Any fan of 1950s sci-fi movies will recognize these immortal words as coming from the alien invader in the pioneering 1951 film The Day the Earth Stood Still. Spoken in perfect English by a well-mannered, handsome alien, these words have become used to the point of cliché in […]

Competitiveness and Innovation

Adaptive Resilience

10 Dec 2020  

At the beginning of the global pandemic, I recommended that organizations undertake value pivots.  I’m gratified to see how many industries are now doing this — with varying levels of success, but, too often, as a matter of survival. Here’s a summary of how various industries are pivoting toward new value models: COMPANY OR SECTOR PRE-PANDEMIC VALUE MODEL […]

Knowledge Strategy

“Knowledge IS the Business”

1 Nov 2020  

I had some fun in my newest book exploring the relationship between the phenomenal world — the “real world” of people, things, and events — and the epistemic world — the symbolic world that represents those things virtually. Our virtual world Surrounded as we are by technologies — the internet itself, and soon virtual and augmented […]

Knowledge Strategy

The Value of Knowledge – released 20 July 2020

13 Jul 2020  

And now, a word from our sponsor.  WARNING: unabashed self-promotion dead ahead: Do you want to expand your organization’s “cognitive perimeter”?  Decrease your “knowledge-value gaps”?  Build an “epistemic wrapper” around your core product? Understand the “value vectors” driving your competitive future?  Manage your enterprise “cage of doves”? You may understandably not have these initiatives on […]

Metrics and Measurement

Predictive Metrics — A Live Case Example

17 Jun 2020  

In speaking with people about the KVC framework, I have come to realize that some people may have misinterpreted it to mean that all data leads inexorably to the production of value. That is regrettably not the case! What the model says is that in order to produce value, the data has to be used […]

Metrics and Measurement

Building Predictive Metrics

20 May 2020  

I recently addressed a community of technology CFOs and CEOs on one of my favorite subjects — metrics, how they work, and how they sometimes don’t. They had some great comments and questions. I thought some of you may be facing similar challenges, so I’ll summarize here. Metrics are essential Metrics are the foundation of […]

Analytics and Forecasting

Now, What?

3 May 2020  

Confused? Overwhelmed?? Can’t see what’s coming next??? Welcome to the human race! None of us can — try as we might. Here are some tips about how to approach this crucial challenge. Scenarios versus forecasts Having made my living for over a decade as a quantitative forecaster, I can tell you that forecasting in times […]

Competitiveness and Innovation

Value Pivots

30 Mar 2020  

One of the more timely parts of my upcoming book The Value of Knowledge is Section 7.7, Value Dynamics. This includes the idea of value entropy, which essentially means that once you get your value proposition finely tuned to user needs, if left unchanged it then slowly begins to leave perfect alignment with those needs. This happens […]

Organization and Management

Uncertainty + Danger = Fear

17 Mar 2020  

When people are in a crisis, a flow of good information can help them to focus, quiet their nerves, and lead to productive outcomes. Bad information — much more readily available — can increase anxiety and confusion, and quickly becomes unproductively disruptive. The tank crew effect I came across a study years ago — I […]

Security and Privacy

Who Am I?

5 Feb 2020  

The promises of technology are vast. I recall the first time, decades ago, that I was impressed with “artificial intelligence” — which I continue to call “machine intelligence,” since there’s nothing artificial about it. At that time, I became aware that a major credit card company was (and probably still is) using neural networks to […]