When reflecting on Weinberger’s
presentation what resonated the most for me was his comparison between the day
and age when an author wrote a book and if lucky was the 1 out of many that was
published, therefore, anointing that particular author as the expert in a
particular field or one that may have a monopoly on some type of information or
knowledge. The rest of the book would
fade into the darkness in “book purgatory.”
In the technology age though “everything” is published on the web, with
filtering taking place depending upon people’s needs. Organizationally this becomes a time of 24/7
activity that has forced leadership to become more able to identify trends in
markets, staying abreast of their competition, and technological overload or
the need to identify technologies that will improve existing practices on an
ongoing basis. Knowledge is now just a
google, or click away from finding information and if hyperlinks are present as is the case with
Wikipedia, further information can be found.
Leadership then needs to develop a “big picture” perspective
understanding that the right people need to be in place that are not only “tech
savvy” but also understand the importance of “collaboration” for the greater
good of the organization.
Wierarchy then, as presented by Husband (2015), is the “dynamic two-way
flow of power and authority, based on knowledge, trust, credibility and a focus
on results, enabled by interconnected people and technology. What this means for leaders in today’s
technology age according to Husband (2015) is they need to be more in tune with
the scope and reach of interconnected markets and flow of information. This can be done by understanding how and why
employees are connecting, talking, and sharing information. Increasingly then the leaders need to be more
responsible, accountable and transparent to one’s they serve. Leadership then will always be “on” or as explained
by Lindzon (2016) not only is leadership always “on” but, companies are now
giving more flexibility to them to manage their time. As employees are given more freedom new
expectations have emerged, now employees to have to always be on, always responsive,
and always available, leading to a more overwhelmed workforce. Therefore, although this concept of wierarchy
enables our workplace to be connected, it has also created a workforce that is “always”
connected. On vacation an employee is always
a text message or cell phone call away from being lured back into the workplace
web of activity. The “take-aways” from Weinberger’s presentation, Husband’s article
on Wierarchy, and Lindzon’s article 6 Ways Work will change in 2016, is that
with the emergence of the technology it is true that we have an abundance of
information at our fingertips, however, pressure then is put on an organization
or business to “always be on,” with the understanding that “we” do not stay
connected, “we” will fall behind, or fail to innovate, therefore, the
competition will find ways to jockey for more market shares. Technology then seems to have accelerated the
importance of communication and innovation, to not only compete, but in some
cases survive.
References
Husband, J.
(2015). What is wierarchy? [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://wirearchy.com/what-
is-wirearchy/
Lindzon, J.
(2016). 6 ways work will change in 2016 [Blog post]. Retrieved from
2016
Weinberger, D.
(2014, October 22). David weinberger on the power of the internet
[Youtube].
Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPXmEh24KXA&feature=youtu.be
Chris,
ReplyDeleteDo you think the trade-off of always being accessible in exchange for greater work hour flexibility for employees is fair? Does it work better for some people but not others?
A related aspect that has been absent from the readings thus far is the impact of globalization on work hours. I have friends who do business in U.S. and Asian markets. They often have phone meets and web conferences in the middle of the night, when it is more convenient for counterparts in Asia. Since they still need to work with U.S. customers, they have round-the-clock work hours (although they rarely are actually "at work" and instead work from home or while traveling with meetings sprinkled throughout the day/night).
Will
You raise some interesting issues in your post, as does Will's question. How does a leader balance work and life not only for her or himself, but also for those that work for this leader?
ReplyDeleteChris,
ReplyDeleteI especially appreicated your concluding sentences from both paragraphs. You put together valuable needed in this digital age for leaders...putting the right people in the right place so the orgnaization thrives. Second, the need to stay current with technological trends is paramount for leaders. Communication is just as important now as it was before the digital age. We simply communicate via different mediums. Great post.
Hi Chris,
ReplyDeleteGreat post this week as always. Your last statement is quite interesting. Even though I work in higher education, this same feeling of innovate or die, has been a regular part of our conversations for years. In my post this week I discussed some of the reasons why higher education feels threatened by the changing landscape and the threat to the relevancy of traditional academic credentials.
In your professional role do you find technology forcing innovation in order to survive? If so what is your current organization doing to keep pace?
Chris,
ReplyDeleteUsing Google as been a gift and a curse when we think about the amount of knowledge that one search can produce. When asking general questions, it is great to find the information at the click of a few buttons from a small device with internet capabilities. Working in education, however, makes this hard when trying to get students to understand the importance in searching for information in the right places without using general search engine. Leadership in this area is needed because students need to know how to obtain information from credible areas that reflect their studies. The wirearchy concept can be applied to this thought because the connections from other educators can be made to ensure that students have the right understanding about the information they have researched. With collaboration, students and educators can reach the main goal of the institution.
JImmy
The "always on" phenomena seems to be a reality for more people all the time. I work in k-12 education, and while the students we serve are only there from 8-3 my days often run into nights. Now that I am out of the classroom in a support position, there are items that need to happen at certain times, meetings, some phone calls, staff presentations, etc. A large portion of my job can be completed at all hours of the night or day. Prepping and putting together staff professional development, pulling together data for different building needs, and prepping assessment schedules and materials can all be done outside of regular business hours. The ability to have flexibility during the actual work day is a large attractive part of my current position that convinced me to take the leap out of the regular classroom. I can leave to watch my daughters preschool program and as long as the work gets done, my boss is very accommodating. The trade off is that when we have a crisis that requires working a late night, then I am the one who steps up.
ReplyDeleteBecause of the traditional work hours of k-12 education, it cannot have modified work days or the ecommuting that exists in other fields, but the emphasis on collaboration can and should become a regular part of the educational experience, not only with students in the same class, but with students and professionals in other locations.