How Online

Exploring new approaches to business in the high-powered world of digital technology

Like a lot of people, I have decidedly mixed feelings about technology. When my PC is firing away, performing all the tricks it’s supposed to, it’s extremely easy to envision myself as a digital trailblazer, pioneering exciting new dimensions of 21st century communications and knowledge. And when my computer seizes up and grinds to a halt, frustrating those world-conquering digital ambitions, I am reminded of the perspective of newspaper columnist Dave Barry: “People in the computer industry use the word ‘user’, which to them means ‘idiot’.”

And so it was with some trepidation that this computer “user” recently accepted an invitation to discuss HOW with a group of executives from the technology industry. In my experience, tech execs tend to be smart, not afraid to challenge and holding strong opinions about what works and what doesn’t – especially in the world of business. But I figured I could hold my own.

My invitation had come from Susan Bratton, the delightful host of a podcast called “DishyMix.” As we began to discuss some of the basics of HOW – the many ways in which principles and values can foster innovation and add value to business – Susan noted that while many of her program’s listeners were CEOs and founders of their companies, “they don’t feel they can make a difference.” Her very straightforward question: “How do we handle that?”

My very non-technical answer was that innovation starts with trust. The example I gave to Susan involves a man in New York who sells doughnuts for a living, while the vendor across the street from him also sells doughnuts. They each sell a very fresh, well priced doughnut, but the first guy outsells the other three to one. Why? Well, the first man puts a tray on his stand and lets people take or make their own change. As a result, he’s not standing there distrusting his customers and counting change. He lets people take their own change, and that allows him to spend more time serving doughnuts. But most importantly, his customers experience that sensation of trust and they repay that trust with a loyalty that brings them back again and again.

To me, the doughnut man’s business practices are a metaphor. Every one of us in business has to become that doughnut person. We need to find new ways to form these connections and create trust in our relationships because when there is trust, people innovate. In order to innovate, someone needs to take a risk. Any innovation is preceded by someone having the courage to do something different than they did before.

Another tough question came from Brad Berens, PhD and chief content officer of DMG World Media and the iMedia Connection site. “The real problem with business ethics,” he said, “is that often it’s hard to quantify the ROI (Return on Investment) of those ethics. It’s easy to say that it’s up to the C-Suite to create an ethical corporate culture, but isn’t that a cop out? How does an entry-level person embrace the ‘hows’ and not get fired?”

Brad makes a good point. HOW has to start at the top of any organization. Tone from the top matters now more than ever. But we’re in a transition period, so it’s sometimes hard to do the right thing. It feels inconvenient. Sometimes we know we’re acting on principle because it feels difficult. Over time, I believe acting on principle will become a new habit.

But a CEO can’t make this happen on her own. It’s a really competitive world out there. Not long ago, companies used to win with products – but then a lot of products grew alike. Then we started to win with all sorts of services – but now everybody’s answering the phone on two rings. In many respects, even good service has become commoditized. You can walk into a store and say, “I’d like to buy a plasma TV screen and I’m looking for a 42-incher.” The salesperson could be wonderful with service and say, “Let me take a walk with you.” But that service could be copied, anybody can take a walk.

HOW is what happens during the walk — an open, honest, authentic conversation. Are you prepared to tell that customer that they don’t need the 42-incher? That another TV set might be a much better deal? We are starting to realize that customer experiences are the outcome of human interaction. Human interaction is good and valuable and inspiring when it’s honest and when we get our “hows” right.

In the world of technology, a key concern is how “scalable” a product can be. Can it be produced in ever larger quantities without costs spiraling as well? That was the concern raised by Matt Blumberg, CEO of an email marketing company called Return Path. “How do we go about standardizing the HOW of a company?” he asked. “Even if we figure out how to do that, how do we make it genuine and authentic?”

I’m not a technologist – but I did study philosophy. Aristotle said, “Excellence is not a single act. It’s a habit.” A modern-day way of thinking of it is that we need to go to a HOW gym and build some HOW muscle. By doing the inconvenient thing over and over, it becomes easier. What’s really exciting is when we do it and we start to thrive. That’s why the best and brightest employees don’t leave good companies even though these days (especially in the tech world) it’s so easy to leave a company – all you need to do is put your resume online. In a world where connections among people are getting thinner and thinner we need to continue to go to that gym and, most importantly, innovate. Smart companies and smart executives will find new ways to create trust and authenticity in relationships.

There were a lot more questions, but I thought one of the most provocative came from Matt Edelman, CEO of a start up called PeopleJam, who raised issues about our broader society: “The truth is that the kind of values you’re encouraging in life are instilled at a very young age. How can our society advance these values in a sustainable way in the face of the overwhelming amount of media attention given to the comparatively shallow pursuits of celebrities and the over-rich, and the media, or cries of the Internet sites that cater to aspirations about looks, wealth and material possessions?”

Brad is right. I’m aware of it because I recently became a father for the first time. These days children are connecting in this online world in ways that we as adults often find difficult to contemplate. Sometimes it seems out of control. But the one thing we need to do is bring our wisdom and experience to kids and get them to see that their only control is how they live their lives. We need to engage them in the realm of values. Parents use to control kids by saying, “Go to your room. Don’t watch TV. Be in your bed by 9 o’clock.” That no longer works. External controls can’t work in a world in which kids are surfing the world wide net. We need to put the controls in the hands of our children by engaging them in the subject of values.

I really enjoyed my dialogue with this tech-savvy audience. They, more than anyone, appreciate how the speed and breadth of the digital world presents us with exciting challenges. Their questions, however, demonstrated to me that they also understand that bits and bytes are only one measure of HOW we think about our collective future.

Last 5 posts by Dov Seidman
• The Certainty Gap - June 26th, 2008
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• Even the Boss Has Stupid Rules - March 6th, 2008
• What's Next? - February 27th, 2008
• The State of K-12 Education - February 8th, 2008

Dov Seidman  posted May 28, 2008 6:32 pm