Using Sport to Inspire Careers in Science and Technology

Reading this press release from IBM (full article) I do enjoy being part of an inspiring company.

IBM Hursley hosted one hundred Year eight girls, from ten different schools around Hampshire and the surrounding counties, for a two day camp known as think.IT. The aim of the camp, which was repeated twice over the week, is to encourage girls to continue studying Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and eventually consider careers within the IT industry.

Split into teams so that no two girls from the same school worked together, the girls were tasked with designing and marketing a brand new product, this year in the field of Technology in Sport, before presenting their idea to a team of judges in the form of IBM executives and  Master Inventors.

The camps began with a brainstorming session during which the girls explored ideas and selected one to take to market. The girls were then taught the basics of marketing and the importance of branding and applied this knowledge to their product by developing a business plan and creating a brand logo, slogan and designing a web site. Team building exercises and mentoring on presentation skills helped them prepare for their final presentation to the judges.

Local MP for Romsey and Southampton North, Caroline Nokes, who returned again this year to watch the girls commented: “I was very impressed with the inspirational speakers and the enthusiasm shown for IT during my visit. A thoroughly enjoyable morning.”

The two winning ideas were:
–    Training Buddy. “Working out how to work out” – A smartphone application designed to offer injury prevention, treatment and nutrition advice to athletes.
–    Leaf. “The personal best trainer” – A silicone ear piece that moulds to the ear of the user, and allows an athlete to communicate wirelessly with their coach whilst training.

The runners up were:
–    Morfs – An innovative sports shoe that uses interchangeable soles, so that the same pair of shoes can be used for a variety of sports.
–    My Grip – A multi-functional grip constructed from a combination of memory foam and a non-slip rubber surface, that moulds to the shape of an athlete’s hands.

I think these are fantastic ideas they came up with, what do you think?

Category: Education, IBM, Technology | No Comments »

Employee Recognition Through Gamification

The IBM Connections ecosystem gets better and better! Check out this employee recognition system. This is being rolled out to Connections customers today. Could this drive better motivation and engagement with your employees?

The Hive is social recognition program that changes how you motivate and retain employees, how your company celebrates success, and how you reinforce your corporate culture and values.

What are your thoughts?

Category: Gamification, Social Business, Social Media | 1 Comment »

Data Center Efficiency By the Numbers

From big data to cloud computing, CIOs today are tapping into new ways to get more value out of their data centers. As businesses and organizations begin make use of the flood of data collected from billions of interconnected people, they see opportunities to invest in new projects that will drive revenue and better services. But they have to do more with the IT resources they have in order to invest in the future. IBM worked with IDC on a recent study and found that 80 percent of 300 surveyed businesses have yet to make the most of their IT investments. Want to know how you stack up against the top performing companies?

Category: Smarter Business | No Comments »

Your Boss is Really Your Client

The old business mindset is that employees report up to a boss, and I think that mindset is old and needs to die a quick death.

In fact, the way that companies should re-think management is that all employees are self-empowered, and like their own business owner. I believe that everyone is their own CEO of one, they are responsible for their own strategy, knowledge, education, marketing, and building their own information strategies. You can read my blog post on you’re a company of one.

In fact, the way I manage a team of over half a dozen researchers is with this empowerment in mind. I tell them that I’m not their boss, but instead, I’m their client or customer. Why? I want them to be self-empowered, take accountability for their future and make informed decisions knowing that I believe in their expertise and trust them.

Why wouldn’t management have this mindset? If you’re willing to invest your time and money on hiring the best, you should treat them as the experts they are. Of course this doesn’t come without proper definition of defining the success criteria, putting ongoing training in place and setting up a performance tracking program. I’m no expert on these topics, and am learning ever day.

So if you work in a small company or big one, remember that who you report to isn’t your boss, but instead your client. Approach your career as a company of one, and you’re the CEO. Remember, your boss is really your client –you are empowered in your career, even if you work in a huge corporation.

Special thanks to Loic who kicked me over dinner to blog this –I was bashful to share this as a budding executive, I know I’ve a lot to learn, and I look forward to the comments below to drive new thoughts.

Guest Post: Jeremiah Owyang

Orginal posted here

 

Category: Smarter Business | No Comments »

Technology enriches the user experience at Wimbledon.com

A vibrant new digital environment will greet tennis fans this year at Wimbledon, as the All England Club and IBM have the launched the all new Championships’ website, www.wimbledon.com.

Wimbledon.com has been completely re-designed to reflect the heritage and appeal of the event, as well as to offer the tournament’s anticipated 16 million unique website visitors a more creative and immersive experience through improved content, more powerful imagery and intuitive navigation process.

Built on IBM’s SmartCloud infrastructure to meet surges in demand, the website integrates a new online broadcast channel, Live @ Wimbledon alongside the interactive analytics-enabled IBM SlamTracker scoreboard, providing a one-stop shop for fans wanting to interact with The Championships.

Live @ Wimbledon
Featuring both TV and radio, Live @ Wimbledon will blend live action from around the grounds by dropping into matches at crucial points in play (a stream of one game, per set, per match, per hour) with the off-court color of a day at The Championships.  In addition to the minimum of five hours live broadcasting per day, viewers will be able to enjoy pre-packaged content such as previews and reviews, match highlights and archive footage.

The Live @ Wimbledon radio service will offer an enhanced and improved version of its popular predecessor (Radio Wimbledon), which will be available worldwide online and on the three local FM channels.

“Together with IBM, we’ve created a new website which features increased options for people to personalize their Wimbledon experience,” said Mick Desmond, Commercial Director, at the All England Club, home of The Championships.  “Visitors can follow the progress of their favorite players, view live match play clips of the day’s action, and access scores and results delivered in real-time.  We expect this increasingly engaging and personalized online experience to appeal to fans in ever-greater numbers.”

IBM SlamTracker
At this year’s Championships IBM SlamTracker uses predictive analytics technology to enable fans to gain deeper insight into the match. SlamTracker is a multifaceted feature of Wimbledon’s digital presence that leverages historical and real-time data to add depth and insight to the Championship experience. The ‘Momentum’ capability maps a match in real-time, visualizing key turning points and their causes (i.e. winners, aces etc.).

‘Keys to the Match’ is a feature within SlamTracker that leverages historical and immediate data to determine the top three things a player must do in order to do well in a specific match.
While SlamTracker is an example of how analytics drives insights for tennis, the uses for businesses are almost infinite. Businesses across multiple industries and geographies can gain insights from large volumes of data and then use that knowledge to choose the best strategies and better predict outcomes.

IBM SecondSight heads to Center Court
Following on from the 2011 pilot on Court 18, this year for the first time on Center Court, IBM will trial player movement tracking.  With IBM SecondSight it will be possible to track the fastest moving players and how their performance changes, set by set and match by match. The system can provide new data that could help players, coaches, commentators and fans alike; and, add a new dimension to fan’s understanding of the science of tennis.

“This year a completely new website takes the understanding and insight into the Wimbledon Championships to a whole new level”, said Alan Flack, IBM’s Programme Executive for Wimbledon. “Using the power of cloud computing each individual data point is integrated instantaneously to deliver a powerful experience for fans, players, coaches and officials alike.”

Category: Cloud, IBM, Technology | No Comments »

Twitter Facts And Figures For Businesses And Brands [INFOGRAPHIC]

Did you know that a recent survey showed that people are 25 percent more likely to buy a product that they would be proud to own if it has social media buttons next to it? Conversely, the same study revealed that users are 25 percent lesslikely to buy an embarrassing product if it’s placed anywhere near a social sharing tool.

Of course, this conflict presents something of a problem for brands. Used well, social media can empower businesses of all shapes and sizes, allowing them to reach vast audiences and shift huge amounts of product. Used poorly, and it’s going to have the exact opposite effect. Egg? Meet face.

It’s certainly true that there’s a steep learning curve. For example, while 26 percent of businesses regularly include “call to action” messages in their tweets, if brands do this too often they’ll drive away large sections of their community. Equally, brands that never issue calls to action – which amounts to almost half (49 percent) – are missing out on a golden opportunity.

It’s not all about marketing and sales, either. Amazingly, some 70 percent of brands ignore complaints on Twitter. Not only does this mean they’re saying goodbye to tons of repeat business, but when you consider that 83 percent of people who complained on Twitter loved the response from those companies that did make the effort, well… you do the math.

This infographic from Webpresence.TV takes a closer look at social media facts and figures for brands.

Category: Social Business, Social Media, Twitter | 1 Comment »

Is there still one decision-maker or is it a consensus decision?

Is there still one decision-maker or is it a consensus decision?

Selling is different today than it has been in the past. There is a dramatic shift. I see the change as being more difficult to find and connect with decision makers through traditional routes. Email is one of these road blocks; it’s less responsive and there are dramatic shifts in the way it is being used. Also different is how information is making it’s way to the decision maker; the catalyst that is forcing these changes is the abundance of information.

Google indexes two billion websites — that’s twelve times the population of the world. A lot.

This is changing the behavior of your buyers. At one time, the biggest currency that a sales person had was information. That is why buyers would call us. They would say, I want to know about your products, want to know about this or that. Now what are they doing? They use a search engine and research about your brand, your company, and who you are.

A huge percentage of their decision has already been made before they engage with you. They are doing this online and not connecting with you to find out more. So the other thing information affects is abundance – the amount of information is so great that people aren’t sure they are getting the correct information. They think they are, but to check, they ask their friends, colleagues, trusted sources, and anyone who can bring clarity to their question.

The decision-making process has also changed regarding this question: Is there still one decision-maker or is it a consensus decision?

So we have massive amounts of information that is the meteoric rise of a grand thing called social media. How do we deal with this? People are social animals by nature — they want to connect, understand, know, and relate to others.

Here are some amazing statistics (taken from an event I attended):

  • Ninety-six percent of the online population in the US used social media in January 2012.
  • Time spent on social media is three times that spent on email.
  • Fifty-three percent of active social networkers follow a brand but only thirty-two percent follow a celebrity.

The use of and need for email is changing greatly. One generation of users does not want email; certain education facilities no longer provide email accounts to students. To this younger generation, email is a thing of the past. Social media is change and it’s happening now.

Another wild statistic is that 294 billion emails are sent each day. It is believed 90 percent of them are spam.

Other aspects to think about:

  • Social media is an important channel.
  • Social media is used more than email.
  • Following a celebrity is nascent and already insignificant

The three big players in social media are FaceBook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. All of them have done tremendously well and are very successful. They each service separate markets, which is why they have done so well. Twitter is a fantastic broadcast system and should be used in your sales process for getting the messages out. LinkedIn focuses on your professionalism. So if you’re selling business to business, this is the place you need to be. It services the professional and not seen as a typical social media platform but a social networking platform. All said, together they can service industries very well depending on what your message is. You need to think content and context; whichever medium you are going to use to send your message is very important.

Let’s talk about LinkedIn for a moment. The conversion rates of individuals successfully using LinkedIn is very high. Recent figures from LinkedIn demonstrate that the success rate is three times that of other platforms. LinkedIn has some great tools that can help you capitalize your network.

Social selling. I hope many of you have heard of the phrase. Social selling is taking the forces of social media and the new buying tactics, and blending them. Taking social media channels and being able to reach out and provide information to your buyers will be key in this new era. The flip side to social selling is social buying, which your buyers are already thinking about and doing, in your marketplace.

What I want to do is give you a framework of how to think about these aspects in social selling and how you can use social media to your advantage.

To be continued…

Category: Social Business | No Comments »

Not when… but how to do social business

The data is clear: social business propels results. Fifty seven percent of companies who invest in social business outperform their peers. They see real business value, whether it’s a 25% increase in business or a 20% drop in the time it takes to manage projects.

Social business is no longer “nice to do,” it’s a necessity to survive today’s volatile business climate. According to Forrester Research, spending on social business software is expected to grow at a rate of 61 percent through 2016.

So what does a social business look like?

A social business isn’t just a company that has a Facebook page and a Twitter handle. A social business is one that embraces and cultivates a spirit of collaboration and community throughout its organization—both internally and externally.

There are three distinct characteristics of a social business:

  • Engaged—deeply connecting people, including customers, employees, and partners, to be involved in productive, efficient ways.
  • Transparent—removing boundaries to information, experts and assets, helping people align every action to drive business results.
  • Nimble—speeding up business with information and insight to anticipate and address evolving opportunities.

Social Business is about moving beyond the social media tools you’re currently familiar with to unlock the potential of the people and gain a competitive advantage. Today, by combining social networking tools—internally and externally—with sophisticated analytic capabilities, companies are transforming their business processes, building stronger relationships among their employees, customers and business partners and making better decisions, faster. This is what makes a social business—embracing networks of people to create new business value and opportunities.

What other charateristics do you think there are for a social business?

Category: Social Business | No Comments »