What is “the Thinking Organization?”

All organizations think. They make decisions, learn and focus. However, I use the term “thinking organizations” to refer to organizations with a conscious and systematic awareness of the thinking process as distinct from the more widespread appreciation of the end products. Id est, most companies readily acknowledge the importance of good decisions, but fewer examine Continue Reading...
If you’re like many small companies, you don’t have a designated Chief Information Officer(CIO.)  But that shouldn’t stop you from taking a strategic approach to information. According to The New Voice of the CIO, a recent study from IBM, this involves: Making innovation real:  You need both insightful vision and able pragmatism to explore what technology Continue Reading...
Web 1.0 was about learning.  Web 2.0 is about thinking. It’s no longer enough to build a website where prospects can learn about your products. The thinking strategist now provides resources that help prospects think about their needs in a context that nourishes their appreciation of the company’s unique value proposition. It’s no longer enoughto Continue Reading...
The iPad and other tablet computers will fundamentally change the nature of education research, content and delivery because there has never been such an overlap between users and developers. Many of the high school, college and other students who’ll be using a tablet computer to engage their course content are innovative and adept programmers who’ll Continue Reading...

Using Social Media in Education

Social Media is a learning tool, a course of study, a source of new revenues and a way to enhance marketing, admissions, retention and career placement. It also offers significant competitive advantage to educational organizations because of its proven appeal to your customers, the lack of products being offered them and a substantial body of Continue Reading...
In his book “Thinking and Deciding,” Jonathan Baron describes three types of thinking: “We think when we are in doubt about how to act, what to believe, or what to desire.” In-the-workflow thinking, the first type, makes the decisions people are facing in their every day work life and above-the-workflow thinking, the second and third Continue Reading...
Wave is both a great way for a group to record what it’s learning and an incredibly powerful learning environment.  This combination holds two profound and profitable promises for the face to face event industry: As a learning record, it will allow the Event Industry to fully embrace the outcomes focus of modern business and Continue Reading...
Google Wave is an exciting new collaborative tool and in their suggestions about how it could be used, organizing events is first on Google’s list. I think Wave and Twitter will combine to transform event marketing by taking social media to the next level because Wave finally gives people an essentially social media subject about which Continue Reading...

Strategic Social Media Community Management

In their recent article “Social media:  The new hybrid element of the promotion mix” , W Glynn Mangold and David Faulds give some tips for using social media as part of an organization’s integrated marketing communications strategy.  What I found most interesting was their conclusion that although we can’t control the discussions on the social web, Continue Reading...
Isn’t it time to get rid of sales funnel thinking?  Consider all the ways it’s inconsistent with the ethos of Social Media: It emphasizes the company’s perspective, not the customer’s, Funnels are for homogenous liquids.  Customers are all different, Stickiness is anathema to funnels, yet essential to Social Media, The customer isn’t even visible, No Continue Reading...