Sunday, June 05, 2016
Evolving with Industry Trends
In Inc. This is becoming an important skill. " ... 7 Ways to Identify and Evolve With Industry Trends ... You can keep up with and be part of the changes, or you can overlook and ignore changes and let others pass you by. ... "
Saturday, June 04, 2016
Employee Experience Equation
Interesting way to think about this. The elements of experience. ....
The Employee Experience Equation by Jacob Morgan
I’m betting BIG on the concept of the employee experience which I believe is the next evolution of HR and people related functions inside of our organizations. We are already seeing employee experience related roles and executive titles emerge and the very concept of Human Resources if morphing into something else (a topic for another post). Everything around people analytics, workplace design, compensation, engagement, well-being, etc is all tied to this concept of creating an environment where people actually want to show up, not where they need to show up. To help explain what the employee experience actually is I created the visual below which shows what I like to call The Employee Experience Equation. This is: culture + technology + physical space = employee experience. .... "
The Employee Experience Equation by Jacob Morgan
I’m betting BIG on the concept of the employee experience which I believe is the next evolution of HR and people related functions inside of our organizations. We are already seeing employee experience related roles and executive titles emerge and the very concept of Human Resources if morphing into something else (a topic for another post). Everything around people analytics, workplace design, compensation, engagement, well-being, etc is all tied to this concept of creating an environment where people actually want to show up, not where they need to show up. To help explain what the employee experience actually is I created the visual below which shows what I like to call The Employee Experience Equation. This is: culture + technology + physical space = employee experience. .... "
Achieving a Digital State of Mind
More from MiKinsey on the Digital. A Digital state of mind? As opposed to analog? A Podcast:
" .... Companies that successfully adopt digital technology don’t view it as an extra; digitization becomes central to what they are because they transform their value propositions and evolve every level of the organization so that it becomes data driven, customer obsessed, and highly agile. In this episode of the McKinsey Podcast, recorded in November 2015, principals Karel Dorner and David Edelman talk with Barr Seitz about why, decades into the digital revolution, companies are still trying to define what digital really is and struggling to make the most of it. An edited transcript of their conversation follows. ... "
" .... Companies that successfully adopt digital technology don’t view it as an extra; digitization becomes central to what they are because they transform their value propositions and evolve every level of the organization so that it becomes data driven, customer obsessed, and highly agile. In this episode of the McKinsey Podcast, recorded in November 2015, principals Karel Dorner and David Edelman talk with Barr Seitz about why, decades into the digital revolution, companies are still trying to define what digital really is and struggling to make the most of it. An edited transcript of their conversation follows. ... "
Bluemix Supports Hangout Analytics
Nice to see some now sevices in Bluemix Cloud that support real time stream analytics. This is notably of interest to applications like Retail. Updates in their blog give some detailed outlines and descriptions of analysis value. Possibility of use with Beacons, Supply chain decisions, IOT and others. Ultimately this looks at the dynamics of all sorts of geospatial data.
" ... Hangout is a concept in geospatial analysis where an entity is said to be hanging out or in a hangout if it has been dwelling in the same region for a specified period of time. Once an entity (for example, a smartphone or a vehicle) has been in a region longer than a specified dwell time, it is considered to be hanging out in that region. You can use hangout detection in a variety of mobile device and Internet of Things (IoT) scenarios, including:
Marketing: Offering real-time promotions to people who remain in a particular area for a significant period of time.
Intelligence: Are two ships passing in the night, or are they hanging out together, possibly indicating some nefarious activity?
Transportation: Has a vehicle in your fleet made its stops at the anticipated locations? ... "
" ... Hangout is a concept in geospatial analysis where an entity is said to be hanging out or in a hangout if it has been dwelling in the same region for a specified period of time. Once an entity (for example, a smartphone or a vehicle) has been in a region longer than a specified dwell time, it is considered to be hanging out in that region. You can use hangout detection in a variety of mobile device and Internet of Things (IoT) scenarios, including:
Marketing: Offering real-time promotions to people who remain in a particular area for a significant period of time.
Intelligence: Are two ships passing in the night, or are they hanging out together, possibly indicating some nefarious activity?
Transportation: Has a vehicle in your fleet made its stops at the anticipated locations? ... "
A Virtual Reality Department Store
Hardly first. What this is depends in part on the definition of VR. I have seen and even helped build virtual stores in virtual worlds and in laboratory settings. But yes, we are close to the needed hardware and software to make it a reality. But is the interface useful beyond a gimmick? eBay and Myer Launch first VR Store.
Friday, June 03, 2016
Mixed Reality in Windows Holographic Announced
Microsoft announces to 'insiders' the availability of Windows Holographic to partners. Hardware and software costs are still high for the individual. Calling it 'Mixed Reality', though I have always thought that augmented reality (AR) embodied this use definition. Don't confuse technologies by coining terms, hard enough to get management on board.
The announcement is also somewhat confusing as to how this all will be integrated with current and future operating systems. Still impressive, see their blog, which has a link to a video of a retail example. Still looking for new, different examples for its use in business. They write:
" .. We just released some exciting news about Windows Holographic – the platform included with Windows 10 – which powers the amazing mixed reality experiences available on Microsoft HoloLens.
Starting soon, Windows Holographic will be coming to devices of all shapes and sizes – from fully immersive virtual reality to fully untethered holographic computing.
Imagine wearing a VR device and seeing your physical hands as you manipulate an object, working on the scanned 3D image of a real object, or bringing the holographic representation of another person into your virtual world so you can collaborate. This is what we mean by mixed reality – where we break down the barriers between virtual and physical reality. ... "
The announcement is also somewhat confusing as to how this all will be integrated with current and future operating systems. Still impressive, see their blog, which has a link to a video of a retail example. Still looking for new, different examples for its use in business. They write:
" .. We just released some exciting news about Windows Holographic – the platform included with Windows 10 – which powers the amazing mixed reality experiences available on Microsoft HoloLens.
Starting soon, Windows Holographic will be coming to devices of all shapes and sizes – from fully immersive virtual reality to fully untethered holographic computing.
Imagine wearing a VR device and seeing your physical hands as you manipulate an object, working on the scanned 3D image of a real object, or bringing the holographic representation of another person into your virtual world so you can collaborate. This is what we mean by mixed reality – where we break down the barriers between virtual and physical reality. ... "
Wal-Mart Competing with Amazon on Delivery
Wal-Mart is starting to experiment with using Uber and Lyft services for delivery. Driectly competing with the delivery expertise of Amazon. In Mashable.
AI, Cognition and Creativity
AI, Cognition, and Creativity, talk given yesterday - by Prof Dr Kai-Uwe Kühnberger, of University of Osnabrück, Germany ... More on his research here. Slides. Recording of his presentation. presented as part of our Cognitive Systems Institute Speaker Series. Continued discussion here. Some work in progress shown is Watson based using Bluemix Cloud services. I like the fact that some of the student systems shown are being sold commercially.
A favorite topic of mine. Do we need to explicitly introduce creativity into AI systems? Or will they just parrot existing knowledge? How is creativity expressed in varying contexts, and how are creativity and risk balanced?
A favorite topic of mine. Do we need to explicitly introduce creativity into AI systems? Or will they just parrot existing knowledge? How is creativity expressed in varying contexts, and how are creativity and risk balanced?
Walmart Develops a Drone
Like this application, we examined a number for warehouse applications. Simple, cheap, readily manipulable sensors that move to check inventory. We did not considered flyable ones at the time. See also previous posts about drones on a gimbal and inside a cage to facilitate indoor use.
In the Business Insider
" ... Walmart is getting into the drone game.
Walmart's VP of Emerging Sciences Shekar Natarajan demoed the retailer's new technology to reporters from a Bentonville, Arkansas, distribution center on Thursday, on the eve of its annual shareholders meeting.
The drone technology will be replacing the jobs of inventory quality assurance employees, cutting inventory checks across massive distribution centers (the one in Bentonville is 1.2 million square feet) from one month down to a single day. ... "
In the Business Insider
" ... Walmart is getting into the drone game.
Walmart's VP of Emerging Sciences Shekar Natarajan demoed the retailer's new technology to reporters from a Bentonville, Arkansas, distribution center on Thursday, on the eve of its annual shareholders meeting.
The drone technology will be replacing the jobs of inventory quality assurance employees, cutting inventory checks across massive distribution centers (the one in Bentonville is 1.2 million square feet) from one month down to a single day. ... "
Thursday, June 02, 2016
Watson Delivers Cognitive Artificial Intelligence Ads
A new automation play in the works with a number of participants. Note also the natural language and voice interaction components. New channels of automated consumer interaction. Bots are not mentioned, but this provides an opening for more complete and compelling conversations. This could change how advertising works.
Weather Company Incorporates IBM's Watson Into New Ad Product
Bets Artificial Intelligence Will Change Advertising ... By Jeanine Poggi.
The Weather Company is placing a bet on artificial intelligence. In its first major announcement since being acquired by IBM in January, Weather Company is introducing Watson Ads, which will allow consumers to ask questions via voice and text to receive information on products or brands. ...
While there's no dearth of data available for marketers to make informed decisions about their customers and provide more relevant messaging and experiences, Watson's ability to understand natural language, reason and learn over time may allow for greater understanding of how consumers interact with brands and their perception of products.
Unilever will be one of the first advertisers to utilize Watson Ads for its Hellmanns and Country Crock brands. With Watson, consumers can ask their phone or computer for recipe ideas based on specific ingredients. .... "
Also reported on in the WSJ.
Weather Company Incorporates IBM's Watson Into New Ad Product
Bets Artificial Intelligence Will Change Advertising ... By Jeanine Poggi.
The Weather Company is placing a bet on artificial intelligence. In its first major announcement since being acquired by IBM in January, Weather Company is introducing Watson Ads, which will allow consumers to ask questions via voice and text to receive information on products or brands. ...
While there's no dearth of data available for marketers to make informed decisions about their customers and provide more relevant messaging and experiences, Watson's ability to understand natural language, reason and learn over time may allow for greater understanding of how consumers interact with brands and their perception of products.
Unilever will be one of the first advertisers to utilize Watson Ads for its Hellmanns and Country Crock brands. With Watson, consumers can ask their phone or computer for recipe ideas based on specific ingredients. .... "
Also reported on in the WSJ.
Marketing Automation Animation
Marketing automation defined in a 60 second animation. Well done, but simplistic and fairly obvious. Still a good starting point for thinking about automation. Made me thing of how to represent other 'tasks' as straightforward animations. A way to link to simlations of business process? Or simply basically describe them. A library of these?
Alteryx and Tableau Guide
Used Tableau for years in the enterprise, mostly known for data visualization. here a 'definitive guide' for using it with Alteryx, which is known for data preparation, blending and analytics. Was suggested I examine it.
" .... When you need advanced joining and manipulation, that's when Alteryx becomes useful. Let the computer do the stuff it's good at. I want to do what I'm good at: being creative. Enable the cycle of visual analytics with Tableau and Alteryx together." .....
If you are like many data analysts you spend most of your time preparing data – leaving you less time to visualize data. Download our new whitepaper and see how Alteryx enables
Fast blending of multiple, disparate data sources ... Cleansing and shaping of data sources to perfect for output ... Analyzing data with predictive and spatial analytics, no coding required
All your work is done in an intuitive drag and drop workflow that is re-useable, modifiable and outputs to a Tableau Data Extract – saving you time and letting you visualize your data faster. ... "
" .... When you need advanced joining and manipulation, that's when Alteryx becomes useful. Let the computer do the stuff it's good at. I want to do what I'm good at: being creative. Enable the cycle of visual analytics with Tableau and Alteryx together." .....
If you are like many data analysts you spend most of your time preparing data – leaving you less time to visualize data. Download our new whitepaper and see how Alteryx enables
Fast blending of multiple, disparate data sources ... Cleansing and shaping of data sources to perfect for output ... Analyzing data with predictive and spatial analytics, no coding required
All your work is done in an intuitive drag and drop workflow that is re-useable, modifiable and outputs to a Tableau Data Extract – saving you time and letting you visualize your data faster. ... "
True Omnichannel Retailing
Amazon being Omnichannel. In Retailwire. Discussion prompted by Amazon recently opening physical locations. Of course one way to look at this is the scale of the involvement. There will likely always be some physical retail, and some online. But how will these two channel types compare in scale over time? How will we adapt?
Wages and Jobs, a Future with More Robotics
Consider the interaction between, wages, jobs and getting things done. Starting to see more robotics in kiosks to replace labor in additional contexts. Implications. On the relationship.
Wednesday, June 01, 2016
A Disturbing Loss of Linkedin Security Most of You Should Still Care About
A few days ago I got a message from Linkedin. You know them, the near-monopoly of professional credential information for many millions of people? They said that they had known since 2012 that our passwords and related information had been stolen.
They then forced me to change my password. And I did. And I felt good, never thought much more about it. I was secure, and we all were. Right? And they don't sell things that can be pawned anyway.
That is, until I read my correspondent Evan Schuman's article in CW. There he lays out very exactly why it is disturbing that thieves were holding onto this information for over four years before we were told about it. And dangerous, even after we change our password. It also shows you why other aspects of controlling your passwords are more important than you think. Read his article,
And what do we do now? Move all that carefully edited information to another location? Who else has as many members? Write a letter to someone? Trust? Seems negligent at least. Pass it on.
They then forced me to change my password. And I did. And I felt good, never thought much more about it. I was secure, and we all were. Right? And they don't sell things that can be pawned anyway.
That is, until I read my correspondent Evan Schuman's article in CW. There he lays out very exactly why it is disturbing that thieves were holding onto this information for over four years before we were told about it. And dangerous, even after we change our password. It also shows you why other aspects of controlling your passwords are more important than you think. Read his article,
And what do we do now? Move all that carefully edited information to another location? Who else has as many members? Write a letter to someone? Trust? Seems negligent at least. Pass it on.
German Manufacturing Revolution
In the HBR:
" ... Germany’s automakers, auto suppliers, machinery companies, and machine tool builders have long been considered the world’s leaders in manufacturing in large part because of their ability to unlock the potential of software, sensors, networks, and electronic devices on their assembly lines. Now, they are pioneering a new phase of global digital manufacturing that will transform the key processes surrounding the manufacturing of everything from automobiles to trains, planes, machinery, and even kitchens.
By digitizing the processes that govern how a new idea is brought to production (such as R&D, product launch, and testing), sales to delivery (pricing, demand forecasting, order fulfillment), and factory maintenance (including the inventorying of spare parts), German manufacturers in the auto industry and elsewhere are already beginning to significantly improve their margins. By 2030, we estimate there is the potential for manufacturers worldwide to realize an estimated $1.4 trillion upside by taking a page from leading German manufacturers’ playbooks. ... "
" ... Germany’s automakers, auto suppliers, machinery companies, and machine tool builders have long been considered the world’s leaders in manufacturing in large part because of their ability to unlock the potential of software, sensors, networks, and electronic devices on their assembly lines. Now, they are pioneering a new phase of global digital manufacturing that will transform the key processes surrounding the manufacturing of everything from automobiles to trains, planes, machinery, and even kitchens.
By digitizing the processes that govern how a new idea is brought to production (such as R&D, product launch, and testing), sales to delivery (pricing, demand forecasting, order fulfillment), and factory maintenance (including the inventorying of spare parts), German manufacturers in the auto industry and elsewhere are already beginning to significantly improve their margins. By 2030, we estimate there is the potential for manufacturers worldwide to realize an estimated $1.4 trillion upside by taking a page from leading German manufacturers’ playbooks. ... "
Urban Intelligence
A system called Placemeter takes as input video feeds and analyzes images to determine what is going on outside your doors. Possible retail measures? Video content analysis (VCA).
" .... In its first iteration, the service, which relies on real-time video feeds, was able to quantify the overall number of objects that it saw and distinguish between pedestrians and vehicles.
Now, the service is getting significantly smarter. By default, Placemeter can now distinguish between five different objects: people, bicycles, motorcycles, cars and large vehicles (think trucks, delivery vans, etc.). ... " In TechCrunch.
" .... In its first iteration, the service, which relies on real-time video feeds, was able to quantify the overall number of objects that it saw and distinguish between pedestrians and vehicles.
Now, the service is getting significantly smarter. By default, Placemeter can now distinguish between five different objects: people, bicycles, motorcycles, cars and large vehicles (think trucks, delivery vans, etc.). ... " In TechCrunch.
IOT Failure Prediction
Attended this webinar of interest, with a largely nontechnical approach, other parts will follow: " Industrial IoT and Failure Prediction on event signals | Part 1 " featuring Adurthi Ashwin Swarup, Senior Data Scientist, DataRPM.
Here's the replay link.
Here's the replay link.
Helping Humans Work Better with Smart Machines
Useful thoughts, because we will have to deal with increasingly smarter machines.
How to Help Humans work Better with Smart Machines
by Thomas H Davenport,
It’s pretty clear that smart machines—computers and robots that can digest information, make recommendations and decisions, and take informed actions—are going to be a significant factor in the workplace of the future. In some areas, like insurance underwriting, credit decisions, and financial trading, they’re already in wide use. In other areas such as medical diagnosis and treatment, document analysis in commercial litigation, and digital marketing, they’re taking hold rapidly.
But the prospect of a lonely intelligent machine in a lights-out office is not very likely. Smart machines take over individual tasks rather than entire jobs. We humans will be working alongside them for the foreseeable future. Leaders, then, need to prepare their employees and organizations to collaborate effectively with cognitive technologies. ... "
How to Help Humans work Better with Smart Machines
by Thomas H Davenport,
It’s pretty clear that smart machines—computers and robots that can digest information, make recommendations and decisions, and take informed actions—are going to be a significant factor in the workplace of the future. In some areas, like insurance underwriting, credit decisions, and financial trading, they’re already in wide use. In other areas such as medical diagnosis and treatment, document analysis in commercial litigation, and digital marketing, they’re taking hold rapidly.
But the prospect of a lonely intelligent machine in a lights-out office is not very likely. Smart machines take over individual tasks rather than entire jobs. We humans will be working alongside them for the foreseeable future. Leaders, then, need to prepare their employees and organizations to collaborate effectively with cognitive technologies. ... "
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Curriculum for Cognitive Science
Fascinating new discussion I am participating in is underway. Follow along. Will pass along excerpts here.
A New “Science of Cognitive Computing” Curriculum
Posted by Jim Spohrer ...
Currently, I am working on a new “science of cognitive computing” curriculum for IBM with our partner universities and others to allow people of all ages to design, build, understand, and work with cognitive mediators. The curriculum is inspired in part by the work of Douglas Engelbart, an American engineer and inventor, and an early computer and Internet pioneer, who urged us to work quickly to augment human intellect to address complex, urgent problems.
Initially, we plan to use the curriculum to show people how to design and build cognitive mediators that augment their personal and professional memories and suggest profitable connections and conversations between people – a type of relationship-oriented computing. Later, we plan to use the curriculum to help people understand how intelligence (capabilities to perform useful tasks) develops in people and machines using specific data sets and learning algorithms, both unsupervised (evolution) and supervised (culture) algorithms. Finally, we plan to use the curriculum to help people explore how best to work with their cognitive mediators, individually and collectively. ... "
A New “Science of Cognitive Computing” Curriculum
Posted by Jim Spohrer ...
Currently, I am working on a new “science of cognitive computing” curriculum for IBM with our partner universities and others to allow people of all ages to design, build, understand, and work with cognitive mediators. The curriculum is inspired in part by the work of Douglas Engelbart, an American engineer and inventor, and an early computer and Internet pioneer, who urged us to work quickly to augment human intellect to address complex, urgent problems.
Initially, we plan to use the curriculum to show people how to design and build cognitive mediators that augment their personal and professional memories and suggest profitable connections and conversations between people – a type of relationship-oriented computing. Later, we plan to use the curriculum to help people understand how intelligence (capabilities to perform useful tasks) develops in people and machines using specific data sets and learning algorithms, both unsupervised (evolution) and supervised (culture) algorithms. Finally, we plan to use the curriculum to help people explore how best to work with their cognitive mediators, individually and collectively. ... "
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