The uncertain future of work and jobs.
Hemmingway observed in 'The sun also rises' that 'the future comes slowly, then all at once'. He has been proven right many times. Since the release in November last year, ChatGPT has proven the future of AI is here, all at once. That reality leads to...
5 Myths of referral marketing busted.
Few would disagree that the very best way to find a new customer, to build a business, is to have existing happy customers refer you to their networks. Even anonymous referrals are better than nothing. How often have you looked up a service provider on...
The ‘3 C’s and E’ method of selecting the best employees.
Lifelong employment is a thing of the past, casualisation, remote work, and the gig economy have consigned that idea to the dustbin of history. It seems to me that there should be a revision to the way we seek to employ people, on whatever basis that...
The elusive formula for winning and managing government grants.
There is considerable grant money being allocated to innovative solutions to technical and market challenges by all levels of government. Such a honey-pot attracts all sorts of characters with a whole range of motivations, along with the genuine applicants...
Bing takes a sniff of (AI enhanced) Columbian marching powder.
Bing and its sibling 'Edge' have been coming third in a one-horse race for a long time now. Suddenly the emergence of the AI equivalent of a plutonium battery powered race whip in the form of ChatGPT has delivered a proper kick up the arse. The world has...
The misleading myth of work/life balance.
The term work/life balance seems to have been taken into our commonly used language. It pops up everywhere there is a discussion about stress, personal development, post covid back to work, and many others. To me it is a deeply flawed metaphor. The term...
How will Google respond to the existential threat of AI powered search?
Never have I seen a more definitive example of Clayton Christianson's 'innovators Dilemma' than what is being played out right now, in front of our eyes. In summary, the dilemma is that dominating incumbent businesses are loathe to change the model that made...
The current parlous state of the Australian food industry.
We all need to eat, but we seem to take for granted the access to processed and fresh food and groceries. To consider the 'food industry' as one entity ignores the entirely different strategic drivers of the three main components: Raw material production or...
Are we blinded by fear of the past?
Every individual and group on the planet has in their heads a set of parameters built by the personal experiences they have had, and those that are passed on by the parents, grandparents, all antecedents, and their social circles. The formulation of strategy...
Same challenge, two strategically opposite responses.
Woolworths last week announced they would close 250 of their current 300 in store butcher shops. Clearly, centralisation and opacity of the supply chain that serves customers via Woolworths is geared to the lowest common denominator, price. At the other end of...