In the ever-evolving world of software development companies strive to deliver the best possible user experience to ensure that products meet the needs and expectations of customers. One of the most valuable tools that businesses can employ to reliably satisfy customer needs is A/B testing. A/B testing, also known as split testing, is a powerful […]
Category: Learning
Dave Balter, CEO of social marketing company BzzAgent, argues that: “Most highly successful leaders really aren’t the smartest people in any room. Rather, they have something that sets them apart. That something is sponge and stone …” According to Balter, a sponge is someone who tirelessly seeks out and absorbs new information. They read voraciously. […]
The business world of the 21st century has grown and advanced so fast, that it is difficult to run a company without business intelligence to assess where one stands against the competition. Business intelligence aids companies by collecting the unstructured raw data from their transactions and transforming it into information which enables the company to […]
There is always another skill to learn or article to read, yet there is often limited time and attention to devote to these activities. If you are short on time and looking to upskill here are some tips. Drawing on your past experiences If you are less than a year away from applying for jobs […]
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Creativity
I was going to post a single quote for creativity but, in keeping with the nature of the word itself, there appear to be multiple different views on what creativity actually is. Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, has described creativity as the freedom to fail and try again. “Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which […]
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Should you do a PhD?
I had coffee in early June with Chris McKenna, Associate Professor at Oxford’s Said Business School. When I say we “had coffee”, we didn’t actually drink coffee, but I had offered to buy Chris one as I thought it might give him a reason to meet with me. Chris’s area of expertise is strategy and business history, and he is also Director […]
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News or Noise
IF you are like most hard working professionals, then you probably make a habit of reading the news each day. The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Sydney Morning Herald. The Wall Street Journal, the FT or The Economist. There are many titles to choose from. You scan the headlines for an interesting story and then […]
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The Paradox of Our Age
“The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time; we have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but […]
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You Don’t Have to be Interesting
You just have to be interested Interested in other people. Interested in what you can do for them. Interested in improving your approach. Interested in finding a new way forward. Interested in what’s next.
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5 Ways to Foster Learning
Learning is a natural process, but management still has a role to play (Source: Flickr) FOLLOWING on from our post on learning from experience, in which we discovered that learning by doing is a natural process, we are finally delivering what we promised – a post which explores some ways that management can help. Learning may […]
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Humility
Subtitle: Get over yourself. Great business ideas are usually created by others. Are you ready to receive them? (Source: Flickr) IF you counsel a young child (or grown adult) on the merits of humility, we will not raise an eyebrow. Humility is an admirable quality and has an endearing appeal, much like a puppy dog or a baby in a bassinet. We approve, and quickly […]
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Learning From Experience
A natural and unstructured process that results from doing the work LAST week we looked at the value of breaking with experience, which followed on nicely from our initial article on the Experience Curve. This week we focus on learning from experience. What does it mean to learn from experience? And what role does management have to […]
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Breaking with Experience
Innovation involves breaking with the past to create something even more remarkable (Source: Flickr) THE traditional Experience Curve focuses on increasing production experience which leads to predictable cost reductions. This kind of experience is relevant in industries that are relatively stable, competitive, and production-intensive. (Source: Wikipedia) But what about high tech and creative industries where the lifecycle […]
THE wonderful thing about humans is our ability to move through time and space, without going anywhere at all. The ability to think about the past allows us to reflect on experiences, our own or those of others, and to learn from them. Your author used to wonder at length during his high school history classes about the […]
The Experience Curve captures the relationship between increasing production experience and declining costs (Source: Flickr) Background The Learning Curve, the concept which predates the Experience Curve, was first described by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus in 1885 as part of his studies into human memory. In 1936, T.P. Wright described the effect of learning on production […]
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Pushing The Boundary
Are you excited, nervous or a little bit scared? Your comfort zone, as the name suggests, is a comfortable place. It feels safe and secure to be there, because you’ve been there many times before. Nothing unexpected is likely to happen. Nothing you haven’t seen before. And certainly nothing out of the ordinary. But ordinary […]
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Learning From Your Mistakes
Are you? THE scientific method is a formal way of investigating the world by testing your guess about a certain situation, correcting your mistakes, and thereby improving your understanding of the world. If something doesn’t work out for you, do you get angry? Or do you ask yourself, “what went wrong in this experiment?” Learn, grow […]