Cia | Bertrand Duperrin's Notepad

Enterprise 2.0 is not (only) about young people

When people discuss enterprise 2.0 things often shift to Generation Y for whom new tools and practices are a part of their DNA. But I don’t think we have to consider enterprise 2.0 is about those young people and that older ones are barrier to change.

My experience tends to prove it : leaders we can see emerging within companies share a lot of common points…but not their age.

We can see people aged 40 or 50 really embracing the phenomenon and Gen Yers staying in the starting blocks. The contrary is sometimes true too. But as this computerworld study says, generational barrier is a myth. It seems confirmed by the fact the most active member on the CIA’s Intellipedia platform is more than 60.

There are many differences between generations, but not always those we think. [Read more...]

Do (some) managers sabotage their organization ?

Two people from the CIA gave a talk during last Enteprise 2.0 conference. They cited a 1944 manual which was about sabotage a business from the inside :

(1) Insist on doing everything through “channels.” Never permit short-cuts to be taken in order to expedite decisions.
(2) Make “speeches.” Talk as frequently as possible and at great length. Illustrate your “points” by long anecdotes and accounts of personal experiences. Never hesitate to make a few appropriate “patriotic” comments.
(3) When possible, refer all matters to committees, for “further study and consideration.” Attempt to make the committees as large as possible — never less than five.
(4) Bring up irrelevant issues as frequently as possible.
(5) Haggle over precise wordings of communications, minutes, resolutions.
(6) Refer back to matters decided upon at the last meeting and attempt to re-open the question of the advisability of that decision.
(7) Advocate “caution.” Be “reasonable” and urge your fellow-conferees to be “reasonable” and avoid haste which might result in embarrassments or difficulties later on.
(8) Be worried about the propriety of any decision — raise the question of whether such action as is contemplated lies within the juris diction of the group or whether it might conflict with the policy of some higher echelon.

Hum…have you ever seen such behaviors within any enterprise ?