Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Think (Mayer-Schonberger 2013)

Viktor Mayer-Schonberger is Professor of Internet Governance and Regulation at the Oxford Internet Institute, Oxford University.  Kenneth Cukier is the co-author, and is the Data Editor of the Economist.

Big Data is a term coined by scientists working in the areas of astronomy and genomics.  It refers to the collection and analysis of large quantities of data that may be combined in different ways for different purposes.  One of the primary differentiating characteristic of Big Data Analysis is that it is not used to determine causality, but only correlations.  However, because Big Data uses a data pool that approaches the full corpus rather than a representative sample, it has great value for decision-making.

The authors note that statistical practices that require pristine data and stringent controls were developed because of the scarcity of data in the past.  These procedures were created to allow the investigators to draw conclusions based on small samples of data and then to extrapolate them to the total data set, or corpus.  Since Big Data uses almost the entire corpus in its analysis, it does not require the data to be cleansed and controlled.  This saves both time and money.

The authors provide examples of ways that Big Data has been used to improve health and safety as well as marketing and business practices.  They also examine the dangers that Big Data presents with respect to privacy and personal freedom.  They suggest strategies to protect against the misuse of Big Data.

True North - Bill George (2007)

Bill George is a professor of management practice at the Harvard Business School.  Previously, he was the CEO of Medtronics, the leading medical technology company in the world.

True North deals with Authentic Leadership.  According to the author, the Authentic Leader integrates Purpose, Values, Relationships, Self-Discipline and Heart.  George uses the metaphor of a compass pointing to True North with "Self-Awareness" at its center and its anchor points being "Motivation," "Support Team," "Integrated Life," and "Values and Principles."

George sees a tremendous vacuum in leadership today in all facets of society, which he believes is due to the notion that leadership only occurs at the top of an organization.  George contends that true leadership can and should occur at all levels and that there are many very capable leaders at every level of an organization.  In fact, the key to a successful organization, the author states, is to have leaders at every level, even those with no direct supervisory responsibility.

George describes the "Journey to Authentic Leadership" as having three distinct phases.  The first thirty years he calls "Preparing for Leadership."  This is comprised for education, studying, extracurricular activities and early work experiences.  The second thirty years (30-60) is the "Leading" phase.  The final phase is "Giving Back" when leaders share their knowledge and wisdom with others in many different organizations, while continuing to actively pursue their own learning.

The author describes five types of leaders who lose sight of their True North.  They are:

1. Glory Seekers - motivated by the acclaim of others.
2. Imposters - who lack self-awareness and self-esteem.
3. Rationalizers - who deviate from their values and attempt to justify doing so.
4. Loners - who fail to build personal support structures
5. Shooting Stars - who lack the grounding of an integrated life.

Quote: "The role of leaders is not to get others to follow them but to empower others to lead."
Quote: "Leadership principles are values translated into action."
Quote: "No one achieves anything brilliant by mitigating their weaknesses." - Alice Woodwark (Consultant at McKinsey).

George also describes six Leadership Styles:

1. Directive Leaders - demand compliance and obedience with rules.
2. Engaged Leaders - mobilize people around shared purpose and values.
3. Coaching Leaders - develop people for leadership roles.
4. Consensus Leders - Build agreement through participation.
5. Affiliative Leaders - Create emotional bonds and harmony.
6. Expert Leaders - Expect competence and self-direction.

The Particle at the End of the Universe (Sean Carroll, 2012)

Sean Carroll is theoretical physicist at the Cal Tech.  He has written several books both for popular audiences and scientists.  The Particle at the End of the Universe refers to the Higgs Boson that researchers believe they discovered at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Geneva, Switzerland on July 4, 2012.  In his latest book Carroll describes not only how the discovery was made but why it is important.

Carroll shares that he played no role in the experiments at the LHC, but that he based the book on his knowledge of the project and interviews with the project leaders.  The Particle at the End of the Universe was written for a general audience of people with an interest, but not necessarily a level of expertise in physics or science in general.

In addition to explaining the significance of the Higgs Boson, Carroll provides an understandable explanation of elementary particles and how they interact.  He explains complex concepts such as fields, symmetry and spontaneous symmetry-breaking in terms that are understandable to the lay person.

After reading numerous books on particle physics, I found The Particle at the End of the Universe to be particularly easy to read and understand.  The analogies that Carroll used to explain symmetry and symmetry breaking were particularly helpful.  His explanations of the various particle types were also among the most understandable that I have read.

Leading Change - John Kotter (2012)

Leading Change was first published in 1996 and quickly became a best seller.  The 2012 edition included a new preface where the author highlighted how the need for agile and change-oriented organizations is even more essential today.  Kotter noted that the ability to lead change was needed at every level within an organization, not just at top management.

Kotter began by identifying eight mistakes that change leaders often make.  These mistakes can lead to disappointing results, if not absolute failure.  The mistakes include:

1.  Allowing too much complacency.

2.  Failure to establish a sufficiently powerful guiding coalition.

3.  Underestimating the power of vision.

4.  Under communicating the vision.

5.  Permitting obstacles to block the new vision.

6.  Failing to create short-term wins.

7.  Declaring victory too soon.

8.  Neglecting to anchor change firmly in the corporate culture.

Some of the consequences of these mistakes can lead to:

1.  New strategies not being implemented well.

2.  Acquisitions not achieving expected synergies.

3.  Re-engineering taking too long and costing too much.

4.  Downsizing not getting costs under control.

5.  Quality programs not delivering hoped for results.

Kotter distinguished Management and Leadership.  

Management: "a set of processes that can keep a complicated system of people and technology running smoothly."

Leadership: "a set of processes that creates organization in the first place or adapts them to significantly changing circumstances."

Quote: "Inwardly focused employees can have difficulty seeing the very forces that present threats and opportunities."

The Eight Step Process

1.  Establishing a sense of urgency.  Fight complacency while avoiding panic.

2.  Creating the guiding coalition.  Must have members with real power.

3.  Developing a vision and strategy. Needs to be simple and jargon-free.

4.  Communicating the change vision.  Repetitive.

5.  Empowering employees for broad-based action.  Simply stating that they are empowered is not sufficient.  They must be prepared.

6.  Generating short-term wins.  Visible, unambiguous and clearly related to the change effort.  Note: People do not plan adequately for these wins because they are overwhelmed.

7.  Consolidating gains and producing more change.

8.  Anchoring new approaches in the culture. This comes at the end of a transformation, not at the beginning.

Higgs Discovery: The Power of Empty Space - Randall (2013)

Lisa Randall is the Frank J. Baird Jr. Professor of Science at Harvard University.  Randall studies theoretical physics and cosmology and is considered one of the most cited and highly influential theoretical physicists in the field today.

Higgs Discovery is a short eBook that Randall wrote immediately following the discovery of the Higgs Boson on July 4, 2012.  The first part of the book describes the study being conducted by Cern at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), which spans the border between France and Switzerland.  Randall has written two previous books about the search for the Higgs Boson at the LHC.  The Higgs Discovery includes a chapter from each of those books that focused on the significance of the Higgs and why it was important to verify what was, up until July 4, 2012, and accepted, but theoretical construct.

At the time of Randall's writing, the discovery had not been confirmed as the actual Higgs particle.   This did not happen until September 12, 2012.  None-the-less, the experiment had definitely discovered a new particle and the news caused a great deal of excitement not just in the scientific community, but also among the general public.

The Higgs Boson confirmed the existence of the Higgs Mechanism, which has long been thought as the way that subatomic particles acquire mass.  The discovery of the Higgs Boson provided evidence for the first time that such a process did indeed exist.  While not the sole focus of the experiments being conducted at the LHC, finding the elusive Higgs was definitely the Marque investigation.

11 Rules for Creating Value in the Social Era - Merchant (2012)

Nilofer Merchant has served as a CEO and then a board member of a NASDAQ-traded company.  She has also consulted with numerous Fortune 500 companies including HP, Nokia, Adobe, Symantec and Yahoo!  She is a frequent contributor to the Harvard Business Review and has written a previous book entitled, The New How: Creating Business Solutions Through Collaborative Strategy.  She lectures on innovation and marketing at Stanford University.

11 Rules begins with an obituary for "Traditional Strategy."  This clever personification of the business model taught in business schools throughout the nation prizes marketing data, stability, control and scale.  The Traditional Strategy decides what it wants to produce and then sets about convincing the consumer that they want or need it.

Merchant contends that we have moved into a new "Social Era" where consumers expect to be co-creators of products. They require businesses to be agile and responsive to their wants and needs.  Businesses run using the Traditional Strategy are ill-equipped to meet these new demands.

Merchant states that "the Social Era is about connecting things, people and ideas." Hierarchical controls, large inventories and huge payrolls, typical of successful companies using the Traditional Strategy, serve as barriers to success in this new era.

As in much of the literature on motivation and innovation today, Merchant stresses the need to establish shared purpose among workers.   She states that purpose is a much more powerful motivator than money.  When shared purpose is coupled with shared power, people will self-organize to reach a goal.

The Rules

1. Connections create value.
2. Power in community.
3. Collaboration > controle.
4. Celebrate Onlyness.
5. Allow all talent.
6. Consumers become co-creators.
7. Mistakes can build trust.
8. Learn. Unlearn. (Repeat).
9. Bank on openess.
10. Social purpose unleashes ownership.
11. There are no answers.

How Will You Measure Your Life - Christensen (2012)

Clayton Christensen co-authored this book with James Allworth, an Australian student attending the Harvard Business School and Karen Dillon, the former editor of the Harvard Business Review.

Christensen, widely recognized as a leader in the study of innovative business practices, has published numerous books on disruptive innovation in the marketplace.  "How Will You Measure Your Life?" grew out of a commencement speech that Christensen gave at Harvard in 2010.  Christensen delivered the address after suffering a heart attack and being diagnosed with the same cancer that had killed his father.   As Christensen embarked on writing "How Will You Measure Your Life?" he experienced a stroke that effected his expressive language.  With the help of his family and co-authors, he persisted and the book was published in May 2012.

In "How Will You Measure Your Life?" Christensen goes beyond the world of business and demonstrates how the same systems that one uses to make good decisions in business can be applied to even more important decisions in life.  The author describes how many of his fellow Harvard Business School graduates went on to highly successful lives.  Yet, many saw their personal lives crumble around them.  In some cases such as Jeffrey Skilling, CEO of Enron, they even ended up in jail.  As the name implies, "How Will You Measure Your Life?" focuses on how to live an ethical, as well as a successful, life.

Christensen reviews his theory of disruptive innovation.  He provides several interesting anecdotes including one where he was invited to address the secretary of defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff as they struggled to learn how to deal with an entirely different type of enemy.  As "market leader," the US Armed Forces understood how to fight large successful military establishments such as the Soviet Union.  Today, however, they must deal with a completely different type of foe that has mastered new military tactics "down market."

Christensen cautioned against the common misinterpretation by business leaders who confuse incentives with motivators.  He described the work of Frederick Hertzberg who developed the "Two-factor Theory" of motivation consisting of "Hygiene Factors" and "Motivators."  Hygiene Factors are things, such as compensation, supervisory practices and company policies that can cause dissatisfaction.  They do not, however, motivate.  Motivators are intrinsic factors that relate to the work itself.  Christensen highlights the paradox that it is possible to love your job and hate it at the same time.

Christensen also discusses the need for empathy in determining what customers truly need.  He observes that many companies "improve" products with no particular effect on sales.  This is because they guess at what the customer needs.  Careful observation, however, often reveals a completely different need that manufacturers never even considered.

Rather than focus on the product, Christensen recommends trying to determine what "job" the customer is is actually "hiring" the product to accomplish.  At this point, the author turns his attention to schools.  To educators and other adults, schools are a job that students must get done.  From the student's perspective, however, school is not the job, but rather the tool to get the job done.  Students want schools to make them feel successful and to help them make friends.  Christensen contends that most schools fail miserably at these tasks.  He further laments that school reformers generally focus on dimensions that are totally irrelevant to the student.

Why is it so difficult for large, successful corporations to innovate?  Christensen contends that it is due to the well accepted business theory of marginal vs. full costs.  As companies look at doing something completely new, they see the full costs, which lowers margins.  If they attempt to simply leverage what they already have, they do not include the full cost into their calculations, which makes incremental change more attractive.  Unfortunately, the resources that they are leveraging are generally ill-equipped or even unwilling to make the necessary changes that true innovation requires.

Christensen warns, "Thinking on a marginal basis can be very very dangerous."