Saturday, June 25, 2011

Blue Ocean Strategy ( Chapter 7 ) Overcome Key Organizational Hurdles – iPad

In this chapter, Professor W. Chan Kim sums up the hurdles for the company from red oceans to blue oceans. He develops the Tipping Point Leadership to overcome those hurdles. Usually, the 4 organizational hurdles to strategy execution are:

1) Cognitive: waking employees up to the need for a strategic shift.

2) Limited resources

3) Motivation: How to lead the employees to move fast and tenaciously to carry out a break from the status quo?

4) Politics: Opposition from powerful vested interests

Professor W. Chan Kim introduces Tipping Point Leadership which allows you how to triumph over those hurdles. This leadership skill can attenuate the organizational risk, moving fast at low cost, providing a break for the winning employees from the status quo.

The first iPhone was unveiled by Apple CEO Steve Jobs on 9^th Jan 2007. The iPhone can function as video camera, camera phone, can send texts and receive visual voicemail, a portable media player, an internet device and games player etc. The MacBook Air is a portable Macintosh notebook computer. The first MacBook Air was a 13.3’ model. It is promoted as the World’s thinnest Notebook. The first introduction of MacBook Air was on 15^th Jan 2008.

These 2 electronic devices are selling successfully in the world. However, Steve Jobs finds out quite a lot of people would like to read eBook in subway. There is a tremendously need of eBook reader which can allow people to read eBook with large screen, ease to carry and energy saver. Amazon released the Kindel First Generation on 19^th Nov 2007. The selling price was US$399 and was sold out in five and a half hours. The device remained out of stock for five months until late April 2008. This news bring the CEO in Apple to invent a device which can be functioned more powerful than iPhone, MacBook Air and Amazon Kindle.

Quite a lot of managers would like to introduce a new idea to change the existing selling method, product or service in the organization. However, the top level of managers won’t have enough knowledge and experience to accept those ideas. Meanwhile, the managers should implement the tipping point leadership to overcome those hurdles. First of all, they should research the data from the disgruntled customers. Sum up all the complaints from them and study the existing problems.

Then write up a report to the organization and bring out a need for a strategic shift and a break from the status quo. The report should include the strategy canvas of transit. This strategy canvas graph can indicate the disproportionate influence with the new strategic plan.

Lacking in resources can be a very big hurdle in the new idea. The resource can be manpower, capital and facilities. Professor W. Chan Kim suggests the managers should find out the hot spots and cold spots in the organization. Hot spots are activities that have low resource input but high potential performance gains. Cold spots are the activities that have high resource input but low potential performance. The management level should relocate the resource and focus on hot spots rather and eliminate the cold spots. For instance, iPod is the device which is cold spot in developing this product. Therefore, Steve Jobs relocates the resources in developing the iPad and iPhone. Another way to cut the cost in executing the new idea, horse trading is very common in use within the Tipping Point Leadership. For example, free store warehouse in an organization can be traded with other vendors for electronic components.

Several ways to motivate the employees in the organization. Professor W Chan Kim introduces the Kingpins and fishbowl management in human resources. Kingpins are the people inside the organization who are natural leaders, who are well respected and persuasive, or who have an ability to unlock or block access to key resources. In Apple, Steve Jobs is the Kingpin who deliver speech to the audience and employees. He influences the smart phone users in the world. Once he is back to his management position from hospital, he leads his creative team, product design team and product development team in Apple in effective way. Successful leaders should carry out transparency, inclusion and fair process in production. They can set clear expectation in performance from everyone. In Apple company, all the employees are placed in particular department. Each department should respond in particular production. Even in Apple store, all the members are having their clear duty role. Atomization is used to make sure everyone in the company are working under the specific department to deliver their capabilities in each section respectively.

Execute the blue oceans strategy is challenging conventional wisdom. Tipping Point Leadership brings out the disproportionate influence on performance to achieve a strategic shift fast at low cost. It can brings out the political hurdle. The managers should find out the angels, devils and consigliere. Once the managers find out the consigliere who can spot all the landmines in the office. Then cooperate with the one who align to your idea and fight against the detractors with irrefutable facts and reason.

Apple iPad: Steve Jobs Keynote Jan 27 2010 Part 1

Apple iPad 2 official Demo and Presentation

Apple - iPad 2 TV Ad - Now

Apple - iPad in Business - Profiles - Hyatt Hotels & Resorts

Apple education learning with ipad us

Adult Education Blogs - BlogCatalog Blog Directory

Saturday, January 8, 2011

Winning ( Chapter 16 ) The Right Job - Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple

Coming to this chapter, everyone who lefts college will enter the real society. Some person can work for one job or industry for his whole life. Others will change several job natures according to his / her career path. Usually, successfully persons really understand their own gift or talent; they can choose their right job in the early twenties. Jack Welch lists out several criteria in choosing the correct job. May be you can take notes for these points.

1) A word about pay: If you need to survive, the amount of wages reaches the top of the list.

2) People: If you find everyone in your team can reach consensus and you can learn from each other. This can be an ideal job for you.

3) Opportunity: A firm can be a new college for you where you can learn, stretching, growing and keep moving forward.

4) Options: A good job can be acting as a stepping stone which you can jump to another firm with better offer in a few years later. A good job can be working in a large firm with good reputation or working in a growing firm with plenty of experience which you can gain. This experience can fulfill your resume and waiting for head hunters.

5) Ownership: You should work in a firm for reaching your own dream rather than working in a firm for reaching someone’s dream.

6) Work content: Every job has bad days and good days. You can find something about it which is love and feeling. If you can’t find any pieces of feeling and love motion. This is not your right job or industry.

Steve Jobs, the chief executive officer of Apple. He also previously served as chief executive of Pixar Animation Studios. He carried a speech in Stanford University in 2005. The speech was about his life and career. It was divided into 3 parts.

The first story was he started in college at 17 years old. He had no idea about his career life with his degree. He dropped out the college life and decided to take a calligraphy class. The lessons were about serif and san serif typefaces. 10 years later, he added this value into the first Macintosh computer. He encouraged the students to learn the subject with great interest which can connect in your future.

The second story is about love and loss. In his 30s, Apple fired him and replaced his position with a young talent. In the first year, he was devastating. He still loved his work and he started the computer animated studios which were Next and Pixar. The most successful animation film Toy Story was created remarkable events and Apple bough Next and he returned to Apple. The period of jobless was the hardest time in his life. However, it was the medicine which he needed. He won’t give up. He convinced himself he loved his job, life and the people around him. He met his wife in his animated studio. He recommended everyone to find the job which you love and stay there.

My third story is about death. A few years ago, he was diagnosed with cancer. The report was he only had 6 months to live. He prepared his affairs in order and decided to stay with his family till the end. One day, the doctor collected the cells from the tumor and evaluated that this type of cancer could be curable.

Everyone will die in one day and don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.

He recommended the students stay hungry, stay foolish. Keep learning and keep dreaming.

In the end of this chapter, Jack Welch reports the similar concepts from Steve Jobs. He recommends the readers to find their first real job. The job which you love the people in there and the idea and concept of the job nature; you should be true and realistic to present to everyone in the working area. It is difficult to act someone to work in there. If you decide to leave, please find a job first rather than leaving your position instantly. Since, it is easier to get a job rather than you are jobless. If you are jobless, you need to show the self esteem in any job interview. Don’t let present yourself with a swagger. You need to project realism and optimism. As a result, the boss wants to hire the prospective employees.