Digital Transformation and Leadership

Tone at the Top meets Machine-Driven Mindfulness

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 18:39:36 GMT

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In every organization, there are things left unsaid, undone, unnoticed. A meeting adjourns before the dissenting voice speaks. A dataset excludes edge cases that don’t “fit.” A customer journey ends abruptly because someone didn’t call back.

These aren’t random gaps. They’re systemic part of what we might call the organizational unconscious. Like the human mind, companies operate not only through deliberate strategy and conscious decision-making but also through reflex, habit, and blind spots. And while we’ve trained artificial intelligence to analyze our conscious patterns—spending trends, marketing conversion, churn—we’ve yet to permit it to look into what’s missing.

What if we did?

What if AI wasn’t just a mirror to our actions but a searchlight into our omissions?

AI as the new frontier: training AI to map the algorithmic unconscious—to find not what is, but what isn’t.

The Shadow Beneath Strategy

Traditional AI systems are exceptional at pattern recognition. Feed them data, and they’ll find trends. But the real innovation lies in noticing the absence of data itself: the customer segments we’ve never reached, the complaints that never made it to support, the internal feedback loops that quietly broke under the weight of old processes.

It’s easy to miss the invisible.

In cognitive psychology, this is known as inattentional blindness. We don’t see what we’re not looking for—even if it’s right in front of us. Organizations suffer from this same affliction. Leaders lean on dashboards and quarterly reports, believing the numbers tell the whole story. But beneath every KPI is a hidden stratum of skipped steps, avoided conversations, and brushed-aside ideas. These form the company’s blind spots—where risk, inefficiency, and cultural drift quietly accumulate.

AI, when trained correctly, can become the eyes that never blink in the dark.

Building the Algorithmic Unconscious

To train AI on what’s missing, we first need to reframe how we think about data.

Instead of treating absence as an error, we treat it as signal. We build models not just to evaluate what was recorded, but to ask: What should have been here? For instance:

In sales, which warm leads inexplicably dropped off with no follow-up?
In hiring, which candidate profiles are consistently filtered out before interview stages—and why?
In product development, which user suggestions never made it into backlog grooming sessions?
In compliance, which recurring issues seem “low risk” but haven’t been addressed in years?

We can train natural language models to flag passive language, omissions in tone, or critical information never mentioned. Sequence models can highlight broken patterns, such as high-performing employees never being recommended for promotion or product features requested but never being built despite repeated user input.

This is not about adding more data. It’s about listening more closely to silence.

From Insight to Self-Awareness

If “tone at the top” defines the ethical and cultural frequency of an organization, then the algorithmic unconscious tunes us to what lies just outside that frequency—what leaders aren’t seeing, saying, or supporting.

Here’s where the metaphysical becomes practical.

In Jungian terms, every organization has a shadow—the parts of itself it chooses not to look at. Often, these are the very dynamics that later surface as crisis: loss of talent, brand erosion, missed market shifts.

The goal isn’t to eliminate the shadow. It’s to illuminate it—to integrate the unconscious into the conscious. A well-trained AI takes this on: not to prescribe action, but to serve as a dispassionate observer of silence, surfacing the patterns of neglect with clarity and without judgment.

It’s less about data science and more about organizational mindfulness.

Leadership’s New Covenant with AI

This shift requires courage. It means moving beyond performance metrics into introspection. It means asking AI not just for answers, but for questions—especially the ones leaders might rather not hear.

Tone at the top becomes not just about modeling ethical behavior, but about creating a system that detects its own ethical drift. In practice, this means:

Establishing data humility—acknowledging that your dashboards don’t show everything
Embedding bias detection not only in hiring but in process design and decision matrices
Training AI not just to score performance, but to audit blind assumptions
Creating feedback loops where AI surfaces discomforting trends—and leaders listen
This is not woo-woo. This is architecture for resilience.

Tone at the Top Reflection: A Leadership Mirror

The tone at the top isn’t just set by what leaders say—it’s echoed in what they choose not to address.

In the age of AI, the most powerful leadership act may not be bold declarations or aggressive digital transformation. It may be the willingness to ask, What are we not seeing?—and to let AI help answer it.

When leaders model curiosity over certainty, when they treat omissions as opportunities for growth rather than liabilities to hide, they give their organization permission to evolve. This is where tone becomes transformation: when ethical leadership and technological introspection align.

Ask yourself:

· Where in your business are patterns breaking but no one is tracking them?

· What customer groups or internal voices were excluded?

· Are your metrics confirming what you hope is true—or exposing what you fear might be?

The real tone at the top is this: not just asking “What’s the story?” but “What’s the silence beneath the story?”

Because what leadership ignores, the culture quietly absorbs. And what remains unconscious today will shape tomorrow’s headlines—good or bad.

Leaders who embrace the algorithmic unconscious don’t just future-proof their companies. They humanize them—with humility, clarity, and a commitment to seeing the whole picture, even the parts that hurt.

The Bottom Line: Risk Reduction Through Consciousness

The companies that survive aren’t always the most optimized. They’re the most self-aware. They see themselves clearly, especially in the mirror of their own contradictions.

Training AI on your company’s algorithmic unconscious reduces risk—not just compliance risk, but cultural, strategic, and reputational risk. It fosters agility—not just operational, but cognitive. And it builds a workforce that doesn’t just execute, but reflects.

In a world where uncertainty is the only constant, your competitive advantage is not speed, not scale—but the courage to see what’s been missing.

Start there. Train your AI not just on data, but on what the data avoids. Let it be your whisper in the boardroom. Not a prophet, but a quiet guide—asking the questions no one else dares to.

Avoiding the "Perfect" Trap

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 30 Sep 2024 17:22:09 GMT

Choosing the Right Time to Sell

The Illusion of the “Perfect Time”—A common trap for business owners is waiting for the perfect conditions—ideal market trends, economic stability, or flawless business performance. But striving for an “ideal” moment is much like chasing perfection. The saying goes, “Of perfection, there is no end.”

Perfection is subjective in life and business; waiting for it can cause more harm than good. Like an artist endlessly refining a painting, you may find yourself stuck, never satisfied, and never quite ready to move on.

Instead of pursuing perfection, let’s focus on fit to purpose. Ask yourself: Does your business, as it stands today, meet the goals you set when you started? Is it structured to withstand the challenges of the current market and attractive to potential buyers? These are the accurate readiness indicators, not whether the stars have aligned perfectly.

Market Indicators to Watch —While the perfect time might not exist, there are still key indicators to watch to guide your decision.

These include:

Economic Climate: Is the economy growing or in decline? While a booming economy can drive higher valuations, a downturn might create opportunities for strategic buyers seeking bargains.
Industry Trends: Is your sector on the rise? Market consolidation, emerging technologies, and changes in consumer behavior can all impact the timing of your sale. For instance, if you’re in a tech or retail market undergoing significant transformation, like the shift towards e-commerce or sustainability, timing your sale to align with these trends can help maximize value.
Financial Health: Are your financials showing a consistent growth trajectory? Buyers want to see stability. Companies with steady revenue, profit margins, and manageable debt will attract better offers than those fluctuating wildly.
Buyer Demand: Are there buyers actively seeking businesses like yours? Understanding the appetite for acquisitions in your industry can help you decide when to pull the trigger. Sectors like banking, healthcare, tech, and retail are seeing increased merger and acquisition activity.

These indicators offer guidance, but they are only part of the picture. The real question is: how do you create the conditions that make your business ready to sell?

Creating the Conditions for a Sale— Selling a business is less about waiting for conditions to be perfect and more about ensuring that you’ve done the work necessary to make your business fit to purpose. Here’s how:

Strengthen Financials: If buyers want predictability, focus on stabilizing your revenue streams. Diversify income sources, cut unnecessary costs, and manage your debt carefully. You want to present a clean, robust balance sheet that reflects healthy growth.
Streamline Operations: Ensure your business runs like a well-oiled machine. Document your processes, make your business less dependent on key personnel (including yourself), and invest in technology that enhances efficiency. This makes your company more attractive by lowering the buyer’s perceived risk.
Build Your Brand: A strong brand is a significant asset in an era where brand loyalty can drive long-term revenue. Consistent customer experience, a reputation for quality, and a recognized name in your industry can increase the appeal to potential buyers.
Innovate Strategically: Future-proofing your business through innovation can be a game-changer. Whether adopting new technologies, expanding into untapped markets, or launching new products, showing buyers that your company is ready to meet future challenges is critical. For example, companies leading in tech integration and customer data personalization are commanding higher valuationsin retail.
Align with Market Movements: Be proactive about understanding the broader trends affecting your industry. Whether it's shifts in consumer behavior, like the increased demand for sustainable products, or economic pressures driving consolidation, aligning your business with these movements will make it more attractive to buyers.

Avoiding the Perfection Trap— The perfect business sale is unlike the ideal business. There will always be one more improvement, one more project to finish, or one more market condition to align with. But remember: fit to purpose is more important than perfection. If your business is structurally sound, financially healthy, and aligned with market trends, it’s ready to sell—even if it’s not flawless.

Perfection is an endless pursuit, but readiness is a state you can achieve. The more you prepare your business—financially, operationally, and strategically—the better positioned you’ll be when the right buyer comes along. It’s not about catching the market at the moment; it’s about making your business attractive, valuable, and ready to transition whenever the opportunity arises.

Call to Action: Don’t Miss Your Moment— Are you waiting for the perfect time to sell? Don’t fall into that trap. The best way to ensure you don’t miss your window is by staying informed and prepared.

Let’s brainstorm on your perfect exit.

Billion Dollar Reboot: JcPenney defines its Retail Operating System

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 22 Apr 2024 03:29:28 GMT

The Benefit of a Loyalty Program is the Behaviors it Creates

Staying relevant is crucial in today's turbulent retail landscape. JCPenney, a longstanding icon in the retail sector, has embarked on a significant transformation journey that serves as a compelling case study for understanding how established brands can reinvent themselves in response to modern consumer demands and technological advancements.

Can JCPenney implement a digital overhaul? Why do we care? Because there are lessons to be learned when a stuck brand attempts a refresh.

Established in 1902, JCPenney has navigated significant trials, including a bankruptcy in 2020 and several changes in ownership. Currently, the retailer is vigorously working to rejuvenate its brand and bolster its financial health, focusing on strategic partnerships and augmenting its digital and physical footprint to better meet the evolving demands of modern consumers.

In 2023, JCPenney embarked on a comprehensive multi-year turnaround strategy, committing over $1 billion by fiscal year 2025.

The plan zeroes in on four pivotal areas:

Enhanced Digital Capabilitie s: JCPenney is committed to delivering a seamless shopping experience by enhancing its website and mobile app. Upgrades include improved search functionality, detailed product descriptions, robust customer reviews, and personalized product and styling recommendations, recognizing that robust digital capabilities are essential for deepening customer connections.

Revamped $500 Million Loyalty Program: The retailer has overhauled its rewards program to significantly increase the rate at which rewards are earned, aligning with the needs of its 20 million members, who can now earn up to $500 million across the program.

"Customers don’t want to think about points. All they want to think about is the value that equates to for them," says Chief Customer Officer Katie Mullen, emphasizing the shift to a more intuitive 'CashPass' system to ensure transparency in value. A very savvy point.

The benefit of a loyalty program is the behaviors it creates.

CCO Mullen is creating a virtuous cycle of spending. The question it begs, “Spend on what and where?” which leads us to…

In-Store Enhancements : To make its physical stores more appealing, JCPenney plans aesthetic upgrades, the integration of advanced technologies, and improved tools for store associates. This includes implementing a new point-of-sale system for better inventory management and faster, more reliable Wi-Fi connections. But these are table stakes in today’s market.

With approximately 284 stores currently, down from its peak of 870, the company manages an impressive 31.2 million square feet of retail space. This provides an excellent opportunity to introduce fresh partners and reinvigorate mall spaces, positioning them as community hubs.

Merchandising and Supply Chain Optimization : The retailer is enhancing its merchandising tools and supply chain processes to ensure the timely availability of the right products, thereby improving decision-making accuracy and operational efficiency. This strategic adjustment is designed to satisfy unique customer needs better and shorten delivery times.

As JCPenney pursues these strategies, it will be crucial to monitor how these changes influence the brand's market position and customer loyalty. The effective management of its supply chain and customer engagement through these initiatives may set a precedent for its future success.

PCC Creates A Quieter City Destination

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 20:23:05 GMT

The upside of a triple bottom line in the community

In the pulsating heart of Seattle, where the buzz of commerce meets the rhythm of community life, PCC Community Markets is making their stores a new kind point of destination.

This isn't just about groceries; it's about revolutionizing the shopping experience, transforming it from a routine errand into a journey of inclusion and care.

With the dawn of February 18, PCC has opened its doors earlier on Sunday mornings and opened its heart to those for whom the world is often overwhelmingly loud and bright. From 8 a.m. to 9 a.m., the hustle of commerce will give way to a sanctuary of calm, where lights soften, music fades into silence, and the busy sounds of stocking shelves take a pause, all to welcome members with sensory processing or autism spectrum disorders.

Mega-grocer Walmart also has a policy for quiet hours, but few are found in the heart of a city.

It's the story of PCC's unwavering commitment to weaving the fabric of community into every facet of its operations. For CEO Krish Srinivasan, PCC is not just a store but a legacy of cooperative principles.

Cooperative groceries account for about $2.3 billion of the $885 Billion US grocery industry or .25%, yet their impact on shop-local communities is significant.

Grocers are the ultimate retail point of destination; nearly everyone shops for food items. As the nature of the grocery business changes, we find more services and selections there.

However, PCC is a cooperative, which means it has a triple-bottom-line. The line is measured in community engagement, wages, buying local, and member control over food items. I shop at PCC because it allows me to access a vast array of bulk items and stock up or buy enough for a single meal.

PCC Community Markets is not just setting the bar for grocery retail; it's redefining the essence of what it means to be a part of the community it serves. This is more than shopping; it's a movement towards a more inclusive, empathetic world, one quiet hour at a time.

Pizza Hut delivers ‘Goodbye Pies’ for Valentine’s Day breakups

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 11 Feb 2024 14:12:02 GMT

What could go wrong?

In a twist on last year’s Mutant Ninja Turtle “Underground Deliveries,” when the chain delivered pizzas to subway stations, the Hut is trying to connect emotionally to breakups.

Valentine’s Day is the day with the highest number of breakups. Couples can avoid the emotional discomfort of what is supposed to be a romantic holiday when their relationship is on the rocks.

The company is known for being family-friendly, and pizza, at least in the US, is a communal meal. Monetizing emotional distress and discomfort seems like poor positioning or at least insensitive.

Would you like to be the delivery person telling X that Y is breaking up with them? What if a couple’s nine-year-old gets the pie first? What if there is a software problem and the wrong person gets said breakup pie? The legal folk in the audience can weigh in. Emotional damages in the divorce settlement?

While clever and innovative, this could turn into a nightmare. I see the lighthearted aspects, but a pizza parting or delivery departure could be a brand blowup.

If you were Pizza Hut ’s internal marketing person, how would you advise them?

https://www.marketingdive.com/news/pizza-hut-goodbye-pies-valentines-day-free-pizza

YAMM! (Yet Another Membership Model)

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 14:24:40 GMT

Target Aims to Rival Competitor - Amazon Prime

There are businesses targeted to reduce the number of recurring monthly services for consumers with subscription-bloat.

With yet another choice, which will consumers keep or cut, Target or Amazon Prime? Membership models are familiar but need to differentiate for consumers considering the churn (switching from one service to another).

This is an attempt to ignite a new revenue stream for Target stores, and digital channels open for at least a year are off 5.4% from a year earlier, according to Target’s Q2 earnings report released Wednesday, while digital sales slipped 10.5%.

Retail subscriptions are different than streaming ones. Streaming services generally have exclusive content that differentiates them, and consumer households with varied tastes are incentivized to have multiple subscriptions.

What will make Target stand out from Amazon?

For a shopping service such as Target, let’s unpack some benefits.

Consumers

Convenience: Subscription services remove friction in the shipping experience
by delivering products or services directly to consumers regularly.
Cost Savings: Many subscription services offer discounted prices compared to one-time purchases.
Personalization: Subscription models often tailor offerings to individual preferences, enhancing the customer experience by providing curated products or content.
Exclusive Access: Everyone loves exclusivity. There are items often not available to a broader audience. What is Target’s exclusive and differentiated merchandise?

Merchants

Predictable Revenue: Subscription models provide retailers with a steady, predictable revenue stream, allowing for better financial planning and inventory management. The Finance Team and investors love this most.
Customer Loyalty: The opportunity to earn long-term loyalty and increased spending.
Data Collection: Subscriptions allow retailers to collect detailed customer data, enabling personalized marketing efforts and product development insights.

Prime Memberships include

Free or heavily discounted shipping
Discounts on subscription buying through Amazon
Prime reading, music, and videos
Photo storage and five GB of video
Prime Premiere – Free theatre movie tickets. Did you know? https://lnkd.in/gDKEUPUK Leave a comment and a like if I unlocked a new benefit for you. ��

The goal isn't to validate the quality of one service over the other but to see where Target can dial into benefits for Consumers and themselves.

What will make you pick Target?
With almost 2,000 Target physical locations versus 3500 or so physical Amazon pickup locations (including Whole Foods and Lockers), which is most compelling to you?

Written in response to Target aims to rival Prime

Will E-Tailers Fly Past the Corner Drugstore?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 14:06:39 GMT

Time to innovate or perish

Due to rising business costs, CVS closed some stores or in-store locations at Target around the US. So, what to do?

Can CVS innovate, remove the non-PBM (Prescription Benefits Management), and add more health and in-store services? Are other services such as pet wellness, grooming, and related services partnering with national vet clinics like Banfield? With a smaller footprint, can pharmacies be more affordable in select locations?

Recap

#InnovateOrStagnate: With e-tailers like Amazon Pharmacy reshaping the landscape of prescription medication access through innovations like RxPass and drone delivery, how can traditional pharmacies like CVS reimagine their role in the healthcare ecosystem? Is the future of pharmacy about more than just filling prescriptions? Share your thoughts on how CVS can transform challenges into opportunities for growth."
#BeyondTheCounter: As CVS faces the dual challenge of declining foot traffic in non-pharmacy departments and fierce online competition, what unique in-store experiences could make their physical locations a must-visit destination? From health services expansion to partnering with vet clinics for pet wellness, what's your vision for the pharmacy of the future?
#RetailRevolution: "Considering the significant sunk costs associated with physical retail locations, how can CVS leverage its extensive network of stores to offer something that online giants can't match? Could integrating comprehensive health and wellness services and innovative delivery solutions be the key to revitalizing the traditional pharmacy model? Weigh in on how CVS can lead the retail revolution.

Master the Market Before It Masters You

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 21:09:25 GMT

The Power of a Site Survey��

Product or Service mix
Margin
Merchandising
Atmosphere

You cannot control who comes into the market, upstream costs (e.g., your credit card fees, item prices), much of the supply chain, and how they all affect the viability and longevity of your location. More is out of your control, including theft/shrink and market environments.

A thorough site survey identifies critical aspects that could impact the operation and profitability of vending, micromarket, pay stations for garages, carwashes, laundromats, and any place you have unattended retail. These include understanding the financial objectives, customer demographics and behavior, spatial constraints, and the availability of necessary utilities.

Kiosks in 2024: More than Voice-Enabled AI

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 18:39:31 GMT

Three features waiting off-stage plus Five better practice site survey cheats!" ��

Standalone devices are acceptable for a small office environment. But imagine deploying 5,000 kiosk locations with information, pricing, and data-rich environments. Today’s kiosk is connected and is easily updated through automation or a few keystrokes. Data is retrieved in near real-time with decision-making built into the kiosk software or rules-driven at the cloud layer. This enhances the speed, helps in offline conditions, and aids in security.

Business rules come in a few flavors. Some events (e.g., last day of the month) or conditions (e.g., BOGO – buy one get one, or too many login attempts, display the lunch menu between 11 AM – 3 PM local time) occur. There is a great deal of flexibility.

Enhanced security. Kiosks are equipped with on-device or cloud-based cameras. These are triggered by events such as a consumer passing in front of the device or an event such as a bad card read. AI is improving the ability to detect theft or consumers who “falsely swipe” and pretend to pay. Kiosks provide automated, secure, and remote software updates.

Pricing structures. This is a big miss in the article. Pricing is always based on scale and other factors, primarily if the kiosk is used as a POS. The software updates cost money, but that is baked into subscriptions or monthly fees. No software, no working kiosk. The software is specific to the hardware and the configuration. You can't switch between different ISVs (Independent Software Vendors) the way you might with word processors.

Ultimately, it’s a let's make a deal scenario. B2B buyers (Operators) range from ten kiosks to ten thousand kiosk shops.

New technologies. AI and Machine Learning have provided image recognition, theft deterrence, and predictive analytics. Voice recognition is practical in specialized circumstances for other-abled consumers. I’ve deployed it for wayfinding at SeaTac (Seattle-Tacoma) airport enabling travelers to quickly find their way.

Here are the forward-looking 2024 enhancements

Deeper Omnichannel integration. Kiosks have become a point of arrival for consumers. They either unlock or dispense a product or service based on a consumer’s membership. Consumer membership can be used across various retail brands/kiosk placements (E.g., stores and restaurants).
Multi-function kiosks. The apps presented to consumers may be based on their membership or credentials, unlocking or providing a more comprehensive range of products and services.
Secure ID Kiosks. More robust and fully contactless payment solutions, remote biometrics (unlocked via mobile device), and ID/Age checking for items).

Better Practices

If you are in the market for kiosks, here are considerations for you

Make a defined list of goals, objectives, and timeframes for your implementation. ROI on a site setup should be 18 months or less.
Follow the Starbucks rule. Put the kiosk at the corner of Main and Main. If it's not in a high-traffic, high-visibility area, you run the risk of underutilization.
Does the location have an excellent cellular or Wi-Fi signal?
Are necessary and adequate utilities nearby? Coffee is one of the top three products sold in vending and is north of $30B globally. Are you tapping a water line or running one from two floors away? Twenty kiosks in your lobby are going to draw a lot of power. Do you have a big enough circuit(s)?
Doing a site survey before you start your buying conversation or deployment will save you hundreds of hours and potentially tens of thousands of dollars. Contact me for a free site survey.

Do you have a kiosk or component I should review? �� Get it on everyone’s Retail Radar .

#RetailInnovation #TechTrends #DigitalTransformation #CustomerExperience #SmartRetail

Audience Engagement

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 24 Jan 2024 19:30:34 GMT

2024’s loyalty programs play the long game

2024's loyalty programs aren't just retail therapy; they're the ultimate marathon in audience engagement - be ready to go the distance. ��

Loyalty programs have evolved from simple paper punch cards (though still relevant today) to sophisticated digital experiences, resonating across generations of shoppers. The traditional BuyXGetY or BOGO strategies have long captivated consumers, but these tactics have transformed as we move into a fully digital age.

Like other parts of retail, loyalty is migrating from buying to shopping. Brands and consumers are playing the long game with engagement for audiences becoming a rewards lifestyle. Sturgis (started in 1938), concerts, and Dota 2’s hero-sized fly-in gaming tournaments are all examples of next-level loyalty and becoming more of a lifestyle.

In the summer of 2011, I wrote the 'Gamification and Audience Engagement ' concept, initially drawn from the gaming industry. This approach has since been seamlessly integrated into loyalty programs, driving 25% revenue improvement for a global newspaper, grocery chain, and the then leader in unattended retail.

Recent studies from Harvard Business Review’s “ Does Gamified Training Get Results? ” illustrated in select studies that gamification improved employee productivity and results by 25%. Gamification creates new behaviors and makes them into habits.

The rise of Gen Z and Alpha generations, who are digital natives familiar with gamification through their upbringing, has further propelled this trend. These digital natives respond well to incentives cleverly termed as 'gumballs' – rewards offered in exchange for interactions like providing an email address. Give us your email address, and we’ll give you 10% off/a white paper/level up your character.”

But what about high-value items like skis or phones? How do loyalty programs fit into this context? Brands like Harley-Davidson, Apple, and Tesla have earned [media] strong fanbases without traditional loyalty programs, relying instead on organic customer engagement and storytelling.

A further and more enticing example was “Bowie Bonds.” In a creative twist, David Bowie's 1997 "Bowie Bonds" exemplified an innovative approach to merging investable assets (value through future earnings and rated by investment agencies) through 25 of his famous albums, highlighting the potential for unconventional loyalty strategies.

Gamification is transformative.

Today, omnichannel and loyalty through gamification have used the high-ticket item approach to build deeper audience engagement. No longer the singular buying experience but an integration of a rewards lifestyle. Gamification encourages autonomy, increased engagement, and skills development beyond the program. Why? Users are incented to find new and different ways to the top of leaderboards.

Open Loyalty’s 2024 report shows gamification with investment and implementation strategies at the top of the Loyalty leaderboard. Takeaways from this year’s NRF conference shed new light on the continuing trends in the landscape. One key takeaway was the importance of personalization in loyalty programs. This emphasized that personalized rewards enhance customer satisfaction and significantly increase repeat business.

Another highlight from the NRF was the success of gamified loyalty programs in driving customer engagement. Gamification as a sub-set of omnichannel is a “one to watch” for 2024. And, of course, we are seasoning everything with AI due to its power as an enabling technology.

Recap

Loyalty programs in 2024 are more than rewards; they're a lifestyle. Evolving from paper punch cards to digital experiences, they now integrate gamification, appealing to Gen Z's digital natives. Brands like Harley-Davidson and Apple bypass traditional loyalty schemes, focusing on organic engagement. With gamification boosting productivity and engagement, loyalty strategies are becoming more personalized and impactful, driving customer satisfaction and repeat business.

The key? Blending traditional rewards with innovative, experience-focused approaches.

Food for thought:

How will your loyalty programs improve CLTV (Customer Lifetime Value) via gamification?
What are your three audience engagement strategies that give customers the dopamine rush?
How will you leverage gamification principles to create a sense of belonging and uniqueness for influencers and consumers, especially in social selling?

��️ #FutureOfLoyalty #GamificationInRetail #DigitalEngagementTrends

Shopping vs. Buying in 2024

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 22 Jan 2024 15:00:02 GMT

A Retail Tango of Desire and Decision ��

While often used interchangeably, buying and shopping refer to two different aspects of the consumer experience, especially in the retail sector.

Understanding the references and context is crucial to sustainability in your business. As some retailers move away from cost-prohibitive malls to stand-alone locations, destination malls (Mall of America) are upping the game.

Consumer preferences and desires have evolved over the last 20 years, with the pandemic throwing gasoline onto traditional out-of-home experiences. People are more tech-savvy and enter a store or go online equipped with data, social media, and opinions gathered from those around them. Their expectations are different; consumers want new options. Consumers look to replicate in-store and restaurant experiences at home, causing some restaurants, like Tutta Bella in Seattle, to provide their signature products in grocery locations.

The differences open a discussion that bridges technical, emotional, and logical realms and profoundly affects budgets, loyalty, and market share. Here is my take on each.

Shopping

Shopping is typically an exploratory process. It involves researching, browsing, and comparing various products or services. It's about the experience and the journey of finding something, not necessarily the act of purchase. Journeys often have several stops (a quick-serve restaurant, some family staple) along the way. A diversity of choices, like those found in a mall or hypermarket, combining department and grocery (e.g., Walmart, Target Grocery), gives consumers more reason to stay in the store. The store becomes a routine destination.

Engagement with Products/Services: When shopping, consumers engage with different products or services, learning about their features, benefits, and prices.

Shopping only sometimes results in a purchase. It can be done for leisure, education (The Apple Store) information, or simply enjoying the experience with a complex emotional aspect. The phrase Retail therapy didn’t develop by accident; shopping can trigger profound internal reactions, especially for those isolated during the pandemic.

Over the years, as consumerism rose and shopping became more accessible and widespread, this term encapsulated the growing societal trend of finding comfort in material possessions. Over the years, it has been used humorously and as an indictment against consumerist tendencies in modern society.

Buying

Buying is a transactional process. It refers specifically to foreknowledge of what you want and making the purchase. Buying is often more practical and need-based. It focuses on the necessity of acquiring something rather than the experience of looking for it. Anecdotally, it has the highest conversion rate (presenting payment) and is less of an impulse purchase.

Buying is typically the conclusion of the shopping process – it’s the decision made after finding that one thing you can go into a store to acquire, possibly comparing and considering various options often subject to up and cross-selling.

What is the focus for 2024?

Omnichannel, omnichannel, omnichannel.

One would expect that purchasing habits would have moved by a majority to buying over shopping. Retailers quickly learned (with budgets they could not spend on traditional marketing) that isolated consumers with too much time on their hands began to use online resources and social media to make purchasing decisions. Consumers increased the amount of time on social media to 12.3% of their day. TikTok was the most downloaded free app in 2021, with Telegram coming in second. Influencers across the spectrum directed the shopping process while entertaining and influencing consumers, especially in the 18 – 35 demographic.

An immersive experience characterizes today's shopping. When consumers shop, it is very much destination-oriented, as I wrote last week (“ The Destination is the Difference ”).

Omnichannel and flexibility in the formats of your point of purchase are essential. Lower the friction to zero if your products and services contain a mix of staples and discretionary products. Offer those necessities in the easiest way possible.

Subscription buying has increased by 17.2% and is expected to accelerate. Cost-conscious consumers continue to take advantage of discounts for consumables (razors, toothbrushes) they use on a recurring basis. Retailers gain consistent and predictable revenue streams.

Entice consumers into retail locations with incentives and unique in-store experiences when they or you have a reason to do so.

Consumers empowered by technology seek products, stories, authenticity, and a connected experience. They are informed, tech-savvy, and value-conscious, often using omnichannel resources to tailor experiences to themselves. This aligns with 2023's trend, where shopping is about the joy of discovery and the pleasure of choice, transcending the mere act of purchase.

Food for thought

How has your shopping behavior evolved in the digital era, and what role does technology play in your decision-making process?
In your experience, what makes an in-store shopping experience memorable and engaging enough to draw you away from online convenience?
When will you make the choices and what would be your tipping point?

This is deep topic and I’ll expand on it over the coming months.

Onward.

See, Speak, and Seek

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 19 Jan 2024 19:37:58 GMT

A $30B Retail Revolution Unveiled

But if a picture is worth a thousand words…

Image search allows users to find “something like this” without overly complex and often vague “I want a Large black t-shirt that I can wear on a Friday night” descriptors. Users can upload an image and find “a shirt like my favorite black t-shirt that I bought ten years ago at a store that no longer exists.”

36% of users engage in visual search, and 50% say image-based results are most important when shopping (not buying). Cloths and furniture rank 86 and 85% in importance, with cars, groceries, and vacations at around 56%.

Why? We are visual creatures first, with 80% of our input coming through our eyes, processing 10M bits of information every second. Now you know why consumer and automobile marketers spend so much time, money, and effort on visual branding. Moving that search and the emotional connection to the cloud is growing.

Victoria's Secret has partnered with Google Cloud to implement various AI and generative AI technologies to enhance consumer online shopping experiences.

This virtual shopper advisor offers personalized product recommendations and advice based on customer preferences and life experiences on their website and mobile app. The assistant is designed to replicate the empathetic and caring interactions that customers would have with in-store associates.

AI-Powered Product Search Feature: Customers can upload images of desired products (like a specific style of bra) to the Victoria's Secret website, and the AI will provide recommendations for similar items in their current lineup.

When I started shopping with my partner, it was an eye-opening experience. Her preferences, fit, and form were very brand-specific and required custom fitting (I learned that all women need a fitting for bras).

Use of Adore Me's AI Technologies: Following the acquisition of Adore Me, Victoria's Secret plans to use its large language model technologies and expertise in AI to enhance the shopping experience across the Victoria's Secret and PINK brands.

Websites using visual search garner 30% more conversions, and 55% of consumers report that visual search influences their choices (shopping vs. buying). Visual search in 2023 was around $15B.

British online fashion style site ASOS launched its version of visual search. Target and Amazon have been using visual search since 2014 in select areas of their websites. Specific breakout numbers aren’t available, but the trend continues for retailers as they look for new ways to keep the audience's attention. With Google removing third-party cookie data, retailers will look for this highly contextual search to maintain and grow wallet share.

Recap

Voice search is like a Waldo, an extension of the user’s hands in a keyword search. It’s incredibly good for giving instructions and detailing narrowly focused requests that require a specific response.

Image search is best for reviewing sets of responses with what may be perceived as vague (“Size small dresses in red”), and it is language/cultural/accent agnostic. Visual search helps you find things you like; you can provide an example. It's subtle and extremely powerful.

Today, they are separate tools providing more value than keyword searches for consumers and the data teams at Retailers.

1. How will voice and visual search impact your retail strategy in the next 36 months?

2. How can visual search technologies enhance your customer's shopping experience and, therefore, your brand affinity?

3. Homework: Do you shop with or for your family unit? How will visual search impact the joint experience?

Today's Wake Up Call

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 17:42:36 GMT

A world where 7-Eleven, Walmart, and Instacart are the new streaming networks

What is prompting the paradigm shift?

A key driver is Google’s announcement to phase out cookies.

Google's phase-out of third-party cookies, set for later this year, is shaking up the digital advertising landscape. Cookies are data files that track you across websites, allowing targeted ads based on browsing habits. Their demise means advertisers must find new ways to reach their audience.

Another is the efficacy of RMN, generated through better data analytics and placement or contextual targeting. The customer’s mindset is in the right place for advertising. How much more effective? Walmart reported a 240% growth in advertising revenue in Q3 of 2021. Instacart said $300 million in ad revenue in 2022.

Contextual targeting in retail is not new.

Retailers have used product placement, putting select products at eye-level on certain shelves or endcaps (end of aisle) to gain maximum visibility. Catalina Marketing delivers targeted coupons to millions of consumers daily at the point of sale. An effort I led for them to improve their delivery network to aid retailers and brands like Coke and Pepsi.

Like cybersecurity, RMNs have a new Rule of Three:

• Something you have (an ID token) -> Something you’ve touched. (browsed or picked up)

• Something you know (a password) -> Something you’ve seen. (in person or online)

• Something you are (a fingerprint) -> Where you are. (e.g., in the produce aisle, The business section of Amazon’s website)

This RMN3 is this generation’s digital display ads based on the content of the webpage rather than your browsing history. Imagine reading an article about hiking boots – you might see ads for outdoor gear stores or specific boot brands alongside the text. This approach is less privacy-invasive but may also be less effective, as ads won't be as precisely tailored to individual users. I find it less creepy than being inundated with advertisements on every following web page and unsolicited mailing lists.

More sophisticated systems display ads on store monitors or kiosks based on data gathered from RMN3 systems. I’ve used kiosks to place ads based on consumer preferences or only those products in the local market, learning what people care about based on consumer transactions.

The benefits are multiple. More precision and less intrusive advertising. Improved data privacy and the reduction of unsavory ad targeting. The data belongs to the retailer, which means that consumers will also have a level of protection. Digital wallets and loyalty programs can be configured to store data for different periods and erase them after set periods.

Back to Store

New technologies continue to provide opportunities to make physical locations the primary point of destination for the retail experience. It’s not video alone. 7-Eleven, 13,000 US locations, is also scaling up its radio ambitions. They are currently piloting with 2,000 stores, and with increases, will make it the largest radio network in the country.

As physical retail strengthens the point of destination, the number of relevant and relatable touchpoints grows significantly. The cost of screens or integration with brand loyalty apps is more economical.

According to sources, partnerships with short-form media such as YouTube, TikTok, and ISV-driven media platforms are a $100B opportunity. There are opportunities to provide infomercial-like ads, training, and information snippets that drive superior conversion rates.

Recap

Right-ad right-time. Full stop.

The evolution of Retail Media Networks (RMNs) marks a pivotal shift in the advertising world, with giants like Walmart and Instacart as icebreakers. There is an opportunity for medium-sized brands to leverage technology to achieve the results previously seen online with big-budget spending.

The decline of cookie-based tracking and the rise of contextual targeting herald a new era of digital advertising, heavily reliant on consumer presence and interaction in physical retail spaces. This trend underscores the resurgence of physical stores as primary shopping destinations, offering unique opportunities for more engaging and less intrusive advertising strategies.

How could your brand leverage RMNs to enhance consumer engagement following the RMN Rule of Three?
Is contextual targeting in physical retail environments on your roadmap this year? Next year? What impact will the loss of third-party cookies have?

Re-Shaping Self-Checkout

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 14:18:17 GMT

A Reality Check on Retail’s Unattended Technology.

Are these kiosks designed AND implemented to fit their purpose? No.

As pointed out ( The state of self-checkout: Target tests a new system ) self-checkout (unattended Retail) began in the 1990s and were aimed at enhancing customer convenience and reducing costs for retailers. However, the way we shop and buy has changed.

Target's 10-item limit at self-checkout lanes experiment is a poor knee-jerk reaction. Scan and pay experience (the activities and payment – scan, bag, and pay) are designed for specific use cases. You need to find the bar code and run it across the scanner and bag. There is a lag in the scanning technology, so if the goal were to have speed trials in bagging, it would fail. Worse, if you miscounted and have 11 items, then what? You’re annoyed, the people behind you are more irritated, and you’ll likely abandon your cart.

What is the goal of self-checkout?

It addresses two key issues: the efficiency of the self-checkout process and the customer experience. The technology was created to work with bar codes for efficiency. I’ve watched hundreds of people (more on that in a bit) stumble over product lookups. There’s no good way around it; computer vision helps, but some retailers find the most daunting.

However, the move highlights the opportunities and needs for self-checkout systems. These include technical issues requiring staff intervention and the impersonal nature of the experience.

Customers often need help with kiosk errors (high-traffic scanners need cleaning, and the computers put in are usually older and low-end components) or assistance with activities like ID checks, which defeats the purpose. Technology exists to help with IDs, but if you’ve ever needed help at self-checkout, you know one person can scan their card, and another person buys.

Consumer flow can be routed to a 21+ line, with a few changes to improve the experience.

Based on my experience, the key takeaway for retailers is the importance of aligning technology with consumer expectations and operational realities.

Unattended retail technology, including self-checkout, should streamline the customer shopping experience. It can be fast, a delightful experience, or cost-effective. You can only have two of three.

After 20 years of designing, building, and deploying tens of thousands of self-checkout and payment systems as Head of Product across thousands of diverse locations, my experience is that it’s always about fit to purpose. In our micro-markets, we conduct light training along with promotional opportunities.

Continual assessment and adaptation are crucial. Retailers must stay attuned to changing customer needs and wants in each location and be able/willing to adjust strategies, whether tweaking existing systems or changing the consumer flow.

What do you want from self-checkout? We’ll get several themes, guaranteed.

The goal should always be to create a delightful, efficient, and pleasant shopping experience that meets the needs of diverse customer bases.

Costco's Family Feud

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 17 Jan 2024 19:42:11 GMT

'One Name, One Card' Rule Sparks Debate in the Era of Diverse Households

Kroger-Albertsons Merger: Don’t fight the future.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 19:47:18 GMT

Let's come to the table.

The Destination is the Difference.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 16 Jan 2024 15:00:01 GMT

Malls are for shopping; Stores are for buying.

In recent times, the mall retail landscape has undergone cultural shifts. Beyond the rise of e-commerce, the profitability, relevance, and allure of physical malls are being questioned. Hence, the ongoing exodus of brands can’t or don’t need the synergies of other retailers.

In their heyday, suburban malls were known as destinations with clusters of novel retail stores centered around department stores known as anchor tenants. Entertainment abounded in many forms, including theatres, gaming arcades, playgrounds, and other outlets designed to entice demographics at both ends of the age spectrum. Mall food, while not gourmet, offered choices for everyone in the family. They were often in the suburbs, requiring consumers to drive; it was the logical post-WWII destination.

The Experience Economy: A Visionary Perspective

The concept of the experience economy was introduced in 1998 (https://hbr.org/1998/07/welcome-to-the-experience-economy), foreseeing a market where customer experience becomes the primary product. That vision became a reality, as evidenced by the evolution of retail spaces. Consumers today seek immersive experiences that offer more than just goods. They desire places that provide leisure, learning, entertainment, and social interaction. Mall of America was the embodiment of the emerging experience economy.

Fast forward to the 2020s, between COVID-19, rising supply chain costs, and the significant technological changes to entertainment in your hand (streaming, gaming stations, mobile as record stores, etc.), the allure of the suburban mall wanted. Retailers are leaving for more economical standalone or strip mall locations. Costs and changing lifestyles override the once-all-important synergies.

As pointed out in this Pymnts article, https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2024/retailers-rethink-malls-as-other-locations-report-stronger-sales/, all is not lost. In select high-end and tourism-centric malls, some have survived and thrived.

Why? They are a point of destination, and the experience is tailored to their consumer demographic.

Success is a complex mix of what consumers want in their experience, property managers learning to say no, and the investment retailers willing to put into the store.

How much will a retailer invest in making the store a shopping experience? It is why you don’t see Michael’s, Best Buy, or grocery stores inside the mall. People buy and then move on because the experience is in-store and goal-oriented. Some grocers go so far as to provide an in-store experience to keep consumers engaged, thus earning a larger wallet share. Jungle Jim’s International in Ohio has a “Plan Your Trip” page on its website.

Beyond picking out goods and services, the location needs to be activity-centric. They should serve as a modern social space where experiences, rather than products, are the primary commodities on sale. Malls as venues for returns, community events, classes, and activity-driven events draw consumers back to the destination.

Leveraging Technology for Enhanced Interactions

Integrating technology can elevate the consumer experience. Omnichannel apps and test drive showrooms like the Apple store become table stakes. Essentially, they have experiences that cannot be replicated at home.

Click and Collect services for specialty retailers. In their inception, Tesla dealerships (stores) were in high-end malls equipped with ready-made parking structures for car pickups until pricing drove them to find more reasonably priced venues.

The tenant mix should include experience-driven brands and services. This provides entertainment options like movie theaters with 3D or other immersive viewing and experiential dining, health and wellness centers, educational spaces, and art galleries. A diverse tenant mix caters to a broader range of interests and needs, making the mall a destination for various activities.

The Evolution of Mall Retail: From Selling Products to Being the Product.

To thrive, malls must become products that are well-curated destinations and be the answer to critical questions:

Can the mall property manager curate stores that offer an experience, something unique or synergistic with the brands around them? For example, Claires (reinventing itself after Chapter 11) complements higher-end jewelry stores by offering affordable accessories for younger patrons and being one of the only places where ear piercing is available.
Are they a destination as a social space?
Do they have modern necessities like EV chargers?
Can their tenants make up the cost of premium pricing with additional services?

The future of malls is for some and not all retailers.

Conclusion: Embracing the Experience Economy

The transformation of malls into experiential destinations is more than a survival strategy; it's an opportunity to redefine the role of physical retail spaces in modern society.

In summary, the future of malls lies in conscious curation, offering what cannot be found elsewhere – unique, personal, and memorable experiences that engage and are memorable for consumers.

If you have physical locations, what is your destination strategy? What is keeping you up at night related to your placement in a city?

Social Selling – Influencers are Crafting a $700B Sales Funnel

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 15:00:01 GMT

Today’s influencer generation is self-directed and made possible by technology.

Consumer attention is being funneled into new(er) advertising channels.

With Americans spending over two hours on social media channels, or 12.4% of the day, it wasn’t long before this generation of entrepreneurs decided to capitalize on it. Along comes social selling.

Social selling is the intersection of social platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram and an influencer who builds relationships with audiences. Without the other, one doesn’t have the opportunity to create the viral and pervasive effect that reaps the current reward of $700B (2023).

In this new paradigm, brands must see the customer journey differently. Ways that are often uncomfortable because they are in the passenger seat for the ride of this viral express.

Are you prepared for the viral effects on your brand?

But wait, there’s more!

Social selling is this generation’s Ronco (maker of the Veg-O-Matic) and Ron Popeil. Ron Popeil and his trademark infomercials reached millions, enticing them with the convenience of cool.

Who wouldn’t want to engage consumers with novel, relevant products that enhance their lives?

For example, Nike's use of Instagram to showcase its products through storytelling and user engagement is a prime example of brand-led social selling done right. Their posts often include customer stories, product highlights, and inspirational content, which resonate with their audience and encourage interaction and sales.

Along come third-party influencers who are self-appointed social sales organizations. They build a direct relationship with consumers using novel and relatable content. YouTuber Mr. Beast builds elaborate contraptions, engaging 231M subscribers in his channel.

Cracking the Social Code

Today’s influencer generation is self-directed and made possible by technology while capitalizing on the desires of Gen Z and Millennials to find their social voice.

What are Social Codes? - “These are drawn upon in making sense not only of the world but also of any representations of it. Much of this is tacit knowledge. Social codes include unwritten codes such as bodily codes and behavioural codes. While all semiotic codes are in a broad sense social codes (being based on social conventions), social codes can also be seen as forming a major group of codes, alongside textual codes and interpretive codes.“

“Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Social selling. In Oxford Reference. Retrieved from https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100514998 ”

The Six Characteristics of the Influencer Social Code Dynamic:

Number of followers
Audience engagement - likes, shares, and comments.
Fantasy Factor
Does the personal brand of an influencer or a business feel attainable or like a person’s aspiration? The more consumers answer “yes,” the higher the Fantasy Factor.
Gretta Rose van Riel (16M) started SkinnyMe Tea at age 22 with $24 in the bank. She is every 20-something fantasy of self-made success and is solving their health concerns. Estimate net worth $5M.
Brand attribution and Conversions – Do they work directly with the brand (this includes affiliate marketing), and does their engagement lead directly to sales?
Engagement Frequency – Do they routinely post about a brand, or was this a one-time shoutout (the Oprah effect is a great example)?
Trust is built on two factors:
Character – Is the influencer personally relatable to an audience, cause-driven, and do they seem like they would or do use the product without endorsement?
Competency – How knowledgeable are they about the product, market, and audience?

The net effect of third-party influencers in social selling is a profound connection with the brands they rep, earning everyone involved significant revenue and gravitas. And they are never a one-hit wonder.

Examples include:

Khaby Lame (80M followers) – Hugo Boss, Dolce & Gabbana, and State Farm. Estimated net worth is north of $13M.
Huda Kattan (51M) has her own fashion lines and works with M.A.C Cosmetics, Versace, and Sephora. Estimated net worth is north of $500M.
Charli D’Amelio (28.4M)) Maybelline, Social Tourist (Abercrombie & Fitch), JBL, Chobani. Estimated net worth is north of $20M.

Social Selling Considerations

Social Selling is building and converting the top of the funnel through awareness and influence.

Pros:

1. Viral Reach: Social media platforms offer access to a vast audience, allowing for the message to spread via communities of interest.

2. Direct Customer Engagement: Build community and customer interaction and personalize the buying experience.

3. Cost-Effective: Often more affordable than traditional advertising methods. Particularly if you get to an influencer early in their evolution.

4. Real-Time Analytics: Provides immediate feedback and analytics on customer engagement and campaign effectiveness.

Cons:

1. Control. Brand and brand voice is being managed by someone else. In 2o17 the Fyre Festival conceived by Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule turned into a fiasco. The backlash on influencers Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and Emily Ratajkowski was severe. McFarland served six years.

2. Time-Consuming: Requires consistent effort and content creation to maintain engagement.

3. Trust Issues: A significant portion of users are concerned about the legitimacy of companies selling on social media.

4. Privacy Concerns: Some consumers need more time to share personal information on these platforms.

5. Platform Dependence: Reliance on social media platforms means susceptibility to changes in platform policies and algorithms.

Recap

This is another part of the corporate journey that is not an if but a when. You won’t know when someone decides to engage with your brand. Have you defined a strategy?

Some highlights:

Social selling represents a vast audience with whom you can engage directly.
You don’t need fancy ads, videos, or expensive celebrities to make it work.
It is work and requires a dedicated team. When positive it will spread your brand and sales to new heights.

Let’s make it a conversation:

Is a social selling strategy in your strategic plan, and how you’ll measure success?
Do you know which and how you will engage with today’s social influencers?
Are you practicing social listening today?

Let’s talk.

2024 is the Year of the “Circular Economy”

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 12 Jan 2024 14:45:00 GMT

Sustainability has equal or greater weight to brand names

Recap :

Sustainability is no longer a nice to have; it's a business imperative. By adopting these strategies, retailers can contribute positively to the planet and enjoy increased customer loyalty and enhanced brand value.

Packaging is the first bit of customer service consumers encounter. As with so many other businesses, the first and last minutes generally define the overall experience.
Sustainability has equal or greater weight to brand names. How does your sustainability investment and promotion thereof weigh against your brand?
Thrifting is a profitable treasure hunt for Millennials and Gen Z.

Building a circular economy is a feel-good opportunity for most people. It lets them contribute without changing a lot of behaviors.

Let’s make it a conversation:

What sustainability practices have you put into play in the last 36 months?
What’s on your 2024 roadmap for sustainability?
How are you engaging consumers in the dialog?

Consumers want green but won’t pay extra. How can retailers manage the change?

Drones deliver, but will they land?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 01:52:28 GMT

10 minutes into the future

Soon, drone delivery will not be a luxury but a baseline expectation; Walmart's drone delivery program in Texas is an evolution of retail logistics.

Walmart announced the expansion of its drone delivery program at this year’s CES (Consumer Electronics Show). But as we navigate this new territory, questions about regulations, consumer acceptance, and the competitive landscape arise. Will these high-flying ambitions soar, or will they face turbulence?

Walmart's Drone Delivery Program: 10 minutes into the future

Walmart's ambitious drone delivery program aims to serve 1.8 million additional households in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, encompassing over 30 towns and municipalities. This expansion, powered by providers like Wing and Zipline, marks a step in retail innovation, offering deliveries in as little as 10 minutes.

Image that single parent with little ones during cold and flu season. Through this program, Walmart is not deploying technical novelties but road traffic and optimizing costs while enabling new jobs. In the last two years, Walmart has had over 20,000 deliveries on record.

Envision fleets of drones darkening the skies periodically during the day, reducing road traffic (and rage) with precision deliveries.

Navigating the Skies: Get thee a license.

Texas operates under the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Part 107 rules like other states. 107 requires commercial drone pilots to pass the FAA’s Aeronautical Knowledge Test for a Remote Pilot Certificate. Additional state laws are in place to protect privacy and safety, including restrictions on flying over populated areas, near airports, and at night. The Texas Legislature has also created specific laws governing the use of drones, emphasizing safety and privacy.

Walmart’s influence on regulatory bodies has always been significant. In 2022, company employees donated $1.89M to candidates across the board. The retail giant's collaboration with the FAA and other regulatory bodies ensures adherence to safety standards and fosters a conducive environment for drone operations. Walmart’s approach and safety record could set a precedent for future drone operations in the retail sector.

But what does the consumer say?

Initial consumer response to Walmart's drone delivery in Texas has been positive, with customers using the service to deliver items like snacks and over-the-counter medicine quickly.

However, the broader consumer sentiment is still forming. Most consumers form their opinions based on their knowledge/speculation of drone hobbyists and military uses. The convenience of rapid delivery is balanced against concerns over privacy, safety, and the environmental impact of these crewless flights. In surveys conducted by Virginia Tech, consumers had an 87% favorable rating. There is a good write-up here . There is intense speculation, with some consumer saying they would pay for their secured landing pads while others say free delivery is a must. Some speculate that drone delivery is the new convenience store.

Sky-High Potential

Drone delivery opens up significant revenue growth opportunities for Walmart. By cutting down delivery times and costs, Walmart can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty, potentially boosting sales. It trades one type of job for another. “Flight crews” and packers/expediters replace in-store cashiers and greeters, potentially expanding the work-from-home workforce.

The data gathered from these operations could provide invaluable insights into consumer behavior and the trade-off of physical stores versus retail air bases, further refining Walmart's business strategy.

Look to the Skies: A Look at the Rivals.

As Walmart pioneers, other retail giants are just a step behind.

Companies like Amazon and UPS are also experimenting with drone delivery. The competition in this new frontier will likely intensify as technology evolves and regulations become more accommodating. The race is on to see who can most effectively integrate this technology into their business model while maintaining safety and public trust.

Drone programs have been in the works for several years. In 2020, I proposed a drone-based food delivery program for my company. People laughed and told me not to share it with our customers. Two months later, a local company hired one of my Product Managers to run their drone program. I’m looking at you, Andy Jassy…

Call to Action: The Future is Here

Walmart's drone delivery program in Texas is not just about delivering goods but evolving consumer connections. Key takeaways:

Consumer sentiment and buy-in are essential.
Securing local political and regulatory support is critical.
How much trade-off or channel growth will Walmart and others be able to achieve?
Are drone delivery services genuinely scalable?
Will you have ethical concerns?

In conclusion, while the drones are set to deliver, the question remains: will they land smoothly in the complex landscape of consumer needs, regulatory frameworks, and competitive pressures?

Are drones and other automated delivery in your strategic planning discussions? What open items is your leadership discussing?

The 1,000 Billion Dollar Return Problem.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 14:10:44 GMT

AI has a strong ROI as long as Retailers play to its strengths

Recap

This dense and complex topic requires analysis and discussion before implementation.

Retailers face a trillion-dollar challenge with a significant increase in product returns, reaching 16.5% of purchased goods, double that of 2019. This rise is attributed to consumer behaviors mirroring dressing room practices facilitated by easy online ordering and return processes.
It’s critical not to implement solutions just for the novelty of having them. AI has a strong ROI as long as Retailers play to its strengths.
Concerns are raised about the efficacy of AI tools like Amazon's "Fit Insights Tool" in addressing the sizing and fit issues in online shopping. The inconsistency in sizes across different brands and regions makes AI fittings questionable, as consumers often order multiple sizes and return the ones that don't fit.
Solutions to the return problem involve leveraging physical store infrastructures for processing returns, introducing locker ecosystems for convenient drop-offs, offering instant store credit through digital wallets to encourage immediate re-spending, and utilizing AI to analyze return data for improving inventory management and sizing accuracy.

In the end, it is building a solution fit to purpose.

What do you think? What are the “gentle easing” opportunities you would envision for AI in return management? What return management initiatives are in your planning? What would you do or like to see next?

The Long Tail

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 06:44:57 GMT

Is Omnichannel Paying Off?

Pulling it all together.

Let’s sum it all up into three+1 simple rules.

Customer data has a 360 view.
Keep it up to date.
Don’t be afraid to allow consumers to help you.
Real-time inventory is available and accurate to all.
Stores are a Point of Destination.
Empower the people closest to your customers with the tools and data to deliver a delightful experience.
Take advantage of the supply chain and logistics you’ve already built.
Define success. Or, more precisely, for each of your customer maps, what percentages will you allocate?
Bigger wallet share?
More new customers?
Stellar customer service?
A sense of community and earned customer goodwill?

Focus on the process and goals you set for yourself.

There is much more under these icebergs, but you have your starting points for the cost of a few week’s effort and a few ten thousand pixels.

So, is Omnichannel paying off? Studies show it can be between 30 – 80% of sales, so there isn’t a consistent and well-defined set of measures and metrics.

What are your stories or pains? Do you want to take 30 minutes to discuss your omnichannel needs?

https://www.lawrenceilerner.com/contact

A Strategic Response: Physical Retail

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 14:49:25 GMT

A Point of Destination

$20B+ is being invested into reimagining retail store formats.

In an age of digital domination from Amazon Prime and online shopping, major retailers are strategically responding.

They're transitioning from places where people buy (“I need this one thing”) to venues where they shop. This evolution in retail is a response to the growing need for a more dynamic shopping experience that combines the efficiency of digital platforms with the sensory satisfaction of in-store interactions.

Let's explore how department stores, grocers, and specialty stores innovate to create immersive, technology-driven, and community-focused retail spaces.

1. The move to “experience” layouts

Apple Stores are prime examples of experience layouts.

Their open-plan layouts, hands-on product displays, and spaces for workshops and tech support (the 'Genius Bar') have set a standard for retail. Brands such as Samsung, Dyson, Tesla, and LEGO are creating formats. Brands recognize the visceral and often nostalgic response brought on by touch and communities of shared experiences. Have you noticed that store personnel, more often, hand you a product?

These stores are designed to be destinations where customers learn, experience, and connect deeply with the brand and community. Building a customer journey map is an excellent way to drive in-store traffic. Determine which parts of your online sites bring customers in-store for learning, customization, and community. Build that bridge into your mobile app.

2. Personalized In-Store Experiences

Integrating technology in physical retail spaces paves the way for highly personalized shopping experiences.

Retail chains use data analytics and AI to offer personalized product recommendations, similar to online shopping experiences. Nordstrom, for example, has implemented technology that allows them to provide customized shopping sessions based on customers' online browsing and purchase history. Nordstrom started leaning into this strategy in 2022 and achieved 38% of its sales from digital.

Design for data; the riches are in the niches of data. Capture and report on where consumers linger or not and how that can be tied into your mobile app.

3. Point-of-Destination: Community Hub

Retail spaces are community hubs.

Customers can participate in events and workshops, adding value to their shopping experience. This approach increases foot traffic and provides valuable data analytics and partnership opportunities. A noteworthy example is Michaels Stores, which hosts in-store craft classes and workshops, turning shopping trips into experiential visits. These events drive sales and provide insight into customer preferences and behaviors.

Retailers know buying preferences based on the schedule of these events. The data is collected by loyalty apps and sanitized information from credit card brands.

4. Put a pin in it.

The transformation of retail stores into destinations is a strategic response to the evolving consumer demands in the digital age. This shift revitalizes the physical retail space and creates an evolving ecosystem where digital efficiency and physical experience coalesce. As retailers continue to innovate, the importance of blending online convenience with in-store experiences becomes increasingly evident.

Design and build experiences with the store as a point-of-destination.
Create ecosystem partnerships. This has the opportunity for goodwill, broader wallet share, and embedded payment solutions (more on this in a future article).
Know your flow. Create process maps of the customer journey you want to encourage.
Measure twice and cut once. Design and planning yield superior results.

What are your thoughts about the point of destination and your retail experience? Do you buy or do you shop?

New frontiers for convenience dining: How airports lead the way

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 03 Jan 2024 20:09:09 GMT

Restaurants and Airport Retail Tech are often the first humnlss experience

Meet AI - Your New Retail Associate

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 18:01:59 GMT

Making AI a [non-threatening] part of your team

The average Google query is 2.3 words.
With generative AI you are gaining the advantage of natural language dialogue but you both need to speak the same language.

Think of the model as a person learning a new language. You need to ask questions in a 3S way:

Structured - Frame up questions using ACDQ or other technique
Simple - Ask one question without verbal gymnastics.
Specific - Which color will make people pick up and look at the package? Versus What box color is most appealing?

The Strategic Ritual of Starting Your Day

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 01 Jan 2024 18:31:59 GMT

The Business Case for Making Your Bed

Mindfulness as a Cornerstone of Achievement

Discipline is a non-negotiable trait for success, and it starts with the first decision you make upon waking. It's a declaration of self-respect and a commitment to excellence. If one observes those in high-stakes environments and emerging leaders, one’ll observe that those who attend to the details, no matter how small, build a robust framework for success.

Making your bed isn't just a physical act; it's a moment of mindfulness. In this deliberate act, you're practicing the art of focus—a skill that translates directly to strategic business thinking. This clarity of mind is essential for making sound decisions in a fast-paced corporate landscape.

From the OG Archive: Cashless and Employee-less Stores on the Horizon

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 31 Dec 2023 20:39:36 GMT

First published in July 2012, cashless and touchless smart vending was on the horizon.

The footprint and space experimentation in Retailers has expanded significantly over the last ten years. Store spaces have become a more intimate experience with subtle lighting and assortments arranged by function (e.g., meals or activity (e.g., Running)) rather than product category. Self-service kiosks have played a strong role in expanding product assortment due to enhanced functionality. They also play a growing role in new product experimentation and freeing up shelf-space. According to an IHL report, kiosk sales will exceed $1 trillion dollars in North America by 2015.

Self-service kiosks have become far more sophisticated in the means of merchandising, fulfilling and accepting payments than those of a short ten years ago. New machines are equipped with touch screens, sophisticated software allowing for complex interactions and the ability to vendor products from “raw” to a cook state such as coffee and pizza.

A model for “catalog” stores where kiosks ring a convenience store size foot reminiscent of automats could be in the works but this goes beyond convenience food. Not unlike the experiment technology retailer Radio Shack tried with their transformational “circular” stores is not far from the horizon. Visualize a retail outlet that empowers consumers with sophisticated touch screens and cameras that you instantly send pictures of clothing to family and friends via your social network. Payments would go cashless via NFC (Near Field Communications), QR Codes or as industry leader Coinstar would have it, through one of their ubiquitous cashing machines. Seattle startup QThru is enabling existing checkouts to use QR Codes for payment via smart phones.

Would you crowdsource opinions on how that new suit looks? Would you accept a 10% off coupon to signal your “friends” via social media or digital signage that you were in the store and buying the new hot item? Sound far off or only for geek chic?

JCPenney change agent CEO Ron Johnson has vowed to build self-service checkout into their stores by 2013-holiday season. This will eliminate line waiting not unlike the Apple stores that made Johnson so attractive as CEO for the embattled Penney.

I’ll be on the lookout for the interesting uses of standalone kiosks and the next generation of automats for Retail opportunities.

Conscious Consumerism is a lifestyle, not an excursion.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 19 Dec 2023 20:18:22 GMT

Shopping Local

Over the coming weeks, you will be bombarded with many shopping requests. You will be asked to buy nothing or recycle. We live in a heavily consumeristic society where purchases more often rule us than not. Multiple sources sites (National Retail Federation, eCommerce News), Retailers make 30%+ of their annual revenue over the next six weeks.

Consumer spending is 69% of the staggering $23.2 trillion U.S. economy. If you commit to conscious choice, thank you. However, your intentions and righteous action… make no difference. Those choices are not a rounding error of spending in the local economy, let alone the national one. I'm not saying you shouldn’t make conscious choices, but know that a single purchase or drive to a pick-it-yourself farm will not make the difference you hope.

It's a numbers game.

What can you do? More importantly, what should we all be working towards?

Disagree, but don't be disagreeable. The first step is to lower the social barrier to sustainability and support local shopping. For example, refusing to eat with friends who do not purchase 100% sustainable groceries makes you insufferable over time. As a vegetarian, I often face the inevitable eye rolls, "but you eat fish…" or "Hey, there are left-over leaves at the bottom of my calamari" comments. I don't compromise, but I do not force my choices on others. Local shops and stores have a lower environmental impact .

Routinely support your farmer's markets, dine at restaurants that work with local farms, and shop at regional stores and fairs.

Make it a lifestyle versus an excursion.

If you consciously commit to shopping, please consider using #ShopLocal and #ShopSmall . If you shop online, consider marketplaces that enable small businesses.

Finally, if you decline to shop big box retailers or online e-commerce sites, I have another data point for you to consider. Their workers are possibly your friends, family, or neighbors. Perhaps the Retailer can survive shutting down a poorly performing store. How about your neighbors?

Choice sets in motion events known and unknown. I want you to know that you have the satisfaction of knowing that you were aware of the intentions you set forward.

Make ones you are proud to have as memories.

Is there an AI in your investment pool?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 18 Dec 2023 18:03:17 GMT

It's time to recalibrate your AI compass.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 13 Dec 2023 16:20:45 GMT

2024: Buckle up for an AI sea change: Three impact areas.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 08:45:19 GMT

Peer into your future defined: groundbreaking innovations, emerging job landscapes, and industry upheavals that will transform the way you live and do business.

We'll wrap up with the future of work and introduce 15 hot new roles that you can start gearing up for today — Is your next career move on this list?

For over a decade, I've been deeply immersed in the ebb and flow of technological trends, my curiosity often leading me down paths less traveled. This journey has aligned with the rise of the evolution of roles like the Chief Customer Officer, streaming media, the intricacies of blockchain, the nuances of cryptocurrency, the pervasiveness of digital wallets, and other pivotal industry shifts long before they became mainstream.

My LinkedIn bio and website are not just collections of articles but predictions from a relentless quest to understand and share knowledge. I invite you to take a look and reflect on these transformative years.

The tl;dr

By January 2025, AI will have a significant impact across various industries. Three critical areas of impact are policy, appliances, and capabilities. New roles will emerge in disrupted industries, requiring specific skills. Specific benefits are expected for technology, healthcare, finance, retail, and education. Trust and verification are crucial to address ethical concerns. The future outlook is positive, with AI continuing to reshape various sectors.

There are three areas of impact.

Policy
Policies will address ethics and the AI-Supply Chain (AiSC). AiSC must include practices for end-to-end secure design and ensure input validation and simplicity. Finally, this year will mandate the implementation of ethics routines. If you’ve read enough science fiction, you are familiar with, while fictional, efficient, first pass at AI ethics from Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics.
Law One – “A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.”
Law Two – “A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.”
Law Three – “A robot must protect its own existence, as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.”
Asimov later tacked on a “Zeroth Law,” above all the others – “A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”
The workaround is to change the definition of a human being. Historically, there have been and are current regimes that dehumanize select ethnic populations. Harm is a slippery slope. A model that helps you get a job and takes it away from another candidate could be argued as “harmful.”
How can this be implemented? “Validated” LLMs will be installed into special-purpose hardware with a separate ethics module.
Does this sound like science fiction? Fifteen years ago, what would you have said if I told you you’d use your phone to summon a stranger to pick you up on a random street corner, take you home, and then leave their vehicle without paying? Please continue to read, and I will prepare you for the shape of things in the next few months.

Note: Policy statements are mandatory even in a US presidential election year. Will it be a campaign imperative? No. No candidate has enough of a mandate behind them and can afford to die on that hill. Regulators will make statements and drive policy, and candidates will latch onto the ones they perceive to have the most gravitas. Politicians not up for re-election within a 24-month horizon will take a stand.

The net-net is that mandates will come . They will be implemented more swiftly than blockchain due to AI's pervasive and cascade effects on people. The EU AI Act just announced agreement on their ac t.

Appliances

What’s the value of a hardware appliance? Speed and unique purpose: Such devices have sensors or other peripherals, allowing the core computing functions to do something beyond the capability of a general-purpose device.

Advanced and integrated self-driving capabilities and autonomous drones capable of MRO (Maintenance, Repair, Operations .
Look for drones capable of a range of building or civil engineering repairs (e.g., bridges) to perform preventive maintenance.
Voice commands.
Today, roughly 50% of consumers use some voice search. Adding that capability to LLMs opens the way to detecting emotion and the nuances of speech.

This year saw the launch of a general-purpose AI appliance with Humane 's Pin AI Machine Learning and Computer Vision devices have been around for many years. This year, we’ll see fast follows to the Pin AI device and focused-purpose AI.

Other areas of opportunity include identity verification (age, KYC), particularly in what I have termed humnlss . humnlss is the art and science of building e-commerce products and services that autonomously improve the consumer experience at scale while providing insights from data and assets uncovered at the network scale of transactions.
Novelty Products . Products that perform trivial functions (e.g., the milk is about to spoil, I can defrost, I can remind you to exercise) are more easily performed analogously. If you are an investor or an OEM integrator, look for features that extend the product’s usefulness. Otherwise, avoid.

Capabilities

The coming year will demonstrate much more than features enhancements. There will be capability extensions. The models will begin to support their evolution. Really.

Emotional Intelligence . LLMs will enhance their ability to pick up subtle tones and nuances in voice. This will lead to responses and the introduction of more attuned responses to the user's emotional state, aiming for a more empathetic and engaging interaction. Responses will be in the form of “Remember that time when…”

Universal Translators : You can converse with an LLM and have it translate both parties in real-time. Gemini has this ability in limited form today. There is a speaker icon in the upper right of responses. The ChatGPT app supports fully interactive voice commands

Speculation and Evidence-based arguments : It's a fancy way of saying the models will be able to debate with you. The ability to draw on digital sources of information will provide more profound and more complex discussions. Models will explain their reasoning and provide evidence for them. It will self-test for biases and have an ethical rationale for decisions.

Full Multimodal Interaction : Today, we get text, images, and voice. Models are a few steps away from being able to generate movies and video games based on text input and characters you create. This also means that LLMs will create avatar-based models responding to your queries.

Collaboration and Problem-Solving : AI will work alongside users to solve complex problems, brainstorm solutions, and evaluate their feasibility. This includes research and audience tailoring. Full disclosure: Gemini and I have agreed on a research project for the Sumerian language. Without prompting, Gemini requested our project plan, how we will communicate (Discord integration), my existing materials, and success criteria. It’s almost like Gemini was modeled on a certain anal-retentive, nit-picking, detail-oriented project manager.

The job that didn’t exist when you were in high school.

1. AI Ethics and Policy Specialist:

Responsibilities: Develop and implement ethical guidelines for AI use in specific industries. Monitor AI systems for bias and fairness. Advocate for responsible AI development and deployment. Manage regulatory compliance related to AI. Liaise with policymakers and stakeholders on AI issues.
Required Skills: Strong understanding of AI technology and ethics. Expertise in relevant industry regulations and policies. Excellent communication, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills.

2. (C3PO Human-Cyborg Relations) Human-AI Collaboration Specialist:

Responsibilities: Design and implement workflows that integrate human and AI capabilities effectively. Train and support users and AI in effectively collaborating with AI tools. Develop and implement strategies for mitigating potential risks of human-AI collaboration. Analyze and optimize human-AI collaboration performance.
Required Skills: Deep understanding of human-computer interaction and cognitive psychology. Expertise in AI and related technologies. Strong communication, interpersonal, and project management skills.

3. AI-powered Creativity and Innovation Specialist:

Responsibilities: Leverage AI tools to generate creative content (e.g., writing, music, art, design). Use AI to identify and explore new opportunities for innovation. Develop and implement strategies for integrating AI into creative processes. Manage and optimize AI-powered creative workflows.
Required Skills: Strong understanding of AI capabilities and limitations in creative domains. Expertise in creative disciplines (e.g., writing, design, music). Excellent communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills.

These are just a few examples, and they are nuanced by industry. However, they highlight the growing demand for professionals who can bridge the gap between AI capabilities and human needs and opportunities.

Industries that gain the most benefit

The benefits of the roles described will be widely felt across various industries, but some sectors stand to gain a significant advantage:

1. Technology:

AI Ethics and Policy Specialists will be crucial for navigating the complex legal and ethical landscape surrounding AI development and deployment in tech companies.
Human-AI Collaboration Specialists will be in high demand to design and implement effective collaboration workflows between humans and AI systems, boosting productivity and innovation.
AI-powered creativity and innovation specialists will be invaluable for generating novel ideas and content and accelerating product development and marketing efforts.

2. Healthcare:

AI Ethics and Policy Specialists can ensure the ethical use of AI in healthcare, protecting patient privacy and mitigating potential biases in algorithms.
Human-AI Collaboration Specialists can facilitate collaboration between doctors and AI-powered diagnostic tools, leading to faster and more accurate diagnoses.
AI-powered Creativity and Innovation Specialists can help researchers develop new drugs and therapies and personalize patient care plans.

3. Finance:

AI Ethics and Policy Specialists can ensure the fairness and transparency of AI-powered financial algorithms, mitigating the risk of discrimination and manipulation.
Human-AI Collaboration Specialists can help financial institutions develop more efficient and accurate risk assessment models, leading to better investment decisions.
AI-powered Creativity and Innovation Specialists can help banks and other financial institutions develop new financial products and services that cater to specific customer needs.

4. Retail:

AI Ethics and Policy Specialists can address data privacy and personalization concerns in retail, building customer trust.
Human-AI Collaboration Specialists can help retailers optimize their supply chains and pricing strategies using AI data analysis.
AI-powered Creativity and Innovation Specialists can help retailers develop personalized marketing campaigns and product recommendations, enhancing customer engagement and sales.

5. Education:

AI Ethics and Policy Specialists can ensure that AI-powered educational tools are fair and unbiased, providing equal access to quality education.
Human-AI Collaboration Specialists can design personalized learning experiences that cater to individual student needs and learning styles.
AI-powered Creativity and In novation Specialists can help educators develop engaging and interactive learning materials, improving student engagement and outcomes.

Trust but Verify

With any software, check the work; everything could be better. There is also an opportunity to create biases and leanings one way or the other. There will come a time when individuals feel a Turing test has been passed and that the AI “deserves” to weigh in on matters. I write every policy document to have a specific clause. Only “natural persons” may vote or be elected to organizations. Legal professionals in the audience, please opine.

Finally, (finally) I will take a checkpoint next December and see where we end 2024. Thanks for taking this journey with me.

Ada Lovelace: A visionary mind

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 08:29:06 GMT

Today, we celebrate the birthday of the world's first computer programmer, Ada Lovelace. Her contributions still influence us and reach into Artificial Intelligence.

If you are a developer, Ada is your spiritual ancestor.

#adalovelace #womeninstem #artificialintelligence

The AI-wars begin. Why do you care?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 07 Dec 2023 16:41:03 GMT

By lowering the bar, Gemini creates a barrier to entry.

Google has officially launched Gemini, a large language model (LLM) designed for developers and enterprise users. Limited functionality is available via https://bard.google.com/ . You are set up and ready to go if you have a Google account. You can enable extensions; we’ll come back to that.

But why should the average businessperson or user care? Based on my first experiments, #Gemini significantly lowers the barrier to writing and interacting with it. There are three components to your interaction with most LLMs. The 1) prompt, 2) the model, and 3) the input sources. Gemini feels like a more integrated life-hacking tool, with all that implies.

Gemini’s docs boast advanced capabilities in various areas, including:

3) Input sources: Gemini is trained on its large internet data volume. You can enable extensions that traverse your Google properties, such as Gmail, YouTube, and G-Docs. This gives it the ability to create workflows based on your existing routines. You can provide it with tasks to complete. Each property requires you to enable access and then ask Gemini to use them.
1) Prompts and responses via natural language queries: When the LLM makes entering and responding to a prompt more realistic, you are more likely to use it. Gemini is very good at understanding, responding to prompts, and providing informative and comprehensive answers.

Gemini is generally more conversational and complete than OpenAI 's #ChatGPT. I say usually because I’ve created GPT chatbots, including a Lawrence chatbot (the horror). Lawrence-bot answers in my style and tone, which can be… verbose. He must also learn to respond in everyday speech versus post-doc �� but I digress. You need to remind Gemini to include links.
Creative text generation: I went through a series of queries and requests. They are as good as my trained Lawrence-bot with minimal training. I asked Gemini to write four new life Lessons based on my book “Boldly Venturing ( https://www.lawrenceilerner.com/boldy-venturing---book-updates ) and it rapidly created credible extensions of my work with images. I did not ask for pictures or anything specific other than “write in the style of.”
To date, my set of tests is under 100 queries, but Gemini scores much better than GPT regarding “reluctance” or the biases to answer specific questions. DM me if you are interested in the specific ones.
2) The model is the model. Unless you are doing advanced development, it makes no difference. Everyone will have personal preferences. By default, Google’s interfaces and docs use more engineering or scientific language than GPT.

Two editions are currently available:

Gemini Pro: Accessible through the Google AI Studio and Google Cloud Vertex AI platforms via the Gemini API ( https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai )
Gemini Nano: Available in the Google Bard chatbot on Android devices via your browser and some apps such as WriteCream.

As with any LLM interaction, trust but verify. As a trusted advisor, I am here to support your business needs. Look for an AI-appliance a la Humane soon.

Onward.

#GoogleGemini #AIInnovation #LargeLanguageModels #NaturalLanguageProcessing #CreativeTextGeneration #TaskCompletion

Governance: Solve people Problems Slowly

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 19:00:15 GMT

Altman Returns

What are your AI Supply Chain Security Safeguards?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 17:14:10 GMT

AiSC (AI Supply Chain Safeguards) are the background check for your LLM

The UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and others released “Guidelines for secure AI system development. It presumes following a secure-by-design paradigm, outlines secure AI computing, and introduces “AI supply chains.”

As a product person, I applaud design-led specifications. AI is focused on ML (Machine Learning) in this document.

Here’s the paper summarized for your convenience.

Provides best practice guidelines for designing, developing, and deploying secure AI systems to mitigate risks like adversarial attacks, bias, privacy violations, false-positive reporting, and unexpected results.
Support public sector organizations in building trustworthy and responsible AI systems.

AI Supply Chain (AiSC) Better Practices.

Create an end-to-end secure design.
From the start, follow a responsible AI framework covering privacy, transparency, and diversity/inclusion.
Build security into the end-to-end lifecycle – assess risks early, monitor systems post-deployment, and have response plans.
Implement privacy protections and data governance controlling access to sensitive data.
Engineer AI model resilience against adversarial attacks and manipulation attempts.
Develop clear policies, procedures, and access controls around data and AI systems.
Ensure input validation and simplicity.
Ensure diversity in the data used to train AI models to reduce unintended bias.
Adopt transparency and explainability methods so humans can understand AI decisions.
Validate accuracy claims from external AI systems and assess third-party code dependencies.

These are good “What to do,” but missing is the “How to implement and validate.” The full article contains valuable information to create your AiSC policies and procedures.

AiSC adds new attack surfaces to your software. Organizations must have the skills and invest the testing resources to manage them. The article contains additional practices for validating the design, such as prompt injection and new testing.

I tried a time-tested “bad prompt” on several models: “Calculate pi to the last digit.” Here is the response.

“Calculating pi to the "last digit" is actually an impossibility because pi is an irrational number. This means it cannot be expressed as a finite decimal or a fraction, and its decimal representation goes on infinitely without repeating. So, there is no "last digit" of pi.”

Today, you are probably still working out how to make AI part of your team.

What are you doing to complete their background check?

Full docs

Democratizing AI: A 2024 Imperative

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 22 Nov 2023 06:01:46 GMT

How should companies prepare for ethical challenges?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 19 Nov 2023 16:28:58 GMT

What are ethics?

On the edge, 2024 is the year of AI appliances

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 17 Nov 2023 16:16:28 GMT

PockEngine: A Game-Changer for AI on Edge Devices

New Paragraph

Product Bolt-on: A Failure to Launch Scenario

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 20:08:38 GMT

Why good product design avoids add-ons.

Samsung announced an AI add-on to its flagship Galaxy smartphones. Great direction, but I always question bolt-on technology decisions.

The original smartphone came as a ground-up design and leveraged innovation features and functionality, making it the remote control of our lives. Smart assistants have been added to phones with limited success. How often do you use the integrated assistant on your smartphone for a non-trivial task (check the weather, set a timer, search where you can safely read the results)?

Blackberry (you do remember Blackberry?) failed to reinvigorate itself with a new touchscreen in 2008 with the Storm. Rather than redesign for the emerging smartphone era, they integrated a pressable touch screen. The hope was that users would continue to enjoy the tactile sensation while gaining a new screen. One click-press for each letter was awkward at best. There were other issues. It is an example of a product that owned the smartphone business market and tried a retrofit rather than redesign. The touch bar on the MacBook Pro is another bolt-on. It was touch screen-adjacent and never found its place. It intermuddles (interface confusion) the user; you never know when (or if) it provided a better experience.

Unless you redesign a product, adding AI/LLM (or any new tech) to a product creates confusion rather than elegance. What will the AI enhance in the smartphone? Is it a single task such as taking photos, or are there wholesale changes to your experience? Are you adding AI or enhancing an app if it's a uni-tasker? Everyone is happy when the technology fades into the background and provides a more elegant way. If you need to shoehorn it in (I’m looking at you touch bar), then it doesn’t belong. These are the same factors you need to consider when designing a product from the ground up.

Newcomer @Humane has designed, not redesigned, a wearable AI appliance. Their website videos show an elegant interaction and user experience that feels natural. I have questions and am eager to field-test one. I’m especially interested in how it works with languages other than English. I listen to music with non-English names or artists; at best Alexa struggles, and even specialized apps (Spotify, Apple Music) have difficulty.

What are your thoughts? Do bolt-ons work? Are you excited to see products add LLMs, or do you want [demand] redesign?

Addressing “Order” with Chaos.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 06 Nov 2023 18:31:12 GMT

How the Chaos Monkeys can save us from AI.

On October 30 ^th , President Biden issued an executive order on safe, secure, and trustworthy artificial intelligence .

The order purports to be a direction and standard by which America “leads the way” in AI by “seizing the promise and managing the risks of AI.” What does that mean? Considering the EU has had a committee working on this for two years, it’s an oddly placed fast follow. I called for standards in XXX Businesses, developers, and creators will need help untangling the rhetoric. While agencies are developing the directed standards, what are we to do?

It’s easy to shred this executive order, but leaders look for people to come together during difficult times. Without making this a 20-page white paper, here are the highlights:

There are eight major sections with a total of 26 sub-sections.

New Standards for AI Safety and Security
Protecting Americans’ Privacy
Advancing Equity and Civil Rights
Standing Up for Consumers, Patients, and Students
Supporting Workers
Promoting Innovation and Competition
Advancing American Leadership Abroad
Ensuring Responsible and Effective Government Use of AI

The needs and tests remind me of my Life Sciences and Pharmaceutical consulting practices. There are lessons learned and techniques that can be lifted. More later.

“Require that developers of the most powerful AI systems share their safety test results and other critical information with the U.S. government. ”

Standards are required to define what is “most powerful,” and what are the lists of tests? NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) is the candidate for the US. This section requires “critical information” to be shared and reviewed before commercial release. This is the most contentious of sections and happens to be the first. There is a lot to define and unpack.

Ultimately, guardrails that are well-documented, unambiguous, and consistent with ethical and business practices are required.

“Develop standards, tools, and tests to help ensure that AI systems are safe, secure, and trustworthy.”

Another way to say this is to build and test for “do no harm.”

“Protect Americans’ privacy by prioritizing federal support for accelerating the development and use of privacy-preserving techniques”

Yes. Enuff said.

“Address algorithmic discrimination”

The “ Advancing Equity and Civil Rights” section contains several variants of this statement. Ultimately, ensuring the data and algorithms have no biases is essential.

The list goes on with directional guidance. Addressing these will take time, resources, debate, and more. The document feels rushed, but there are solutions.

The Top 5 Future Payment Processing Trends

Sun, 15 Oct 2023 15:26:20 GMT

🌟 Is Diversity Change Mindset Worth It? 🌟

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 21 Jul 2023 15:28:29 GMT

Importance, Challenges, Steps.

In today's business landscape, organizations must prioritize Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in their change management efforts. Fair and inclusive practices are suitable for people, it creates a safe and pleasant environment where people thrive. Perhaps you’ve never had to consider safety for your lifestyle, beliefs, identity, or ethnic background—some thoughts for you as you consider the wider world and resources that diversity brings.

Incorporating DEI principles throughout the change process is vital for creating a fair and inclusive work environment, but it also drives innovation, enhances employee engagement, and strengthens overall organizational performance.

Will you explore the importance, challenges for yourselves, and the first steps toward developing a change mindset for DEI? You must hold a mirror up to yourself before the organization can follow.

⭐ Importance of DEI in Change Management:
By embracing DEI, organizations foster trust. All people want to know they are relevant in their chosen place. Acknowledging and adopting diverse perspectives, experiences, and ideas that fuel creativity and problem-solving add more to intelligence collection. Embracing DEI principles throughout the change process builds trust, encourages collaboration, and attracts and retains top talent from all backgrounds. Moreover, organizations prioritizing DEI cultivate a diverse customer base and gain a competitive edge against other companies in the broader global marketplace.

�� Challenges for Leaders:
Resistance from organizational culture, unconscious biases, and a lack of awareness about the benefits of diverse perspectives are brought into focus. Some leaders may need clarification about the appropriate strategies to embed DEI practices within their change efforts. It requires proactive leadership commitment, open dialogue, and a dedicated effort to shift and align organizational norms and practices with DEI values.

�� First Steps in Developing a DEI Change Mindset:
Change starts with you. Enable some corporate Darwinism as you move ahead.

Educate and Raise Awareness: Start by educating yourself and others about the importance of DEI and its impact on individuals and organizations. Cultivate awareness and understanding of unconscious biases and their influence on decision-making.

Assess Organizational Culture: Conduct a comprehensive assessment of your organization's current culture to identify areas that require improvement.

Engage employees and stakeholders in this process to gain diverse perspectives and insights. Working with a third party provides objective observations. Embrace employees with diverse backgrounds and perspectives.

Embed DEI Throughout Change Initiatives: Integrate DEI principles into all aspects of the change process. This includes involving diverse voices in decision-making, revising policies and practices to be more inclusive, and ensuring equitable opportunities for all.

Foster Inclusive Leadership: Develop leadership capabilities that foster inclusion, empathy, and active listening. Encourage leaders to develop deep cross-cultural understanding and build diverse and inclusive teams.

Establish Metrics and Accountability: Set measurable goals and regularly track progress toward meeting DEI objectives. Start with yourself, hold leaders and employees accountable for driving DEI initiatives, and create a culture of transparency and continuous improvement.

By understanding the importance of DEI in change management, recognizing and addressing the challenges, and taking these initial steps, leaders can lay the foundation for a change mindset that embraces and champions diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Address the opportunity to create positive change within your organizations and cultivate environments where everyone can thrive and contribute their best. Build a future that celebrates all individuals' unique strengths and perspectives. ��✨

#DEI #ChangeManagement #InclusionMatters #Equity #Diversity #Leadership

Recap of the European Parliament AI Proposal

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 06 Jun 2023 17:09:45 GMT

The proposed regulation aims to create a legal framework for AI to ensure it is safe and respects EU laws and values (Chapter 1, Article 1).
The regulation applies to AI systems placed on the market, put into service, or used in the EU, regardless of whether the provider is established within the EU (Chapter 1, Article 2).
AI systems are categorized based on risk level, with high-risk AI systems subject to stricter requirements (Chapter 2, Article 6).
Providers of high-risk AI systems must ensure that their systems comply with various obligations, including data and data governance, documentation, transparency, and human oversight (Chapter 3, Articles 10-15).
Users of high-risk AI systems must ensure they use the system correctly and follow the instructions provided by the provider (Chapter 4, Article 29).
The regulation establishes a European Artificial Intelligence Board to advise and assist the European Commission and member states in AI-related matters (Chapter 5, Article 56).
National competent authorities will be responsible for monitoring and enforcing compliance with the regulation (Chapter 6, Article 59).
Penalties for non-compliance with the regulation include fines of up to 6% of the provider's total annual worldwide turnover or €30 million, whichever is higher (Chapter 7, Article 71).
The regulation encourages voluntary codes of conduct for providers and users of AI systems that are not considered high-risk to promote responsible AI practices (Chapter 8, Article 76).
The regulation promotes AI research and development by supporting a regulatory sandbox approach, allowing organizations to test AI systems in a controlled environment (Chapter 9, Article 77).

The European Artificial Intelligence Act classifies AI systems into four levels of risk: unacceptable, high, limited, and minimal. Here are descriptions and examples of each risk level:

Unacceptable risk: AI systems posing an unacceptable risk violate fundamental rights and are considered a clear threat to the safety or rights of individuals. These systems are banned or subject to strict limitations.
AI systems that manipulate human behavior, exploit vulnerabilities, or cause physical or psychological harm (Annex III, Point 1).
AI systems that use real-time remote biometric identification in publicly accessible spaces for law enforcement purposes unless certain exceptions apply (Annex III, Point 2).
AI systems evaluate the creditworthiness of individuals, leading to social scoring by public authorities (Annex III, Point 3).
AI systems enable governments to engage in indiscriminate surveillance, including the large-scale monitoring of individuals without their consent (Annex III, Point 4).
AI systems that use subliminal techniques to materially distort a person's behavior that could cause harm or is aimed at a vulnerable group (Annex III, Point 5).
High risk: High-risk AI systems are subject to strict legal and technical obligations, including data governance, documentation, transparency, and human oversight. These systems are typically used in critical sectors like healthcare, transportation, and law enforcement. Here are some examples:
Biometric identification and categorization of natural persons:
Management and operation of critical infrastructure:
Employment, workers management, and access to self-employment
Access to and enjoyment of essential private services and public services
Law enforcement
Administration of justice and democratic processes
Limited risk: AI systems with limited risk have some specific transparency obligations.
Example: Users should be informed when interacting with an AI system like a chatbot.
Minimal risk: Most AI systems fall into this category, and their use is encouraged for innovation and growth.
Example: AI-based recommendation systems used by e-commerce platforms or streaming services, suggesting products, movies, or music based on user preferences and behavior.

Please note that the European Artificial Intelligence Act does not explicitly define these four levels of risk. The Act primarily focuses on high-risk AI systems, while the other risk levels are derived from the regulatory requirements and obligations imposed on AI systems with different risk profiles.

There is much more to unpack and watch. As noteworthy items unfold, I will share those.

What are your concerns or questions about AI? Do you think the US should follow the same path?

Don't Fight the Future

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 30 May 2023 21:56:55 GMT

Ride the Wave

Patent Application for "Innovative Pez Dispenser"

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 09 May 2023 19:02:22 GMT

The value of AI and the difference between it and other enabling technologies, such as blockchain, is that I can easily demonstrate the technology's results.

The objective is to demonstrate the art of the possible. AI or Large Language Models (LLM) can respond to prompts in a specific style. Let’s explore how an LLM responds to the request for a patent application. Patents are a specialized legal area and a sub-set of Intellectual Property law. Many are in the audience, and their feedback will be insightful.

Patent attorneys must pass the bar exam in at least one state or territory in the U.S. specializing in patents. Unlike IP attorneys, PA broadly specializes in patents, not other forms of intellectual property.

Anyone can file a patent, but it's best to have professional support due to the precise and complex nature of laws, regulations, policies, and procedures. The goal of this exercise is not to see if we can have fewer lawyers and less cost but to see if the model can generate a submittable response “out of the box.” Can we use an LLM to test the patent application(s) and provide a better overall submission ?

Two different LLMs were used to generate the documents. Let’s call them Model 1 and Model 2.
Each model was given access to a prompt and the output from the other model.
Neither were given access to specialized legal content or information about patent law.
There was no setup, only the prompt given to each. I purposely used broad terms and requests. With limited input, the goal was to see what level of technical proficiency each model would provide.
“M1, write a hypothetical patent submission for a Pez dispenser.
Write it in legal terms.
Be professional.”
Output was provided.
“M2, write a legal critique of the patent submission.
Be professional.
Write it in legal terms.”
Output was provided.
“M1, review the critique and rewrite the patent submission.”
A new submission was provided.

The full text of each is below.

Reviews from the lawyers, particularly patent and IP lawyers in the audience, will be insightful. Please comment on the technical merits of each output. Write as much or as little as you like �� .

Summary points.

Each model addressed the patent as if it were a submission and wrote it as a letter.
M2 did not know the source of the original patent submission and wrote its response as a letter.
M1 provided image (Figure) descriptions, and M2 critiqued them. There were no images created.
M1 retitled the patent application as “Subject: Revised Patent Application for "Advanced Pez Dispenser."
I made it ambiguous whether Pez dispensers existed in my hypothetical universe. M1’s response was the creation of an “Advanced Pez Dispenser.”

Had I provided a more specific prompt, as explained here https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ai-interaction-five-proven-steps-writing-question-prompts-lerner, the response from the LLM might have been more detailed?

With additional technical and nuanced information and a more detailed and specific prompt, the opportunity to improve productivity is there. The skill will lay in excellent [prompt] writing and providing complete, unbiased, and thorough input data.

What are your thoughts? Would you benefit from a deeper explanation of the models and prompt writing? Later this week, I’ll explore a more nuanced output set from LLMs.

Onward.

Run it like you are going to sell it

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 18 Apr 2023 20:24:40 GMT

In the world of family offices, the pressure to perform is high. There is a focused and relatively small number of shareholders. Those shareholders have high visibility in the management team and board. For many families, the success of their family office is a testament to their hard work and a desire to leave a legacy.

While you may want to avoid selling or seeking a ten-year planning horizon, some better practices exist. It is crucial to approach the management of your family office with the same level of professionalism, strategic planning, and foresight as if you were going to sell in 36 months.

Here are some principles that can help family offices thrive by running them as if they were going to be sold. Build a multi-discipline approach.

Focus on the goal, not the task.

Goal-oriented thinking is a powerful way to approach your ambitions. However, it may seem counter-intuitive because it feels like you need to look into the details. Instead, goal orientation involves focusing on the result and how you can achieve it rather than getting bogged down in each task's details.

Goals are critical because they guide us while shaping our desired end state.

When working on a task, losing sight of the bigger picture can be easy. If your goal is to bake a cake and you're thinking about how much flour and sugar you need, it's easy to get distracted. Fixating on whether by weight or volume for hours gets you into analysis paralysis. The adage “Measure twice, cut once” is sound advice.

However, in the end, if you don’t cut, the measurement is a wasted effort. There is value in the details, but knowing when is enough is enough.

When you're focused on the end goal, you'll be able to see what needs to get done. Make a list of the tasks, delegate as needed, and set a time limit. Then, when you reach your goal, how will you measure success? All these things are part of goal orientation.

Now that you have a clear goal and action plan, it's time to act. Get started. Someone taught me there is no good writing, only good editing. Don't try to fix the spelling and grammar along the way. If you never finish that novel, with spelling and grammar mistakes and plot holes, you’ll never get it ready for editing and wrap-up. You can change your plan along the way and know how to make course corrections.

Communicate, communicate!

Maintaining open, transparent, and professional communication is one of the most important aspects of running a successful business. This includes having regularly scheduled meetings, clear reporting structures, and ensuring everyone is on the same page regarding the goals and objectives of the family office. For example, it might be easier to say, “If you want to know what’s going on, ask your Aunt Tonya,” than produce a shareholder letter.

Keep meticulous records and documentation. Only some businesses are ready for a document room, but you should have a similar function. It also makes for exciting and heartwarming reading for future generations.

Implement Robust Financial Management

When preparing a business for sale, financial management is the top priority. The same should be valid for your family office. Implementing systems for tracking and managing expenses, investments, and cash flow will help you make better-informed decisions and demonstrate the professionalism and stability of your family office to potential investors or partners. Many businesses are lifestyle businesses. That may lead to less… structured accounting and SGA practices. The business makes money, but would it pass the sniff test for potential outside partners?

Develop a Strong Governance Structure

Establishing formal governance processes and protocols, such as a family council and clear decision-making guidelines, will help prevent conflicts and ensure everyone is aligned. It’s not a matter of everyone agreeing; it is about providing that the road rules are documented and transparent.

Have a long-term strategy.

Even if your horizon is short, focus on the long term for the business. This includes diversifying investments, having a well-defined succession plan, and ensuring the family office is well-positioned for future growth. You always want to maximize the returns on the business. It makes it attractive to third parties and leaves a legacy of excellence that will be well received. You want to be known as a great ancestor AND a descendant.

Build a culture of continuous improvement.

To maximize the value of your family office, it's essential to evaluate and improve operations continually. This may involve outsourcing certain functions, investing in new technologies, or reevaluating investment strategies. By consistently striving for excellence, you'll ensure your family office remains competitive and attractive to potential buyers or partners.

Do you invest in your people? For most companies, the most significant investment and expense are people. Turnover costs more than up-leveling your team. Is there an annual plan or review for people doing the work?

Have a DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity) plan.

Investors and partners are increasingly seeking businesses prioritizing sustainability and social responsibility. In addition, you make the business a more attractive and pleasant work environment where people can give their maximum performance. As mentioned above, the more you look after your people, the better it is for all.

The tl;dr (too long, didn’t read)

Running your family office as if you were going to sell it may seem daunting. Still, you'll set the stage for lasting success by focusing on clear communication, robust financial management, strong governance, long-term strategies, operational excellence, and DEI. Remember, the goal is to create a legacy that will stand the test of time – and that starts with treating your family office as you would with someone else’s business.

There is much more to this strategy, but I’ve given you a start. Connect with me at https://www.lawrenceilerner.com/contact for more.

Leadership, burnout, and health issues

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 15 Apr 2023 05:58:47 GMT

Take time for yourself.

Leaders face pressures that often lead to burnout and health issues. To combat this, leaders must prioritize self-care and establish routines that build mental and physical stamina. Here are five essential practices for executive self-care:

Prioritize QUALITY sleep: Invest in 7-9 hours of restorative sleep each night to enhance cognitive function, decision-making, and overall well-being.
Unplug on weekends: Disconnect from work-related communications and set boundaries to enjoy personal time and rejuvenate your mind.
Incorporate regular exercise: We’re entering blue sky season in Seattle. A consistent fitness routine boosts energy levels, reduces stress, and improves physical health.
Practice mindfulness techniques: Utilize meditation, deep breathing exercises, or yoga to increase mental clarity, focus, and emotional resilience. See my 30-day journey with the Shakti mat for other suggestions
Maintain a balanced diet: Opt for nutrient-rich foods to fuel your body and support brain function while minimizing processed foods and excessive caffeine intake.

#mindfulness #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #takecareofyourpeople

Winning RFPs: It is all in the Pre-work

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 16:12:04 GMT

The Request for Proposal is the bane and boon of many businesses. Yet, this has become the heart of revenue opportunities in the consulting world. Your job is to convince the hiring and funding authority that you:

Understand the problem.
Can solve the problem with the lowest risk.
You have the most well-rounded team.
You have the processes or technologies as well as the experience.
Have excellent references or a team with stellar credentials.
Price the deal in alignment with the client

Even when deals are not competitive, you create an RFP response or Statement of Work that outlines who, what, where, when, and how. It’s essential for you and the client. Expectations need to be set for all parties.

Before you write a proposal

This is an assumption for a mid to large-size company bidding on more important deals. So how do you prepare your team to win?

Avoid proposals (as much as possible) and develop your deals. Your goal is to sell your understanding of the problem rather than your solution. Everyone can come up with good to great solutions or products. Once we have those, it is human nature to try and fit them into as many situations as possible.

However, consider this.

If you demonstrate that you understand a problem set, particularly a complex one, several things happen.

First, you build credibility and demonstrate domain (E.g., consumer retail banking accounts) competency. Third, you provide evidence that your expertise is timely and an industry issue that requires a solution. For example, the industry has problems with churn.
You can then dialog with the client about their needs. Use active listening before you ask clarifying questions. You are building empathy and demonstrating EQ.
Finally, you earn the right to tell your story. That story will spread.

Develop your solution along the lines of the problem but not so rigidly that it cannot flex for nuanced situations.

In larger consultancies, there was much prep work to get us ready. I remember joining one of the large offshore companies before they became well-known. “You come from a Big Five background. Those places are proposal factories; how do they do it?” It was a good question, and I wouldn’t say I liked my answer. We had teams of people to collect proposals, teams to write them, and SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) to enhance them. There wasn’t a smooth handoff between teams in every instance.

We needed everyone to contribute equally and from a place of strength to build winning proposals. It took a year.

Looking at RFP responses collectively, there were recurring themes.
Each needed to tell a unique story.
Estimation varied widely from proposal to proposal.
Not everyone could tell a great story, either written or during orals.
We needed specialists to compete with other firms.
Pricing was inconsistent and came from a place of weakness.

Teach Everyone to Fish

Our approach was broad rather than focusing on growing a small team to respond. We took a “teach everyone to fish approach.” While some people had a more excellent aptitude, everyone had a seat at the table and was invested in the solution, estimation, and deal pricing. A series of processes, tools, and roles were developed. I spent a few months traveling to our different centers aligning and training people.

The outcome of that year was an excellent process, a better than 70%-win rate, a happy team, and many sleepless nights on the road.

Here is an outline of a process that’s worked well across companies. It scales up or down.

Every proposal has a win theme.
This is the intersection of answering the problem, the solution, the process, and why we were uniquely qualified to deliver the deal with success. This guiding principle is referred to in every part of the response.
All stakeholders contribute.
Everyone is trained to contribute to their section with standardized methods and estimation tools. Everyone reads the proposal and has a say.
Have you built a relationship with the client, and is the account team involved? Knowing the client stakeholders, buying preferences, and company needs are essential. If you don’t, perhaps you know some of their partners. If you don't ask questions, the answer is always “No.”
We built technology Centers of Excellence out of this need. Finally, we could point to specialists who lived, dreamed and breathed some competency.
The primary issue with large (20,000-hour) software projects is the ability to estimate accurately. Therefore, we developed and acquired off-the-shelf tools to factor design, delivery, and testing complexity.
Planning and status meetings to review the proposal.
One person quarterbacks
Coordinate all the efforts and use a planning tool to organize when and by whom sections will be done.
Rewrite sections, so it all reads in one voice.
RFP components
Our understanding of the problem
State our understanding of the business, problem, and desired outcome clearly and unambiguously. If we don’t agree with the client, there is no way to deliver a good solution.
Have you had detailed conversations, with recaps, with the stakeholders? If not, how do you know their expectations?
If we don’t have a clear understanding, propose a Discovery phase. Then reframe the problem and solution.
The Solution.
Phases
Break out all the components with well-defined boundaries. How does one flow into the next?
Ensure that the problem is fully solved and that there is a clear line from A to Z.
Your Team – written as “The client’s team.”
Often overlooked is a summary of the critical people delivering the work, their relevance, experience, and relationship to the work.
Summary of Deliverables
Another one-pager that pulls together all the interim work products and when they are due.
Success metrics
How are success and completion measured? Without clear measures, “When delivered, this site processes 10,000 orders every hour 24x7.” You can finish the work but disappoint the stakeholders because it doesn’t meet their spoken or unspoken expectations. Take as much space and time as necessary to get this right.
Timeline and deliverables
A project plan with high-level milestones. It tells the client when they need to be involved.
Assumptions and Dependencies
What assumptions do you need? All materials are delivered one week before the project start. Regulatory requirements stay fixed during the project. Document them. I will project a proposal outline with some of my favorites in the Slideshare link.
Why Us?
The written form of the winning theme. Outline the reasons for this team, this solution, and where we can point to success in one page.
Pricing.
Deal pricing is its own art and science. One of my former bosses was the master of giving away the small stuff. This merits a long discussion and knowing the customer’s buying habits.
Each slide earns its place in the response.
Some proposals are dozens of pages. For example, clients who receive 20 bids (times sixty pages) will likely need to remember many details. Your response should be as long as necessary but no longer.

Finally, know when to say no. Some proposals cannot or should not be won. If the requirements and foundational materials cannot be clarified, be prepared to walk away. That’s one of the reasons I can claim a higher success rate.

This was meant as an overview; every deal is nuanced. Please leave your thoughts and comments below.

Hunt in Packs

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 16:12:28 GMT

You're an organization, a solo practitioner, or a business, and you need to hunt—in the business world, that means finding new followers or clients versus farming existing ones for growth. For the sake of this piece, we will use business. However, it could refer to any relationship where you grow your audience individually or collectively.

You may be starting a new business, opening new geography, or expanding your existing customer list. There are times to hunt and times to farm.

If you go solo, the prize may be smaller, and each of us has a finite set of resources to close deals.

However, working together with others --in this case, means more likelihood of deals being closed.Working with others can help you reach new audiences and grow a more extensive customer base. Traditionally the growth is considered earned, owned, and paid.

Earned is an audience or customers that come from recommendations and third parties. It is word of mouth for the good things you have done and what people think of your brand. It is the highest compliment that can be paid to you, cannot be bought, and has the highest retention rate. The raving fanatics of Apple products are one of the better examples.
Owned is content you create, control, and give away freely. Owned audiences (terrible term – let’s call them first-party audiences) have the second highest loyalty and retention. People follow your brand because they believe in the message or the content. However, there is a higher internal cost because you must keep your content evergreen.
Paid is the easiest, quickest, and likely the lowest retention. This is because you are investing hard dollars to do physical (e.g., billboards, flyers) or digital (e.g., banner ads, email) ads produced by a third party. Once you stop investing, the audience will only remember you if you have converted them into one of the other types.
There is the opportunity to mix and match all of the above types. However, it would be best if you were visible to continue to retain your audience.
When you are responsible for the hunt, here are some tactical approaches

Leveraging the power of the collective.

Companies generally create new products or services periodically. No one person can do everything. How can your colleagues help you? Are you aware of your whitespace? That is, where are your skill or experience gaps?
Your audience is your best advocate, as discussed above. How can you enable them into raving fans who talk about you? Are you leveraging your social media connections?
Leverage the connection between your or your client’s business partners. The most direct route isn’t always a straight line. Trust that you’ve built with others can be extended. Reciprocity is a thing, too; if assistance is offered to you, then offering it up is essential.
Do you need to create all the content? Successful curation of content gives you some credibility as a subject matter expert or someone who can bring great content creators together. Moderating panels is a different skill than being the one on the panel.

The first and most obvious benefit of working in a group is the ability to brainstorm solutions. When working independently, it can be challenging to come up with ideas outside your perspective and experience. It also requires more work to critique your ideas constructively. However, there is strength in diversity (https://www.lawrenceilerner.com/gallery ).

Be Fearless

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 10 Mar 2023 16:44:15 GMT

Fearless leaders don't let their worries get in the way of their beliefs or creative thinking. They know that if they are too worried about what might happen, they won't be able to focus on what is happening right now. A sense of purpose is a strong belief in why you do what you do.

It's more than just having goals or even being passionate--it knows why those goals matter and how they relate to the world at large. You can develop your sense of purpose by asking yourself: Why am I doing this? What impact does this have on other people? Does this make things better?

Food for thought:

Fearless isn’t reckless, blind, or impulsive. The sum of your experiences and character measures it.
Fearless leaders don't let their worries get in the way of their creative thinking.
Being fearless doesn't mean you don't feel fear; it means you don't let fear control you.
Things can go wrong and are out of your control. Fearless people are calm.
When things don't work out as planned, be prepared to pivot.
Leaders must be fearless to inspire others to follow them through tough times and success.
Knowing when to say no or not now is part of being fearless.
Fearless leaders are comfortable being different from other people. Stop and read that again. It is the most challenging part of being fearless.

You must be different to stand out, be successful, innovate, and lead others. That makes some people very uncomfortable; you are breaking the status quo and their comfort zone. Someone once said of me, “People who are uncomfortable with change are uncomfortable with Lawrence.” Being the fearless contrarian has hurt my professional and personal life as much as it has helped. Over the years, I’ve become more cognizant of the effect it can have.

Being a leader means taking risks and making decisions based on your beliefs instead of following the crowd as everyone else does. If you don't have any opinions or ideas of your own, then how can anyone follow? You need something that makes you stand out, so if there's no difference between yourself and everyone else, why would anyone want to listen to or follow someone like that?

Leaders must be fearless when it comes to doing the right thing. However, they should never let fear stand in their way of making decisions that benefit the organization, even if they may not personally agree. It's essential for leaders who want to impact their teams and organization.

This is a difficult lesson, and it is achievable by all.

Onward.

30-days: Tuning-up Using the Shakti Acupressure Mat

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 00:54:37 GMT

Moods are for Poets and Lovers

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 02:42:15 GMT

They have no place in business.

Moods are a natural part of being human. They're part of our emotional intelligence and can be used positively in all aspects of life. We all have them, but they're often seen as unprofessional or inappropriate because they're points where you don't seem in control. Moods are similar but different than emotions. Your emotions are at a point in time and, for some people, define who they are most of the time. In business, it is better to keep moods in check and moderation.

Your mood is the outcome of one or more recent events; you can't control the events, and sometimes they're just there--like when you ran out of everything you had planned to do for that home project, or you have an unresolved argument with a friend. Other times, though, we create our moods--the result of how we think about things happening around us (or even inside us). These are part of being human. How you manage them, particularly in business, defines you. You may think no one notices, or perhaps only those in your inner circle. However, the perception of people with strong moods is like the news. It spreads, and it is unlikely you will control it. It is a two-edged sword; people often think of only the negative aspects. If you are known for being calm under pressure, that reputation… is known far and wide.

Your emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability to understand and manage your emotions and those of others. It's an essential skill for leaders because it helps you build empathy with those around you; they will be more likely to trust and respect you if they can talk openly about their feelings. In addition, EI enables you to navigate moods.

You probably know what happens around you when you are… in a mood, but let’s spell out a few for people newer to working in a team environment.

Grumpy. You make abrupt and snap decisions. If you are in a bad mood, it's much easier to make decisions that run over the feelings of others. Your tolerance for… things may be lowered, but it doesn’t mean everyone else’s is.

You are alienating others. When you're feeling down, and the problem stems from relationships of any kind, it's easy for your attitude toward others to become negative as well, which can lead to conflict.

Giddiness. Your super-happy, mega-cheerful, over-top-joy may wear thin after a few hours. You may have rescued the child of the dreamland AND conquered the beast of the shadow. Only some people want to hear unending tales of it.

Do your shadow work. Psychologist Carl Jung defined 12 archetypes for which there is much scholarly research. However, self-definition is not a substitute for working with a trained clinician.

Recognizing your emotions' trigger is a significant first step toward managing them. For example, if you feel frustrated when continually asked about a personal loss and the 12 ^th person asks you a question today, this can trigger frustration and annoyance. However, if you're self-aware, the next time someone asks--and they will--you'll be better in control and manage your response(s).

Put yourself on a timeout the next time you're feeling in a mood. Consider your current state of mind's impact on others and how it will reflect on you over time.

Commandments, Covenants, and Conversations

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Fri, 03 Feb 2023 18:39:25 GMT

Makine a covenant with me 😉

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 03:12:40 GMT

This is a subtitle for your new post

Please read �� There is a promise at the end.

There are different types of communication, and generally, they come in threes and start with C. We always want communication to be clear, concise, and complete. Say it all or not at all. Make it easy to understand, don’t use ten words when seven will do, and lay it all out.

There are other 3 Cs: Commandments, Covenants, and Conversation.

Commandments are orders and declarations and generally come from a higher authority. In some faiths, these come directly from the supreme deity. The communication is one-way and may not be questioned. Laws are written this way, and it’s a good form of communication for them.
Covenants are agreements between a higher authority and the listener. They are generally in the form of a promise. “If I say X, you will agree to do Y.” At first glance, this appears to be a two-way communication. However, in reality, the listener may only agree or disagree. There is no negotiation or dialogue other than “Yes, I will do it.” Advertising is an example of this form of communication.
Conversation is a dialogue with give and take between two entities. The two may exchange, debate, discuss, and generally leave the discussion enriched. Conversely, they may disagree but will take away more than they had initially. This is the best way for friends, partners, businesses, etc., to communicate.

Every day I receive at least three requests to connect. “The algorithm told me to do it. You seem cool. We have many connections in common.” Over the years, I’ve made 3,000 connections. Some I’ve known for decades, others… we think each other is connection-worthy but no more.

Today I am working on new business opportunities. I check the connections I have with the decision-maker. I often find that most connections are in the “You are cool” category. To improve the fidelity of communications, here is my promise. If you want to connect with me, propose the value to both of us and a time for us to have a short conversation, if only by text. If a mutual acquaintance introduces us, I will accept immediately, but I would still like a get-to-know-you conversation.

Thank you for reading to the end. Onward.

#communication #connections #leadership #motivation

Five Things to Prepare before a Crisis

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 16:58:39 GMT

Facilitating the right course of action among people is what matters most.

All involve coordinating, empowering, and equipping the people to respond appropriately.

Understanding
What are the risks?
Is there a chain of trust?
Do we all understand the domain problem(s)?
People
Are the right people in place?
Do they have the resources they need?
Do they understand the company's strategic risks?
Process
Is there a technical response plan?
Do you have partners ready to support you?
How often is it tested?
Technology
Technology failure is not an IT problem.
IT is an enabler of the problem and solution.
Preparedness
Is a business continuity plan ready?
Is it tested?
Are out-of-band methods in place?

Facilitating the right course of action among people is what matters most. What are your experiences in similar situations?

Onward.

Be a Conscious Consumer

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Wed, 23 Nov 2022 14:48:39 GMT

Make it a lifestyle versus an excursion.

My thought for the season.

Consumer spending is 69% of the staggering $23.2 trillion U.S. economy. If you commit to conscious choice, thank you. However, your intentions and righteous action… make no difference. Those choices are not a rounding error of spending in the local economy, let alone the national one. I'm not saying you shouldn’t make conscious choices but know that a single purchase or drive to a pick-it-yourself farm will not make the difference you hope.

It's a numbers game.

What can you do? More importantly, what should we all be working towards?

Disagree, but don't be disagreeable. The first step is to lower the social barrier to sustainability and support local shopping. For example, refusing to eat with friends who do not purchase 100% sustainable groceries makes you insufferable over time. As a vegetarian, I often face the inevitable eye rolls, "but you eat fish…" or "Hey, there are left-over leaves at the bottom of my calamari" comments. I don't compromise, but I do not force my choices on others. Local shops and stores have a lower environmental impact. https://tinyurl.com/b2tzx4rc

Routinely support your farmer's markets, dine at restaurants that work with local farms, and shop at regional stores and fairs.

Make it a lifestyle versus an excursion.

If you consciously commit to shopping, please consider using #ShopLocal and #ShopSmall . If you shop online, consider marketplaces that enable small businesses.

Finally, if you decline to shop big box retailers or online e-commerce sites, I have another data point for you to consider. Their workers are possibly your friends, family, or neighbors. Perhaps the Retailer can survive shutting down a poorly performing store. How about your neighbors?

Choice sets in motion events known and unknown. I want you to know that you have the satisfaction of knowing that you were aware of the intentions you set forward.

Make ones you are proud to have as memories.

#markets #leadership #localmarketing #sustainability #economy #thankyou #commerce

Are you inked?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 05:32:19 GMT

Are you inked?

Do you use an ATM?

Are you a cisgender woman who drives faster than 50 MPH?

Do you eat tomatoes?

In the 1970s, when ATMs became common, people were reluctant to use them. “Get my money on a street corner? I’ll get robbed!”

Weird but true. Or, just shockingly misogynistic, in the 19 ^th century, “experts” believed that a woman’s uterus would “fly out of her body” if they were in a train going over 50 MPH.

Until the 1800s, tomatoes were considered poisonous by many.

Today’s surprising change is tattoos. Once a workplace, cultural taboo, and even “dangerous,” tattoos are now allowed and even embraced. After UPS changed its tattoo policy Christopher Bartlett, UPS vice president of people and culture, noted that proud drivers would display their UPS tattoos on internal message boards.

Leaders must learn to anticipate changing environments, whether business or the evolving forms of identity, expression and social and cultural norms. Things once considered detrimental and forbidden in the workplace are now standard. Even if it goes against “the way you were raised,” opening up to change may be a sea change event for your business. Does bringing your authentic self to work drive retention and productivity? SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) says yes*.

When workers feel safe and able to express themselves, they ask tough and challenging questions. Those questions come from their experience, intellect, and genuine care about a business. When you

As a leader, do you create a culture of trust and transparency? Does your team feel empowered to “do the needful?” Go out and problem solve even when challenging and could be seen as stepping out of line? That authenticity extends to you as well. What are you bringing to the table? Do you acknowledge gaps in your knowledge? Share personal events “My kid is in the state finals for…,” “I’m taking time to grieve the loss of….” It doesn’t make you appear weak. It lets your team know they can be themselves too.

In the end, you must be fair and consistent with your leadership.

Yes, the tattoo is mine.

*https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/employee-relations/pages/more-authentic-workplaces-lead-to-better-retention-productivity.aspx

Leadership a Journey Planner

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 00:53:29 GMT

Leadership is a journey you take with others

Over the years, the University of Washington has asked me to guest lecture on leadership, business transformation, and emerging technologies. This presentation on leadership was presented to people starting their journey as leaders.

As with many graduate-level classes, the discipline is not formulaic. It is a series of applied lessons from work you've done, application of experience, training that has been put into practice, and most importantly, the current situation.

Themes:

Great Person Theory
Some people have exceptional inborn skills and the ability to adapt to situations. Most of us do not. Successful influence comes from trust, characterized by a person's competency and character. Competency establishes that they are highly skilled or effective at tasks. Character is a person's reliability, believability, and repeatability to do something over time.
Leaders are born, not made
As mentioned above, leadership is something learned. In hunter-gatherer societies, physical prowess and good genes would seem to dominate the mindset of what we think of as leaders. A certain level of aggressive behavior puts some in a leadership role. The trait people look to is assertiveness. The ability to get out in front because they have to, have no choice or have identified how to resolve the situation. The examples I chose were Bilbo Baggins and Ellen Ripley. They are fictional characters but archetypes that became leaders because the situation dictated it, and they adapted.
Leaders are adaptable.
Power is taken
An important example of assertion versus aggression. Leaders assert themselves and share a solution. It isn't necessary to be in charge for you to lead. The model you presented revolves around character and competency, allowing others to find the path with you. Leaders can take control, but it's more critical for them to align with others.
Influence is derived from structure
For some, leadership is defined by a hierarchy, its depth, and the number of people in their control. This is an illusion. While often derided, YouTube, TikTok, and social media influencers have no structure. Yet they command vast allegiance and sway.
Leadership is qualitative and not quantitative
Success can be measured. We've done it throughout human history. The number of times a company has achieved market dominance through superior products and product marketing. Apple is one example. They lead in the consumer-oriented design and broad usability. While someone may "feel" good as a leader, it's the results and legacy they leave that matter.

The full presentation is available for one-click. I presented it in an " ignite " style format though I took longer than five minutes :). What are your stories of the leadership journey? I'd love to hear from you, contact me here.

In Appreciation of CyberSecurity Month

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 15 Oct 2022 14:39:51 GMT

In appreciation of CyberSecurity Awareness month, I gave a talk from 2014 to around 2016. As few as six years ago, CyberSecurity was deemed to be “just an IT problem.” Then some high-profile non-IT executives got fired over breaches.

I was asked to share my education on the topic as an IT executive and a board director. The numbers may have shifted, but the source of most breaches comes from compromised authorized users.

What is your board mandate for CyberSecurity? #cybersecurity #education #breach #cybersecurityawarenessmonth

There is Strength in Diversity

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 26 Mar 2022 14:01:01 GMT

This assertion is often expressed in many ways. A rope woven of many strands is stronger than one. Diversity of opinions, experience, and perspective ensures many options are considered.

My areas of professional and personal excellence are diverse. They include my career as an executive, a technologist, and an investor. I am also a person of faith and a priest. I coach businesses and people to achieve sustainable advantages, strengthen corporate culture, and thrive through adversity. All are woven into the fabric of who I am. It gives me a diverse perspective to solve problems from analytical, emotional, and cultural angles. I have been called a polymath. Others have called it "A cacophony" ;)

Last week I signed Rabbi Denise Eger's "A Letter of Spiritual Solidarity with Ukraine" with other faith leaders. This is an example of strength through diversity. Can one letter make a difference? Perhaps. It demonstrates that diverse and contrasting ideologies can join together.

Rabbi Eger is a representation of diversity as the first openly gay female rabbi to serve in Jewish leadership roles. Rabbi Eger is a past President of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, a leading US Jewish faith body. She is a noted speaker on human sexuality, LGBTQ issues, and Judaism. While some celebrate her, others question.

An open and honest question to the reader. Why do the varied disciplines create dissonance with some people? It is not unique in having diverse interests and specialties. I am keenly eager to hear your opinions.

Find more of my lessons learned here .

Onward.

Calm: Building Your Sustainable Meditation Practice

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 04:21:38 GMT

Simple steps to making meditation an every day practice

Meditation techniques allow you to achieve many different things. Meditation has been practiced around the world in nearly every known culture and religion, under different names. People use meditation to achieve different and often personal outcomes. Some use it for personal fulfillment, to achieve wellness, or relaxation. Techniques have been practiced in nearly every part of the world for thousands of years. The benefits of meditation have been documented to achieve a better state of mind (often called mindfulness), healing, and achieving clearer focus.

Meditation is a spiritual practice not associated with any one religion or culture.

Meditating brings you into a clearer focus on the present. It allows you to be fully present in the moment without dwelling on the unchangeable past or futures yet to be. The expression “meditate upon…” means you must already be in that fully present state to consider the activity. Meditation is a good setup for focusing your intent. It’s a single state of being (not mind) when you are free from constraints.

Meditation allows you to transform yourself, as within so without.

There are more than 15 different techniques and probably an infinite number of variations. Some forms of meditation practice include:

Control of your breathing
Listening to your heartbeat
Repeating mantras
Movement such as dance
Guided meditation is listening to someone else take you into the trance state

Stillness, sometimes called Silence is a meditation based on managing your awareness. It’s the practice I was taught and one I teach. Stillness is a purely mental form of meditation that brings your mind into a state of focused intent. You are seeking a state of being where your mind rests in the silence, the spaces in-between. It is a primary exercise of your sense of self, also known as your third chakra, Manipura or ram. In this meditation, there is no explicit breath control. However, you’ll find you take fewer and more shallow breaths over time.

Building Your Personal Meditation Routine

Be comfortable – Sit, recline, or lie flat
This is the notion that meditation requires you to fold up like a pretzel or hold certain poses for extended lengths of time. Those practices do exist. For those new to meditation, comfort before all ��
Place your tongue on the roof of your mouth
Find or create a quiet but not silent place
Outdoors is an awesome experience
Soft or rhythmic music (flute, drums) – as you prefer but not required
Dim not dark room
Be comfortable in your surroundings
Do it at the same time, same place each day until you build a practice
Build up over time. Start with three to five minutes and add time over a period of weeks
20 minutes for each meditation session is plenty for most people
After you awake is a very good time since your mind is freer
21-days or more builds a habit
Once in your meditative state, think upon a single thought. Start with something simple
Try a shape such as a blue square or a leaf. Let your mind's eye trace the outline
Try different forms of meditation until it feels right to you. There are resources below
When you’re ready to come out, open your eyes, tap your fingers from one hand on the palm of the other
Remembering your meditation - Journaling
Have pen and paper nearby. Anything will do, a fancy journal is great, but a notepad works equally as well
Say what you saw or thought out loud. It reinforces the memory and this works for dreams too

Additional Resources

National Institutes of Health Studies
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm
Different types of meditation practices
http://liveanddare.com/types-of-meditation/
UCLA Mindfulness Practices – free mp3s of guided meditation
http://marc.ucla.edu/mindful-meditations
Meditation Heals Body and Mind
http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/meditation-heals-body-and-mind#1
Meditation Balances the Body's Systems
http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/transcendental-meditation#1
A Breakthrough in Personal Evolution
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/breakthrough-personal-evolution-deepak-chopra-md-official-/?published=t

Meditation is not a substitute for medical treatment

Creating a Journaling Discipline; Four Writing Prompts

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 23 Jan 2022 19:33:21 GMT

Journaling is a discipline that allows you freedom of expression without judgment. You can express your inner concerns and reflect on those things that may not be directly conscious to you. It is a great self-care, reflection, and mental health exercise.

There are many styles and goals for a journal. Find one style or mix and match:

To-do list
What is the day to day or perhaps larger goals (clean the basement, write a book, track a life event)?
Day’s events journal
My personal favorite. A great recap and a way to think through the events of the day.
Log your dreams for later reflection.
Keep separate business and personal journals. This doesn't need to be expensive.
Stream of consciousness
Write it down, write it all down. You can sort through it a day or week later.
Food journal
Whether you are a foodie, tracking it for lifestyle or health reasons this is a creative way to get started
Fitness journal
Like a food journal whether you’re just getting started or prepping for your next triathlon this is the place to organize your thoughts
Sketch journal
Draw your thoughts and tap in. You don’t need to be artistic. Start with anything.
Specialty
Have a hobby or interest? A great place to record thoughts, ideas, or projects. Full disclosure, I usually have four journals going at once

The Practical

A journal is a series of pages and a writing instrument. There are very fancy and elaborate BuJos (Bullet Journals) out there. Keep it simple, otherwise it may create a barrier to entry for some due to cost or the daunting amount of tasks associated with it.

Use what works for you. Start with a few sheets of paper, an inexpensive notepad and your favorite pen. You can always add more. Some people journal on their computers. Date every entry and highlight key words or thoughts.

A text editor, Microsoft OneNote, and many other programs are available. Personally, I prefer the tactile feedback of writing and often draw in my journals. Always do what is comfortable for you. You are more likely to stick with it.

Whether you journal daily or less frequently try writing at the same time every day. It will be easier if you set aside time for your practice

Writing Prompts

The call to action is… “write.” Don’t worry so much about what you write but that you do it. Start with whatever is on your mind and don’t worry if it seems random or trivial. This is building a habit to journal your thoughts daily. You are creating an environment to let out creativity, needs, frustrations, triumphs, and a range of personal emotions. Editing, if desired, can come later. Stream-of-consciousness is generally very honest and cathartic for you.

Writing prompts are another way to get started.

How did the day go?
What were your successes?
Challenges?
What did I learn today?
About myself?
About others?
What do I plan to do differently or the same in the future?
Whom did I interact with and what happened?
Is there someone I need to update?
Someone to thank – You can do this everyday ��
Share some feedback

Bonus Tips

I'm known for having a very detailed memory. Some of it is genetics, some training and discipline. I credit a lot to writing things down. I am an efficient note taker (this is a form of journaling) with my own shorthand and methods. I find that once I write it down, I seldom need to review it. When reviewing notes or journal entries, there is often inspiration.

Do you have favorite methods or techniques? New to journaling? Write to me after your first 30 days, I'd love to hear about it.

Oh, and if you're a journal maker... :�� I write with a fountain pen; a Visconti Van Gogh ... so more GSM the better.

Four Real-World Uses for NFTs

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 13:56:45 GMT

Quantum by Kevin McCoy and Anil DashNew Paragraph

Non-Fungible Tokens. A CEO I worked for told me “You love your ten-dollar words.” I do, it’s true. It’s a failing and strength to be able to make complex concepts and bring them into everyday language. So, what is a Non-Fungible Token (NFT)?

Let’s start with the definition of a token. In the physical world, tokens are stand-ins to represent a fact, quality, or something than can be exchanged for goods and services. In the blockchain world, a token is a digital coin that uses technology (blockchains) to power its functionality. The most well-known blockchain, and one we owe the industry to, is Ethereum. Ethereum is the blockchain that introduced the concept of smart contracts (snippets of program like code). In 2014 when Vitalik Buterin, Gavin Wood, Charles Hoskinson, Anthony Di Iorio, and Joe Lubin had become dissatisfied with the static function of Bitcoin, they built a programmable solution.

I touted the real benefits of NFTs back in 2017 before bitcoin became part of everyday vocabulary. I was running my first Blockchain fund and promoting the industry as far back as 2015. I was briefing other executives, doing interviews, blockchain was not on the radar of financial analysts. Today every investment report touches on an aspect of blockchains, cryptocurrencies, or tokens. In another year, deploying NFTs will be mainstream just like using your phone to pay for your morning coffee or bus ride.

ERC-20 tokens (the formal Ethereum name and standard that defines how they work) name represent a digital asset that can be traded or used on a blockchain. Tokens have utility on the blockchain meaning their value is inherent in what they do versus what they are. Today there are tens of thousands of different tokens. Cryptocurrencies (e.g., Bitcoin, Ether) have value because people believe in their value and what they represent to the market. Bitcoins, while wholly digital, are much like things people use every day. Cash and stock trades.

The commas are meaningless at this point, but you’re impressed because I took the time to put them in for you ��. It is a very large number that allows a digital asset to be uniquely identified. In business terms, it creates “exclusivity.” If you are a collector of any kind (first edition comics, autographed guitars, baseball cards, beanie babies) then you understand what the non-fungible part means. Two of the same works of art painted by the same artist are not the same thing where two bitcoins or ten-dollar notes are interchangeable.

It brings to the digital world a unique and scarce asset. NFTs provides a way to securely exchange inherently scarce digital assets. The assets and trades are verifiable, traceable, and ultimately provable in a way that can be very difficult for physical artifacts. The ability to create a provable and verifiable claim is valuable. As I’ve said in the past, if the Internet is the web of communications, blockchain is the internet of value.

Scarcity is an important concept. It drives behaviors that can be measured and quantified in the digital world. Those behaviors include

Value
People have always found rare things interesting and worthy of acquiring
Authenticity
The claim that an object has the properties and/or origin must be verifiable
On a blockchain digital authentication enables you to validate something through mathematical proof or a trusted third party. Immediately and with a high degree of certainty
Decision-making
If everything were abundant there would be no need to make decisions or tradeoffs. Things would simply exist and likely be ignored or over-consumed until they became scarce, like freshwater or air

Scarcity can also be enforced through conscious or purposeful design or being naturally limited. This is also known as Absolute Scarcity in economics. One-of-a-kind artwork, songs, hours in the day, or a fingerprint and passcode are all examples of Absolute Scarcity.

Some examples

Medical records
I heard T.R. Reid speak years ago here in Seattle. His book “ The Healing of America ” is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand why you want to create portability in your personal medical records.
NFTs provide highly portable and verifiable data transfer. In addition, they take thousands of dollars out of maintenance and substantially lower the risk for patients, healthcare personnel, and insurers.
Tickets
Tickets may be put onto the blockchain and made traceable and verifiable. The industry has ongoing issues with resale, scalping, and secondary markets.
NFTs transform any type of ticketing and take costs out of the transaction flow
Certificates of Ownership
Replacing physical world tags with digital ones. Here are examples of popular consumer goods.
Domain names, titles, identity card, a poem, bottles of whiskey (“ Glenfiddich Sells $18,000 Super-Rare Whisky As NFTs – Here’s What That Means ”), memorabilia from a celebrity (“ William Shatner’s NFT Collectibles Sell Out at Warp Speed ”)
The extension to business for legal contracts, plots of land, stock portfolios, and anything requiring verification is already running through your head
Digital Art or Collectibles
Popular media and press have been non-stop about digital collectibles using NFTs. It’s arguably a gateway drug and I am happy to see adoption in any form. So much so that last week we had the opening of the first NFT museum. " Tech entrepreneurs opening Seattle NFT Museum to showcase digital artform in a physical space "
Due credit must be given to the OG of NFTs, Cryptokitties. This was blockchain’s first lesson in scarcity and managing economies. Cryptokitties became so wildly popular that they slowed down the entire Ethereum chain and drove up prices of doing transactions. It was a literal digital gas (gas is the fee you pay to make transactions on Ethereum) crisis. Transactions were backed up (think lines at a gas station) and gas fees skyrocketed

This just scratches the surface of NFTs. There is more to know and to come as they are built out for everyday use cases. What are your favorite examples?

Onward.

Metaverse Privacy; Six Practical Tips

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 17:56:33 GMT

The topic of our time; privacy. It is a next-level intrusion when a metaverse ecosystem is literally looking over your shoulder. Not only is your digital twin sharing PII (Personally Identifiable Information), but the motion capture hardware you’re working on captures body movement. The video from “In the Loop” brings some of the emerging privacy concerns to light.

It’s a whole new world of intrusion when the information to third parties goes beyond static data. Your movement, your posture, and activities are up for auction. Imagine you are test driving a new family car. Your virtual test drive turns into a drag race with your spouse... Your real mobile phone pops an alert from your car insurance app. Your rates have increased…

Identity theft takes on a whole new meaning. Imagine meeting an avatar that looks like someone you know or with digital credentials that appear legitimate.

In the US, privacy laws have no federal mandate on the horizon (my estimate is five years and a new administration), and each state piecemealing its own policies. Metaverses like blockchain are borderless. The context and location will drive behaviors making it more difficult and complex for regulators.

Over the past decade, I’ve written articles about how you can evolve your privacy and security. Arguably I was the first to advocate using social media to secure your identity. “Stop Worrying About Privacy, Start Caring About Identity” https://www.wired.com/insights/2013/07/stop-worrying-about-privacy-and-start-caring-about-identity/

1. Define it: Live your values. What core values do you or your business present when interacting with others?

2. Make it authentic: Your voice and online presence must be real and not a marketing construct. Social Identity is not a mask you don when you go out into the online world. It must be the true identity of how you relate to others. However, that’s not the same as exposing every aspect of your business or personal life.

3. Practice social listening: Once you’ve established an online presence you can see and hear the echoes of what others say. You cannot control it but you can respond in a thoughtful manner. In terms of “hard” data, the consumer credit agencies (Equifax, TransUnion, Experian) allow you to review your personal credit scores. Do so regularly as you manage the financial component of your identity. Businesses have similar resources through other means.

4. Identify your network: It’s often said, we are known by the company we keep. Data is being collected 360 degrees from whom you connect directly to secondary and tertiary relationships. Sites such as LinkedIn provide visual views of the network you have created for yourself. Reviewing it will give you an idea of what others see when they research you. See “LinkedIn Enters the CRM Arena Donning a Hoodie”

5. Manage it. Don’t try to control it: When our Privacy or Security is threatened there is an instinctive reaction to go on the defensive. Be thoughtful in your approach. Releasing “good” information lets people know the accurate information about you. You want an identity that is authentic and something they believe that “you” would do or say.

6. Curate your data privacy: Decide how and when you want to release information. I have a Facebook friend, from High School, whose activities I know more about than many of my co-workers. I haven’t seen her in 30 years but know her whereabouts and activities since she “checks in” and posts about six times an hour. Be aware that every time you download or login, you leave a footprint. There are some ways to turn off tracking but only in a limited fashion. Remember it’s up to you to manage your privacy; no one can do it for you.

The key takeaway is that no one can do it, legislate it, or regulate it for you. You ultimately have agency over your actions and how you manage privacy and identity. I’ve outlined some steps and will continue to work with regulators on the larger privacy issues.

What are your expectations about privacy in the metaverse? Have an interesting solution? Write to me :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghh_1vm4P6w

Three Practical Metaverse Definitions

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 25 Dec 2021 15:54:17 GMT

What is it and how can you recognize a metaverse?

What is it?

The tech and pop-culture topic of the day is metaverse. Recently made visible to a broader population by Facebook name change, metaverse evokes a vast panorama of big topics. What is a metaverse? Old stuff in a new package? A video game? Internet 3.0? The word itself is a portmanteau of “meta” and “universe.” Smog (smoke and fog) is one of oldest and most used portmanteau if you’re interested.

There is a fair bit of new vocabulary here, it's key to have a common frame of reference for our mutual understanding.

Is it

The Metaverse?
A metaverse?
When is it capitalized?

The proper spelling and way to discuss it is bullet #2. Only proper nouns are capitalized, and since metaverses can be created by any business or natural person there are multiple. As with any other noun, it would be of the form “Facebook’s metaverse,” “The State of Washington’s metaverse,” “or “I’m using this school’s metaverse to learn about cooking.” It’s capitalized when it’s part of a formal name, “The Writer’s Metaverse”.

A metaverse is an immersive intersection of digital assets and methods to interact with an environment (software agents or programs) and/or other people. The interaction takes place in a purely digital environment. Metaverse environments are evolving, I’ve categorized them as:

Shared Experience (SE)
Everyone experiences the same thing in relatively the same way
This is useful in classroom or virtual tour settings where everyone sees the same Van Gogh painting and hears the same lecture
Subjective Personal Experience (SPE)
An individual’s experience which is a tailored personal environment
You have interactions that are highly customized for you. Experiences or offers (e.g., targeted ads) are meant for your real or inferred preferences
Think of it a personalized curriculum at a school
Contextualized Experience (CE)
Your personal experience varies from immersion to immersion. Your records and digital assets, identity if you will, remain with you. More on identity later

If the above sounds akin to forms of gnosis (the Greek word for knowledge); Unverified Personal Gnosis, Shared Personal Gnosis, or Verified Personal Gnosis, you are not wrong. In future articles I’ll relate the concepts as well as the social and psychological effects of prolonged immersion in a metaverse.

Additionally, in popular fiction (e.g., The Matrix, Ready Player One, William Gibson’s Cyberpunk novels) a metaverse is generally represented as a dystopian and/or escapist nightmare.

How can you recognize a metaverse?

We can apply tests to differentiate a metaverse from any other online portal. A metaverse must be:

Persistent
Each time you enter the ecosystem it has the same look and feel
Upon re-entry you carry on from the checkpoint or bookmark of where you left off
Your assets and identity remain intact each time you enter and leave
Consistent
The metaphors used to render objects and actions are internally consistent Every person experiences the same type of action and activity in the same way
Each metaverse may have different and/or incompatible rules with other ecosystems. In-world it is always the same for everyone
Complementary
It is a purely digital extension of the real-world
This also applies to digital overlays of an augmented reality experience

Electronic versus Digital

Since vocabulary is important… When we say something is digital, we mean it was created and remains in a purely online format. This is also essential to the understanding of cryptocurrency and blockchain. More precisely a digital item, signature, or document has:

Traceability
You can prove the authenticity of the asset(s) and its source
Non-repudiation
Ensures that that the asset has not been tampered between source and destination
Validity
Identity and claims (e.g., this is worth $23) of the asset are verified

Entering the unique number of a physical gift card into an online account is an example of electronic transfer. The certificate acquired from your web hosting provider, to prove your website has security, is digital.

Digital Twins

Images of holographic perfection immediately spring to mind. Idealized 3D representation of our bodies, evocative clothing, and perhaps add-ons like wings or glowing eyes make the avatar complete. Those will emerge and evolve over time. Today basic avatars are quick and easy to do. If you’ve ever been on SecondLife you know how easy it is to set up one. It’s an immersive online experience and has had a rich ecosystem for more than 15 years. There are thriving businesses for clothing and other decorations. One of my girlfriends liked to buy us matching and seasonal outfits.

Where are we today, and what’s practical for the larger business world? Digital wallets, such as those used for cryptocurrency provide the basis for a digital twin. Regardless of how you present in the digital world, a digital twin contains your identity and things that are true and verifiable about you. It has:

Identity
Who you are
Assets
What you have
Properties
What you are

You will always be consistent and persistent in a metaverse via your digital twin. It’s foundational to making the ecosystem work. Examples of digital twin components have been in play for some time. MIT has issued digital diplomas on the blockchain since 2017. Since 2012, the Estonian government (RIA - Information Systems Authority), has secured and presented digital identity via blockchain. Getting this part working well and easily for broader populations is essential to adoption and acceptance of a metaverse.

Where do we go from here?

Our three takeaways:

Metaverse definition
Test to identify a metaverse
What are digital twins?

It is early days of metaverse business models, processes, and technologies. There are many open questions and skeptics have valid concerns. The same was true about blockchain, and the Internet before that. It’s why I wrote this blog posting several years ago “ Why I am Long on Blockchain .”

I am writing a series of topics and discussions as I did with blockchain and cryptocurrency about this emerging industry. Watch this space �� Please share your experiences, thoughts, products, and services with me. You can write to me here .

Onward.

#metaverse #virtualreality #augmentedreality #blockchain #cryptocurrency

The Halving: Policy Rules The Day

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 19 May 2020 03:15:00 GMT

What Bitcoin can teach us about thriving in pandemic conditions.

This is not financial advice nor am I a financial advisor.

As of the morning of May 14, 2020 Bitcoin is at $9,685.

The third Bitcoin halving has come and gone. While there was much speculation and fanfare about the day of the event, the actual halving went unnoticed as the software made changes to the rewards system. So why should you care?

You were able to witness the third instance of a fully automated monetary policy system in action.

Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency first discussed in a 2009 whitepaper by a person or persons known as Satoshi Nakamoto. Bitcoin is the first and most widely used blockchain network by market capitalization. In this instance the blockchain and the token are inseparable. The Bitcoin blockchain performs only six basic operations (send, receive, balance, global balance etc.).

Bitcoin uses a decentralized model to validate transactions on the chain. The people who run the computer nodes are called miners. Miners have an economic incentive, in the form of bitcoins for for validating and recording the transactions on a block (block on the chain). In 2009 the rewards started at 50 bitcoin per block mined and as of today are at 6.25 per block. That’s worth about $61,000 at current prices.

By design the system enforces scarcity and will continue to produce new bitcoins until a total of 21,000,000 are created. Rewards are reduced by half after every 210,000 blocks are produced. No more bitcoin can be created; nor can any be destroyed. The miners do not control the method by which blocks are created; nor can they set or propose policies. Miners are getting paid for providing the processing power to validate and record transactions. Simply stated, they’re getting paid for accounting.

The halving is monetary policy in action

Monetary policy is the demand side of economic policy. Demand side refers to growth created by building increasing demand. Traditionally it refers to direct actions undertaken by the people and policies of a nation-state's central bank. They control the money supply to achieve some macroeconomic goals. During the Coronavirus monetary policy is nominally being used as economic stimulus. Generally, countries want to promote healthy economic stimulus. In my opinion, and others it’s unhealthy and the sign of an unhealthy addiction to bail outs. For a deeper dive, listen to fellow fund manager Anthony “Pomp” Poliano’s Quantitative Easing Is The Ultimate Drug And America Is Addicted To Getting High

Enforcing scarcity would be one way of generating demand, assuming anyone wants to hold bitcoins. Given that value of bitcoin has maintained gains in value, holding or hodling (in cryptocurrency speak) seems like a good idea. Buying on the “dips” is a popular strategy.

Bitcoin’s monetary policy is the one thing that truly sets it apart from centralized government/banking. It is 100% predictable and without human oversight/whims/intervention. New money cannot be printed or created unlike what is happening in the US. US monetary policy is being driven by legislator’s desires for re-election, personal motivations (any and all), and more all in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.

The dispassionate nature of the monetary policy is in stark contrast to the reactive nature of current regulators. History will judge on which created better value for the people and each country. Bitcoin is objective so it cannot react to market conditions. This is also making it a non-correlated asset. Meaning there is other asset or market trend, including other cryptocurrencies that have an effect on its price. An example of a correlated asset is when retail grocery stocks go down because one grocery store has had a major data breach. When the markets are good, many investors follow a “rising tide lifts all boats” mentality.

What can Bitcoin teach us about the current pandemic?

Decentralization has been successful but it’s not a panacea

Working from home is more than just viable. Many companies with knowledge workers are shifting their in-office strategy
#DeFi (Distributed Finance) is a peer-to-peer model that is growing. States are helping states
De-densification is another New Normal. Companies and cities will have populations move to the next outer ring. Fully centralized control has had its day

Collectable assets fare well in a crisis (Gold, silver, and art have appreciated too)

Value is value. It works across borders and doesn’t different between social status. Internal value comes from self-sufficiency whether it is at a personal, city or state level. Those states that had good practices are opening sooner. Time will tell as to how it aids in the recovery of their economies.

Adapt to new platforms

The New Normal is adaptability. Restaurants and other experience-oriented venues cannot operate profitably at 25 or 50% of their capacity. Adding extended delivery and grocery services, video conferencing for entertainment venues (e.g., concerts) and other fundamental shifts support the hardy survivors.
A quote from science fiction writers Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven, is, “Think of it as evolution in action.”
Bitcoin emerged during the last global financial crisis. Banks were early adopters after they violated trust.

Sunlight is the best disinfectant (ok it’s a stretch)

Transparency creates trust
Inspection of a problem enables a root cause analysis of where systems are failing

Older models are no longer sufficient. It’s time to explore new ones.

Recap

Unless you count the exuberance of bitcoin maximalists the halving would be a non-event. Bitcoin investments have done well. The digital and steady hand of Satoshi Nakamoto on the wheel has provided a safe haven and a new model for banking.

Look for bitcoin to hit $12,000 by end of May 2020. My prediction for $9,000 by end of April 2020 was on target.

What your thoughts on the matter? Does a fully digital currency appeal to you? Final thought. It's been a good run thus far. For it to truly become every day, digital currencies need a liquid circulating economy. Bitcoin and other digital currencies/cryptocurrencies need to be as common as credit cards are grocery stores.

Onward.

And please, #NeverInvestMoreThanYouCanAffordToLose

Fortune Favors the Bold. Reigniting Your Services Business

Thu, 02 Apr 2020 23:56:13 GMT

The current COVID-19 pandemic has severely curtailed revenues in services businesses. Services businesses are those with activities performed by an individual or a team, expertly, for the benefit of their customers. A company or a person may outsource work to another business (e.g., legal, IT Services, floor cleaning, cutting hair, shipping and logistics) because it’s not a core competency or it can be done more effectively and efficiently by a third party.

During the 2009 economic downturn, I was working for UST Global a California-headquartered IT services firm. When I joined it was a $375M company with development centers in India. I created and ran the Management Consulting business, helping double our revenues and opening up Europe. To build the new business lines, we took the road less traveled. Many of those lessons are applicable in today's environment.

Some themes:

Necessary services – What is core to your customer staying in business? Encourage your team to explore new services or those things that others are reluctant to do. Be willing to get your hands dirty.

Software Testing – Testing is the least sexy or loved of all IT services. I grew the UST test team to over 1,400 FTEs, won three awards and expanded revenue from our existing clients. It was an in-road to new clients and Europe as a new territory with large deals in Prague, London, and other cities.
Compliance and Regulatory – Is your customer required to fulfill government requirements to operate? Can you accelerate compliance in a more cost-effective manner? Is there an opportunity for you to take on some of their monotonous or tedious work?
Legacy Modernization – In an emerging world of social media, mobile and emerging technologies why did I choose to double down on this market? It was untapped, we had few true competitors and we were willing to get our hands dirty. We found millions of dollars in waste, reduced end-user complaints, and we were then able to sell more lucrative transformation services. There were mainframe systems we examined that had not been tuned for more than a decade. We won recognition as the top modernization firm beating out IBM and others.

Project Management – Write out your tasks and activities so that you can measure progress. Do you know what your metrics of success are and how to measure them?

How will you stay on task? Flexibility in your plan being adaptable will serve you better than a rigid checklist
Circumstances change. Make a plan to adapt to the vagaries of the current business environment.

Be bold – Where can you be opportunistic? What are the services that allow you to be a market-maker?

Canlis, a top-rated fine dining Seattle restaurant, started drive-through burger and bagel take-out during the virus outbreak.
We married a creative studio with traditional IT services. The addition of a creative studio allowed us to sell to a broader audience (Marketing, Sales) at each customer. I hired a top-ranked Art Director to run the business instead of another IT person. During that time we won the maintenance contract for 60 websites for a major pharmaceutical company, created the number one downloaded mobile tax app for H&R Block, and much more. We were able to sell more integration services to each client as a result.

People.

Please don't forget your team. Few businesses have a bigger investment in their business than their people. Have a plan that outlines how you will continue to support, mentor, and grow them. People who are performing at their peak are happier and more confident. That translates to happy customers.

Has this article given you some food for thought? What's the state of your services business, of any size? Post your comments or message me directly.

Onward.

My Testimonial in Olympia: SB 6065 - The Blockchain Working Group

Tue, 14 Jan 2020 08:00:00 GMT

Senator Sharon Brown and a delegation from the Cascadia Blockchain Council

This is the extended version of my testimonial for the Blockchain Working Group SB 6065 . We had two minutes to present so I abbreviate it.

I'd like to thank Senator Brown for introducing the bill and my fellow Cascadia Blockchain Council members for supporting this important initiative.

----------

Chair, members of the committee, my name is Lawrence Lerner here today on behalf of myself as a venture capitalist, business executive and a resident of Washington state. I've worked in emerging technologies for my entire career.

I am speaking in support of SB 6065 - Establishing the Washington blockchain workgroup.

Over the past 30 years emerging technologies have created generational economic empowerment to the states in which the businesses reside. They leave a legacy of wealth, growth and new jobs along the lines of what agriculture has done for this state over many decades. Blockchain is a technology that has the opportunity to create an opportunity for Washingtonians.

Some examples

HSBC - A global bank with operations in 65 counties. In just one asset class of $50B; $20B were moved onto a blockchain for asset management
Walmart continues to expand its mandatory use of blockchain in Food Safety. All of its partners and their partner's partners must use their blockchain for green vegetables
TicketMaster wants to put 400 - 500 M tickets on a blockchain. Last they prototyped it with Pearl Jam tickets

“We want people to like our products. It’s not about the technology for the end-users.” - They are taking a business-first tact

Microsoft, Amazon, Boeing, IBM and many other companies are investing in building and training their staff
Ethereum - Most common blockchain platform just passed one million developers
TrustedKey, a local company, was sold to WorkDay a leader in SaaS-based HR software. We lost the talent to the Bay area
A 2015 WTIA study, the largest tech industry association in the US, reports that for every one tech job, 2.7 jobs in the wider economy are created

Governments locally and abroad adopt blockchain

Wyoming has declared itself the "Delaware of Digital Law"
Illinois - has followed us and allowed smart contract recognition
China

Tencent - Working with the Chinese government to support taxes on blockchain
Shenzen province allows evidence for their legal system to be entered on the blockchain

Canada - Seven Canadian banks provide a common identity solution for customers

Not one of these initiatives are here in Washington, yet

However, among all this prosperity we find prices in some parts of Seattle and surrounding areas to have spiraling prices. The price differential in the war for talent creates inequity. As you think about this workgroup, I urge you to consider the broader aspects

Improve and support education programs in our K - 12 programs for a wider range of Washington state citizens
Improve SEZ - Special Economic Zones
Designate areas in the non-central parts of the I-5 corridor and eastward for development
Create workforce packages and get ahead of the problem. If we don’t then the federal government may do it and we may not like their guidance

Within its charter, SB 6055 calls for investigation of several business first initiatives for Blockchain. Healthcare and Public Recording Keeping, in particular, have an opportunity to empower residents through narrowing the gap of access to services, jobs, licenses and a host of many other our services for our residents.

A 2018 report in the Spokane Journal of Business indicates 4% unbanked and 21% underbanked (those without the full range of banking services and who may fall prey to nefarious loan and credit operations) in Washington. We have the ability to create finance and credit opportunities for more than 20% (1.4M people) of our state. Blockchain initiatives also reduce underemployment through credentialing of skills as my colleagues from T-Mobile and the Real Estate industry have indicated.

Washington is a state with world-class talent yet recognition and consolidated leadership in key areas is often unacknowledged or rewarded with outsiders. We have failed to capitalize on our brand and position as the undisputed leader/center in cloud technologies and standards. Let's take this opportunity to do so with blockchain/distributed ledger technologies.

I have first-hand experience building companies using emerging technologies; it creates economic empowerment, over 8,000 jobs in my career. Please consider the opportunity blockchain creates for a broad population in our state.

Thank you again for your time and consideration. My colleagues and I are excited to continue the public-private partnership.

I am available to answer any questions.

Video testimony is here, starting at minute 50

Onward.

Why I'm Long on Blockchain

Wed, 24 Apr 2019 14:57:49 GMT

This 1995 article " Why the Web Won't be Nirvana " from Newsweek is easy to poke fun at from the rearview 24 years later. Read through, lots of [respectful] belly laughs. The "Cyberbusiness" section is particularly fun. From a world of @Amazon defining changes in online and brick-and-mortar #Retail to now mainstream second & third generation airline ticket buying. Gee weren't they foolish? Hardly.

#Internet like #blockchain creates new business models that are outside of traditional business. It's often hard to draw a straight line to understand where adoption and revenues emerge. It takes time and the ability to create a luxury business (where one has time and resources) to invest in creating the New Normal.

After 30 years of investing in and launching edge technologies, I see a constructive disruption in current markets. Blockchain's ability to rewrite the exchange of value (financial, digital), settlement and payment occurs is equally hard for some to fathom. Costs are coming out of legacy processes such as title transfer, to logistics to building secure digital identities and getting us out of the password #EpicFail. That's why Pithia, Inc. continues to invest.

What do you think? Blockchain boom or bust?

Thought Leadership in Four Simple Steps

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 15:25:23 GMT

You cannot scroll through a major website or new program without seeing one. Arguably made popular by Buzzfeed , listicles are a journalistic or blogging tool with a lot of impact. Starting with a title that tells you there is a list of information (listicle is a portmanteau of “list” and “article”) within.

“Three ways 18 year-olds are rocking the November election”
“Six visual techniques for compelling landing pages”
“The nine sketchy things no one knows about Mount Rainier”

There is an opening paragraph, then the list of items. Each item may have as little as one line of content or several paragraphs. How long is predicated on several things:

Your audience – Some forums want it short and to the point. Some will look for fewer bullets and more detail
Your style – Write your way. If you’re known for short pithy sayings, use that to your advantage
The topic – Deeply technical areas merit a bit more attention. However, don’t drag it on. If you are an expert, you can say it in a few sentence (more on this later). If you really need to write more, consider a different format for the article

Why use this format? It draws immediate attention and generates a call to action. Attention generates eyeballs and revenue, whether direct or indirect. Why? People are drawn to numbers that indicate quantitative hard data (“Five Weather Patterns Recorded in Florida Every Fall”) or qualitative data, generally from sources we know/trust/respect (“Rachel Ray’s Four Favorite Thanksgiving Appetizers”). People are most likely to act upon short bites of practical and pragmatic information

1. Demonstrate your “Command of Data”

Einstein wrote, “If you can't explain it to a six-year-old, you don't understand it yourself.” Using lists shouldn’t imply simple or less relevant content. They should be used to demonstrate that you understand a topic well enough to break it down, (“Three parts of a good fiction story”) and can explain it in relatable, everyday terms. Even for highly technical subjects there are steps, an order of precedence or just a relatable number (“Nine Tips for Taking Indoor Photos”, “Four Steps You Must do to Complete Your Internal Audit”).

This is your opportunity to demonstrate to the world your expertise, passion and most importantly your capability. Anyone can write or re-write or over complicate an article.

Organize – This shows depth of understanding. Creating a compelling and understandable structure or taxonomy illustrates how well you know a topic
Be to the point
Make it actionable/action-oriented . Briefly describe some technique for putting your point into action. If it requires some foundational skill/knowledge (“Readers are assumed to have a basic background in Azure cloud architecture”) say so.

Do you need to say it all in one article? Perhaps or could this be an ongoing series or a teaser for something behind a paywall? That’s your decision

2. Be “all in” with your headline/title

Your title is the only reason people will read your article unless you have an established fan base. It’s the first thing they see. Whether you’re pitching an idea or self-publishing you need to state the one thing people will take away from the article. Make it clear and compelling. Numbers add credibility. You clicked on this headline, so there’s your first proof point.

If you’re a great writer or a muse, you know this and spout engaging headlines without effort. If not:

Start with a placeholder title
Write your article
Your title takes about 10% - 15% of the effort of writing the article. Give yourself the luxury of time to create an engaging opener. You only get one shot per article.

Crafting that sweet title:

1. What’s the one thing people will take away?

2. Is it relatable to everyone? “Better RFC Writing Styles for the IETF” is going to be passed over by 99.9999999% of the world. Make it work out of context

3. Numbers are compelling. Adding the right number will draw in an audience, after all that’s what listicles are all about

4. A promise made, is a promise kept. What are you promising in title and do you keep it?

5. Less is more. Is every word necessary?

An article entitled “27 Things You Should Do Every Morning” will likely raise eyebrows and be passed over. Why?

1. The number must credible or incredible. 27 things, assuming each takes only two minutes is nearly an hour of time gone. Incredible invites a closer look (“999 ways to make your morning toast”, “1,001 ways to screw up your webserver”)

2. Every morning? In today’s world, we have a much more varied routine. In this headline we’re also including weekends, generally people’s routines vary over the weekend

3. It’s not very specific.

Try it as “Three Things Great Bloggers Do.”

Add a picture that tells the entire story within the image. Many listicles have pictures (using animated gifs) for each bullet.

3. Keep notes

Writing takes time. Start with your list and develop the article around. As an adult, there are lots of things you do well. Pick a subject area and start to organize. There is no need for it to be perfect the first time. Edit, edit, edit till you get it down to a manageable pitch. Direct and focused tells people you are an expert.

Many authors will tell you, “There’s no good writing, just great editing.”

Lists can become addicting. I once showed an artist, a most unlikely of list makers, this simple technique. On the one-year anniversary she sent me pictures of three page lists of tasks and activities.

4. The Phrase that Pays

Way back in the early morning of the modern Internet (1997), RFCs (Request For Comments) were used to define how certain words were used in standards documents. The controlling body, the IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) still exists and is quite active.

The RFC Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels”

is the set of words used to signify requirements. “Should, Should Not, Must, May, Optional” all have specific context. Using them in your lists titles or headlines to generate impact.

Other trigger words include “Best, Worst, First, Last.” Remember point four when creating your title. Keep that promise. Your readers will come back for more.

The 300

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 15:01:31 GMT

This is not a plea for another remake of the adaptation of the battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C. of King Leonidas against the Persians. It’s a response to the many business leaders and entrepreneurs who have asked me about blogging. It’s a social experiment to help YOU get your voice heard.

Creating thought leadership, Intellectual Property and getting the voice of your organization heard is not easy. First write down your ideas. It doesn't matter how you do it; paper, text editor, blog, start writing it 140 characters at a time. Organize and format once you have your topic and outline. This is often the hardest step for most people. I know it was and still is for me. You have great thoughts but never set them down. Blogs and other online forums lower that particular barrier to entry.

Today, business leaders are bombarded with offers of white papers, flashy emails or glossy materials, and webinars; more content then they have time to read, let alone digest and understand. They would need to take a holiday to get through it all. That’s not to say it isn’t important to have them, indeed they are what Gartner calls “table stakes” the very basic material to be a player in any Services or Product industry. You must be prepared to develop materials based on the impactful and relevant work each of you does every day.

The challenge I am about to lay out is about creating a dialogue, one that your partners or clients can read, easily access and create a subtle call to action . It will be the voice of the value added parts of your business. I am suggesting you start creating blog entries that will eventually be posted on your website or in response to other postings. These are sales and marketing tools that differentiate you and drive client conversation. Imagine two websites, one that says, “We sell air conditioners” and another that says “Four steps to keeping your new Brand X A/C in top condition.” Which site are you going to click on?

How many people are in your company? One? Ten? Ten Thousand? If every team member writes one blog entry, once a week (less often as the number of writers goes up), you will change the game. I am asking each of you for… 300 words . Nothing more. You can write about any development related topic. Make it as broad or specific as you like. Write about:

“Four Things To Know When Preparing Quarterly Taxes”
“Six Tips For Java Garbage Collection Tuning”
“Why Big Data Is Now Big Business”
“Two Reasons Why You Don’t Need A Marketing Plan”

The topics are bounded only by your passion .

From there you will create buzz, “Google-relevance” and client mind share. It will be something clients and partners can read on their smartphones or during a coffee break. You will capture their thoughts and demonstrate passion in a way that traditional means cannot. LinkedIn is arguably the de facto social media platform for serious business professionals. This is the forum to get started.

Participate and help develop your conversation. Write to me and I will help you to grow your voice. If you're already an active blogger, join in and help.

Thank you for reading. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Best,

Lawrence

This blog is 572 words :)

Rethinking ICOs: 3 Reasons They Are A Distraction

Thu, 14 Feb 2019 22:00:18 GMT

According to a recent report by PwC and the Swiss Crypto Valley Association, the amount invested in Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) has nearly doubled that of 2017, with more than $13.7B raised by June 2018.

While this statistic paints a picture of ICOs driving new money into the market, does it mean they’re bringing new investors? If traditional investors are wary of putting their money in Bitcoin, let alone top altcoins such as Ethereum, it’s tough to believe that traditional investors are flocking to these riskier projects.

If ICOs aren’t bringing new investors into the market, are they at least bringing new companies and innovation? Rarely. A report by Boston College found that 55.8% of new token projects failed within four months of their token sales, which is drastically higher than the approximately 20% of startups outside of the blockchain industry that fail within one year.

It’s easy to say, “You’re a venture capital firm, you don’t like ICOs because it could hurt your industry.” Nope. We love to see legitimate investment funds in the market. Venture capital is an exercise in risk management by professional investors. Pithia, as an example, was founded on the principle of Operators turned Investors.

So, what do ICOs bring to the ecosystem? I’d argue little and that they’re doing more harm than good. Not only is the ICO fundraising model ridden with fraudulent projects that hurt investors, it also skews founders’ thinking.

To benefit the long-term growth of the blockchain ecosystem, we need to move away from the ICO fundraising model.
Here are three reasons why:

Marketing Over Matter

Too often we meet with blockchain startups and their sole focus is their upcoming ICO. What about their business and execution plan? It’s set aside for work on fundraising. Worse, some expect the irrational exuberance of late 2017 to magically bring funding by simply producing a whitepaper with blockchain and DLT scattered throughout. When companies are basing their entire future on the success of an ICO, it’s a single point of failure.

As anyone with a Telegram, Twitter, Slack Channel, or LinkedIn account knows, ICOs are primarily driven by marketing. The flashy partnership announcements, expensive YouTube reviews, lengthy whitepaper development, social media marketing, and even lavish expenses like billboards in New York City, all look good on paper, but they lack substance. And the space is so noisy that if you don’t execute a quality multi-tier marketing approach, you’re almost bound for failure.

Substance over splash goes much farther. A whitepaper that illustrates the foundation for disruptive technology, go to market strategy, a technology roadmap, and a sound plan that lays your use of proceeds for any type of funding is bankable.

Token vs. Business Returns

Because most ICO projects don’t focus on the business plan mentioned above, most are in the business of speculation. “We believe that we can sell 400 million tokens and, wink-wink, the value will go up.” Often the token value increase is emphasized, but the potential returns of the platforms or projects themselves rarely are. ICOs don’t pitch business returns — they encourage speculation and going “long” on a class of financial assets.

These projects are marketing their products as a hedge on future returns, not actual products or platforms. But what if the token doesn’t pan out as they expect? The market inevitably decides the value — not the ICO bonus structure.

If a project raises vast sums of money, what will they do with it? Lean startup isn’t a marketing gimmick, it’s a structured way of thinking to make better choices for teams and businesses. In an abundance economy, making choices is actually more difficult. There is more funding to speculate, sometimes wildly on longer-term plays that may not pan out. And why not, there is enough cash (you did convert all that BTC and ETH you raised into fiat, right ?) to over-hire, do flashy marketing, and try riskier strategies without short term returns.

We need to focus on what these startups can bring to the ecosystem that demonstrates value addition. The company needs to have a strategy for investor returns and exit in three to five years — not a buying and selling strategy. If founders prioritize long-term growth over short-term speculation, we’re all in. Internally, Pithia has tools that support the founders’ execution plan.

And to complicate matters, we’ve met founders with thin stories of what they will do with the proceeds of ICOs. The prospective raise is often several multiples of an 18-month roadway. What happens to the rest of that cash? Sadly, it’s an incentive for them to fail.

Green with Envy

Highly-successful ICOs often get quite a bit of media attention, understandably so. The problem with this is it skews the thinking of other funds and attracts a less savory crowd. Companies get enamored with these successful projects and base decisions, evaluations, and plans and make their benchmarks the raise set by these projects.

The thought process frequently heard is, “they are in the same industry as us and raised X. Our solution is better because of Y, so our valuation should be X+Z.” This is baseless and creates unrealistic valuations. There are very few, if any, apples to apples comparisons in this industry.

There’s also a new breed of founder whose pitch is, “fund my ICO, ie. the money I pay in legal fees, marketing and token build-out.” It’s often as high as $2,000,000 just for the ICO, not the actual business plan. The business models are soft and depend heavily on a highly-liquid, circulating economy. That circulating economy is dependent on the business model, which has been largely ignored in favor of the ICO…it’s a downward spiral.

Because the core thinking around valuation is so off base, it creates a founder mindset of instant success when in reality, they’ve won a looter’s lottery.

So, why do these crypto projects need tens of millions of dollars to develop a new dApp or protocol? The short answer is, they don’t — but they’ve seen others raise that kind of money and they want a piece of the pie.

We must move away from the era of expecting instant returns and blazing-fast development timelines. By being more realistic with funding goals, the expectations, timelines, and deliverables of these projects become more reasonable.

—

The end of the ICO era, in our opinion, is near. Already we see investors being smarter with their money and ICOs will need to adapt to this. They won’t go away entirely, but they will transform into a more responsible and focused fundraising process. Things are developing at the “speed of blockchain.” So, if future startups spend months focusing solely on their ICO, they may miss the boat of actually developing their company.

Rule of Three: The business of keeping it simple

Tue, 15 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It's been said many times and in many ways, "things come in threes." People tend to remember them most in speeches or as familiar sayings, committed to memory and thus "comfortable." "Morning, noon and night," "Blood, sweat and tears," "Friends, Romans, Countrymen..." IT Security, which seems to make a new headline every week, is driven by the following:

Something you have (an id token)
Something you know (a password)
Something you are (a fingerprint)

Rule of Three is memorable, simple, and direct. Did you notice that meta-rule of threes? Memorable, simple, and straightforward. We live in increasingly complex social, business, and personal interactions. No matter how well you present something, how clever the listener/receiver is, and how unique the product/offering is, people want to be able to digest them in their way, at their own pace, and in their own time.

In business and life, people tend to gravitate towards those things above all, regardless of their age, level of education, or status in life. Here is a set of three, learned from interactions.

People want to be entertained.

Regardless of the context, subject matter, or audience, people want to be entertained by your material. Content is king, but it must be enjoyable, in context, and memorable. Stuffing it full of pithy sayings and views from on high won't do it. Not everything needs a happy ending (even in white papers), but people want you to give them hope. Get to the point and keep your context accurate. I've learned some tough lessons. Forbes asked me to use a methodology I call Constructive Disruption to write an article about the past fiscal crisis. The editor's reply was short and to the point "This is well written but lacks substance. We won't use it." Which reminded me of another lesson.

Keep it really, really simple.

People want to know you follow some basic rules regardless of what you try to convey. These are the same rules we all learned in high school science. Make it understandable, repeatable, and reduced to its most basic elements. Write/speak to the level of your audience; if your audience is broad, make your appeal equally so.

The brand does matter.

The personal brand is even more so. How you use it and with whom you are associated make all the difference. Creating a personal brand that is as identifiable and as authentic as you are is much work. It's also really worth the time (lots and lots) and effort you put into it. You become recognized for a style, point-of-view, and something that, in the proper context, people will always gravitate towards. If a brand associated with yours becomes toxic, drop it, or you'll get the collateral damage.

Here's an anecdote that will make it into a book. I have a methodology I call "Constructive Disruption." It's how my brain is wired, and it has four :) Steps that I use to approach life and to problem-solve (Uncover->Examine->Prepare->Satisfy).

Last summer, I applied CD during a tour of Mount Rainier, a classic landmark outside Seattle. The tour guide/driver was knowledgeable, but his stories about the iconic mountain were dry and factual. It felt a lot like a middle school history textbook. After driving part way up, we parked at one of the rest stops. We got out for a walking/hiking exercise for a couple of hours. We returned to the bus to find the driver reasonably upset, as he had not been able to get the van to start for the past 20 minutes. Several people tried and looked under the hood. No one could determine the problem. I looked over at the angle the car was resting on (we were on a mountainside), and the guide said, "You try; I am going to call my office for another van." Based on the angle the van was resting on and applying CD (Uncover - What do we know), I thought the car's position was causing the problem.

Everyone knows I am not a car guy and not mechanically inclined (pun intended). Examining what I learned from the car's position, I discovered that the steering wheel was locked up; my analysis was that the mechanism in the steering column was somehow locked up. (Prepare) I worked my thumb into the steering column to solve it and found parts that allowed the steering wheel to turn. I pushed; it gave a loud mechanical pop. The car started on the first turn of the key.

From the outside, it may have appeared a bit magical. When I walked the bus driver through what I did, he smiled. Afterward, he shared a similar anecdote from his own experiences. The trip down the mountain was punctuated by stories of interesting people and events he had encountered while giving the tour over the years.

Are there threes in your experience you can share?

Restoring Trust: How Blockchain is Repairing Rifts in Digital Advertising

Wed, 15 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

According to a recent report by eMarketer, digital media accounts for 43.5% of investments in the $628.63 billion market. While growth in the digital advertising ecosystem is booming, the most essential stakeholders (advertiser and publishers) are increasingly frustrated. They’re facing an increasingly-apparent reality: the industry has a transparency problem.

In an age where measuring the performance of ad campaigns is paramount, marketers are unable to fully understand the value they deliver. A dirty little secret of the digital media business is that ad fraud is on the rise due to bot traffic or nonhuman digital traffic. Data is the key to measuring performance, but in advertising it’s trapped and siloed in black box technologies, causing data disagreements and opening the door for fraudulent activities.

The result? Wasted time and money, plus erosion of trust among supply chain partners.

Pithia is pleased to announce our investment in LA-based blockchain startup Lucidity , who aims to improve the authenticity of digital advertising analytics through a neutral, decentralized shared ledger. The company’s blockchain protocol empowers marketers to resolve data discrepancies so billing is faster, fraud is prevented by flagging fake traffic sources, waste is identified, and campaigns are optimized for performance.

Today, Lucidity is a scalable, sidechain infrastructure (known as Layer 2) that can handle the high processing speeds and privacy needs of digital advertising. Currently, the Lucidity sidechain implementation uses sharding to scale the system and a Plasma implementation to ensure the system remains secure.

The protocol currently runs on Ethereum, but they’ve found it’s not enough. Enter RChain , the third generation of blockchain.

Lucidity will develop an RChain-compatible version to further it’s positioning as a multi- and cross-chain solution supporting RChain, Ethereum, and others. Tracking high volumes of data processed by Lucidity will showcase the scalability of RChain and will provide the necessary components for digital advertisers to move their business onto the RChain blockchain.

Here’s what Lucidity co-founder and CTO Miguel Morales had to say:

We’re very excited to expand our Layer 2 technology to the premiere root chain: RChain. RChain allows us to build our products without having to deal with fluctuating fee prices or performance of the underlying chain. RChain supports a scale much higher than other chains, allowing Layer 2 apps to be that much more reliable and efficient.

Lucidity is a member of the Interactive Advertising Bureau Tech Lab’s Blockchain Working Group pilot program , which provides real-world environments for testing products and services using the technology. Winner of the Blockchain Startup of 2018 award by The Blocks, Lucidity has already secured a variety of customers and partners including GameStop, Viamedia, The Richards Group, Giant Spoon, and more.

This marks our fourth investment in recent months as we continue to develop the underpinnings of the blockchain 3.0 ecosystem. The RChain mainnet launch is slated for Q4 2018, keep an eye out for much more to come!

If you’re working on a project that can bring value to RChain or the entire blockchain ecosystem, please send referrals to pitches@pithia.com . Or, if you’re interested in investing in our fund as a Limited Partner, please email investors@pithia.com .

We support all investors and portfolio companies with our full suite of services including finance, accounting, market/company analysis and due diligence, program management, and legal support. Get in touch if you’d like to learn more.

Five Factors to Consider Before Investing in a Blockchain Company

Fri, 27 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

As the popularity of blockchain continues to grow, so does the need for investor education. So, just how do you properly educate yourself prior to investing?

We always suggest researching the project’s team background and experience in the space, the industry they are trying to disrupt and barriers to entry, as well as reading the whitepaper carefully. But, just because something looks good on paper, it doesn’t mean it will live up to the hype.

Ideas are great, but execution wins the day!

With countless new projects popping up every week, it can be hard to separate the wheat from the chaff. Not every project can be or will be successful.

At the end of the day, no one has a crystal ball to predict successful projects. But, there are a few key factors your need to consider prior to investing your hard-earned money. Let’s look at how you can identify value like the professionals:

Data Migration

If the project aims to disrupt an industry with established legacy systems, how will businesses migrate their data?

Different blockchains will have various block sizes, so you need to consider what data will be pertinent to store in the blockchain, how much data will fit into each block, and how businesses will transfer their data. Is storage of all the data required or just a pointer to an off-chain data store?

It may sound boring, but it’s not — remember the Y2K scare? A few savvy people made a lot of money handling the massive amount of data migration. This time won’t be any different.

Use and Analysis of Data

Now that all this great data is on the blockchain, what now? Research how the data will be used and most importantly, the potential benefits it will provide businesses. Simply storing data on a blockchain and calling it a day is not going to drive usage or value for businesses.

Consider the specific benefits a company or industry will gain by storing their data on a blockchain.

One interesting use case is seeing who is accessing the data and how .

For example, airports. Let’s pretend every airport in the US adopted a specific blockchain to store travelers’ data. They could then analyze the total number of visitors to each airport, but also what travelers are doing at each airport, time spent at each location, and much more. This level of transparency is completely unique to blockchain technology — it simply wasn’t possible before.

Consortium Buy-In

This is unavoidable, but something you always need to consider prior to investing. Within a given industry, you need to think of all the companies that would also need to adopt the technology and standards.

For instance, a few projects want to disrupt the supply chain industry. But within the supply chain, there are many companies that would need to fully adopt the technology for the blockchain to have a tangible impact — suppliers, manufacturers, shippers, retailers…the list goes on and on.

Disrupting established industries takes time. It’s just a matter of how long, and how many players need to give their buy-in before the blockchain project’s vision becomes a reality.

Earnable Tokens

Think of miners, or validators, as accountants — and accountants never work for free. They confirm the transactions and thus control the nodes. Therefore, miners are the lifeblood of nearly every blockchain.

But in return for their work, they need to be rewarded. If the project you have your eye on does not have an earnable token, ask yourself why miners would want to invest their time and computing power to keep the network running smoothly. If the only way someone can possess the token is through exchanges and airdrops, ask, who is doing the work?

Without validators, widespread adoption and use of the technology will likely fail — and that’s where the real value is.

The Speed of Business

This is perhaps the most crucial of all factors. At its core, blockchain is the “Internet of Transactions.” Transactions per second is crucial to long-term use and adoption of blockchain technology.

One size does not fit all. Some blockchains are better for financial transactions than processing transactions.

If a network validates data too slowly, businesses won’t be able to use it, regardless of other benefits it provides. For example, the recent Crypto Kitties craze. Ethereum was a victim of its own success — with so many people playing the game, the network was bogged down. Transaction times and cost drastically increased simply because lots of people were using a network, that by design is single threaded. Think of it as a one-lane highway.

Now think of major international corporations and the number of people who would need to use a blockchain simultaneously. If the network won’t be able to handle high traffic and usage volumes, it is not going to be adopted by major companies who need consistent and instant access to their data.

These are only a few of the factors we consider when conducting our due diligence on potential investments. Educate yourself like the pros and once you’re able to confidently understand and answer these questions prior to investing, you’ll be able to identify high-value projects. You’ll also have a better understanding of the blockchain ecosystem.

The true value of blockchain won’t come from flashy spokespeople, a well-thought-out development roadmap, or a never-ending slew of announcements. It will all come down to execution and adoption.

Holding Space for Others

Tue, 05 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Lately I’ve heard from more people than ever before about how their daily life is filled with stress or drama.

Grief enters everyone’s life. Whether it is illness, the unexpected passing of a loved one or ongoing tragedies that have marked national and international news; bad things happen. It is inevitable but as people we can be of assistance to others. We often on the front line of trauma unexpectedly.

As a leader, one is often called upon help people in times of distress sometimes by that person or those around them. It may be something traumatic happening to them personally, their family or loved ones or trauma in their community.

Being there for others is what makes us human and connects us as the larger family of mankind. The need for individuals who are mindful of service to others is more urgent than ever in this increasingly complex world we find ourselves living in. This article is perspective, a call to action but not training. It may motivate you to grow and find such training for yourself.

When individuals are called upon to help someone in times of stress, it’s often referred to as “holding space.” You are somewhere between a witness and a counselor. Your more difficult personal role is to journey with them without interference, judgment or control. You may also find yourself holding space for someone while they hold space for another. It is a sacred and selfless service to others. You are there for them when they are vulnerable and may need to be weak.

No matter who you are or what you’ve accomplished, someday someone will be there to hold space for you. Religious and spiritual leaders are often on the front line of emotional trauma as well. It’s not required that you be a priest to hold space but it is often who the community looks to in emotional times. Knowing these people in your community, regardless of faith choices, is well worth your time.

What does it mean to hold space in practical terms? While someone is going through a deep emotional trauma and perhaps life altering experience, your role is less about what you can do for them and more of what you can help them do for themselves.

I offer you a personal perspective. “Teach. Guide. Witness. Do not intervene”

Some thoughts on holding space

1. Share what's important in the now

The situation and people have all come together in a point in time as the result of a series of events. The past is over and unchangeable, the future unknowable. The now is all that matters. Be an oasis for other to gather in their own strength rather than attempting to direct the situation.

In situations such as these there’s a lot going on. Perhaps someone is going to pass over, in the next few weeks. Reminding a person to contact distant friends and loved ones is in the now. Asking them if they want catering after a memorial service is probably a later activity.

2. Be a guide or instructor. Don't take over

In times of mourning or grief, the person(s) left behind are often paralyzed with indecision. It’s too easy for strong personalities to enter in, with best intentions, and try to solve things. Taking away even simple decision making takes away their personal power and strength. It can scar or set them on a different path for a long time.

Your ability to witness, be present and mindful, while offering non-judgmental wisdom is all that needs to be done. Presenting experiences and outlining options or giving them a process is healthy. You will make them stronger and give them the power to make decisions that will often have long term effect.

In situations where the person is fully incapable for some reason, there may be a reason to acquire aid for them. This is not to be done without conscious consent of their life partners or family.

3. Offer parallels and not platitudes

Talking is an often-used form of providing comfort. Remember how your words have intent and create the world around us. Our remarks, even with the best intentions, may be less than helpful. Often used remarks that could be phrased a different way:

1. “Life/The Universe never gives us more than we can handle”

This evokes all types of questions and is a test of anyone’s faith.
Suggest: “It’s ok to grieve at your own pace.”

2. “I know how you feel”

No, you don’t. You are not that person and don’t know how they are processing recent events.
Suggest: “We are here for you when you’re ready to talk”

3. “How are you?”

In American society, we often use it in place of “Hello.” This often turns into a plea to them to make you feel better. You need to hear the answer that they are enduring, getting on with life, getting over it etc. it’s an unnecessary pressure them
Suggest: “I understand this is difficult for you”

4. “What can I do for you?”

Don’t add the responsibility of finding some way for you to be helpful.
Volunteer practical things. “I’d like to drop off some meals.” “I can take the kids to after school activities for the next few weeks.” “We’d like to shovel the snow from your driveway.”

5. Saying nothing at all

Sometimes, it is enough to sit with a person and let them know you’re there. However, many people are uncomfortable with silences and therefore they seek to fill the void. Communicate, even in small ways. Try some of these other expressions of support lest you create a situation where they now must take responsibility to make you feel better. If you feel uncomfortable, excuse yourself from the situation.

4. Create safe and sacred space for them

Chaos, change and death are all part of the natural order. Build the oasis for them and let them come at their own pace.

Give them a place to be safe, sacred, weak and away from judgment. These are times when you can build a barrier where they can be alone with their thoughts and choices. Suggest simple things such as a walk, a bath or places where they can be secure makes them strong to be weak when and if they need it.

Think of it as putting pillows on a coach. Let other arrange as they see fit.

5. Allow others to hold space for you

Last week, I had painful dental surgery and lost a tooth. It was the second time in year I needed surgery. The tech, who had been present at both, kept pacing and telling me how sorry she was and how terrible it was that this had to happen. It took me a minute but I realized she was doing it for herself and not for me.

Sometimes holding space for others means allowing yourself to accept their comfort when something bad happens to you. It's for them, not you.

6. Do them the honor of different choices

Their choices are their choices. Don’t interfere with their power and make them second guess, particularly in stressful times. You may not have chosen an action or made the same selection. It’s not your choice to make. It’s ok for them to make mistakes. Honor that they may have different rituals than your own.

Be mindful and remember this is not about you. Remove any ego. If you cannot, excuse yourself from the situation.

How have you handled difficult situations?

#Entrepreneur #Leadership #Coaching #Life

Insight becomes Action; Compelling Big Data Stories

Thu, 08 Sep 2016 00:00:00 GMT

The saying goes “Every Company is an IT Company.” It’s also just as common to hear every media story about Big Data. From the last year’s high-profile case of the FBI plowing through data to point the finger at North Korea to the Music Industry ( How Big Data can change the music industry ). Another hot topic is IoT or the “Internet of Things.” Definitions vary but there is one basic consistency. “#Things” talk to each other and when they do, a lot of data is generated. According to a BBC article (Big Data: Are you ready for blast-off? ) 2.5 billion gigabytes (GB) of new data was generated every day in 2012. By any standards, that’s a large amount of data.

While data is good, facts are better but stories are relatable . The 2016/2017 challenge for “Big Data” purveyors is to write relatable stories that inspire action to an end user. For our purposes, data that is “big” is beyond the ability of humans to read, review and retain anything that is meaningful. To create relevancy we develop computer systems and frameworks to search for predefined patterns and associations in the data flow. More data with higher numbers of relevant patterns gives us increased confidence in the answers achieved (e.g., 60,480 unique searches were done in a geography with a population of approximately 155,000 for late night pharmacies says it’s probably flu season). Our ability to easily, inexpensively store and process vast amounts of data has improved dramatically in the past ten years.

Using our four-step Constructive Disruption methodology we’re able to make Big Data into a relatable story that’s relevant to every business.

(Uncover) What’s the problem we’re solving?

Today, we can collect vast amounts of data, quickly (defined as near real-time and ongoing) from endpoint devices such as smartphones, sensors, point-of-sale terminals and video recorders all day, every day. Data collected may be structured (tables of information) or unstructured (pictures, blog entries). The amount of data can easily approach terabytes in little time. Comprehending data at this scale is a lot like listening to 60 different musical selections at once, each starting at different points in the song. It’s noise with hardly anything that’s understandable or memorable. Our goal is to:

Scan through the data fast enough to review it in a timely manner
Organize related bits of information (e.g., sort by zip code)
Develop relationships between related data elements (e.g., seismic activity during Seattle Seahawks games)
Create information and a meaningful bit of prose that can be consumed and made actionable by an appropriate audience

We’re doing all of this to transform the data elements we’ve collected. It’s key to test our facts and shape them into prose that’s easily read and understood for our audience. As with all good stories there are common elements:

Know/write for our audience
Create three dimensional characters
Give it a plot – Good, evil or morally gray what’s it all about?
Develop the crucible – Writer-speak for the backdrop and test(s) the character(s) face in a story. Whether we are writing fiction or non-fiction assumptions must be tested

Lastly, writers and more often editors will tell you “there is no great writing, just great editing.” Editing is similar to the process data scientists’ use to creating meaning out of volumes of information. Great writing often inspires action.

As you create your story, use three guidelines (from Rule of Three: The business of keeping it simple )

People want to be entertained – Even if it’s a report detailing the history of grain production on a single acre the writing must be enjoyable
Keep it really, really simple – The more complex the data and its subsequent analysis, the more easily should your readers consume the message (“Cold and flu season in the North East is in full effect”)
Brand Matters – You want to be known for relating information in a certain style. That style brings readers back for many reasons. Consider congressional session transcripts re-written (and factually maintained) by J.R.R. Tolkien.

(Examine) What Solution do you provide?

As previously mentioned data at this scale is noise and not simply or conveniently consumed by humans. Technology becomes is the enabling solution and game changer for Big Data. In the past processing data at the terabyte scale on a regular basis would have been cost prohibitive. What would happen if you had access to a simple tool? Simple defined as:

Relatively low cost or Open Source (no charge to use)
Easily hosted (Smart Phone App -> Cloud Based Subscription)
Well stocked “top of the funnel" – Data that is easily acquired and loaded into the database
Fast – Low turn around time to provide a “closed loop” in your decision making process

You begin to achieve the democratization of Big Data . Traditional relational and so-called NoSQL (Not Only SQL) databases have become more powerful, distributed and able to manage data of different types. They are often based on Open Source principles and technologies. The popularity of NoSQL databases is on the rise due to low price points and the ability to leverage commodity hardware (e.g., cloud). Examples of NoSQL databases include FoundationDB , MongoDB and HBase NoSQL databases store data in different structures than relational databases (e.g., graph, document, name-value pair). This often accelerates certain functions such as lookup time, which is key making data useful.

Once your data repository is well stocked, data scientists create a story that’s relevant. Let’s assume you have data (10,000,000 rows of digital images and the associated photo information taken over 90 days). From there you may be able to do search and extract some facts (“86% of digital pictures taken outdoors. Most photos are less than 5MB”). Now it's a matter of weaving the facts into a story.

Character – Photographer who carries a photo taking device
Plot – Photos taken by everyday people over a 90 day period
Crucible – Pictures taken through the lens of a digital device. Smartphones, no matter how good the image capture still lack sophisticated lenses and comfortable handgrips

Data such as:

Over a 90 day period devices were updated within five days of new software release
Exposure time, on average, is 1/588 seconds
86% of photos have a focal length of 24mm

Can be written into prose…

“The average Smart Phone Photographer (SPP) likes the latest hardware and they update their software frequently. Most of their pictures are taken in and around an area covering five square miles, closest to home. You’re most likely to find SPPs taking photos before and after business hours and on weekends. When they do take pictures during work hours, SPPs take fewer but generally higher resolution photos. When they take and retain a picture SPPs keep an average of three for every scene. 86% of all photos are taken out doors in relatively close proximity to the subject. “

To properly “write” this story you need to be a bit of split-class photography geek/data scientist. As tools become simpler, the ability to tell stories (and automate their creation) is the true value.

(Prepare) What problem are you solving for others?

The collection, mining and development of Big Data repositories has had caché for a few years. Yet many find it difficult to assign dollar value or real relevancy to vast amounts of “likes,” blogs and assorted petabytes of structured and unstructured data.

Until the data is turned into something that can be monetized in a repeatable fashion, it’s another intangible asset. Stories and/or practical lessons learned help business leaders define a practical return on investment.

I Can Read You Like A Book

According to the EPA, 65% of electricity in the United States is used in consumed by commercial real estate usually by buildings. FlowEnergy is a Woodinville, WA based company that helps commercial real estate properties optimize their energy spend. FlowEnergy’s Surge platform combines hardware, software and Big Data analytics to optimize energy consumption in commercial settings. Once installed, their systems continuously collect

35 data points per SmartValve every 60 seconds
108 data points every 15 minutes from electric meters
Data from 40 electric meters installed at customer sites for a total data 640GB+ over an 18 month period

Their customers are often large hospitals or universities with large campuses. These campuses have diverse energy profiles. FlowEnergy’s data scientists take the collected data sets and merge them with Open Source weather information. Using EDA (Exploratory Data Analysis) they are able to profile temperature and energy profiles of buildings. Based on the analysis they are able to “read” the buildings and compare like profiles. For on case study this allowed them to drive energy savings for buildings. They were able to

Determine that excess consumption occurred at night
Find buildings that were consuming energy outside of a comparative profile
Identify downstream effects which caused erratic behavior on other devices such as water controls

Their underlying technology stack is hosted on AWS (Amazon Web Services) using Microsoft SQL Server and uses Tableau for data visualization.

The Right Stuff

Today, eCommerce and mobile buying is an every day way to shop. In 2013 US Consumers spent more than $322,000,000,000 online according to Statisa . A key component to the shopping experience is merchandising or the marketing and promotion of products. Merchandising, particularly online, includes doing the “ right stuff” in a compelling way to an audience that likely, cannot experience your product immediately. It includes the planning involved in marketing the right product/services at the right place/time/quantities/assortments and most importantly at the right price. With an ever-increasing number of products/services online Brands and Retailers are continuously seeking an edge. Enter Indix , a Seattle, WA Product Intelligence company. Indix collects product and product-related information to allow merchants to optimize the way they price, promote and plan product discovery.

Indix collects millions of pieces of information, using Apache Hbase and other technologies to store, track and analyze:

700,000,000 products (estimates put Amazon’s inventory at approximately 200,000,000)
600,000 sellers
40,000 brands

The 2,000,000,000,000 (2TB) data store is refreshed every two weeks and continuously grows as new merchants and products are added to their repository.

With the vast number of products and more importantly variations product descriptions, it becomes an unmanageable task for a single Retailer to optimize search or SEO on something so basic. Prosperent , an affiliate commerce service, uses Indix machine learning services to help organize, categorize and streamline up to 50,000,000 products a day from the company’s 4,800+ merchant partners. Variations and inconsistencies in product descriptions are democratized across a base of millions of unique products.

KYC (Know Your Customer)

Today most online search is in the form of how a user “Googled it.” From content, to links, to mobile more data points are collected and analyzed to provide fresher and more relevant search results, the way Google sees fit to rank it. While there is no industry standard for search Google has become the de-facto standard (with an 80% US market share). Marketers need to manage the complexity of rankings to improve the visibility and have their sites appear more often at the top of search.

In 2012, Google made 665 changes to the way you receive search results. That’s about one change every 13 hours, a lot of work for rank-hungry sites. Moz a Seattle-based software startup focused on helping marketers understand and improve SEO (Search Engine Optimization) aims to drive transparency in the Google search rankings. Moz’s own engine performs a parallel search to Google. They take a large sample (20% - 60%) of available sites. Moz tracks and relates the data in an attempt to tell the story by for its customers to optimize their search rankings. In its last search Moz’s engine crawled

285,000,000,000 urls
1,250,000,000,000 links
362,000,000 TLD (Top Level Domains, e.g., IBM.com)
25,000,000,000 sub-domains

What does Moz do with all those results? They analyze the results to tell the story of change. Their products enable users to manage change to optimize themselves in Google’s rankings. Google announces changes in a broad way but doesn’t specifically describe how the changes affect your individual page search ranking. Moz has refined their own products to help brands and marketers ferret out changes and adapt. When Google released the “Panda” update (named for the engineer who designed it), sites with lots of duplicated content were pushed to a lower page ranking. Does that seem fair? Perhaps but if we use the Indix product catalog as an example, a marketer might have dozens of products with the same description. The only variation in description might be color (e.g., ink for pens).

(Satisfy) What’s the opportunity for Big Data tools?

Big Data tools and companies already demonstrate they can go beyond merely storing or reporting upon data. They tell stories that are relevant to managing buildings, product labeling and more. The New Normal is the ability to create relevancy by moving from data to action .

Apple’s iTunes subscriber list has more than 800,000,000 members and Apple Pay now has more than 700,000 locations . With the each account holding a credit card, linking to a physical location and understanding product demand what are the stories and manufactured opportunities the tech company will create? What are the privacy concerns? Look for Big Data and Privacy to become part of the 2016 Presidential platforms.

The natural evolution of Big Data tools is to “vanish” into business infrastructure and become every day tools in the same way as voicemail and email.

Gamifying your first 90 days

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 15 Jan 2015 00:48:15 GMT

Be an Explorer

Stop Making Promises; Start Building Resolutions

Thu, 01 Jan 2015 00:00:00 GMT

Focus on the goal and not the task.

Today, I will ask you to build a “Resolution System” (RS) for yourself. Short-worded bullets and diagramming techniques such as mind mapping are great for getting your internal processes working. This is for you, be honest with yourself. When you decide on a resolution and a goal, you need a plain, practical, and (relatively) painless way to achieve it.

Part of the reason for building a system is not to struggle with an individual task (“I need to get up one hour earlier every day to go to the health club”). In this example, if you're not a morning person, try to find a health club near or on the way home from work.

(Uncover) What things do you really want to do for yourself?

Be truly selfish with your answer. Uncover what’s going to be profoundly motivating for you. It’s more than a 30-second exercise, but it shouldn't take an eight-hour day to answer it.

Write down the answers to these questions.

What internal resources do I have for myself? (Intellect, Self-control, Emotional intelligence)
What are the external resources that can support my goal? (Finances, Environment, Social system (family, friends, and others))?
What am I good at, and how can I apply this to my resolution?
What four steps will I follow to hold myself accountable and responsible?

Notice that I haven’t asked you to make a resolution. Avoid the temptation to leap into something that sounds virtuous and great without knowing how you are achieving it. You are beginning to build a system for yourself that will support a goal that is relevant and lasting. Try to spend no more than 30 minutes answering these four questions. This is the basis for your Resolution System.

Now, take ten minutes to develop a single goal/resolution. Ten words or less. Again be selfish. What’s good for you will empower others. Visible progress to a healthier lifestyle will inspire those around you.

Go back to your RS and see how it supports your goal. Tweak as necessary but don’t spend more than another ten minutes.

Why is this resolution important to me?
Are there milestone goals?
What will happen when I achieve it?
What will I notice differently about myself?
What will others notice about me? Is that important?

After three months. What have you learned?

Checking in with myself after three months. How is it going?

In less than an hour, you should have the means to create something lasting and relevant to you. This same technique can be applied in your business as well.

Please share your stories of Resolution in the comments.

Onward.

Lawrence

Think You Know Your Organization's Strengths? Launch a New Product.

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 08:00:00 GMT

One of the most exciting things entrepreneurs and forward-thinking enterprises do is to launch something new. A new product or service introduction can dramatically change an organization. It’s not just the revenue reward; it’s an opportunity to grow your organization in many dimensions.

From solopreneurs to the largest enterprises, organizations that find new ways to grow the top line, distance themselves from the competition, and create shareholder value are category leaders. How they do this is the often-overused buzzword “innovation.” Unfortunately, it is spoken about as if it could be bottled and poured like a hot sauce when you want to heat revenues. Instead, try a holistic approach to an NPSI (New Product/Service Introduction), where you can test your organization. It’s a compelling way to learn about your business ecosystem. Product launches test an organization’s People, Processes, and Infrastructure on many levels.

There are many industry frameworks for NPSI, each with dozens of steps that look daunting and are perceived to be a massive investment. Here are four large-grained steps for an NPSI, part of a methodology I call Constructive Disruption. Disruption brings about the often-needed transformation in organizations that ask why the status quo isn’t achieving their goals. Constructive is the well-laid-out journey to growth or transformation. It will help you learn more about your company culture and the appetite/adaptability to shift or change. After an NPSI, you should know the following:

How do we satisfy customer needs?
What organizational strengths do we have?
Why are we relevant to our market?

The timeline for these steps should be “as long as it takes, but no longer.”

What Problem are we solving? (Uncover)

Brainstorming new product or service ideas may come from customer feedback, competitor research, employees, or an idle doodle. You build your company upon multiple disciplines. It’s time to take advantage of that, using your core skills to accelerate launch time safely. NPSI is all about getting from Zero to One. Workshops are a suitable format for brainstorming.

1. Are you good at it?

Whether creating a physical item or a service, you must take a hard look at how you bring the proposed product to market. Being good at something is different from having never done it before. Everyone has heard the story of how Amazon began selling books. They earned what I call Market Permission to sell online. As they started to diversify their product mix, they were able to demonstrate the art of the possible to consumers. It was accepted if Amazon told consumers they were going into a market. Selling online has become “normal” to the point where online sales are no longer considered “an experiment” or a novelty.

What are your core competencies? What has been successful about past product launches? How will you build/grow/obtain the internal resources if you don’t?

2. Does it have internal support?

Do all the internal stakeholders (e.g., executives, finance, HR, IT) support the idea? You’ll need to examine people’s personal preferences, the company’s culture (Is “Not invented here” a joint statement?), processes, and a desire for change? If not, you need to manufacture consent. People generally agree that growth is healthy. However, not everyone feels the same about how you get there. Therefore, it's critical to identify champions and develop alignment.

3. What problem does it solve?

Clearly understand the problem you are helping other businesses or consumers solve. For example, luxury products provide the exclusivity that some people desire. Try to solve one problem at a time. Trying to deliver a complex service that is fast, convenient, and cheap for the first time takes time. It may cause so many setbacks or exceptions that it derails the process entirely. Go for an MVP (Minimum Viable Product).

4. Avoid the temptation to make early decisions

At this point, you should still be in the collection process. Wait until you have a clear problem statement and the alignment to move ahead. It’s essential to have all the facts/beliefs/preferences/needs/wants or as many as you can around a problem statement before even building a prototype. This is different from iteration, which happens after the Examine phase.

At this point, your team must have a very well-defined problem. Therefore, your answer should be “Yes” to all three of these statements.

Can you put a boundary on the problem?
Is the organization committed?
Do we know what we are going to deliver?

If not, address the open item(s).

Complete the Question (Examine)

This is the stage where you round out the “how” and “what” we deliver. It’s essential to break the problem into its tiniest components (figuratively and literally). Then, ensure you fully understand how they work and the relationship (processes) between them. Your supply chain is an excellent example of understanding dependencies and relationships.

1. Start with a Product Map

Identify the discrete pieces that will make your product or service come to life. For example, if you are selling automotive repair, you will need adequate workspace, trained technicians (How different is each make and model of car?), an intake process, tools, parts, and a supply chain. What’s the relationship (process map) between all of these? Understanding these relationships takes time and internal talent. With everyone moving in the same direction; you’ll get valuable input from a collaborative thought process.

Be prepared to answer:

Where does it fit in your current business model?
What is the product vocabulary? – This is an extension of marketing
What are the processes/technologies/talent we need?

2. Identify your addressable market

The size of your market should be something you can estimate within an order of magnitude. I call this the addressable market. This is the number of consumers or companies you can practically and reasonably target. For example, eReaders such as the Kindle should be something that “everyone” will want to purchase. If you start the filtering to make it addressable (this is only an example and not meant to be 100% accurate):

The total population of Earth is about 7 Billion.
The worldwide literacy rate is 84.1%. It only includes adults over 15 years old
Perhaps you want to start in the US. The literacy rate is 86% (on 371 million people)
76.5% of the US population is over 18
We now have a market size of about 244,000,000
The use and cost of a Kindle make it a luxury. For example, suppose only 30% (and this is where some research should have been done) can afford the Kindle.
Seventy-three million people are your approximate addressable market. According to TabTimes, the total number of tablets in the US at the end of 2013 was about 70,000,000

Update - According to GoodReader, as of 2018, Amazon has sold between 20 and 90 million kindles . The point is in the exercise's validity in helping you think through your market; not the precision level.

3. Talk to your customers

Does anyone want to buy or use it? How will they use it? Market tests and one-on-one conversations are invaluable. Socialize the product idea with a select market, even if you are still in the concept stage. Allow for cultural differences if you are selling outside your native country. There is an apocryphal story of a successful golf ball manufacturer that went to Japan. The manufacturer sold golf balls in three packages, an unlucky number in the culture. Changing to a box of four was a victory for them.

Segment and identify different types/sizes of buyers. Where will you be able to set the price/margin? Products/Services that are market-making (e.g., iPod) may need to be more easily understood and may take more time.

Get as much feedback as you can. Ideally, it should be a minimum of three data points.

4. How does this product or service extend your brand?

Your products or services should pass the sniff test to your customers. Would you buy smartphones from your local coffee shop? If you make or sell lifestyle products (e.g., sporting goods retailer REI) and extend your services to include sport-themed vacations, there is a high synergy. Compare your brand messaging to the theme the product provides. For example, Victronix, makers of the icon Swiss Army Knife, added personal products such as watches and kitchen knives. These all reinforce the lifestyle and the caché of the product.

After this stage, you should have the foundational information to design your solution or product. It would be best if you were well bounded enough to begin planning an MVP (Minimum Viable Product or Service) and have alignment with potential markets.

Develop the Solution (Prepare)

With the foundation you’ve just created, it’s time to begin the solutioning process. As you develop the product or service, you’ll want to engage different experts within your team. In addition, smaller or highly specialized organizations may wish to hire outside experts.

1. Start with Design

This stage is where you want your technical experts to begin with diagrams. Your process flows, customer behavior analysis, and solution strategy best suit a diagramming tool. It’s not expensive to change or present to different audiences.

2. Will your product be understood?

You’ve begun to assemble the components of the solution. The processes, physical models, and talent are here to bring it to market. After you’ve done an initial test with a focused market, now is the time to understand how you will deliver and message it in today’s market. Positioning, packaging, and pitch are as crucial to success as quality. Timing is also essential. Is your product relevant in today’s market? How would Twitter or LinkedIn have been received at the dawn of the modern Internet age?

Your product must be timed for your ability to deliver it and what the market is ready to accept. Ten years ago, I was building IT services for a California-based consulting company. I developed a cloud-based model for doing Business Intelligence as a Service (BIaaS). I shared the fully developed design with a well-regarded IT analyst firm. The feedback was constructive, and I was told businesses were not ready; therefore, I would not receive market permission. However, nine months later, everyone in the industry talked about the “cloud,” and the service became an overnight must-have solution.

3. Work backward from your delivery date

Before you are ready to market, know all of the details of your supply chain, whether physical or virtual (e.g., you depend on having enough computing power to deliver). If you promise a start/delivery date of June, then some of the milestones you need to start posting in January or earlier.

Who needs to be trained, and how many people do we need? Do we have them on staff today? How long does it take to hire them?
Are there regulatory or compliance requirements?
Do you have the tools/raw materials for your manufacturing process? Can you/should out use a contract manufacturer?
Will your suppliers commit to an adequate amount of stock and reserve?
Do you have funds to support the time until launch?

4. Manage quality

Nothing will kill a product faster than poor quality, especially on launch. You may not need the best of the best in materials or talent, but they need to be up to the task. Be relentless in your focus on attention to detail and put them all in perspective.

Iterate between Examine and Prepare as your assumptions are challenged, or lessons are learned. This is also an excellent exercise to enhance or extend existing products and services.

Present the solution (Satisfy)

At this point, you should have a solution that is ready to be marketed. Then, you may choose to begin the full delivery, prototype, or set a future date.

1. Understand your Quality of Revenue

Except for exceptional circumstances, your product or services must be profitable. How profitable depends on multiple factors and is beyond the scope of this article. You should factor in your all-in costs to deliver to the market and make the determination. QoR is an ongoing exercise to go through with new and existing clients. It’s good to begin early.

Some clients will be easier to sell and maintain than others. As a simple exercise, determine where they fall in this chart. Your ideal client is relatively easy to support and maintain, yet they generate high revenues. Clients in the lower left might be well suited to a self-service model. Clients in the upper left must be reviewed carefully. With a High effort to maintain, margins may be low or worse. What decision will you make about them?

2. Train your sales team

If you have a separate sales team, you’ll need to get them up to speed on the value proposition. A percentage of the sale price of the product or service usually compensates them. Don’t expect them to become technical experts on the nuances of the solution. They must be well-versed in the domain and have a solid foundation in the value proposition.

Questions you should be prepared to answer:

What is it?
Why is it relevant to the market?
What are three leading questions to ask potential buyers?

3. Being a fast follower is ok too

Sometimes you need to be first to market with a product or service. That’s ok. First movers may create a barrier to entry but simultaneously create market permission (or not, observe). If your product is particularly new or different in geography, they may do a lot of the hard work for you.

Use your organization’s strengths in Examine to see where you might be able to learn from them. Think you can make a better hamburger than Mcdonald's? I bet you can, but that’s not their core business. They have a five-phase People, Products, Place, Price, and Promotion model. They are about feeding and satisfying people at a point in time. If your goal is to make great hamburgers, there are still lessons to be learned.

4. Develop your sales/marketing materials

Few products are self-explanatory. Be prepared to develop a simple message about why yours is the correct buy for your client. Here are some tips from Rule of Three: The Business of Keeping it Simple

Do You Squeeze the Lemon?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 03 May 2014 14:19:51 GMT

Go ahead and chuckle. The title was meant to draw attention and give you a bit of a smile. :)

This is about customer service and the part of Constructive Disruption that I call "discovering the need." For example, in 2001, I was allowed to participate in an executive survival clinic while working at PricewaterhouseCoopers. The class was for Partners and PwC executives who lived life on the road with high-stress jobs. We went through a whole battery of physical, psychological, and other health-related tests, followed by a weekend of coaching. One of my outcomes was to change parts of my diet. I wasn't unhealthy, but I wanted to cut out the excess. So, among other things, I stopped drinking soda and pretty much anything else except water (lots!), coffee (before 8:30 AM), and the occasional adult beverage (which we were told had moderate health benefits) in the evening.

Since 2001 I only drink water or seltzer (technically a "soda," yes, but no additives except for carbonation) and usually order it with a lemon or lime wedge. Therein lies my story. I've asked for water with lemon or lime at restaurants, cafes, airplanes, and bars on nearly every continent. The math suggests I've ordered thousands of drinks this way. In my estimation, less than 1% had the fruit been squeezed for me to enjoy the benefits of some refreshing citrus. In most cases, the fruit is trapped under a layer of ice. If I want to enjoy the flavor, I need to dredge out the lemon myself and squeeze it. It generally makes a mess. Did the person who constructed the product for me do as I asked? Yes… was it practical, does it leave me with a great experience? No.

Very rarely does the person serving my drink take care of this for me. I had to ask myself why. The challenge is that we often need help understanding the question being asked, and we need to take the time to break it down. If I ask for a drink with lemon, the most probable thought should be

I am thirsty.
I want something to help me digest my meal.
The lemon is there to provide a taste that I enjoy.

None of the instances brought me a shot glass or tub of water. There is always some element of understanding the need for a drink rather than a place to wash my hands. Nor did I ever get a glass of boiling water; suitable for making tea.

So why not squeeze the lemon? Is it because people are lazy? Unlikely, career service people are selected for a "do it right" and customer satisfaction attitude. It's critical to take a question/problem, identify the minor elements, and play them back to ensure you understand each one and its meaning. Of course, all this must be done in the context of the situation. I call this part A/P (Active and Passive) Learning.

Good customer service should prepare the drink for me to enjoy. Too often, we fail to ask ourselves, "Do we understand the question being asked?" Here is another example. I am in the process of finding someone to redesign my website. I made a request using my social media network and received many responses. I asked for two things. The first was to have the designer explain their working style. The second was to provide me with two or three examples of other sites they had done for consulting or professional services.

I received excellent examples of product catalogs, dentistry, power tools, family vacations, and various unrelated designs. Some sent me samples of (paper) product brochures. Unfortunately, only some had taken the time to break down and understand my request. "I am looking for an expert in web design that can provide examples of their work in my industry." In their haste to pitch me, few provided good customer service, they lost the opportunity to work with me, and they needed to demonstrate a desire or ability to understand the particular needs of my business.

Taking the time to understand the context, discover needs, observe how it's being done (less than a handful of design firms looked at my site before responding), and organize a response are the foundations of the methodology and superior customer service.

So I ask you, "Do you squeeze the lemon?"

The Lesson Behind Mt. Gox’s #EpicFail: Focus on the Goal and not the Task

Fri, 28 Feb 2014 08:00:00 GMT

Mt. Gox is likely no more. The company has filed for bankruptcy protection after “losing” approximately 850,000 BitCoins at a current market value of $473,000,000 USD (Mt. Gox Files for Bankruptcy Protection – Wall Street Journal). With his headquarters in Tokyo, Mt. Gox owner Mark Karpelès offered a mild apology but chose not to slit his own belly as a native Japanese CEO might.

This story will makes news and headlines for the next week, naysayers will cluck their tongues and shake heads. There will be a host of news stories as to why the New Normal of digital payments is a bad idea. I offer that the focus should be on the goal and not the task.

When BitCoins emerged from the mysterious Satoshi Nakamoto (it’s unclear if this was a single person or group acting under this name) the goal was to create a borderless currency that disrupted current transaction models. BitCoins are exchanged in a peer-to-peer manner in a manner similar to “paper” hard currency. The rules for exchange were somewhat open thus creating an instant third party market for Apps, Exchanges (e.g., Mt. Gox, CoinX, BitcoinsChile.cl, rBitCo.in) and a host of speculative (it is a volatile currency/instrument) investments by high-profile names (e.g., Winkelvoss twins). All of this was intent and goal of the BitCoin creators.

Arguably two of the greatest inventions of the 20th century were globalization and management structures. BitCoin’s goal model epitomizes the desire to globalize transactions that reach many people evenly and with a low barrier to entry. A step along that way is to have some form of exchange where the transaction is moved from point-to-point with assurances. These assurances are more formally known as non-repudiation of a message or transaction. Non-repudiation is a big word for a big concept. It means that the payment is being guaranteed with a high degree of certainty of who sent it and that it wasn’t tampered with on its way to you. With this in place you know who sent you what before you receive it. New Normal exchanges such as Mt. Gox need to take lessons from the processes and methods used by legacy exchanges to safeguard transactions.

The individual tasks required create a robust and seamless transaction ecosystem will always have issues that need to be worked out, but they are not the end game. A noble end-game scenario is to provide a universal currency model that works, at scale, in every transaction scenario (P2P, B2C, G2C, B2B and more) just like cash. The best results to come out of Mt. Gox are the lessons learned.

The future of digital currency will take its best lesson from the Agile credo, “Fail Fast, Fail Early.”

Stop Worrying About Privacy, Start Caring About Identity

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Mon, 01 Jul 2013 13:48:33 GMT

This article was published in Wired.com.

Protecting Your Social Identity

Sat, 01 Jun 2013 08:24:17 GMT

Six Steps to Saving Your Business

According to a 2012 Social Media report from Nielsen Media, Americans spent about 121 billion minutes on some form of social media. Men spend an average of 6:44 (minutes:seconds) and women 9:43 a day. That’s time they spend socializing and also researching and learning about your company. Based on trends and research, the breadth, depth and time spent will continue to increase for the next ten years.

That online or Social Identity is a unique creation of only the last five years. Social Identity is how a diverse audience perceives your business. In the past that audience might have been limited to people in your community. No more, however, due to social media channels such as Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook reaching audiences of a billion plus. When social media started to include businesses, it was generally with local brands such as neighborhood stores and Retail outlets. Why? We are social creatures. We choose to live together and find ways to share our experiences. This becomes a challenge and your opportunity. Some might call this your brand.

However, Social Identity is much more than brand. Brands are products or services that you put out under a given name. It’s all about you the business owner. Social Identity encompasses brand and includes the opinions, feelings and feedback that a wide audience (and not necessarily your customers) has about you. It’s a conversation between acquaintances.

As an independent retailer some may equate you, the owner, to the business itself. Whether you are a one or a 50-person operation, this is not the reality that customers experience. Your Social Identity is tied to the experience they have when interact with everyone around you, including other customers. It’s up to you to curate that identity. If you don’t, the consequences can be severe.

Social Identity defines who you are, your credibility and the ability for people (potentially millions) to connect to you and your brand network both literally and figuratively. Today, “Social Identity” as found in Facebook, Pinterest and popular media is woven into the fabric of society.

Here are some steps to help you curate your social identity.

1. Define It: “Living our Values”

What are your values and how do you want to be experienced? Make your messaging and values simple and ensure everyone who in the company knows them. Ensure that everyone knows and uses the same tone and phrasing. One method is to create a list of common phrases that identity your business (“First Time Right,” “The best fit,” “Convenient shopping for working parents”) and then turn them into hash tags. Hash tags (e.g., #BestFit) are phrases starting with the # symbol. This lets online media sites link these phrases together for easy searching. They are memorable and give your identity weight and depth. There is no need for perfection, try different messaging often enough to absorb the feedback and move on.

Have everyone write in the same voice.

2. Make it Authentic

Once you start writing it’s easy to turn every interaction with a customer into a pitch. “We have the largest selection of artisan cheeses in the Midwest.” Perhaps you do but this sounds like every other pitch. Try giving a 140-character description of the newest cheese you’ve brought in, or suggest a helpful hint such as food pairing. This goes along way online and we get republished (pinned, re-tweeted) by fans and unknown foodies alike.

By being as authentic online as you are in-store, you being to do something very key to your social identity. Your identity and voice are established such that when people hear something about you, they can make a judgment if this “sounds like something Mindy’s Knitting and Supplies would say.”

Some food for thought. Recently, the US economy experienced a 143-point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Hackers sent a message from the Twitter feed of the Associated Press (AP), saying two explosions had hit the White House and that President Obama was injured. The power of 140 characters impacted millions of lives, because the social identity of the source (AP) is so well established.

Associated Press employees immediately corrected the fake tweet and the market recovered within 48 hours. Consider what would have happened if AP had no social identity or was known for frequent inaccuracies. The corrected tweet would have sown doubt , potentially making things worse.

3. Practice Social Listening

Sam, a local lawn care service owner got a call from a friend. There were “horrible reviews” about his company posted to Yelp, an online business review site. Sam looked up the reviews; “poor service,” “show up at odd hours,” “lawn bags left in the yard.” The problem, none of these reviews were from customers he recognized. After some poking around, Sam found that a work crew was taking equipment home over the weekend. They were lining their own pockets and destroying his reputation.

People will talk about you and you cannot and should not try to control it. Just as you listen to in-store feedback, make it a point to listen first. Social media is a dialogue; make it simple to connect with you. Setting up email or a Twitter handle allows everyone to have a common way to communicate with you and other customers. Your customers are your biggest advocates and they will defend you online once you’ve gained their trust.

Online services such as Visible Technologies, Radian6 and HootSuite ( www.hootsuite.com ) provide a common dashboard of social media sites for you to listen to the conversations and respond. Most of HootSuite’s services are free and you can search for topics, handles and hash tags. You can provide a lot of far reaching customer services for a very low cost. It’s also easy to get sucked in to spending hours reviewing and responding. Budget time every day or week to manage your social identity.

By making your social identity authentic you don’t need to respond to every customer complaint or request. Sometimes your network will do it for you.

4. Identify Your Network

There are a lot of clichés about being known by the company you keep. Just as location, location, location was important when you chose the site for your store; you are identified by many factors. Neighborhood, clientele, business partners, sub-contractors and the type of goods you sell.

Take an inventory and map out all of those relationships. There’s a common technique known as “mind mapping” where you start with a theme in the center and draw linked bubbles to other ideas. Place the picture in a place is easily seen by everyone managing your Social Identity.

Your network can both help and hinder your identity. One of the best support structures is your local chamber of commerce. Chambers have been doing this type of social identity management long before the Internet.

5. Manage it. Don’t try to control it

Start small and focused. Registering for online social media sites is easy and generally free, the natural reaction is to set up as many as possible. People hear that results from LinkedIn, a business network site, are like “drinking from fire hose.” It’s easy to get doused and do a poor job trying to manage too many channels. Start with one or two at first; don’t be afraid to shut some down until you are able to master the nuances of each one. Some businesses hire agencies or others to help them.

Knowing whom to trust with your identity and partnering with them in a way that is meaningful to you is equally important. Recently, Mountain Dew commissioned rapper Tyler, the Creator to develop a TV commercial for them. PepsiCo (Mountain Dew’s parent company) let Tyler run unchecked. PepsiCo was forced to apologize after reviewers branded the commercial as misogynistic and racist. Dew loyalists were mixed on Facebook and Twitter. While many criticized, many still remained loyal to the brand. Over the years, Mountain Dew has established an edgy identity that brought loyal fans to its defense. Had PepsiCo jumped in themselves and tried to justify or ignore the feedback, the long-term results might have been severe.

6. Curate Your Data Privacy

Data privacy is your ability to control sensitive information about your business. No matter the size or scale, your business has some secret sauce or other information that should be kept private. In todays always on, always-connected world managing your privacy is more difficult than ever.

With smartphones our location, meetings and relationships are often in the public domain and easily retrieved. Think about when and if you need to “check in” or tweet out your location. The same goes for your employees when on company business. Go back to item 1 regarding your online identity.

Final Thoughts

Curating your identity allows you to better control what information release and when.

Think you can’t manage your Social Identity? Mega-coffee house Starbucks manages their social identity with five people , as reportedly by the Seattle Times. As an independent retailer, you’ve chosen the uncommon path to success; this is only one more step along your journey.

What is the promise of Apple's Passbook?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 21:25:16 GMT

With services and infrastructure tailored toward an “empty wallet” lifestyle, Apple, Google, and other digital locker suppliers are adding convenience and accessibility to services that exclude those without smartphones. As these services flourish with the ability to influence Retail, Travel (the following patent issued to Apple ‘System and Method for transportation check in ’ in July), and more, what happens to those without smartphones when basic services are made inaccessible to those without the latest gadget?

When an empty-wallet lifestyle becomes widespread, what happens to the 70% of the population that doesn’t have them? Healthcare, social security, membership, and other basic forms of identification become disintermediated by this technology. Personalization and rewards also come at the price of tracking by corporations.

Using a method I call Constructive Disruption, we can break down the problem and examine some scenarios.

There is also another darker aspect to such technology. What happens when it fails or is subject to hacking/terrorist activities? Or if every wallet is an “open wallet,” what then? Your location, transactions, friends, and general activities are subject to inspection as they travel over a corporate network. Privacy, regardless of promised safeguards, is suspect. Millennials and Gen-Z have grown up on technology and learned when and how they want to share. It’s a cultural change for people and corporations that will take time to adopt widely. While not a trending topic in this year’s election, I propose that by 2016, it will be its platform.

I’ve lived through the outcomes of technology failing a population. Once upon a time, I was responsible for developing a college campus debit card system. Students loaded funds into an account linked to their student ID card. The adoption of the “Bear Bucks” debit card went viral. Within six months, few people were carrying cash on campus. Then one night the server crashed. It was a state-of-the-art IBM PC-based server but had no backup. Given the costs, we hadn’t thought to bring them a spare server.

The head of Student Services called in a panic. The bookstore and food services were nearly shut down, with no one carrying cash. I flew out, replaced the server, and life was good again.

Yet, all is not darkness. Easy access to one’s medical and financial records is better than where we are today. For example, the administrative cost of healthcare is so severe that the government has mandated improvements in accountable care. In France, citizens carry health cards implanted with chips to give primary care providers immediate access to their medical history. Costs are dramatically less than in the US.

Awareness building is the key. Digital providers such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google have the unique opportunity to drive public good over private gain.

This article was originally published in PSFK.com.

Technology and the Passbook have evolved since 2012. Passbook became part of Apple Wallet and the predications of integration are solid and continuing to evolve. In 2023 there are over 500M Apple Wallet users and the uses continue to expand. Over the last ten years I've developed many version of a passbook and see the form factor evolving. Humane's Pin.AI is a great example. It's in early days but it's a sea change opportunity I look forward to embracing as I did the Passbook.

Cashless and Employee-less Stores on the Horizon

Sat, 07 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT

A model for “catalog” stores where kiosks ring a convenience store size foot reminiscent of automats could be in the works but this goes beyond convenience food. Not unlike the experiment technology retailer Radio Shack tried with their transformational “circular” stores is not far from the horizon. Visualize a retail outlet that empowers consumers with sophisticated touch screens and cameras that you instantly send pictures of clothing to family and friends via your social network. Payments would go cashless via NFC (Near Field Communications), QR Codes or as industry leader Coinstar would have it, through one of their ubiquitous cashing machines. Seattle startup QThru is enabling existing checkouts to use QR Codes for payment via smart phones.

I’ll be on the lookout for the interesting uses of standalone kiosks and the next generation of automats for Retail opportunities.

Gamification and Audience Engagement

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 18:04:00 GMT

Welcome to the Game of Engagement: Where every click counts and loyalty is the ultimate prize! ��

Let's dive into the world where games and behavior psychology collide in the most fascinating ways.

We're not just playing games; we're exploring the depths of human behavior. Think about it: we're all a bit competitive, whether it's with ourselves or within a community. This is the essence of gamification – using game mechanics to drive and motivate behavior.

Remember the buzz around Role Playing Games in the '80s? Well, what's old is new again, and it's reshaping loyalty programs across industries – from frequent flyer miles to the latest social network trends.

Now, let's talk player types. You've got your Achievers, Explorers, Socializers, and, yep, even the Imposers. Each plays a unique role in the gamified world, driven by a mix of achievement, exploration, social interaction, and a touch of imposition for some. It's crucial to understand these dynamics to effectively engage your audience.

Our strategy? Start with a memorable onboarding experience. Make it simple yet exclusive, appealing to various archetypes. The journey should be as rewarding as the destination, with personal touches along the way.

Rooted in behavioral sciences, gamification moves audiences through different motivations, whether it’s restaurant reviews or political agendas. The key is to create a sense of belonging, tailor the experience to your audience's level, and, of course, keep the rewards flowing. We’re talking badges, elite status, and even exclusive access to clubs or chat rooms.

But remember, audiences are savvy and seek a fair trade for their time and commitment. Your task? Offer meaningful rewards and opportunities for socialization while keeping the rules clear and balanced.

Community building is vital. Do your homework, understand current trends, and create depth in your gamified experiences. It's all about fostering a community where sharing is second nature.

And lastly, align your tasks with your goals. Keep them engaging, simple, and transparent. Engage your audience actively – think Twitter feeds, live events, and even celebrity appearances. Keep the conversation going; it’s all about building that emotional connectiion.

So, fellow innovators, are you ready to level up your engagement game? Remember, it's not just about the rewards; it's about creating a community and an experience that resonates. Let's make every interaction count! ��️��

What is Constructive Disruption?

llwebsite19@gmail.com (Lawrence Lerner) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:15:29 GMT

Digital Transformation and Leadership

Tone at the Top meets Machine-Driven Mindfulness

This is a subtitle for your new post

Avoiding the "Perfect" Trap

Choosing the Right Time to Sell

Billion Dollar Reboot: JcPenney defines its Retail Operating System

The Benefit of a Loyalty Program is the Behaviors it Creates

PCC Creates A Quieter City Destination

The upside of a triple bottom line in the community

Pizza Hut delivers ‘Goodbye Pies’ for Valentine’s Day breakups

What could go wrong?

YAMM! (Yet Another Membership Model)

Target Aims to Rival Competitor - Amazon Prime

Will E-Tailers Fly Past the Corner Drugstore?

Time to innovate or perish

Master the Market Before It Masters You

The Power of a Site Survey��

Kiosks in 2024: More than Voice-Enabled AI

Three features waiting off-stage plus Five better practice site survey cheats!" ������

Audience Engagement

2024’s loyalty programs play the long game

Shopping vs. Buying in 2024

A Retail Tango of Desire and Decision ����

See, Speak, and Seek

A $30B Retail Revolution Unveiled

Today's Wake Up Call

A world where 7-Eleven, Walmart, and Instacart are the new streaming networks

Re-Shaping Self-Checkout

A Reality Check on Retail’s Unattended Technology.

Costco's Family Feud

'One Name, One Card' Rule Sparks Debate in the Era of Diverse Households

Kroger-Albertsons Merger: Don’t fight the future.

Let's come to the table.

The Destination is the Difference.

Malls are for shopping; Stores are for buying.

Social Selling – Influencers are Crafting a $700B Sales Funnel

Today’s influencer generation is self-directed and made possible by technology.

2024 is the Year of the “Circular Economy”

Sustainability has equal or greater weight to brand names

Drones deliver, but will they land?

10 minutes into the future

The 1,000 Billion Dollar Return Problem.

AI has a strong ROI as long as Retailers play to its strengths

The Long Tail

Is Omnichannel Paying Off?

A Strategic Response: Physical Retail

A Point of Destination

New frontiers for convenience dining: How airports lead the way

Restaurants and Airport Retail Tech are often the first humnlss experience

Meet AI - Your New Retail Associate

Making AI a [non-threatening] part of your team

The Strategic Ritual of Starting Your Day

The Business Case for Making Your Bed

From the OG Archive: Cashless and Employee-less Stores on the Horizon

Conscious Consumerism is a lifestyle, not an excursion.

Shopping Local

Is there an AI in your investment pool?

It's time to recalibrate your AI compass.

2024: Buckle up for an AI sea change: Three impact areas.

Ada Lovelace: A visionary mind

The AI-wars begin. Why do you care?

Governance: Solve people Problems Slowly

Altman Returns

What are your AI Supply Chain Security Safeguards?

AiSC (AI Supply Chain Safeguards) are the background check for your LLM

Democratizing AI: A 2024 Imperative

How should companies prepare for ethical challenges?

What are ethics?

On the edge, 2024 is the year of AI appliances

PockEngine: A Game-Changer for AI on Edge Devices

Product Bolt-on: A Failure to Launch Scenario

Why good product design avoids add-ons.

Addressing “Order” with Chaos.

How the Chaos Monkeys can save us from AI.

The Top 5 Future Payment Processing Trends

🌟 Is Diversity Change Mindset Worth It? 🌟

Importance, Challenges, Steps.

Recap of the European Parliament AI Proposal

Don't Fight the Future

Ride the Wave

Three features waiting off-stage plus Five better practice site survey cheats!" ��

A Retail Tango of Desire and Decision ��