Idea Transcript
jackmason Follow Cognitive Business. Internet-of-Things tracker. IBMer. Meditator. Musician. Nanotechno artist. See also @IBM_Consulting, @cognitiative Apr 27 · 3 min read
Embracing the IBM Way
I’
m working on the design of new communication experiences for IBM’s consulting organization — Global Business Services (GBS)— and that
design-thinking effort has taken on a variety of different facets in the last year or so. The IBM Way is the emerging “ethos” of GBS, the defining characteristics of the unit, how we act and think in a series of intentional ways, from putting the client first to employing modern tools and methods. [IBMers can learn more about the IBM Way with this internal link.] One of those modern tools is the Zoom video conferencing service. I’ve helped IBM colleagues run meetings and large-scale Webinar events that have brought together more than 10,000 people across the company and around the world. The engaging combination of video cameras, screen and content sharing, polling and interactive Q&As has really changed the dynamic of how IBM consulting teams work together, share strategy and reinvent ourselves digitally. Through a recent Design Thinking workshop on helping our consulting coworkers better understand and live the IBM way, we hit on a way to use Zoom as a group storytelling vehicle and social experiment. You can see the prototype results here.
The design intentions for this pilot were to make awareness and adoption of IBM Way more personal, more collaborative and more social. We asked our first foursome to keep their story on how they are striving to live these principles very brief: just about a minute each — ala the pecha kucha model of supershort presentations — so that a viewer could get four different personal takes in under five minutes. Keeping things short and sweet also compels people to focus on the main point or idea they want to convey. Zoom also enabled us to all gather together, regardless of location, rehearse and practice together, get feedback from each other, and capture a first quartet of short stories quickly and efficiently. In keeping with design thinking principles, we wanted to produce this first iteration fast (we did it in just a couple of days), learn from the process, and turn out new iterations so that this model could scale and thrive organically. We learned, for example, that we should budget a little more time for people to develop their story, share it extemporaneously and conversationally and always keep the value to the viewer of their message in mind. Of course, others can use this first effort as a guide and template, and we expect that before long we will have a robust library of how IBMers are living our defining characteristics. 4 X 4 X 4 can add up pretty quickly. The real sign of success with this may be for IBMer foursomes to replicate and emulate this model all on their own. But in the meantime, here’s a quick list of the six facets of the IBM Way:
1. Put clients first, in all we do 2. Engage in digital business strategy, by design 3. Infuse cognition and emerging technologies into our clients’ enterprises and core processes 4. Modernize the core through integration and innovation 5. Develop and apply world-class talent 6. Use consistent, modern methods and tools