Uptime or Downtime? How Do You Manage Boredom

If you ain’t living, you’re dying.
Up until the early 20th century the world viewed the automobile as a luxury item built for the elite of society. Cars were complicated in their use and required a significant investment that the average person could not afford. Then in 1908, Henry Ford introduced the Model T Ford that did not only revolutionize the world’s perspective on personal transportation for the masses but also re-invented the manufacturing process still applied over 100 years later. Although we have seen improvements to his original process, with the development of lean manufacturing, JIT, Six Sigma, Kanban, and others, the core philosophy of […]
The other day I read an article on how Charlie Sheen set a new Guinness World record by reaching 1 million followers in the shortest amount of time. With the power of technology, Sheen opened a Twitter account and hit the “1 million” milestone in 25 hours and 17 minutes. My first thought was – it is amazing the incredible appetite people have to be connected to latest news covering their topic(s) of interest. Although the Sheen example is an extreme scenario, it does provide insight into the cyclical nature of humanity and the dynamic between people’s wants and needs […]
Recently in the news, a Harvard University Interview with Bill Gates has piqued the attention of the technology world in which Gates admitted that the Ctrl+Alt+ Del command perhaps was a mistake in design. He stated that although he suggested a single button to turn on or re-boot PCs, it was IBM’s designer who had required the 3 key combination. That being said, Ctrl+Alt+Del went on to be famous for helping fix the common “Blue screen of death” we’ve all encountered during the many PC crashes over the years. More than the actual function Ctrl+Alt+Del performs, the command has become […]
In a world where bargain discounts and factory outlets have captured the attention of today’s budget conscious consumer, it’s not surprising that based on today’s global economy, governments (and to be more specific – the US government) are also looking for ways to cut costs. As a result, believe it or not, there is company who is in the process of developing a fighter jet that would save the Pentagon $1 Billion in fuel alone annually on low tactical missions that are costing them $25,000 in fuel for every F-16 Jet led into these missions. Textron AirLand was formed to […]
Famous technologist and billionaire Elon Musk (co-founder of PayPal) has recently promoted his idea of changing the landscape of travel with his futuristic Hyperloop concept that suggests that for the fraction of the cost ($6 Billion) than the current railway project in California his solution will deliver commuters to their destinations in half the time of commercial flights. The idea is to build a “Jetsons-like” tubular route in which passengers of six would be launched every 30 seconds in enclosed aluminium pods travelling supersonic speeds to their destination. Although it all sounds a bit unreal, most of the technology he […]
With both Indiegogo and Kickstarter websites attracting start-up projects around the world, the ability to leverage the ‘micro-investments’ of thousands around the world has not only empowered many business ventures regardless of location or connections, but has also delivered valuable consumer insight and market research that has been typically too expensive and difficult to achieve with the limited funds most start-ups have. The concept of crowdfunding has leveled the playing field allowing the value of projects speak for themselves and efficiently engage markets to be true accelerators for growth. Beyond the obvious financial benefits to crowdfunding, the idea of attracting […]
Although the Porsche 911 will celebrate its 50th anniversary in a few months, it definitely doesn’t look its age! It is an absolute classic among sports cars and its timeless design never goes out of style. In the world of Project Management, the Porsche 911 is certainly a flagship project. According to German magazine “MotorKlassik” only 10 prototypes were built prior to its release in September 1963. This fact alone, is almost unbelievable, compared to today’s mass-production manufacturers who can burn through 100s of prototypes before a product launch.