Technology Trends: Supporting Tacit Interactions
The McKinsey Quarterly technology trends article presents an interesting spin on extracting more value from interactions. First they separate activities into three types:
1. Transformational- production and manufacturing.
2. Transactional- clerical or simple rule-based.
3. Tacit- negotiations, conversations, knowledge, ad hoc collaboration.
The first two are ripe for automating or offshoring. The third is ripe for supporting through technology because “huge inconsistencies persist in productivity of high-value tacit” activities. The technology they describe focuses on improving tacit interactions- wikis, virtual team environments, videoconferencing. New ways of providing information to make decisions is also crucial for tacit activities. One example is in manufacturing where prioritizing work and inventory to support shipments in the next few days is a “too little, too late” data collection headache for planners. Innovations such as Rapid Priority Management software have tremendous impact and value in this area.
Projects are deeply influenced by these technologies. I don’t think technology is as much a barrier as the organization is to allowing people to interact freely. Innovations can occur when people work out more valuable (smarter, faster) ways to interact. The quickness in which the organization adopts those new interactions that make sense will be crucial in staying ahead of the competition. That’s where a PMO, or similar function, that is focused on first helping select the right projects and then doing everything they can to accelerate them is necessary.
What technology have you used to enhance the ability to interact? What new, innovative approaches to harnessing information to allow decision-making have you been exposed to? Do you see support of interactions as more of an organizational problem or a technology problem?
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Tags: innovation, interactions, mckinsey, projects, relationships, technology, trendsRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Solutions and Trends Requiring Projects
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