Session 1 - Reflective Learning

1. What did you learn in the preceding week? (Not a list of facts, but rather, what can you take from the lesson, what has value to you?)

This week, I learned that one of the first steps in implementing a technological solution should be determining whether the solution is intended for internal users or external users. This means, for example, when someone comes up with the idea of adding a company website, they should consider whether they are talking about an internal Sharepoint site or an external site intended for the company's customers.

I also learned that many technologies are cool and fun and interesting, but cool and fun and interesting are not necessarily synonymous with useful. For example, many people are proponents of IM in the workplace, and argue that it speeds communication with teammates and lowers production costs. I find myself asking what sort of workplace requires instantaneous hands-on communication? Why don't the employees simply take the time to express themselves more clearly at designated times instead of creating a stream of inane chatter?

In the Lufthansa case, one of the main reasons that notebooks were successfully integrated into the workplace was that the purpose of the notebooks was clearly defined. The pilots union and Lufthansa representatives agreed that the notebooks would be used for training, storing references, etc. I do not think that the notebook project would have been as successful if Lufthansa decided to change the nature of their purpose. For example, pilots might balk at carrying a notebook if the notebook were equipped with a GPS tracking system to determine their exact location and track whether they arrived at airports 1-2 hours before their flights. Similarly, pilots might protest if the notebooks were used to track the amount of time pilots spent reviewing required references during wait times at the airport. At that point, the notebook becomes more like a leash and less like a useful training or communications tool.

I think that IM in the workplace can be made into a leash instead of a communications tool. It can allow other employees to constantly intrude into personal workplaces with no real benefit. After all, if a user logs in as invisible in order to prioritize communications to work more effectively, then he or she is essentially reducing IM to the same level of functionality as e-mail.

2. How do you connect what you learned this week with your personal experience or what you already knew?

The increased stress on emotional intelligence in managerial training now makes sense to me. The push for IM, Blackberry, Web-conferencing, etc, also makes more sense to me.

3. How could/would you apply your new knowledge?

The next time I propose a new workplace technology, I will focus specifically on how that technology should be used, and the specific benefits to be gained from that usage. I do not think "It will speed communication." is sufficient.