Wednesday, September 3, 2008

The Story of Psycho-Milt

How do groups get things done? Or more importantly how will groups in the near future get things done?

Clay Shirky answers this question in the most profound way - be sure to watch the video below. Here are some of my notes and thoughts after listening to it 4 times today. He articulates what I've been fumbling to say in my book and whenever I speak.

For 500 years when people wanted to get something done they formed institutions; businesses, churches, schools, governments, associations, clubs... You get it.

Communication costs have fallen to such a degree - that we are beginning to see coordination built into the infrastructure; Flickr, Amazon, Netflix, Ebay, Meetup... Okay?

Pause - think about this.

Institutions are driven to optimize the 80/20 principle. In fact if they can get 90 percent of the benefit from 10% of their efforts - all the better.

Psycho-milt changes everything (watch the video). If the barriers (costs) of harvesting benefit from the low producing 80% are removed - what would that mean?

Some companies like Proctor and Gamble are taking this approach to their R&D - open source collaborative platforms.

Mindshift was formed as one a collaborative platform. We're still old school in our thinking (we're boomers) and do better face-to-face than we do virtually - but we are inching our way to illumination.

This video by Clay Shirky might just take you all the way to illumination. Thank you professor Shirky!

I'm tempted to shave my head.





4 comments:

Paul Nethercott said...

Thanks Rex for posting this video with your comments --- truly important with broad implications for missions (the area I work in).

Here in Japan there is a revolution taking place and this is part of it. The old institutions are becoming more and more irrelevant.

Thanks again! Paul

Anonymous said...

Same here - working in that area as well - open source for digital storytelling / missional / volunteer travel etc.

Interesting TED talk - will add to my TED favorites - Q: has he ever actually designed an infrastructure - or all theoretical?

Rex Miller said...

He does reference Flickr which is a live example, sites like Ning and Roov move in that direction along with Basecamp and other virtual project sites.

I think some of Hollywood production with virtual teams work this way.

IBM is developing collaboration software that has profiles of IBM'ers worldwide. So, if you need to pull together a team that specializes in healthcare billing software requiring an Oracle interface for Beijing - it will identify all of the people who fit the profile and allow you to assemble a team.

Its already happening.

Anonymous said...

Wasn't impressed with Ning...
yet to enter Roov.

Collaboration software based on Wikinomics concepts - definitely future and will be the most useful for global social innovation / international development / missions.

I think these will ultimately morph into a type of virtual game platform.