To the Clouds, and Beyond

I'm fascinated with the direction our industry is going with Cloud Computing. The concept seems simple enough - use your computer, tablet, smartphone, iPhone, iPad or whatever device you prefer to connect to a server somewhere in the cloud and do whatever it is you want to do.Communicate, access and process information, upload information, post news stories, photos, videos, view streamed movies and live broadcasts, have a meeting with others anywhere and collaborate real-time on  common projects. The technology behind all this is formidable and requires vast resources to implement and maanage so that we, the consumers in the information age, have access to anything, anywhere, at any time, whenever we want it. And it is increasingly unacceptable for the systems to fall short of this expectation.

Until yesterday I'd not had the opportunity to enjoy "Facetime" on my iPhone with anyone. While enjoying a phone conversation with my out-of-town daughter, she invited me to try "Facetime". Not knowing exactly what that meant, but curiously replying "sure", she instructed me through the process and before I could say "Hey! would you look at that", I was looking at her beautiful smiling face and, in sequence, the beaming faces of my four giggling 4-year-old grandchildren. Keep in mind that at the time I was busily preparing dinner in the kitchen of another daughter's house, my hands inside a chicken carcass, the iPhone propped precariously face-high on the cupboard in front of me. She was riding in the family van, heading home after a pumpkin-gathering excursion. And when my wife observed what was taking place she quickly managed the phone away from me and had her own "Facetime" with the kids for at least another 30 minutes or so.

Once everyone had their fill of Facetiming we ended the conection and got on with the remainder of our evening, sharing our delight with this new-found treat. The phone call - is that an accurate term for Facetiming? - witnessed to me the power of the cellular network and the hand-held devices we have come to take for granted in our daily lives. This particular application enriched my day by bringing my distant family closer. Though Facetiming for me remains somewhat a curiousity, I can easily see how it could become the normal mode of communicating for the younger generations now growing up with it.

While by definition Apple's Facetime is not truly considered a "Cloud" application, it reminds me nevertheless of the life-changing capabilities that come with the power of the new networks and the visionary geniuses behind their design. Cloud computing will be another tool along the evolution line of technology that will empower us to enrich our lives.

Integrity

integrity (ɪnˈtɛɡrɪtɪ)
— n
1.	adherence to moral principles; honesty
2.	the quality of being unimpaired; soundness
3.	unity; wholeness

(from the World English Dictionary)

 

When most of us go to market to purchase something we do so with a healthy dose of skepticism and caution so as not to fall victim to misinformation, veiled promises, misleading advertising and unscrupulous pitchmen. At least until we have gained a level of trust with the vendor and satisfaction with the product or service purchased. Our conditioning to this behavioral posture comes from prior negative experience ourselves or the lessons learned by others.
 

At times it can seem that integrity has been wrenched from the business proposition – that is, to be 'successful' in business comes at the expense of ethical behavior. The age-old-adage “its business, not personal” somehow is supposed to excuse unethical behavior. This attitude seems to have infiltrated every aspect of society, and perhaps nowhere more evident than in government. It is disconcerting to find it increasingly difficult to trust the interests and leadership of those governing us. In difficult times integrity is more important than ever but, unfortunately, desperation tends to move people to higher levels of unethical behavior. As times become more challenging inexcusable behavior can become rampant.

 

The integrity of individual or group behavior can be assessed only after it has been experienced, and attested to by those experiencing it. It stands to reason the best way to quantify the integrity of behind any proposition is to identify and consult anyone that can provide credible prior experience. In lieu of such testimony we will rely on our own intuition and discernment, ultimately making a decision of faith.

 

Not surprisingly, integrity is the cornerstone of our company's value proposition and underpins every aspect of our business. You can expect it. You deserve it. Accept nothing less.

Style Points

One need only look at last night's presidential debate for evidence of the power of the spoken word. And not surprisingly much of the spin today is not necessarily about the words themselves - the content - but about the style of delivery.

As I said last week, much of human vocality is interpretive, inferred, affected highly by all the nuances of its delivery - things like pitch, volume, inflection, emphasis, body language, etc.

Fortunately we have not yet arrived at the point in our evolution that face-to-face communication holds no value. I count on the human need to 'connect' personally to truly communicate!