GADGETS

Perhaps the term "revolution" is overused in business. The revolution Thomas Friedman identified isn't marketing speak -- fundamental rules of business are being rewritten by technology.

Business technology may not overtake human intelligence (as proposed by singularity theory), but it is creating an ability to collaborate that is unprecedented in human history. Those who adapt will swim, while those who cling to old habits may sink. So try to keep an open mind, and prepare for the following:

Knowledge retention will become more important than talent retention...
Leaders are freaking out about holding onto their best and brightest as the job market picks up. Let me save you some agony by telling you that a lot of your best people are going to leave no matter what you do, if for no other reason than demographic forces - such as baby boomers retiring en masse - will ensure a volatile workforce.

What you really need to think about is how to integrate each employee's knowledge into the company's "collective consciousness." It may sound esoteric, but increasing use of collaborative and social tools is creating something eerily akin to a collective consciousness in business as every thought and data point is shared between colleagues.

How to swim: The real trick lies in implementing processes and tools to extract the most meaningful tidbits from the petabytes of conversation floating in the cloud. To a high degree, culture will determine success. Companies with a collaborative, non-siloed culture are much less likely to suffer brain drain when a staffer departs because all work - and knowledge - is shared as a team effort.

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Eric Berridge
Bluewolf

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