The world is flat…
The ten forces that flattened the world…
The triple convergence…
If
I were not involved in a technology course, I would immediately assume the
above statements were part of a science fiction movie that my mother-in-law
loves to watch. (Recently she
watched a movie called The 12 Disasters
of Christmas, which connected the
Mayan calendar to the song 12 Days of
Christmas.)
I
was born in the 80’s, so I grew up as the technology we utilize today was “growing
up”. I can still remember the Zack
Morris cell phone from Saved by the Bell,
and playing games on the Mac computers with the black screen and green writing
during free time at school.
I was in college when Facebook was developed, and I became a member of
my college’s network, which was the only network of people I could become
friends with on that site.
As
Friedman (2007) argued, the world is becoming flat due to many flattening
forces, ranging from the collapse of the Berlin Wall to uploading to
outsourcing. Each of these
flatteners changed the world in unique ways, but alone were not enough to cause
the world to become flat. These
ten flatteners had to converge and become common around the world in order for
the world to truly become flat (Friedman, 2007).
Friedman
(2007) explained the first convergence as creating a new platform, “It is a
global, Web-enabled platform for multiple forms of collaboration” (p 204). People from all over the world were
able to communicate and compete with many different individuals. The second convergence involved more
people being able to access and learning to utilize that platform (Friedman,
2007). The third convergence
involved the opening up of economic and political systems in countries
including India, China, Russia, and more (Friedman, 2007). The triple convergence allowed the
global community to interact and utilize technology in collaboration. Dixon (2009) explained that collective
knowledge is important today because it is derived from many diverse
perspectives. The Triple
convergence has allowed many different perspectives to come together and work
collaboratively. Knowledge management
can now take place virtually just as easily as it can in face-to-face
format.
The triple convergence caused a
major change to how the world and its organizations and people interact. All of these changes have created a
horizontal system where connecting with each other and collaborating and sharing
ideas is extremely important.
Jarche (2010) explained that because of technology, people must be
constantly learning and adapting to new systems. He explained that social networks create an environment
where individuals can collaborate with each other and focus on results. Knowledge is shared horizontally, many
times in informal, social settings (Jarche, 2010). Leaders within organizations must learn to foster the ideas
being developed in these informal settings. Leaders will still need to direct and guide others, and help
them realize that their ideas are important. Trust is a major factor in knowledge management; employees
must trust that communication is a two-way street (Jarche, 2010). It is the leader’s duty to foster these
new ideas and to help make them become reality.
I have discovered my own social networks
at work, which vary depending on the specific aspects of my job. I have had many informal conversations
that have led to great teaching ideas for my classroom. As an online instructor as well, I am discovering
new ideas every day just be interacting with various people in my social network. I find that the encouragement from the
university leaders has helped me to become more confident in my interactions
and in the choices I am making for my teaching.
Dixon, N. (2009, May 2). Where knowledge management has been
and where it is going- part one.
[Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://www.nancydixonblog.com/2009/05/where-knowledge-management-has-been-and-where-it-is-going-part-one.html
Dixon, N. (2009, May 10). Knowledge management: where we've been and where we're going - part two. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://www.nancydixonblog.com/2009/05/knowledge-management-where-weve-been-and-where-were-going---part-two.html
Dixon, N. (2009, July 30). Where knowledge management has been
and where it is going- part three. [Web log comment]. Retrieved from http://www.nancydixonblog.com/2009/07/where-knowledge-management-has-been-and-where-it-is-going-part-three.html
Friedman, T. L. (2007). The World is Flat. New York: Picador.
Jarche, H. (2010, February 24). A framework for social learning in the enterprise. [Web log
comment]. Retrieved from http://www.jarche.com/2010/02/a-framework-for-social-learning-in-the-enterprise/
When you wrote that Jarche said social networks create an environment where individuals can collaborate with each other and focus on results I wondered what the best approach would in an administration setting?
ReplyDeleteIn my current position as an administrator in an academic setting, we intermittently collaborate, but mainly we operate in an insular fashion. We currently do not have web based social networks that encourage administrators to collaborate nor does the top leadership seek to develop those tools. I think this is a wasted opportunity.
I concur with you that that leaders still need to direct and guide others, and help them realize that their ideas are important. What do you do when this isn’t happening? Currently it seems that no one has any time or the will to help direct and guide others to important learning opportunities.
I believe it is up to the individual as you said to discover their own social networks for learning and promote those pathways as the only effective way due to what Wiske (2011) observes as the top-down, style to conventional learning is radically weakened. It is the individual that must make those informal connections, via social networks, blog, twitter and face-to-face interactions to fulfill learning and collaboration.
Works Cited
Wiske, M. S. (2011, March 21). Unleashing the Power of Networked Learning. Retrieved May 18, 2013, from HBR Blog Network / Innovations in Education: http://blogs.hbr.org/innovations-in-education/2011/03/how-do-we-unleash-the.html
I agree that social networking has endless possibilities if it is utilized properly. One major issue in implementing social networks in the professional setting is that many people still do not have accounts. This trend is shifting, but there are still individuals that refuse to create accounts for privacy and other reasons. If collaboration occurs on these sites, how do you include those individuals that are not a member?
DeleteOur university still struggles to get faculty to utilize the online grading and attendance platform. Any suggestions on how to encourage these individuals through professional development?
Ashley,
ReplyDeleteI agree that triple convergence (Friedman, 2007), knowledge management (Dixon, 2009), and social learning (Jarche, 2010) have completed changed the way we interact domestically and internationally. As you commented, all of these changes have created a horizontal system in which connecting with each other and sharing ideas is elemental for success in varied industries. As Jarche (2010) noted, rapid technological enhancements and dynamic organizational landscapes require that people learn and adapt if they want to compete and collaborate in competitive market spaces. Many places in the world are now connected and it could prove disastrous to an organization/person to not know what is going on internal and external to their particular market space. The levels of collective knowledge that we can utilize in our varied endeavors can prove to be most helpful. Instead of figuring things out alone, we can leverage our social networks to get a better understand of how to best proceed.
As a consultant, I see how much technology has changed varied organizational landscapes. I can only imagine how changes alter the way you engage students in an online or brick-and-mortar format. The sheer volume of information can be paralyzing, but I am sure you have many opportunities to learn new things and try new teaching methods based on technological enhancements. Since I am not a techie and don’t understand or even know about many of the upgrades, I probably get more excited about the possibilities than I should, but I am interested in how we interact and learn in the future. We will all have to adapt.
~ Disciple of Experience
References
Dixon, N. (2009). Three eras of knowledge management. www.nancydixonblog.com.
Friedman, T. L. (2007). The world is flat: A brief history of the twenty-first century. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
Jarche, H. (2010). A framework for social learning in the enterprise. www.jarche.com.
Adaptation is key! I too get extremely excited about the technology available. As an online instructor, I am very concerned with creating a strong learning environment to a unique group of students. I have found that many of my students enjoy technology and are used to collaborating or at least interacting online. I am definitely adapting to developing relationships online!
DeleteAshley,
ReplyDeleteOne thing that I love about Skype is that I can have a face- to- face conversation with someone who is in another state or country. Of course these conversations are planned and will not replace interactions we have when running into someone around campus or at a conference. However, I do feel that with social media tools such as facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter we are able to connect to people who we would unlikely meet in passing. I have found the flattening of the world has resulted in transformational change for many leaders and myself. Because I am able to connect to other individuals like never before my practice continues to evolve on a daily basis. Daily I am participating in professional development by reading articles and blogs that I find through social networking websites. As an educator I am constantly emailing and using social networking tools to share information that I find with other educators. I feel that this is an exciting time and I wonder if Friedman put out an additional version of his book if he would elaborate more on the impact of social media sites?
Good question! Social networking has become a huge flattener by itself. I would assume that a new version of Friedman's book would include a deeper analysis of the effects of social networking. When the current version of "The World Flat" came out in 2007, Facebook was still extremely new. Today, Facebook is a part of everyday life. My routine is get up, get coffee, feed kids, check Facebook, etc. Other social networks have become almost as ingrained in our culture. Social networking has connected us with many people all over the world. Distance is no longer an issue.
DeleteI always love hearing people born in the 80s talk about growing up with the technology changes... I was born in the 60s and thought a slinky was the greatest technological invention for all time. I also had the pleasure of taking a ground-breaking class in programming which required actual punch cards. Then I got to see my friend's 5-year old son (in the 90s) create an animated movie with stick drawings on a computer that looked a lot like we used to make by drawing those stick figures on the pages of a notebook and flipping them. I was also a bleeding-edge technologist carrying my 14-pound laptop into China to do business in 1989. Ahh... youth...
ReplyDeleteMy point is only that the speed that we see is actually faster than we think... and getting faster. The only way to get ahead of it, is to develop leadership skills that use this speed as an advantage. If we are too tied to today's big thing, we are not ready for tomorrow's next change. Part of what we need to do is plug into the monitoring of what is going on.
You are exactly right! Technology is so consuming that it is difficult to remember that what we are excited about today may be outdated tomorrow. We must continually research and stay ahead of the trend as much as possible! Thank you for the great reminder.
DeleteAshley, neat post...and I like your description of how your social networks help you learn. As Trkoa noted, that is not necessarily the norm...but times are changing. Even the Pope now tweets (though probably the same way Obama tweets...) :-)
ReplyDeleteTwitter is going to be my next technology adventure! I have yet to create an account, but I am excited at the educational opportunities that may be created through the social network!
DeleteI agree with your statement about triple convergence changing the way we communicate. In reading Friedman’s book there are a lot of progressive and productive things that have taken place for organizations and individuals as a result of triple convergence. Do you see any hindrances that triple convergence has caused?
ReplyDeleteAshley, both online and offline social networks have helped me immensely within my organization. Without staying connected, and interacting with others within my industry, I would be far behind the curve. I was also born in the 80's so I can definitely relate to growing up in an era where technology excelled so quickly. It's funny that you mentioned the Zack Morris phone because I was just cleaning out a room and found an old Nokia cellphone that was bigger than my head.
ReplyDeleteIt truly is amazing how social networking, whether it be traditional websites such as Facebook and LinkedIn, or niche websites such as car sharing websites, and crowd-funding websites like Kickstarter. We are at an age of technology where everything is a form of social networking. I mean, try downloading a simple app on your mobile phone, chances are it will ask you to sign into your favorite social network first. I can only imagine what the future holds.