David Moon

We know that the half-life of career paths, business models, products and processes is shrinking rapidly. If you long for the days of yore when permanence and a semplance of stability were attainable, you're probably not alone. Not only do we as individuals find comfort in nostalgia, but we are also surrounded by institutions and organizations that are architected for a past that will surely never return. In his recent Fast Company article "Generation Flux", Robert Safian describes this trend: "Nostalgia is a natural human emotion, a survival mechanism that pushes people to avoid risk by applying what we've learned and relying on what's worked before. It's also about as useful as an appendix right now." (Fast Company issue 162, February 2012 - p. 67). It seems to me that we have allowed ourselves an extra helping of nostalgia, more so in recent times. Unlike 100 years... (more)

A New Stage of Progression for Technology?

With the new administration in Washington, it may be useful to look at what has engendered new stages of technological innovation and adoption. The US economy has always tended to thrive in periods associated with the rise of certain key technologies: the Railroad, the Automobile, the Telephone, the Computer, the Internet. Where are we now, and where do we go to identify and develop the next innovations and advances that will support growth from here forward? In the case of the internal combustion engine and the automobile, the basic automobile appeared late in the 19th century, ... (more)

Letter in response to the President-Elect's Transition Team

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} Ladies and Gentlemen, It is later than we think. The following areas outline specific immediate and longer-term st... (more)

Strategy Development: Identifying external dependencies and assessing rankings

Most external dependencies are self-evident to senior management in any capably run business. Amazingly, very few of these dependencies have been formally evaluated as to their relative to revenues, costs and earnings. Our first step in the analytical process is to identify and rank the external dependencies. We’ll have the opportunity to change the prioritization of these dependencies later (and over time), as long as we make certain we’ve at least captured the primary dependencies here. While literally endless layers of influencing dependencies could be identified, we especiall... (more)

GM at the Abyss

Now that General Motors, Ford Motor Company and Chrysler Corporation have all presented themselves to our elected representatives seeking taxpayer capital to keep whatever semblance of a business model they have alive (for how long?), it seems appropriate to share an excerpt form my upcoming book, "Tea at the Abyss": On Thursday June 5, 2008, Rick Wagoner, CEO of General Motors attempted to defend recurring criticism of his company’s strategic and financial results. The Financial Times reported that Mr. Wagoner had asked, in an interview with their reporters, “Is it the US manufa... (more)