While I was growing up in Ft. Wayne, Indiana International Harvester pulled out of the city taking tens of thousands of jobs with it. Slowly a cloud grew over my hometown. Early childhood memories are filled with exuberance and sunny days, kinda like Tigger. After International Harvester left, Ft. Wayne became a little Eeyore ‘ish. This experience partly fuels my passion to keep #Indiana relevant in an Information based economy.
“The change from atoms to bits is irrevocable and unstoppable…” Nicholas Negroponte.
atoms = Industrial age VS bits = Information age
Bits of data can transport: ideas, literature, art, history, commercials, religion, music, curricula—virtually everything not made of matter!
Organizations that produce goods or services to be sold via bits of data over the Internet will play a vital role in providing jobs in the information age. Negroponte also warned us “..small differences of yesterday can have suddenly shocking consequences tomorrow.”
Larger images of graphs can be found in a previous post. If you use this idea or graph please give credit where credit is due. A little link love would be nice, too.
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The number of years to attain 50 million users is shrinking
MySpace – 4 years
iPod – 3 years
facebook – 2 years
twitter – 3 years
If the pattern holds true, the next social media platform will take only a year to reach 50 million. This concerns me when #Indiana typically lags TWO years behind the East and left coasts. For dress lengths that’s ok. For ways to communicate with a GLOBAL audience not so much.
In PIT (post-Internet time) businesses must be nimble enough to adapt — ready to handle change with style and finesse, like tigger.
Is my logic sound?
On your Ft Wayne’s IH story..
My first thought is ebb and flow. Things change. People and capital migrate. Adaptation is survival. Don’t make the assumption that “Information based economy” is the solution. I hear echoes of “manufacturing economy” in that phrase.
I’d posit if a surer path to relevancy was findable it would be more related to adaptability of people than the next tooling mechanism. Historically, Americans have been exceptionally good at adapting to change and aggregating talent and resources. Ponder distilling those qualities. An “Information based economy” seems like it would be made more one to leverage ideas like that.
I wouldn’t expect such a linear world.
See “Ray Kurzweil on how technology will transform us” at a recent TED Talk:
http://is.gd/75m0m
also.. lagging isn’t bad. It also helps the midwest avoid the destructive swings, for example, in the real estate market. Other examples are embarrassing fashion and fads. Watching a few excited lemmings surging in front of you is valuable if you’re able to learn from them and adapt.
Team of Rivals … and I’m currently re-reading it on my new Barnes and Noble nook reader.
Despite the unprecedented growth of information and interaction networks ushered on by the digital age, we must remember this sobering truth: one cannot eat bits.
Our very survival as a species is based upon an economy of durable goods and renewable resources that give us energy. As Hoosiers, we need to find a way to adopt technical trends more quickly to stay competitive, but we cannot forget that an information economy—no matter how unfathomably explosive—depends upon the existence of a healthy traditional economy of foodstuffs, clothing, water and energy.
This warning might seem pedantic and alarmist, but much of our national rhetoric is consumed by the notion of collapse caused by finances, terrorism, morals or climate. We must address these dire and pressing questions, and while we may use social media to support the conversation, the action must occur outside the digital realm.
@robbyslaughter
Of course you’re on track Amy. If Indiana waits around for the other 49 states to take all the technology glory then we fail miserably. Mitch said last nite that we need to be the leaders, growing jobs when no one else is, fighting to create opportunity when everyone else is complaining.
One way to do so is to shake off the lethargy of “everyone else is smarter” or “we’ll wait to see if it comes to the midwest” and be innovative like Silicon Valley or Seattle. Innovators fail, they fail a lot, but they keep trying and trying until something works.
Followers wait for the coasts to try it, make the money, and then tell us it’s OK. Hoosiers need to stop being followers and be the leaders we are destined to be. You are right on the money, keep it up.
Wouldn’t it be nice if #Indiana was known as a thought-leader during the dawn of the INformation age? (Nice little catch phrase- Nat mentioned thought-leader first) I also like #Indiana = Crossroads of the Information Superhighway.
You’re dead on about failing and innovation — I’m ok with being a little behind the bleeding edge and I think slow and steady wins the race, but slow is vastly different in PIT.
What was the name of the book about Lincoln’s cabinet you mentioned at the SMackdown? Nat may want to borrow it.
I’m a fan.
Watching the death of the Steel Mills as we knew it up here in Northwest Indiana, I’ve seen those hoping to keep a life by the Dunes have to take the supply / demand abuse of steel contractors, hospitals, schools, and casinos.
The employers had the leverage. Where else where the workers gonna go? They weren’t gonna move. Natives around here have had to accept the terms, accept the stringency, and accept the fact that there was many other workers chomping at the bit to take their place.
I love Indianapolis, but I love my home. I’d like to see us work together more as a stay aside from the bureaucracy and spin-thrift political programs.
I’d like to see if the people – the true politic – can create a solution by ourselves without having to put it into a committee.
Having a 65 and 69 tech corridor between the windmills in the corn fields would be a nice sign of things to come.
When one major company leaves, if affects EVERY other business in town.
I kinda feel like we are in the process of creating a solution, don’t you? At the SMackdown Steve Dalton made some comments about a book he was reading about Lincoln’s cabinet, you should ask to borrow it.
Pretty good logic Amy. The nimbleness is somewhat dictated by the consumer for some business. While Indiana businesses conduct business with more than just Hoosiers not all are in that boat. Foursquare type mobile apps that provide users real time coupons, offers etc will be a part of the future but if a Hoosier business doesnt have customers with smartphones capable of taking advantage it wont help them. Once the demand is there Hoosier companies doing business locally will follow. Rest assured the big businesses dealing with the coasts and internationally will move along with the waves of digital flow as they would drown otherwise. Good post.
By nimbleness I mean the ablity to adapt quickly. Smart business will not spend all of their time and effort on only one social media platform because within a year it may be something we haven’t even imagined.
Thank you for the compliment, Chris, and thank you for writing a thought filled response. =)