Tag: Strategy

Machine Learning to Accelerate Human Learning

I am always curious about how people rapidly learn complex domains, and this piece in the Wall Street Journal about how “speed learner” Max Deutsch approached his challenge of chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen with only one month to train was fascinating. This was the latest in a series of accelerated learning challenges he’s called Month to Master (M2M).

What particularly stood out was his attempt to use machine learning to develop an algorithm to help him analyze Magnus’ patterns. While–spoiler alert–in the end it was unsuccessful, it is none the less remarkable to consider what is possible today with just a laptop, some code and some relevant data to analyze.

Also worthy of note is Max’s insistence on 8 hour of sleep every day–so with that, I’m off to bed.

(Source: Article | Image)

ISO 9001 and Knowledge Management

This Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons image is from the user Chris 73 and is freely available at //commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ISO_9001_in_Tsukiji.jpg under the creative commons cc-by-sa 3.0 license.
ISO 9001 certification of a fish wholesaler in Tsukiji (Image Source)

A question at work reminded me of some research I had done recently about the new organizational knowledge clause in the latest revision of ISO 9001. It had nothing to do with fish mind you, it’s just not that easy to find a related visual.

I stumbled upon this article from Quality Digest mentioning the change in the context of a strategic KM program:

Now, ISO 9001:2015 has a new clause, 7.1.6, on organizational knowledge and its management. This clause has no equivalent in ISO 9001:2008. In fact, it seems to be the only clause that is completely new. The other clauses seem to have some equivalent in the earlier version, in letter or in spirit.

The author goes on to differentiate between a strategy and technology-only approach to KM; I quote the strategy definition here:

Look at one definition of knowledge management: KM is an enabler to achieve an organization’s objectives better and faster through an integrated set of initiatives, systems and behavioral interventions, aimed at promoting smooth flow and sharing of knowledge relevant to the organization, and the elimination of reinvention. KM seeks to facilitate the flow of knowledge from where it resides, to where it is required (that is, where it can be applied or used), to achieve the organization’s objectives.

The article continues with an outline of a strategic approach that is worth a closer look. Now I’ll have something to read over sushi tomorrow.

(Source)

The Cynefin Framework (and children’s parties)

I had the good fortune of attending Dave Snowden‘s workshop at the KMWorld conference in Washington D.C. last week. As I feared (or suppose hoped), this has ballooned my reading list.

This video above is a brief introduction to one of his central ideas, the Cynefin Framework, detailed in the HBR article A Leader’s Framework for Decision Making.

One of the more memorable items from his talk was about how to organize a children’s party (within the context of complexity). Anyone who’s been a parent and/or worked in a large corporation will find it amusing and insightful. I was happy to see it captured in this video below:

WSJ: In China’s Orbit

WSJ: In China’s Orbit

Interesting article about 500 years of western predominance, and China’s grand strategy. Some facts to get your attention:

China’s has been the biggest and fastest of all the industrialization revolutions. In the space of 26 years, China’s GDP grew by a factor of 10. It took the U.K. 70 years after 1830 to grow by a factor of four. According to the International Monetary Fund, China’s share of global GDP (measured in current prices) will pass the 10% mark in 2013. Goldman Sachs continues to forecast that China will overtake the U.S. in terms of GDP in 2027, just as it recently overtook Japan.

Tip of the hat to @rfallini.

Visualization about leveraging chaos for innovation in stable organizations, using General David Petraeus and the Iraq counterinsurgency “surge” as a case study. Content based on the book The Gamble by Thomas Ricks (which I have not read).

You can find the original at mondaydots, or Garr’s article on Presentation Zen, along with the author’s how to for building similar presentations using Apple’s Keynote and iMovie. I’m inspired.

Embracing the Chaos Between Stable State Organizaitons

Visualization about leveraging chaos for innovation in stable organizations, using General David Petraeus and the Iraq counterinsurgency “surge” as a case study. Content based on the book The Gamble by Thomas Ricks (which I have not read).

You can find the original at mondaydots, or Garr’s article on Presentation Zen, along with the author’s how to for building similar presentations using Apple’s Keynote and iMovie. I’m inspired. (Source)

Resources for the Game of Go

As an avid student of strategy games, my latest focus has been on the ancient game of Go.  As with chess and poker, my practice is to read the seminal books on the game, and find software with a reasonable AI to practice against.  Once I have a solid understanding of the rules, I seek out fellow (human) students to play and learn with, and senior practitioners or teachers I can learn from.

As I start the journey with Go, here are some of the resources I’ve come across:

and please pass along (you can use the comments below or email me at go at mcbreen dot net) any other recommendations you may have–or let me know if you’d like a match, online or otherwise!