Nevada to Have First Autonomous Trucks in America

Daimler Trucks North America is the first to get approval for self-driving commercial vehicles in the United States. The Freightliner Inspiration Truck, and other trucks like it, could have massive implications for the future of transportation. The Inspiration truck features a system called Highway Pilot, which uses stereoscopic cameras and radar sensors to give it an autonomous autopilot mode when cruising on the highway. The truck can steer to stay between lane markers and adjust its speed and braking to maintain a safe following distance behind other cars on the road all while the driver is free to do other things.

It’s considered a “level 3” autonomous vehicle, meaning it enables hands-off highway driving under certain circumstances, but requires a driver to be present, ready to take the helm in an emergency or to pass other vehicles in the truck’s path. The driver is likewise required to assume control of the vehicle when exiting the highway, driving over local roads and pulling up to the loading dock for making or taking deliveries.

For the record, a “level 4″ vehicle would be able to perform all driving functions and monitor roadway conditions for an entire trip, truly freeing up the valuable resource of human time.

Daimler executives are being careful to allay fears of human employment disruption. “We don’t want to get rid of drivers,” says Sven Ennerst, head of Daimler Trucks’ development department. Daimler continues by repeatedly saying the technology won’t can’t change lanes on its own, it won’t be market-ready for a decade, and could never fully replace human drivers.

The reality remains that that it is a big step towards addressing a massive market need: safe and reliable transportation.

Some large freight carriers have already started incorporating innovative new safety features like blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, and lane departure warnings. The economic case for these technologies is clear.

“Commercial vehicles are a safety issue,” says Xavier Mosquet, head of Boston Consulting Group’s North America automotive division. “And therefore anything that can get commercial vehicles out of trouble has a lot of value.”

With America's driver shortage continuing to worsen, good truck drivers cost more these days. Costs are also rising for companies that cut corners and hire unsafe drivers. Liability in a commercial truck accident is increasingly falling on the shipper.

HWP - Highway Pilot

In order to get the autonomous vehicle license plate from the state of Nevada, Daimler needed to prove the system could safely cover 10,000 miles on its own. This was done on test tracks in Germany and on quiet roads in Nevada.

Daimler ran a small study (16 drivers on a test track) to see how this autonomous system affects drivers. EEG readings showed they were 25 percent less tired than they were when they had to steer themselves.

Customers are very much interested in this system, according to Daimler. That’s no surprise: Making driving a job for the computer can reduce accidents, improve fuel efficiency, and maybe keep trucks on the road for longer, says Noël Perry, an economist who specializes in transportation and logistics. “They all love this.”

Additional Reading:

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn27485-autonomous-truck-cleared-to-drive-on-us-roads-for-the-first-time.html#.VVDGtNNVhBd

http://www.wired.com/2015/05/daimler-built-worlds-first-self-driving-semi/

Innovation and Technology

Modern economic growth is driven by innovation and technology. In partnership with the Colorado Business Roundtable, this issue of ICOSA Magazine explores some of these topics in an attempt to inform and inspire leaders here in Colorado and beyond.

Three Axis Gimbals - An Ancient Technology Is Now Advancing Video Production & Media Services

What technology reaches back to the ancient Greeks, helped navigation during the Age of Exploration, and even enabled the NASA space program? 3-Axis Gimbals. And now, with the rapid increase of their performance-to-price value, three axis gimbals are revolutionizing modern media services. With the advent of brushless handheld stabilizers and gimbal systems suspended from drones, high end production value is now available at reasonable pricing. If you're considering video production to enhance your branding, now is the best time to contact ICOSA Media Services.

Known at least as far back as the times of Philo of Byzantium, a system of interlocking rings - known as gimbals - allows objects to remain independent of the external rotation of its support. While simple to understand when you look at one, the results still appear quite magical.

Gimbals enabled the Age of Exploration by stabilizing a ship's compass, allowing for more accurate measurements and more precise location mapping. While latitude was relatively easy to figure out with simple observations of the sun's maximum height in the sky as seen at noon, longitude was much more difficult - especially at sea with constant changes to a ship's roll, pitch, and yaw. Many great minds worked on ways to solve this challenges and let navigators know where they were around the world. The result has changed the course of history.

Over the years, NASA has also found many uses for gimbals, first and foremost for their navigational instruments. Its uses also range from training astronauts to handle the g-forces of space travel to satellite tracking and dynamic image stabilization. Rocket engines and thrusters are also often on gimbal systems in order to have greater control over the direction of their force. The American aerospace industry, including publicly funded research and R&D initiatives from private firms like Ball Aerospace and the Sierra Nevada Corporation, have dramatically advanced the state of the art. Below, you can see a photo of Ball Aerospace's Space Based Space Surveillance Gimbal.

Just like other NASA-developed spinoff technologies, the original investment in advancing gimbals has rippling returns. In addition to the micro accelerometers in everyone's smartphones, the field of modern videography and film production are now benefitting greatly from successful spinoffs. For a relatively low cost, a film director can achieve shots that would have previously only been possible with carefully planned out crane or dolly shots.

Historically, smooth motion shots required meticulous planning and the construction of expensive tracks or counterweight balancing systems. To the right is an example from the set of the movie The Alamo. It shows crews using a dolly to achieve a tracking shot during a battle scene. A jib crew can also be seen in the background. These processes cost a lot of time and money, which is why they were usually reserved for high budget Hollywood studios and their blockbuster productions.

With the advent of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, cranes may be becoming obsolete. DJI is an industry leader with their Phantom 2 and Spreading Wings platforms. They seem to have become the preferred filming drone based on my conversations with the aerial operators I know. In their development of aerial vehicles that can carry cameras, the issue of image stabilization became apparent, as it did to NASA when trying to stabilize images from cameras aboard satellites and spacecraft. So they used a three axis gimbal system powered with brushless electric motors. Below is an image of a camera suspended below a DJI Spreading Wings uav system.

Now, separating that technology from aerial devices has resulted in the DJI Ronin, a handheld gimbal stabilizer for impressive videography.

Whether you are needing visual communication to improve your company's branding or simply just to share your message with the world, now is the best time to do it. Feel free to contact ICOSA Media Services today to discuss turning your vision into reality.

Self-Driving Cars in 30 U.S. Cities by 2017

There will be driverless buses and pods as well.

By Sage Lazzaro | 03/05/15 10:47am

Originally appearing in the Observer

Finally, we can put up our feet and let computers take the wheel.

Automated vehicle pilot projects will roll out in the U.K. and in six to 10 U.S. cities this year, with the first unveiling projected to be in Tampa, Florida as soon as late spring. The following year, trial programs will launch in 12 to 20 more U.S. locations, which means driverless cars will be on roads in up to 30 U.S. cities by the end of 2016. The trials will be run by Comet LLC, a consulting firm focused on automated vehicle commercialization.

“We’re looking at college campuses, theme parks, airports, downtown areas—places like that,” Corey Clothier, a strategist for automated transportation systems who runs the firm told, The Observer.

He explained that they’re focusing on semi-controlled areas and that the driverless vehicles will serve a number of different purposes—both public and private. The vehicles themselves—which are all developed by Veeo Systems—will even vary from two-seaters to full-size buses that can transport 70 people. At some locations, the vehicles will drive on their own paths, occasionally crossing vehicle and pedestrian traffic, while at others, the vehicles will be completely integrated with existing cars.

What would happen if you combine driverless cars with an on-demand service like Uber? One study says it would make nine out of ten cars on every road totally obsolete.

One of the early test sites will be the U.S. Army’s Fort Bragg in North Carolina. There, small pod-like vehicles will transport wounded troops from their barracks to the nearby hospital for treatment and check-ups. The Comet team is also planning a pilot project at The United States Military Academy at West Point, although Mr. Clothier said this site has not been finalized.

An automated vehicle system will also be implemented at Stanford with its first purpose being to provide transportation around their SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory campus. Scientists and academics travel from all over the world to visit the center, and the first application of the automated vehicle system will be to transport visiting scientists to the accelerator.

At the first test site in Tampa, the plan is to start with public transit around the Museum of Science and Industry and eventually expand to the University of Southern Florida campus and the neighboring City of Temple Terrace. The Comet team is also planning trials in two other cities in Florida; Greenville, South Carolina and Seattle, Washington, where the 70-person buses will be used in public transit.

At 25 to 40 percent cheaper, the cost to ride the driverless public transit vehicles will be significantly less expensive than traditional buses and trains, according to Mr. Clothier. They’ll also be far less expensive to operate. The vehicles are electric, rechargeable and could cost as low as $1 to $3 to run per day.

In addition to these first trials of automated vehicles for commercial use in the U.S., the U.K. will begin running tests this year in Greenwich, London as well. The $9 million project called GATEway will consist of public self-driving shuttles that will link residents to transport hubs, The O2 Arena and other destinations in northern Greenwich, carrying eight to ten passengers at a time.

Greenwich was chosen for the Project—which is being led by the U.K.’s Transport Research Laboratory (TRL)—because, since it’s home to the Prime Meridian.

“It is the global reference point for time and links to navigation,” Nick Reed, the TRL academy director, said. “It also has a massively growing population, so we’re trying to meet the needs of that with the technology.”

Upon entering the shuttles, each passenger chooses from the pre-determined destinations on the touch screen, and then the computer determines and readjusts the route as riders hop on and off. Each vehicle uses lasers to build up an image of the route and determine where it is and where it needs to go.

These shuttles will drive along their own route but must cross pedestrian and vehicle traffic at times. The lasers will also enable the cars to determine when it’s safe to cross and also to spot obstructions. At a recent launch event, the vehicles proved how safe they are and how well they can sense obstructions and the world around them.

“You can image a lot of the journalists wanted to see this thing run into pedestrians, so they were almost jumping in front of it,” Mr. Reed said laughing. “But it was doing what it was supposed to do and stopping.”

He also explained that these shuttles are only the first part of the trials. They’re also working on autonomous valet parking that would enable drivers with ordinary cars to pull up to their destination, send their car to park itself and then summon it later. Additionally, they’re beginning to research how automated vehicles can be used for grocery delivery and other urban services.

Mr. Reed feels that this technology won’t completely replace today’s cars and trains, but that it is disruptive and will be the norm soon.

He described his first experience in a driverless vehicle as feeling “vulnerable at first,” but said that it quickly became very comfortable.

“It’s a bit unnerving to begin with because you realize the system is in control and you’re relying on the sensors and brakes to keep you safe, but very quickly after seeing it respond to pedestrians and such, you see it work and become very comfortable. I became relaxed even,” he said, adding how happy we’ll all be to be able to just watch Netflix while our cars drive us around.

Mr. Clothier, who has been riding in automated vehicles since their military-only days and has even been passenger to a computer among semis driving at 65mph on a Michigan highway, feels similarly.

“It’s a whole new thing, but it will be comfortable,” he said. “People are very comfortable riding in [them]. It’s kind of like an elevator: you go in, put in your destination, the doors close and you’re off.”

SEE: Mercedes-Benz’s New Car Is Driverless

Correction: The SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory participated in the Smart America Challenge as a possible future pilot site but a trial is not set to run there at this time.

Draft Drone Rules Rule Out Long Distances

The technological advances of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been remarkable over the last couple of years. Their increasing capabilities and affordability promise many opportunities for commercial applications, ranging from farming to logistics. Despite the immense potential, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has long been quiet about the upcoming regulatory framework. Until now.

The FAA has just released proposed rules for commercial drones within the United States.

Although the rules are not as draconian as some people feared, commercial applications for UAVs are still facing limitations compared to other countries.

The FAA isn't requiring commercial drones to undergo a lengthy and costly certification process. UAVs under 55 lbs can be flown as long as the operators have passed a basic aeronautical test.

They must, however, be flown below 500 feet, only in daylight, and remain within view of their operators at all time. They also can not be flown over people, such as at concerts and sporting events.

This is a “good first step”, says the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems. It would easily allow, for example, a real estate agent to take aerial photographs of a house being put up for sale. It would also allow for farmers looking to survey crop conditions.

Not being allowed to fly over crowds might prevent television companies from filming sporting events with drones. Perhaps further certifications would allow such maneuvers in the future.

The requirement that the UAVs stay within line of sight is also a big limitation, preventing long-distance flights (inspecting forests and monitoring pipelines, for example). This would also rule out Amazon's plan of using drones to deliver goods ordered online.

Michael Huerta, head of the FAA, says that as drones develop the rules will continue to "evolve."

As the technology improves and operators build experience, perhaps the agency will eventually permit longer-range, out-of-sight flights.

In the meantime, the current proposals will undergo a lengthy period of public comment before being finalized- possibly in 2017.

Drone operations in other countries are already getting airborne with pilot projects. In China, Alibaba has launched a drone delivery service for tea orders. In Europe, the logistics firm DHL has begun delivering medicine and other urgent supplies to a small island off the coast of Germany.

To see some of these pilot programs in action, check out this video from the Wall Street Journal:

Apple's Auto Ambition

Reports over the last couple weeks show growing evidence that Apple is gearing up to create an electric vehicle. Apple has already hired more than 60 former Tesla employees. Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk says Apple has been offering his engineers a 60% salary increase and $250k signing bonuses.

Apple has also recruited Johann Jungwirth away from his position as head of Mercedes-Benz’s Silicon Valley R&D unit.

According to a new report from Tim Higgins of Bloomberg, the company’s car team is planning to launch the electric vehicle by 2020.

Higgins adds that the company has additionally hired former engineers of Panasonic Corporation, Johnson Controls Inc, LG Electronics Inc., A123 Systems and others.

The Bloomberg report speculates Apple is speedily designing an electric vehicle that can be marketed to the masses - a car with a range of over 200 miles on a single charge and a price tag of less than $40,000.

Barclays said in a research note that the electric car market is worth $16 billion a year, and will grow to $71 billion by 2021.

Apple has plenty of cash on hand after several consecutive quarters of very high profits. They would be wise in diversifying and investing in the future. While some analysts deride this strategy by pointing to low margins in electric vehicles, Apple's bigger play could be the use of connected cars as a platform, similar to the iPhone and the Appstore.

Though connected cars make up less than 10% of auto sales today, their share is expected to skyrocket to 80% by 2020.

A even larger opportunity exists with the advent of self-driving technology. Think about all the hours people spend driving their cars. What is that time worth? What else could people be doing with that time? The answers to these questions could be worth trillions of dollars.

With Google, Uber, and traditional car manufacturers working on autonomous driving vehicles, it could very well become a reality by as soon as 2020. Reuters says it has learned from industry sources that Apple’s secret project involves self-driving electric cars.

In 2021, will people be listening to Tesla's Slacker Radio, Google Play Music, or Apple's iTunes Radio?

Modern Concept Blows In The Wind

Imagine living in an apartment building resembling a hybrid of a nautilus and a Dyson table fan. Beyond the aesthetics which looks like it came out of a Star Trek episode, the Dutch Windwheel’s appearance actually serves the function of utilizing wind energy. How appropriate that those resourceful folks in the Land of Windmills would conceptualize this radical design.

Striving to obtain complete sustainability, this motionless wind turbine would house 72 apartments within a round steel and glass frame, while also harvesting alternate energy from the sun with the installation of assorted solar PVs, as well as the bio gas produced by the residents’ organic waste. The structure will also be equipped to capture rainwater and recycle tap water.

The concept is destined for Netherlands' port city of Rotterdam, where it is surrounded by wetlands and would have an underground foundation, giving it the illusion of floating. It consists of an inner and outer ring. In addition to containing 72 apartments, 160 hotel rooms, and commercial space within the inner ring, the outer ring has 40 rotating cabins giving visitors spanning views much like the UK’s London Eye. Or one can enjoy dining atop the entire structure in the rooftop restaurant.

There’s no need to worry about endangering birds either with this motionless, bladeless design. Thanks to the electrostatic wind energy converter (EWICON), the Windwheel “converts wind energy with a framework of steel tubes into electricity without moving mechanical parts.” The result is a structure that is quiet and low maintenance.

The Dutch developers (a collective of Rotterdam-based companies BLOC, DoepelStrijkers, Meysters and NBTC Holland Marketing) will use this structure as a “dynamic showcase for Dutch Clean Technology”. Demonstrating creative innovations, the Windwheel is a quite the update on the traditional windmills of the Nederlands.

To Become a Billionaire, Help a Billion People

"Bold is a visionary roadmap for people who believe they can change the world"President Bill Clinton

In 2012, Dr. Peter Diamandis and Steven Kotler published their bestseller Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think. Standing out in stark contrast from the common theme of doom and gloom that was pervasive in the news and on bookshelves back then, Abundance provided a new perspective on the history and future of humanity and technological advancements.

Now Diamandis and Kotler have just announced their follow up book project, BOLD, as a practical guide for entrepreneurs and change makers. It's now available for pre-ordering.

"Abundance showed us where the world can be in 20 years. Bold is a roadmap for entrepreneurs to help us get there."

Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman, Google

In Abundance, four potent emerging forces are explored — exponential technologies, the DIY innovator, techno-philanthropists and the rising billion. These give us the opportunity to solve many of the world's grandest challenges and the potential to meet the needs of every man, woman and child over the next two to three decades.

In BOLD, a game plan is laid out for taking the the next steps. It's a highly practical playbook that arms today's entrepreneurs, activists and leaders with the tools they'll need to positively impact the lives of billions while making their biggest dreams come true.

BOLD unfolds in three parts. Part One focuses on the exponential technologies which are disrupting today's Fortune 500 companies and enabling upstart entrepreneurs to go from 'I've got an idea' to 'I run a billion-dollar company' far faster than ever before. With advice garnered from their own experience and hundreds of interviews with Silicon Valley elite, the authors provide exceptional insight into how anyone can harness the power of 3D printing, artificial intelligence, robotics, networks and sensors, and synthetic biology—the very technologies enabling today's entrepreneurs to tackle the kinds of enormous challenges that were once only possible for governments and major corporations. Part Two of the book focuses on Psychology of Bold—the mental toolkit that allows the world's top innovators to raise their game by thinking at scale, including detailed interviews with and lessons from Larry Page, Elon Musk, Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos. Also in Part Two, Kotler reveals the keys to ultimate human performance garnered from fifteen years of research with the Flow Genome Project and Diamandis reveals his entrepreneurial secrets garnered from building fifteen companies, including such audacious ventures as Singularity University, the XPRIZE, Planetary Resources (for the mining of near-Earth Asteroids) and Human Longevity, Inc. (focused on extending the healthy human life-span). Finally, BOLD closes with a look at the incredible power and essential best practices that allow anyone to leverage today's hyper-connected crowd like never before. Here, Diamandis and Kotler teach how to design and use incentive competitions to find breakthrough solutions, how to launch million-dollar crowdfunding campaigns to tap into ten's of billions of dollars of available capital, and finally how to build communities – armies of exponentially enabled individuals willing and able to help today's entrepreneurs make their boldest dreams come true.

BOLD: How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World is both a manifesto and a manual. It is today's exponential entrepreneur's go-to resource on the use of emerging technologies, thinking at scale, and the awesome power of crowd-powered tools like crowdfunding, crowdsourcing and incentive competitions. All around us, technology is democratizing the power to change the world, and BOLD spells out how anyone can spy the opportunities and put their vision into action, blazing a path from mind to market.

About the Book Cover The BOLD Book Cover show's the Earth being hit by an asteroid. What is the relevance of this image?

66 million years ago, dinosaurs were the uber-dominant species on Earth. But when an asteroid collided with our planet—unleashing everything from mega-tsunamis to global firestorms—these creatures were unable to adapt to the upheaval and instead went extinct.

For our species, this was very good news. While the dinosaurs were large, lumbering and inflexible, those early small, furry mammals—our ancestors—were far more nimble and resilient. They took opportunistic advantage of the radical changes sweeping the globe, adapted to their new environment, and never looked back.

In today's business world, this tale is especially relevant. Right now there is another asteroid impacting our world—it's called: “exponential technology.” And its awesome power is threatening a different breed of dinosaur—large and innovation-resistant companies. Yet there's a new breed of small, furry mammal starting to emerge. These mammals are today's exponential entrepreneurs—those using radically accelerating technologies to transform products, services and industries to pave the way for a world of abundance. Abundance

"If you read one business book in the 21st centry, this should be BOLD. It clearly explains how to change the world and overcome the age old afflictions of human civilization." Ray Kurzweil, inventor, author, a director of engineering at Google.

Jason Silva Video Review of Abundance

International CES 2015 Focuses on Internet of Things

The International Consumer Electronics Show is the world's largest stage for presenting the latest in consumer technology. It's an exciting time, and it's all happening this week. The trade show, hosted every year in Las Vegas, is an important indication of what's coming up and what's going to be big in the near future.

This year, the Internet of Things (IoT) is taking center stage with more than 900 exhibitors sharing their products, services, and technologies that connect everyday devices to the network.

“The ‘Internet of Things’ is the hottest topic in tech right now,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, International CES and corporate business strategy, CEA.

She continues by saying, “It’s all about the opportunity to connect everyday items  like cars, home security systems and kitchen appliances to networked devices like PCs and smartphones for greater control and management of our everyday lives. We’re excited that the 2015 CES will bring together all of the companies and products that are making this a reality.”

The IoT, while less flashy than a new TV model, is more important because it is all about creating an infrastructure. Building upon this nascent infrastructure will be many new startups and products from existing companies. Some will flop, while others will change the world in which we live.

The Sensors Marketplace will highlight one of the key technologies that is enabling the growth of the IoT movement. Some exhibitors participating in the marketplace include eyeSight Mobile Technologies, Logbar and QuickLogic Corp. In addition, the Smart Home Marketplace will showcase a smarter, more efficient home accelerated by smartphones and tablets interacting with a myriad of connected objects and devices, from basic security systems to connected lighting systems. Some of the 2015 CES exhibitors expected to showcase IoT technologies include Bosch, Lowe’s, Konnect Labs, iDevices, Muzzley and Blinksight among many others.

2015 CES keynoters Boo-Keun Yoon, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., and Brian Krzanich, CEO of Intel Corp., are expected to share their insights on IoT innovations.

Other CES conference programming will also explore the future of this trend with the following sessions:

Privacy and the IoT: Navigating Policy Issues

The Impact of the Internet of Things

The State of the Internet of Things

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Another interesting highlight of the CES is the second year of Gary's Book Club, showcasing the works of prominent, thought-leading authors in the tech industry.

(Gary Shapiro is the president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association)

Books to be featured this year include:

Shawn DuBravac, Ph.D

Digital Destiny: How the New Age of Data Will Transform the Way We Work, Live, and Communicate

What happens when everything is digital? In this provocative new book from the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), host of the International CES, CEA’s chief economist and lead technologist, Dr. DuBravac, has a straightforward answer: Everything will change. Most people perceive the digital age as simply the accumulation of sleeker and more powerful gadgets. But our understanding of the digital age is narrow, because we are still in its infancy. This book explains that the world’s mass adoption of digital technologies portends the beginning of a new era for humanity, one that will rival the invention of the printing press for its transformational effects on every person, country and institution in the world. From driverless cars to automated homes to personalized healthcare, digital data will usher in a new phase of living for every person on the planet.

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Andrew Keen The Internet is Not the Answer

The Internet, created during the Cold War, has now ushered in one of the greatest shifts in society since the Industrial Revolution. There are many positive ways in which the Internet has contributed to the world, but as a society we are less aware of the Internet’s deeply negative effects on our psychology, economy, and culture. In The Internet Is Not the Answer, Andrew Keen, a twenty-year veteran of the tech industry, traces the technological and economic history of the Internet from its founding in the 1960s through the rise of the big data companies to the increasing attempts to monetize almost every human activity, and investigates how the Internet is reconfiguring our world—often at great cost. In this sharp, witty narrative, informed by the work of other writers, academics, and reporters, as well as his own wide-ranging research and interviews, Keen shows us the tech world, warts and all, and investigates what we can do to make sure the choices we make about the reconfiguring of our society do not lead to unpleasant unforeseen aftershocks.

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Peter Nowak Humans 3.0 -The Upgrading of the Species

Our species is entering a new era. We’re now applying the latest technology to our own biology, and it is becoming part of our environment. But is that a good thing? Not if media scares about government spying, limitless automation, and electronic addictions are to be believed. Veteran journalist Peter Nowak looks at what it means to be human—from the relationships we form to the jobs we do and the things we believe—and measures the impact of these innovations. Humans 3.0 shows not only how technology is propelling us into a new epoch, but also how it is improving us in the process.

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Frank Gruber Startup Mixology

Entrepreneurship starts with an idea and a dream. Startup Mixology is first and foremost a book about turning your ideas into action. From the cofounder of Tech Cocktail, a veteran entrepreneur and investor who was named one of the most connected people in tech, this book covers the basic "ingredients" of winning entrepreneurship. Author Frank Gruber shows you how to tackle everything from idea generation to launch to marketing to funding and how to start getting things done. Inside, you'll find the stories of companies like MakerBot, WordPress, Zappos, Basecamp, Uber, and more.

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Patrick Stroh Business Strategy; Plan, Execute, Win!

Embrace strategies for improving your business and reaching your organization's goals

"I wholeheartedly agree with Patrick Stroh: Good leaders understand strategy and good strategists need to be good leaders. Make this book a strategic tool for improving your business strategy." — Harvey Mackay, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Swim With The Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive

In today's fast-moving and competitive business environment, strong leadership, insightful strategy, and effective innovation are critical links to staying ahead of your competition. Getting your business house in order can often be complicated, but does it really have to be? How do you take MBA 101 lessons, great models, and exceptional concepts and put them into play in the real world? Business Strategy: Plan, Execute, Win! strives to answers these questions in an educational and entertaining format. Working as a Fortune 20 practitioner with C-level executives, author Patrick Stroh has a keen understanding of the role played by current day strategists.

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Paul Paetz Disruption by Design: How to Create Products That Disrupt and Then Dominate Markets 

No business buzzword is more frequently discussed or misused than "disruptive innovation". Yet despite widespread misunderstanding, the impact remains great. Disruptive innovators change the competitive playing field, often capturing 40 to 80% of total market revenue and half or more of total profits in categories they create. Unfortunately, only a small fraction of potential disruptors ever succeed, often by accident. It doesn't have to be that way. For the first time, disruption theory is de-mystified into a practical step-by-step guidebook that walks you through creating a disruptive business strategy and putting it into practice. Written for entrepreneurs, CEOs, and product developers, Disruption by Design teaches invaluable how-to insights learned from successful disruptors, and from innovators who could have disrupted, but failed.

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Scott Steinberg Make Change Work for You

Business, culture, and competitive landscapes have fundamentally changed, but basic principles and best practices for succeeding and future-proofing both yourself and your organization haven't. With a mix of compelling stories, research from the social sciences and psychology, and real-world insights, Make Change Work for You shows how to reignite your career, rekindle creativity, and fearlessly innovate your way to success by providing the tools needed to conquer every challenge in life or business. Readers will discover how to develop the vital skills required to triumph in the “new normal” by understanding and engaging in the 10 new habits that highly successful people share.

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Barry Wacksman Chris Stutzman Connected by Design

The twin goals of growth and competitive advantage are proving difficult to attain in a world of fierce global competition and rapid technological change. Traditional strategies for gaining market share no longer yield the returns they once did. How can companies drive consumer preference and secure sustainable growth in this digital, social, and mobile age? The answer is through functional integration. Connected By Design is the first book to show business leaders and marketers exactly how to use functional integration to achieve transformative growth within any type of company. Based on R/GA’s pioneering work with firms like Nike, McCormick and L’Oreal, Barry Wacksman and Chris Stutzman identify seven principles companies must follow in order to create and deliver new value for customers and capture new revenues in the design and operation of functionally integrated ecosystems.

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Nicole Gallucci Adversperience ~ The Convergence of Advertising & Experiential Marketing

Adversperience is a word and world of her own creation, speaking to the convergence of advertising and experiential marketing. Its Nicole’s take on how brands can relevantly touch consumer senses, engage target audiences, get noticed and win in this era of distraction, mass proliferation and global connection. The book focuses on the pre-event (AWARENESS), the event (ENGAGEMENT) and post event (SHARING). An Adversperience speaks to the physiological impact that occurs when consumers have a relevant personal experience in the context of a brand experience. The two become inextricably linked and part of the consumer’s very being. Once something is experienced it cannot be unexperienced.

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Alexis Ohanian  Without Their Permission: How the 21st Century Will Be Made, Not Managed

As Alexis Ohanian learned when he helped to co-found the immensely popular reddit.com, the internet is the most powerful and democratic tool for disseminating information in human history. And when that power is harnessed to create new communities, technologies, businesses or charities, the results can be absolutely stunning.

In this book, Alexis will share his ideas and tips about harnessing the power of the web for good, and along the way, he will share his philosophy with young entrepreneurs all over the globe.

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Aneesh Chopra INNOVATIVE STATE: How New Technologies Can Transform Government

With INNOVATIVE STATE: How New Technologies Can Transform Government, Aneesh Chopra, the country’s first Chief Technology Officer, provides an essential guide for how we can create a government that is more transparent, participatory, and collaborative, one that harnesses the full potential of today’s technologies and is defined not by its size but by its smarts.

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Anna van Slee & Carolyn Chandler  Adventures in Experience Design

In today’s mobile, global, 24/7 content world, consumers expect products, services and experiences that are personalized and intuitive. They expect good design. You don’t need to be a whiz with code or a Photoshop ace, but design thinking has become an essential skill set for everyone. Adventures in Experience Design is an activity book that interactively teaches experience design through games, pithy lessons and other delightful exercises. With Adventures, you will create a product from scratch (or innovate on your existing one!) and get an introduction to design methodology in the process.

Colorado Man Tests Out New Bionic Arms

Advancing neuroscience clearly has the power to improve lives. While there remain many obvious needs for continuing R&D into the treatment of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, a futuristic type of neurotechnology known as a Brain Computer Interface (BCI) is beginning to emerge as a functional reality. A subset of BCIs, neuroprosthetics, are helping a Colorado man to regain his ability to handle manipulate objects. Les Baugh lost both of his arms in an electrical accident over 40 years ago. With the help of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), he'll regain some functionality while making history as the first bilateral shoulder-level amputee to wear and simultaneously control two Modular Prosthetic Limbs (MPLs).

It's not just the accomplishment, but the opening of frontiers and realizing that there's so much more to learn." Courtney Moran, Clinical Lead for Amputee Research.

Providing Hope to Those Who Need it Most

There are few things in this world that need protection as much as a newborn child, and, for the most part, their care and protection fall to the parents.  But what happens when the parents themselves need help and protection?  Each year 4,000 babies are born to teen moms with 67% of those moms living below the poverty line.  Life for these moms isn't easy, with less than 1% of them will ever graduate from college and fewer than half will earn their high school diploma.  In Colorado, a single mother must work over 80 hours per week at minimum wage in order to meet the basic needs for her and her child. Luckily for them, there are organizations out there who dedicate themselves to helping and caring for these struggling mothers and their children.  Hope House of Colorado is one of these organizations.  Through residential programs, GED help and career resources, Hope House strives to be a positive force for change in the lives of teen mothers.  Through Hope House's efforts teen mothers are provided resources to drastically improve their lives and the lives of their children. and thats not all.  What really helps set Hope House apart is the amount of support and love that they are able to share.  They provide a safe and caring environment to help support those who need it most, mothers and their children.

Hope House of Colorado

NASA Missions for the Next 30 Years (an Infographic)

Not long from now, in a galaxy near and dear to our hearts, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration boldly plans to go where no human has gone before.   NASA announced their plans for the next 30 years of exploration in our solar system.  They plan to start by sending a robot on a 160-day mission to the moon in order to gather more information about the lunar atmosphere, and plan to finally, in the year 2030, achieve the ever-elusive goal of a manned mission to Mars.  For more information, check out this handy info graphic provided by Mashable.

City of Denver Office of Economic Development Hosts Tech Job Fair

On Thursday, October 30th, The City of Denver and ICOSA Media came together in collaboration in order to strengthen the already booming job market of Denver's tech sector.  The event, titled Denver’s Tech Talent: Meeting Tomorrow’s Needs and hosted at the ICOSA Media Event Center, was set up by the Denver Offices of Economic Development to connect those looking for employment with companies seeking talented employees.  The day began at 9:00 a.m. when ICOSA Media CEO and founder of the Colorado Business Roundtable, Gayle Dendinger, welcomed all the attendees to the event.  Shortly after, tech company CEO's sat down with a representative from the Colorado Technology Association to discuss what drives them to succeed, and how those looking to work in the technology sector could improve their chances of meeting the right company.

After the panel discussion, the fair opened up for the public to meet and talk with some of the biggest and fastest growing tech companies in Denver.  Special consideration was made for veterans who re-entering the work force, and all were given a chance to get to know a lot of the companies driving the economic success story that is Colorado.

A full photo gallery can be found here.

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International Space Station Upgrading Earth Observation Technologies

The International Space Station, or ISS, is recognized worldwide as a testament to the ingenuity and drive of the human spirit and an inspiration to future astronauts. Through 2014, NASA aims to give the floating observation station even more tools to monitor the Earth.  The additional hardware will give scientists much more data and a unique perspective from space.  Typical Earth-orbiting satellites fly at altitudes above 400 miles up while the ISS operates around 240 up, meaning that it will give observers a whole new look at Earth from space, providing scientists a cross-reference for satellite observed imagery. "We're seeing the space station come into its own as an Earth-observing platform," said Julie Robinson, chief scientist for the International Space Station Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "It has a different orbit than other Earth remote sensing platforms. It’s closer to Earth, and it sees Earth at different times of day with a different schedule. That offers opportunities that complement other Earth-sensing instruments in orbit today."

Started on September 19th, the first round of new equipment will be sent up with the Space X Commercial Resupply Services flights, adding the ISS-RapidScat, which will be used to better study ocean winds for climate research, weather predictions and hurricane monitoring.  In total, there will be 6 new additions to the station, all aimed at giving us a better understanding of what is going on on our planet.  

Why Did The SBA Just Gift Millions To For-Profit Businesses?

The SBA just gave away millions in corporate welfare with no strings attached, to venture- capitalists accelerators. This is wrong on multiple levels.  

The U.S. Small Business Administration just announced the award of millions of dollars in grants to 50 "accelerators," which are designed for venture capitalists to sift through countless startups to find the few they think can make them money. But the rationale, efficacy, and fairness of this program all need to be challenged.

The Rationale--Accelerators Produce More Jobs (NOT)

Over the last decade, the SBA has shifted its focus away from the 98 percent of small businesses with 1-19 employees, to work with very large corporations with up to $36.5 million in revenue and/or 1,500 employees. This accelerator grant program is another example of that shift.

The SBA says accelerators produce a lot of jobs, but the evidence suggests the opposite. Over the last five years, the approximately 200 accelerators in the U.S. have created between3,300 and 4,800 jobs, or a measly 700 to 960 jobs a year, at a cost of $130,000 per job created. Small businesses add around 600,000 businesses and three million jobs every year, or an average of 15 million jobs every five years; all without handouts from the government.

The Efficacy--Accelerators Product High-Growth Companies (NOT)

The SBA says accelerators produce high-growth companies. The evidence suggests otherwise.

The best data on job creation from the Kauffman Foundation shows 100% of net new jobs are created in the first twelve months of a new business. 98% of those will never have more than 19 employees (and don't want more), and less than 00.06% have more than 500. And most importantly, nobody can figure out which startup will be the freak that will grow quickly. Not a single business that has gone through an accelerator program over the last couple decades has become "high-growth", and generated tens of thousands of jobs.

In contrast, McDonalds started as a hot dog stand in 1937, and didn't start growing until eighteen years later. It was not built to be big, "high-growth", or even make hamburgers. Accelerator owners would have laughed at it.

Sara Blakely designed and started selling panty hose from her apartment because she didn't like the way her panty hose fit. In a few short years, Spanx became a billion dollar company without the help of an accelerator, or even a single penny of outside investment. And no one, including Sara Blakely, could have guessed it would become huge.

In 1996, two college kids started a company called Backrub on their college campus server. Three years later they moved out of their garage and renamed it Google, which lived in obscurity in the backwaters of the Internet for another couple years. These kids would have never survived the "pitch deck" process to get into an accelerator.

The accelerators never recognized these or any others like them, and the overwhelming evidence is they never do. The fact is, good ideas don't need to be coddled. 81 percent of the fastest growing businesses in America never took a dime of venture capital, and those that achieved the highest financial return also took no vc money. Not one of the fastest growing businesses in America on anyone's list over the last twenty years has come through an accelerator.

Throwing free money at accelerators in not an effective use of SBA funds. They would be better off lending it to small business owners with interest.

The Fairness Issue

The SBA was formed to help small business owners get interest-bearing loans, not to give free money to wealthy vc's. One recipient of the handout, the Arizona Center for Innovation, is owned by Tech Parks Arizona, which owns 5.2 million square feet of commercial office space producing over $100 million a year in revenue. Do they really need a government handout to make more money?

Just as questionable, many other grant recipients formed their accelerator in the last few months, possibly just to get the grant. Some don't have a website yet. Some haven't even opened. One is a rental kitchen that opens this month and will rotate chefs in their for-profit restaurant area. How is that "high growth"? With no track record at all, the SBA is throwing money at all these, no strings attached. It's mind-boggling and a terrible investment practice that no accelerator with integrity would support.

How does any of this giveaway make sense? This is crony-Industrialism, and an affront to the millions of small businesses slugging it out in the trenches, who are more deserving, but won't see a dime of this giveaway. The SBA has a lot of explaining to do.

by Chuck Blakeman, Author of the #1 Rated Business Book of the Year, Making Money is Killing Your Business and Top 10 business book, Why Employees Are Always A Bad Idea

www.ChuckBlakeman.com

Article as seen on Inc.com

Marissa Mayer, The Old School Manager, vs. Ricardo Semler, The Participation Age Leader

Mayer manages to the Lowest Common Denominator. Semler leads to the Highest Common Denominator. The difference is dramatic. Last year, the CEO of Yahoo, Marissa Mayer, created shock waves throughout the tech world by dictating that “work from home” was no longer permitted. She summarily herded everyone back into the Office Day Care Center to be closely supervised like seven year olds. A few years earlier, a large multi-national company headquartered in Brazil named Semco, threw a party for their leader, Ricardo Semler, to commemorate his 10^th anniversary of not making a decision.

Managing to The Worst vs. Expecting the Best

LCD Management (lowest common denominator) asks, “What’s the most incompetent or laziest thing somebody could do?”, and then creates an environment to make it hard to get away with it. In contrast, HCD Leadership asks, “If given a clear vision, what is the best possible thing people could do without being managed?” HCD leaders then create the kind of environment that will attract self-motivated, self-managed achievers. Both of them are self-fulfilling prophecies.

LCD Managers create an environment where people will live down to our worst expectations of them. HCD leaders understand that the art of leadership is to know how few decisions the leader should make.

Ricardo Semler is perhaps the best, low-profile CEO leader in business today. Mayer is a high-profile CEO manager, using personal superpowers to hold everything together - for now. As a result, the futures of Yahoo and Semco are going in dramatically different directions.

Centralized Decision-making vs. Everyone is Capable

LCD managers assume they are the most motivated, qualified, committed, invested, and experienced. With all those superstar qualities, it would be foolish to have others making decisions. That’s why they are paid the big bucks. Mayer is infamous for regularly having a few dozen people waiting outside her office for hours, as she solves problems and makes decisions for them one at a time.

HCD Leadership believes most people are inherently motivated, qualified, committed, and invested, and that they make better decisions than someone in a hierarchy.  Semler doesn’t make decisions anymore because decisions are made where they will be lived out. Stakeholders throughout the company are responsible for Semco entering a variety of industries and growing dramatically year after year, from $4 million 29 years ago to $1billion+ today. As an HCD leader, instead of making decisions others can make, Semler is free to ask questions, cast vision, and work with others to build the future of the company.

Superpowers vs. Delegation

Mayer is a supermanager – which allows her to get away with a lot in the short term. But it is not sustainable. When she goes, the energy goes. She has entrenched herself in decision-making, making her nearly indispensable. While at Google, Mayer pulled 250 all-nighters in five years and held up to 70 meetings a week. She sleeps four hours a night. In contrast, Semler trained others to make decisions. There are now six co-CEOs who rotate leadership every six months, allowing Semler to function at the highest levels of leadership and not make decisions. As with any great leader, he has worked hard to get out of the way. He is fully dispensable, while nobody could replace Mayer.

The Results Are In

Semco gets hundreds of unsolicited resumes every month, and no one leaves. In the worst 10-year recession in Brazil’s history, revenues grew 600%, profits were up 500%, and productivity rose 700%. Innovative Stakeholders have taken them into profitable industries they could have never dreamed of entering, and they continue to grow exponentially. And unlike Yahoo, Semco hasn’t told people how or where to work for over three decades.

LCD management may get quick, short-term results, but Yahoo’s future will never look like Semco’s – it’s too reliant on a very high-profile, LCD superhuman manager. Very impressive in the short-term, but very old school.

Nevada Wins Tesla Gigafactory

Elon Musk and Telsa Motors have been shopping around the US looking for the ideal location for the Gigafactory - Tesla and Panasonic's massive lithium ion battery manufacturing venture. Congratulations to the state of Nevada for winning the site selection. It's an exciting manufacturing plant (the world's largest lithium ion production facility) during an exciting time in the life of Tesla Motors - The company's stock was just given a $400 target price by market analysts.  Stifel Nicolaus analyst James Albertine compared investors’ enthusiasm for Tesla stock with a “freight train.”

“While there are no fewer than a half-a-dozen other key concerns we share with industry purists, the reality is, these issues simply do not matter with respect to Tesla’s stock,” Albertine wrote in a letter to clients. “Tesla sentiment is like a freight train, in our view, benefiting from a well manicured growth story that has caught the eye of a much broader investor base relative to most auto stocks.”

The stock reached $290 per share yesterday, following upbeat second-quarter results. The electric car maker is on target to achieving an annual rate of production of 100,000 cars by the end of next year, doubling its current rate. More inroads are being made in China which are also contributing to the string of records.

The Gigafactory is an important step in the company's growth path as it prepares to mass-produce a $35,000 model by 2107.  The facility looks like it will reach 50 GWh in annual battery production by 2020, which is enough to power 500,000 of Tesla's cars.  Nevada, while offering a $1.25 billion tax incentive package, will be gaining significant capital investment and around 6,500 jobs. Governor Sandoval said at the announcement that the agreement will add up to $100 billion to Nevada's economy over the next 20 years. Check out the full Gigafactory Press Release below.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

CARSON CITY, NV – Governor Brian Sandoval and Elon Musk, Chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors, announced today that Nevada has been selected as the official site for the Tesla Gigafactory.

“This is great news for Nevada. Tesla will build the world’s largest and most advanced battery factory in Nevada which means nearly one hundred billion dollars in economic impact to the Silver State over the next twenty years. I am grateful that Elon Musk and Tesla saw the promise in Nevada. These 21st century pioneers, fueled with innovation and desire, are emboldened by the promise of Nevada to change the world. Nevada is ready to lead,” stated Governor Brian Sandoval.

“I would like to recognize the leadership of Governor Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature for partnering with Tesla to bring the Gigafactory to the state. The Gigafactory is an important step in advancing the cause of sustainable transportation and will enable the mass production of compelling electric vehicles for decades to come. Together with Panasonic and other partners, we look forward to realizing the full potential of this project,” said Elon Musk, Chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors.

“On behalf of the State of Nevada, I would like to acknowledge this monumental day and provide my initial support. This is a significant opportunity to make a major stride to improve our statewide economy. I look forward to receiving the necessary information so the Legislature can meet and take necessary action to support this major industry coming to Nevada,“ stated Speaker Marilyn Kirkpatrick.

http://www.teslamotors.com/about/press/releases/nevada-selected-official-site-tesla-battery-gigafactory

Google is Developing Delivery Drones

At the end of last year, Amazon announced it was working on an autonomous delivery drone service called Prime Air.  Now it seems another internet giant has high ambitions too. The Atlantic just revealed that Google's moonshot program, Google X, has been secretly hard at work developing its own prototype delivery drone technology known as Project Wing.

This last month, around 30 tests were conducted in Queensland, Australia.  The team has successfully delivered a first aid kit, candy bars, dog treats, and water to a couple of farmers.

“We’re only just beginning to develop the technology to make a safe delivery system possible, but we think that there’s tremendous potential to transport goods more quickly, safely and efficiently,” Google said.

Because logistics physically connects people, products and places, these incredible advances in technology could become seriously disruptive forces. Companies are moving quickly and developing these functional systems even ahead of the FAA's expected regulatory framework. Should be an interesting ride.

4 Steps To Hiring People You’ll Never Have To Manage

Resumes Are Nearly Useless

Most of our hiring practices were developed for the Industrial Age. But it turns out resumes are nearly useless and our hiring process is backwards.

#1 - Business Beliefs and Culture

Business Beliefs determine your culture. Beware the picture on the wall of an eagle with a clever saying. You don’t create a culture; you just live out what you believe.

Before you ever look at a resume, test for Business Beliefs. Your best future Stakeholders will believe they should Make Meaning at work, not just money. And they’ll believe that taking ownership of their job, processes, teamwork and results are fundamental responsibilities. Traditional employees believe they trade hours for money. Stakeholders believe they go to work to create Significance in the world around them.

Business Beliefs and Culture are everything, and you don’t find these on a resume.

#2 - Talent

Unlike skills, talents are those innate abilities that can’t be taught; a sense of urgency, attention to detail, silver-tongued communicator, ability to work alone or in teams, etc. Every job requires unique talents. Figure out what those are and hire second for talent, before you look at their resume. You don’t find talent on a resume.

#3 – Skills (Demonstrated)

Resumes are a terrible place to find talents, too.  You don’t test for skills by sitting across from someone asking them if their resume is true. Have the person demonstrate whatever they are being hired to do. If they are good at it, they have the skills. If they don’t, you have to decide if training them makes sense. My company focuses on hiring talented people, because you can teach skills, but talent can’t be taught. People who are highly skilled but untalented will never be great contributors.

#4 Experience.

If someone passes the first four tests, only then should you bother to glance (yes, glance) at their resume. Resumes are just obituaries about what someone used to do, and like obituaries, they are always embellished while downplaying shortcomings. Use resumes at the end of the hiring process to see if someone is a job-hopper, and to help you talk to their references.

We have it all backwards.

So to hire someone who you’ll never have to manage, who will take ownership and become a contributing Stakeholder, interview for these four things, always in this order:

1. Business Beliefs and Culture

2. Talent

3. Skills (test for them, don’t look at the resume)

4. Experience

But how does the traditional Industrial Age process do it? Backwards:

1. Experience - “We need someone fast. We won’t have time to train.”

2. Skills - “Their resume says they’re good. They must be good.”

3. Talent – Rarely looked at

4. Business Beliefs and Culture – At best, an afterthought

Is it any wonder we end up hiring Industrial Age style employees who need to be herded into office day care centers and supervised like seven year olds?

Key-Word Searches Are The Worst Possible Hiring Practice

Using software to do key-word searches as the first step is broken. The rationale is that there are always too many candidates and it eliminates the 90% who won’t be a fit. But what it eliminates is great people who could be a perfect cultural fit, with all the right talents and possibly even the right skills. Instead it selects BS’rs who wrote the best, and possibly most exaggerated obituaries.

Reboot

If you want to hire people you won’t have to manage, throw out most of what you’ve been taught about hiring. Hire first for Business Beliefs and Culture, second for talent, third for demonstrated skills, and use experience as a tiebreaker. You, and the people who you hire, will all be happier and more productive.

Article as seen on Inc.com

by Chuck Blakeman, Author of the #1 Rated Business Book of the Year, Making Money is Killing Your Business and Top 10 business book, Why Employees Are Always A Bad Idea

www.ChuckBlakeman.com

Why You Should Hire Stakeholders, Not Employees

Let's retire the idea of an employee. These days, your company needs something different.

The Factory System gave us cool toys and a cushy life, but it also came with business diseases, and one of them is the Industrial Age concept of the employee. That version is a very new idea in the history of man, and one that needs to go away. Let's replace them with Stakeholders.

Employees Are Silent

The Industrial Age recreated people as extensions of machines. If people left the messy, creative human part at home, they fit into the Factory System much better. Sadly, people adapted, to the point that the generation that entered the work force at the very peak of the Industrial Age (1945-1965ish) was given the worst generational label in history--The Silent Generation. They understood the Factory System mantra, "Be loyal to the company. Do what you're told. Show up early, leave late. Shut up, sit down, don't make waves, live invisibly, and go out quietly. The company will take care of you, from cradle to grave." They bought the promise hook, line and sinker.

Employees Are Children

This view of work (and life) turned adults back into children. The most respected person was one who obediently took orders, did what they were told, didn't question authority, was blindly loyal to those in charge, and lived passively as others directed their life. Pretty much what we want a five-year-old to do.

To keep the children from ruining the house, the Industrial Age herded people into company day care centers, penned them in with clear and narrow rules on performance and hours, and endless limitations on being human and adult at work. Machines didn't need them to ask why, or to create, or to solve problems. Machines just needed them to "do".

Childlike Employees Are Replaced By Adult Stakeholders

The notion of an employee is a business disease which turns people back into children, and it should be eradicated. Some companies can't even use the word anymore. They don't want to hire children who need to be supervised so that they don't run into the street. They want adults. Enter the Stakeholder.

Stakeholders bring the whole, messy, creative person to work. They can think, take initiative, make decisions, carry responsibility, take ownership, be creative, and solve problems. And they incessantly ask the most human of questions, "Why?" They are self-directed and creative, and they solve problems. They don't expect the company or other adults to take care of them.

Stakeholders Are Owners

Ownership is the most powerful motivator in business. Adults own stuff. Even if they don't own a piece of the company, Stakeholders own their work. And as Stakeholders, they receive profit sharing, just like an owner should. To create ownership, Stakeholders in Participation Age companies own some of the fruit of their labor.

Stakeholders Require Leadership, Not Adult Supervision (Management)

If you hire adult Stakeholders instead of childlike employees, it changes the way you lead people. Participation Age companies with Stakeholders don't have office hours, vacation time, or personal days. They're not interested in whose car was in the parking lot first or who left last. In these companies, Stakeholders don't need adult supervision, they need leadership.

Stakeholders Make Meaning and Money At Work, and More of Both

Industrial Age employees traded time for money, and then went home to Make Meaning. Stakeholders won't settle for a j-o-b that just pays the bills. They want to be able to go home at the end of the day knowing they made a difference, not just a product. And everyone is a lot happier because they all work with adults who contribute and pull their own weight.

In the Participation Age, employees are always a bad idea. Stakeholders will replace them. There is a growing wave of companies looking to replace employees with Stakeholders. Don't settle. Find one you can join, or build one yourself.

Come join us in the Participation Age.

by Chuck Blakeman, Author of the #1 Rated Business Book of the Year, Making Money is Killing Your Business and Top 10 business book, Why Employees Are Always A Bad Idea

www.ChuckBlakeman.com

Article as seen on Inc.com