Business

What if politicians innovated the open source way?

In the discussions around some of my previous articles, I've noticed a trend: we seem to be focusing on cultural changes that need to be made for the open source way to be effective in contexts beyond technology. » Read more

8 CommentsPosted 17 Feb 2010 by Chris Grams

Amplifying creativity and business performance with open source

If we want to master creativity, we must first understand and obey its nature. And that's a tall order when most of our policies, laws, investments, business norms, and even our educational system actually works against it.

My father was a scientist, and when I was a boy I asked him, “What's the most important thing you know about science?” And his response was a quote from Francis Bacon: “Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed.” » Read more

5 CommentsPosted 16 Feb 2010 by Michael Tiemann (Red Hat)

Is the traditional business world at war with creativity?

Earlier this week some colleagues and I attended a fantastic gathering of business and political leaders called the Emerging Issues Forum. The theme of the forum—interestingly enough for a bunch of business folks—was creativity, and speakers included some of my favorite thinkers/authors who analyze the future of business:

» Read more

15 CommentsPosted 11 Feb 2010 by Chris Grams

Three signs your corporate culture isn't ready for the open source way

It's a good bet that the next generation of defining companies will have corporate cultures built the open source way-- around openness and collaboration, while fostering community and culture that extend outside the company walls.

In fact many of the defining companies of the first decade of this century show these characteristics (with one very notable exception we discussed earlier).
» Read more

7 CommentsPosted 9 Feb 2010 by Chris Grams

From IP network to broadcast network: Understanding the new media landscape

So, how does an unknown anthropology professor from Kansas make a home movie on a “cheap computer” in his basement that beats out all the $3.6 million Super Bowl ads and transforms him into a Web 2.0 rock star? This story begins and ends with the free and open user-generated media-scape. » Read more

4 CommentsPosted 8 Feb 2010 by Tony O'Driscoll

Open Thread Thursday: Release early, release often?

You may be familiar with the Thomas Edison quote: "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." In the open source way, the principle is sometimes referred to as rapid prototyping, or "release early, release often." The idea is that faster prototypes can lead to faster failures. And faster failures lead to faster solutions.

What do you think? Do you agree with the philosophy? And if so, how can we help organizations see small failures as steps toward big successes?

Share your thoughts below.

12 CommentsPosted 3 Feb 2010 by Jonathan Opp

Open source and the future of Super Bowl advertising

As we approach the most anticipated day of the year for brand managers, Super Bowl Sunday, I thought it appropriate to comment on one of the biggest pieces of news coming out the branding and marketing circles in recent weeks: in a bold move, Pepsi – historically one of the largest spenders of Super Bowl advertising dollars – has discontinued its investment in commercial advertising during what could arguably be the most-watched television event ever.

However, I am not as interested in this decision as I am in how Pepsi will be reallocating its advertising budget, and how this might signal the early signs of even the largest and most traditional companies dabbling in (and even embracing) open source models of business. » Read more

7 CommentsPosted 2 Feb 2010 by John Adams (Red Hat)

The Apple exception: where open innovation theory breaks down

Over the last few weeks, I've noticed more folks pointing out a paradox that has been driving me nuts. As many companies embrace open innovation and culture, there is one incredibly successful holdout: Apple. Three articles on the subject here, here, and here. » Read more

67 CommentsPosted 1 Feb 2010 by Chris Grams

Open Thread Thursday | Business: Can the truth really set you free?

There's a lot of talk about openness and transparency in the world of business these days. So we wanted to ask: What does it really mean to be an open company? Where are you seeing companies act in a more open way? And where do you think companies can benefit most from transparency?

We'd love to hear your stories. Share your thoughts below. You can also discuss them with us on the freenode IRC channel #opensource.com. » Read more

15 CommentsPosted 27 Jan 2010 by Jonathan Opp

2 reasons why the term "crowdsourcing" bugs me

Interesting article in Forbes about the way Threadless, the awesome t-shirt company, thinks about community-building. For those of you who aren't familiar with Threadless, they do about $30 million in revenues with a unique cultural/business model that merges a community of t-shirt creators and consumers into one happy family (you can read more about them in the Forbes article). » Read more

11 CommentsPosted 26 Jan 2010 by Chris Grams