Open Source Management: Walking the Walk

Room 17AB

Tuesday, March 14th

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

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What would happen if a company was forthright and open about the challenges it faces? Why are companies embracing openness when it comes to their software, but not their own operation and decision-making process?Corporations fear the authenticity and vulnerability that would build trust with their customers and better products and services. And vulnerability is necessary for connection, intimacy, trust and real conversation.Blogs, wikis, the Web and other tech goodies have given us the means for exchange, and the impetus for integration within company fiefdoms but not necessarily the human skills for creating a space that allows us to genuinely exchange information, rather than just talk at each other.So, how do you gets comfortable being vulnerable? How does a company come to believe this matters? By experiencing it and its results.In this panel executed as performance/ talk show, we'll explore and *show* what happens if a company is willing to have a real, vulnerable "blog" or conversation with customers, blogging experts and regular folks.

Moderator: Heather Gold Writer/ Performer, Subvert.com

Cathy Brooks Founder/Exec Producer, Other Than That

Mark Glaser MediaShift Blogger, PBS MediaShift

Jerry Michalski Pres, Sociate

David Callisch Dir of Mktg, Ruckus Wireless

Giovanni Rodriguez Principal, Eastwick Communications

Heather Gold Writer/ Performer, Subvert.com

The original name for the panel was "vulnerability"

Heather Gold hosting. One of her biggest frustrations back in the day was the battle to be herself at the office. Open source management is about people being themselves and open and honest at work, and it will keep business more sustainable.

She's explaining to the woman from south africa what gefilte fish is. She also told us that even though laptops are our new stuffed animals, we shuold put them away and join the conversation.

Ruckus has a problem. They sell IPTV to phone companies, but the telcos don't listen to small companies - they want to use open forms of communication to get the conversations going about IPTV.

A forceful woman is questioning their business model, asking why it can't be sold direct to the consumer.

Heather is running around, laying down, breaking shit. She said 'we'll podcast this' i think.

Selena from LoTV just suggested that they go and develop a program for this with the company, maybe as a consultant. Gold says this is key to the current mgmt problems - they see people as consumers and try to force need, not people with whom to converse and transact.

Ruckus created something in anticipation of the telecoms providing the support network. This is risky, but he says the flattening of the world continues: "what's happening now with TV is what happened with data at the rise of the internets"

Their boxes wrap content in ip and does qos, that's their narrow focus, but they are trying to build this grassroots support. A couple consultants have told them they need to forget the abusve environment of telcos.

new commenter: More voting? let everyone including consumers look at your board of directors, your pay structure, your everything.

Theruckusroom.com, subvert.com,