COLLABORATING SMARTLY, THINKING DIFFERENTLYTips & Tricks in Managing Oneself in the Smart Age

I was thrilled when I laid my hands on a personal computer that dad bought home in 1999 (living in a developing country like India, buying a personal computer was a huge thing during those time with hardly 1% of the population being able to afford it). I remember being curious and over-explorative of the device. It was not just the games on the system that fascinated me but also the excel spreadsheets that calculated anything that I could think of as a ten year old, word docs that auto spell checked, PPTs that could blink text and images; everything in the device awed me . I was also intrigued by the way my dad or any other elder used to lightly tap on the side of the CPU or the monitor two or three times, if the system got hung, as if trying to fix a wire/chip loose contact somewhere inside. But for me at that time, it looked like they were punishing the computer (if the tap was hard) if it didn’t work or encouraging it (if the pat was light) to do the work faster. I have tried the same technique many times, tapping it, scolding it and finally muttering good words when things got restored. This gave me early on a feel that technology was a friend, somebody who supports mankind and above all, obeys the master’s instructions.

As a ten year old I remember remarking once, “I feel the computer to be more human, like a friend, than any other machine in the house - the car, the fridge or anything. If it doesn’t work, I beat it twice and it starts working!”

More than a decade and a half later, I don’t feel much of my earlier ecstasy seeing a computer work. I’ve got used to it. I know it is supposed to do my work. The home PCs have been replaced by laptops; them by the mobile phones and tablets that are powered by digital assistants who can do any work for you even as you give voice commands. Command lines have been replaced by voice instructions and a reply that comes to me in the language I speak. Yes, devices have become erriely human now, so much so that I feel somebody knows my life in and out, better than I do.

While robots like the ones that we see in movies and picture posters have not yet found place into our daily households, miniature forms of them like the mobile digital assistant, the IVR etc. have slowly started replacing the human interactions that we have had. Mr. H.James Wilson, Managing Director, IT and Business Research at Accenture in his article in Harvard Business Review defines robots as an artificially created system designed, built, and implemented to perform tasks or services for people. This definition has considers both industrial robots that are primarily used in shop-floors and manufacturing to automate manual tasks and the new age service robots that are found in personal and professional settings: a tele-presence robot at work, a robot in the operating room, an educational robot helping students learn to write code, a research robot exploring the ocean, a robot in space helping astronauts make repairs and so on. Service robots are set to be used more and more as the economy goes on to become more service-oriented and knowledge-driven.

A case scenario:

A company today doesn’t have to hire a personal secretary for its CEO and pay him/her monthly salary, it just needs to provide the CEO with a mobile device with a digital assistant who will automatically and efficiently receive and answer calls, sort e-mails and respond appropriately, chart out calendars and send meeting invites and update the CEO (or talk should be more appropriate) with all relevant information. And all this can be done with a voice similar to human voice (even with

tone variations for selected instances) and greater efficiency. The digital assistant would even be capable of entertaining the CEO with jokes, games and also do silly-talk with him during break times. It will also be able to monitor the CEO’s performance, remind him when there’s a slag and what is required. And all this, it can do without any break and with just some charging required once in a couple of days (for not even the time we take to eat two meals!).

And so here goes the job of the personal assistant, replaced by a digital voice. So, is the CEO also replaceable by a voice or a non-human robot? And what about the other staff?

Yes, it is inevitable that some jobs will have to go. Some jobs will become redundant. But there will also be new possibilities and better avenues for the ones who are willing to look for it, go for it and take up the new challenges that world throws.

Learning from History

After man invented fire and learnt farming and domestication of animals, he learnt to cook food and preserve the extra, thereby freeing a lot of man hours that were earlier spent on hunting and gathering food. Many men would have felt bored and irritated by the loss of their daily chores and would have resisted taking to farming and cooking. But there were many others who looked for new opportunities, to create new things and to explore the earth further. This lead to the origination of new professions in previously unknown fields like arts, music, writing, mining, crafts, weaving and many others. Slowly man learned to trade, one skill for other, helping him amass possessions which he singly could not have made.

The Industrial revolution was another such turning point. Redundant and monotonous work fuelled mainly by tiring and painful human labour was replaced by machines that could lift tons of weight to any height, or dig deep into the earth where oxygen was sparse or immerse itself in boiling hot liquids. There was plenty of opposition to the replacement of human labour; resistance to change to the new ways of manufacturing and production. But like it or not, the change was made and its consequences inevitable. Man learnt to move from brawn power to brain power, and this was in a way aided by the advent of machines. This gave rise to a new knowledge-driven economy and to many new technologies and devices – the computers, internet, mobile devices, blue-tooth, near field communications, and so on.

The Digital Revolution

We are the cusp of a third revolution - the technical revolution. The changes this will bring are profound and almost similar to the ones that sci-fi movies and science thrillers have written about. This age will see machines that can mimic human intelligence and features. Artificial intelligence and robotics have developed robots that can think and learn like humans do. A robot is programmed to act to ‘n’ number of situations in a particular way. With technology going one step ahead, robots can learn from situations that occur multiple times and learn from the responses each time.

While machines emulated manual tasks, artificial intelligence is set to automate mental tasks. With brawn and brain automated, how can a man distinguish himself from these androids?

Searching Within

We have to search within ourselves and manage ourselves as we set to explore within as to what it is that we have more than just brawn and brain. In what ways are our brains wired differently, that can never be imitated by a Robo? Or in other words, how better and different can we be from our machine-programmed clones.

Multi-dimensional Thinking

The ability to think and act differently in different situations and even in similar ones is a capability that is probably unique to man. A living human doesn’t react in the same fashion to every situation or even to the same situation when it occurs a second time. When we cook the same dishes multiple times, the amount of ingredients and sometimes even the ingredients added often differ giving it a different flavour every time. We try to experiment each time we do the same task to make it better, faster, easier and more interesting. It is this difference, even if it might just a miniscule that gives living its taste, frees it from being a monotonous task and leads to the creation of new and different items. Robots and machines too were created by man from the desire to make everyday thinks work smarter and faster.

For example, each time we read a literary classic, our interpretation of it changes according to the times we live in. That is why a teacher or a manager or anybody is able to bring different viewpoints and shades even to the same thing. We do not hesitate to experiment and think out-of-the-box. Man’s creativity and ability to think from multiple dimensions is what helps in the development of new things, digs new channels of sales and marketing and understands the changing needs to human living.

Out-of-the box

Out-of-the-box thinking has been propagated in corporate strategy rooms in the recent times to outdo competition. This is also exactly is what is going to help humans manage themselves in this new digital age. While robots are programmed to do tasks from within the boxes they are programmed in and to some extent learn from multiple instances (the nascent self –learning robots), they will in no time in the near future (may be, this century) be able to emulate the critical thinking and creative thinking capabilities of human beings. Their play will be limited to what has been programmed for them by a super intelligent human, (robotic scientist) who has his ways of thinking.

Another important feature that differentiates a human being from a digital device is his capability to bring in multiple dimensions to his though process. He simply doesn’t go by number analysis but also correlates it with instances and conversations on the topic he has had with others, even if they might be completely unrelated. This ability to navigate through unstructured instances and information is something that differentiates humans from robots. Man has the great capability to understand innovations and inventions that can rise out of serendipity and use it to his advantage, an aspect that digital devices will never understand or be able to figure out.

The Power of Dreams

Another important distinction between man and smart machines is the ability to dream. Dreams are what have helped man achieve great accomplishments. John F. Kennedy’s dream to send man to moon opened up channels of science and technology unexplored until then. It is man’s dreams, his

determination and struggle to pursue them that will differentiate him and help him be the master and the director of the activities on Earth.

Science fiction often captures upon dreams and imagination of the writer. Many of things written by early writers like H.G. Wells have already been made today. The vast and uncommon uses of technology can help man to think in multi-dimensions to capture areas unexplored before.

The CEO won’t be easily replaceable…

…because he has skills that let him think, manage people and emotions, chart goals, chase dreams and make decisions in the face of uncertainty.

Search for New Pastures

Every man’s intuitive nature, his ability to think creatively, be empathetic in situations and be dynamic is what differentiates him from the non-living. We’ll have to make use of the unique human capabilities that we have: inventiveness, empathy and an ability to cope with the unpredictable to find out new types of products and services required and to channel our strength and energy in building up a digital age where the man still is the master. Our belief and faith in a greater strength that created and preserves the universe will always distinguish us from those that can’t think, reason or believe.

Back in the seventeenth or eighteenth century, man would not have thought that computing machines would be needed to do basic mathematical operations such as addition and subtraction. Like the early man who was more concerned about hunting, the seventeenth century man was more concerned about working in the fields, producing and processing grains and making clothes in whichever way he knew it. But when machines were invented that could take over his current responsibilities, he began to think and use his mental power to create new things that could ease his and others life. That is how computers and smart devices were thought of and invented. This technology revolution, that we are witnessing, can help humans further his capabilities to invent things. Nanotechnology can help drive the world though miniscule items, wireless communication technology can help save lot of material cost; already time and distance has been reduced to a large extent.

In The Definitive Drucker: Challenges for Tomorrow’s Executives—Final Advice from the Father of Modern Management (2007), Elizabeth Haas Edersheim writes, “Peter’s ideas were the catalyst that freed people to pursue opportunities they had never expected to have. He liberated people by getting them to challenge their own assumptions. He liberated people by raising their awareness of, and their faith in, things they knew intuitively. He liberated people by forcing them to think. He liberated people by talking to them. He liberated people by getting them to ask the right questions.” [1]

Technology should be used to help man unlock the doors of the mysteries and new challenges that he faces. It should be used to dig deeper, fly higher, transverse time and distance and to create and build things that could previously never be imagined.

When smart devices become as smart as man and can do what he is doing now, man will have to think what more he can do to make his and others life easy. It could exploring the other planets, looking at creating the essential elements of life like oxygen, carbon etc., or recycling all used

material or understanding death. It could in the fields of advanced science, in philosophy, in arts and literature or travel.

Android-Human Collaboration

But just like the seventeenth century man learned to cope and work with machines, the 21 st/22nd

century man would need to learn to work with robots and smart devices. He would need to collaborate with these smart machines in his work every day in order to be able to remain competitive in the market. He’ll need to learn to control them effectively and put them to his advantage to be able to remain the controlling centre. He should be the master and controller rather than the smart device being his master and director. He should strive to ensure that his memory and brain power are not lost to overtly use of digital devices to store information, leading to new-age conditions like digital amnesia. Optimal and judicious use of smart devices coupled with our thinking prowess is what will be helpful in managing ourselves in the technology era. Technology should be used to aid man and augment his capabilities. He should not become overly dependent upon smart devices, especially to do his thinking.

Continuous & Fruitful Education

Man also needs to continuously educate himself. Continuous education and learning is what will help him think creatively and multi-dimensionally. Exposing himself to different scenarios will help in identifying new ideas and paths. With the probable reduction in employment opportunities in certain sectors, the pressure on kids (especially Asian kids) to take science and technology subjects or engineering will get reduced. Arts, sports, science etc. require capabilities that are difficult for robots to imitate, including creative abilities, lateral thinking etc., giving these students a better chance to survive in the new world. In a way we can say it will lead to more equitable distribution of opportunities with each being given a chance according to his/her abilities, education and interest. Technology can play a pivotal role in ensuring that education reaches every person who thirsts for it through MOOCs, online libraries and online teaching methods.

Everybody should be their own CEO

Most companies, in their pursuit for lower costs and higher profits often ignore to train their knowledge workers. Hence it becomes essential for the employee to be the CEO off his career and to learn and enhance his skills with the changing time. In "Managing Oneself," Peter Drucker explains: Cultivate a deep understanding of yourself by identifying your most valuable strengths and most dangerous weaknesses; Articulate how you learn and work with others and what your most deeply held values are; describe the type of work environment where you can make the greatest contribution. Only when you operate with a combination of your strengths and self-knowledge can you achieve true and lasting excellence. [2]

My Lesson

Having looked at the changing technological and employment landscape, as a researcher and analyst I plan to enhance my skill-set particularly with regard to problem solving, data interpretation and creative analysis. And just like the ten year old who once remarked that her home PC was one of her greatest friends, I intend to collaborate with technology -driven smart machines, technologies and androids to support me as I try to better myself. I'll also use them to look out for avenues to build

new things, start companies and aid in employment and value growth, all assisted by technology. Technology will be my partner and guide in my quest to managing myself.

References

1. http://www.success.com/mobile/article/peter-drucker-the-father-of-management-theory

2. https://hbr.org/product/managing-oneself/2312-PBK-ENG

https://hbr.org/2015/05/the-internet-is-finally-forcing-management-to-care-about-people https://hbr.org/1994/09/the-theory-of-the-business http://www.success.com/mobile/article/peter-drucker-the-father-of-management-

theory#sthash.VaUZq02T.dpuf

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2946704/Cheaper-robots-replace-factory-workers-study.html

http://www.quora.com/Automation/If-robots-machines-and-self-service-systems-replace-most-of-the-work-currently-done-by-humans-what-would-humans-do

http://www.wired.com/2012/12/ff-robots-will-take-our-jobs/ http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/mar/22/robot-jobs-humans-used-to-do-fight-back http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/aug/06/robots-jobs-artificial-intelligence-pew http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/01/what-jobs-will-the-robots-take/283239/ http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/6-human-jobs-computers-will-never-replace/ https://hbr.org/2014/12/what-happens-to-society-when-robots-replace-workers http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/2015/01/reign-robots-how-live-machine-age