Darkness

With all that's going on in the world, deja vu is all over the place:

• The Russians/Soviets are the enemy, again.
• The word "Stagflation" is being used, again. 
• Gasoline prices are through the roof, again.
• Interest rates getting to double digits, again.
• Huge political turmoil, again.
• Abortion rights in the news, again.
• The President of the United States is international befuddlement, again.
• The US is in a proxy war, halfway across the world, again.

Back to the 70s - 

Then-President Jimmy Carter got on national television, all three channels, and told citizens of the greatest nation in history to "turn down" thermostats to conserve energy.  Gas prices crept up to 86 cents after a decade of below 40 cents per gallon.  

The national speed limit went from 75 to 55MPH for the dual purpose to conserve fuel and saving lives.  Studies reveal the latter did not occur.

Euthanasia, Karen Quinlan, Save the Whales, abortion, and No Nukes were the social issues of the day.

Japan was taking business away from the Big Three automakers, and Detroit was in an economic tailspin.  "Stagflation" ruled and everyone was afraid of the Soviet Union.  

Hostages in Iran, Marines died in the desert in a failed rescue attempt.

Are we in a Billy Joel video?  No.  No, we are not.

But we, a Nation, have been here before and we will be here again and again.  It was bad back then in the 70s.  It was bad in the 60s.  Some say it's bad right now.

It is nothing new and we'll get through this, like your parents and your parents, parents did.

And exactly how your kids will, too.

Do you like Sax?  Of course, you do...

Office Snacks: Zooming Away

I've been saying this for years.  

The beer on tap in the break room, blue jean Fridays, Taco Tuesdays, donuts after 5 PM, foosball, espresso machines, company BBQ, and EXTRAVAGANT, high-budget Christmas parties are all velvet handcuffs.

Don't get me wrong - I HAPPILY ENJOYED every cup of fresh brewed, every single company-sponsored, 12 Martini lunch, each trip, shot, and a slab of meat provided.

I did and I would again.

But I understood the assignment - and the game - and appreciated it in the manner it is offered.  

• The Cinco De Mayo lunch is a payoff.  
• The breakfast just before a technology show is a payoff.
• The client appreciation dinner is a payoff.
• Tickets to the Bucks game?  Not just a playoff. You guessed it, payoff.

New and Improved Managed Print Services Model, "Z22"

Managed Print Services has been around for decades and as a concept offers the opportunity to expand beyond the printed document.  It always has been.

Things change, they always do, and this is true for managed print services.  I was involved with developing an MpS model back in 2007 and again later, twice, with the MPSA.

There is no wrong model - there's just a more 'right' model.  Mine.  Which is now yours.

The typical, status quo MPS model stands on three basic phases, "Control", "Optimize" and "Enhance" and is progressed sequentially, with a Beginning and a Terminus.

I never liked it as a step-by-step process.  Managed print Services is an ongoing system - what today we call a "flywheel".  

So when looking at the above illustration, you'll notice there are no arrows.  Sure, the hexagons sport numerals, and yes, you must start with Hex"00" and bounce through the remaining areas, but the process can move from 02 to 01 to 03; non-sequential.

Here is your new and improved MpS Renaissance Model, Z22: 

Happy #MayTheFourth

On a hot August, Florida evening in 1977, my family and I stood in line.

My father never liked standing in line, but if you've been to Florida on a family vacation, standing in line is ubiquitous - in line at Disney, in line for dinner, in a line of traffic - the trip down I-75 was a continuous line into a world of lines.

This night was different, we were standing in line to see something we could have seen back in Westland but the buzz rivaled Space Mountain.

For the first and last time, my family and I would stand in a line to see a movie.  In the land of the Mouse, the family Walters was waiting to see a movie called "Star Wars".

 

The critics were not happy, calling out shallow characters, and a predictable, "Arthurian" plotline.  

The critics didn't know squat.  

When it was all said and done, some movie-goers will have sat and watched this movie 50, 60 times. In a theater.  

Lunch boxes, Christmas specials and you know the rest.

Over the next few years, I would see the same movie five times, read the book dozens of times, and listen to the entire soundtrack before each and every Highschool football game.  (I'm told I sounded like a Tie Fighter coming through the line.  This I do not remember)

Back then, in 9th grade, I was lucky enough to have a film class.  In film class, we made a movie.  

I had no idea how to make a movie(8MM, black and white, no sound) All I knew was that film is an easy "A".

A buddy and I sat on the floor of the school and scooted around on our butts while the brains of the operation filmed us.  Up one square, click.  Another square, 'click'.  This went on for 9 weeks.  It was stop-action and we raced around the halls zooming every which way...

At the end of the semester, our film was the best in class.  Although the writer, director, cameraman, and editor did all the work(one guy) each of us received an A.

Fast forward about 20 years, I am watching the making of Phantom Menace when I recognize a face on the screen - there was the guy who made the movie back in 9th grade.  Doug Chiang.  I fell out of my chair.

Doug has gone on to win multiple Oscars working with GL and the ILM.

My one claim to fame in Hollywood is staring in Doug's first feature film.  His people have not returned my people's many calls.  :-)

Happy May the Fourth!

Doug Chiang, whose first movie I starred in, and some other dude.

#theforce #Nabu #StevensonJuniorHighschool #starwars #work #people #like #school #film #football #writer #maythe4thbewithyou #maythe4th #maythefourthbewithyou

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Walt's Weekly Words - Week 1

While researching/roaming the inter-webs I find interesting, #Evernote worthy, pieces. Here are a few transformational tidbits, webcasts, and content vetted by me, for you.

#WorkRemote, get paid less? The battle dividing offices will define the future of work 

| US work & careers | The Guardian

"In addition, up to half of America’s jobs are projected to be freelance by 2030 and two-thirds of employers now regard some form of remote work or hybrid work as “the new norm”. Many companies are declaring themselves “fully remote”, giving them a competitive edge over those requiring presenteeism."

Read the rest, here.

Three Steps for Your #ManagedprintServices Practice

There were dark days.  

Back in 2007, MpS was new, on the edge, and a bit contrarian.  The year was 2007, copiers were flying off the shelf, and everybody signed a 60-month lease with an accompanying service agreement.  A4 was a dirty word.

MpS didn’t flourish it sputtered and more often failed. Stories of fallen MPS practices outnumbered the successful.

I, myself, declared MpS dead in 2011 because the discipline became adulterated into the lowest price possible. The race to the bottom was inevitable.

Today, I look upon the contemporary MpS ecosystem and see customers calling dealers looking to sign MpS contracts, more MpS press coverage, INCREASED membership in your MPSA, ridicule, and criticism from industry "pundits" and “shills” it’s beginning to feel like the ‘good old days.  Sorta. My optimism is cautionary.

End User Snapshot 21: How Companies Provided WFH Hardware

Thirty-eight percent told us that companies supplied VoIP phone equipment or reimbursed an employee for obtaining that equipment. Interestingly, more than half of the survey takers said their company did not require this equipment.

Almost half of survey takers said their company supplied printers or MFPs along with the ink or toner to work from home. However, more than a third told us their company did not require this kind of equipment or supplies as they worked from home.

Watch the video for more, here.

Six Predictive Points of #WFH

Castor. 
Six-star system. Castor is a multiple star system made up of six individual stars; there are three visual components, all of which are spectroscopic binaries.

From Cubicles to Constellations: The Future of Work in Six Shining Points

The future of working from home (WFH) is outlined through six key insights, signaling a shift in the modern working paradigm. The article portrays a landscape where traditional models are fading, and a new virtual frontier is emerging.

1. The Hybrid Work Trap: Oscillating between home and office is highlighted as a stressful and inefficient process, questioning the logic behind maintaining two working environments.
2. The Unleashed Worker: This concept illustrates the newfound freedom to work for multiple companies, enabling a diversified and dynamic professional life.
3. Remote Workers as Urban Saviors: By embracing WFH, cities can transform into hubs that support remote work, with amenities like fast internet and affordable living spaces, thus sparking urban revitalization.

Together, these points sketch a future where work is not confined to a physical place but is an adaptable, flexible, and innovative way of living and contributing.

_________

1. The #HybridWork model is a trap.

It is more stressful and less productive to switch back and forth from working at home to working in a cube.  Why commute only to sit in on another Zoom meeting? Why support TWO sets of technology and if you're still paper-bound, why lug files and 3-rings back and forth between offices?

#WorkFromHome Will Save Cities

I've been saying "the 'good' things about city life will move to where the customers and audiences live and work."

• "Broadway" moves off-broadway into the burbs and countryside...
• Marc Forgione opens in Brighton...
• The local coffee joint builds a conference room...
• 5G helps telepresence flourish...

All the good things about cities will move closer to their customers and audiences.  Makes sense.

But there is something else - Remote Workers will save NYC.

How many of Us have ever lived?

I've often contemplated this very question.  Where are all the dead people?

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Productivity is Up & Employees are Happy

I’ve been saying this from the beginning, management, upper management and C Level people must be shaking in their boots as decades of redundancy and inefficiency come to light under remote working.

Productivity went UP and employees are happier.

What will be improved by RTO?

If you say productivity, you’re ignoring facts. When you say ‘culture’ you are manipulative and transparent.

People may come back to the plantation but they won’t be happy about it.

All the Blue Jean Fridays, 2% raises, & ping pong tables, won’t make up for the cold dinners, missed recitals, chaotic schedules for doctor and vet appointments, and boorish coworkers.

Of course, there are people who WANT to get back to an office - there always are.

Good video, here...

With 1 Sentence, Google's CEO Revealed the Best Reason NOT to Return to the Office I've Heard Yet.

The argument is self-centered concentrating on a"community" based on employer location, not the employees'.

Google has 9.5 billion reasons to keep knowledge workers on the plantation - not a sense of community.

From the article:

"Pichai says Google is spending $9.5 billion on offices and data centers this year...

Pichai points out another overlooked reason for returning to the office. The physical space your business occupies provides a "vital anchor" to your local community. It creates a connection that doesn't exist with a distributed team working in different places.