Entrepreneurship can begin with “imagine living in the future, and find out what’s missing”. Conveniently, Google has done that for us, and all they lack is an entrepreneur. Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt discusses technology of tomorrow.

We have previously established Google as a company that utilizes IT to gather information regarding its customers and makes strategic decisions based on this information. Google knows its customers. It knows what they want now, and can easily predict what will be wanted a few years down the line. Google is exhibiting the concept of “living in the future and finding out what’s missing”.

However, this is not the only part where IT comes into play. In order for Google’s automated products to accurately serve its users, it needs accurate information. The example raised in the interview clip is a screen informing its user that he can spend an extra 30 minutes in bed because of good traffic condition. Google’s power as a search engine is perfect for meeting this essential requirement.

The development of technology and the IT sector has allowed the impossible to be materialized. Just as Cole said in class, 50% of the jobs we will undertake when we graduate do not exist today. So, who knows what will happen in the future?

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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Mayo’s Hawthorne Effect research, Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory; there are countless more studies, like the one outlined in this blog, and theories that attempt to decode employee motivation.

It is often said that employees are an organization’s most valuable assets. Therefore, keeping these ‘assets’ motivated has become crucial. Demotivation leads to absenteeism, higher labor turnover, deteriorated staff morale, altogether causing lost productivity and essentially lost revenue.

Google seems to be the undoubted exemplar of a motivational workplace. Aside from its spectacular amenities available to its employees, FREE OF CHARGE, its corporate culture also plays a major role in fostering such motivation. Scott Henry has mentioned hiring the right people is the first step to creating a satisfied and harmonious workforce. And “right” is measured against Google’s corporate culture. As a company that considers “Googleyness” as a criterion when hiring, the organizational hierarchy is presumably fairly flat. This encourages creativity and teamwork within each level of the hierarchy. In addition, reduced power distance also fosters a greater sense of cohesiveness within the corporation.

All in all, there is a multitude of dimensions to the concept of motivation. Hardware is one, as Google has perfectly exhibited, but the intangible aspects are also equally, if not more, important.

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TeleSign is yet another example of an organization that has unified business and information technology decision-making.

“Who owns it, what kind of phone it is (land line, mobile, VOIP, etc), how long they’ve had it, where they get their service, and which companies and apps they’re attached to” are information TeleSign is able to gather when it has access to any individual’s phone number via its clients. TeleSign leverages this information to “score” the individual to determine whether or not he/she will pass the identity test; which in turn decides whether or not he/she will be offered a service by TeleSign’s client.

The TeleSign Rating System

This practise has been put in place to prevent frauds related to electronic transactions. However, is it ethical? If our phone number truly becomes the authenticator of identity in the future, privacy, if it isn’t already, will become an issue.

From an organization’s perspective, Management Information Systems is an excellent method and platform for getting to know a little bit more about consumers. Though as a consumer, I personally would like to have the right to keep my identity protected.

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A quick search for the definition of “shopping” on dictionary.com has given me this: “to visit shops and stores for purchasing or examining goods.”

Sure, I shop at the mall, stores and shops. Hold on, rephrase: I window-shop at malls, shops and stores. Living in China has redefined shopping for me. I frequently found myself pulling out a measuring tape to check my size in order to make a purchase on Taobao, a Chinese online-shopping site. Shopping has been taken onto a whole new level in China.

Online shopping offers one value proposition regular malls and stores don’t – convenience. There may be other value propositions – like personal assistance – that physical stores offer and online shopping doesn’t, but the benefits of being able to purchase an item without spending over an hour travelling greatly outweighs the cost and risk of the item not fitting. Moreover, flexible return policies have been put in place to address this concern.

As e-commerce continues to develop, and as future generations of children become more dependent on technology, the virtual substitute is undoubtedly a large threat to physical stores and malls. Will we end up in an era of complete-online-shopping? Probably not. But it will probably be a bumpy road ahead for physical stores.

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Single’s Day may not be an official holiday, but it sure is looked forward to as much as any other holiday by the Chinese population. If there is a cure to the depression of being single, it is the excitement of logging onto Taobao and pressing the ‘purchase’ button.

“Tmall.com, one of Alibaba’s shopping sites, said Chinese bought 1.6 million bras, which it helpfully noted would reach three times the height of Mount Everest if folded and stacked, and two million pairs of underpants, which if linked together would stretch 1,800 miles, all before the lunch hour.” (Wang, 2013)

“Made in China” is a label no foreign to any consumer in the world, especially first-world countries. Needless to say, shopping in China can be very cheap. An additional 50% off to that price tag has generated a phenomenal hype in the market, which has not only benefitted Taobao merchants, as outlined by Minqi Lin, but is also perfect for Alibaba as it prepares to launch an IPO that may be valued higher than Facebook. Of course, doubts lie around whether or not this kind of sales and growth rates can sustain without the discounts; but when the business records “402 million unique visitors to its sites” and “processed more than $5.75-billion (U.S.)” in one day, I’d say that’s quite reassuring for investors.

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“Buyer power” doesn’t just describe which party is more superior in a trade scenario. It comes with consequences, and Walmart has perfectly exhibited the ripple effect of when the average Chinese consumer has buyer power against the supermarket giant.

Walmart will be stocking its Chinese stores with upgraded merchandise. Walmart is opening new distribution facilities in China. Walmart is responding to market changes. 

The company is “putting a greater emphasis on better quality fresh food and groceries” by “opening new distribution facilities in China – the need for more rapid distribution will ensure [freshness]”. While this could be a tough task as Walmart risks incurring inventory wastage costs if supply exceeds demand, this added value proposition is exactly what Chinese consumers seek. In light of that, demand will match supply when this practice is put in place. This outcome indicates a shorter shelf life and turnover period for Walmart’s products, which will lower the company’s costs.

While its new distribution facilities in China will reduce Walmart’s lead time, it is simultaneously reducing the distance Walmart’s stocks travel to arrive at its stores. This is creating shared value by redefining productivity in its value chain.

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