by Amanda Shiga on October 13, 2008
We’re at the halfway point of the semester and things are getting INTENSE. “I have no life” is a common complaint. Time passes in a blur!
Class discussions are great, but still a battle to get a word in edgewise. The key is to interrupt and be aggressive. Don’t raise your hand…it doesn’t work that way. That said, it never gets disrespectful, although sometimes it seems to be more about saying your piece than actually listening and considering others’ thoughts.
People are already figuring out their thesis topics and supervisors, and what classes they’ll take next term. Some theses are going to be subsidized by companies directly invested in the research outcomes - so some of my classmates will be paid for their work, but will also be held under strict deadlines.
I’ve got two group projects on the go right now:
- A literature review on the differences between for-profit and non-profit business ecosystems
- A research report on the OpenSocial API and its implications
I have to say I’m really looking forward to the presentations by the other groups. Everyone seems to have picked very diverse and unique topics.
The concept of business ecosystems is fascinating, if you haven’t heard of it. A business ecosystem is a self-organizing economic community consisting of mutually beneficial organizations - customers, suppliers, competitors, stakeholders, governing bodies, etc.
Every organization exists in an ecosystem, but can gain a definite advantage by nurturing and supporting their ecosystem and incorporating it into strategic planning. Read more on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_ecosystem
by Amanda Shiga on September 18, 2008
I’ve been asked by a few people to describe my school program (Technology Innovation Management, aka TIM) in a bit more detail. With props to Prof. M. Weiss’ slidedeck, I think this image sums it up nicely.
This diagram shows that the TIM program focuses on the early, rapid-growth phases of product development and new ventures, whereas the MBA focuses on the management of established companies and processes.
In a nutshell, the program aims to teach students how to manage the processes that give rise to technological innovations. This includes product development in emerging markets, value creation and monetization models in the “early days” phase. It’s an exciting place to be, especially in the world of web and social media, where there is no such thing as a mature market yet. Heh!
Aside from its place in the graph, the program distinguishes itself in these ways:
- A strong bias towards open source platforms. This ties in with technology’s direction towards a flatter playing field and the movement towards free products and services. How will companies grow and compete in this space?
- Teaching philosophy: learning happens via constructive argument
- Strong ties with startup and open source communities, as well as giants like IBM
- Senior professionals in the industry attend presentations
- A four-step process guides you through your thesis preparation and defense
What’s great is that within the program’s research areas, I will have lots of options to consider for my thesis! I’m leaning towards a topic within social media (of course), but I still have 8 months or so to narrow it down.
by Amanda Shiga on September 17, 2008
I’m in the second week of classes at Carleton. It’s mostly been a flurry of introductions, explanations and setting up accounts but here are my first impressions:
- Class size is about 20 with ~4 women per class
- Almost everyone is from an engineering background
- I’m one of the youngest, keeping company with people who have already built and sold companies
- Professors gauge that an A+ requires 6-10 hours/week of work outside of class.
- There are some strong personalities. I’ll have to speak up!
- I have the overwhelming impression that I made a really good choice with this program.
One of my first group projects will be on web 2.0 and social media - my current favourite topics. I think a lot of my classmates will focus on more hardware or systems-oriented topics. We certainly have a diverse group - I’m hoping to seek out the web-oriented people for the projects. All in all a positive start 
