When Autumn starts to feel like it’s run its’ course, I get a little giddy for the possibilities of Winter. Not for winter sports and all that, but I dream of hibernation and the preparation for Spring that I never get to have. When the first snowflakes fly, I secretly yearn to hunker down in…
I had no idea earlier this year I would have read so much about virology. One tidbit: virologists have learned that viruses are something less than alive: they contain genetic information but cannot reproduce. They require a host that they can take over and make do their bidding. Once a bug is inside us, its’…
What do Police Departments and Public Schools have in common? In 2020 they’ve both been forced to reckon with situations that question their legitimate, organizational authority. One over perceived systemic racism and safety (Black Lives Matter) and the other over COVID-19: how to engage with stakeholders, how to share information, and (allegedly) safeguard the personal…
I’ve been reading a bit about the 200 viruses that are known collectively as “the common cold.” Three or four of those are coronaviruses, the latest of which science believes jumped to humans approximately 10,000 years ago (~8,000 BCE). They estimate the world population then was between 1-10 Million. The upper end is the current…
Today the Tulsa World published an Opinion piece by me that I called “Hamilton Summer.” A Summer of deep-diving into the history and scholarship of the musical “Hamilton” made me think about how hard (and fragile) American democracy is. You can read the Tulsa World article here. Enjoy, and if you’re looking for IT Management…
For years as an IT diagnostician, my most sought-after skill was being able to know someone’s mind (and thus their technology needs) well enough to anticipate needs, or at the least being able to translate needs into something I can deliver. Later as an IT Director and V-P, when onboarding beginner Tier 1 tech support…
Note: I started this post in late February 2020, before the pandemic lockdown, to remind and describe how companies have “pivoted” (hate that term) in the past due to societal mandates. Now I finally went back, post-surgery, to finish it… See the “Mad Men”-esque image above. Where’s your organization’s secretarial pool? Not long ago (my…
I read a piece this week that illustrates the importance of building diversity into our teams. In the waning days of NASA’s Apollo program, the money was running out. Not to go deep into the why or politics, Apollo 18 was canceled, and NASA had to make decisions on what projects to include in our…
“Not Invented Here.” This is a popular corporate syndrome that was often mentioned as part of Microsoft’s organizational culture back in the late 90s/early 2000s. Being that it was org culture, it kept popping up in different ways. For example, in the early days of the Internet, Microsoft chose to keep the ‘Net at arm’s…
June 10, 2019 Last week I severed my final tie to the Tulsa Area United Way, my wonderful employer for 8+ years. I maintain the highest respect for their mission and the great folks who work there, doing so much for our 5-county service area. My first volunteer activity for them was the very first…