I’ve been reading a very interesting interview with Douglas Merrill, Google’s CTO, for those not familiar with the name. His goal is the same as mine - world domination - not really, I kid - it’s simply to give Google workers the technology they need and keep them safe. That’s what I try to do for iCrossing workers and hopefully without falling into the draconian “protection trap” that so many coporations end up in.
Like Google we have a very tech savvy group of employees at iCrossing which means everyone enjoys much more freedom than most organisations, but I’m thinking why can’t we take it further. Why not the complete freedom to do anything? Focus totally on choice - and let you guys choose from a bunch of different computers, different operating systems, different phones, different tools and support all of them (Jim don’t have a heart attack). It’s not cost-efficient, but on the other hand, wouldn’t productivity soar? OK, we don’t have the benefit of the cash filled pockets of Google and would have the odd financial constraint, but surely we could explore some unauthordox approaches.
Perhaps we could try the Google model of support. Massively more self-service from network hubs and ”tech stops” - take your laptop to a drop-in area in the office for instant ideas, instant solutions, instant kickings - a personal, informal drop in help desk - where solutions are handed out there and then and also get blogged about instantly which the iCrossing community is expected to refer to and self-serve.
Most CTOs would throw a wobbly at the security risks, but if you beef up perimeter protection, build security into the infrastructure as a feature, look for unusual journeys across the enterprise and look to the community to police it can work. Malcolm 
and I were talking about network audits - tedious, dull, time-consuming, authoritarian - the “unorthordox” alternative is to randomly stream what people are surfing, saying, doing onto community plasmas. Then the whole community can say “Hey, who’s surfing porn and putting my work at risk?” – it is also a pretty cool pictorial snapshot of the day.
Un “author” doxy is decentralised, agile IT, that’s why Scott, Shuo, and David are deeply embedded in business units and not locked away in a glass tower.
Un “author” doxy is looking at how IT supports an internal, enterprise relationship economy that will ebb and flow and change direction. Brand marketers don’t control brands – people do, IT doesn’t control organisations – we do. I intend to do a lot more thinking about the unusual, the unorthodox and I’d love to hear you views.
