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tale two metaverses

The Metaverse’s history shows we’re not quite ready for it

  • min read
    • In October 2021, Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg changed his company's brand name to Meta to reflect what he sees as the importance of the metaverse to their business strategy. Experienced using a virtual reality (VR) headset, the three-dimensional virtual environment lets characters (called avatars) engage in social and commercial activities much like real life. Many global business giants see the Metaverse as a huge commercial opportunity that will change how we live and work. Should your business get involved? I believe the Metaverse's history shows while it's an environment you should get familiar with, it may not be the time to invest big. Here's why. MMOGs have been around since the 1990s. Their popularity has risen fast worldwide with improved internet connectivity, computer power and immersive graphics. One such game, space simulator EVE Online, has seen over 60,000 players simultaneously playing. And like in the Metaverse, trading virtual items for real-world money in MMOGs has become big business. What's the Metaverse's attraction? The Metaverse has business potential because of our willingness to invest so much time and money in playing games online. In a 2022 virtual conference on the Metaverse, Datin Lorela Chia, CEO of Haus of Stylo, Malaysia, gave examples of the fashion and games industry collaborating, like creating and selling virtual garments for avatars. But it's not just about buying and selling things – the Metaverse offers a way to meet, discuss or learn that's more immersive than other online communication tools. Bill Gates said in 2021, "Within two to three years, I predict most virtual meetings will move from 2D camera image grids… to the Metaverse – a 3D space with digital avatars." Metaverse follows in Second Life's footsteps In almost every way except the VR headsets, there was a Metaverse from 2003, when Linden Labs launched virtual world Second Life. Second Life is a virtual world that lets users create avatars and settings, and teleport from one place to another in seconds. Second Life has an estimated 800,000 users and many of the characteristics of a real-world civilization – rules, citizen rights, homes, shops, universities and events. It has many business applications like hybrid conferences, virtual project meetings and data visualization for education and collaboration. IBM has used Second Life for internal meetings. BP for graduate recruitment and Imperial College London for virtual hospital tours. But with all its functionality and experience, Second Life hasn't gained mainstream commercial success. So why does Mark Zuckerberg believe his Metaverse has massive disruptive potential? What's enabling today's Metaverse? The answer lies in how the internet evolved since its birth in 1983. The power of 5G and fibre, smartphones and social media have all played a role. Today's advanced internet technologies make the Metaverse possible, but the devices and applications we use daily will determine whether it has significant commercial potential. Second Life runs on a desktop computer and connects to a network of Linden Lab servers. It's a security risk for businesses with network firewalls. Second Life is also 'synchronous:' users only get value from being online at the same time as other users. So there are no users in most Second Life locations most of the time. To use a real-world retail analogy, there's a lack of footfall. This is also true for the Metaverse. Its commercial potential will depend on user numbers and where they spend time. It's critical there's on-demand universal access across computers, laptops and mobile devices. Perhaps 'Web 3.0' will be the technology that delivers on making Metaverse experiences securely accessible to a global marketplace across different devices, but especially mobile devices like smartphones. What is Web 3.0 and why does it matter? IT industry analyst Robin Bloor recently said, "Web 3.0 is the third generation of the internet — a global network that permits intelligent interactions between all its users and devices." Web 3.0 is a theoretical new blockchain-based iteration of the web. It could provide increased data security, scalability and privacy for users. It would let users publish rich media content to a global audience and make a Metaverse more commercially viable than Second Life. By making the web more powerful, intuitive and secure, Web 3.0 could mean the volume of online users accessing and creating content grows faster. One major difference, most relevant to the Metaverse, is better handling of the 3D graphics needed for virtual worlds. Blockchain important to Metaverse commerce Metaverse settings are computer-generated environments or 360-degree photos and videos captured by consumer or professional cameras. These digital images and videos are now traded on the internet. Blockchain can validate ownership of these digital assets, enabling the fashion industry to sell digital garments. In Second Life from 2005, you could create digital assets and trade them for the digital currency Linden dollars. Today, the same thing is happening in the Metaverse using blockchain and cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. These latest developments, alongside artificial intelligence that connects buyers with sellers, will add to the growth of the Metaverse. How will the Metaverse affect business? The future shape and commercial potential of the Metaverse go beyond numbers of users. It also depends on how often they visit, for how long, where and why. With pandemics and climate change restricting face-to-face contact and travel, applications that enable remote communication and collaboration have grown fast. Online meeting app Zoom saw daily meeting participants grow from 10 million to 300 million between 2019 and 2020, mostly from small business and personal use. Will the Metaverse become the new virtual meeting space Bill Gates predicted? It seems unlikely for now, with the convenience and ease of use of Zoom and other online meeting platforms. More likely, the commercial potential of the Metaverse will be unlocked by applications that benefit more from immersive experiences. It could also be useful in mental and physical health therapies that use virtual reality and for complex 3D data visualization. Facebook (Meta) has invested hugely in strategy based on VR headsets as the gateway to their Metaverse platform. Unlike the browsers found on every smartphone and laptop, few own or have access to a VR headset. At the moment, Metaverse suffers from the same problem that restricted Second Life – a limited marketplace, until the technology evolves to the point where VR headsets or glasses are affordable and ubiquitous. Unlike recent disruptions like cryptocurrency, the Metaverse relies on mass adoption to be profitable for business. Several factors in the market today make mass Metaverse adoption unlikely, like low VR headset ownership and lack of systems to access the Metaverse with commonly owned devices. While businesses should closely follow the Metaverse's development, it may be premature to invest heavily at this time. In any case, watch this space.
trust customer privacy

You need these two ways to win customers’ data privacy trust

  • min read
    • Business sees trust in data privacy as a panacea. Companies that foster customer trust see more customer engagement and willingness to share valuable personal information. But what do we mean when we talk about trust in data privacy? What are privacy experts advising companies to do when they recommend building trust? It's one of the driving questions behind my book, The Intelligent Marketer's Guide to Data Privacy: The Impact of Big Data on Customer Trust. Most guidance around instilling trust doesn't adequately explain what trust is, or how to develop it. In researching companies that use privacy as a competitive advantage, I found two types of trust are key. First, customers must trust the company is competent and skilled in protecting their data. Second, they must trust the company's reasons for protecting their data are customer-centered. Although each type of trust is valuable alone, developing both is optimal for customer and business outcomes. Be capable of delivering what you promise The Oxford English Dictionary says trust is "belief in the reliability, truth, ability or strength of someone or something." This definition links trust with data privacy capabilities. For a company to position itself as strong on data privacy, it must have the skills and competencies to be effective in security and protection. For enterprises, this means having resources like data security teams or systems in place, and a talented chief privacy officer (CPO.) You should find it relatively easy to implement (and exceed) privacy regulations. For smaller firms, demonstrating responsible data handling across all interfaces and processes strengthens customer trust in your privacy capabilities. Trust in your company's data privacy abilities also involves your history with data protection. Strong claims about protecting customer data privacy seem suspicious if you've had a well-publicized data breach in the past. But my research found organizations that have suffered a data breach can recover trust by giving customers transparency and control. Ensure you're honest about past lapses when encouraging customers to trust your data protection capabilities following a breach. Be privacy-conscious for the right reasons Customers must also trust your data privacy position is for the right reasons. If trust in your ability to uphold privacy is the cold, rational side of trust, trust in your intentions is the warm, fuzzy side. Ways to build trust in your company's data privacy motivations are less clear and may take longer. This kind of trust is linked to reputation, so just one negative event can deteriorate it, with a long, hard road to redemption. My research found many prominent technology companies suffer from this deficiency in trust. Large firms with ample resources for strong data protections may not necessarily find customers like their privacy stance. For example, even before the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook (now Meta) wasn't well regarded for its privacy practices. When companies like this talk about privacy, customers tend to distrust their reasons. This trust deficit around big tech may present opportunities for small or new tech companies to make a mark, differentiating themselves through customer-centered privacy values. Building customer trust is key to creating value through smooth exchange of personal information and building long-term, mutually beneficial relationships. Businesses of all sizes should pursue customer trust. But, before devoting resources to building trust in data privacy, your business must understand what trust involves. Trust implies distinct company behaviors and practices. Carefully managing trust and not taking for granted what trust you already have, is key to leading on privacy.
global regulations

INFOGRAPHIC: How GDPR changed the world, and privacy regulation’s future

  • min read
    • One piece of regulation has never before had such global impact as the EU Global Data Protection Regulation (GDPR.) It's firmly established data privacy in the public mind, giving extensive and unassailable rights and affecting behavior well beyond the EU's borders. GDPR legislation was a pioneer that other regions followed. The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) came into force in 2020. The more expansive California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) will replace it in 2023. While there is no federal nationwide data protection law in the US, all fifty states have regulated data safeguarding, disposal and breach disclosure. US data privacy is pointing towards giving consumers more rights. Africa and Asia, with few exceptions, have a way to go in privacy regulation. It may be fair to say data protection regulation follows economic and political development. But China has a different focus. Having enacted strong privacy regulation, it's regaining control of local Big Tech, starting with corporate dismemberment of Alibaba. It aims to control the massive amounts of data held by Chinese companies that may list overseas. New consumer expectations of data privacy GDPR and other regulations worldwide have raised awareness of privacy issues. There's a gap between what customers want and what businesses think customers want in their digital experience. Businesses think it's profiles (for example, offering relevant suggestions,) live help and price-matching. But consumers prioritize rewards, free shipping and data protection. Forced innovation is also good innovation Data protection is now front of mind for everyone. Many once saw security regulations as an innovation inhibitor adding friction to the customer experience, but now they're customer experience's new best friend. With today's cybercrime landscape, data protection has never had so much focus, driving the need for strong authentication. 3-D Secure is a great example. Ecommerce businesses saw the first version of 3-D Secure as an important tool for tackling fraud, but also the main culprit for customers not completing checkout. But the same businesses are finding the latest version, which includes new security features like biometrics, highly attractive for easier authentication across the whole customer experience. 3-D Secure's latest iteration links with new EU regulation's authentication requirements. Privacy expectations impact on cybercrime The COVID-19 pandemic has sped up changes in digital consumer behavior like never before. Security and fraud risk increased, triggering more stringent regulation. Ransomware gangs try to extort money from victims by encrypting their data, but also releasing it if the ransom isn't paid, adding data privacy insult to injury. Nations are stepping up to address ransomware, now the world's biggest cyberthreat. But it's early days. Attempts to reduce ransomware risk are sometimes surprising with little consensus on how to address it, like US proposals to make ransomware payments tax-deductible or, conversely, making paying a ransom illegal. Once a profitable niche, cyber insurance now struggles to stay afloat with increasing ransomware and skyrocketing demands. Emerging trends in data regulation and oversight Data protection and privacy regulations are now part of life. We also see several emerging trends. For example, increased data protection and privacy oversight; in the three years since GDPR, nearly half of UK businesses have been reported to the Information Commissioner's Office over breaches. With longstanding data breach disclosure laws in the US, a new bill could force businesses to report breaches faster. India has long deliberated its Personal Data Protection Bill (PDP.) We're also seeing financial and security regulations aligning. Financial services regulations now include extensive obligations overlapping with security. Penalties are no longer the sole domain of national data protection authorities but could come from any regulator. UK's Financial Conduct Authority fined Tesco Bank 16.4 million pounds sterling for failing to protect customers' accounts and not doing enough to prevent financial crime. And we see increased desire to control Big Tech. The most notable example started in China with Alibaba in 2019. New Chinese data protection regulation has more scope for oversight, as we saw with the crackdown on ride-hailing service Didi and others. China perhaps sees its companies listed overseas as a national security risk because foreign governments could scrutinize the massive amounts of data they hold. But there are other risks: Several shareholders sued Didi since their share price fell after regulatory crackdown. It's not just China wanting to rein in Big Tech and their data – security concerns led to Germany's data protection commissioner telling government organizations to shut down their Facebook pages. UK's draft Online Safety Bill proposes a new Big Tech oversight body to help tackle illegal and harmful online content. Another trend is increasing regulatory oversight of start-ups, especially in fintech. Stock trading app Robinhood must pay 30 million US dollars to the New York State regulatory body for cybersecurity and anti-money laundering failures. The Swedish financial regulator is investigating buy-now-pay-later firm Klarna for data privacy breaches. Coming soon: The data regulation to prepare for Data regulation laws are often challenged. In Europe in 2020, the Schrems II judgment invalidated Privacy Shield, the data-sharing mechanism between the EU and the US. Austrian activist Max Schrems scored a major win as his case questioning Facebook's legal basis to collect data was referred to the EU Court of Justice. Trump's US attempt to ban TikTok and WeChat shows this isn't confined to the EU. India's Reserve Bank banned Mastercard from issuing new credit and debit cards for not keeping to local data storage rules. Three years since GDPR came into force, regulators aren't standing still. In April 2021, the EU Commission published a draft proposal to regulate artificial intelligence in line with GDPR. With increased automation globally, this is one area to watch.
Democratizing artificial intelligence

How we can make sure AI benefits everyone

  • min read
    • We're at a tipping point in history, but the potential in our situation is also palpable. Smart technology has been disruptive. Artificial intelligence (AI) is growing exponentially, creating radical change in how we live, work and play. Every country and industry feels its reverberations. Whole systems of production, management and governance are changing while we face huge challenges like climate change and a global pandemic. Add ongoing issues like fake news, wealth inequality and bias to the mix. We need visionary leadership and action to ensure humanity goes in the right direction as we unlock AI's potential. If we navigate this era wisely, AI will be good for society. Max Tegmark, President of Future of Life Institute, says, "Everything we love about civilization is a product of intelligence, so amplifying our human intelligence with artificial intelligence could help civilization flourish like never before – as long as we keep the technology beneficial." AI is a purpose for humanity My recent book Democratizing Artificial Intelligence to Benefit Everyone examines the smart technology era, how AI affects every part of our world and how it could benefit everyone. I also introduce Sapiens – a human-centered AI-driven platform that puts us in control as individuals. It could monetize the data and services of individuals, companies and even countries. Sapiens addresses a big gap: There is no large-scale solution helping us make the most of our lives. The Sapiens AI Assistant helps you optimize your life, get money for data and services and learns from your behavior. It supports lifelong learning, relationships and wellbeing. It gives guidance, makes recommendations and even helps you build character strengths. Why do we need this? Imagine living in a thriving, uplifting and compassionate society that creates beneficial outcomes for everyone. Smart technology helps this society solve problems and create opportunities. Cities are greener, work is low stress and living more meaningful. Jobs are well-paid, your community is rich in activities and you can easily learn throughout your life. You can focus on quality of life and work with others to further improve society, rewarded for your active participation and positive contributions. I'm developing Sapiens with that future in mind. How business leaders should respond to AI AI is progressively disrupting and changing most sectors and business models. It's activating new markets and future industries. Global management consultancy McKinsey estimates AI will add 13 trillion US dollars to the global economy over the next decade. In my experience developing AI software over two decades, business is getting better at gathering and responding to data, transforming customer retention, productivity and quality. Increased computing power, data storage and processing capability have all helped. Markets are evolving. We see faster, scalable marketplaces, more informed consumers and leaner operations. Advances in AI are birthing new industries and customer segments. Senior executives must make fast, strategic shifts to monetize new opportunities and adapt models as AI adoption spawns new industries. Early examples of new AI-driven market segments include recommendation-driven entertainment streaming and GPS-driven ride-sharing. We've seen tremendous increase in start-ups using AI, with investment growing 18-fold in six years. AI applications today mainly optimize business processes in existing industries like customer support, logistics and supply chain management. But the biggest economic benefits of AI will be in solving complex problems that could start new industries. Business leaders must keep track of machine learning developments to spot trends and react. AI in cybersecurity Cyberattacks can target all businesses, with aims ranging from customer data theft to corporate espionage. IT security economics research by Kaspersky saw the average cost in 2020 of resolving a data breach for an enterprise exceeds $1 million, and more than $100k for small- to medium-sized businesses. Large data breaches can leak the data of millions of people, opening the door for further cybercrime and fraud. AI will play an increasingly important role in protecting businesses from cyberthreats, with security tools analyzing data from millions of threats and using it to identify threats like ransomware and phishing as they become more sophisticated. Staying up to date with AI-based cybersecurity tools and using them to assist security teams helps keep businesses safe from increasingly potent cyberattacks. AI-driven cybersecurity learns how humans react, helping a business become better prepared to face future threats. Personalized engagement for consumer-facing businesses Consumer-facing businesses must offer personalized customer experiences at scale. Tech giants like Amazon, Google and Alibaba have led the way. Machine learning can accurately predict customer needs by building rich, real-time profiles as we interact with websites and virtual assistants. Accenture says investment in AI and human-machine collaboration could boost retail revenue by 38 percent. As we flick through Netflix recommendations or search on Google, AI calculations happen in data centers, with our devices communicating their results to us. This will change as machine-learning algorithms become more efficient and capable of running on low-power devices at the 'edge' (known as edge computing.) Future AI applications in money and finance AI has already had an enormous impact on the financial services sector. Mordor Intelligence estimated AI in fintech was worth nearly 8 billion US dollars in 2020, predicting its value will triple by 2026. AI-automated processes are reducing costs, increasing productivity and preventing fraud. AI could offer personalized engagement for the growing number switching to mobile, in-app transactions. It would provide another possible route for cyberattack and financial fraud, but AI can help address these risks too. Intelligent virtual assistants for banking, powered by messaging platforms, mobile devices or voice assistants, could give convenient, easy customer service for everything from account balances to loan inquiries. My company, South African AI business Cortex Logic, envisages major banks using AI-driven models to optimize home loan prices in a dynamic and personalized way. In this industry, slight increases in market share are of high value. US residents take out 4.4 trillion US dollars in home mortgages each year. By mining structured and unstructured data, banks can better segment and personalize home loan price positioning. AI-powered stock and share trading could use new data sources like satellite imagery relevant to commodity prices and social media sentiments around brands. These could complement established market signals like company performance and news sentiments to optimize investment portfolios. AI-enabled education, healthcare and wellness AI ultra-personalized solutions present a way to use smart tech for a fairer world. McKinsey estimates in the US AI-powered solutions could save 300 billion US dollars a year in healthcare costs. While in the UK, AI-driven preventive care could save 3.3 billion pounds yearly in decreased hospital admissions. These preventative care solutions also forecast disease spread and identify high-risk groups. Developing one new drug costs around 2.6 billion US dollars, but almost 90 percent of proposed therapies fail between first-phase trials and regulatory approval. AI-based solutions are helping speed up developing treatments and making them more cost-effective. AI's impact on society, government and the public sector AI is transforming the public sector with improved delivery, efficiency and safety. Many governments see AI as a game-changer and are putting policies in place to smooth its way. Professional services giant Deloitte's Center of Government Insights report examines how AI can redesign public sector work. For the US federal government alone, task automation could mean savings of 3.3 to 41 billion US dollars (depending on the type of task being sped up and to what extent). Debates around AI's future AI's progress and future direction are hotly debated. Everyone wants to ensure its path is ethical, transparent and beneficial. We're getting better at understanding the complexity and inner workings of AI. We must now develop a thorough understanding of where it's going. How will AI affect our ability to exercise free will? How will it impact our evolution and long-term survival? There are concerns about using AI for surveillance, including tech giants, corporates and governments using it to control, manipulate or profit. Other concerns center around how bias in data can make AI unreliable. Solutions to potential negative impacts include developing policies to ensure AI is directed at the common good. Skills for a human-centered AI-driven workplace OECD's Future of Education and Skills 2030 report recommends students develop three competencies they'll need to shape a healthy and sustainable future: Creating new value, reconciling tensions and dilemmas, and taking responsibility. University of Phoenix's Institute of the Future outlines ten work skills crucial for success in the future workplace in their Future Work Skills 2020 report, including sense-making: finding deeper meaning and significance in information and novel and adaptive thinking: coming up with solutions and responses beyond rules. AI is a vital companion to support people to thrive in the future of work. Democratizing AI is a multi-faceted problem. It's not only dependent on the progress of tech and policy making, but excellent collaboration between the public and private sector, academia and global organizations. We need a strategic plan to ensure we use AI for good outcomes. We must democratize AI throughout the lifecycle starting with its development before deployment and use. We must build human-compatible, ethical and trustworthy AI and address bias and discrimination. With the accelerating pace of AI-driven automation and its impact on work, we must become lifelong learners. We need to make proactive choices as opportunities shift and target areas where we can make meaningful contributions. That way, we'll shape a better future together in the smart technology era.
social media hybrid work

How social media can build trust and productivity in hybrid teams

  • min read
    • Offices may be re-opening, but professionals aren't racing back to their desks. A recent survey by professional services firm PwC survey found more than half of employees want to keep working remotely for at least three days a week. 37 percent of workers surveyed for Kaspersky's Securing the Future of Work report said they wanted to work mostly from home with regular office time. This part in-office, part at-home workstyle is known as hybrid working. To get all the benefits, employees need ways to stay connected with colleagues while working remotely. Colleague connection is important for job satisfaction, company culture and effective collaboration. I believe social media has a lot to offer in building colleague connections and unlocking greater productivity. Social media can add the crucial 'trust factor' When a research team looked at 52 studies of trust and teamwork, they found trust is even more important for remote-working teams to function well. If organizations work harder to build trust among employees spending most of their time apart, the potential gains are large. Collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams, Slack and Zoom and project tools to manage tech projects are a valuable part of keeping team members connected. But because they're also where much of your work gets done, employees need other ways to connect too. That's where social media comes in. LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and others can be great ways to improve trust and camaraderie in your team, but they can also undermine the relationships you hope to foster. With the right strategy and guidelines for using social media, you can help employees benefit from interactions while reducing risk. Here are some of the keys to social media success I've seen successful workplaces use to good effect. 1.     Reframe leadership views of social media use Many leaders have developed the view that using social media during work hours is time wasted. I've already mentioned how social media can help build the trust that's important to productivity. Research also suggests workplace behavior seen as 'slacking off' could, in fact, boost productivity and creativity. A recent review of studies found both positive and negative impacts from 'cyberloafing,' with researchers concluding "a little cyberloafing is important for healthy communication, innovation and productivity." Trusting employees to manage their focus helps them function at their best. 2.     Openly endorse connecting on social media The best way to get employees connecting on social media is easy: Explicitly encourage them to do just that. There's much to recommend it. When I ran my own social media agency, all our employees (voluntarily) connected on Facebook and Twitter. While it's been ten years since we last worked together, we're in regular social media contact, exchanging recipes, parenting stories and work opportunities. 3.     Have written social media guidelines Ideally, your organization's HR team should develop social media guidelines with advice from your legal and social media teams. If you don't have organization-wide policies, you can still send a thoughtful email to direct reports outlining your perspective. Start by looking at other organizations' smart, effective social media policies. Your policy should make clear that invitations to connect with colleagues are optional and colleagues may have different preferences about connecting online. Take the opportunity to remind people to follow security best practices on networks like Twitter and LinkedIn. 4.     Model friendly connection Your social media habits will cue the rest of your team. Think about how you'd like team members to connect, then model that behavior. If you want them to follow one another on Twitter and amplify or engage with each other's posts, follow your direct reports and put them on a Twitter list you review regularly, so you see all their updates. Once employees see you responding to their and their colleagues' tweets, they'll see this as an extension of workplace relationships and another way to bring interesting ideas or information to your attention. Don't intrude on employees' privacy by commenting on their high school reunion photos or latest parenting rant. If you're hoping they'll start to connect with you more personally, share posts that represent the kind of thing you hope they'll share: Photos from your latest hike, novel recommendations or recipes. If team members comment, reply – it establishes a connection without intruding. 5.     Recognize different boundaries In the same way some people are up for after-work drinks and others like to (or have to) go straight home, some employees like to keep their online interactions strictly professional while others don't mind mixing business and personal. Employees who prefer to keep relationships professional may wish to confine colleague connections to business-first platforms like LinkedIn. Advise employees of features that make it easier to draw a line between work and personal lives. For example, Twitter profiles can be made private so only people you explicitly allow can see posts. On Facebook, they could put colleagues on their 'restricted' list so they only see posts you make public. Kaspersky's privacy checker gives platform-specific tips for protecting your privacy on apps like TikTok and WhatsApp too. 6.     What happens on Facebook stays on Facebook That lesson has stayed with me: Not everyone wants their online life to follow them to the office. While it's appropriate to pick up the thread of a LinkedIn conversation where you and a colleague discussed industry news, it's best to avoid asking your coworker about her new kitchen in the boardroom. 7.     Designate one work-free zone Even if you're encouraging employees to connect on social media, make clear and model that it's ok to keep at least one social media presence work-free. It's healthy to have parts of life private from colleagues, even though employees must understand anything they post online could become public or known to coworkers and clients. Preserving one colleague-free zone means social media enthusiasts have a place to share kid photos or other personal interests without feeling like everything is on the record at the office. 8.     Talk openly about risk Online relationships are fraught with risk. If your coworker posts a picture of their new boat, you may wonder if they got a big raise or feel envious in a way that undermines the work relationship. Colleagues friendly in the office may find themselves suspicious if online interactions reveal political differences. If one employee spots a coworker posting misleading, offensive or ill-judged content, she may find herself caught between respecting her colleague's privacy and compromising her employer's reputation. Avert these risks by encouraging team members to think about the face they show to colleagues – and the world. Posts that would undermine coworker connection are posts that can pose reputation risks for your firm. You're not just helping your team build stronger relationships, you're helping them become more thoughtful, effective social media users. The other kind of risk is online security. Ensure your team knows and practices basic cyber hygiene, including using secure passwords and being aware of the many ways secret information may become exposed at work. A new frontier for colleague connection By avoiding the pitfalls of social media and harnessing its potential for conversation and connection, you can establish a new frontier for building relationships among your workforce. Many have already turned to social media to replace the sociability they've missed from the office: A third of us miss face-to-face interaction more than anything else we miss about our workplace. Including our colleagues in that circle of sociability is a great way to reinforce connections frayed during time apart. Social media can be a valuable part of company culture if used well. The sense of connection it fosters lets colleagues trust each other and work effectively as a team, making them happier in their hybrid working lives.
rocket women interview

Why business and diverse talent are the future of space exploration

  • min read
    • Rocketing numbers of women in the space program shows change is happening, but Vinita Marwaha Madill (@Rocket_Woman1,) space engineer and Founder of Rocket Women, says we can do more to support all top space talent. She also sees a crucial role for business in our space exploration future. As part of Tomorrow Unlocked's new audio documentary Fast Forward, I talk with Vinita about her work as a space engineer, how business is changing space and Rocket Women's work supporting women and girls who set their sights on the cosmos. Ken: Tell us about the Rocket Women initiative. Vinita: Rocket Women is a global initiative founded in 2012 that aims to empower diverse young women to choose a career in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM.) In the UK only 12 percent of engineers are women and less than 8 percent are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. The goal of Rocket Women is to reverse this trend by giving inspirational women worldwide a platform to share advice and have their voices heard. Sally Ride, the first US woman in space, said, "You can't be what you can't see." Role models need to be tangible and visible to inspire and empower. We need diversity in space and technology so the professions reflect more of society. Now more than ever, we need all available talent to solve the hard problems facing the world. Ken: Relatively few women seemed to have been involved in the Apollo space program, and their contributions were not fully acknowledged at the time. But now there is a larger number and diversity of backgrounds. What's changed? Vinita: Much has changed since Sally Ride became the first US woman in space in 1983. Many women contribute to the space career program today. In 2016 NASA had its first 50 percent female astronaut class. There are still social and cultural barriers girls experience from a young age that society needs to overcome. One is equal access to education. Ken: In Rocket Women's mission statement, you talk about trying to prevent unconscious bias. What kind of unconscious bias is influencing space exploration? Vinita: Language represents biases that have been there from the early days of the space program. NASA has made some changes to their language, like changing 'manned' to 'crewed.' We're still using space suits designed in the 1970s on the International Space Station (ISS.) We saw repercussions in 2019 with suit design delaying the first all-female spacewalk. NASA has been working on a new suit design that can provide for everyone, from the smallest female to the largest male. Ken: If you think of the old space race – cold war era – versus the new space race, what attitudes and pathways have changed? Vinita: The role of global space agencies is shifting. Working with business has been a great step, such as getting astronauts to and from the space station through Elon Musk's space transportation company SpaceX. We're looking at how the commercial sector will be part of space exploration in future. NASA is working with Axiom Space and SpaceX, who will transport an Axiom-trained commander and three private astronauts to the ISS to live there for just over a week. So we're about to make space accessible to more people. I look forward to the day everyone can see Earth from space. Astronauts call it the overview effect: It reinforces our interconnectedness and shows how fragile Earth is. Ken: Space still feels like the rich people's game: Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Richard Branson. It seems you need a few billion in the bank before you can start making space plans. Vinita: It mustn't be just wealthy people who get the chance to see Earth from space. For space tourism, we'll need to develop reusable spacecraft, and that will need funding from business and space agencies. For the first all-civilian space mission, Inspiration4, an investor can buy a flight and pay for a member of the public to be aboard too. As a starting point for space tourism, it's not a bad place. Ken: Why are we going back to the Moon? Vinita: The interest in returning to the Moon is driven by science, technological development and preparing for future exploration. To get us back to the Moon, NASA is developing the Gateway – a mini space station in lunar orbit – with others like the European, Japanese and Canadian space agencies. It's building on the international cooperation that built the ISS. The Moon is also a science destination and port for future space transportation if we want to, for example, go to Mars. It's a platform to overcome the technical challenges of living and working in deep space. The lunar surface has valuable resources like Helium-3. Most importantly, the Moon will be the first place humans learn to live on another celestial body. It's only three days from Earth, and its low gravity and resources make it an ideal place to prepare to go further into space. Ken: There's a challenge in how to live in an environment our bodies aren't designed for. The further we go out into space, the more it becomes clear what it means to be human. Vinita: The further we go out, the more we learn and develop technology that could help on Earth. Many technologies we use today came from the space program. We need ways to communicate with astronauts in deep space and telehealth systems for medical emergencies. That technology could help people on Earth who live in remote communities. If we want to go to Mars, we'll need a way to provide nutrition for a couple of years. How do we develop nutrition for astronauts living on the Moon? It may help us find sustainable ways to feed Earth's growing population. Ken: What do we want from Mars? Why are we going there? Vinita: We need to go to Mars because humans are innate explorers. After mapping all the continents, going to the deepest point of the ocean and the peak of Mount Everest,  humanity's next step is to explore the solar system. The benefits we get from space exploration and the sector's goals are altruistic compared to many industries. With the ISS, many countries are working together. We want to use that cooperation to go back to the Moon and eventually to Mars. Ken: What factors have brought going to the Moon back into our orbit? Vinita: NASA, the European and Canadian space agencies have committed funding. Private companies internationally developing robotic technology to go back to the Moon ignites imaginations. We have political support for the program in the US. Space exploration needs ongoing, sustained effort. We build up our technology over decades: Develop the Gateway program from a smaller space station and add modules, then go back to the lunar surface for a few days at first, then develop a lunar habitat and sustainable exploration. We're looking at that long-term program now, and it's succeeding because everyone is working together. Ken: We have space initiatives in China, India and Israel. What about Russia – one of the original space racers? Vinita: I was lucky to work with Russian colleagues at the European Space Agency (ESA.) We worked on the European Robotic Arm for the Russian segment of the ISS. It will be launched alongside a new Russian scientific module. The robotic arm and the new scientific module will mean increased scientific research capacity on the ISS and help them develop new technology, as well as developing the ISS and supporting cosmonaut spacewalks. Ken: What's one thing about the new space race you most want to emphasise? Vinita: The importance of making sure role models are tangible and visible. For its new human spaceflight program, Artemis, NASA selected a cadre of astronauts with an equal gender split. I can't wait for the day the first woman steps foot on the Moon. It will inspire young men and women everywhere. Listen to an interview with Vinita in Fast Forward Episode 6: The New Space Race Listen to more episodes of Tomorrow Unlocked's Fast Forward audio series
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