Category: Historical Lessons

Welcome to the Historical Lessons category on tech2exec. History is a valuable teacher, and it has much to offer in terms of insights for tech executives. By looking back at past events, we can gain a better understanding of how certain decisions and actions have shaped the technological landscape we see today.

In this section, we will explore various historical events that have had a significant impact on the tech industry. We will delve into the stories behind these events and extract valuable lessons that can inform our present-day decisions as tech leaders.

It takes an Einstein

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
Albert Einstein

Failure to adapt hinders tech executives. Repeating tasks doesn’t signify correctness. Assess, adjust, and align your approach. Effective leaders recognize the need for change and embrace it.

“Change is the only constant” – a familiar saying that certainly holds true in tech. With rapid advancements, leaders must be adaptable. It’s more than staying up to date; it’s about being open-minded and willing to pivot strategies when needed.

To create an adaptable culture, leaders must encourage teams to embrace change and be flexible. This involves implementing continuous evaluation processes, welcoming new ideas, and fostering a growth mindset within the organization.

Being adaptable involves anticipating challenges and pivoting accordingly. Tech executives must be proactive, continuously assessing the market, industry trends, and competitor strategies to stay relevant and competitive. This means being open to change, even if it means deviating from their original plans.

One major factor driving the need for adaptability in tech executive roles is the ever-evolving landscape of technology. With new innovations and disruptions emerging constantly, executives must be able to quickly grasp and incorporate these changes into their business strategies. This requires a high level of agility and flexibility, as well as a willingness to take risks and try new approaches.

In addition to technological advancements, market conditions can also shift rapidly in the tech industry. Changes in consumer behavior, economic fluctuations, and political developments can all have significant impacts on companies operating within this sector. As such, tech executives must not only be adaptable in terms of technology, but also in their overall business strategy.

Being adaptable means tackling failures and setbacks. In the tech industry, not every decision leads to success. Leaders must view failures as learning opportunities, adjusting their approach to navigate the changing technology landscape. The key is to remain resilient and open-minded, willing to pivot and try new strategies. This mindset of adaptability is crucial for both personal and professional growth in the tech world.

In conclusion, adaptability is crucial for effective leadership in the tech industry. By fostering a flexible culture, encouraging continuous evaluation and improvement, and proactively anticipating challenges, leaders can position their company for success in an evolving market. So, embrace change, stay open-minded, and approach every situation with an adaptable mindset. Thrive in the world of technology!

Click here for a post on if it makes sense to emulate Steve Jobs leadership style or not.

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Legacy Mainframe Environment

Today, tech execs are concerned about the mainframe computer application code. Many companies have had mainframe computers since the 70s and 80s. Large companies, particularly in insurance and finance, built applications during that time that still run on mainframes now. These applications consist of mostly COBOL code, with millions of lines.

SIDE NOTE: COBOL is the oldest still used programming language, developed in 1959. The only other language even close in age is C, which was developed in the early 70’s.

Today’s mainframe computers have powerful processors and seamlessly run COBOL applications alongside Docker containers. Tech executives face challenges with complex COBOL, PL/1, and Assembler code, as well as managing decades of data in diverse environments like DB2, MySQL, and Oracle. We’ll discuss data in a future post.

Mainframe applications have long been vital for enterprise business processing. They were game-changers, and still handle key workloads effectively. However, the drive to convert or move these applications has been slow. Today, tech execs face fierce competition in aggressive markets. Outdated systems hinder companies from keeping up with innovative rivals. Cloud computing enables competitors to invest in new systems without hardware burdens. Consequently, older companies face disadvantages and must modernize their legacy application environment. The three reasons for this transformation are:

Agility: Companies need IT systems that can be updated for functional processing requirements in a timelier manner. Shorter development cycles are a must for organizations to keep pace.
Cost: The mainframe is the costliest computer available. In many organizations, it’s also difficult and time consuming to maintain. The complexity of the code and data environments makes keeping the systems up and running difficult. Modern cloud technologies offer a significant reduction in cost of ownership.
Risk: Knowledge of legacy environments is fading away as programmers who developed this code many years ago retire. Skills in COBOL, PL/1, CICS, etc. are becoming scarce, making managing the applications and responding to major incidences more challenging.

To remain competitive, organizations must tackle legacy mainframe systems. The transformation should uncover the current state and map out an ideal future state. Develop a value proposition with a total cost of ownership analysis for transitioning to the cloud. When it comes to maintaining the mainframe and harnessing the power of the cloud, it’s worth considering strategies from industry leaders like IBM. Take into account the costs of migration and retooling, but also weigh them against the benefits of ownership. Furthermore, take the time to explore the numerous advantages that cloud computing has to offer.

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Leverage Your Strength – a lesson from history

In May 1940, the German army swiftly invaded France, leading to the astonishing defeat of the Battle for France. This unprecedented downfall stunned Europe, especially considering France’s prior reputation as a formidable Western nation. A tech exec can learn from this lesson in history.

Germany didn’t solely triumph with might; even though the French had a bigger, technologically advanced army and knew about the upcoming German invasion, they should have been prepared to repel the invaders effortlessly.

How did it happen?

The lack of trust and effective communication among French politicians and generals was exacerbated by their stagnation in the past. In 1914, France faced a challenging scenario when German forces overwhelmed them. However, their perseverance and strategic prowess proved decisive. The French tactically withdrew, synchronized their remaining armies, gathered crucial support from allies, and counterattacked. Teamwork made the Battle of the Marne pivotal for the allied forces in World War I.

Twenty-six years later the French were still using 1914 tactics against 1940’s technology.

Leverage your strength but update your strategy. The generals believed armor supported infantry from behind, underestimated planes as frontline weapons, relied on horses to outpace the enemy, and used motorcycle couriers instead of rapid communication. They also misplaced trust in misguided technology and overestimated Maginot Line defenses along the German border. The French generals, WWI veterans, failed to recognize technological advancements and clung to outdated strategies. General Gamelin, head of the French military, even lacked a telephone in his headquarters.

The French thought they knew the enemy.

The Germans effectively employed tanks, planes, troops, and weapons in innovative ways. Tanks, bombers, and infantry quickly penetrated, catching the French off guard. The German generals swiftly adapted their tactics using telephone and telegraph. Unfortunately, France failed to grasp the technological possibilities, leading to their complete defeat within 10 days. Unthinkable, but it happened.

A lesson for companies.

Silos in a company are a natural result of its structure, but they must not impede collective power and success. A tech exec should aim for a unified approach to operations, with shared standards across the leadership team. Keeping up with tech advancements and leveraging them before competitors is crucial. Embrace cross-team collaboration and resource sharing to enhance experience and boost versatility.

Organizations that stick in a ridged silo model and do not collaborate will lose to their competitors.

Leverage your strength and avoid having your teams move in different directions, as it weakens a united force. To effectively leverage your combined organization, do the following:

Have a common mission and set of objectives agreed to by all leaders.
Ensure roles and responsibilities between teams are well defined and understood.
Communicate the operating models for each team to all stakeholders, which will help minimize a silo mentality.
Better coordinate work going between teams ensure linkages are understood. This improves teamwork.
Ensure an effective leadership structure where leaders trust and are communicating with each other.
Have a better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses in our teams so individuals can be deployed appropriately.
Ensure that technology is understood and used effectively (to meet business needs) across all teams.

Don’t forget to empower your team! If you leverage your strength, the combined organization, you’ll be unstoppable… and you will have a much more cost-effective technology environment.

Click here for a post on how to empower and use the full strength of your team.

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It’s Okay to Ask Questions

I was reading a funny story about Henry Kissinger that highlight why it’s important to ask questions. If you don’t know who Dr. Kissinger is, you are probably too young. He was the Secretary of State during the Nixon Administration and considered one of the smartest SoS’s ever.

Henry Kissinger’s speech writer handed Kissinger the latest speech for him to review. Kissinger wrote on the paper, “Is that the best you can do?” The speech writer rewrote the piece and handed it to Kissinger for his thoughts. Kissinger wrote the same thing, “Is that the best you can do?” The speech writer did two more revisions with the same responses. Finally, frustrated, he told Kissinger that it was the best he could do. Kissinger said, “Okay, now I’ll read it.”

This anecdote shared by Kissinger’s speech writer highlights the importance of constant and thorough review in creating quality content. In today’s digital world, with rapid information sharing, we often overlook the need to review our work.

To stand out online, prioritize content quality over quantity for businesses and individuals alike. This means taking the time to carefully craft and review each piece before publishing it.

Similar to Kissinger’s speechwriter, we may undergo multiple revisions before reaching a final product we’re proud of. Like Kissinger, who read the speech only when it was perfect, we should publish when confident in our work’s quality.

Reviewing our content helps us catch overlooked errors, maintaining credibility and professionalism. Errors can damage our reputation.

Furthermore, by thoroughly reviewing our content before publishing it, we give ourselves the opportunity to refine and improve upon it. We can add more clarity, strengthen arguments, and make sure each point is effectively conveyed to our audience.

In conclusion, prioritizing the review process when creating content is crucial for success in today’s digital landscape. It ensures high-quality, engaging content that meets audience needs and reflects positively on your brand. Don’t forget to set aside time for review and revision when creating content – your readers (and reputation) will thank you.

And… moral of the story:

Unless you like doing a lot of unnecessary extra work, make sure you understand what the boss is saying. It’s okay to ask questions. That’s what meetings are for. Don’t just nod and agree without fully comprehending the task at hand.

As a tech executive, it’s easy to get caught up in the fast-paced environment and numerous tasks that require completion. However, it’s important to remember that understanding your boss’s instructions is crucial in order to successfully complete your work.

Sometimes, to seem competent or avoid looking ignorant, we nod along with our boss without fully understanding their requests. This can lead to confusion and wasted time as we try to figure things out on our own.

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What was the Pandemic’s Influence on Technology?

The pandemic’s influence forced tech executives to prepare for unprecedented challenges and prompted them to re-examine digital technologies and business applications from a new perspective. This shift required them to adapt quickly to changing market demands and explore innovative solutions to maintain operational efficiency and customer engagement. As a result, there was a significant acceleration in the adoption of digital tools and platforms, transforming the way businesses operate and interact with their clients.

Before the pandemic, 65% of companies invested in digitalization.

In the beginning of 2023, the spread of digital investments has surged even more: 75% of companies plan to invest in these areas due to a hybrid work model. This shift has led to the widespread adoption of digital technologies in personal and professional settings, driven by the necessity of remote work and online communication during social distancing measures.

The pandemic’s influence has driven businesses to invest in tools and platforms to support remote work and maintain productivity. These include collaboration software, video conferencing, project management tools, and cloud-based services. The increased demand has sparked innovation and competition in the digital tech market, pushing companies to improve their solutions for remote work and communication.

The global pandemic highlighted the vital role of cloud computing in providing smooth and secure remote access to data and applications.

The scalability and adaptability of cloud platforms have emerged as indispensable assets, ensuring uninterrupted business operations and continuity amid the unprecedented challenges brought about by these times.

The future holds promising advancements in infrastructure and information system security. Moreover, it encompasses the development of business-supporting models by leveraging cutting-edge technologies like Big Data, IoT, and Cloud Computing. These technological advancements are set to revolutionize the way businesses operate, ensuring improved efficiency and effectiveness in the long run.

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