Ancient and Modern!
A week spanning both! Today’s business challenge, and looking back through the centuries.
The Digital Challenge
I represented the Company at the MCA’s Annual Debate on “Year of Digital”. The Digital Revolution – speed and volume of communications, mushrooming data capture, mobile technology, lots of apps to use the data. In all this is arguably as significant as the Industrial Revolution.
The panellists talked about the implications for businesses, and whether the decision makers understand the technologies well enough to ensure their firms take full advantage of them. We were told it will be significant that private data held by an IT provider is actually owned by the customer/client, not the IT provider, the website or whatever.
We were also told, for example, of apps that could take the financial results of a company and write a financial pages press report from it, eliminating the financial reporter. Or take metrological data and write a weather report and news story. The journalists had been cut out. How will our consulting business be affected? Are we falling into a trap of showing clients what is best for them, and failing to take the lessons ourselves?
Perhaps process oriented work will be threatened by Digital – today’s client bosses went to MBA classes like we did. The days of the thought leading expert are gone? Maybe practices will polarise between those that are based on personal service (eg mentoring, advisory, supporting, a critical personal friend) and solutions and implementation.
The Livery – Renewal whilst Retaining the Best
I was also invited to represent our Company at a fine commemorative Event held by the Drapers’ Company. One of the earliest and most famous Companies (one of the “Greats”, the first twelve in the Order of Precedence) it is celebrating its 650th Anniversary of the granting by Edward III of its Letters Patent, the equivalent of the modern Royal Charter which our Company was honoured to receive.
In Drapers’ Hall the schools Drapers are associated with were exhibiting. It is worth remembering the long tradition of the Livery Companies in founding the early schools. The Drapers Company was forming schools in the 17th Century and now supports ten around the country. Renewal? Well the Drapers have recently formed a new school, an academy in Romford.
It is awesome to consider the history the Drapers’ Company has lived through – the printing press, the Wars of the Roses, settlement in Virginia (which the Company funded), The Civil War, The Great Plague followed by the Great Fire, steam power, the utilisation of electricity. And during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars French wine was forbidden in Drapers Hall!
I always feel that as part of the Livery, our own Company – one that we are still developing - has all the potential to be here in a hundred years time and beyond, as we participate in the ancient Livery yet continually renew to be relevant in changing times. What historical events might the members then be looking back on to chart the Company?!
Edward
11/7/14