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Collabronauts: collaboration and the cyberspace race

Sheryle Moon, Information Age

23/10/2007 23:51:17

The old business model of fierce competition at all costs has passed and we are now entering an era of collaboration. The "business is war" mentality has made way for a model of business networks that reach out to global markets and boost sales as a unified force.

There's no doubt that low cost and real time transfer of ideas, knowledge and skills over the Internet has made business collaboration easier. Not only does the Internet provide a fast communication channel, but the wide reach of the Internet allows such groups to easily form in the first place, particularly among niche interests.

In today's high-tech business world built in cyberspace, it is "collabronauts" who are seeking out new universes and driving their businesses through the stratosphere.

The idea of the collabronaut was coined by Harvard Business School academic Rosabeth Moss Kanter who describes pioneers of the new global economy as "astronauts who explore outer space, are explorers of cyberspace, explorers of new possibilities while creating links and connections, and explorers of the possibilities that can come through collaboration".

In her book, Evolve!: Succeeding in the Digital Culture of Tomorrow, Kanter argues that "those willing to leave their home planet to bring back knowledge of strange new worlds and new civilisations" are masters of collaboration.

In order to deliver value to the customers, technology companies such as Microsoft, IBM, Cisco and Sun have created what Kanter calls "space stations for the Internet age". These platforms enable everyone else to use the technology; but it's an elaborate and complex relationship, because these companies themselves also work much more closely together.

"It is more than Wal-Mart working with Procter & Gamble as a supplier," she says. "It's joint planning; it's developing technology together. It's a daily interchange."

Ultimately, the best collabronauts are adept at making connections - both human and intellectual. They seek out new ways to benefit from joining forces with partners. They bring organisations closer together, create links, foster relationships and initiate partnerships that may initially seem like joining two groups from alien planets.

AIIA's approach to building a globally competitive local industry is to nurture business networks of companies that collaborate in the development of international markets.

We've established the equivalent of the NASA headquarters in Australia, by bringing together of collaborauts from small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) with a diverse range of ICT capabilities into business networks.

SMEs are a vital part of Australia's $90 billion ICT industry, comprising around 80 per cent of all ICT businesses in Australia. While Australia's SMEs are great innovators, their biggest challenge is ensuring that people know about them and their products.

And while the bulk of these organisations are innovative and world class, many suffer from a lack of funding, adequate resourcing, and opportunity for growth and global reach.

One of AIIA's most successful collaborative initiatives has been NSW.NET, a joint initiative of AIIA, Microsoft Australia and the NSW Government, which connects software businesses that develop and innovate on Microsoft's .NET platform to address and overcome some of the inherent challenges that face the NSW ICT sector.

NSW.NET is helping companies to share knowledge, forge alliances and pool resources. It is also providing them with a way to become collectively more compelling when bidding for new business, particularly in the international market place.

NSW.NET is helping members attract a greater share of capital, such as industry investment and grants. NSW.NET is also harnessing collective bargaining power to make participating in overseas trade shows more cost effective.

Right now, more than 100 companies in the NSW.NET cluster are chasing .NET projects worth nearly $2 billion. By working together, local ICT companies in the cluster are building their businesses far more effectively on a national and international scale.

AIIA is also supporting the Canberra.NET cluster in the ACT, alongside a number of other clusters as part of our CollabIT program which is helping like-minded companies around Australia work together to access vertical markets.

Without doubt, today's successful companies are network-oriented. They make their partners part of their community, and they embark on more projects collaboratively with networks of partners, not just single partners.

I'll finish with the words of anthropologist Margaret Mead, who asked: "can a small group of people who see and respond differently to the world make a difference? Indeed, history shows it is the only thing that ever has."

For more information on NSW.NET visit: www.nswdotnet.com.au

Sheryle Moon is Chief Executive Officer, Australian Information Industry Association.