Disrupt > Discard

Recently, I was dusting my home office bookshelves and stumbled across a grade school edition of “My American Heritage Student’s Dictionary” with a copyright from 1986. As a GenX kid from the 1980’s, I am always amazed at the privilege of having a handheld computer in my back pocket because I can appreciate the effort it took as a child to quench my curiosity for learning. Sometimes, I find amusement in comparing the online Oxford Languages modern definitions to my printed, “vintage” reference books. For example, it is interesting how a common word like “disrupt” has evolved in the last four decades.

My forty-year-old dictionary definition for disrupt is “to upset the order of: throw into confusion or disorder; interrupt or block the progress or functioning of”. However, when I Google’d the same word, Oxford Languages presented a similar definition online but with a nuance as an extension on a secondary meaning based on modern context: “Radical change to an existing industry or market due to technological innovation.”

Our world context is heavily influenced by a pace of change that continues to accelerate because of advancements in modern technology like cloud computing, data interoperability & artificial intelligence. Some market innovation has resulted out of necessity from tech companies like Google or Amazon who developed emerging tech our of necessity to support & scale their unique business operating models. Other new market entrants in technology are delivering on big ideas that enable organizations like small business or governments to take advantage of digital opportunities.

Amazon, for example, is best known for their virtual shopping mall which revolutionized retail consumerism replacing mail order catalogs and driving brick/mortar retail locations to consolidate their geographic footprint or shutter their doors. To scale and grow their e-commerce business strategy, Amazon Web Services (AWS) was launched to power infrastructure for their core digital business. Today, Amazon is not just an online retailer. It is a three-sixty virtual universe of products as goods & services, offering a range of subscriptions in digital streaming music, video, cloud services & logistics to retail sales in a plethora of goods from over the counter medications to groceries….all powered by the infrastructure of a platform that is orchestrated to run behind the scenes, seamlessly operating to maximize every one of their customer’s digital shopping experience.

As a GenX'er, I vividly remember a time without digital. I appreciate first hand evolution of change because I lived in a time without dependency on digital technology. It is this retrospective on my own professional & personal journey & passion for people that has inspired my forthcoming book inspired by a common phrase spoken frequently by my Dad when I was a child.

"Do As I Say, Not As I Do" is a business novel inspired by real life agile transformation initiatives for digital disruption throughout my career. I am fascinated by human behavior & my story centers around the people & their leadership mindset. Everyone navigates change at their own pace. Although the story is woven around fictional character archetypes, the concepts real & my thought leadership is radical.

The book has been inspired by my own experience. I have incorporated memorable moments & people along my professional journey as an agile coach. One of our foundational values as agile practicioners is to prioritize "people & interactions over processes & tools" (Source: https://agilemanifesto.org/) I have woven a cautionary tale to highlight the importance for leaders & organizations to use restraint in prioritizing technology over people while appreciating a necessity to incorporate modern tools like artificial intelligence, which can help make our modern lives more efficient.