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Welcome to the September REFRESH $$PLAIN_TEXT_PREVIEW$$
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The Technology, The People, and The Ideas
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Welcome to the September REFRESH monthly update, where I’m sharing provocative ideas from discussions focused on the human relationship with technology . My Monthly FavoritesHere are some things that I have really enjoyed over the past month, that have brought me ENERGY.
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Recent EpisodesThis last month focused quite a bit on this idea that people are and always will be (for the foreseeable future), at the center of AI. From creating CEO level global experiences around how technology is being used in unexpected places in unexpected ways, featuring Caitlin McCabe - Sr. Comms Mgr. for the CEO of Microsoft, to the critical importance of empathy in the development of AI models in helping families with children suffering from Epilepsy, to the importance of data literacy in the emerging AI economy.
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#48. Andrew Strong | “Data Science for ALL” - Feeding the AI Economy
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What I learnedThe lasting take away from my time with Andrew, really centered on the idea that our world is changing, and at the focal point of that change is technology. From the Iot enabled devices that are now appearing in our homes, whether they be washing machines or tablets, to the evolution of jobs like classical human resource management, to human resource analytics - we are becoming a more analytical and data centric species. There is an emerging skill that we MUST have if we want to be valuable to organizations today and in the future, a skill we must also cultivate if we are going to survive in today’s technological era. What skill is this you ask? Data Literacy. Data literacy is the ability to read, to understand, and to communicate data as information. This doesn’t mean we have to each become a data scientist, but there is a long tail of analytical need across the breadth of every job in myriad industries, from manufacturing to agriculture. We also have to make sure that as we transition into a more data literate society, we make sure the transition is equitable, and that we are preparing our workforce inclusively, so that analytical excellence represents our multi-constituent world. Changing the current model of learning, skilling, and higher level education, is at the crux of how we develop a globally data literate population.
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This idea of hosting “Datathons” is particularly interesting, see how the most competitive data based organizations in the world are cultivating the worlds best talent.
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Highlights✴️ The importance of creating equitable transitions into a data driven economy, from the people who build the models to the people that consume them, and why hiring the “best” talent from “top” schools, is not the most effective hiring strategy. ✴️ The types of organizations that are hiring and developing data talent well, the growth areas most organizations should focus on, and how new to career talent should view the addressable gap in the market and retain success. ✴️ New approaches to educating people in math and the sciences, why curiosity and the willingness to learn, may be the best attributes for developing analytical minds. ✴️ The implications of COVID-19 on building talent pipelines. Connect with Andrew Strong Learn more
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Simply Tech LIVE is a live video production co-hosted by Ali Mazaheri and I, featuring discussions with Microsoft technologists, business practitioners, and academics about the evolving landscape of tech in the Microsoft ecosystem and beyond.
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Empathy - The Most Effective Journey to Innovations in AI
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What I learnedWhat is the first thing you think about when you hear AI or machine learning? Math, statistics, REALLY HARD stuff, and if you are like most businesses in 2020, you see scale, opportunity, and dollar signs. I learned from Ed that these are the wrong focus areas for AI, and before you optimize a model, you have to understand the journeys of the users of these solutions, and you should consider the human experience of how we engage with AI, in the most simplest form. This comes from building empathy. This is making me think differently about how projects should move forward, how often are we considering the experience of the user, and how AI is really mapping to the way they perceive and interact with our world? Can we record, understand, and master the analog processes and experiences before we fully automate and deploy AI against it? Ed talks a lot about the organization he believes so much in, the Microsoft Garage, a program the delivers and drives a culture of innovation, and he imparts on us in this conversation the importance of culture. Many organizations focus on creating one hit wonder innovations, some involve leadership at the C-level to drive larger business pursuits of innovation - what is needed is a ground level "soil" approach to innovation, not a "trees and fruit" approach. Cultural transformation that invokes a diverse and inclusive global approach to how an organization brings together different ideas, while connecting employees and giving space for thought and collaboration, generates a healthy foundation for developing the best ideas that can then be driven to market. How does this differ or compare against your current thoughts on innovation?
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How to Empower Your People to Innovate - Ed’s blog (above), covers everything from the challenges to corporate incubation, to culture transformation for more innovative outcomes.
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HighlightsEd Essey, Director of Intrapreneurship & Incubation in the Microsoft Garage, joined this discussion to talk about innovation, and the inherent human qualities that innovation truly focuses on, the creation of deep empathic connections with people.
Topics:
✴️ Machine learning and advanced technologies are highly focused on optimization and scale, but largely, many of these endeavors are not first prioritized around the purpose and "why" of what "should" be created.
✴️ Innovation as a culture, how to feed and empower innovative cultures, and real experiences working with people and families to unlock innovative AI solutions that improve lives.
✴️ The holistic journey of AI, beginning with human intelligence, and ending up with full automation - how to create an empathic approach to augmenting human capability. Contact Ed Essey Learn more
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Tracy Galloway | US Vice President of Manufacturing at Microsoft | LIVE on Simply Tech LIVE | September 24th, 2020, 9-930am PST |
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