Blockchain 3 of 7 : Education Gently

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There is absolutely nothing wrong with enthusiasm.  I’m a teacher by nature and actively teach in my church.  I find energy when I teach, especially when I’m excited about and well prepared in the subject matter.  When preparing a topic for the class, I learn it, qualifying it as appropriate subject matter, shred it to excavate every nugget of valuable information, then prepare to effectively share it with the class.  I avoid moving from sharing information to imposing it. The human mind has a tendency to reject or deflect information that is forced upon it.  Also, I always consider that people, in general, are either conceptual or detailed thinkers and absorb information visually, audibly or experientially. Educators understand this 2X3 paradigm and voice their delivery to ensure all students absorb the intended information.

  

This article is not about educating the workforce.  ACT-IAC Blockchain Playbook team is working on several reference appendixes to the literature, one of which is a discussion on Workforce Development.  This piece is focused on target audiences such as the Business Unit, Acquisition Professionals, OCIO staff, Enterprise Architect, Solutions Architects, and the Program Office. Each audience needs a specific level of technical saturation, delivered through appropriate resources. My intent is to be a little less formal in this discussion. I want to talk about the day to day personal engagements where I find myself in a position to present, educate or simply share information.  I want to expand on that Learn It, Shred It and Share It concept.

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Learn it - I can’t share it if I don’t know it!  This step is really what is called in the Business Development world, “Qualifying”.  In our example, I’ve identified blockchain as a technology that I believe is in the best interest of my stakeholder to pursue.  It postures the portfolio to meet the mission of the business line.  It improves our market strategy, solidifies our competency and will increase the portfolio’s market value.  My internal intel tells me that it will increase customer satisfaction, address current pain points, solidify positive attributes of the portfolio and give our customers an increased “bang for the buck”.  I have looked at all the alternatives and found that riveting blockchain into the portfolio will be a positive investment for the line of business.

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Now that I have declared this emerging technology as “qualified”, I need to prepare myself to present the endeavor to gain Sr. Leadership approval for “pursuit”.  It’s time to collect, consolidate and arrange all details that will compel management to invest the resources and effort. There are so many blockchain solutions out there and a tremendous amount of information to digest before I am ready to make my presentation.  Time to do a deep dive and shred!

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Shred it - I’m a mind mapper.  I’m a conceptual thinker and details can be overwhelming to me. I find creative ways to process details. Through mapping, I can organize the details from its original form and build the conceptual picture.   My mind can now understand and absorb all the information.  You may need to discover the method that helps you.  

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In the previous article, I talked about all those better mousetraps.  I have to decide which blockchain method best satisfies those “qualities” I just used to “qualify” my pursuit.  I will consider the various consensus methods, and study use cases that align with the portfolio.  I will consider the organizations motivation to buy, acquisition strategy, contract vehicles, funding and timing.  Once I have sufficiently shredded the details, I’ll prepare my presentation and am ready to convince management to pursue. 

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Share it - I now have the acumen to make a presentation or simply engage in any discussion about the application portfolio, blockchain offerings, and the pros and cons of each method.  The offer design is well thought out, vetted with the Enterprise Architect to ensure that it fits in the long-term strategy of the organization. I have documented the approach well.  My solution is pure, modest and focused on the business requirement.  I’ve considered all possibilities, technical alternatives and I’m now prepared for questions.  I’m focused, positive and confident. I’m ready to enhance the calm.  

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And as I begin my presentation I ... Solve, don’t sell! ... Share, don’t Impose! ... Know it, and never be a Know-It-All! And above all else ... Educate Gently!

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Mike.Rice@CornerStoneIT-llc.com