All this week I was in San Francisco with my forum group from EO. A few times a year we travel on a retreat to visit world class companies and learn best practices.
We stayed at the Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square. This illustrious chocolate factory dates back to the civil war era where they once made everything from uniforms and spices to of course, Chocolate. The Fairmont spent 4 years renovating the factory into a one of a kind destination. It was a place we had to stay and experience and the location didnt disappoint. We lounged on the outdoor patios overlooking the San Francisco bay as we held our meeings.
Several of the suites were 2500 sqare feet in size and had 3 bedrooms. Surprisingly there was real value when sharing a large room like this in comparison to renting several smaller rooms. I highly recommend the Fairmont Heritage and I'll be taking my family back some time soon.
We were honored with the royal treatment for the entire day. About every 90 minutes we were given a new presentation from top managers on emerging and disruptive techlology and innovations. It was truly amazing to be allowed the kind of up front and inside access to the most powerful and innovative tech company on the planet.
Some of what we saw and were told about I cannot repeat due to Non Disclosure Agreements but without giving away too much I have to tell you of one fellow who came to speak to us. He was a top VP in charge of Innovation at Cisco. He reviews hundreds of deals and looks for technology that is truly life changing and disruptive to the market. Here is his criteria and actions he takes when he finds an idea.
The idea must have the ability to be a Billion Dollar business
He will spend $10,000,000 on the start up to fund it
He will hand pick Cisco employees to build it out
The team has 18 months to get it to market
It seems a tall order but he is responsible for launching a half dozen businesses in the last 4-5 years and he has several in the pipeline. Personally I would be happy to look at the deals he tosses in the trash if those are his standards.
Here is one such innovation. Video conferencing, where the operator is located in a data center and they can greet visitors who walk into a lobby of an office building. Kind of like a video concierge but the concierge can manage several building at once. The can give directions, pass people thru security and other functions, all 24/7 and global. This technology is also rolling out to other applications such as boardroom conferencing and even kiosks that can go in shopping malls and you can have visit with a doctor while you are shopping. The applications are limitless. Have a look and you'll see.
And at the end of the video you can watch me walk right behind an operator who is on a conference. So from the guy's view in the lobby, he would see a pair of pants walk on screen behind the operator - - Doh!
Our day wrapped up with a real bang from a one on one talk with Inder Sidhu the Senior Vice President, Strategy Planning, Worldwide Operations at Cisco. Mr Sidhu as you can see from his title is one of the highest level VP's at Cisco.
During our time with Mr. Sidhu we peppered him with questions and the insights and takeaway was like a year of business school packed into an hour. One memorable moment was when I asked him what he thought the next innovation in technology would be. He said, think of the dawn of computers, then the Internet - VIDEO will be the next innovation. We can see it starting already with services like NetFlix http://www.netflix.ca and the bankruptcy of Blockbuster. New methods of watching and delivery of video is going to transform movies, television and advertising in a profound way over the next 5 years.
Here is a quick video that sums up his philosophy.
I was at odds personally with a business decision that had me stumped and this exact recommendation from him when we met allowed me to see a new alternative and act on it.
