The Idea of EU is so important, and we must not loose the sight of it in our short term challenges

A Norwegian team of experts published today a report of the Norwegian ESA-membership since we joined. The hard fact is that Norway is 70% aligned and that any policy or recomendation has been widely supported by our parlament.  The fact is also that our oil-powered economy is all dependent on EU, more than them beeing dependent on us. The sad fact is that the people in Norway has decided to pay the bill but not beeing able to influende throught the true democratic model that EU actually is.

The conversation will be heated the next comming weeks, and politicans and experts will take the stand with opinions and solutions.  A long needed discussion or conversation that I have been longing for a long time. I do also hope that we can have a conversation seeking for a better solution for Norway on how we can merge into a position where we can influence.

I do also hope that the conversation will introduce the bigger perspective to the narrow sighted perspective I often find dominate in the Norwegian news picture. The world has turned truly global, you might not get the impression when you pick up any norwegian news providor. Having a global role I sense everyday how Norway is loosing behind and not understanding how the world is getting faster, furious and better empowering the individual with available knowledge and access to opportunities. 

I do believe in EU, also in EU's ability to find it's new shape. EU must be more costeffective and must change, but the option is not to have it. The responsibility for that change is for every one of us. A sustainable democracy is so much better than any other option. If you have forgotton, plan a trip to the information center in Brussel to get a fresh update on where we came from.

Big Dreams borned in Norway can fly out in the world in a partnership with global companies like Accenture and the Norwegian Government,  come and join me.

One might say, I maybe was born into the real heart of ICT when I was apointed by the minister of Trade Mrs. Grethe Knudsen to join her advisory board on e-Business for Norway. I can look back on these meetings and brain-storming sessions and think, how did we manage to stretch so far.  But we did, and with passion, entusiasm and a broad collaboration model we gave birth to Altinn I and later Altinn II.

Today I do have the privilege to work with bringing Altinn out to the world as an asset in partnership with our client. And this is real innovation and a field of innovation where Norway is at its best. We can reuse a proven solution, which is extensive and complex (what you need when you want to digitalize governments) but simple to integrate to portals, case-management systems and ERP-systems.  A kinderegg solution already saving Norway trillions (still many more to go) but also pushing us up the ladder on countries where it is good to do business.

Yesterday I had a presentation for ICT-students telling them about how I am living my dream, but also how they can live theirs.  Read more about this in Norwegian here: http://morten.ifi.uio.no/

How smart devices drive the innovation in business models

The technology is a key-driver for the innovation.  In the midle of an innovation workshop on smart-grid I suddenly realizes that what is now happening to this industry with smart-metering is the same as what happened to the telco's with smart phones. Actually one of the guys in the workshop expressed it like this: The utility industry needs a Steve Jobs. And I think he is right, but not only him for his industry but for all industries. But I do not think we need one Steve Jobs, I think we all need to be a litle bit more Steve Jobsier in our attitudes to how we solve our work tasks every day.  Because I remembered as we were discussing this observation, what happended when I came back from San Francisco with the brand new iPhone to Norway. Entusiasticly (beeing a litle bit Steve Jobbis I hope) I went to one of my clients and said, look at this this is so cool, we should start investigating how this will innovate your business model. The respons was, no I do think it is just another phone. My imediate respons was; I think you have never been more wrong.  And well, to my account history speaks for itself.  And based on reasont changes in the utility industry - who want to be a litle bit more Steve Jobies here ?

For a more academic insight into this topic check out the reasons Warton Blog Post on this:
http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2860

NOKIOS, We must start action on reusing governent solutions in Europe

Listening to Robert Madlin (Leader of the Digital Agenda in EU) his main message that we should learn more from each-other. This is stated in the Malmø Decleration, and then we tend to issue research and reports. My questions to all of you out there are:
1. Can we continue to afford reports and research, instead of just reusing? If you look at the sucesses of companies like Microsoft and SAP, how did they spread the message. SELLING. So who is selling the solutions between the countries? We just had a client issue a letter to the Norwegian Department on access to the Altinn code. The letter was issued in may, and as of september they have not even got a reply to their request. That is not selling in my ears.
2.Can we continue to let researchers set the speed of implementations? Research is great for building new knowledge, but have we not done this already by implementing solutions in one country of one region. I would like the research to look at the implications and the challenges solved and new challenges appearing by resuing solutions.
3.Can we accept to wait for the perfect technology solution, before serving our citizens with online solutions? I believe in government solutions we need to learn from the innovation leaders like Apple and Google. We need beta-strategies, prototyping and pilots scaling from small to medium to large.

Why Women in the Nordic Region becomes entrpreneurs

Attending a conference at Åland focusing on women entrpreneurship, inspiration and insights hopefully gives actions Att Välje Väg http://www.fanny.ax/.  Looking into the statistics of entrepreneurship around the globe, the Nordic entrpreneur is driven by the need to innovate. Beeing in this group represents a market, where the majority is not entpreneurs, since entrpreneurship is mainly motivated by need. Listening to the history of Arts & Crafts and her reflections on how beeing hungry gives you an extra gear to move on with more inspiration. http://www.ac.no/,  I do start thinking how do we transfer this need for entrepreneurship to a Nordic Model based on democracy and a idea on a good life for everyone delivered by the state.  Maybe the thoughts of professor Carin Holmquist http://www.hhs.se/CEBC action suggestion to split the state funded program by the democratic statistics for the population. Atleast it would be worth looking into the numbers and putting targets on distribution. Also quotas would work as a program to ensure the distribution better.

Microsofts trends and thoughts for the market in 2012

Listening to many Microsoft Executives and Kevin Turner doing his anually speach from stage, I wanted to share some of my obeservations with you. 

First of all, lets look into the amount Microsoft is investing in R&D. Nothing less than 9 billion dollars will be spend on R&D in this fiscal year. The priortizations will be fueled by these thoughts on trends:

1. We have reached an inflection point in moores law. Today a motherboard is smaller than a phone. This will enable a new generation of devices, smaller, faster and everywhere that we have not seen. Also much more intelligence on the devices.  All together enabling us to deliver data where you want it, how you want it and when you want it.
2. Cloud will define the scenarios.  The cloud is a next step for our industry.  The cloud is enabling new scenarios on how to change the world, that our industry never have been able to deliver before.
3. Consumeration of IT is the fastest force of adoption in technology ever. The digital generation is expecting and inventing using IT in ways we have never seen happen in our industry earlier.
4. We will have unified eco-system with PC-Phones-TV. In 2012 it will be sold 1 billion smart computers in one of these 3 groups, versus 400 million in 2010. Microsoft will support this with a coherant and consistant strategy with iE 9 as the same browser for all 3 devices.

Based on this how do you move with a global R&D agenda and with some of the best people in our industry?  Well you make bets, the bets are as follows:

1.      Develop and deliver the best Cloud services

2.      Keep a sharp eye on the end user/consumer, and let their opinion shape the R&D investment

3.      Keep on moving with Search and have the best solutions for display advertising on any devices across any platforms including game-consols.

4.      Grow your market share on the Phone

5.      Redesign Windows with version 8 som will run on arm and the system on a chip.

Exciting and challenging.  The presence Microsoft has in different segments give them an opportunity to deliver the best solutions powered by ICT-technology when we want it, how we want it and where we want it.

Microsoft Partner Network, the largest Open Innovation Case winnig together every day around the world

On an annual basis I have the privilege to attend the Microsoft World Partner Conference.  This event is for partners only and are on premises (also digital www.wpc11.com)  beeing a meetingplace for partners and employees in Microsoft around the world.  This week we have been more than 14.000 people working together on the mission of how winning together will change the world.

Bullshit, you might think. This is just comercial and marketing, and yes you are right. But the more I work with exciting solutions I am getting a keen beliver in doing good business is good business, and that trusting somebody with your idea you can change the world.  And let me give you some insight into my experiences this week.

1. First by picking the theme for the conference Winning together, Microsoft is saying it all. They do not belive in going alone (like many of their so hyped competitors in fact do), they truly believe in togetherness. This not only mean doing business, but investing together in great initiatives like Haiti NetHope Academy, giving young people access to demanded technology skills giving them a profession and also a job slowly redesigning their own country
2. Second believing in partnership and openess takes comitment.  Microsoft Comitment comes in many shapes and colours, but hosting open innovation is their Partner Network.  On a platform free for all partners (you just have to say you want to be a partner and you are in). In this hosted network (free of cost ) for all partners to join and search for other parnters or post their solution and idea.  Today this network has more than 6.000 partners using it. To be honest I do not know about any other open innovation platform with that many users.
3. Thirdly believing in openess takes available business funding to work on a solution changing the world and bringing value to all inn.  Like all the present theory on Open Innovation, this part is a continusly negotioans as the business case moves along and mature.  But upfront Microsoft is trusting you with available funding programs to help you develop.  Yes, in some sense comparable to the Apple appstore, but then again not, because Microsoft will not charge you forever, they will have a need to share but in a much modest manner, but also requiring you to co-invest with them.

I do every day believe I am priviliged to work with technology. Considering myself contributing to a better world by beeing a change maker, I can not think of anything more powerful than technology doing this.  But beeing here at Microsoft World Partner Event, I feel  even more priviliged.  Because I am a truly believer in open innovation and by trusting somebody you will gain more than you loose.  Microsoft is visualizing for me a network of 640000 partners, with more than 15000000 employees changing the world in small and large projects using Open Innovation to win together. 

... and Bill Gates who obviously has been a thoughtleader on this model, is now taking it to a even better mission in the foundation also here utilizing the power of Open Innovation.