David Koren

Business at the Speed of Light

I just sent this proposal in to ARC-US to deliver a presentation at their conference in San Diego in November...

Business at the Speed of Light
The acceleration of business and communication, and architectural practice in the 21st Century

In the last 25 years, technology has completely changed the way we conduct business. A series of revolutionary inventions—CAD, overnight delivery, faxes, mobile phones, email, and the internet—has transformed practically everything we do.

Now that the internet is nearly ubiquitous, however, we are entering an entirely new era. We have more information at our fingertips than ever conceived of before. We are able to communicate with our clients, staff, and collaborators instantly, no matter where they are.

Add to this the fact that we are now conducting business in a vastly expanded geographic and economic arena. In the last 10 years or so, over 2 billion people have joined the global economy—in China, India, and emerging countries in South America, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia. The world is truly bigger, and smaller, than ever before.

In this new environment, the speed of business has increased dramatically, and we are now operating in an always-on, 24/7 global economy. The world does not stop when your office closes. Every business must contend with how to respond as rapidly as possible to their customers—no matter where in the world they're located, no matter what time it is where they are.

But this new era is defined by more than just speed. Now that we can access information and communicate instantly around the globe, new forms of online communication are emerging. It is now possible for every individual who is connected to the internet to communicate with every other individual. Social networking on the internet, in the form of online communities, blogs, wikis, and content sharing, is beginning to transform the way that people interact around the world.

This new environment turns conventional corporate marketing and communications on its head. In a world where everyone (at least, everyone who is connected to the global economy) has immediate access to libraries of current information (that is, current as of this second) on you, your company, your competitors, and your market, companies need to find new ways to communicate with and truly engage clients. It isn't enough to send out a postcard and update your website. You have to find ways to truly provide unique value to your customers—whether through a trust relationship that you have built or through knowledge that only you can provide.

A few key questions:

• How are architects coping with working globally, in a 24/7 environment?
• How are suppliers changing their communications/marketing organizations to accelerate response and provide enhanced levels of personal service?
• How can companies in our industry utilize many-to-many forms of online communication and collaboration to provide increased levels of service and value to our customers?

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David Koren, Assoc. AIA
Senior Associate, Gensler Architecture, Design & Planning Worldwide

David Koren is the Marketing Director of the Northeast Region of Gensler, and the author of The Architect’s Essentials of Marketing, the first book on marketing written specifically for architects. David was the co-chair of the marketing committee of the New York Chapter of the AIA from 2001-2004, and was president of the SMPS New York Chapter from 2005-2006. He has a BFA in Dramatic Writing from New York University, and an M.Phil. in Irish Theatre Studies from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland.

David is an avowed early adopter, and has always been fascinated by technology and its social implications. He's been tracking and participating in the development of the internet for the past 15 years. David combines a deep practical knowledge of the business of design with a vivid imagination and sharp communication skills. He's working on a new book on the speed of business.

The Academy Awards

I watched the Academy Awards tonight for the first time since, I think, 1989. As a result of a particularly painful experience watching the Oscars that year, I have since sworn off awards shows. I've always hated the way that awards shows are so self-congratulatory, insular, and disconnected from any trace of reality.

This year, with Jon Stewart as host, I felt challenged NOT to watch the Oscars. I've had a lot of admiration and respect for Jon Stewart ever since he took on Tucker Carlson in 2004: "You people are hurting America." I watch his show when I can, and find him funny and frequently insightful.

So Sasha and I sat down to watch the Oscars, both working on various projects while passively watching. And I was a little surprised at two things... First, the movies that were up for awards all looked pretty good. You see, we haven't seen very many movies this year... The only ones I'd seen, incredibly enough, were MARCH OF THE PENGUINS and STAR WARS: REVENGE OF THE SITH. Clearly, we have to get out to the movies more (and maybe try working a little bit less). Second, the awards show actually seemed pretty well paced (short speeches!), and it didn't have very much of the "Look at us, aren't we great?" vibe that most award shows seem to have. Granted, some of the material (like Tom Hanks getting attacked by the orchestra in the "what not to do" as an awards recipient clip) didn't work at all... but it's live TV, and I can cut them some slack. I was actually really touched by how honestly affected some of the award recipients seemed (I'm thinking of Philip Seymour Hoffman, but there were many others). And Jon Stewart had some good bits (like coming back from commercial and being "caught" telling the audience why Scientology is so great).

All in all, I found the whole show to be kind of intimate and human, which really surprised me... And, ironically, it feels really good to be reassured by Hollywood, in a nation where it seems like Hollywood is the only real power base that isn't afraid to challenge the dominant ideology. It seems to me that most corporate interests, most of the media, most politicians, and most of the public either believe they are benefitting by direction the country is taking, or seem to feel that they have nothing to gain by speaking out.

So, yes, the Academy Awards actually gave me hope for what our country is capable of... The entertainment industry, which is based on fantasy, "star power," and who-knows-who, seems a lot more real and authentic than our government these days, which seems to be experiencing a near-total lack of anything approaching effective leadership (and I'm not just criticizing the party-in-power here). The Oscars demonstrated more leadership, conviction, and heartfelt warmth than any white house press briefing, presidential photo-op, or political speech I've seen in a long time.