All the little things

Why is it we have “serial entrepreneurs“? The thought has entered my mind from time to time. Particularly when I think about the strengths of the team at Industria where I work.

I wonder what it is that makes our customers think, “I´ll take this to Industria, they’ll be able to help me sort through it”. We’ve had this discussion within the management team from time to time. Some have suggested that it’s the innovative spirit or willingness to do things differently that leads them to the decision. Myself, I think it’s a matter of entrepreneurial spirit.

Thinking about which element it is that the people on the management layer at Industria have in common? All of us have at one point or another founded a company or companies.

There is education in starting a company from scratch. What elements are there that make people choose to work on a bootstrap budget, with no job security and an opportunity cost higher than Mt. Everest.

For me, it’s just the longing to be able to say, “I was a part of the team that made this great product/service internationally successful”. And I think that I stand a better chance of recognition for my contribution in the smaller company.

The reason I wonder is because among the our customers there are two companies where Industria’s been involved from the very start. Myself, for example, starting at Industria my first project was to write a business plan for and manage the build-up of Nova, the first 3G operator in Iceland. I can actually say that I was the first person in Iceland to formally apply for, and receive a 3G spectrum license. Nova is now up and running and being led by a team of experts with a proven track record of customer acquisition.

When I joined Industria, the company was in the process of building an IPTV triple-play operator in Ireland called Magnet networks for its customer. Magnet is owned by Columbia Ventures Corporation a US based telecoms investment company.

Both of those companies have bought Zignal and use that as their main entertainment delivery platform.

We’ve also seen that the start-ups entering the telecommunication market need to be very agressive and focus entirely on customer acquisition and marketing efforts.

But in our own operation we’re also trying to maintain the entrepreneurial spirit and stay lean and fit. I wonder how long a company can really stay “small”. What’s the cut-off point. 100 employees? Turnover of $10 million, €30 million, have a product distributed internationally, to have received first, second or third round of funding?
I don’t know, I´m not sure you can define the tipping point, but I know this, it’s important to stay small, it’s best to be a small giant.

we’ve been pondering where the IPTV market is going and what products are missing from it. One of the things we saw was that there are gaps in the

product range available to consumers. What’s missing in the market is the lower end of the product range. You basically have internet TV and the next step above is a full IPTV deployment worth €1.5 million. Where is the middle ground here?

Anyway, Industria deciced to have a go at changing that. Now, using Zignal Cloud anyone can set up a service provider and start offering TV services, using his or her local content.

But, the big opportunity is for the aggressive players in the market who are interested in outsourcing parts of their infrastructure and instead focus on their core strengths; marketing, customers care and content offering.

Check out the Zignal Cloud press release and if you’re interested, sign-up for the beta program.

5 MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE

Lesson 1: A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor. Before she says a word, Bob says, “I’ll give you £800 to drop that towel, “After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob After a few seconds, Bob hands her £800 and leaves.

The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs. When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, “Who was that?” “It was Bob the next door neighbor,” she replies. “Great,” the husband says, “did he say anything about the £800 he owes me?” Moral of the story: If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2: A priest offered a Nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said, “Father, remember Psalm 129?” The priest removed his hand.

But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again. The nun once again said, “Father, remember Psalm 129?” The priest apologized “Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.”

Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way. On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129 It said, “Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.”

Moral of the story: If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.

Lesson 3: A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, “I’ll give each of you just one wish.”

“Me first! Me first!” says the admin clerk. “I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.” Puff! She’s gone.

“Me next! Me next!” says the sales rep. “I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.” Puff! He’s gone.

“OK, you’re up,” the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, “I want those two back in the office after lunch.”

Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4: An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, “Can I also sit like you and do nothing?” The eagle answered: ” Sure , why not.” So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested.

All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5 : A turkey was chatting with a bull. “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,” sighed the turkey, “but I haven’t got the energy.” “Well, why don’t you nibble on some of my droppings?” replied the bull. “They’re packed with nutrients.” !The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.

The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the! tree.

Moral of the story: Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won’t keep you there.

Lesson 6: A little bird was flying south for the Winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:

1. Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
2. Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
3. And when you’re in deep shit, it’s best to keep your mouth shut!

THIS ENDS THE 5-MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE

I’ve been mulling over an article I read in Psychology today yesterday after finding a link to it on Ian’s blog.  Identifying with a lot of these traits. But not all. So I believe there is hope for me yet.

Getting into the zone has long been my way of delivering results. If I don’t have pressure (preferably tremendous pressure) I don’t deliver. I just get lazy and push all actions back to the last possible moment. Deadlines drive me to deliver.

I’ve long since noticed this and used it to my advantage. I assume responsibilities for all sorts of projects and tasks to keep me occupied. I pick up new hobbies if need be (the most recent photography) and delve into them. The next project intended to guarantee focus for me for the next couple of years is an executive MBA course at Reykjavik University. Funnily enough, I´m also hoping that doing a little soul searching as I believe is mandatory while working through the courses will help me kick this habit to some degree. There’s some irony to that!

So the iPhone’s landed in Iceland according to JAX and Hjalli. You can’t use it, because there’s no subscription plan, but you can use the wireless services. Hjalli describes it as a usability wonder and JAX is equally impressed with it and calls it slick.

I’m putting my money on JAX, he’ll be the first to buy and use iPhone in Iceland. I know of no one who outdoes him on spending sprees. I have tremendous respect for that!

I guess I’ll be number 12 or 13 but, I´m curious about when a 3G version will become available though.

• I wants one
• I wants one
• I wants one
• I wants one
• I wants one
• I wants one
• I wants one

Serenity Now!

For those not familiar with this TLA GTD=Getting things done.

Being the lazy ass that I am, I from time to time monitor blogs that suggest ways of making my life easier and producing more with less effort. One of the things me and my family are currently facing is the fact that all four of us are starting school this winter.

Hence Ian Mckenzie’s blog on preparing for school was duly noted and is being mulled over by me now.

Serenity NOW!

First post, just testing this thingy…

1. Find a purpose for setting up blog
2. Select categories of things to cover
3. …
4. Execute.
5. Profit

Bahh… too much effort, and too many uncertainties…

Starting with a picture of a sheep sorrel I shot last weekend. Simply because it’s got nothing to do with technology.