'Connectivity is Productivity'

From my Inaugural Lecture, 15 September 2015 that the University of Auckland Business School.

Title: 'Connectivity isn't everything (but it's almost everything)'

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 ‘Connectivity is productivity’

Of course, I couldn’t help but notice this full-page HP ad in the New York Times on 5 July this year, which said simply in bold letters, "Connectivity is productivity." 

This advertisement prompted the title of my talk, which is a play on the economist, Paul Krugman’s claim that ‘Productivity isn’t everything, but it’s almost everything.’

We have talked about productivity at the individual and team level, but I would like to mention a few other ways in which connectivity is increasing productivity.

Some countries and regions are taking new ways of work very seriously. The Dutch, for example, have not only been studying the application of new technologies, but many of their corporations actively encourage workers to work wherever and whenever in order to promote better outcomes for business along with better outcomes for the environment.

Connectivity began with machines, and is moving back there rapidly.  In fact, the social network era will no doubt last, but it may, in the long run, be overshadowed by the Internet of Things.  With a massive number of sensors deployed around us and nearly every appliance and machine connected to the Net, connectivity will become more embedded into our lives than ever before, and often without our knowledge. 

Which brings us to some downsides of these technologies…

Connectivity also has a ‘dark side.’