University of Bath's Change Management Forum, organised by the superlative Iain Colville, gave the platform over to Stephen Kelly (@SKellyCEO) last night - currently CEO of Sage, the accounting software company.
It was an honour to meet the man who was UK Government COO. That's a pretty big job. He saved the government nigh-on £1bn (as told to me in conversation) by renegotiating existing service contracts with the likes of Microsoft, Oracle and SAP, according to The Register article from August 2014: "Strategy-flinging No 10 civil servant Stephen Kelly turns Sage CEO"
Kelly obviously has spades of intuition about what is appropriate and possible in any situation, and could clearly propose sound ideas that immediately resonate and make sense. That's quite some skill. Fantastic opportunity to meet the man.
But Colville had more treats in store; introducing me to the work of Wanda Orlikowski.
"Her research examines technologies in the workplace, with a particular focus on the ongoing relations among technologies, organizing structures, cultural norms, control mechanisms, communication, and work practices. She is currently exploring sociomaterial practices in social media."
Definitely interested.
Friday, 20 March 2015
Wednesday, 11 March 2015
Fundamental Berlin - here's how to do email marketing
Trying to reach that 'hard-to-reach' hipster demographic with email campaigns?
Learn from these people: Fundamental Berlin
Learn from these people: Fundamental Berlin
Tuesday, 10 March 2015
Jony Ive wearing Clarks Wallabees to promote Apple Watch
Jony Ive interviewed by the FT - nice choice of footwear Sir Jony!
Clarks Wallabee Boots, Maple Suede - if I'm not mistaken.
"In great part the [$700bn] valuation rests on the shoulders of a
48-year-old Englishman. Yet as he lopes towards me down the corridor,
in his comfortable suede shoes, bright blue trousers and baggy,
long-sleeved yellow top, his kindly features creased up in a welcoming
grin, those broad shoulders seem remarkably unbowed."
#effortlessbritishstyle
Clarks Wallabee Boots, Maple Suede - if I'm not mistaken.
"In great part the [$700bn] valuation rests on the shoulders of a
48-year-old Englishman. Yet as he lopes towards me down the corridor,
in his comfortable suede shoes, bright blue trousers and baggy,
long-sleeved yellow top, his kindly features creased up in a welcoming
grin, those broad shoulders seem remarkably unbowed."
#effortlessbritishstyle
Farfetch's valuation
How Farfetched is Farfetch’s $1 Billion Valuation?
Iman Ahmed, Business of Fashion, 06 March 2015
Further proof that valuations are driven by more than just multiples of EBITDA... And that's a good thing!
"According to market reports, the company, which has yet to cross over into profitability, is estimated to drive about $350 million in gross merchandise volume (GMV) with about $90 million in resulting revenue from commissions (the company is said to take a 25 percent commission from its partners).
A company’s valuation should ultimately be driven by its momentum and growth, the scale of its revenues and the ability to drive cash flow. Indeed, according to a blog post by the highly respected investor Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures, marketplaces should be valued as either 1x gross marketplace transactions (a measure of scale) and/or 20x EBTIDA (a measure of profitability and cash flow) “for internet marketplaces that are growing fast and are category leaders.”
In the case of Farfetch, an EBITDA multiple is not possible as the company is not profitable. But if Farfetch were valued at 1x GMV, it would be worth about $350 million today using Wilson’s 1x multiple. Or, said differently, Farfetch’s current valuation is almost 3x its estimated GMV and much higher than Wilson’s multiple would allow."
Valuations do have unquantifiable aspects. The price is what the market can bear. This valuation may tell us something about the market, but there is always room for unquantifiable aspects in 'hard numbers'.
Valuations do have unquantifiable aspects. The price is what the market can bear. This valuation may tell us something about the market, but there is always room for unquantifiable aspects in 'hard numbers'.
Facebook wants to host news content, not just link to it
News publishers will find Facebook's bear hug hard to resist
Financial Times 27 February 2015
"Facebook wants to do more than just point its users to articles on other company's websites - it wants to host the content."
"By the end of last year, about a quarter of all the traffic being referred around the internet came from Facebook, according to Shareaholic, a company that measures the sources of traffic."
Facebook wants to be the new web. Or certainly the new Google.
Will media companies agree to have their content hosted by Facebook so it can be delivered faster to users and succeed in FB's algorithms? Mark Thompson (Chief Executive, New York Times, ex-Director General, BBC) says "in principle he was in favour of engaging with any new digital platform." Diplomatic and non-committal.
There's a balance here: media companies have the interesting content that people want to read; Facebook has the audience media companies want to capture. Some negotiation can be sought without capitulating to what feels like FB bullying.
A clear indicator that the web is evolving under the influences of corporate control, and losing its democratic foundations.
Financial Times 27 February 2015
"Facebook wants to do more than just point its users to articles on other company's websites - it wants to host the content."
"By the end of last year, about a quarter of all the traffic being referred around the internet came from Facebook, according to Shareaholic, a company that measures the sources of traffic."
Facebook wants to be the new web. Or certainly the new Google.
Will media companies agree to have their content hosted by Facebook so it can be delivered faster to users and succeed in FB's algorithms? Mark Thompson (Chief Executive, New York Times, ex-Director General, BBC) says "in principle he was in favour of engaging with any new digital platform." Diplomatic and non-committal.
There's a balance here: media companies have the interesting content that people want to read; Facebook has the audience media companies want to capture. Some negotiation can be sought without capitulating to what feels like FB bullying.
A clear indicator that the web is evolving under the influences of corporate control, and losing its democratic foundations.
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