Tweetstream from #SxSW Core Conversation "Be Heard: How To Innovate At Large Companies #hackthemachine"

Previously, I posted on how I prepared for moderating the "Be Heard: How To Innovate At Large Companies" in my previous blog post.

In this post, I'm display the tweetstream from the talk.

Now, normally, I'm the person generating the tweetstream -- I like taking notes of the proceedings for topics I'm interested in.  And at conferences like #SxSW, it's incredible to be part of a lively backchannel.  When there's a group of attentive people tweeting, you can almost get the gestalt of the talk, just by viewing the tweets.

I'll be posting more on the research that William Hertling (@hertling) and I have on this in a future post.

But in the meantime, here's the Twitterstream for our #hackthemachine talk.

PS:  It is surprisingly difficult to copy/paste a tweetstream into a blog.  I had to write a Ruby app to do this.  Anyone interested in seeing how I did this?

Adriana Burcheri
acr8tz

Checking out Be Heard: How to Innovate At Big Companies at #SXSW- http://schedule.sxsw.com/events/event_IAP5678 #SXSW #hackthemachine 10:25 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via SXSW® GO 2011

brianna
brianna2880

Looking forward to the talk #hackthemachine. 10:26 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

Melissa J Bond
MelissaJBond

Me too! RT @WisAngieG: Learning to #hackthemachine at #sxsw starting in a few. Hoping to get a few tips on breaking thru the noise. 10:26 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

tony felice
tonyfelice

"how to innovate at big companies" #hackthemachine #sxsw just getting started 10:26 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Byron Whitt
byronwhitt

Next session---Be Heard: How to Innovate At Big Companies. Reading my mind #SXSW #hackthemachine 10:27 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Fred Steube
steube

At #sxswi listening to a session on corporate innovation. #hackthemachine 10:29 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

Ready to start #hackthemachine w/ @Hertling. A lively bunch!! #sxswi 10:29 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

Jess
notweets

How to Innovate At Big Companies at SXSW. #SXSW #hackthemachine 10:29 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via SXSW® GO 2011

Heather Dennis
H_Dennis

Waiting for session to start #hackthemachine 10:30 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPad

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#HacktheMachine! "Be Heard: Innovating At Large Companies" by @RealGeneKim & @Hertling kicking off http://bit.ly/hALow3 #SXSWi 10:30 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Jean MacDonald
macgenie

Wow! It's SRO at @realgenekim and @hertling's session on Innovation at Big Companies. #hackthemachine 10:32 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

Bill Jensen
simpletonbill

Separated at birth! How to Innovate At Big Companies at #SXSW #hackthemachine twin to #hackingwork ? Yessssss! 10:32 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Doug Bonarrigo
bonarrdo

Attending "Be Heard: How to Innovate At Big Companies" Surprise, surprise: The room is full. #hackthemachine 10:32 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Mac

jeff t johnson
lovebugdad

At Be Heard - How to innovate at big companies - #hackthemachine, #sxsw, #gsdm 10:33 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Matt Hixson
matthixson

Getting ready to hear @RealGeneKim and @hertling talk to a full house #hackthemachine #sxswi 10:33 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

ElizabethChristensen
betsyp

@ #hackthemachine #sxsw first point "I want to be paid to think" yes please 10:33 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

VogeleLaw
VogeleLaw

I'm now at a program on being innovative at big companies #hackthemachine 10:35 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Paul Jacobs
PJ_medigital

#hackthemachine #sxsw attending how to innovate in big companies @publicisgroupe 10:36 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Plume  

Sarah Rosen
SarahJaneRosen

So bummed that #hackthemachine is full! Onto the next... #swsxi 10:38 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#HacktheMachine! Room is packed! Crowds outside the door. @RealGeneKim & @Hertling #SXSWi 10:38 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Experience this? Anything truly innovative gets chewed up by the corporate immune system. The normal process fails. #HacktheMachine 10:40 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Dave L.
lcddave

#hackthemachine tip - "borrow" someone's else spot in the plan if you can't get on the plan - sick and credible for a evillargeco 10:41 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

tony felice
tonyfelice

Substitution: replace weak plans with your idea as the payload #hackthemachine #sxsw 10:41 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Pete Hwang
petehwang

@RealGeneKim Founder of Tripwire and author of when "IT Fails" speaking at #HacktheMachine 10:41 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Share your Kung Fu at #HacktheMachine! What are your success stories on how you beat the corporate immune system. #SXSWi 10:43 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Starting with barriers: #1 NIH: Influencing another team. Make them feel like it's their idea. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:45 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#2 Fear of the unknown. Can't afford to make a mistake. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:46 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#2 Fear of the unknown. Can't afford to make a mistake. #3 Too many cooks in the kitchen. #4 Turf Wars #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:47 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#5 Empire building vs what's actually good for the company / good for the product. #6 Risk myself in doing this #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:49 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#7 Keep it simple. Keep it a cupcake-- don't let it grow into a wedding cake. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:51 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Matt Hixson
matthixson

#hackthemachine a very engaged audience and great energy in here. I love #sxswi 10:51 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

M-D November
critic

For the love of all that's holy, please please PLEASE turn on the AC in Brazos 2/3! #SXSW #hackthemachine #CourtyardFAIL 10:51 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Mac

Paul Jacobs
PJ_medigital

#hackthemachine #sxsw core conversation on innovating in big companies shaping up to be great #pharma #healthcaremktg 10:52 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Pete Hwang
petehwang

#8 Preconceived CEO notions: unable to accept ideas not from management. Autocracy. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:54 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Jonathan Hall
JonathanMHall

A lot of participation at #hackthemachine #sxsw 10:54 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Windows Phone

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Succeed in spite of others. In spite of company. Get credit 4 small successes. Earn social capital to do more. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:56 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Fears: Idea not ready yet. Getting measured on something with no resources. Exec gets mad... at ME personally. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 10:58 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Jason Yates
jasonwyates

all of us agency people at this discussion must work at the same place. #hackthemachine #sxsw 10:59 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Totally packed house and overflowing out the doors. RT @JonathanMHall: A lot of participation at #hackthemachine #sxsw 10:59 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Wienot Films
wienotfilms

RT @petehwang: #7 Keep it simple. Keep it a cupcake-- don't let it grow into a wedding cake. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:01 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Pete Hwang
petehwang

At Intuit: Just built it. Made prototype during off season. Capitalize on peaks & lows. Mgt bought in later. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:02 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

julietd
julietd

#SXSW #hackthemachine the only thing that goes viral at HP is a PowerPoint deck. 11:05 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Dave L.
lcddave

#hackthemachine sad but exploitable truth - the only thing that goes viral in a large company is ppt 11:05 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Share write-up showing ROI & external customer interest. Get coworkers involved to build buy-in and co-ownership. #HacktheMachine 11:05 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Dave L.
lcddave

#hackthemachine - also, who sends the ppt makes a difference; need to be in the crowd (or have a friend in the crowd) 11:06 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Most rejection is irrational & emotional. Can't solve by data. Must deal w emotional block. Sell from their peers? #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:07 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Understand the person who's risk adverse. Where ate they coming from? Reframe pitch into their real needs. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:10 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Risk adverse person is comforted to know you've done your HW and thought through their nervous spots. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:12 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Paul Jacobs
PJ_medigital

#hackthemachine #sxsw mitigating risk by leveraging input from non stakeholders a sound strategy for selling in to risk-averse people 11:12 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for BlackBerry®

ElizabethChristensen
betsyp

RT @julietd: #SXSW #hackthemachine the only thing that goes viral at HP is a PowerPoint deck. 11:13 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

tony felice
tonyfelice

To address the risk adverse, activate a NEW fear: risk of not doing it #hackthemachine #sxsw 11:14 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Talk about the risks of *NOT* doing it. Activate a new emotional fear. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:14 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

BrianMartorana
BrianMartorana

#hackthemachine for risk adverse compamies/people - discuss the risk of not doing something /ur idea. 11:15 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPad

tony felice
tonyfelice

RT @petehwang: Risk adverse person is comforted to know you've done your HW and thought through their nervous spots. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:15 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Paul Jacobs
PJ_medigital

#hackthemachine #sxsw mitigate risks by pointing out the risk of NOT implementing the programme you are trying to sell 11:15 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Caroline Mann
publicitymann

Talk about the risks of not making change to persuade those in resistance #hackthemachine 11:15 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Dave L.
lcddave

@petehwang thanks for the #hackthemachine tweets. Keep em coming 11:15 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Max Mendelsohn
Maxtheman36

RT @betsyp: RT @julietd: #SXSW #hackthemachine the only thing that goes viral at HP is a PowerPoint deck. 11:16 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

Caroline Mann
publicitymann

Understand the person who is risk adverse so you can better influence them #hackthemachine 11:16 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Craig Jamieson
Digiguru

RT @tonyfelice: To address the risk adverse, activate a NEW fear: risk of not doing it #hackthemachine #sxsw 11:16 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Android

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Pre-Selling: Socialize ideas w individuals ahead of time before the big meeting. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:16 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

ElizabethChristensen
betsyp

RT @publicitymann: Understand the person who is risk adverse so you can better influence them #hackthemachine 11:17 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

Romp Interactive
RompInteractive

RT @petehwang: Totally packed house and overflowing out the doors. RT @JonathanMHall: A lot of participation at #hackthemachine #sxsw 11:18 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Byron Whitt
byronwhitt

RT @petehwang: Totally packed house and overflowing out the doors. RT @JonathanMHall: A lot of participation at #hackthemachine #sxsw 11:18 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

ElizabethChristensen
betsyp

RT @petehwang: Talk about the risks of *NOT* doing it. Activate a new emotional fear. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:18 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

Caroline Mann
publicitymann

Too many cooks in the kitchen? Build advocates within the group to help your idea grow #hackthemachine 11:18 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Build advocates & ownership within the group. Have other people do due diligence, personally investing their time. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:19 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Romp Interactive
RompInteractive

fight for simplicity within your organization #hackthemachine #sxswi 11:20 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Caroline Mann
publicitymann

Fight for simplicity #hackthemachine 11:20 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Byron Whitt
byronwhitt

fight for simplicity within your organization #hackthemachine #sxswi 11:20 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

bestrong
bestrong

RT @publicitymann: Talk about the risks of not making change to persuade those in resistance #hackthemachine 11:20 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Pete Hwang
petehwang

How do you find the time & the resources? Justify your time: Align what we want to do with the companies priorities. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:21 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Doug Bonarrigo
bonarrdo

Getting executive by-in is a great way to move projects along without overcomplicating and dragging them out. #SXSWi #hackthemachine 11:21 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for Mac

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Buy them beer. Buy them lunch. Build social capital. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:22 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Reciprocate to build social capital: Reward and celebrate other people's ideas. They'll help you later. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:24 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Angie G.
WisAngieG

Gr8 RT @PJ_medigital: #hackthemachine #sxsw mitigate risks by pointing out the risk of NOT implementing the program you are trying to sell 11:24 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Find other rebels and band together. Upsurgers. Time just appears when people think the idea is awesome. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:25 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Caroline Mann
publicitymann

Don't start the day with too many projects to allow for creativity and innovation #hackthemachine 11:26 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Heather Dennis
H_Dennis

Encourage the Fail Fast. #hackthemachine 11:27 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPad

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Start off the day with just 1, 2, or 3 things. Make your innovative project one of those 3. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:27 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Corinne Kerns
corinnekerns

No one here has been fired for innovating #hackthemachine 11:30 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitterrific

Wienot Films
wienotfilms

RT @publicitymann: Don't start the day with too many projects to allow for #creativity and #innovation. #hackthemachine #sxswi 11:32 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Action item! @hertling will compile and post all these great ideas on his blog: www.WilliamHertling.com #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:33 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

bestrong
bestrong

RT @petehwang: Find other rebels & band together. Upsurgers. Time just appears when people think the idea is awesome. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 11:34 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Pete Hwang
petehwang

Visual poster of the conversation #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 11:39 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Babker
babkerowl

Had so much fun at #hackthemachine today, cheers to all! Now back to work! http://babkr.com/r94g 11:40 AM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via HootSuite

Pete Hwang
petehwang

RT @RompInteractive: fight for simplicity within your organization #hackthemachine #sxswi 12:22 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Margueritte Kim
kimfampdx

My husband just presented at #SXSWi to a full house. So proud. He rocks! #hackthemachine 12:46 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Babker
babkerowl

@kimfampdx He did rock!! #hackthemachine #SXSWi 12:52 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Babker
babkerowl

RT @publicitymann: Don't start the day with too many projects to allow for creativity and innovation #hackthemachine 12:53 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via ÜberSocial

Brad Spikes
bradspikes

Focus on engaging colleagues passionate on a subject to spur innovation in large companies. These folks will find a way. #hackthemachine 01:19 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

Couldnt do it w/o you, darling! RT @kimfampdx: My husband just presented at #SXSWi to a full house. So proud. He rocks! #hackthemachine 01:57 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Twitter for iPhone

william hertling
hertling

RT @petehwang: Visual poster of the conversation #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 02:19 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

william hertling
hertling

RT @petehwang: Start off the day with just 1, 2, or 3 things. Make your innovative project one of those 3. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 02:19 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

RT @petehwang: Visual poster of the conversation w/@hertling & me: #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 02:20 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

RT @WisAngieG: Gr8 RT @PJ_medigital: #hackthemachine #sxsw mitigate risks by pointing out the risk of NOT impl… (cont) http://deck.ly/~P6KbD 02:21 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

RT @petehwang: Buy them beer. Buy them lunch. Build social capital. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 02:22 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Doug Bonarrigo
bonarrdo

RT @petehwang: Visual poster of the conversation #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 02:22 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

RT @bestrong: RT @publicitymann: Talk about the risks of not making change to persuade those in resistance #hackthemachine 02:22 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

RT @publicitymann: Too many cooks in the kitchen? Build advocates within the group to help your idea grow #hackthemachine 02:22 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

william hertling
hertling

RT @RealGeneKim: To all who attended #hackthemachine, please fill out feedback form! @hertling and I want to do more to advance the mission! :) #sxsw 02:34 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

william hertling
hertling

Looking for more #hackthemachine stories? Visit my blog: http://www.williamhertling.com 02:34 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Pete Hwang
petehwang

@RealGeneKim & @Hertling You guys rocked the house. #HacktheMachine #SXSWi 02:42 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

E Gately
countesssunspot

RT @petehwang: Visual poster of the conversation #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 02:51 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

E Gately
countesssunspot

RT @hertling: Looking for more #hackthemachine stories? Visit my blog: http://www.williamhertling.com 02:51 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

#hackthemachine: Blog: "How I Prepped For Moderating #SxSW Talk w/@hertling: Be Heard: Innovating At Lg Companies" http://bit.ly/ijXMEU 03:16 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Margueritte Kim
kimfampdx

W00t! Go GK! RT @macgenie: Wow! It's SRO at @realgenekim and @hertling's session on Innovation at Big Companies. #hackthemachine 03:33 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Pete Hwang
petehwang

@LibbyTucker: @Hertling from HP Vancouver hosted #HacktheMachine at #SXSWi. Packed room, crowds outside the doors. #friendsfrombackhome 03:39 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Max Mendelsohn
Maxtheman36

RT @petehwang: Visual poster of the conversation #HacktheMachine #SXSWi http://plixi.com/p/83514363 03:46 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via Echofon

Chris Robson
fatveg

RT @RealGeneKim: RT @Maxtheman36: RT @betsyp: RT @julietd: #SXSW #hackthemachine the only thing that goes viral at HP is a PowerPoint deck. 05:30 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via TweetDeck

Chris Dancy
ServiceSphere

RT @RealGeneKim: #hackthemachine: Blog: "How I Prepped For Moderating #SxSW Talk w/@hertling: Be Heard: Innovating At Lg Companies" http://bit.ly/ijXMEU 05:45 PM Sat Mar 12, 2011 via web

Jason Reynolds
JasonReynolds

@hertling So enjoyed yesterdays #hackthemachine! When you post the notes, include the topics/issues we didn't get to please. 06:01 AM Sun Mar 13, 2011 via Mobile Web

william hertling
hertling

RT @RealGeneKim: #hackthemachine: "How I Prepped For Moderating #SxSW Talk: Be Heard: Innovating At Big Companies" http://bit.ly/ijXMEU 08:58 AM Sun Mar 13, 2011 via TweetDeck

william hertling
hertling

Visual Notes for Be Heard: How to Drive Innovation at Big Companies http://j.mp/hdd40G #hackthemachine 12:17 PM Sun Mar 13, 2011 via TweetDeck

Gene Kim
RealGeneKim

Goodbye #sxsw. It was an amazing week. Thank you all. Cyu next year! (And thx to @kimfampdx for letting me go! :-) #devops #hackthemachine 01:22 PM Tue Mar 15, 2011 via web

How I Prepared For Moderating My SxSW Core Conversation: "Be Heard: How To Innovate At Large Companies #hackthemachine"

I had the pleasure of co-presenting with my buddy William Hertling (@hertling) at SxSW on the topic of "Be Heard: How To Innovate At Large Companies."  (Incidentally, William and I go way back -- we went to grad school together at the University of Arizona, and then we both moved to Portland in 1995 after graduating.  He was also our first Director of Engineering at Tripwire.)

I got a lot of positive comments afterwards about how I moderated the session.  When I asked, "Why?" here's what they mentioned.  (Forgive my paraphrasing...):

• "I liked the way you reframed everyone's stories into a succinct problem statement.  I learned a lot."
• "I liked the way you were able to politely cut people off when they started to ramble, or talk about theories."
• "I liked the way you kept the conversation rolling and the energy level high."

As much as I appreciated the kind words, I must be honest. I am not an expert on the topic of innovation in large companies.  My only role was to facilitate the Core Conversation, which is a SxSW Interactive conference hallmark.  It's a format that's not a panel and it's not a presentation.  Instead, it's like a huge roundtable, where everyone is expected to share their expertise and experience.

The feedback on the session was fantastic.  It was standing room only, with people listening in on the session from the hallway.  Here's a picture of how the room is laid out:

When people asked me how I did it, I told them that it boiled down to a couple of things:

• Rehearsal: William and I wrote out the prepared parts of the presentation word-for-word, and we spent weeks going through it.  And we were rehearsing it late Friday night, trying to shrink and tighten up the speech.
• Preparation:  William and I went through all the broad problem categories, and inventoried how it might be described.  And then we prepared some witty pre-canned repertoire of how I would reframe it into a known catory.
  
  
• Nailing down the process:  My role was the keep the conversation flowing, time-boxing each topic to 6 minutes, with the option of expanding the time window to longer, if the audience wanted.  William's role was to tease out the specific tools and techniques from the people sharing their stories of how to address the given problem.

When people asked for more details, I told them I would share the entire "script" that I was referring to throughout the session.  I'm posting it below, so you can see how we did it.

The PDF file I was holding and reading from during the session is here.  Note the two-column layout, which allowed me to hold it like this:

The plaintext is quoted below.  (Argh, Can't figure out how to do indented bullets in MarsEdit! Sorry for ugliness!!)

Links:

• Link to the PDF I was holding
• Link to the Twitter stream on #hackthemachine
• Link to William Hertling's blog series on Hacking The Machine 101

Let me know what you think!

Cheers,
Gene

Gene objectives

• Credibility introduction (4 sentences)

• The rules (2 rules)

• Problem elicitation (10 minutes)

Introduction

Thanks, William.  My name is Gene Kim.  I help online services companies like Microsoft, Yahoo and AOL improve their ability to deploy features into production quickly and simultaneously increase their stability and reliability.  Before this, for 13 years, I was the founder and CTO of Tripwire, a $100M security software company that recently filed for its IPO. I’m writing my third book called “When IT Fails: The Novel.”

My role

But, today, my role is to solely to support William by helping facilitate the discussion.

I attended many other Core Conversation sessions and they were freaking awesome. I’m always amazed at the level of skill and experience of people in the room.

So my fundamental assumption is that all of you are as smart and intuitive as we are.  Knowing my buddy William, probably even more so.

So my only goal is to make sure that you can share your awesome kung fu on how you’ve successfully Hacked The Machine.

So, like in the move Fight Club, there are only two rules for this session:

Rule 1: Thou shalt never start your sentence with “you should [yadda yadda]...”.  This is not a session to share your theories of what you think will work.  Instead, please say, “I did X, Y and Z, and here’s what happened.”

As William stated, our goal is for you to leave with as many practical, usable and tested tools that you could use next week.  So, if necessary, we’ll try to tease what those tools and techniques out of your stories.

If there’s not enough time to do this for all the techniques in this session, talk to William, because he’ll definitely want to interview you.

And William will be writing these up on his blog, posted on the wall.

So, that’s Rule #1: Thou shalt not say “you should…”.  Instead, say, “here’s what I did, and here’s what happened.”

And Rule #2:  There is no Rule #2.

So, before we jump into tools and techniques, let’s take a moment to talk about the barriers to having your ideas Be Heard and Get Implemented.

For all of you who have had that great idea, who were sure that the idea would actually work, and somehow still got shot down, what was the barrier?  In William’s great story, it was the Plan of Record that couldn’t get changed, that all the food in the IT buffet table was already eaten.

What other barriers have you all run into?  (Like, capacity, fears, managers, processes, uncertainty…)

• Selling the idea

• Can’t get it in front of the right people?

• Can’t get the meeting with the VP scheduled?

• They always cancel the meeting?

• Getting it implemented

• Capacity issue?

• Plan of Record issue?

• Can’t the right team assigned?

• Don’t have the needed expertise?

• I just don’t have the time for this?

• Have too many other projects?

• You’re already working the Ferriss 4 hour work week, and they’ve all been spoken for?

• Too many interruptions?

• Finding the right collaborators

• Get people who say, “I want to help,” and you think “I don’t want your help. Stay off my side!”

• People who always talk to the wrong person, and gets the project shut down

• Or they open their mouth, and you instantly have to distance yourself from the person?

• Accidentally start a turf war?

• Manager who says no

• Are these the people who say, “You don’t even need to finish your sentence. I’m already saying, ‘No.’”

• Is it because they’re freaked out about some other objective.  Like, “I need all eyes on screens, all hands on keyboards.  When I don’t see typie-typie, something is wrong.”  Is that it?

Okay, how about this one?  How many people here have had that great idea, and held themselves back because of a fear of what may happen?  Tell us about that!

• I was too afraid

• Tell me more.  What specifically were afraid of?

• How many people have had this fear?

Let’s Begin

Awesome.  This is a great list of problem statements.  So, let’s

William, based on what we’ve heard, where should we start?

• While time not elapsed, do {

• William states the problem to work

• Gene starts the clock for 6 minutes

• Gene listens, and quips and provides color commentary

• Gene says, “Who wants to start  by sharing, ‘I have a solution or tips for this problem.  Here’s what I saw, here’s what I did, and here’s what happened?”

• William

• Correct

• Clarify  (e.g., “where did you find these people?”)

• Reward

• Confirm with question asker, “Do these feel like usable answers?”

• }

iPad 2 Wi-Fi And 3G Data Plan Pricing And Options | TCGeeks

This is a great article at TC Geeks, summarizing the various options and plans available for upcoming iPad 2.

I currently use a Verizon Mi-Fi device with my iPad, but I hate that I have to carry around a special charger -- standard micro-USB connectors don't work, as it appears to need more current than most cables/ports allow.

I suspect an AT&T Tethering plan for my iPhone 4 is in my future....

Cool workshop: Lean IT from Lean Enterprise Institute

Lean Enterprise Institute Offers Lean IT Workshop in Chicago on September 16

Mike Orzen and Steve Bell will be teaching a workshop on application of Lean techniques to IT, based on their experiences that they wrote about in their upcoming book Lean IT – Enabling and Sustaining Your Lean Transformation.

I've been having a great deal of fun recently working with Mike Orzen on codifying the prescriptive steps the business and the IT organization must follow to simultaneously increase the throughput of features into production, without causing chaos and disruption to the IT production environment.

I view this work as helping fill in the some needed blanks in the work that I've been working on with Kevin Behr and Patrick Debois.

I believe this work will be of great interest to the #DevOps community, as it will help provide a bridge to the over 160K Lean practitioners (who are due paying members of the famous Lean Enterprise Institute).  They could be a valuable set of champions and consultants to help in DevOps projects.

(By the way, the founders of Lean Enterprise Institute are some of my biggest heros.  They wrote the book The Machine That Changed The World: The Story Of Lean Production. Their work on benchmarking automotive plant performance helped shape all the work that we did to benchmark over 1500 IT organizations.)

More information on this workshop can be found at http://www.lean.org/Workshops/WorkshopDescription.cfm?WorkshopId=52.

When an organization enters a Lean transformation, weaving the principles of efficiency and respect into a culture of continuous improvement, too often the IT department is either left out or viewed as an obstacle. Whether you are improving a manufacturing service line or adopting electronic medical records, incorporating IT into the Lean transformation can make or break it.

To explore the dimensions of Lean IT and its importance to sustaining Lean transformation, Lean Enterprise Institute (www.lean.org) will offer a one day Lean IT workshop September 16 at the Hyatt Regency Woodfield – Schaumburg in Chicago.

Participants will explore both internal and external IT operations:

• Internal: IT operational excellence, including the application of Lean to Service Management Framework and ITIL, Software Development (Agile), and Project Management.

• External:  the role of quality information, effective information systems, and an engaged IT organization, to support the continuous improvement of business processes. The workshop includes hands-on exercises, applying many Lean tools (A3, Value Stream Mapping, root cause analysis) to an IT problem scenario.

By adding this workshop to their portfolio, LEI recognizes Lean IT as an important emerging discipline that supports Lean communities of practice in all industries, including health care.

To learn more follow this link:

http://www.lean.org/Workshops/WorkshopDescription.cfm?WorkshopId=52

LEI is a non-profit educational organization founded by James Womack, co-author of Lean Thinking, and Machine that Changed the World (where the term “Lean” was originally coined).

The instructors, Mike Orzen and Steve Bell, co-founders of Steady Improvement, and authors of “Lean IT – Enabling and Sustaining Your Lean Transformation” (scheduled publication September 2010), have been named to the faculty of the Lean Enterprise Institute.

An IT organization is expected to “align with the business.” That is, IT is supposed to enable business performance and innovation, improve service levels, manage change, take advantage of emerging technologies, and maintain quality and stability, all while steadily reducing operating costs. Yet when an enterprise begins a Lean transformation, too often the IT department is either left out or viewed as an obstacle. What is to be done? This book shares practical tips, examples and case studies to help you establish a culture of continuous improvement to deliver IT operational excellence and business value.

Reviews of their book:

“This book will have a permanent place in my bookshelf. In my ten-year study of high performing IT organizations, I’ve found that businesses rely on IT far more than they think. The impacts of poor flow from application development into IT operations can be devastating: ever increasing cycle times and amounts of rework, and an ever increasing amount of heroics required in IT operations to preserve the illusion of stability and reliability.”

—Gene Kim, Chief Technology Officer, Tripwire, Inc.; co-author of The Visible Ops Handbook and Visible Ops Security

“There has never been a more critical time to improve how IT integrates with the global business enterprise. This book provides an unprecedented look at the role that Lean IT will play in making this revolutionary shift and the critical steps for sustained success.”

—Steve Castellanos, Lean Enterprise Director; Nike, Inc.

“Twenty years from now the firms which dominate their industries will have fully embraced Lean strategies throughout their IT organizations.  Ten years from now those organizations will have started pulling ahead of their competitors as the result of Lean IT. Today this book will show those organizations the path they need to start out on. Will your organization be one of them?”

—Scott W. Ambler, Chief Methodologist for Agile and Lean, IBM Rational; author of Agile Modeling and Enterprise Unified Process

“This book goes both wide and deep in its exploration of Lean IT… a great survival manual for those needing nimble and adaptive systems.”

—Dr. David Labby, MD, PhD, Medical Director and Director of Clinical Support and Innovation, CareOregon

“This book makes a major contribution in an often-ignored but much-needed area. It ranges over a huge area – including excellent case studies – that will bring IT professionals into the Lean fold while enabling Lean managers to reach out to the IT organization.”

—John Bicheno, Program Director MS in Lean Operations, Cardiff University

“… a comprehensive view into the world of Lean IT, a must read!”

—Dave Wilson, Quality Management, Oregon Health & Science University

Pictures from the truly awesome Tripwire farewell party...

The Tripwire farewell party was a really special event, and I want to thank everyone who put it together.  It was great hanging out with so many friends and colleagues, many who I've worked with for over ten years!

My wife and I had a wonderful time, and we'll remember it for a long time to come.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the evening -- Flickr page with running commentary is here.