Real-life corporate transparency

Corporate transparency. It's the buzzword going around the echo chamber lately. But, how do you get really transparent? Get you involved? Do we have to bug Bill Gates' office? Nah, that won't work. Instead we're going around campus with hand-held video cameras and talking to people working on the projects you care about. Plus, we're starting conversations so you can tell people how wacky or cool you think their ideas are (and add your own ideas to the table too). Join in!

Great site by the way - look forward to seeing it go live outside MS!

Some of the recent articles from Paul Thurrott exemplify I think what some people are looking for - an insider's view of some of the design decisions taking place and the trade-offs that get made. But I'm far less interested in seeing "Microsoft for Groupies" than getting a true two-way dialog set up. Let's interview external guys like Eric Sink and Miguel de Icaza and find out what gets them excited about software. I'd like to see non-MS people involved in the running of this site too, otherwise we'll be unlikely to achieve the "new level of openness and communication" you desire.

Tim

Transparency is one of those 2-edged swords. Actually, maybe it's a 3-edged sword.

Will customers trust you more? Sure.
Will competitors try and rape you? Sure.
Will people internally try and hide from the magnifying glass? Sure.

It's the benefits that are harder to get into people's heads. This is a huge part of it though.

Sure, you'll never change some people's minds, but I get the feeling that isn't why this is being done. I get the feeling it's about talking. Really talking.

I think the inroads that transparency is making through this and the SourceForge thing are more important than most people think. And, important in a different way as well. These are experiments which I hope won't be abused, to allow for more and more openness.

Maybe that's the key to transparency: it can't happen overnight.

It is SO nice to read, hear, yes FEEL a human voice emanating from Redmond. If you are bots, you are damn fine bots! I really appreciate what you are doing here.

Tom Erickson wrote a great piece on transparency and it's kin, translucency. I think we need both in organizations because we are humans and sometimes it is hard to stand up there with no safety.

(Here and elsewhere on Tom's site - it is an ongoing theme http://www.pliant.org/personal/Tom_Erickson/st_TOCHI.html)

three words

saran wrap pants.

TRUE corporate transparency

true corporate transparency, MS-style: flying-chair cam

In a whimsical mood I decided to resurrect the oldest thread I could find. (And see if I could say something relevant to it.)

How do you think c9 have done on the corporate transpacency front? Is it a window into the workings of one of the largest and most successful companies of all time? Or a PR exercise targetted at a few elitest coders?

I know what I think, and I probably know what the trolls think too.

I was tempted to resurrect a more recent one entitled "where's the content" or some such, but I figure that's been answered by now.

hmmmm.... I totally see your point however;

I dont really care if its either or. All's I know is I love C9, I love the videos, I love the niners I love the community feel of it all and I wont be going anywhere. I would be extremely disappointed and rather quite upset if this place were to die or have the plug pulled.

So either way.... Im happy

Massif wrote:

How do you think c9 have done on the corporate transpacency front? Is it a window into the workings of one of the largest and most successful companies of all time? Or a PR exercise targetted at a few elitest coders?

::: cue predictable response :::

It feels like a combination of both. I think it is partly a PR exercise (still) and partly an attempt at transparency, which was long overdue.

Why it's a PR stunt:

1) Microsoft needed an image change after the whole antitrust deal
2) They need an alternate way to promote their dev. technologies
3) It's a conversation; but you are constantly viewed as a "customer". Think about that a minute. Or two. Or five.
4) By making dev. technologies more personable, their products feel more "personable"; which sells more tobacco product
5) They are losing more and more coders to "alternate" platforms

Why it's not:

1) It's only targeted at developers, and the general public could care less
2) Some of the videos are very off the cuff, which is refreshing.
3) You can learn a lot from the videos, and I wish more companies would do this

Not such a predictable response!

Although I do disagree with you that it's a PR stunt. For many reasons ranging from, "what sort of a lunatic PR dude would come up with this?", through "and how would convincing a bunch of developers that Microsoft employees are human after all help?" and settling on "surely a PR guy could make something more polished and professional than this?"

The big thing I like about c9 is the fact that the reasons behind decisions are explained. Finally knowing why certain things work in certain ways goes a long way toward making it pleasant to work around them. (Instead of just going "Stupid bloody Microsoft can't code for toffee!" - which is clearly wrong.)

But think about it a minute. The employees who are putting up these videos are still getting paid. It's not a free time, free-for-all thing going on here. The fact that it is still up and running after two years says somebody must be approving it in their budget. It's obvious they are monitoring the effects of each video's impact on the community and the conversations going on here. Perhaps they then make strategy adjustments to how they deliver content as evangelists?

Think of it as being like a big psychological experiment on developers worldwide.  You are all under glass.

I would have to wonder, though, if the reverse isn't also true with some of the trolls...are they experimenting on Niners and MS employees? Think of it like a battle between dueling Mad Scientists!

[6]

Interesting article from April 2004: Fuzzy Reception at Channel 9

That article wrote:

Really, bold, dramatic, statement making would be a hybrid blog site that adopted open-standard technologies--or at least those with cross-platform platform or cross-browser capabilities. Channel 10? Maybe.

lol

Edit: more...

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/170561_msftnotebook26.html

SeattlePI wrote:

...But some see in the site evidence of a deeper agenda.

"Really what we're seeing here is a corporate marketing blog," said Joe Wilcox, an analyst with Jupiter Research. He said he sees Channel 9 in part as an effort by Microsoft to "manage the message -- to get out information with its own spin on it."

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