Comments for Kartik Subbarao

Comment on Organizational Dimensions, Personality Types and Development by mira

mira — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 03:55:35 +0000

good opservation! Thank you!

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Kartik Subbarao

Kartik Subbarao — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:19:25 +0000

> Looking at your Dependent-Independent-Interdependent
> model, it reminds me of a line… “We are taking apart
> each task and sending it…to whomever can do it
> best…and then we are reassembling all the pieces.”
> – from Thomas Friedman’s “The World is Flat”. I’m
> trying to related it to the “Bottom Up” approach this
> book talks about.

Yes, I agree that Tom Friedman does an excellent job of
explaining the emerging realities and possibilities of
the flat world. In fact, this same
delegation/specialization model is very common to Unix,
Linux and many other other open source projects. Good
interfaces defined by open standards, with each component
focused on its particular job, integrated effectively
across the board.

>Will you agree that any big organization (already having
>vendor relationship) should not go for OSS in entirety
>but only where required as this may take some time to
>mature?

I don’t think that open source is an all-or-nothing
proposition, and can certainly be implemented as a phased
approach. Adopting interdependent, open ways of working
throughout the areas of people, process, technology and
business is the broader goal. That will naturally
translate into a strategy of preferring (and contributing
to) open source software, but proprietary software can be
part of the mix too, if its value is well-understood.

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Gaurav Agarwal

Gaurav Agarwal — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:33:21 +0000

A good model indeed! … Looking at your Dependent-Independent-Interdependent model, it reminds me of a line… “We are taking apart each task and sending it…to whomever can do it best… and then we are reassembling all the pieces.” – from Thomas Friedman’s ‘The World is Flat’. I’m trying to related it to the “Bottom Up” approach this book talks about. Having said that, I worry how so many versions and licences of a open source software (OSS) is maintained and integrated as rightly pointed out by Ian Vernon in his comments. What’s your take on that? What should be any IT organization’s considerations (benefits and losses) before thinking about OSS as a long term strategy if not immediate? Will you agree that any big organization (already having vendor relationship) should not go for OSS in entirety but only where required as this may take some time to mature?

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Harry Sutton, HP OSLP Global Lead

Harry Sutton, HP OSLP Global Lead — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 15:22:28 +0000

Well written, well developed, well presented thesis, Kartik. As some of my peers on the HP Open Source and Linux Profession leadership team (past and present) have already mentioned, this resonates with our own experience. I experienced a particular moment of recognition in reading your description of the limitations we place on ourselves by reducing all decisions to monetary ones. Many of us in business will identify with the general Catch-22 mindset that says “We can’t develop this capability for the marketplace because there’s no demand, hence, no business justification, no future revenue stream”. (The obvious Catch-22 here is there’s no market because we haven’t developed the products(s) that would helpcreate, or at least grow the market.)

I hadn’t considered the Open Source model from this point of view (interdependence) before, but like so many other ideas that weave the fabric of this development model it seems intuitively obvious in retrospect. I suppose another aspect of this I find personally appealing, if occasionally frustrating, is that it reinforces the notion that this is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a continuum that individuals and IT organizations alike can position themselves along at any given point in time, and change only infrequently appears to happen quickly. But change is the only true constant, and it’s inevitable given sufficient time. We’re making inroads with our own IT organization that will bear fruit, and I suspect we are approaching a tipping point. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Bruno Cornec

Bruno Cornec — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 00:06:00 +0000

Very interesting Kartik, as usual. And always inspiring: http://brunocornec.wordpress.com/2009/09/12/am-i-interdependent/

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Am I Interdependent ? « Bruno Cornec’s Blog

Am I Interdependent ? « Bruno Cornec’s Blog — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 00:03:31 +0000

[...] I Interdependent ? By brunocornec Reading the brilliant article that Kartik Subbarao wrote recently on Open Source and Interdependent IT , I was questioning myself [...]

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by James Cameron

James Cameron — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:53:42 +0000

It made me cry. So many dreams, so many failures, is there really a company out there that can get past the crud and collaborate successfully? If so, hire me.

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Ian Vernon

Ian Vernon — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 08:27:23 +0000

Using open source software is becomming an industry standard, however the most basic questions remain. That is compatibility of various open source licenses, and this is a very big legal issue. Let’s take for example an IT organisation, downloaded a sourcecode with a GPL component or licensed with GNU GPL. Now to make the required innovation it requires an EPL component or licensed using Eclipse Foundation’s EPL. The innovation will not be possible since EPL and GPL are not compatible licenses, meaning that the GPL license conditions are breached and that the originator of the GPL license can sue your organisation.

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Henk van Cann

Henk van Cann — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:32:42 +0000

Great connection to Covey! There is a growing attention in the open source field for the human factor in decision making on open source applications in enterprises. Which is good. Because it is complex to get a yes for Open Source in situations where it can add value. As an Open Innovation Ambassador I have to admit that there is lots of organisations where Open Source Application and its services suppliers network (if any) is not suitable at present.
In cases that we do have a great Open alternative to Closed Environments we have to be patient indeed. We can tell them, we can show them, they will see it, they will hear it, but in the end it is what people believe that makes the difference. Open Source has not yet come to the point that decision makers and IT directors feel backed by the currently available software, the infrastructure and services suppliers. System integration in Open Source sucks big time, if I may be so blunt. There is more. If all the worldwide available Open Source service suppliers would have to service 1% of the enterprises worldwide, we would run short on capacity quickly. It is no use blaming decision makers as long as we ourselves (the Open minded) focus only on the positive effects of Open Innovation.
But we are getting there! Let us shift our attention more towards customers concerns about Open Source. These issues go way beyond software features, staffing and hiring suppliers: e.g. Total Cost of Operation, how to sell it to the boss, smooth integration, network of suppliers, training, and … building trust.

Comment on Open Source and Interdependent IT by Kartik Subbarao

Kartik Subbarao — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 02:17:52 +0000

One point that I hope doesn’t get lost here is that even IT organizations that develop internal competence can contract effectively with open source technical support specialists. As I mention:

“They identify where they want to be treated as a customer, where they want to interact as a peer, and where they want to play a leadership role.”

Compared to dependent IT organizations, interdependent IT organizations can make better use of the talents of technical support specialists, since they have a deeper understanding of the value that those companies provide.