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The Culture of Design
FROM THE EDITOR This is not your regular desktop issue. For this special edition, we’ve partnered with the Pause Fest 2016 team to showcase some of the upcoming festival’s great content with a kickass cover by Motherbird.
Publisher Joanne Davies Special Edition Editor Jamuna Raj Editorial Adviser Peter Roper Sub Editor Madeleine Swain Design & prepress Monique Blair Junior Designer Timmy Bourke Subscriptions 1800 804 160 subscriptions@niche.com.au
When I was approached to head this issue, I was overwhelmed, and really excited, with the quality and line-up of the Pause Fest 2016 program. From Google to Vice, to Fjord Australia and Girls In Tech, there is so much to look forward to and so many great speakers to learn from. In this issue, there are exclusive interviews with some of these speakers. Bibop Gabriele Gresta shares more details on the Hyperloop Transport System project, Peter McMahon tells us why organisations should self-disrupt to survive and Grant Miller of Hollywood’s Ingenuity Studios introduces the virtual reality opening titles for Pause Fest 2016. Discover your future self – this is the theme of Pause Fest 2016 and, with this special desktop issue, we hope that you’re just as intrigued to embark on that journey of discovery. Have a great holiday period and we’ll see you at Pause Fest 2016 in February. Jamuna Raj, special edition editor
FROM THE FESTIVAL FOUNDER Everything you think you know you don’t. If you think you are impenetrable, you are not. The internet can’t be stopped; it will eat you alive if you don’t change. We humans really don’t like to change. We would prefer safety and security, everything that the Digital Age is not about. We live in the best times of our lives, yet some of us are still asleep.
Contributors George Hedon, Founder, Pause Fest Phoebe Callow, Program Coordinator, Pause Fest Michelle Keomany, Copywriter, Pause Fest Venessa Paech, Global Communications Manager, Envato Luke Van O, Managing Director, Saffron Brand Consultants (Australia) desktop is a publication of Niche Media Pty Ltd ABN 13 064 613 529 142 Dorcas Street, South Melbourne, VIC 3205 niche.com.au tel: 03 9948 4900 fax: 03 9948 4999 Printing Graphic Impressions
ISSN 1322-9230 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any other means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing of the publishers. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this publication, the publishers assume no responsibility for errors or omissions or any consequences of reliance on this publication. The opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of the editor or the publisher. © 2015 Niche Group Pty Ltd Cover Cover artwork by MOTHERBIRD Typefaces Austin Buenos Aires Cadiz
We, as the individuals and the citizens of the Earth, are directly responsible for the future we are making. So let’s make sure it’s a good one. Welcome to Pause Fest, a brainchild of the internet, where creativity, technology and business collide. George Hedon, founder @Pausefest
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THIS ISSUE
Pause Fest’s virtual reality opening titles14
Motion Responses 201616
Teenage Engineering18
Interactive Storytelling19
Saffron Brand Consultants Melbourne Launch20
Social Entrepreneurship Pitchfest21
Hyperloop Transport System22
Design Democracy with Envato24
Girls In Tech26
Smart Cities28
Artificial Intelligence29
Big Data: What it means30
Digital Disruption32
Design of Future Workplaces33
Living Services with Fjord Australia34
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DESIGNING PAUSE FEST, AUSTRALIA’S LEADING CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE Image credits: Bayly Moore & Oli Sansom
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Above: An interactive installation titled Flow by Ethno Tekh lit up Melbourne’s Fed Square at Pause Fest 2015 Left: Tractor Digital Design Panel at Pause Fest 2015
SIX YEARS AGO, PAUSE FEST’S FOUNDER GEORGE HEDON SAW AN OPPORTUNITY TO START BRINGING TOGETHER A NEW BREED OF THINKERS AND DOERS. AS THE FESTIVAL RELAUNCHES WITH A MASSIVE OFFERING FOR 2016, WE LOOK BACK ON WHAT SHAPED IT – AND FORWARD TO WHAT’S IN STORE.
Since the festival’s launch in 2011, Australia’s digital landscape has become almost unrecognisable. Everywhere you look the influence of technology is permanently changing consumer behaviour, how businesses operate and what skills are developed. We’re no longer watching from the sidelines as the US and Europe dominate. Within the last three years alone digital media behemoths Buzzfeed, The Guardian and Huffington Post have all launched here, local start-ups are thriving and virtual reality gaming is reality. This makes an event like Pause Fest more relevant than ever, as it reflects the environment while also staying ahead. From 200 attendants in 2011 to over 12,000 five years later, how did founder George Hedon know that there would be such an appetite for this type of content? “Actually, I didn’t know,” he says. “My strategy is to constantly test the market and then if it feels right do it again and expand on it in an organic way.” Hedon elaborates on why he started the festival. “Everything is always about the people… the only reason I started Pause was to be able to collaborate with super talented and likeminded people on the projects you can’t Google, and then showcase them at the festival. Pause is all about discovering those passionate souls,” he explains. You can’t help but get swept up in Hedon’s energy and drive when you talk to him. It’s easy to see why the festival is so strongly supported by the creative and tech community. Sander van Dijk, mographer (motion graphics designer) at Buck in New York, was involved in the first Pause Fest. “I needed a break from work… It provided me with a platform where I could meet like-minded people in a different place.”
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Above: Personal perspectives and industry insights were shared from the masters of media, design, activism and business in a series of talks at Deakin Edge Left: Meet, share and inspire at Pause Fest
Over the years the conference has become a catalyst for businesses and individuals alike. “The animation that I did for Pause Fest is one of my most appreciated works. I often have clients specifically refer to it. Unknowingly, that has set me up for more great projects,” says van Dijk. Brad Hammond, tech creative at XY01, set up an interactive installation at Pause. “It was one of my first proper interactive installations outside of music festivals,” he says. Hammond has seen firsthand how Pause has grown over the last six years, “from humble beginnings focusing mostly on screen-based media, to now really encompassing digital culture and all that surrounds it.” Hammond adds, “I really like that the festival not only tackles the shiny tech and creative aspects of digital culture, but digs into the political, ethical, social impacts and abilities of contemporary and future digital culture.”
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Top: Pause Fest 2015’s theme was Pure – Simple ideas that will change the world. This year it’s Discover your future self Left and above: Pause Fest 2015 consisted of small meet-up groups to talks and parties. This year, expect the program to be bigger, better and bolder
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Left: Nick Crocker from My Fitness Pal took the stage at Pause Fest 2015 Bottom: At the Start Up Expo, VR demo by Joel Tiger de Ross
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Above: VIP rooftop party at Hassel Studio Right: desktop’s Relaunch party at Pause Fest 2015
Pause aims to be the space where you can meet, learn and do. Attending for her first time in February this year, final year advertising student Kim Handley says, “Pause Fest was the first time I felt immersed in the industry that I wanted to be a part of. It made me realise that I could forge my own path and still be fine.” It’s Hedon’s belief in what can happen when you create this space for people from all industries to converge, share their passion and find purpose, which sets Pause apart from other conferences. So why does a conference have to be the same every year? For the sixth festival, Pause continues to reinvent and reengineer itself, presenting a brand new start-up format and a theme of ‘discovering your future self’. Hedon says, “A start-up needs three people to run it successfully – a creative, a tech and a businessperson. Pause has been exploring these three areas in the last few years and it’s a logical progression for us.” Each topic has a full day dedicated to immersing attendees in everything it has to offer and the specially curated, free nightly events are a chance to mingle with the festival community. Intro to Pause
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Above: The Pause Fest 2016 journey map; Pause Fest 2016 is all about the journey of discovery through collaborations, ideas, experience and more. What will you discover at Pause?
For 2016 Hedon has steered Pause to new heights with an impressive range of keynote speakers from here and overseas. The core conference line-up boasts a hands-on design session with Crumpler, an insight into the creative process of tech designer studio Teenage Engineering (Sweden), the new wave of ‘femvertising’ and with Vice, discussing the near future of tube travel with Hyperloop (US), looking at the intersection of design and technology with Google, collaboration and design processes with DT and so much more. Hedon says, “Pause enables people to develop their own private voice through creative experimentation, away from the multiple level of approvals, and be heard.” So here’s to celebrating another year of what happens when you take the opportunity to pause. ❚ 012-013
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Above: Jess Scully, curator and festival director of Vivid Sydney, at Pause Fest 2015 Right: Pause Fest 2015 was held at Deakin Edge with various events and installations around Melbourne city
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BE TRANSPORTED INTO A VIRTUAL REALITY WORLD AT PAUSE FEST Image credits: Ingenuity Studios
WORDS BY Jamuna Raj
HOLLYWOOD’S INGENUITY STUDIOS IS CREATING A VIRTUAL REALITY OPENING TITLES SEQUENCE FOR PAUSE FEST 2016.
The air’s damp with foreboding and around her nothing stirs. Kee moves forward, stopping at every few steps to ensure that her grandfather Takeo, is keeping up with her. They have to move forward; they have to find better lands. They have to leave Edo behind. Edo, once home to her, her family and everyone, is now left with no one. It’s now nothing but a hollow, dark shell of what it once was. Kee grabs hold of her grandfather’s worn hands. They have to move on. They have to continue this journey… And their journey continues in February. This is not your regular short film, but the opening titles for Pause Fest. It celebrates the theme of discovery, but what’s even better is that these titles, entitled Edo, are in fact a virtual reality (VR) sequence. That’s right. Guests at the upcoming Pause Fest can look forward to being immersed in that underground world and experience that journey of discovery alongside Kee and Takeo. Created by Hollywood’s Ingenuity Studios, Edo marks a different genre of opening titles, one that is far more engaging and experiential. Grant Miller, creative director and VFX (visual effects) supervisor of the studio, tells desktop that all the guests at the festival will need to download Edo on their phones via the Google Play Store and Apple Store. “We will be handing out Google Cardboards at the festival and what the guests need to do is put their smartphones into the device, look into the viewfinder and be transported into Edo.”
Left: Join Kee in this virtual reality journey Next page: The underground world, Edo, created by Ingenuity Studios
Miller has served as VFX supervisor on films like Whiplash and A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas, as well as on music videos, including Taylor Swift’s ‘Bad Blood’, which had elements of 3D. He says that this is Ingenuity Studios’ first ever VR project. “It was an excuse for us to do a cool VR project. Pause titles is a great opportunity and when we had the first phone call with [festival director] George Hedon, we discussed what he was looking for and what we needed to do to deliver. At that point, we didn’t know if we could commit, but it’s a great project and so we took the plunge,” adds Miller. 014-015
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“That’s the biggest challenge with VR. We had to render the files in real time at 60 frames per second. This is unlike, say, Taylor Swift’s video where we could render the files for hours in post-production.”
The files were modelled and packaged in MODO – a 3D modelling, animation, sculpting, effects and rendering software package – and then exported into Unity, another piece of software that builds highquality 3D and 2D games. The results were then deployed across mobile, desktop and VR consoles.
“We’re planning shots in a VR environment where the viewer is able to see everything, 360 degrees. It was a huge challenge to lay out all our shots and we had to ensure nothing was missed or overlooked, as that would ruin the entire experience for the viewer.
“We rendered the files in real time in Unity. This was important because we wanted to keep the final download size small and ensure that the final product is in high definition and made for two eyes and in a spherical structure in which the viewer is able to look around and be part of the sequence,” Miller says, adding that the real time rendering proved to be a challenge.
Another challenge, says Miller, was planning the shots for the entire sequence.
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That plunge soon proved to work out for the teams at both Ingenuity Studios and Pause Fest. The development of the storyboards, the models and the technical details were completed in two months, though Miller adds that it took a lot longer than expected to create the toolset that would work with VR.
“We kept asking ourselves if we were in way over our heads, but we wanted to create something different and engaging for Pause Fest,” says Miller. The team at Ingenuity Studios is now putting the final touches in place for the VR sequence that will be launched in February. With such attention to detail, cutting edge technologies and methods used, and a story that engages everyone, the team’s creation is so meticulously conceived you almost believe it’s real. ❚
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MOTION RESPONSE: GET THE WORLD CREATING WORDS BY Jamuna Raj
Right: Storyboard by Territory, London Below: Storyboard by Brett Morris, Los Angeles
PAUSE FEST MOTION RESPONSE 2016 FEATURES STUDIOS FROM AMSTERDAM, SEOUL, LONDON, SINGAPORE, NEW YORK, VIENNA, MELBOURNE AND BALLARAT.
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Motion Response is Pause Fest’s signature initiative that allows artists to gain back creative control, experiment, engage with their team and have fun in the process. Over five years, various studios have won six golden awards, while many others have been shortlisted in highly acclaimed international festivals and award shows. Each year, 10 studios and artists are selected to work on the animation project. This is a highly creative and collaborative initiative that will bond the teams and allow ultimate experimentation. It’s a half-a-year passion project that gets whole world talking, sharing and inspiring. This year, the following 10 studios have been selected to participate in Pause Motion Response 2016: •
Dirty Puppet, Melbourne
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Brett Morris, Los Angeles
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Territory, London
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Cyrill Durigon, Paris
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Mass Motion, Ballarat
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Pixel, Melbourne
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Naoko Hara, New York
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Method Studios, Melbourne
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Neon Golden, Vienna
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CraveFX, Singapore
The studios will create animation videos inspired by the theme of the festival, ‘Discover – your future self’.
Above: Storyboard by Pixel, Melbourne
The storyboards from these studios have come streaming in to the organisers. The judges – who are from Pause Fest, The Foundry and Maxon – will pick the best submission and invite that studio to present to the conference about their creative process.
Top right: Storyboard by CraveFX, Singapore
Which studio will receive the nod from the judges? We’ll find out in February 2016 at Pause Fest. ❚
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TEENAGE ENGINEERING: NOT YOUR AVERAGE ENGINEERS WORDS BY Jamuna Raj JESPER KOUTHOOFD, HEAD OF DESIGN, FOUNDER AND CEO OF TEENAGE ENGINEERING, SHEDS LIGHT ON HIS COMPANY.
Right: Jesper Kouthoofd will speak at Pause Fest 2016
Four years ago, the OP-1 portable synthesiser entered the music technology market and took it by storm. It’s a product raved about by musicians, tech enthusiasts and even DJs. The OP-1 was created by the team at Stockholm-based engineering collective Teenage Engineering and is the result of an extensive creative and development process. Its hardware combines classic design with cutting edge digital technology. Remarkably, it’s the first product Teenage Engineering has ever developed and released into the market. At the helm is Jesper Kouthoofd, who, like the other founders, is a self-taught engineer. Kouthoofd directed television ads before forming Teenage Engineering, but it was his interest in technology and his 1980s childhood that led him into this world. desktop caught up with Kouthoofd ahead of Pause Fest 2016 to learn more about this wonder product and the team at Teenage Engineering. Give our readers a quick summary. What is Teenage Engineering? Teenage Engineering is a 35-people creative technology team that works within the area of sound and research, and develops products exploring how to use technology, manufacturing and design to create next generation products. Before Teenage Engineering, you were in the media industry. Why and how did you make the jump to building machines and software? Two things: a/ I am restless and b/ I always try to figure out where the creative people are. It seems the good ones move from industry to industry and tech is very interesting at the moment. The OP-1 portable synthesiser was the first ever product your team built. Take us through the design and development process. The OP-1 was actually an old idea that came up in the end of the 90s. Some of my friends (who also are partners at Teenage Engineering) and I discussed a product like this many times over beers. The problem was, at that time, there were no battery efficient DSPs (digital signal processors),
good batteries with small form factor and low power displays. But now, thanks to the birth of the smartphone, suddenly all this tech has evolved. So the timing was perfect around 2007/08 when we started to develop the machine. Our goal was to make a portable music machine as a reaction and alternative to the laptop or computer. We wanted to create a machine that you could put away in your closet for 20 to 30 years; then after all these years when you power it on, it will work and all your music you had created would still be there. Besides the synthesiser and wireless cloud speakers, what other projects has Teenage worked on? We work on a lot of installations based on sound and entertainment – a cardboard camera for IKEA, electric bike, video games and so on. These days the design aesthetics of a piece of technology are a huge consideration for people who both make and buy it. But this doesn’t mean that the software is compromised. How do your design and development/engineering teams work cohesively to create a balance? We have two principles. One is that we do everything in parallel, which means all disciplines work simultaneously from the idea to the electronics, all the way down to the packaging or product images. We spend very little time sketching and doing design; more time is spent in balancing all areas of a product, such as the features for example. The other part is to prototype everything and let our hands and gut feeling do the thinking and the decision-making. Your office is in a garage with a collection of handsome cars, some arcade games, a workshop and a 3D printer. How has this work/play culture benefited your team and their work? The workspace is a big part of the process when making products. We spend a lot of time and effort to make it as flexible as possible. We also believe that you only live once and that work, life, friends and family have to be one. We also make our own tools, like screwdrivers and software, as part of this idea that everything is important in the development process. ❚
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The concept of interactive storytelling has been around for years. Many of us can remember and are still ardent readers of the ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book series where readers are directed to different pages within the books, depending on their choice of actions presented to them. Those books shot to popularity during the late 1970s and are a classic example of interactive storytelling. However, the art of interactive storytelling has evolved in waves and lengths due to the availability of a wide spectrum of media outlets, from the written word to, now, video games and more. STREAKER’s James Bush, S1T2’s Chris Panzetta and Loud&Clear’s Joel Beath, all of who will take the stage at Pause Fest 2016, share what goes into the art of interactive storytelling.
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WHAT IS THE SUCCESS FORMULA FOR INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING? “START WITH THE NARRATIVE. SIMPLE STORIES ARE STRONG STORIES. TAKE OUT EVERYTHING THAT DOESN’T SERVE THE NARRATIVE. THE BEAUTY OF WORKING IN THE INTERACTIVE SPACE IS THAT WE CAN BUILD ON A USER’S SENSE OF DISCOVERY. I CALL IT THE ALICE IN WONDERLAND TECHNIQUE; BUILD IN ‘RABBIT HOLES’. THIS ALLOWS THE USER TO DEFINE THEIR OWN EXPERIENCE, CHOOSING WHETHER TO ENGAGE OR NOT – TO SEEK OUT MORE OR TO BE PASSIVE. STORYTELLING IS ABOUT INDUCING WONDER, SPARKING THE IMAGINATION. THE GOAL SHOULD BE TO CREATE SOMETHING AS RICH AND TRUE AS AN EPISODIC MEMORY.” – JAMES BUSH, CO-FOUNDER AND CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR, STREAKER
“WHAT MAKES AN INTERACTIVE STORY SO INTERESTING IS IT’S A PARADOX. THE MORE FREEDOM YOU HAVE WITH THE STORY, THE LESS LIKELY YOU ARE TO EXPERIENCE A GOOD STORY. I MEAN WHO WOULD CHOOSE TO KILL THEMSELVES FOR DRAMATIC EFFECT? DESIGNERS NEED TO BALANCE THE JOYS OF INTERACTIVITY WITH THE JOYS OF NARRATIVE AND CAN FIND CLUES IN RITUAL, INTERACTIVE THEATRE EVEN METHOD ACTING. IT ALSO HELPS TO REMEMBER THAT MOST PEOPLE DON’T GO TO THE MOVIES BECAUSE THEY WANT TO BE FILM DIRECTORS; THEY DESIRE AN EXPERIENCE. THOSE WHO CAN UNLOCK THE PROMISE BEHIND THE PARADOX CAN DELIVER ON THOSE DESIRES.” – CHRIS PANZETTA, MANAGING DIRECTOR, S1T2 “DEEPLY PERSONAL, CONTEXTUAL AND PLATFORM/DEVICE AGNOSTIC ARE THE NEXT BATTLEGROUNDS IN INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING. THE CHALLENGE OF INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING IS TO CREATE NARRATIVES THAT ‘COULD’ TAKE PLACE IN THE USER’S WORLD, ARE NOT BEHOLDEN TO AN AUDIENCE RESPONDING IN A CERTAIN UNREALISTIC OR CONDENSED ‘TIME-FRAME’, AND ARE ABLE TO BE AFFECTED BY AN AUDIENCE MEMBER ON THEIR OWN PREFERRED PLATFORMS AND DEVICES. FOR THE AUDIENCE TO TRULY BE IMMERSED AND IN CONTROL OF A STORY, THE STORY MUST REVOLVE AROUND THEIR HABITS, DEVICES AND TIMELINES.” – JOEL BEATH, HEAD OF CONTENT, LOUD&CLEAR
Interactive Storytelling
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SAFFRON BRAND CONSULTANTS LAUNCHES IN MELBOURNE WORDS BY Luke van O
Saffron Brand Consultants was founded by Jacob Benbunan and the late Wally Olins when they left Wolff Olins in 2001 to establish a new agency based on a simple principle: to be as strong in its strategic capability as in its creativity.
WITH SEVEN OFFICES WORLDWIDE, SAFFRON BRAND CONSULTANTS HAS NOW OPENED ITS EIGHTH OFFICE, HERE IN MELBOURNE. LUKE VAN O, MANAGING DIRECTOR FOR SAFFRON BRAND CONSULTANTS, AUSTRALIA, SHARES THE SAFFRON STORY.
Wally Olins is widely credited as being one of the founding fathers of branding, having quite literally written the book on the subject (The Corporate Personality: an inquiry into the nature of corporate identity – 1978), and going on to have a further six volumes published. “Make it simple, make it clear, let it be original and brilliant, but, above all, make it work,” was Olins’ mantra. His vision lives on in Saffron – both in the leadership of his friend and co-founder Benbunan, and in any of the people fortunate enough to have worked in the company they created. A client once described Saffron as being “the perfect balance of brutality and charm” and this statement works well to describe our positioning in the Australian market. For many years the top tier of Australian strategic branding has been dominated by a small number of agencies that form part of large, listed marketing services groups. For these groups, the Australian market represents a smaller consideration than the ‘key’ markets of the US and Europe, and strategic branding itself is often seen as an adjunct to their communications businesses. With the world currently focused on ‘disruption’, we believe that every brand is facing a choice between either being disrupted or becoming a disruptor itself. This has created an unprecedented level of uncertainty in the market, but it’s also created an unprecedented level of opportunity. We see the need for the Australian branding industry itself to be disrupted, and the entrance of Saffron reflects our intention to do so. Saffron remains independent, so our clients’ money is used to pay the resources needed to do the work, not the shareholders. This allows us to focus on creating strategic design that solves problems instead of profitable design that meets the growth expectations of investors. We do not set out to placate our clients by given them what they expect; we are driven by the nature of the problem, by the work we do and we believe the outcome is often better as a result. This is our brutality.
Above: Rebrand of Telekom Austria to A1, by Saffron Brand Consultants Left: Petrol station design for Cepsa, by Saffron Brand Consultants
And we focus on building long-standing relationships with our clients; relationships built on trust. This requires transparency, service and excellence in delivery. We are in love with insightful, clear strategy and beautiful, effective design. No compromise is ever made on this, as our clients must feel as proud of their work as we do. This is our charm. “Saffron’s global network is gaining strength every day as we win new clients in new markets around the world. Our international expertise, combined with the local knowledge of Luke van O and the reputation of the Saffron brand presents a powerful proposition for all businesses operating in Australia,” says Jacob Benbunan, global CEO and co-founder. ❚ 020-021
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GET PITCH READY AT PAUSE 2016 WORDS BY Jamuna Raj PAUSE FEST HAS PARTNERED WITH SOCIAL TRADERS TO HOST A PITCH SESSION FOR ASPIRING SOCIAL ENTERPRISE START-UPS TO SELL THEIR BUSINESS IDEAS TO A PANEL OF JUDGES. It’s going be a massive pitchfest at Pause Fest 2016. Partnering with Social Traders, an expert in social enterprise capacity building with the ability to cater for all types of social enterprises, Pause Fest will host a 90-minute pitch session for all enterprising social startups that are looking to build upon their base.
SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP PITCHFEST CALLING ALL SOCIAL START-UPS! PRESENT YOUR BUSINESS MODEL AND SOCIAL IMPACT IN 90 SECONDS AND PITCH YOUR SOCIAL ENTERPRISE IDEA TO A PANEL OF BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY EXPERTS. WEDNESDAY 10 FEBRUARY 2016
The session will give participants the opportunity to present their business model and social impact in 90 seconds and pitch their social enterprise idea to a panel of business and technology experts. The top five participating teams will be handpicked to join the Social Traders Crunch program, Australia’s leading enterprise development program, and there are some prizes up for grabs too. But let us get the definition of social enterprise right first. Social enterprises are businesses that exist primarily to benefit the public at large, rather than their shareholders and owners. In essence, they are commercially viable businesses with a purpose of generating social impact. Social Traders has been working closely with over 100 such social enterprises over the past five years, including creative consulting business Co Design Studio and Renew Australia, providing a range of capacity building programs to support the enterprises’ journeys, from start-up to securing investment, growth and accessing new market opportunities. ❚ Social Entrepreneurship Pitchfest
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HYPERLOOP: DESIGNING THE TRANSPORT SYSTEM OF THE FUTURE Image credits: HTT/JumpStartFund
INTERVIEW BY Jamuna Raj
HYPERLOOP MAY SOON BECOME A REALITY AND WE CHAT WITH BIBOP GABRIELE GRESTA, THE CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER OF HYPERLOOP TRANSPORTATION TECHNOLOGIES AHEAD OF HIS PRESENTATION AT PAUSE FEST 2016.
Three years ago, billionaire and Tesla founder Elon Musk surprised the world with his out-of-this-world (or, as some of his critics would describe, ‘crazy’) idea, the Hyperloop Transport System (HTS). HTS, a projected US$6 billion project, is a conceptual tube transport system that was initially planned to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles. The estimated travel time between the two cities with Hyperloop is 35 minutes. The idea may have garnered a lot of criticism, but there are now signs that it may just very well become a reality. Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT), a Los Angeles-based start-up that develops the Hyperloop technology, has announced its plans to complete an operational test track in California. At the helm of HTT is Bibop Gabriele Gresta, the chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.
Below and next page: Artistic impressions of the Hyperloop Transport System project.
Gresta, an expert in digital media, cross-platform technologies, transportation and finance, with more than 68 other companies under his belt, shares more about this transport system that could possibly cause chaos within flight and land travel industries worldwide. Could you summarise what the Hyperloop project is all about? The HTS is a fifth mode of global transportation. It consists of a capsule hovering inside a tube with low air pressure and resistance, similar to an aircraft in high altitude, that allows for high speeds of over 700 miles per hour (1126 kilometres per hour) and very little energy consumption. The system was designed with the ground-level infrastructure footprint in mind. The entire tube system is built on pylons, lowering land acquisition costs and insulating it from ambient weather conditions. Engineered pylons render the structure earthquake stable and crash proof, as well as self-sustaining through a contained solar plant located atop the tubes, plus a combination of wind, kinetic, regenerative breaking and geothermal energy production. To compare HTS to other transportation modes, one can look to the airline industry. For the San Francisco to Los Angeles route at 13,000 passengers a day (round-trip), a rate of .007 fatalities per 100 million miles would mean one expected fatality every 3.75 years. That is not acceptable. HTS has been designed with safety levels that are 10 times better. 022-023
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“ON AVERAGE, A HYPERLOOP POD WITH 38 PASSENGERS WILL DEPART EVERY 30 SECONDS. THIS TRANSLATES TO 218,880 PERSONS A DAY AND NEARLY 80 MILLION PEOPLE A YEAR AT FULL CAPACITY IN ONE TUBE. WE CAN SUBSTITUTE THE ENTIRE FLIGHT INDUSTRIES BETWEEN LOS ANGELES TO SAN FRANCISCO ALMOST 10 TIMES WITH ONE TUBE.”
This is a huge project and there are so many people involved. What are the main challenges you face?
At this time, five different capsule types are being developed: Economy, Long Distance, Business Class, Local Transit, Special Purpose and Freight. On average, a Hyperloop pod with 38 passengers will depart every 30 seconds. This translates to 218,880 persons a day and nearly 80 million people a year at full capacity in one tube. We can substitute the entire flight industries between Los Angeles to San Francisco almost 10 times with one tube. We will develop a consumer perceived requirement as well. The benefit of transportation at Hyperloop speed is that the concept of community can literally be transformed. The HTS becomes the backbone for distributed communities.
Well, right now we’re starting to build a prototype of five miles (eight kilometres) north of Los Angeles. It will be a full-scale prototype that will transport 10 million people in a newly built modern town of the 21st century. I think the biggest challenge could be building the full track in a country with strict regulations, like the US. It will take a lot of time to have all the rights of way, and probably the best way to move along is to go in countries with fewer restrictions and that includes Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and right now I’m in Botswana. And we’re also starting a relationship with the Australian Government. Maybe the first Hyperloop will be built there. Let’s talk about you. You were a software development director at the age of 15, started up more than 68 companies and we hear you were in the music industry too...
Hyperloop is a crowdsourced project and you have scientists and engineers from all over the world, including people from NASA, working with you. How did the crowdsourcing come about and evolve over the two years?
I was 20 years old and I created a dance music project that topped the Italian dance charts several times. I was the project’s leader, singing and dancing. Well, ‘singing’ is a big word. Let’s say I was rapping.
I had a very traditional approach at the start. My business partner, Dirk Ahlborn, told me that he took Elon [Musk’s] whitepaper and uploaded it onto the site, JumpStartFund, to see if there was a possibility to make this happen. He told me he wanted to build it with the contribution of the people. And I told him that it wasn’t going to happen. And he told me then that he had 115 engineers from 10 countries and I went, “What?”
And from that to now here, heading the biggest project imaginable at the moment.
That’s when I started to dig deeper and found that he has engineers and scientists from NASA, Tesla and SpaceX, among others, who want to make this happen. I joined the team and I gave the project a real structure for the company. And now we have 48 groups, 500 engineers and scientists from 26 nations. We also have big corporations with us. And we collaborate and that’s the amazing thing about crowdsourcing. It’s working for us so much that we are raising money for the final details for the test track that we are going to build in California.
Whatever you do in life, you have to have passion. I grew up and I realised that if you want to achieve big things in life, you need people. That’s your biggest resource and that’s why I see myself as a social person. I like people. And I think that’s just what the music career was. It helped me to emerge from normality. Throughout my career and my background, I’ve been trying to do something good for humanity and in the beginning it was entertainment. Now it’s something better. Entrepreneurs are the ones who are making a change and difference to society. The new rock stars are no longer the singers you see on stage, but the entrepreneurs. ❚
Hyperloop Transport System
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The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
DESIGN DEMOCRACY MEANS INFINITE POSSIBILITY Image credits: Envato
WORDS BY Venessa Paech
The virtue of the ecosystem The power of the digital marketplace is that it lets anyone with talent create high-end work and reach a diverse, global customer base – whether they’re working freelance or with a larger company. Cracked the perfect WordPress theme or motion graphic? It can produce an ongoing income while you focus on perfecting new software, or take on a bespoke project.
THE DEMOCRATISING INFLUENCE OF DIGITAL MARKETPLACES IN THE DESIGN WORLD HAS BEEN FELT FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. ARTISTS ARE NO LONGER AT THE MERCY OF A SINGLE PATRON OR AGENCY – MARKETPLACES ARE FREEING THEM AND STIMULATING A NEW WAVE OF CREATIVE COMMERCE. IN OUR COMMUNITY OF DESIGNERS AND DEVELOPERS ALONE WE’VE SEEN OVER 48 CREATIVES MAKE MORE THAN $1 MILLION FROM THEIR WORK. THAT NUMBER IS EXPECTED TO DOUBLE IN THE NEXT 18 MONTHS.
At Envato, we consider our creative community members and sellers to be our partners. Our model is designed to create the widest possible range of opportunities for them as they move through their careers, develop or refine new skills, and explore new ways of working.
ONE QUEENSLAND-BASED CREATIVE COUPLE, DTBAKER, DESIGN AND CODE FOR CUSTOMERS WORLD OVER, AND THE STUDIO IS APPROACHING ITS SECOND MILLION IN SALES.
We see people build their skills using Envato tutorials and courses, create top selling work in Envato Market and dabble with bespoke freelancer projects through Envato Studio. Some designers and developers lean on a few high performing items; others build out a steady pipeline of creations across categories over the years, moving with the market. Recently, we launched Envato Sites, which brings the marketplace model to website builders, and is yet another way for talented creators to earn, by helping out those who need a ready-made website, fit for purpose. Rather than cannibalise itself, this community model lets talented creators move through its different components as they wish, depending on where they’re at in their life or career cycle.
LAU JIMENEZ IS A COLOMBIAN GRAPHIC DESIGNER AND ILLUSTRATOR, BASED IN GERMANY, WHO SAYS A MARKETPLACE MODEL LETS HER REACH CUSTOMERS ALL OVER THE WORLD AND BUILDS A STRONG PERSONAL BRAND WITHIN A LARGER CREATIVE COMMUNITY. COLLECTIVELY THE COMMUNITY HAS MADE OVER $300 MILLION.
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Previous page, left and below: Envato community members in their home countries, designing for clients and selling on Envato Market
Tools that are tools alone will never replace the human element. But a digital marketplace or platform that focuses on relationships – connecting and empowering creative people and the people who want their work – can be a game changer. Designers are in a better position than ever to carve their own path and retain independence. Design owns the future It’s a remarkable time to be a digital creative. Convergence means that design is more important than ever, and is being leaned upon across a multitude of industries. The Internet of Things is approaching fast, and will demand out of the box design thinking to ensure it’s as seamless and impactful as its champions envision. Are you ready to design graphics that will appear on a windowpane? The transformative effect of technology on the media industry is being repeated in the design and production industries. As the cost of time, material and accessibility diminishes, design possibilities seem destined to flourish. Think of the designer who will be able to earn a steady income from their suite of website, app and 3D manufacturing templates. The trends we see at Envato suggest that mixed media savviness is an important skill for tomorrow’s designers. With design opening up to the masses, through tools like Canva, design professionals have the opportunity to take a leading role, helping others learn about the conditions for great design outcomes. Within the Envato ecosystem, we see designers earning a handsome income from a product in the marketplace, then giving back to the community by instructing others in our tutorials, mentoring other designers, or just helping their ‘cloud’ of peers have a better experience overall. We shouldn’t mistake tools for the underlying discipline of design thinking. But, broadly, more accessible tools and more access to professionals mean more opportunities, and that’s a good thing. It also means better communications, and a better understanding and appreciation of the importance of what the design industry does.
What’s on trend for 2016 With over six million in our creative community, we see a lot of work, and host a lot of discussions about what clients want, and what’s got designers excited. Here are some trends we see emerging for 2016: •
Material, flat and responsive design will remain popular, becoming even more pervasive and continuing to evolve – even converging.
•
Typography that packs a punch looks to be as hot as ever; master the elements that bring lettering to life because the font still rules.
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Embrace micro-interactivity – those small effects that let the user share a dialogue with the page or the interface, helping shape the experience.
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Template diversification – consumers love the simplicity and ease of a great template, but still want something that fits their explicit needs. Designers are responding with increasingly niche offerings suiting business objectives as well as aesthetic ones.
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Nostalgia – there’s an appetite for design that triggers emotion, and motifs or styles that make us recall our past fit that bill like no other. Retro, vintage and period flair are returning, but with minimalist sensibilities. ❚
About Envato Envato helps ideas grow, powered by the world’s leading creative community. www.envato.com
Envato
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23/11/15 10:25 AM
The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
GIRLS IN TECH TO CONQUER MELBOURNE INTERVIEW BY Jamuna Raj
THERE’S A NEW WAVE OF AWARENESS FOR WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY AND LEADING THE PACK IS ADRIANA GASCOIGNE, CEO OF GIRLS IN TECH. GASCOIGNE’S PASSION FOR THE TECH INDUSTRY WAS IGNITED WHEN SHE WORKED AT HER FIRST START-UP, WHICH LED HER TO SILICON VALLEY. FINDING HERSELF THE SOLE WOMAN THERE, SHE WAS DRIVEN TO START MAKING CHANGES IN THE INDUSTRY AND STARTED GIRLS IN TECH IN 2007. THIS NON-PROFIT GROUP ENCOURAGES THE EMPOWERMENT, ENGAGEMENT AND EDUCATION OF WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY. THE GROUP HAS SINCE GROWN SIGNIFICANTLY WITH A 53RD CHAPTER SOON TO BE LAUNCHED RIGHT HERE IN MELBOURNE. GASCOIGNE, WHO WILL ALSO BE PRESENTING AT PAUSE FEST 2016, SHARES MORE ABOUT GIRLS IN TECH AND WHAT MELBURNIANS CAN EXPECT FROM THE LAUNCH.
You must have told this story countless times. But what is Girls In Tech, and how and why was it formed? The first start-up I worked at had 35 employees and I was the only female. I would come into work every day and look around the office and wonder ‘where’s the diversity?’ It was just a bunch of 25- to 35-year-old white men. As much as I was OK with working with that demographic, I always felt that there should be more minorities and more women at the start-up. I decided to start Girls in Tech to get women excited about the tech industry and be more exposed to different opportunities, whether it was in business development, product marketing, engineering or design. We needed to have representation and different perspectives in product and culture development. I was having too much fun at work and I wanted other women to experience this! It’s been eight years for Girls In Tech, how have these years been – what were the highs and lows? I can’t believe it has been eight years. I have learned so much and can’t wait to see what else is in store for this incredibly empowering and supportive organisation. There have been so many great moments and milestones – from global expansion and the creation of a solid board of directors to international funding (we received a Google Grant in Brazil and programs funded by USAID/US State Department in the Middle East) and the development of the largest women’s business pitch competition (Lady Pitch Night) in the world! I think the biggest challenge we’ve encountered has been interorganisational communication. Right now, it’s a good problem to have. But it’s very important to communicate and make sure that we’re all aligned in terms of our messaging, program development and curriculum, so that we can share ideas and collaborate – I mean, that’s the whole point of the organisation after all. Has your initial goal when forming Girls In Tech been achieved? What are the other goals and future plans for Girls In Tech? As a founder, the job is never done. So while I think we are in a good place and have made great progress, we still have a way to go to achieve the ultimate goals with Girls in Tech. A few ideas that I’ve been tossing around include creating an ‘Idea Exchange’ or global think tank for women in tech, as well as a crowdfunding or crowd-investing platform, much like AngelList, but for women-founded companies.
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Left: Adriana Gascoigne aims to empower women in tech through her organisation Girls In Tech
Let’s zoom into the Melbourne chapter you’re starting. What can members here expect from being part of Girls In Tech in Melbourne?
accountability, compensation parity and ownership for all is important to achieving the right mix.
We’ll be building a strong chapter team including a managing director and five to eight advisory board members. We are also planning on deploying our trademarked programs, including:
You’ve worked for tech companies like SecondMarket, ImpulseFlyer, hi5, SGN, Jamboola, Guba, Edelman and Ogilvy Public Relations. Besides Girls In Tech, you’re also the executive director for SmittenWithMittens, an advisor to many start-ups, an ‘Intel Insider’ and the founder of HelpLearnAsia. How do you do it all?
• hackathons • coding, design, product development and entrepreneurship boot camps • our Lady Pitch Night competition (which will be the first in Australia) • the Catalyst Conference • the XChange program (female entrepreneurs tour Silicon Valley and learn about the start-up ecosystem) • GIT Work, providing job-entry skills within the tech industry – (1) Digital Resume (2) Start-up Job Search (3) Negotiations, and • Global Classroom – an eLearning platform for coding and design tutorials and eMentoring. You’re a champion for diversity in the workplace. In an interview with VentureBeat, you said that you believe “diversity equates to creativity and innovation”. How can creative agencies ensure that they have got that ‘right mix’ of people in the business? The ‘right mix’ is different for every organisation, but the key is to look at the variety of backgrounds, expertise, hobbies and talents to fill your team. Recruiting is critical to ensure you are building a creative, productive and comfortable work environment and culture. But so is staff retention. Having the proper training programs and creating a flexible work environment, as well as establishing corporate
Trust me, I don’t do it all, but I’ve learned a lot about time management and prioritisation, which definitely helps. SmittenWithMittens is now called the YOUniform Project and it’s slowly moving forward. My colleague has taken over my role and responsibilities with HelpLearnAsia. While my main focus is on Girls in Tech, I’m still an adviser to a handful of start-ups on a limited basis. Again, it’s about time management and prioritisation. Let’s talk about Pause Fest. You’re coming down to speak about personal brand presentation. Clue us in on what we can expect. Social media has resulted in almost every individual having a personal brand, even if we don’t intend to have one, but they exist nonetheless. Our digital footprints span our professional and personal lives and can be accessed through multiple platforms, devices and mediums. The question is no longer if you have a personal brand, but if you choose to cultivate and leverage it. During my presentation, I plan to discuss and ponder the word and emotional association when people hear your name and how you can help steer that association as well as how to create or change the perception of your personal brand. It should be a good conversation! ❚
Girls In Tech
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23/11/15 2:24 PM
The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
SMART CITIES: A SHIFT IN TECHNOLOGY OR CULTURE? Urban planning and infrastructure design is no longer just about creating better living and working spaces. It is now about using digital technologies or information and communication technologies to enhance the quality of urban services, reduce costs and consumption, and engage with residents. It is now the era of smart cities. Smart city projects have mushroomed in the US and Europe in recent years to solve common urban problems. In Amsterdam, for example, the national and local governments came up with TrafficLink SCM, which is a smart traffic system of vehicle detection stations that helps road managers to improve traffic flows in the area. Chicago, another fine example, uses new infrastructure for open data, sensors and cameras to improve city services like street lighting, garbage collection and even rodent detection. Technology may be the key factor of smart cities, but there are other factors that drive smart cities that cannot be ignored. Projects like those in Amsterdam, Chicago and even Seoul (where an open data source has been created to allow for access to city data to help businesses grow) are made possible through private and public collaborations – between governments, research bodies, companies and the general public. With the above in mind, how can cities in Australia come up in the ranks of smart cities and meet the growing infrastructure demands? What are the technologies needed to do so? And, more importantly, is there more to adopting the ‘smart city’ concept? Fielding these questions and more, founder of Giant Ideas Catherine Caruana-McManus, Deloitte Digital’s digital advisor and software engineer Hadi Michael, consulting practice director of Smart Connected Communities for Cisco Australia Harley Young and Tesla’s Heath Walker will all be at Pause Fest 2016 to further discuss the future of cities and urban planning.
“SMART CITIES ARE THE BLEND OF SHIFTS IN BOTH DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY AND CULTURE. ADVANCES IN AMBIENT COMPUTING ARE EMPOWERING MAKERS AND CITIZEN SCIENTISTS TO TACKLE LOCAL COMMUNITY PROBLEMS IN UNPRECEDENTED WAYS. WHILE A SHIFT IN HOW OUR SOCIETY THINKS ABOUT OPEN DATA AND KNOWLEDGE SHARING IS CREATING A CULTURE THAT FAVOURS COMMUNITY COLLABORATION, THE ULTIMATE GOAL FOR A SMART CITY (OR ANY CITY) IS TO DELIVER TANGIBLE BENEFITS, WHICH ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR ITS CITIZENS. WE CAN DO THIS BY FOSTERING A CULTURE THAT EMPOWERS CITIZENS TO EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY, AS AN ENABLER TO SOLVING LOCAL CHALLENGES IN A REAL-TIME AND DECENTRALISED WAY.” – HADI MICHAEL, DIGITAL ADVISER AND SOFTWARE ENGINEER, DELOITTE DIGITAL
“I THINK IT’S ABOUT AND, NOT OR. CULTURE AND TECH INTERMINGLE, AND INFORM THE WAY WE INTERACT WITH INSTITUTIONS AND EACH OTHER. FOR EXAMPLE, THE EXPLOSION OF MOBILE APPLICATIONS AND SERVICES HAS MADE SMARTPHONES SEDUCTIVE ENOUGH THAT 90 PERCENT OF 18- TO 29-YEAR-OLDS NOW SLEEP WITH ONE. THE ECOSYSTEM OF SENSORS AND DATA ORBITING MOBILE HAS ENABLED ADJACENT POSSIBILITIES FOR CITIES AND CORPORATIONS THAT IMPROVE ASSET MANAGEMENT (E.G. PARKING) AND SERVICE DELIVERY (E.G. TRANSPORTATION). ALONG WITH FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY, HOWEVER, TECHNOLOGY CREATES NEW CHALLENGES, ESPECIALLY FOR VULNERABLE POPULATIONS. IF WE DON’T ADDRESS THAT, A CITY MAY END UP WITH ‘SMART’ TECH, BUT WITHOUT MUCH OF A COMMUNITY CULTURE.” – HARLEY YOUNG, CONSULTING PRACTICE DIRECTOR OF SMART CONNECTED COMMUNITIES FOR CISCO AUSTRALIA 028-029
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ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: SHOULD WE BE AFRAID? We’ve seen enough science fiction movies and read enough books to imagine what the world would be like if robots took over. But what was once fiction is now reality. Today, artificial intelligence (AI) is very much part of our lives. From the very amiable Siri app on our iPhones to music streaming services like Spotify, which has an algorithm that understands the music preferences and behaviours of users, we are currently living in an always-on world. And now there are new breeds of computers that can interpret human intent and get meaning from photos, videos and text. But, as computers get smarter and smarter, there are concerns being raised about these advances going unchecked and the consequences of them. This will be further discussed in great detail at Pause Fest 2016. In the lead-up to that, however, we check in with some experts and get their opinion on AI.
“THAT’S THE BIG QUESTION SURROUNDING ADVANCEMENTS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE – DOES THIS REPRESENT A BRILLIANT OPPORTUNITY, OR COULD IT BE HUMANITY’S LAST INVENTION? SOME OF THE WORLD’S LEADING THINKERS, INCLUDING ELON MUSK AND STEPHEN HAWKING, HAVE RAISED THEIR CONCERNS IF AI ADVANCES UNCHECKED. THE FLIPSIDE IS A WORLD IN WHICH A ‘SUPER INTELLIGENT’ AI IS ABLE TO SOLVE EXTRAORDINARILY COMPLEX PROBLEMS AT A RATE UNIMAGINABLE BY HUMAN STANDARDS. ONE THING IS CERTAIN – THE RATE OF CHANGE WILL ONLY CONTINUE TO INCREASE. TO CAPITALISE ON THE OPPORTUNITIES WE NEED TO ADDRESS THE RANGE OF SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, POLITICAL AND ETHICAL AI QUESTIONS NOW. THIS REQUIRES ENGAGEMENT WITH INDUSTRY AND POLITICAL LEADERS, AS WELL AS THE WIDER COMMUNITY.” – BRADLEY PATON, REACTIVE (PART OF ACCENTURE INTERACTIVE) “ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS A FIELD OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND HAS BEEN PART OF THE FABRIC OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FOR DECADES. TODAY, ‘INTELLIGENCE’ IS EMBEDDED IN ELECTRIC GRIDS, SMARTPHONES, THE INTERNET, SUPPLY CHAINS AND NAVIGATION AND MANY OTHER TYPES OF ‘INTELLIGENT’ SYSTEMS. THE FUTURE OF SUCH TECHNOLOGY – WHICH WE BELIEVE WILL BE COGNITIVE, NOT ‘ARTIFICIAL’ – HAS VERY DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS FROM THOSE GENERALLY ATTRIBUTED TO AI, SPAWNING DIFFERENT KINDS OF CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES WITH DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS FOR GOVERNANCE, POLICY AND MANAGEMENT. THOSE ENGAGED IN SERIOUS INFORMATION SCIENCE AND THE REAL WORLD OF BUSINESS AND SOCIETY UNDERSTAND THE ENORMOUS POTENTIAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS. COGNITIVE COMPUTING SYSTEMS LEARN AT SCALE, REASON WITH PURPOSE AND INTERACT WITH HUMANS NATURALLY. THEY LEARN AND REASON FROM THEIR INTERACTIONS WITH US AND THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH THEIR ENVIRONMENT. THEY GENERATE NOT JUST ANSWERS TO NUMERICAL PROBLEMS, BUT HYPOTHESES, REASONED ARGUMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. NONE OF THIS INVOLVES AUTONOMY ON THE PART OF MACHINES. RATHER, IT CONSISTS OF AUGMENTING THE HUMAN ABILITY TO HARNESS TECHNOLOGY IN THE PURSUIT OF KNOWLEDGE, TO FURTHER OUR EXPERTISE AND TO IMPROVE THE HUMAN CONDITION. COGNITIVE COMPUTING REPRESENTS NOT JUST A NEW TECHNOLOGY, BUT THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA OF TECHNOLOGY, BUSINESS AND SOCIETY: THE COGNITIVE ERA.” – JOANNA L BATSTONE, PHD, VICE PRESIDENT AND LAB DIRECTOR, IBM RESEARCH – AUSTRALIA AND CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, IBM AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
Artificial Intelligence
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The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
BIG DATA: THE COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS
WORDS BY Jamuna Raj NIGEL MENDONCA, COUNTRY MANAGER FOR TABLEAU ANZ, HELPS TO DEBUNK THREE COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS SURROUNDING BIG DATA AND EXPLAINS HOW BIG DATA CAN ACTUALLY HELP THE INDIVIDUAL TOO.
Left: Big data not only helps businesses make better decisions but also the individiual
“And when we refer to developing and retaining a competitive edge, research shows that organisations that practise self-service, data-driven cultures outperform those that don’t by two to one. A McKinsey study also showed that organisations that made data-driven decisions over mere guesswork saw more than seven percent more in business returns. These studies tell us that being fluent with data makes perfect business sense,” adds Mendonca. 2. Big data is only relevant for certain industries and not the individual
Information is power, but what is even more powerful is knowing how to use that information. Big data is a term that we’ve been hearing a lot about. But what is it? Simply speaking, it’s a term that describes the large volume of data – both structured and unstructured – that inundates a business. Big data can be analysed for insights that lead to better decisions and strategic business moves for organisations. But not everyone knows how to use big data and there are several misconceptions about its usage. Here, Nigel Mendonca, country manager for Tableau ANz, helps us to straighten out three misconceptions surrounding big data. 1. Numbers may quantify, but not necessarily improve, businesses Experts have pointed out time and time again that it’s not the amount of data or the statistics from the data collected that’s important. It’s what organisations do with the data that matters. “For example, most marketing and advertising agencies rely heavily upon measurement capabilities to assess how their audience perceives their clients’ creative campaigns, the overall success of these and, most importantly, quickly identify and correct any issues,” says Mendonca. With intuitive visual data analysis, companies are able to act quickly to identify campaigns that are underperforming and eventually save money and achieve better results.
According to Mendonca, the common misconception lies in the thinking that big data only applies to certain industries with high volumes of information and analytics, including sales and marketing. “However, big data can be applied to myriad industries, including farming, education and government sectors, FMCG, retail, start-ups and SMEs,” he says. “The great thing about big data is that it’s not exclusive to any particular user. Individuals can benefit from the same insights and findings as organisations.” 3. Big data is a lot of work and is expensive One of the common challenges when approaching big data analytics is the perception of dealing with a large amount of information and not being able to determine its meaning. The traditional way of dealing with data was a notoriously fragmented and slow process, requiring many minds and a great deal of patience and concentration. “It used to require entire IT departments to decipher the findings and turn them into digestible learnings, whereas these days users are more interested in the meaning behind the data and what that means for them. What we aim to do at Tableau is to empower anyone to work with data from anywhere, and make that data work for them,” says Mendonca. Self-service analytics is all about putting the control back into the user’s hands. Today, there are a number of applications – from analytics in the cloud to free consumer apps – that give business owners and information workers the ability to source their own customer insights. “Now, these same business owners have the opportunity to determine what they want to know. They can choose to take home what they feel is relevant for their area of work or business,” adds Mendonca. ❚ 030-031
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CREATIVE
TECH
BUSINESS
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The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
SURVIVING THE DIGITAL DISRUPTION WORDS BY Jamuna Raj
PETER MCMAHON, DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL STRATEGY AND ENGAGEMENT AT THE STATE LIBRARY OF VICTORIA, EXPLAINS HOW TRADITIONAL ORGANISATIONS LIKE LIBRARIES CAN SURVIVE DIGITAL DISRUPTION BY SELFDISRUPTING. Below: Peter McMahon, director of digital strategy and engagement at the State Library of Victoria
It is happening. Correction, it has already happened. If digital disruption hasn’t hit your business yet, it’s on its way. The problems facing taxis and hotels are yesterday’s news – for them. The same ideas are now rapidly spreading outward and no industry will remain untouched, including esteemed institutions such as universities, governments and libraries. Peter McMahon, director of digital strategy and engagement at the State Library of Victoria, is, however, optimistic and believes that libraries and other organisations can survive digital disruption. But to do that, he says that these organisations will have to self-disrupt and rethink their models. This means embracing innovation, breaking down traditional models and systems within the organisations and rebuilding from ground up. McMahon adds, “It involves taking the existing value chain, identifying the components that actually add the core value, and harnessing digital opportunities to deliver that value in new ways and with greater efficiency. The trick with libraries (and I assume other institutions) is to accurately identify what the real value is.” The challenge in identifying disruption opportunities is the same for libraries as it is for any other organisation or business, he explains. “It’s far too easy to remain in the comfort of the familiar. We have forced ourselves to look at how user expectations are shifting, especially in terms of how patrons now expect to interact with us digitally, looked at how digital technologies can help us enrich the overall experience, and then started to re-engineer our core services and the ways that users can explore our collections accordingly. “To get full advantage from the benefits of self-disruption, there needs to be a commitment to reinvention,” he adds. It’s not all dreary, as you will soon learn at Pause Fest 2016. The organisers have put together a great line-up of speakers, including McMahon and other business, technology and creative experts, who will discuss digital disruption, emerging trends and transformation, and how businesses can actually harness the opportunities present. Head over to Pause Fest 2016 and see what you can discover about digital disruption in your industry. ❚ 032-033
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THE DESIGN OF FUTURE WORKPLACES Image credits: Calder Consultants
The National Australia Bank (NAB) made its presence felt in Melbourne’s Docklands when its innovative and campus-style workplace opened in 2013. The building on 700 Bourke Street can’t be missed and boasts an unusual, triangular floor plan. It houses a total of more than 6000 employees, but staff share a total of only 4500 workspaces.
WORDS BY Jamuna Raj
NAB utilises what experts call activity-based workspaces, wherein the traditional office desk model is uprooted and replaced with a system where staff move freely between meeting rooms, desks and casual settings, depending on the task at hand. The building also features The Village – a co-working space that was imagined by global design and consulting firm, Woods Bagot. The Village is a professional yet relaxed space where NAB business customers and community partners can connect with clients, work between meetings and learn from leaders. NAB serves as a classic example of the evolution of workplace design in Australia, says James Calder, the founder of Calder Consultants. Calder Consultants is a global, independent consulting firm with specialist expertise in the future of workspaces. Calder, who worked on the NAB project, says, “The future workplace is a very different place now. And that’s because ‘work’ itself has changed over the years. Most of what’s going on in the growing industries is this form of intelligent, creative and team-based working. People now are required to not just work collaboratively, but they have the freedom of place and work virtually, too.”
Above: The National Australia Bank’s building on 700 Bourke Street, Melbourne
“THERE IS A STRONG RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CULTURE AND VISION OF A COMPANY AND THE QUALITY OF THE SPACE THAT IT HAS. THESE ARE NO LONGER MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE AND, WITHOUT THEM, IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO BUILD A GREAT WORKSPACE.”
Calder adds that the role of his consultancy is to help businesses today create a working environment that provides the physical space in which employees can not only work, but also have their creativity, mobility and collaboration bolstered. And that’s achieved through various models and strategies, such as open plan offices, desk hopping, co-working spaces and more. He says that business owners have to ask themselves the following question before redefining their workspaces for their employees: how do you want your people to be working to fulfil not just the business’ goals, but also their own personal goals? “It’s a great time to reinvent some of your business aspects. And that’s what we help our clients to do. We don’t just advise on the design, but we strategise with our clients on how they should be future-proofing their business and looking at the opportunities that the space might do for them and their staff,” he adds. Calder, who will be talking more about the design of future workplaces at Pause Fest with his client Atlassian, adds, “There is a strong relationship between the culture and vision of a company and the quality of the space that it has. These are no longer mutually exclusive and, without them, it’s impossible to build a great workspace.” ❚
Future Workplaces
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The Culture of Design
desktop–Pause Fest 2016
THE ERA OF LIVING SERVICES: HOW ARE BUSINESSES AFFECTED? Image credits: Fjord Australia
BUSINESSES TODAY ARE CHALLENGED BY THE DEMAND FOR SEAMLESS SERVICES THAT REACT IN REAL TIME AND THIS CAN BE SOLVED BY THE USE OF BOTH ANALYTICS AND DESIGN.
WORDS BY Jamuna Raj It’s a new world for businesses. Consumers now demand personalised services, brand experiences that translate across both the real and digital worlds, and experiences that suit and change to their preferences in real time. That is, they want services to be ‘living’. ‘Living services’ are services that are able to learn and change to suit the needs of the users, almost as though they’re real-time observers. Think wearable tech and even music streaming services such as Spotify. “There are two driving forces for living services – the digitisation of everything and liquid consumer expectations. And now living services can be delivered at scale much bigger than before,” explains Fjord Australia’s group director, Bronwyn van der Merwe. But how will this affect businesses? “Living services will disrupt the traditional branding of businesses. The relationship between brands and consumers will change with more personalised services offered, so that consumers are delighted at every touch point of that service.” Van der Merwe adds that to achieve this, design is key. “Businesses now will have to think deeply about service design and look at the whole ecosystem and how people experience their brands.” Top: Service design involves mapping the customer’s journey and highlighting each touch point Above: At Fjord, teams work closely with their clients to rethink their service ecosystems
Service design is Fjord’s speciality. It has been working with businesses to create a roadmap of their customers’ journeys and delivering service design methodologies that are desirable, suitable and viable for businesses. “But service design isn’t just about the consumer, but also the employee. They are two sides of a coin. To have a wholesome brand experience, the employee is a factor and businesses have to account for that when mapping their services,” adds van der Merwe. Van der Merwe will share more on service design at the upcoming Pause Fest where she will be presenting with one of Fjord’s clients, Telstra, represented by Dr Chris Wood, general manager of Experience Design at the Telco. ❚ 034-035
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