It is not difficult to find the many ways technology extends our reach. The early defining vision for Bill Gates at Microsoft went under the banner: Information at Our Fingertips. This was the title of Gates’ speech at Comdex in January 1995, and you can watch his speech even now. Today this vision is partially …
Randy Wilcox started in sales and became president of two different divisions of Otis Elevator: South Asia, then the Americas. Ethics and globalization were a challenge for the company in the 19th century when high rises grew in cities around the world.
(USA Today, April 5, 2015) In a mayoral race in Chicago, an issue that is gnawing at Chicagoans is over red-light cameras. The angst in Chicago, where a red-light camera violation will set you back $100, is hardly an anomaly. From South Florida to Southern California, the use of red-light cameras by law enforcement agencies …
(The Wall Street Journal, April 2, 2015) The SEC gave a boost to corporate whistleblowers, reaching the first settlement with a company accused of muzzling tipsters through restrictive employment agreements. Engineering and construction company firm KBR Inc. agreed to settle allegations that the company required witnesses in internal investigations to sign confidentiality agreements that could …
(USA Today, April 1, 2015) Planned oil industry layoffs in the U.S. are approaching 100,000 in the past four months with more likely to come. Oil producing states such as North Dakota, Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana are the brunt of the cutbacks as consumers are enjoying cheaper gasoline prices brought on by a 55% drop …
How We Got to Now: Six Innovations That Made the Modern World by Steven Johnson. New York, NY: Penguin Group, 2014. 293 pp. Steven Johnson is the author of nine books, the founder of multiple websites, and the host and co-creator of PBS and BBC series How We Got to Now. How We Got to …
Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt by Michael Lewis. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 2014. 274 pp. Michael Lewis is a best-selling author of many well-known books including Liar’s Poker, Moneyball, The Blind Side, Boomerang, and The Big Short. This is a book about technology, and the building of a very special fiber …
This long overdue new issue begins the process of putting updates back on track after more than a year. Among my distractions has been writing and editing three books coming out in 2015. First, The Accidental Executive, draws on past Ethix interviews to examine the career of the biblical Joseph, who spent time at both the bottom and the top of the corporate ladder.
Randy Wilcox is featured in the new Conversation. He spent time as president of two different divisions of Otis Elevator Co. (South Asia and most recently the Americas). Wilcox shares insights from ethics challenges in the global market to innovation (including, safety, the environment, manufacturing, and smart elevators).
