Business and management articles | Cooler Insights

August 17, 2009 • • 1 comment

Broad and sweeping, yet detailed and penetrating, Clay Shirky’s volume “Here Come’s Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations” is a tour de force of how technology influences group activity and organisation. Shirky skillfully blended social sciences like psychology, sociology and anthropology with elements of the social web – mailing lists, forums, blogs, Youtube, Flickr, MySpace, Facebook, Wikipedia and Twitter.

Weaving his words into an easily digestible narrative, Shirky isn’t afraid to borrow theories and concepts to back up his claims. A notable example is the Coasean Theory, which states that high transaction costs make hierarchical organisations more efficient than individuals striking agreements with each other. Shirky’s argument is that the lowering of coordination costs to practically zero through social tools like forums, emails, and blogs make it possible for new loosely structured groups to form outside traditional organisations. Hence the Coasean Floor of transactional costs are lowered, making it efficient and cost effective for such groups to form.

The Feeding Frenzy of Feathered Friends

August 16, 2009 • • no comments

From the busy buzzing bees at the apiary at Kingscote, we next ventured to the Penguin Centre of Kangaroo Island which was located just around the corner to catch the feeding of the pelicans. Unlike other more docile Australian creatures like kangaroos and koalas, pelicans are fairly gregarious and sociable birds. They can often be found flocking next to each other and either swimming or flying close to each other. Well, it was pretty fun for us to catch them fobbing each other off in their attempts to stuff their face – or bills rather – with fishes!

Here’s our story told in pictures for your viewing pleasure.

The setting at Kingscote Wharf was serene, placid and picturesque as we approached it, with the Sun low in the horizon at 5 pm.

Should I or Shouldn’t I? – Ethics in PR

August 14, 2009 • Public Relations • 1 comment

Courtesy of Keith Maguire

As a public relations professional who deal with the media on a regular basis, I am often faced with situations which require a judgement call. These may take the form of a series of deeply probing questions by journalists who are determined to weed out the grains of dirt, or to develop a more sensational story from an otherwise run-of-the-mill piece.

While I believe in telling the truth, I am also aware that certain facts presented in the wrong context may end up leaving a false impression. The worst thing that can happen is to end up losing control of an unfolding story, and to be perceived as being uncooperative and unwilling to provide information to a hungry media circus.

Buzzing Blissfully with the Bees

August 13, 2009 • • 1 comment

Island Beehive at Kingscote of Kangaroo Island

Located just off the road from Kingscote (near the Emu Bay Lavender Farm) is Island Beehive – an organic honey farm located at Kangaroo Island. One of the biggest organic honey producers in Australia, Island Beehive produced and distributed a wide range of apian products like honey, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax candles, candies, pollen and more. Apparently, some claim that honey is one of the best foods offered by nature, with antibacterial and wound-healing properties. A dollop of honey (together with lemon) is also widely used as a cure for a bad throat.

The retail shop of the apiary offered a lot more than just honey. Yellow and black were the thematic colours here.

An Aromatic Afternoon

August 8, 2009 • Blog • 1 comment

As a pristine pastoral paradise, Kangaroo Island boasted of farms offering various primary produces. One of the first places which we checked out during our first afternoon on the island was the Emu Bay Lavender farm, a family owned property located beyond the Kingscote area of the island at its Northernmost tip.

View Larger Map

To give you a sense of orientation, I have included a Google Map above which shows where the place is. From Penneshaw where the ferry landed, it was a breezy drive through the largely empty roads through the farms and wilderness to reach this field of fragrant flowers.

Hoppin’ Happily to Kangaroo Island

August 2, 2009 • Blog • 2 comments

The greatest highlight of my family’s trip back in April to South Australia must be the one to Kangaroo Island, a sprawling sanctuary for nature and wildlife offering some of most spectacular sights I ever saw down under.

While it is seven times the size of Singapore, Australia’s third largest island (after Tasmania and Melville Island) is pretty sparsely populated with close to 4,300 residents. Almost all of its economy is agricultural, tourism (it hosts some 140,000 visitors a year) and fishing oriented. The charming farms on the island boasts of primary produce like honey, milk, wool, meat, fine wines, and eucalyptus oil.

Of course, the greatest thing about Kangaroo Island is its abundant wildlife, both freely frolicking the vast bushes or living in parks and reserves.

Clay Shirky on The Future of Organisations