A few days ago, I decided to buy/install a few new gadgets. One of them was iPhone, as the one I had was getting old and I thought Gold week holidays would be a good time to replace it with a new one. It was because I suspected that it would take some time for me to to transfer data etc. before the new one is up and running. I did not want to take a chance of not being able to use the phone for everyday use, during the busy time of teaching classes, going overseas etc.
I finally decided to buy a new iPhone. I also had some questions regarding my iPad, so I brought both to the Softbank shop near where I live. (It is always a good idea to buy new gadgets near your residence or your office, I find out!) My problem with iPad was simple and resolved quickly. My new iPhone was not much of a problem as I had bought my old iPhone at the same shop. The sales person explained to me how I can transfer contacts, songs, etc. and I thought I am ready!
When I went back home and tried to transfer contacts etc. from my PC to new iPhone, I was not able to do it; despite how easy they try to make getting up and running, it’s never as easy as it seems. So I turned around and went back to the shop now with my new iPhone, iPad and my PC! It turned out that it was not as simple as I had been told and I ended up spending an hour or so there, talking to the people over the phone. After an hour or so, it finally got resolved!
Then I decided to install Polycom microphone/speaker to my PC, as I had not been able to use Skype etc with my PC. My colleague at KMD tried his Polycom device with my PC at the office and it worked. So I was ready to install mine. It did NOT work! I kept receiving the error message when I inserted application CD. After trying twice or so, I finally gave up. One(iPhone) down and two(iPad and Polycom ) to go. This is how I spent my Kids day May 5, 2011! I felt like a kid!
Yoko Ishikura is a Professor at Hitotsubashi University ICS in the Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy in Japan. She has held positions as a professor at the School of International Politics, Economics and Business of Aoyama Gakuin University in Tokyo, as a consultant at McKinsey and Company Inc. Japan and a visiting professor at Darden School.
Professor Ishikura is a consultant to a number of multinational companies and has been a frequent speaker at management conferences, seminars, and workshops throughout the world. She was a member of the Regulatory Reform Committee for the Japanese government and the International Competitiveness Commission for METI. She is currently a Forum Fellow of the World Economic Forum.
She is the author of Strategic Shift from OR choices to AND paradigm, Building Core Skills of Organization , and the co-author of the following publications: Managing Diversity in the 21st Century, Strategy for Cluster Initiatives in Japan , and Building a Career to the World Class Professionals – all in Japanese. Her books in English include: Asian Advantage, Hitotsubashi on Knowledge Management and Trust and Antitrust in Asian Business Alliances.
Professor Ishikura’s current research interests are focused on global competition, innovation, and knowledge management. She received her BA from Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan; MBA from Darden School, University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia; and DBA from Harvard Business School.
