It is good to remind ourselves occasionally about what makes technology tick – humans, and not the other way round.
That thought came to me in Hong Kong last week, listening to the Honourable Sir Michael Kadoorie, chairman of Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels, when he accepted his Lifetime Achievement Award at a hotel investment conference.
Here’s a man who knows what it’s like to run a business long-term, and one that is all about family and relationships.
His family’s involvement with the hotel company dates back to the 1890s – when Eleazar (Elly) Silas Kadoorie bought his first shares in The Hongkong Hotel.
“Partnerships are very important,” he told Peter Barge, chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, who was conducting the interview.
“You can’t be an expert in every area. For example, for a hotel, location is the most important thing and local developers know that best.
“It’s chemistry, like a marriage. Are you going to be able to sleep at night? And partnerships need to be nurtured and sometimes, after a while, there is a diversion because people are no longer motivated by the same reasons as when they started together.”
He admits he is deeply involved with partnerships. “That is the fabric of any organisation. It is vital to meet your business partners face to face. You can’t do it on the telephone or the new-fangled Blackberry – that won’t give you that tangible communication.”
As chairman of power supplier CLP Holdings, one of his key partners is Exxon and for the last 46 years, following on from the tradition set by his father, Sir Michael makes it a point to meet the chairman of Exxon once a year.
“I have maintained that partnership and I believe it is valued by both sides. That applies in anything we do.
“You cannot condense the human element and put it into the telephone line.”
I could almost hear heads nodding in the room. That doesn’t mean technology is not important but it’s there to facilitate human communication, not drown it nor confuse it.
Having said that, I think those who run events and those of us who facilitate communication in one form or another could learn to make better use of technology to enrich the human exchange.
I am tired of going to conferences and listening to speakers saying technology cannot replace face-to-face communication.
Yes, it’s true that it cannot completely replace face-to-face but it can replace some aspects if those who organise face-to-face meetings do not wake up and smell the changes that are taking place in the way humans interact.
Before Hong Kong, I was attending a conference in Bangkok on conferences and yes, while the meetings’ industry was still trying to reassure itself that they will not be replaced, there was a growing recognition of the need to change the format of meetings and the format of programmes.
Face-to-face is the most interactive we can get, said one expert. The key is how to use technology to make that even more powerful.
I write this as I am preparing to open WIT-Web In Travel in two days time. You can bet this will be top of my mind. Like all my Tnooz nodes, I love the cool tools and the new stuff but it’s good to remind ourselves that sometimes, old-fashioned works too.
Or, perhaps, I am just old-fashioned like Sir Michael.
It is good to remind ourselves occasionally about what makes technology tick – humans, and not the other way round.
That thought came to me in Hong Kong last week, listening to the Honourable Sir Michael Kadoorie, chairman of Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels, when he accepted his Lifetime Achievement Award at a hotel investment conference.
Here’s a man who knows what it’s like to run a business long-term, and one that is all about family and relationships.
His family’s involvement with the hotel company dates back to the 1890s – when Eleazar (Elly) Silas Kadoorie bought his first shares in The Hongkong Hotel.
“Partnerships are very important,” he told Peter Barge, chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, who was conducting the interview.
“You can’t be an expert in every area. For example, for a hotel, location is the most important thing and local developers know that best.
“It’s chemistry, like a marriage. Are you going to be able to sleep at night? And partnerships need to be nurtured and sometimes, after a while, there is a diversion because people are no longer motivated by the same reasons as when they started together.”
He admits he is deeply involved with partnerships. “That is the fabric of any organisation. It is vital to meet your business partners face to face. You can’t do it on the telephone or the new-fangled Blackberry – that won’t give you that tangible communication.”
As chairman of power supplier CLP Holdings, one of his key partners is Exxon and for the last 46 years, following the tradition set by his father, Sir Michael make a point to meet the chairman of Exxon once a year.
“I have maintained that partnership and I believe it is valued by both sides. That applies in anything we do.
“You cannot condense the human element and put it into the telephone line.”
I could almost hear heads nodding in the room. That doesn’t mean technology is not important but it’s there to facilitate human communication, not drown it nor confuse it.
Having said that, I think those who run events and those of us who facilitate communication in one form or another could learn to make better use of technology to enrich the human exchange.
I am tired of going to conferences and listening to speakers saying technology cannot replace face-to-face communication.
Yes, it’s true that it cannot completely replace face-to-face but it can replace some aspects if those who organise face-to-face meetings do not wake up and smell the changes that are taking place in the way humans interact.
Before Hong Kong, I was attending a conference in Bangkok on conferences and yes, while the meetings’ industry was still trying to reassure itself that they will not be replaced, there was a growing recognition of the need to change the format of meetings and the format of programmes.
Face-to-face is the most interactive we can get, said one expert. The key is how to use technology to make that even more powerful.
I write this as I am preparing to open WIT-Web In Travel in two days time. You can bet this will be top of my mind. Like all my Tnooz nodes, I love the cool tools and the new stuff but it’s good to remind ourselves that sometimes, old-fashioned works too.
Or, perhaps, I am just old-fashioned like Sir Michael.