Jane Doe's Profile

I think the implications for AM in construction are very interesting, but may be difficult in practice. Construction projects are still largely technologically unsophisticated — many construction managers still struggle to use technology for project management or inventory planning. For example, on most work sites engineers are still more comfortable carrying around sketches of blueprints then iPads or computers with the plans on them. I think it might take a bit of time to get buy in from all of the constituents.

For this reason, I wonder if your first target should be architects. They are typically already comfortable with using technology to develop designs, and have the creativity to fully utilize the power of AM. Could they be the first logical user?

I hadn’t heard of this initiative before — thank you for the insightful piece. One concern that I had was that most of the issues that refugees are dealing with are likely highly personal and sensitive in nature. Is a digital platform truly the right way to get feedback on these topics, or will there be low uptake of the program because people are unwilling to engage in that forum? I wonder if there is a human element that they need to implement in order to make this project successful?

I agree with AJB that employing a cost reduction strategy will help rapidly spread AM across the organization — and I think other options the company should consider are education programs and innovation competitions in order to encourage other business divisions to contemplate how their business units might be able to implement AM into their own workflows. Additionally, I think that GE needs to emphasize AM capabilities in their hiring practices — and after taking a look at their hiring website it looks like they are actively trying to acquire this talent today.

This piece raises an interesting question about brand management and new product launches. If choices are driven by recommendation engines, how are products prioritized in that funnel? Given Sephora’s power in the channel, will their recommendation engines be biased towards products / companies that offer Sephora better terms?

I think there is huge value in the creation of this data asset as well — not only can Sephora use this data in order to better develop their own product lines, but they could sell this data to makeup brands so that they may adjust their product development.

I think that your question around bringing hackers in-house or considering them employees is an interesting one. I would think hackers would prefer to work on a consultative basis given the counter-culture nature of the community, but perhaps this is only because those jobs do not currently exist.

One concern I have around encouraging hackers to penetrate systems is the safety of information. While there may be some ‘white hats’ out there that are willing to test systems purely for sport/testing, I would be concerned that these challenges invite malicious actors who may use the information they find.

I agree with your analysis of the benefits and risks, and I believe that this type of change is inevitable in the legal community. Historically, in any industry client needs have been the largest driver of innovation. Although there are indeed misaligned incentives as you mentioned above, the first few law firms that adopt this technology and are able to provide better basic services at a lower cost will enjoy enhanced competitive positioning. In the future, I believe that differentiation in the legal practice will rely more heavily on quality of thought and creativity in structuring or precedents, rather than ability to process documentation.

It is interesting that JPMorgan has created this technology, as it seems to be outside of their core competency. I would be interested to see if they license this technology to other firms and providers, or spin off these assets and sell to an investor.