How much technology is too much? French president François Hollande would argue that even a little can be distracting. Last week, the president made a move to ban the use of all mobile phones in cabinet meetings. A spokesman for Hollande indicated that the president wanted to increase the focus and attention staff members paid in meetings.
What’s the reasoning behind getting rid of technology in meetings?
Leaders like Hollande believe that technology can be constraining, and they are not totally wrong. Hollande’s spokesman explains, “Each of us will now have to talk and listen to what is to what is said and will no longer be able to tap away at this magnificent tool.”
Let’s break this down—the statement does a couple things. Hollande’s spokesman both identifies a benefit and a problem to using technology in political meetings. On the one hand, having mobile devices on hand can be distracting and can detract from focus and effort on the task at hand. On the other, having access to powerful tools such as the Internet and apps that allow for real time updating of information can be an invaluable and “magnificent” boost to production.
You’re not living in the 19th century
So why throw out the baby with the bathwater? During the industrialization of Great Britain in the early 1800s, a group of disgruntled textile workers called the Luddites engaged in a series of protests aimed at rebelling against the technological tide of the times. Their method? “Machine breaking”: Destroy every piece of technical machinery they could find in order to halt innovation and break free of the Industrial Revolution. Even if you’re not a historical scholar, it should be clear who won out in the end.
The Luddites unilaterally rebelled against crucial technological developments of their time because they were unable to harness the power of new innovations and separate the good from the bad. Because they were unable to adopt and adapt, they soon became irrelevant.
Don’t be a machine breaker
While Hollande may accomplish some gain in focus by banning phones, he’s also “broken” any effectiveness this technology may have in his meetings. This kind of unilateral approach is a copout. The solution is not to ban mobile devices, slide presentations, or any other kind of technology, but to figure out how to use them to increase engagement in meetings. Rather than simply viewing them as new-fangled distractions, the onus is on effective leaders and communicators to figure out how to adapt and adopt new technological tools to stay on the cutting edge.
Pope Francis seems to have figured this out. Only ordained in March 2013, he already has 463,000 Facebook likes and 160,000 Instagram followers. He tweets regularly to his 3.5 million followers, and stresses the importance of taking an active role in using technology to bring ideas and people together, explaining, “It is not enough to be passerby on the digital highways, simply ‘connected’; connections need to grow into true encounters.” Pope Francis argues that the current “revolution” in communications media will facilitate the diffusion of ideas with personal engagement like never before.
It is a poor carpenter who blames his tools
With all of the technology available to use for communicating ideas, we are selling ourselves short by taking a canned, impersonal approach to delivering information. When these go wrong, it is unfair to blame the technology itself—communicators must take an active role in managing the tools available. Don’t shun technology. Instead, think about how to use it to increase the engagement of your audience.
Hollande’s solution is short sighted. Sure, he gets his cabinet ministers to stop fiddling with their mobile devices in meetings. But he also is missing out on the potential that mobile technology could have for increasing engagement in discussions. The challenge is not to avoid mobile technology but to design apps that make it work the way we need it to.
Photo* - BBC News
At Vimodi, we are developing technology that helps users have a more engaging, responsive and effective visual discussions and dialogues. Vimodi enables visual mobile discussions for better engagement, motivation, and creativity in meetings and daily communication. Try Vimodi App.
What’s the reasoning behind getting rid of technology in meetings?
Leaders like Hollande believe that technology can be constraining, and they are not totally wrong. Hollande’s spokesman explains, “Each of us will now have to talk and listen to what is to what is said and will no longer be able to tap away at this magnificent tool.”
Let’s break this down—the statement does a couple things. Hollande’s spokesman both identifies a benefit and a problem to using technology in political meetings. On the one hand, having mobile devices on hand can be distracting and can detract from focus and effort on the task at hand. On the other, having access to powerful tools such as the Internet and apps that allow for real time updating of information can be an invaluable and “magnificent” boost to production.
You’re not living in the 19th century
So why throw out the baby with the bathwater? During the industrialization of Great Britain in the early 1800s, a group of disgruntled textile workers called the Luddites engaged in a series of protests aimed at rebelling against the technological tide of the times. Their method? “Machine breaking”: Destroy every piece of technical machinery they could find in order to halt innovation and break free of the Industrial Revolution. Even if you’re not a historical scholar, it should be clear who won out in the end.
The Luddites unilaterally rebelled against crucial technological developments of their time because they were unable to harness the power of new innovations and separate the good from the bad. Because they were unable to adopt and adapt, they soon became irrelevant.
Don’t be a machine breaker
While Hollande may accomplish some gain in focus by banning phones, he’s also “broken” any effectiveness this technology may have in his meetings. This kind of unilateral approach is a copout. The solution is not to ban mobile devices, slide presentations, or any other kind of technology, but to figure out how to use them to increase engagement in meetings. Rather than simply viewing them as new-fangled distractions, the onus is on effective leaders and communicators to figure out how to adapt and adopt new technological tools to stay on the cutting edge.
Pope Francis seems to have figured this out. Only ordained in March 2013, he already has 463,000 Facebook likes and 160,000 Instagram followers. He tweets regularly to his 3.5 million followers, and stresses the importance of taking an active role in using technology to bring ideas and people together, explaining, “It is not enough to be passerby on the digital highways, simply ‘connected’; connections need to grow into true encounters.” Pope Francis argues that the current “revolution” in communications media will facilitate the diffusion of ideas with personal engagement like never before.
It is a poor carpenter who blames his tools
With all of the technology available to use for communicating ideas, we are selling ourselves short by taking a canned, impersonal approach to delivering information. When these go wrong, it is unfair to blame the technology itself—communicators must take an active role in managing the tools available. Don’t shun technology. Instead, think about how to use it to increase the engagement of your audience.
Hollande’s solution is short sighted. Sure, he gets his cabinet ministers to stop fiddling with their mobile devices in meetings. But he also is missing out on the potential that mobile technology could have for increasing engagement in discussions. The challenge is not to avoid mobile technology but to design apps that make it work the way we need it to.
Photo* - BBC News
At Vimodi, we are developing technology that helps users have a more engaging, responsive and effective visual discussions and dialogues. Vimodi enables visual mobile discussions for better engagement, motivation, and creativity in meetings and daily communication. Try Vimodi App.