T Shapes and how to improve learning. What is depth? What questions can someone with depth answer about a discipline?

1. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
SSMED:
To grow IBM’s business
and build a smarter planet
Jim Spohrer
Director, Global University Programs
September 1st
, 2009
Contact: spohrer@us.ibm.com

2. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
SSMED Challenge Questions
 Better competencies, improved business
– What would the right increase in IBMer competencies mean to revenue and profits? What are
the right competencies? How often do the “right” competencies change? What can be done
about competency shifts in an era of accelerating change?
 Better data, better analytics, more predictable improvements
– What would it mean to quality of life of people, if quality of service (service performance) could
be improved as predictably as computing performance? What would a Moore’s Law of
investment for service performance improvements be like? If the amount of information about
a service system’s performance were to double every year, what type of analytics
 Better tools, better systems engineering, improved decisions
– What would it mean to quality of decision making, if policy makers, entrepreneurs, managers,
engineers, etc. had a CAD (Computer-Aided Design) tool that allowed them to evaluate
alternative design decisions for complex engineered service systems? Alternative health care
service systems? Alternative rescue plans for collapsing financial service systems?
 Better learning, improved ability to adapt to change
– What would a 32x increase in people’s learning mean to the world? What limits people’s
ability to adapt to change?

3. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
Why SSMED?
 What does SSMED stand for?
– Service Science Management Engineering and Design
 Why SSMED?
– To better understand and continuously improve quality of life in a complex world
– Early service research was concerned with measuring and improving service productivity
– Then came quality, compliance, and sustainable innovation as other key research areas
 Why the focus on “service”?
– In civil society today, Quality of Life (QoL) depends on Quality of Service (QoS)
– To continuously improve understanding, performance, scaling of service systems
 What is “service”?
– The application of competence/knowledge/resources for the benefit of another
– In governed societies, the logic of non-zero (identity-preserving and enhancing interactions
among entities granting access rights to diverse resources/competences for mutual benefit)
– In service science, “service” is synonymous with the phrase “value cocreation”
– At the heart of all service is an entity that perceives the possibility of value creation in making
or preventing a change in the world; if they can do it alone, then that is self-service; if they
require others, then that sets the stage for service – or value cocreation.

4. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
Complex World
 More systems
– Society as a system of systems (integrated and evolving)
 More disciplines/professions
– People with knowledge in job categories (specialized and evolving)
 Accelerating dynamics
– More offerings: Reaching one million customers in less and less time
– More disruptions: Failures or disasters can rapidly impact millions
– More stakeholders: Providers, Customers, Competitors, Governing Authorities
 Challenges & opportunities
– Growth: Keeping up with change (competitors) and innovating
– Stress: Keeping up with growing complexity
– Survival: Recovering from disruptions and disasters
– Learning: Investing to run-transform-innovate (all viable service systems)
– Meaning: Understanding the past and building the future
– Greatness: Addressing needs of unserved or under-served

5. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
System of Systems: Nations, Regions, Cities, Universities
Growing Connections Between
University Research Centers
and
City Service Systems
-Transportation
-Water & Waste Management
-Food & Supply Chains
-ICT Infrastructure
-Energy/Electric Grid
-Banking & Financial
-Retail & Hospitality
-Buildings & Construction
-Healthcare
-Education
-Government (City, State, Nation)
Growing Connections Between
Developed and Emerging Nations
- Different GDP/Capita opportunities
-Different GDP/Energy opportunities
University researchers have
personal interest in as well as
privileged access to local service
system information
Developed Market
Nations
(> $20K GDP/Capita)
Emerging Market
Nations
(< $20K GDP/Capita)

6. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
Universities create and store knowledge in structures
 Systems Knowledge
in Centers/Institutes
– Industry/governments
ponsors
– Multi-disciplinary
teams
– Research real-world
systems
 Discipline Knowledge
in Schools/Disciplines
– Award degrees,
create professionals
– Single-discipline
focus
– Research key
discipline problems
D
D
D
D
D
D
Engineering
School
SocialSciences,
H
um
anities
Business
School
Sciences &
Math
water & waste transportation
health energy/grid
e-government
I-School
Design
food &
supply chain

7. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
Structure of Discipline/Profession Knowledge
D1 D2 D3 D4 … D13
Problem
(questions addressed)
Importance
(value to customer/society)
Approach/Sophistication
(methods to learn, tools to use)
(impacts speed and reliability)
Progress/State-of-Art
(~12 areas)
- problem
- solution method
- principle
Future/Just beyond State-of-Art
(~3 areas)
- problem
- proto-solution method
- proto-principle
DEEPER
Andrew Abbot in “System of Professions” and “Chaos of Disciplines” describes
the importance of a discipline/profession “owning” the solution to a problem,
competing on speed/reliability of the solutions, and arguing for the relative importance
of the “their” problem domain and sophistication (learn time, tool costs) of “their” methods.

8. © 2009 IBM CorporationGlobal University Programs
32x improvements in learning possible
 2x learning science (methods)
– Better models of concepts
– Better models of learners
 2x learning technology (tools)
– Guided learning paths
– Elimination of “thrashing”
 2x quantity effect (overlaps)
– More you know, faster you go
– Advanced organizers
 2x lifelong learning (time)
– Longer lives and longer careers
– Keeps “learning-mode” activated
 2x start earlier (time)
– Challenged-based approach
– STEM-2D in K-12