What GenZ wants: Ericsson ConsumerLab conducted a study across 16 cities in India, interviewing 3,421 Generation Zers (or 9-18-year-olds) and 1,000 parents asking them about their digital habits. The results are interesting. Among other things, it highlights something that we always suspected - customers will increasingly demand more from businesses - in terms of quality, service and resolution of complaints - thanks to social media.
There is a growing demand among Generation Z for greater integration of customer care with social networks. Doing this will require a new type of service – a kind of social customer care. Most already go online to seek recommendations before buying a new service or plan. A majority go online to voice their opinions, while 77 percent use social networking specifically for venting their frustration about poor service. This leads them to expect an instant resolution of their issues and queries and constant feedback via social media.
Here's a quick summary:
The big takeaway, in my view is: if it's big today, it will be bigger tomorrow. Also, have a look at McKinsey's report: The social economy: Unlocking value and productivity through social technologies, if you haven't already.
Information security policy: Mint reports that the government is working on an internal information security policy to reduce the risk of leaks and counter possible cyber attacks. We already have an Official Secrets Act. The proposed policy will be in addition to it, and update the standards, processes for the digital age. The article quotes Sunil Abraham, executive director of Centre for Internet and Society raising an important point about the delicate balance between the confidential and the public's right to know: The proposed policy, when put in place, will be a step forward so long as it does not dilute the powers available to citizens under the Right to Information Act.
Steve Ballmer and Windows 8: A story on Steve Ballmer in Fortune highlights how much Microsoft depends on the success of Windows 8:
And for every modest success Microsoft has seen (Bing searches account for a quarter of the total market), there is a disappointing setback (Windows Phone 7 has seen its share of the smartphone market shrinking). For every Kinect, there is a Zune. None of those products, however, will matter as much as Windows 8 will. So far, the new software is winning mixed-to-positive reviews, although some users seem confused by the new interface. Much hangs in the balance: The success of Windows 8 will largely determine whether Steve Ballmer's Microsoft can become a leader in the cloud economy, or whether it's just a kinder, gentler -- but impotent -- successor to the company Bill Gates built.
The point though is we can't measure the success of Windows 8 the way we measured the success of Windows XP. Then, it was just an operating system. Now, it's about the success as a platform across multiple devices - Desktops, Notebooks, Tablets and Phones.