Because the world is not flat.

Category: Research (Page 2 of 2)

On the roles of technology in international markets (and how receptionists substitute university teachers)

Nadine, a receptionist, greets tourists in Singapore: “Hello, nice to see you!”. Nadine remembers all of your past conversations with her, and utilizes that knowledge to improve your service experience. But Nadine is not a super human; she is an android. New machine learning methods and faster computers enable robots to develop artificial intelligence. As a result, they can already remind patients of medication, coach patients and communicate with healthcare professionals. The rise of autonomous devices and other emerging technologies is not only fascinating but relevant. For instance, programmatic advertising is already a US 15 billion dollar market in which software decides which advertisement is shown to whom without ever speaking to a human being. This is no longer science fiction. Yet, business and management scholars have not paid attention to what robotization means for theories of marketing or international business. Continue reading

All things living are in search of a better world.

This statement by Sir Karl Popper (Book Preface: In Search of a Better World, 1984) is one of the countless wisdoms he produced during his life. One devoted to understanding how problem solving and the correction of errors are two of the most important human activities for survival and progress. These behaviors are leading on one side to democracy (def., ‘government which can be removed without violence’) and on the other side to scientific progress, in that we remain doubtful about the theories we have, refute them when they turn out wrong, and critically adopt better ones when we conceive them. Continue reading

Newer posts »