
Facebook WhatsApp Red Ocean, Google Nest Blue Ocean
I come here to bury the WhatsApp conversation not to praise it. The Noble Om hath told you Zuck was ambitious. And grievously he is paying for it. Yes, $19 billion dollars. Yes, half a billion people use WhatsApp and its on its way to being the ne…

The AOL 401K Lesson: Is HR Failing at Your Company?
The cost-cutting policy change at AOL intended to save a few million dollars a year (hey, free money to bottom-line) is yet another example of a failing human resources function in many companies. While there are many reasons to justify cutting corners in benefits to employees especially in an earnings-starved company like AOL, it was […]

Satya Nadella: Microsoft, Coffee and the Relevance Question
Satya Nadella is a highly accomplished, extremely smart Microsoft executive who is correctly receiving a warm reception from media and pundits. The question that remains open however is – is he the change agent that can help Microsoft avoid the fate that other Wintel players are facing? He clearly seems to have taken to Marc […]

Forbes: What do Startups not know that Big Companies know?
The Quora editorial team picked out my post on this topic and published it on Forbes. Forbes Quora: What do Startups not know? 1. Most startups are afraid of charging real $$$$. You can charge $5M for a website with 7 static pages. Annually. For a very public example of this, just take a look at the […]

Does your Startup Charge too Little?
Most startups are afraid of charging real $$$$. You can charge $5M for a website with 7 static pages. Annually. There is a trend I have seen with accelerator startups – charging too little. I think this comes from youth and the feeling that if X was 10 times cheaper you would buy it. In […]

Bitcoin is Not like Gold
Bitcoin has a uniqueness problem – Bitcoin has lots and lots of unique features and advantages that you can read about. However, I find one particular risk that you can drive a truck through. Compared to US Dollar (or Euro, Pound, any national currency) which by definition can have only one of each – and therefore […]

Are you missing the real genius of Coin?
There are plenty of questions around viability of what Coin has built and will be offering. There are plenty of naysayers and people with opinions on why it won’t work. But here is what Coin got right – they have proven that there is a lot of demand for us to have a virtual wallet […]

Salesforce Startup Lesson #1: How are products built by Oracle, SAP or Salesforce different?
One of the questions often asked by venture investors and entrepreneurs alike is – how does product strategy work at a company like Salesforce? How is it different from Oracle? How does Salesforce thinking about products fundamentally different than how SAP or Oracle approach it? To me it comes down to the way the three […]

Just Stop It: Apple Does Not Need a New Category
Every time one more journalist wakes up from his sleep they talk about how Apple may be doing fine for now but it really really needs a new breakthrough product.
Time Magazine says “Apple has to create a new category, or it will sink into normal…