[Ben Casnocha, from Ben's photo page]
If you are entrepreneurial by nature, then you really must read Ben Casnocha's My StartUp Life, a memoir on how Ben started Comcate, a successful e-government software company when he was all of 14 years old (no typo). Much has been said about how young Ben was. I see more value in the wisdom he displays. The book really says a lot about what any entrepreneur has to face.
His relevance to the SAP Global Survey is not Comcate but what he did the year after he divested himself, for the most part, from Comcate and also graduated high school. Ben has just started college, but if you are interested in comparative social media and culture, Ben has already earned himself a very advanced degree.
1. You are not yet 20, yet you have lived an extraordinary life already. The part that interests me most for this interview is your gap year. Can you tell me a bit about where you traveled and how you found people to accommodate you?
"Gap year" is the term to describe taking a year off between high school and college. Among other things, I traveled overseas for about 3.5 months throughout Europe and Asia. I did the normal tourist thing, but with onetwist: From Mumbai to Shanghai, Paris to Rome, London to Lisbon, Beijing to Kunming, I stayed with readers of my blog! I posted a message on my blog saying I was going to be in various cities, and many people offered to meet up to have coffee or show me their company or work, and some people offered to host me in their home.
A 21st century adventure!
2. You met people all over the world through blogging and social media. How were they different? How were they the same?
I met people in two kinds of locations: their business and their home. At their business, the cultural differences really shone through. The laid back nature of the French, the intense workaholism of the Japanese. But in their homes, while there were still differences in cuisine, clothes, and customs, ALL of them expressed a warm sense of hospitality. Kindness is a universal emotion. Some people asked me if I was scared staying at the homes of strangers -- but those people haven't traveled, because travelers know that for the most part people all over the world are ready to lend a hand if you ask.
3. As you bopped from one country to another, what differences did you see in the use of social media?
The more developed countries were more sophisticated in their use of technology, naturally. The Japanese, for example, are over the top when it comes to SMS, blogging, and the rest of it. I think there's a correlation between wealth and their use of technology.
In impoverished countries, some folks are pushing various kinds of technology, and you ask yourself whether they should really be concerned with tech stuff or just focused on clean water and food. This is why the debate around the $100 laptop program from MIT is so interesting -- are laptops what African children need?
4. How do you think social media is changing culture worldwide?
It's allowing for great diversification. Cultural diversity is no longer dependent on geography. The boy in Kansas can explore his unique hobby with a boy in Brazil. An aspiring young entrepreneur in Korea can connect with an aspiring young entrepreneur in the U.S. These kinds of connections have serious impact on our culture, because it means that kids are growing up having their tastes, desires, and hobbies molded by people thousands of miles away. And it used to be you acted and thought like everyone who lived in your local neighborhood.
Without connecting online with programmers, designers, and advisors in Bangladesh, Canada, U.S., and China, I couldn't have started my company. I think we're witnessing a golden age of entrepreneurship because of this new reality -- no matter how old or where you are or what you look like, you can tap into a community of folks devoted to mutual self-improvement.
5. You also have more than a little experience dealing with government and government agencies than most people. What is the status of social media in the government sector? What trends do you see?
Governments trail the private sector when it comes to this stuff, generally speaking. Yes, there are some branches of the federal government which really pioneer new technology, but usually it's the case that governments adopt social media and its kin after private companies. Whereas many large companies see blogging as an essential part of their communication strategy, many large government agencies -- who have huge customer bases in their tax paying citizens -- don't really understand blogging, best I can tell.
They're just now starting to see CRM as must-have software in their organization. Social media isn't as high on the list for governments as GIS mapping software, homeland security applications, and general ERP software.
6. How do you think social media can improve government?
To the extent that social media improves communication and collaboration, then it can go a long way in the public sector. I suspect that governments will have a mandate to do a much better job in the coming years to clearly and constantly communicate with their customers how they're spending tax payer money. The status of projects and citizen inquires, budget allocations, etc etc. The perception of overwhelming bureaucracy is exaggerated since many governments are so darn bad at communicating what exactly they are doing and how a citizen can be part of the get-stuff-done process.
7. How do you think social media will change the life of your generation as opposed to the life of mine (I'm very close to 63)?
I think we'll forget about how instrumental social media actually is, since it's already so normal. I hardly remember a time before internet. The internet is not a new, wacky invention for me. It's just part of what exists.
I'm curious to see how social media impacts friendships among people of my generation. Will people have more friends? More real, personal friends? Or will it have the opposite effect?
8. What advice do you have for SAP or any global enterprise on how they should use social media?
A friend once told me (quoting someone else I think), "To not understand a phenomenon says more about you than the phenomenon."
9. Your first successful startup used very little social media from what I can tell. How will it be different next time? I assume there will be a next time.
I'm not sure what I'll do next. If I start more companies (I plan to) then I expect to use social media stuff.
