PassingNotes.com

okay, now this is just so dumb and so poorly executed that i want to chew my typing hand off (with my recently whitened teeth) - and i feel soooo bad for the talented coders who spun their wheels on this thing…forbes.com is trying to launch an org chart wiki - the “big news” was tucked away in a little box on page 16 of the may 7th issue (which, btw, is about half ads - total bullshit, making forbes like ‘vanity fair‘ for the business community, though in the case of vanity fair, ‘long articles‘ do count as literature in most american college classes)…

so where was i? what the shit? what was i talking about? oh yeah, this fucking orgchart wiki thing…so clearly these dudes either partnered with or completely and totally ripped off the folks behind cogmap.com (an orgchart building web 2.0 thing started by some dudes who might be reading this just now going, “forbes did what? forbes is total vanity fair bullshit“)…oh, and forbes.com actually has a link to this wiki-shit-generator right on the homepage (as of today anyways, sunday the something of may, i mean april)…here you go, click on through if you feel so inclined: forbes orgchart wiki

the big problem: the data that they provide (boards, execs and so on) is plain and far too easy to infer structurally to benefit from an org chart online…but the BIG problem is that no registration is required to fuck with the data (as in, i myself took the time to promote several marzipan level execs earlier this week at many of the fortune 500 - and congratulations to all of you, especially you ‘lil abner!)

the real BIG problem (bigger than the ‘big problem’ and also considerably larger than the second BIG problem which made use of ALL CAPS up above): let me give it you in question form forbes, “why in fuck’s name would any researcher give up this information, contribute such information where it violates corporate policy - or otherwise contribute valuable information to your site with no benefit of any kind?” you’ll have better luck with a little paypal button that simply says, “hi! forbes is scrapin’ by, care to help out?”

so yeah, as a CI dude who has actually been paid very large sums of money to dig into large organizations for assorted information, i can tell you that in many cases a well built org chart can help one to understand how an organization is directing or shifting emphasis (by product, channel, location, function, etc)…if i know that, then why on earth am i gonna give it to forbes.com? are you really that slow on the uptake?

dudes, you run a business mag and web site, don’t you already know that nobody does shit for free for anybody? my advice: take it down and use the development dollars to help cogmap privatize their service such that individuals and enterprises can subscribe to private and shared org charts, otherwise there’s nothing going on there…want more advice? then feel free to ping me directly because i’ve got a lotta expertise in this particular niche (those corporate orgchart exercises, the dark market for such information, the buyers and suppliers, the end users etc)

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