The Power of Informed People

One entrepreneur’s journey through thought, emotion, and human irrationality

@guido23

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I am Bryan Guido Hassin, a green technology executive/entrepreneur

Founded/led four startups– Plug-and-play office energy savings

– Smart energy

– Social business card

– Mobile/wireless disaster response

Educated at Rice (computer science) and IMD (business)

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I’ll share this presentation on human behavior as a story—my own entrepreneurial journey

Context Content

• Theory• Applications

Lessons

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Birth Age1 Age10 Age18 Age22

I grew up inspired by the space industry

March 23rd, Wernher von Braun’s birthday

Huntsville, AL Rice Football

Houston, TX

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I grew up inspired by information technology

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I grew up inspired by fights against long odds

My father’s fight against cancer

Football for nerd schools

Epic myths, stories, films

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I am a capitalist

Capitalist entrepreneurship is an efficient driver of innovation

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I believe energy represents the greatest challenge of our generation

Supply:time is running out!

Environment:time is running out!

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My mission: build a business that uses information technology to address the energy challenge

Inspired by the fight against long odds That fight is energy Business is the best vehicle to address it Information technology is a powerful tool to use in the

fight

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My journey took me across multiple continents

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And guess what I learned

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Context

Content

•Theory•Applications

Lesson

s

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Saving the world isn’t about technology—it’s about people!

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People are not rational, logical robots

Four-photo Montage: Ralph Clevenger: www.brooks.edu

Rational

Irrational Sunk the Titanic

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Information and technology can nudge people into the right behavior

iT It

Focus on technology Disregard for human

element

Right information At the right time Presented the right way

Using information to create value efficiently; Marchand, Hykes; 2009

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Six golden rules dictate human response to information

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1. Measure, measure, measure

2. Immediate feedback

3. Create competition

4. Address risk

5. Create prudent default options

6. Provide emotional support

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Human Behavior 1: what gets measured gets done

16% fuel economy increase

34.5 MPG

Inverse: you can’t manage what you don’t measure

A prototype fuel efficiency support tool; Mascha van der Voort, Mark S. Dougherty, Martin van Maarseveen; 2001

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Human Behavior 2: feedback must be instantaneous and show a causal relationship between action and results

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Human Behavior 3: competition multiplies behavioral effects

Poken Points: public status to reward activity

Clear, instantaneous feedback

Result: motivated fans going beyond for points

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Human Behavior 4: fear of loss > excitement for gain

Fear of loss motivates people to buy high, sell low

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Human Behavior 5: people prefer the path of least resistance

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Default Option

Nudge; Thaler, Sunstein; 2009

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Human Behavior 6: nothing facilitates change like emotional support

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Human behavior is at the root of the energy solution and information technology can capitalize on it

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Case study: using information-adaptive human behavior to

eliminate energy waste

1. Measurement

2. Immediate feedback

3. Create competition

4. Address risk

5. Create prudent default options

6. Provide emotional support

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US businesses alone spend $9B/year on energy for office equipment

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Office equipment energy: $9B, 20m tons CO2/year

$1B for equipment in standby

Energy prices forecasted to increase

Offices use 3x energy per capita as do homes

Source: Energy Information Administration / Annual Energy Review 2007

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Enistic eliminates energy waste by providing people with the right info at the right time the right way

1. Measurement

2. Immediate feedback

3. Create competition

4. Address risk

5. Create prudent default options

6. Provide emotional support

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30% Energy Reduction!

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How can any of this benefit the space industry?

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Context

Content

•Theory•Applications

Lesson

s

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Lessons: fight the long odds—it’s what makes us human

“Never tell me the odds”

– Han Solo

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will

serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and

skills”

– JFK

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Lessons: life is too short not to do something you’re passionate about

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Lessons: seek support in your secure bases

Human Behavior 4: fear of loss

Secure bases will love you even if you fail

Secure bases give you confidence to take risks

Identify and lean on your secure bases

28Hostage at the Table; Kohlrieser; 2006

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Lessons: empower your feelings

“Let go of your conscious self and act on instinct . . . Stretch out with your feelings”

-- Obi-Wan Kenobi

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope

The Power of Informed People

One entrepreneur’s journey through thought, emotion, and human irrationality

@guido23

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Organizations exhibit collective psychologies that adhere to these same rules

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Mother

Son

Management

Staff

USA

Iran