The Lathe of Heaven and Digital Transformation

One of my favorite books growing up was “The Lathe of Heaven” by Ursula Le Guin. In a classic “be careful what you wish for” plot twist, the protagonist wishes for world peace, which is granted in the form of an alien invasion that unites all nations on Earth against a common threat.

From the Wikipedia article:

Though technology plays a minor role, the novel is largely concerned with philosophical questions about our desire to control our destiny.

The tragedy of the coronavirus has resulted in the cancellation of several industry events and forced many employees to “work from home”... shifting more work, education, training, and collaboration online.

The “lathe” analogy here is that the digital transformation is proving to be the ultimate fallback for continuous operations in times of crisis. While we may dream of a utopian digital society with everything available to us on-demand, we are not entirely in control of the triggers and conditions that will force our society in this direction.

The ability to operate a remote-first work culture in the cloud is no longer just an employee benefit. It’s increasingly a necessity for business continuity. Digital preparedness is an ongoing exercise.

At Pacific Apps we are invested in Asia and other countries. Our thoughts are with employees, friends, and families who are exposed to the fears and realities of the coronavirus. I’m confident there is a silver lining here. We’ll get past these challenges soon and emerge more globally united and connected.