Watch the Whole Thing Here: https://www.tastytrade.com/tt/shows/what-i-m-thinking/episodes/what-im-thinking-12-12-2016
This segment is a wide-ranging discussion about current trends in business and society with a focus on recent developments in the the field of technology. Howard Tullman, the CEO of 1871, the largest tech incubator in the United States, stopped by the studio to talk with Tom and Tony.
The discussion opened with Howard describing how much he enjoyed a Bruce Springsteen concert at the White House and how impressed he was after seeing how Springsteen created a song (he learned this from information on a Boxed Set of Springsteen albums). Howard also mentioned the lyrics of recent Nobel laureate Bob Dylan. This led to Tom’s story of how his cousin acquired a Dylan signed Les Paul guitar that they sold years ago for not much more than pizza money (ouch). President Elect Trump’s upcoming meeting with the heads of tech companies was briefly mentioned and the subject eventually turned to IPOs. Howard explained how Private Equity Funds were making all the money (mainly through M&A) and little, if anything, was left for individual investors. He thought the equity crowdfunding rules would make it difficult for the little guy to win.
Howard congratulated everyone on the coming launch of tastyworks and promised he would be back shortly after its launch on January 3, 2017. Tom then asked what was new at 1871 and Howard discussed Knowledge Hound. Knowledge Hound is a marketplace for marketing knowledge and market research. It organizes the data so firms can know what they have and gives them the opportunity to sell the information to others, in an anonymous fashion, which will result in cost savings for the buyer and seller. For many CEOs the truth is that “We don’t know what we know”. Knowledge Hound will help CEOs and others know what they know and be able to put it to better use.
This led into the conclusion of the show and how AT&T is offering to test employees for their deficiencies (mainly tech). They will pay for their employees continuing education (on their own time) and pledge loyalty to their employees in response. Howard explained the advantages to the employee of having a good paying job and to the employer in in less turnover. The discussion could have gone on but we ran out of time.
Watch this segment of “What I’m Thinking” featuring Howard Tullman, Tom Sosnoffand Tony Battista for an interesting, wide-ranging and in-depth discussion of technology and cultural trends.