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are associated with lethargy and chronic fatigue. Drugs that increase dopamine levels in the brain are associated with sleeping problems and insomnia. MANIA: Those experiencing mania or hypomania may be partially fueled by elevations in dopamine. Mania is characterized by decreased need for sleep, feelings of happiness, talkativeness, social behavior, impulse behavior (e.g. shopping sprees), ANXIETY: etc. Hypomania is considered a slightly milder version of mania. Both conditions may worsen or Some people may feel more anxious when dopamine become triggered with increases in dopamine. levels increase in certain parts of the brain. This may PARANOIA: be due to dopaminergic receptor dysfunction as well as the specific areas of the brain that experience Those experiencing paranoia tend to have the dopamine elevations. This is generally why some heightened levels of extracellular dopamine in people with anxiety disorders feel more anxious with the brain. Those with conditions like paranoid dopamine reuptake inhibitors (DRIs). schizophrenia and paranoid personality disorder COGNITIVE ACUITY: tend to also have problems with the People call amphetamines Depleted dopamine can result number of dopaminergic “speed” for a reason – it in a variety of issue in various receptors. The paranoia makes their cognition systems in the body. Early can often be mitigated speed up and their mental with drugs that decrease performance improves. It warning signs are loss of dopamine. Even those seems like other people energy, fatigue, sluggishness, without psychiatric are functioning in slow- memory loss, or depression. conditions can experience motion whereas the user paranoia as a byproduct is locked in a state of peak of using certain drugs for performance. Heightened the dopamine boost. levels of dopamine are STRESS AND BURNOUT: associated with improvements in cognitive function such as memory, learning, and problem solving. Those who experience high levels of stress, such HYPERACTIVITY: as those associated with a nervous breakdown, may experience boosted dopamine production. Some people become hyperactive (not to be This dopamine is produced by the sympathetic confused with inattentive) when they have high nervous system that senses “danger.” Dopamine levels of dopamine. The hyperactivity may be a also initiates the production of adrenaline, byproduct of constant pleasure-seeking behavior leading you to feel extremely alert and less associated with dopamine elevations. High relaxed. Excess stress however is associated with dopamine for some people makes it difficult to sit depletion of dopamine or a “burn out.” still (counterintuitive to most ADHD diagnoses). Source: High Dopamine Levels: Symptoms & Adverse Reactions, Mental Health Daily INSOMNIA: (https://mentalhealthdaily.com/2015/04/01/ Excess dopamine may make it difficult to fall asleep, high-dopamine-levels-symptoms-adverse-reactions/) thus resulting in insomnia. Low levels of dopamine www.europeanbusinessreview.com 101

FUTURE SERIES To the same extent that excess of Dopamine CAN WE MANAGE THE DOPAMINE can trigger in some people adverse effects, a SECRETION IN ORDER TO ENHANCE dopamine deficiency may present as mental chal- RESILIENCE AND AVOID ADVERSE EFFECTS? lenges like distractibility, lack of follow-through, memory loss or forgetfulness, poor abstract In a 2013 article, researchers at Xiamen University, China, thinking, slow processing speed. Attention reported, “Most studies, as well as clinically applied expe- issues, like ADD/ADHD, decreased alertness, rience, have indicated that various essential oils, such as failure to finish tasks, hyperactivity, impulsive lavender, lemon and bergamot can help to relieve stress, behavior and poor concentration. anxiety, depression and other mood disorders. Most notably, inhalation of essential oils can communicate A dopamine deficiency can also contribute signals to the olfactory system and stimulate the brain to to physical issues like low energy, fatigue, slug- exert neurotransmitters (e.g. serotonin and dopamine) gishness anemia, balance problems, blood thereby further regulating mood.” sugar instability, carbohydrate cravings, decreased strength, or digestion or thyroid Inhaling the appropriate essential oils can communicate problems. Dopamine deficiency can present signals to the olfactory system and stimulate the brain to as emotional challenges like anger, aggression, release neurotransmitters that help regulate your mood. hopelessness, worthlessness, guilt, depression, For example, research explained in an article in Current pleasure-seeking behavior, stress intolerance, Drug Targets entitled “Aromatherapy and the Central Nerve social isolation, mood swings, procrastination, System (CNS)” found that smelling bergamot, lavender, and self-destructive thoughts.14 lemon essential oils help to trigger your brain to release serotonin and dopamine.15 Depleted dopamine can result in a variety of issue in various systems in the body. Early According to Jodi Cohen, essential oils help balance the warning signs are loss of energy, fatigue, slug- dopaminergic system and it include immune modulating gishness, memory loss, or depression. Other essential oils such as oregano, thyme, lavender, rose- early symptoms include: mary, and lemon. In an article labelled “How to Increase Dopamine with Essential Oils”, the authors provide the • Hard time self-motivating following explanation: • Cravings for chocolate • Easily distracted • Shiny object syndrome (easily distracted) • Not feeling fulfilled when you accomplish a task • Looking for quick fixes • Addictive tendencies (Alcohol, drugs, work, exercise, emotional eating, social media, gambling, shopping) • Having a hard time focusing and staying on task • Self-sabotage • Self-isolation • Feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness • Feeling tired in the morning • Having a shorter temper than usual • Don’t feel like going out but feel good when you do 102 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

Lavender oil seems to promote relaxation and deplete dopamine reserves. According to Jodi peace. Low dopamine levels cause problems Cohen, this happens when dopamine secreting like poor sleep, anxiety and fatigue. Inhaling the cells get overwhelmed with stimulus to produce calming powdery & flowery scent of lavender oil dopamine and begin to shut down, effectively every day assists in promoting better sleep and reducing our ability to produce stress hormones decreases anxiety. on demand.17 This helps to explain how chronic and acute adversities might interact to affect or Lemon Oil seems to boost “feel good” hormones in resilience responses. An individual who is expe- the body. Some, albeit limited research , suggests riencing a lot of chronic stress (e.g., difficult job that lemon oil has powerful anti-depressant responsibilities, work-family conflict) may be properties that helps beat the blues! more susceptible to succumb to an unexpected adverse event, like the COVID-19 pandemic, Rose Oil seems to be a n anti-depressant and relative to individuals who entered the situation anti-anxiety effects. Some suggest that it also while experiencing moderate or low levels of prompts psychological relaxation and improves stress. It also speaks to the importance of proac- sexual dysfunction tively addressing our stressors, either through therapy, regular breaks, or job crafting, before Peppermint Oil seems to have a high menthol they bubble up and overwhelm or incapacitate concentration which helps sometimes relieves high our stress response system. stress levels, agitation and dull moods In order to produce dopamine, we need to both Source: https://superfoodsanctuary.com/ consume adequate amounts of protein in our how-to-increase-dopamine-with-essential-oils/ diet and good stomach acid and digestive func- tion to supply our body with the building blocks All in all, Jodi Cohen asserts that Inhaling the appropriate essential oils “these remedies must be able to cross can communicate signals to the olfactory the blood-brain barrier to modify the system and stimulate the brain to release brain’s neurotransmitter response. neurotransmitters that help regulate your mood. Neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin lack the necessary transport mechanisms to cross the blood-brain barrier, while lipid-soluble essential oil molecules do not”. STRESS, NUTRITION AND DOPAMINE OUTPUT When we experience stress, our body activates “fight or flight” chemicals known as adrenaline and noradrenaline that are part of the catecholamine group.16 These chemicals are derived from dopamine – hence the latter is a precursor to make the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and epinephrine. This means that when we are stressed out, we break down dopamine to produce stress hormones like oxytocin. Over time, multiple episodes of high stress can www.europeanbusinessreview.com 103

FUTURE SERIES According to Richard Davidson in his book, The Emotional Life of Your Brain, resilience is one dimen- sion of your emotional style and includes greater activation in the left prefrontal cortex (PFC) of the brain. Davidson writes: “The amount of activation in the left prefrontal region of a resilient person can be thirty times that in someone who is not resilient.” Davidson’s early research found that the abun- dance of signals back and forth from the PFC to the amygdala determines how quickly the brain recovers from being upset. The amygdala is your it needs to make dopamine. When we consume brain’s threat detector responsible for the fight- (and properly digest) dietary protein, it is broken or-flight response. More activity in the left PFC down into amino acids. Dopamine is made from shortens the period of amygdala activation. Less the amino acid tyrosine, which converts into activation in certain zones of the PFC resulted in dopamine through a series of biochem- longer amygdala activity after an ical steps. Most supplements that claim Intense emotional experience producing negative to boost dopamine production within pain, extreme trauma, emotions. Basically, some people’s the brain often contain the amino acid and severe adversity brains weren’t good at turning tyrosine, which first converts to L-dopa off negative emotion once it was before converting into the actual neuro- are common in people turned on. transmitter. The conversion between who are considered In later research with the help of tyrosine and dopamine is important, very resilient. The because without the dopamine neuro- MRIs, Davidson confirmed that the whiter matter (axons connecting transmitter, an individual is more likely to road to resilience neurons) lying between the develop Parkinson's disease and will have most often involves prefrontal cortex and the amyg- a harder time finding life rewarding.18 considerable hardship. dala, the more resilient a person was. The converse was also true. CONCLUSION That’s how we often Less white matter equates with less build and demonstrate resilience. By turning down the our resilience. amygdala, the PFC is able to quiet signals associated with negative Resilience is not a trait that you are either emotions. The brain can then plan born with or without. It’s a set of behav- and act effectively. iors, thoughts, and actions that can be Resilience means an adaptation learned and developed. When you break it down in the face of adversity and the ability to bounce to the physical level in your brain, resilience is a back from these circumstances without being overly neuroplastic process. It’s really about how well influenced by negative emotions. Dopamine seems your brain handles the unexpected aspects that to be a neurotransmitter that enables the bouncing life brings. back rapidly and productively. Most people display Being resilient doesn’t mean that you don’t a degree of resilience (and mobilization of the dopa- experience hard times. In fact, intense emotional mine neurotransmitter) but recurrent episodes of pain, extreme trauma, and severe adversity are stressful life and work events can deplete our dopa- common in people who are considered very resil- mine reserves, making us less resilient. ient. The road to resilience most often involves Healthy nutrition and lifestyle can increase dopa- considerable hardship. That’s how we often build mine in the brain. Working up a sweat by running, and demonstrate our resilience. swimming, dancing, or other forms of movement, 104 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

can help by increasing dopamine levels in the body. Studies ABOUT THE AUTHORS carried out on animals have shown that certain portions of the brain are flushed with dopamine during physical Simon L. Dolan (Ph.D - University of activity. When we are constantly exposed to stressors like Minnesota) is the president of the financial difficulty, relationship troubles, workplace stress, Global Future of Work Foundation and more, it affects our body’s production of dopamine, and Honorary president of ZINQUO. thereby reduces resilience. He is a prolific writer and researcher, with over 77 books published (in And attitudes count. Resilient people seem to have this multiple languages), over 150 articles set of attitudes in common: in scientific journals, and over 600 conferences delivered throughout the world. He has been a professor at some of • They remain optimistic, but balance optimism the leading business schools (ESADE, McGill, Boston - to with realism. name a few). He is a very solicited international speaker hence he speaks 7 languages. For more information visit • They face, rather than ignore, their fears. his web site: www.simondolan.com. • They have a strong sense of right and wrong that Email: [email protected] provides an attitudinal framework. • They partake in a religious or spiritual practice Kyle M. Brykman (Ph.D. -Queen’s University) is an Assistant Professor at or are part of some other group with strong the Odette School of Business, University beliefs. of Windsor. His research focuses on • They have a strong social support system in employee voice, team resilience and which they give to and receive from others. conflict. His research has been featured • They have resilient role models to emulate. in various prestigious academic journals, including the • They make physical fitness a priority. Journal of Organizational Behavior, Small Group Research, • They keep their minds fit by engaging in lifelong and Group & Organization Management. For more informa- learning. tion visit his web site: kylebrykman.com. • They stay mentally flexible and have a good sense of humor. Email: [email protected] • They have a calling, mission, or purpose in life. wwwwww..eeuurrooppeeaannbbuussiinneessssrreevviieeww..ccoomm 110055

FUTURE SERIES Notes and References 1. Dr. Seligman's books have been translated into more than 45 languages and have been best sellers both in America and abroad. Among his better-known works are Flourish (Free Press, 2011), Authentic Happiness (Free Press, 2002), Learned Optimism (Knopf, 1991), What You Can Change & What You Can't (Knopf, 1993), The Optimistic Child (Houghton Mifflin, 1995), Helplessness (Freeman, 1975, 1993) and Abnormal Psychology (Norton, 1982, 1988, 1995, with David Rosenhan). 2. The overall structure of the paper was inspired by an excellent article published by Jodi Cohen, and entitled: Enhancing Dopamine for Resilience .While her angle is aromatherapy, the structure and some of her ideas were retained, cited and incorporated in this paper. The authors have invited Jodi to join them in preparing this paper but it has been turned down for her busy schedule. We wish to thank her for the reflections which were very instrumental to completing this paper. (https://vibrantblueoils.com/ enhancing-dopamine-for-resilience/) 3. Definition offered by the Mayo Clinic - https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/resilience-training/in-depth/resilience/ art-20046311 4. Hartmann, S., Weiss, M., Newman, A., & Hoegl, M. (2020). Resilience in the workplace: A multilevel review and synthesis. Applied Psychology, 69(3), 913-959. https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12191 5. Authors: Charles S. Carver, C. S. (1998). Resilience and thriving: Issues, models, and linkages. Journal of Social Issues, 54(2), 245-266. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.1998.tb01217.x 6. Huberman Lab : Controlling Your Dopamine For Motivation, Focus & Satisfaction | Episode 39 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/ podcast/controlling-your-dopamine-for-motivation-focus-satisfaction/id1545953110?i=1000536717492 7. Watch: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/controlling-your-dopamine-for-motivation-focus-satisfaction/ id1545953110?i=1000536717492 . 8. See: DOPAMINE DEFICIENCY, DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH https://bebrainfit.com/dopamine-deficiency/#:~:text=Low%20 Dopamine%3A%20An%20Unexpected%20Cause%20of%20Depression.%20No,the%20underlying%20cause%20of%20 depression%20in%20many%20cases. 9. R A Bressan , J A Crippa The role of dopamine in reward and pleasure behaviour--review of data from preclinical research, PMID: 15877719 DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2005.00540. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15877719/) 10. Mark S. Gold, MD, Kenneth Blum, PhD, Marlene Oscar-Berman, PhD, and Eric R. Braverman, MD Low Dopamine Function in Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Should Genotyping Signify Early Diagnosis in Children? Postgrad Med. 2014 Jan; 126(1): 153–177. doi: 10.3810/pgm.2014.01.2735 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4074363/ 11. Source> David Salisbury, Slacker or go-getter? May 1, 2012 https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2012/05/01/ dopamine-impacts-your-willingness-to-work/ 12. A Westbrook, R van den Bosch , I Määttä , L Hofmans , D Papadopetraki , R Cools, M J Frank Dopamine promotes cognitive effort by biasing the benefits versus costs of cognitive work, Science 2020 Mar 20;367(6484):1362-1366. doi: 10.1126/science.aaz5891. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32193325/ 13. Sergio González , David Moreno-Delgado, Estefanía Moreno, Kamil Pérez-Capote, Rafael Franco, Josefa Mallol, Antoni Cortés, Vicent Casadó, Carme Lluís, Jordi Ortiz, Sergi Ferré, Enric Canela, Peter J McCormick, PLoS Biol 2012;10(6):e1001347. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1001347. Epub 2012 Jun 19. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22723743/ 14. OGonzales et al , op. cit. 15. Xiao Nan Lv 1, Zhu Jun Liu, Huan Jing Zhang, Chi Meng Tzeng Aromatherapy and the central nerve system (CNS): therapeutic mechanism and its associated genes, Curr Drug Targets 2013 Jul;14(8):872-9. doi: 10.2174/1389450111314080007. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23531112/#:~:text=In%20 the%20current%20study%2C%20the%20effectiveness%20of%20aromatherapy,key%20molecular%20elements%20of%20 aromatherapy%20are%20also%20proposed. 16. See: Simon Dolan Stress, Self-Esteem, Health and Work. Palgrave -MacMillan 2007: Simon L. Dolan and Salvador Garcia, Covid- 19: Stress, Self-Esteem and Psychological Well-being: How to assess risks of becoming depressed, anxious, or suicide prone? The European Business Review, May 13, 2020 17. Jodi Cohen 3 Ways to Re-Wire Your Brain to Reduce Stress. https://vibrantblueoils. com/3-ways-to-re-wire-your-brain-to-reduce-stress/ 18. Brandon May What is the Connection Between Tyrosine and Dopamine? https://www.wise-geek.com/what-is-the-connection- between-tyrosine-and-dopamine.htm#:~:text=Dopamine%2C%20which%20activates%20feel-good%20hormones%20that%20 process%20rewards,and%20dairy%20products.%20Dopamine%20is%20derived%20from%20tyrosine. 106 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

py foWOrne eAhlee4lap adoedurs r(hcpipliretinentastmcehadat nmagetaimtgheea® zwionrled) Culture is a powerful invisible force. When tightly linked to strategy, with leaders as role models, culture is a potent component of performance and competitive advantage. If you do not define and work on the culture you want, you will get the one you deserve. lture is a powerful invisible force. WNhoewno tnigshaltelyo nlinAkmeadzo tno strate odels, culture is a potent component of performance and comp you do not define and work on the culture you want, you will ge gger font: Now on sale on Amazon heidrick.com EXECUTIVE SEARCH CULTURE SHAPING LEADERSHIP CONSULTING

TECHNOLOGY DEALING WITH CONTEXT IN AI by Imène Brigui, PhD Context is key in everything added value and that companies we do: to understand, ana- should consider at two main levels: The notion of context, both lyze a situation, project our- vague and fascinating, makes selves, put into perspective and act HOW TO INTEGRATE sense when it comes to deci- in an informed way. In other words, CONTEXT IN DECISION- sion- making . It caught everything is context! MAKING PROCESS? tremendous interest in many studies from several disci- For managers, approaching Everything becomes instrumen- plines of decision sciences, context is crucial, whether for fore- talized, connected and intelligent. psychology or digital sciences casting, interpreting and justifying Particularly due to hyperconnec- and increasingly in artificial performance, negotiating, carrying tivity with the explosion of IoT. You intelligence. But what do we out market analysis, etc. can get the exact situation of almost really mean by context? everything. One of the challenges The managerial dimension is in integrating context is to build not limited to the used tools and sense by crossing several data techniques to support managers' coming from various channels, with decision-making but explores new different associated semantics and horizons to better understand habits, structures and at multiple levels. To preferences, consumption patterns... get as close as possible to the reality From a more concrete point of view, today we benefit from several techno- logical advances which bring actual 108 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

of a certain situation, it is essen- and interact to create value through HUMAN + MACHINE IS THE tial to have ubiquitous systems able contextual AI. Thus, small changes RIGHT EQUATION at the level of elementary, local and to reach optimal perception of the isolated data (generated and collected moment and to make links between automatically) crossed with Market To conclude, more than ever, similar situations at different times data (Business Intelligence, market bridging Human Intelligence and and with different stakeholders. scanning, etc.) can significantly and Artificial Intelligence to seize context very effectively support and guide the is important. The way humans act HOW TO CONNECT decision-making process. and interact with their environment CONTEXT WITH BIG is crucial to enhance factual and DATA? Small changes at the level logical reasoning. of elementary, local and While machines are empow- Big data and all the associated isolated data (generated ering decision makers with high collection and analysis tools and collected automati- computational abilities and short processing cycles, humans must have empowered today’s systems cally) crossed with Market empower machines by bringing perception. We are now close to data (Business Intelligence, subjectivity, expertise, nuance identify all the elements char- market scanning, etc.) can and by adding new relevant acterizing the state of objects, dimensions. individuals or organizations. significantly and very effec- The right understanding of With Big Data, understanding the tively support and guide the context couldn’t be achieved context has become a necessity. decision-making process. without setting the right equation Big data has undoubtedly opened Human + Machine and so empow- up new horizons in terms of data ering human abilities from one accessibility and processing, but side and training and educating also faces so many challenges of machines from the other side. expressiveness and interpretability of these data. Companies must question data more and constantly push the boundaries of acquisition and appro- Prediction Aggregation Context-driven priation of these data. Optimization analysis decisions Prescription Personnalization Understanding Big Data in a contex- Business Intelligence CONTEXTUAL Intelligent systems / Supporting tualized way leads to precise, relevant Artificial Intelligence COMPUTING Embedded systems / Technologies and accurate “Small Data”. To do this, Temporal observations the Micro customer-oriented context and the Macro market-oriented and Market Data, Local, isolated and Data environmental context must coexist competitors info, elementary Data Macro Data ABOUT THE AUTHOR Imène Brigui, associate professor and researcher at emlyon business school, holds a PhD in Computer Science from Paris Dauphine University. Her research areas focus on Artificial Intelligence and in particular Intelligent Agents. During more than 15 years’ experience in research and teaching, she has been involved in several research projects and pedagogical responsibilities. She is also engaged in multiple AI and Data communities in France and abroad. www.europeanbusinessreview.com 109



DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION HOW TECHNOLOGY COMMONS REVOLUTIONISE INDUSTRY FOUNDATIONS The story of the Open Compute Project (OCP) By Hervé Legenvre and Steve Helvie In this article, we will feature a largely ignored cornerstone of digital transformation - the adoption of technology commons: open-source software, open hardware, open data, etc. Using the story of the Open Compute Project, currently celebrating its 10th anniversary, we illustrate how such ecosystems revolutionise industry foundations by removing market bottlenecks and transform technology development into collaborative efforts. www.europeanbusinessreview.com 111

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION TECHNOLOGY COMMONS: THE INVISIBLE FORCE THAT SHAPED THE DIGITAL ECONOMY Malcolm P. McLean is a truck driver who revolutionised the transportation industry when he invented the shipping container, the basic unit of transportation that powered the global trade growth during the last part of the 20th century. Awarded a patent for this inven- tion, he was nevertheless conscious that the container needed to become a widely adopted standard, which pushed him to issue a royal- ty-free license of his invention to the Industrial Organization for Standardization (ISO). As this sparked a growth in the usage of containers, his company, SeaLand Industries, was in the best position to capture benefits from it and it Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2021, the Open Compute Project (OCP) offers a great illustration of forces at play deep within the technology world. It is an ecosystem that has transformed the foundations of the data centre sector. TECHNOLOGY COMMONS became the largest cargo shipping business. This story illustrates how open designs and Definition: software, design, data that can be technology commons can change the founda- freely accessed, modified, improved, used and tion of an entire industry. distributed Years later, as technology became more wide- Operational benefits spread, open-source software, another form of • Attracting and motivating employees technology common, became a dominant force. • Reducing infrastructure costs Today, the largest contributors to open-source • Enhancing development capabilities software projects are companies such as Google, • Building reputation Facebook and Microsoft. Google and Facebook Community benefits have benefited from open-source software since • Eliminating infrastructural bottlenecks their early days. As they evolved, they have turned • Opening proprietary resource bottlenecks open-source developments into large-scale inno- Strategic benefits vation engines. It powered their growth and the • Expanding offerings to new sectors growth of a myriad of digital native companies. • Undermining competitor's proprietary offerings Today start-ups only pay a fraction of the costs • Blocking future competitors needed to create applications thanks to open- source software. It has powered the transition to Adapted from Legenvre, Autio & Hameri, (2022) a mobile world and unleashed the adoption of artificial intelligence. Google and Facebook have 112 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

created and open-sourced the most-used machine that time Google and Microsoft had ambitions learning frameworks: TensorFlow and PyTorch. in the cloud market and they were already These digital giants have also used open source working on custom designs for their data to their advantage; to bring flows of users to their centres. However, they were keeping their platforms and to challenge their own proprie- design for themselves. Facebook did not see tary solutions. It also makes them an attractive data centres as a differentiating factor and employer as talented developers love open source. decided to open source its designs. This was done in collaboration with Intel, Rackspace, While the development of technology Goldman Sachs and Andy Bechtolsheim, commons has taken place deep in the technology who established the Open Compute Project stacks of these companies, many managers who Foundation in 2012. Today thousands of engi- are not familiar with digital infrastructures are neers are working on dozens of projects across unaware of the power of technology commons. the ecosystem. The designs are available Facebook and a group of companies have even under permissive and reciprocal licenses. The brought open-source development to the hardware Foundation has an inclusive decision-making world. Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2021, the process and focuses on promoting the adop- Open Compute Project (OCP) offers a great illustra- tion of OCP designs. tion of forces at play deep within the technology world. It is an ecosystem that has transformed the At the time, the focus for Facebook was on cost foundations of the data centre sector. and energy efficiency. The designs started from a blank sheet of paper. This led to a reduction in THE STORY OF THE OPEN the number of parts and to an optimised server COMPUTE PROJECT (OCP) layout that Facebook described as follows: “Our chassis is beautiful… functionally beautiful. In In 2009, Facebook was experiencing capacity fact, we like to call it ‘vanity free.’ It was designed issues detrimental to its users’ experience with utility in mind. We didn’t use plastic bezels, and started to design its own data centre. At paint, or even mounting screws, which lowered the cost and weight. Our key customers — our data center technicians — provided a lot of input 2021 OCP Global Summit Source: https://www.opencompute.org/summit/global-summit www.europeanbusinessreview.com 113

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION to the chassis design. The result was an easy to service Also, some new projects such as the Nokia open chassis almost free of screws. A server actually can edge server have taken OCP out of the data centre to be assembled by hand in less than eight minutes and the edge, to achieve the best latency cost trade-off thirty seconds!” 1 While the initial focus was on in 5G deployments. components such as racks, servers, storage boxes Today, OCP has been widely adopted by the and motherboards, OCP started to disaggregate “hyperscale “companies; the 20+ internet giants the network layer of the data centre. This meant which make extensive use of data centres, but it is also separating the software from the hardware to progressing beyond this market. Companies across increase modularity many sectors are taking and gain flexibility on Today, OCP has been widely advantage of colocation the supply side. adopted by the “hyperscale solutions to benefit from the cost and energy effi- Companies such as Microsoft and Apple “companies; the 20+ internet ciencies; others with later joined the Open giants which make extensive more technical exper- Compute Project and use of data centres, but it tise have developed their contributed their own systems. One area designs. In 2020 Google is also progressing beyond where OCP is gaining joined the board of this market. significant traction is OCP and announced telecommunication some upcoming contri- with operators such butions, while Facebook has already submitted over as Telefonica, ATT and Deutsche Telekom. And the 50 contributions and Microsoft has contributed 35 emerging disaggregation of the telecommunication to-date. As Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent joined, large value chain is likely to accelerate this. scale OCP adoption is expected in Asia. Over time Over the past 10 years, with the widespread the focus of OCP projects has also shifted from what adoption of cloud services, OCP has transformed is inside the racks to new challenges and technolo- the design of data centres. Suppliers of OCP compo- gies, such as advanced cooling and energy re-use. nents see their markets growing while traditional 114 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

integrators are losing market share. HPE’s optimising installation, maintenance and unin- server unit, one of the market incumbents, is stallation activities. It also focuses on energy quite involved in OCP projects such as the Open efficiencies. The sharing of designs leads to Systems Firmware (OSF) project and HPE uses further economies of scale through standardisa- OCP components in its own line of servers. tion and the combined volume of buyers. Yahoo AMD is now seeing OCP as a vehicle to challenge Japan has reported a 35% price advantage in Intel’s dominant position in the data centre chip 2019 alone by using OCP servers and a 41% cost market segment. These are clear signs that tech- savings for racks. nology commons can shake the hardware world and rewrite the rules of competition. FLEXIBILITY: SPEED AND MULTIPLE SOURCES OF SUPPLY THE FOUR OCP SUCCESS FACTORS As the 5000+ engineers involved in OCP work on the next generation of data centre components, The success of OCP can be explained by four they focus on radically simplifying installation, factors: OCP brings cost reduction, OCP enables maintenance and uninstallation activities. This sustainability improvements, OCP offers flexi- creates a highly flexible environment where bility and speed and OCP combines the power of installing a new rack takes no more than a few standard and innovation. minutes to install. This is a powerful advantage and eases the installation of a new data centre COST REDUCTION and keeps it at its best level of performance over The adoption of a modular and open archi- time. Flexibility is also the result of the disaggre- tecture, coupled with a rigorous development gation of the value chain. Instead of depending process, eliminates unnecessary costs. This on a unique supplier to bundle multiple technol- reduces investments and operating costs by ogies and services, OCP adopters benefit from multiple sources of supply, reducing depend- FIVE ACTIONS THAT SUPPORT ence on single providers. TECHNOLOGY COMMONS STRATEGIES   1. Train your top management on the benefits A SUSTAINABILITY ENABLER and tactics associated with technology commons. Over the past ten years, OCP has had a strong focus on sustainability performance. The overall 2. Assess your current usage of open-source carbon emission reduction is sizeable. Facebook software and other commons. estimated in 2018 that it had saved, thanks to OCP innovations, 400,000 metric tons of carbon, 3. Create an Open-Source Project Office (OSPO) the equivalent 95,000 cars over an entire year. to act as single point of contact on the Today Advanced Cooling Solutions (ACS) and matter. energy re-use are amongst the priorities for OCP members, and the ACS project are among the 4. Develop good legal knowledge of open-source most active in the Community. licensing. One of the most recent developments within 5. Decide on the key benefits you want to the OCP Community is the circular economy gain. This can include: attracting developers, implementation. Companies like Facebook adopting technologies, making strategic adopt and acquire technologies ahead of moves. others. These technologies can last a long time, but after a few years they are replaced to allow 1 See Inside the Open Compute Project Server: https://engineering. them to benefit from the latest technical devel- fb.com/2011/04/08/core-data/inside-the-open-compute-project-server/ opments. Thanks to the modular and open architecture of OCP they can be wiped and www.europeanbusinessreview.com 115

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION resold to other companies who benefit from recent DEVISING SUPPORTIVE IP POLICIES technologies for a significantly reduced price. This extends the life of the equipment and reduces the OCP strikes a fine balance between maximising CO2 impact of data centres. openness and attracting contributors to the overall project. The Open Compute Project releases specifi- STANDARD AND INNOVATION UNITED cations. With these open specifications, vendors build Finally, as all key industry players work together products that fit into the architecture and adopters to innovate around a common architecture, a assemble and integrate all the required technology standard innovative solution is emerging. This together. Two types of contributions exist. eliminates the risk of fragmentation associated with innovation. James Pearce who was head of The first one consists of releasing the complete open source at Facebook commented “honestly the design files under an open-source license. These idea of open sourcing our designs has really helped design files need to be precise enough so anyone accelerate the pace of innovation throughout that can understand and use them. As technology evolves sort of ecosystem, it’s helped us to iterate quickly, and rapidly, leading vendors within the ecosystem main- we know that many other companies in the industry, tain a time advantage even if they share their design. from Microsoft, now through to Google and many other hardware partners have been involved with the Managing a technology commons open compute project to, we think, a huge amount of ecosystem is a challenging success industry-wide in terms of driving the pace of exercise. For an ecosystem innovation, driving down the costs of much of this such as OCP, the diversity of hardware which we think benefits the technology competencies required, the variety industry as a whole.” 2 of stakeholders involved and the focus on collaborative effort offer MANAGING THE OCP ECOSYSTEM very interesting leadership and management challenges. Managing a technology commons ecosystem is a challenging exercise. For an ecosystem such as The second one consists in specifying the inter- OCP, the diversity of competencies required, the faces leaving suppliers free to provide specific variety of stakeholders involved and the focus on technologies, including proprietary ones that fit into collaborative effort offer very interesting lead- the architecture. With both options available, the ership and management challenges. We have overall ecosystem is attractive for all participants. outlined some of them here. And even if designs are not fully shared, OCP adop- ters still have the choice to source components from ENSURING THE ARCHITECTURE IS multiple vendors who offer different technologies. SIMPLE, MODULAR AND OPEN CREATING A GOVERNANCE WHICH Open development within OCP is structured around SUPPORTS COLLABORATIVE DEVELOPMENT simple modular architectures. Components can be easily interconnected thanks to open interfaces. OCP has created a decentralised and transparent Modularity reduces complexity and openness creates decision-making process and fosters a collaborative architectural flexibility as components can be easily approach. Technical directions are defined within mixed and matched together. Together modularity OCP by the Incubation Committee. Members, who and openness allow users to organise collaborative are elected by OCP members, review the specifi- developments around specific technical projects that cations and designs submitted; they set technical evolve independently from one another. 116 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 2 See James Pearce Changelog Podcast: https://changelog.com/podcast/211

2021 OCP Global Summit Source: https://www. opencompute. org/summit/ global-summit directions and encourage open collaboration and CHANGING AN INDUSTRY contribution. Then each project has a project lead. ARCHITECTURE USING Anyone can join a project as a participant, with TECHNOLOGY COMMONS participants receiving all email exchanges on the project, they can join meetings and access docu- Leveraging technology commons is a counter-in- mentation. As meetings are recorded, they remain tuitive strategy for many executives who, for many accessible on the OCP website. For companies who years, have focused on controlling unique valuable contribute, design and manufacture OCP compo- resources developed in-house. The prevailing belief nents, being part of such a Community offers them being “Own it, and it will help you beat competition.” opportunities to influence the project technology roadmaps, visibility and helps them go to market However, as the complexity of digital systems faster with new products. increases, differentiation is coming only from a fraction of the overall digital infrastructure compa- MOBILISING ECOSYSTEM PARTICIPANTS nies use. Technology commons help establish standards. They offer shortcuts by avoiding the Ecosystem participants include companies who lengthy market selection process and the myriad of either adopt, integrate or contribute to OCP solu- competing options. But for technology commons to tions. They need to be mobilised and integrated succeed, the executive reaction needs to become within the Community. This is achieved through a “This one, we can share it, and competition and variety of methodologies. In the early years of OCP, many others will help us improve it.” there was a focus on the growth of the members and the joining of well-known companies to OCP. The Open architectures and technology commons reputation of the members of the board was also should be considered across industries as a stra- a way to create legitimacy during the early years. tegic opportunity. They have the power to change The OCP team organises conferences, workshops, an industry architecture and to re-shuffle compet- and encourages adoption of and contributions itive advantages. They are slowly but assuredly to projects. Messaging focused on the benefits of conquering the telecom and the automotive sectors. the OCP solutions and were targeted to ecosystem With connectivity penetrating every market it will participants and newcomers alike. Today, as OCP continue to spread. is reaching maturity, there is a strong focus on research and case studies which demonstrate the The impact of technology commons on growing adoption and benefits of OCP solutions. industry architectures is twofold. It allows the decoupling of technology development from www.europeanbusinessreview.com 117

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION FIGURE 1: IMPACT OF OPEN-SOURCE DEVELOPMENTS ON INDUSTRY ARCHITECTURES Technology creation Value Creation Value Capture By the firm Market Clients from By its suppliers Value By other sources creation Technology & Integration Traditional Supply Chain towards Technology & Value Market Clients Integration creation By commons ecosystems Technology commons and disaggregation product development and creates friction- Technology development is becoming a less supply markets. Over many years, we pre-competitive, shared investment that helps have assumed that competitive advantages scale innovation and establishes standards. are created in the early stages of the innova- This drastically reduces development costs tion process. However, open development is through the re-use of past designs and through rewriting the rules of competition. Technology collaborative new developments. development can be performed by ecosystems that bring many companies together. They This also creates frictionless markets by create software and hardware designs that removing industry bottlenecks and diminishing are tested, used and improved by anyone. An entry barriers and brings the functioning of effective coordination of ecosystems based the market closer to a state of pure and perfect on a radically transparent decision-making competition, where technologies can be easily process allows the most valuable and useful sourced from multiple suppliers. solutions to emerge. This creates, over time, a technology common accessible to everyone. The Open Compute Project illustrate all these points and shows how the data centre industry has been transformed over the past decade. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Hervé Legenvre is Professor and Research Director at EIPM. He manages educational programmes for global clients. He conducts research and teaches on digitalisation, innovation, and supply chain. Lately Hervé has conducted extensive research on how open-source software and open hardware are transforming industry foundations. Steve Helvie is currently the VP of Channel for the Open Compute Project (OCP). In this role he helps to educate organisations on the benefits of open hardware designs and the value of “community-driven” engineering for the data center. He's an advocate of open source business models and promotes the decarbonisation of the data center across the OCP supply chain. 118 THE EUROPEAN BUSINESS REVIEW JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022

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