Thanks to Tim Kong for putting me on to Gartner’s hype cycle: a quick way to capture the way we move through periods of infatuation, with particular reference to technology. Any Principal grappling with their ICT budget will recognise this!
I’m not sure how useful it actually is, other than describing a pattern that people already know to exist.
But I guess it helps to know that, when we are gasping after a 4G or a version 2 of the next big thing, that we’ve all been here before. Maybe it puts it in perspective.
Perhaps we should take pause and consider why we want to drop several hundred on a new piece of kit, how will it be useful, how will it help people learn, will it have at least a couple of years’ longevity(!)…..
The hype is often about the tool – but it’s what we will do with it that counts.
karen spencer 