Adam Gonnerman

Recently I had someone attempt to scam me in my capacity as a celebrant, and I just feel like sharing it. On the side I enjoy officiating weddings for people from time to time. I have a website for Dijiwan Ceremonies (that name is another story) and over the past couple of years I've officiating a number of weddings. This all goes back deeper into my backstory, as I was for a time a missionary in Brazil and a minister in New Mexico, before moving to New Jersey and eventually transitioning into technology and project management. Anyway, it's not unusual now for someone to hit me up for a wedding because they've heard of me from previous clients. I receive texts and emails occasionally requesting information about my availability and cost. So it didn't seem odd the other day when I received an email at my celebrant address requesting such information. They stated they wanted the wedding to take place in Carteret, where I live, so I quoted them a very low rate. I don'...

Automation has been on my mind a lot lately, more immediately due to a book I read , but also because of the looming reality of artificial intelligence. To understand what's involved, making the distinction between replacing technologies and enabling technologies is crucial. As we traverse the timeline of the 20th century, we observe how each type of technology has distinctly influenced employment. Automated technologies have transformed industries by replacing manual labor with machines. Consider the automated switchboards introduced in the early 20th century. Previously, telephone operators manually connected calls using physical connectors on a switchboard. With the advent of automated switchboards in the 1920s and 1930s, many of these jobs were eliminated as calls were routed through electromechanical systems. Similarly, in agriculture, the introduction of mechanical harvesters like the combine harvester in the 1930s drastically reduced the need for manual labor. These machine...

In his compelling book, " The Technology Trap: Capital, Labor, and Power in the Age of Automation ," Carl Benedikt Frey offers a sweeping examination of the historical and ongoing impact of mechanization and automation on society. Starting with the onset of the first Industrial Revolution, Frey deftly navigates through the evolution of technology up to the modern age of artificial intelligence, presenting a nuanced view of how technological innovations have reshaped labor markets and power dynamics. Frey categorizes technological innovations into two types: enabling technologies, like the typewriter, which enhance worker productivity without displacing the labor force, and replacing technologies, such as robotic machinery in factories, which eliminate certain job roles altogether. This distinction forms the backbone of Frey’s analysis, as he explores the varying implications of each type of technology on different segments of the workforce. The book traces a historical patter...

Pursuing a graduate degree through Avila University was one of my best decisions in recent years. In late 2018 or early 2019 I was giving a great deal of thought to how I could invest more in my profession in project management, and the opportunity presented itself to use academic assistance through work to pay for most of my degree program. I took some great courses, such as Ethics and the Legal Environment, Financial Decision Making for Managers, Strategic Communication, and Organizational Psychology & Behavior. This was a true management course, not just a project management program. I'm especially proud of my capstone project, which led to the founding of Uberlandia Development Initiatives .  In this podcast Dr. jim Burkee, president of Avila University, talks mostly about his experience drawing in international students. Still, give it a listen and consider if this might also be an academic option for you as well. 

 The following, which I found on LinkedIn ( https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7187807955172352000/ ) can serve as a useful cheat sheet for anyone looking to understand the different types of databases. See that link for more information.

In a recent episode of the Retention Zone podcast (embedded below), media industry veteran Titus Bicknell shed light on the changing priorities within the video streaming sector. Having worked alongside Bicknell at AMC Networks for nearly two years, I have always held a deep appreciation for his insights, which offer a window into an industry undergoing significant shifts from aggressive subscriber acquisition to nuanced strategies aimed at retaining valuable customers. The Evolution of Subscriber Priorities Bicknell, a pioneer of mobile video in the early 2000s, has witnessed first-hand the explosive growth of the streaming market, particularly between 2015 and 2020. However, the focus, he notes, has crucially shifted. It’s no longer about amassing subscribers indiscriminately. "It's not any sub is a good sub," he remarked during the podcast. This reflects a deeper understanding within the industry that not all subscribers are beneficial for the business's bottom li...

Over the years, I've distilled a set of guidelines that have significantly shaped my professional journey. While my undergraduate degree didn't focus on business—unlike my graduate degree, which did—these principles were forged through real-world experiences rather than classroom theory. Here are the six cornerstone rules that guide my approach to work, split between immediate and long-term strategies. First if all, be a truth teller. This doesn’t mean being offensive, by any means. Diplomacy is often required. But in project management it does no good for the project manager to keep issues and concerns quiet. This can be especially true where the budget is concerned. No one ever wants to admit that there’s a risk (or reality!) of going over budget, but without that information the business can’t make a decision about whether to continue.  Second, think slow and act fast. Spend as much time in planning as is needed. Once the project starts it’s a bad idea to still be considerin...