NEW AGE BUZZWORD: BRICOLAGE 

It may be the only French word you'll need, but "bricolage" may also mean a whole new way of looking at modern information flow. According to the February, 1992 issue of ELECTRONICS Magazine, they think so much of it in France they have a unique educational institution in the hills and valleys of the Sophia Antipolis Technology Park on the French Riviera.

The French verb "bricoler", means, "to putter about, to organize and arrange things". It could, I suppose, apply to flower arranging but that isn't quite what it means in practice. The noun "bricolage" is used to mean "improving the quality of life by means of selfinitiated incremental refinement of the environment". Here they are talking about the business/technological environment.

The institution involved is the Theseus Institute business school. Its purpose is "to train a new generation of managers who will be able to integrate information technology in their daily management practice."

Thinkers are realizing that technology now makes the laws and breaks the laws. The next development is going to offer both golden opportunities and disrupted plans. It will shine on innovators who are open and move into such new fields, but will present a dark cloud for people living off sunset industries.

With computers now on so many office desks, bricolage just has to transform and reshape companies. With dramatically increased change and transfer speeds approaching the fantastic -- EDS now has the capability of balancing 5.4 billion checking accounts in one second! -- a new type of mind must develop to handle it. This institution may be able to change fast enough to accomplish it.

The basis of bricolage is to introduce such adjustments in easy stages. Theseus Institute researchers have discovered that you can't just "design a system" and expect it to work. There are too many variables and future unknowns.

But they are working at it. Many large French companies are supporting this newly-created institute because they know they need it.

More information: Thierry Zylberberg, Principal, Theseus Institute, Sophia Antipolis Technology Park, France.

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