A case of perspective

Reading Dave Kahle's take on sales perspective this morning I became quite fascinated just how much opinion can shape an organisations stand point without anyone actually even realising.

Take this simple story from this mornings papers for example. Three very different takes could lead to a company reacting to the news in 3 very different ways:

TAKE 1) The Daily Mail

Former BP chief brought in to axe jobs in Whitehall and save taxpayers billions of pounds

Controversial former BP boss Lord Browne has been parachuted in as the Government's chief Whitehall axeman.

This to me is negative. It draws you to the point about jobs being axed and refers to Lord Browne as controversial, immediately raising doubts over the appointment.

TAKE 2) The BBC

Ex-BP boss Lord Browne to lead Whitehall reform

Former BP chief executive Lord Browne has been appointed to oversee moves to make Whitehall "more businesslike".

Very neutral, the focus is solely on the appointment and mentions nothing about making cuts or job losses.

TAKE 3) Blog Karameloo

Former BP chairman unveiled as ‘cut chief’ to save billions of pounds of taxpayers money in Whitehall

The so-called ‘Sun King’, who was Tony Blair’s favourite businessman, has been asked to use ruthless business methods to save billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money.

Very positive overall, reference to 'favourite businessman' gives him some acclaim whilst the story focuses on saving the taxpayer billions of pounds. Again no mention of axing jobs.

Imagine if you're tasked with delivering this news within an organisation. Of course, people can think for themselves, but by simply collecting the news from one source, are you getting the full perspective on the story? Because ultimately you're consuming a journalist's opinion. Automating the search means you have the time to view the article from several stand points, analysing in greater detail the implications of the news. It's another advantage to saving hours of daily time hunting down information. With everything delivered to you, it becomes detail to ponder over, rather than detail to find.