When I was in college, studying electronic engineering, the first standard I learned about was SPICE. I never would have guessed that my career would lead me into the world of standards. I've learned a lot and share some of it in my book, "The Ten Commandments for Effective Standards". If you think standards are boring, come along for a wild ride with me. The standards arena is anything but dull.
OpenStand Principle 3: Collective empowerment
Posted by Karen B on November 15th, 2012
“Collective empowerment” is the third OpenStand principle. It elucidates the power and value of global standards that help people everywhere, regardless of where they live and what government they have.
The OpenStand paradigm describes collective empowerment as:
“Commitment by affirming standards organizations and their participants to collective empowerment by striving for standards that:
- are chosen and defined based on technical merit, as judged by the contributed expertise of each participant;
- provide global interoperability, scalability, stability, and resiliency;
- enable global competition;
- serve as building blocks for further innovation; and
- contribute to the creation of global communities, benefiting humanity.”
Standards organizations that adhere to this principle strive for the best possible standards that balance technical aspects with other considerations. These standards accelerate innovation while enabling competition. (Cooperate on standards, compete on products.)
Of the five OpenStand principles, this is the one that makes me the most proud to work in the field of standards.
