The Name: What does Yi-Tan mean?

Yi-Tan is an invented phrase in Mandarin Chinese, intended to signify Conversations about Change.

The Yi Jing (or I Ching) is the Book of Changes, a philosophical cornerstone in many Asian cultures, and a guide for managing change. "Tan" is Mandarin for a forum or conversation.

On the right is Yi-Tan in four different Chinese fonts.


The Company: Technology is a major instrument of change, both intentional and (all too often) unintentional. Yi-Tan is a small company focused on how the interactions between technology, society and business affect change. We are not biotech or nanotech experts, focusing instead on ICT: Information and Communications Technology.

We care about change at all levels, from personal change to broad social change, with several levels in between (see About Change). Our interest is practical, not merely academic. That means we're interested in facilitating change, helping it happen, not just talking about it. That is one of the motivations behind the Yi-Tan Projects.

We also believe that change happens best when it is broadly available and benefits many, which is why we prefer to make our materials available openly and also nurture various Yi-Tan Open Resources for common use.

Finally, we believe that understanding intent is essential in change activities. To make our intent more explicit, we also present the Yi-Tan Principles.

The People: You can read descriptions of the Yi-Tan principals in Your Guides.

Our common skill is a special ability to communicate fast-moving, complex technology issues in a way that non-technical personnel can grasp and put to use. This is true not just of the technologies as tools, but also of their much greater effects on industrial organization, industry competition, innovation, marketing, business management and social change.

We’re known for these skills. You can read what others think about us and our programs in Praise for Yi-Tan.

To get in touch, please contact me at (415) 722-2318 or jerry@sociate.com.

-- Jerry Michalski, Yi-Tan founder