tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69864920413797589902024-03-12T19:13:18.568-07:00Commoditizing Thought LeadershipBuilding thought leadership, when there are more critics than creators. Live long and propagate.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-62181112150499679092008-02-28T21:51:00.000-08:002008-02-28T22:51:41.508-08:00Linked in or LiesI wanted to recount an experience. My company is looking for a marketing person. Someone who can write, understands web marketing and is enthusiastic about working for a small company. The usual. What I find when I interview people who have 20+ years of experience in the corporate work place, they are keen to prove how "hip" they are. This means talking about blogs, newsletters, using macs or social networking. I encountered one of these today who was bragging about how critical using <a href="http://www.linkedin.com">Linkedin</a> was to top-tier professionals in today's environment, and how this influential people only wanted to connect with other linked in people. This of course is a valid point.<br /><br />Unfortunately he didn't have a linked in profile.<br /><br />Maybe he chose to keep it hidden from people outside his network. But he he was a freelancer communications/PR person, and it would be beneficial to show up in the network results, right?<br /><br />So I guess he's not in the cool club.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-56172492054880665042008-02-26T21:30:00.000-08:002008-02-26T21:43:12.176-08:00Hire the Best, train the rest (part 1)One thing that all small companies struggle with is hiring the right people. It doesn't matter what type of position you are looking for, but it is always a struggle to find time for interviewing, reviewing resumes, screening candidates and adding one to your team. It is absolutely critical to make the right decision, since turnover has a much larger impact in a smaller organization. <br /><br />The most difficult thing about hiring, is actually determining what person is the right fit: personality, experience, attitude and ambition that matches your company's goals. Limited reach and limited budget don't help matters either. I think the old adage for suits, shoes and purses holds true with people: hire the best you can afford. Hiring the best is sometimes out of reach or difficult to discern, but all organizations should strive for the top. And each person is motivated by different rewards, your environment might be the right fit. <a href="http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2611/25712598">Summation</a> has some great tips on the benefits of great people, and what they need to succeed in your company!<br /><br />So what if your team is missing a critical skill or experience or something else? <br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Training.</span><br /><br />I know, with limited resources, training is a luxury you can't afford. But there are huge benefits to putting training at the forefront of your employee management strategy. <br />1. Increases your teams skill set<br />2. Improves employee happiness<br />3. Demonstrates how you value your team<br /><br />Bottom line, investing in your employees makes them want (and feel psychically obligated) to invest in you.<br /><br />I'll follow this up with a part 2 on training programs and tips to increase your team's skills and decrease turnover.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-84031384416492077582007-12-01T10:52:00.000-08:002007-12-01T10:53:39.388-08:00Lost Web 2.Tuesday PostIt's Web 2.Tuesday again. This week I'll look at how B2B can use the new technologies to attract customer, increase interaction with prospects and more.<br /><br />Over the past few months I have been thinking a lot about how my company can use its website as a lead generation tool, not just an image creation tool I started thinking about how I use the web and find the info I am looking for. First and foremost, I tend to use mental tags. Once I enabled desktop search on my computer, these tags became more essential, and I tried to incorporate this idea into my file names to make them easier to find. I then realize, when looking at my competitors websites, I could never find the info I wanted in the search, so I thought combining tags, and search, in the same way blogs do, would make it easier to find info on our new website. This idea of tagging served as the core unifying philosophy of the redesign. B2B websites tend to be petty insular, and not customer focused. Prospects now are looking for a more balanced approach in finding information about products and services they are looking for. It's our job as a vendor, to be transparent and let our prospects and other target audiences find what they are looking for easily! Prospects are looking for more voices, especially in technology, to get a <a href="http://www.drunkendata.com/?p=1137#comment-17753">balanced opinion</a> on technologies. It's our job to help them out!<br /><br />I guess a few other people have ideas on taking advantage of the new web, and here is a great top 10 list of ideas!<br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/2021570/19477858">Top 10 Ways to Add Social Media to B2B Marketing</a>:<br />Social media marketing is emerging as a viable business-to-business marketing, public relations option. It is even becoming a useful so-called Web 2.0 tool for executing business strategy, as companies obtain valuable customer preferences and opinions from their online communities."</blockquote>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-64443758122135166832007-07-23T14:18:00.000-07:002007-07-23T14:28:36.584-07:00How soon should new employees jump in?<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">We added a new person to the team today. This new marcom person is extremely experienced in marketing, but knows less about our technologies. As part of the learning process in my organization, new employees are expected to jump right in, sink or swim. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">When is it too soon to assign critical projects?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">I personally, when starting a new job, like to have some time to get inside the mind of the organization, learn where the people and the stuff are. The first week should be a week where minimal results are required. Unfortunately, at many small companies, time is money. And many times there isn't enough time for the new employee to learn and understand enough to be worth the money. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">It is important to balance the honeymoon period with an employee with tasks designed to test the employees competence, as well as deliver value to the organization, but organizations should be careful not to set up new employees to fail. Maybe for a new marcom person, the first few days should be spent educating them on the industry, pointing them to industry resources, and analyzing current content for perspective. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Once they have the where we are figured out, assign them to a smaller project where they can make the final call that won't have a huge business risk like determining a landing page heading, newsletter title or list of targets to mail. After these tasks are completed, have them review the annual or quarterly calendar to research unknown opportunities that make sense in light of the current strategy. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Breaking the first week into many small tasks helps the new employee ease into the new environment, and still gives employers maximum benefit setting up a win win, long-term relationship. With all the time, resources, and effort spent on recruiting, it is important that new hires pay off.</span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-79490521933929947682007-06-28T13:08:00.000-07:002007-06-28T13:08:36.203-07:00Even After Apple, Designers Dig JobsGreat execution starts at the top. Businessweek has a great feature on Apple in advance of the iPhone release. Here is the best quote!<br /><blockquote><br /><a href="http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jun2007/id20070627_004206.htm?campaign_id=yhoo">Even After Apple, Designers Dig Jobs</a>: "'His understanding and support of design is shown in product after product. Apple's committed to design all the way through the process and that comes right from the top of the company. It's a belief and commitment that's cultural, not process-oriented.'"</blockquote>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-89599299711904321972007-06-27T16:00:00.000-07:002007-06-27T16:01:05.724-07:00Web 2.Tuesday: Edition 2Well it looks like my computer ate my last post from yesterday on Web2.Tuesday so it'll have to wait till next week. What a shame because it was a really great entry!Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-28549944837222155592007-06-25T14:24:00.000-07:002007-06-25T14:25:48.656-07:00Take me to your leader<p style="font-family: georgia;"> </p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">When the outer space visitors come to town, they are always looking for the leader. This is a note to all the leaders: company founders, presidents and CEOs. Your employees are looking for their leaders. One of the most essential items crucial to success of your business is clear leadership. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;">Businesses are a reflection of the leadership (or management team). If you are disorganized, your business will be. If you are spontaneous, your business will be too. Who are you, and who do you want your business to be? At some point this is a really essential question to answer. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;">It may not seem necessary at the beginning, or even seem like it will help. But once you move to about employee number 3, or maybe number 5, everyone will be looking to you to provide guidance, a plan and direction. Be prepared to offer this to your team. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;">Employees are simple to figure out. We want to be treated well. We want to be compensated fairly. We wan to be rewarded for our contributions. We want to recognized for our achievements. And we want to be appreciated. But we don't want to be mind readers. Be prepared to articulate and define what you want, and most importantly, determine milestones to get there. If we know where we are going, where we have been, and what paths are available to get there we can help you achieve your goals. If you don't tell us the goal, we won't know how to help you. And it's the only way you can tell if we are playing for your team.</span></span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-51588072731253109432007-06-25T14:20:00.000-07:002007-06-25T14:23:43.549-07:00Learn Before you Leap<p style="font-family: georgia;"> </p><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >In my tenure at my current company, a few times there has been an attempt to bring in "seasoned management." The problem with the new management is two fold. In a company run by the founders, it is always hard for them to give up the reins, It is also hard to find out how things work when one person has the reins.<br /><br />One recommendation for any new leader is to listen, reflect, observe, reflect, analyze, and then recommend. This of course sounds completely obvious and simple, but it doesn't always happen in reality. A couple of times we have these new managers come in with a big company mentality. They say "Fortune 500 companies do it this way and so should we." or "This works for Fortune 1000 companies so it should work for us."<br /><br />Of course it might help to know what works and what doesn't. Ideally you would want to shadow any individual with a role or impact in what you aim to change or accomplish. Of course in a small company, there isn't always time for that. The next best thing is to ask lots of questions. And don't assume your first meeting will yield the right, <span style="font-style: italic;">honest </span>answers. After going through the first round. Reflect and analyze, then ask more questions based on the initial observations. Analyze again. Then you might be on track to make recommendations based in reality.</span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-13283882932242605402007-06-19T20:48:00.000-07:002007-06-25T14:22:32.574-07:00Web 2.Tuesday: Edition 1I am adding <span style="font-family: georgia;">a new </span>occasional series (we'll call it occasional now, with an aim for every Tuesday).<br /><a href="http://commoditythoughtleadership.blogspot.com/search/label/Web%202.Tuesday"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 51);">Web 2.Tuesday</span></a> is a little post on using the Web for "<a href="http://blogs.zdnet.com/Hinchcliffe/wp-trackback.php?p=62">Enterprise 2.0</a>" or just new ways to use new web tools to build a <a href="http://www.intelligententerprise.com/blog/archives/2007/06/enterprise_20_m.html">better business</a>. Enjoy! [Unbeknownst to me me, this happens to be the week of the <a href="http://www.enterprise2conf.com/">Enterprise 2.0 conference</a>. You know a term has arrived when there is a conference!]<br /><br />Topic of the day: blogs for weird purposes. I am the <a href="http://www.enterpriseweb2.com/?p=10">IT department's worst nightmare</a>, I keep using free online tools, like <a href="http://www.blogger.com/">Blogger</a>, to take internal info outside the intranet. Not on purpose of course, but because my team isn't hip to "2.0" technologies beyond SaaS. If we had an internal blogging tool and approved RSS platform I'd move these projects there. Here are a few suggestions.<br /><br />1. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Centralize your alerts and notifications</span>. Most blogging tools allow you to set up a "email to post" address. Have any sort of alerts you want (news alerts, system alerts, auto-generated emails) post directly to the blog. Use your RSS reader to review at your leisure, and declutter your inbox!<br /><br />2. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Save your articles and other reading material</span>. Post the voracious reader's materials to your blog. Every company has one person sending never-ending articles on competitors, your company or the industry. Dump these messages to a blog, and tag them to make it easier to find the interesting and relevant ones later.<br /><br />3. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Project tracking</span>. Every project has weird notes or other information you have to relay. Your company may or may not have a good project tracking tool, or may just use excel. Augment your tools with a blog on project status notes. When someone asks you about it, you can respond: read my blog. Of course you use this for info that isn't captured elsewhere, maybe as simple as action item notes, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cover_your_ass">CYA</a> documentations, or those emails where you have to cc everyone and their mother.<br /><br />Use Businessweek's <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/technology/ceo_tipsheet/2006_1.htm">Tipsheet</a> to sell your CEO.<br /><br />Learn more about using Web 2.0 for Enterprise 2.0, and stay tuned for the next installment for <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 0, 51);">Web 2.Tuesday</span>.<br /><ul><li><a href="http://www.enterpriseweb2.com/">Enterprise Web 2.0</a> </li><li>Dion Hinchcliffe at ZDNet's <a href="http://blogs.zdnet.com/Hinchcliffe/">blog</a></li><li>Social Networking for <a href="http://scottgavin.info/">Adults</a></li></ul>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-63267093508649536622007-06-14T16:57:00.000-07:002007-06-14T22:14:37.568-07:00Positioning the IntangiblesOne thing that tends to to happen in the tech industry, the people in charge are "engineering types" and engineering types get really excited about the technology. And then focus on speeds, feeds and horsepower. At some point in every niche, there are a few players with virtually similar systems, all offering up the same functions, specifications and applications.<br /><br />Once this happens its time to bring in the "marketing types." The marketing types tend to be better at communicating the intangibles. The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">sorts</span> of things that customers and prospects can grab onto, but cannot be easily quantified or compared with the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">competition</span>. Selling the soft features becomes key. It is pretty hard to win the deal by focusing only on specs, when everything looks <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">virtually</span> the same, so understanding the intangible stuff the prospect is looking for: service, compatibility, ease of use or even product vision are all possibilities. These <a href="http://blog.businessconfessions.com/2007/05/30/how-are-we-going-to-make-money/trackback.aspx">intangibles</a> can overcome price, tech specs and other 'drawbacks.' Once the prospect falls in love with these items, it is harder for the competition to win. Get into the heads of your customers and focus on the soft features.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-35867335645301345932007-06-13T11:16:00.000-07:002007-06-14T22:19:20.616-07:00You can't pick your family......As the old adage goes, you can't pick your family, but you can pick your friends. The same thing it true of hiring a team, you are ultimately in control of the team you build. In a previous life, organizations were loyal to the end rewarding employees with pensions and lifetime benefits. Small business tend to offer 'friendly' atmospheres. No matter the size of the business, there is one key factor to success: the human capital.<br /><br />Organizations that spend their resources on employee development tend to get a higher payback. For smaller organizations, every hire is critical. Most organizations take on the personalities of their owners, and some even create a <a href="http://www.cioinsight.com/article2/0,1540,1924786,00.asp">monoculture</a>.<br /><br />Hiring is strategic, employees should add <a href="http://onstartups.com/home/tabid/3339/bid/1172/Can-Baseball-Strategy-Help-Your-Startup-Hire-Better.aspx">value to the team</a> and help you achieve your goals. Google has some great ideas on hiring the best and brightest, and their <a href="http://googleresearch.blogspot.com/2006/03/hiring-lake-wobegon-strategy.html">practices</a> demonstrate that. As my post on <a href="http://commoditythoughtleadership.blogspot.com/2007/06/all-positions-are-strategic.html">strategy and planning</a> mentions, corporate goals should impact all decisions. It is very important for executives to understand the strengths and values of their team members [especially in a small company], how much they can grow and where the plateau is. Once you identify the individual and corporate ceilings for the employee, determine if they still make sense as a member of your team. Can they contribute or are they adding extra weight? Don't be afraid to part ways if an employee inhibits revenue generation, your growth, or your goals.<br /><br />Although we aim to be friends with our coworkers; at the end of the day the goal of your business to make money while still being fair. It's not fair to you or your employees to continue the business relationship when you don't have the right fit.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-55921492303193450702007-06-12T11:52:00.000-07:002007-06-12T16:10:05.475-07:00Practice for Business by Playing RiskI don't know if you have ever played <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risk_%28game%29">Risk</a>, it is an interesting game to practice thinking. The core strategy revolves around choosing when and which territories to fortify. Basically it is the sort of war/military game for people who aren't into the bloody part of the war. Depending on how you play, you can randomize the territory selection, or you, as a player chooses the territory. Based on the surrounding competition, you can choose when and what to attack. In my experience, the successful players fortify one area, or continent, pool their resources there, then attack (when no one is looking hopefully). The first time you play, you may try to spread yourself too thin, just to have coverage everywhere, but typically someone with resources, momentum or both comes in an knocks your army off the planet. The goal is to take over the world. The last man standing is the winner. <br /><br />Just a thought. Read in to it as you wish. But if you can find an online version to play, try it out. And run some experiments. Look at how your thought processes guide your decisions. Did you get sideswiped by unknown competition? Was your competition obvious and looming? Did it show up out of the blue, or grow slowly over time?<br /><br />Now, model your business (or industry) after a Risk game. In this case, you don't need to take over the world to be successful.... one continent (or island) is enough. You can use a geography model, or keep it abstract, or even use customer segments. <a href="http://thedailychallengesofanentrepreneur.blogspot.com/2007/06/what-is-strategy.html">Position your armies</a> and pick your battles wisely. You might be surprised by the results.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-22998859601501815972007-06-11T15:45:00.000-07:002007-06-12T15:57:36.728-07:00Mac vs. PC is it really the money?Looks like <a href="http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/06/11/Mac-vs-PC-cost-analysis_1.html">Computerworld </a>is offering up a special feature on the great <a href="http://digitalliving.cnet.co.uk/specials/0,39030785,49289872,00.htm">Mac vs. PC Debate</a>.<br /><br />And one of the most common threads of the debate is well Macs are more than PCs. Glad to see Computerworld set the record straight. Windows is cheaper because there is more choice. Apples and Apples, they are fairly close with a few minor details, as long as you compare the right class of machine. Same is true for cars. If you compare, lets say a Kio Rio and a Mini Cooper, the Mini Cooper will look totally over prices all though both have an engine, keyless entry, AC, and a stereo. Clearly they aren't apples for apples, but they do the same thing. What do you think, does <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000005DQR001010/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_010/103-9881473-6155816">DJ Shadow</a> have it right, or is it really.....the media?<br /><br />The important question for any company when planning the product strategy is defining who they'd like to be: everything to all people or the be-all product for selected people. Unfortunately it is pretty difficult to be the everything to all with limited resources, but that doesn't stop people from trying. More often than note it is better to start with strategy 2 and grow into strategy 1 then try to do everything before you are ready.<br /><br />Now is a good time to look at Starbucks (Well really <a href="http://www.peets.com/">Peet's</a> since Starbucks admittedly copied their former employers). They started off selling premium coffee to people who cared and didn't mind spending premium cash for a "better" cup of coffee. So they continues on the path, seeking out the coffee seekers. Eventually they caught on that adding flavored sugar syrup and focusing on the experience, a few extra people joined the premium coffee seeker club. Sure enough, over a few years, everyone came to appreciate the creamy sugary coffee the shop was peddling, and everyone else wishes they started selling $3-5 coffee. So did Starbucks try to sell to everyone? Nope, they decided to sell to a few and the masses followed. Even Walmart took the same strategy by focusing on the small markets lacking affordable shopping options.<br /><br />Focus....and the masses may come to you (or you can make a tidy profit while you wait for the masses, without spreading yourself too thin.)Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-41720064760325134222007-06-08T15:17:00.000-07:002007-06-08T15:24:28.943-07:00Did Boing Boing have the last laugh?Well since Virgin America has <a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_6094095?nclick_check=1">announced </a>their airline name winners, it is time to decide who's name is the best.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.boingboing.net">Boing Boing</a> contributed a couple of great names like "<a href="http://www.boingboing.net/2007/05/18/boingboing_names_a_v.html">Unicorn Chaser</a>" and "Chic Mobile."<br /><br />Here are the other winners:<br /><ul><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Airplane 2.0</span></span></li><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Fog Cutter</span></span></li><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Jane</span></span></li><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Mach Daddy</span></span></li><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Virgin & Tonic </span></span></li><li><span id="mn_Global"><span id="mn_Article">Winner of Naming Contest</span></span></li></ul>I think who ever submitted "Winner of the Naming Contest" had the last laugh. But BoingBoing wins the prize by partnering with Virgin for a joint press release and cementing its place a a high profile member of the new media. Congrats Boing Boing!Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-40917805615309126532007-06-07T11:53:00.000-07:002007-06-07T15:42:02.195-07:00Strategic Understanding Required ..... even when you work the mailroomAlthough I have claimed my topics here would really be related to marketing and opinions, I thought I'd branch into workplace politics for a moment.<br /><br />We all know there are "big picture people" and "small picture people" as well as "strategic jobs" and more "task-oriented jobs." One of the biggest mistakes organizations can make, is not correlating the tasks and busywork with the big picture. Some managers I have talked to don't believe in letting their receiving person, receptionist or janitor in on the overall picture of the business, but fail to notice the <a href="http://blog.fastcompany.com/experts/dsundheim/2007/02/leading_ideas_take_time_to_enc.html">mindset of the executives impacts</a> the team. They like to keep this information to the managers, and people who ask for it.<br /><br />So why bring this up now? We one thing I have seen happen is companies hire a specialist for a few critical positions or projects. Let's say a graphic designer, shipping clerk or executive assistant. I understand not everyone cares about the <span style="font-style: italic;">how </span>behind collecting their paycheck, but understanding the business side is a great way to provide additional value to your current organization and your resume. Understanding the business can make your projects and ideas effective and increase the impact.<br /><br />Case in point, currently my company is undergoing a website redesign. Since our web designer doesn't understand much about our business, corporate goals or market segment, he runs into roadblocks on his design ideas. Since his experience and interest lie with product oriented shopping sites, his design ideas are pulled from those ecommerce-type sites. For many technology companies, the goal of the website isn't only to sell a specific product, but sell a vision to the world. The organization wants to present its values, uniqueness, expertise and mission with its web presence. Designing a website focused on presenting an entity, not just an item requires a different perspective on presenting the content. With these wildly different perspectives, it is hard to come to a consensus. So we enter a never-ending cycle with design after design that isn't quite right, since for him content is boring and product presentation is key. <br /><br />What about the marketers? Well of course we have a long list of goals: reach our audience, build an image, educate the market, generate more prospects, prove market leadership or value. The list goes on an on. As a marketer, I find it difficult to achieve any of these goals without having a good grip on where the organization is trying to go. Why do we need to build our brand, and reach out to the audiences? What is my objective here? <a href="http://blog.fastcompany.com/experts/jbaldoni/2007/05/curiousity_never_killed_the_ma.html">If you don't know, ask</a>. If your executives are unable to articulate the corporate vision and execution strategy [<a href="http://www.byteandswitch.com/document.asp?doc_id=125717">focus pays dividends</a>], it is very difficult to make sure your programs and results will match up with management's objectives. If this happens to you, work from another angle. Articulate your own goals for the position, create a list, and start checking these activities off. If you can't fulfill the corporate goals, fulfill your own. Don't forget to figure out your exit strategy. An organization without a <a href="http://blog.fastcompany.com/experts/dsundheim/2007/02/a_friend_of_mine_recently.html">clear vision</a> and execution plan won't last too long.<br /><br />Business education isn't just for executives and marketers. Approaching tasks with an eye on company goals and the bottom line will save you effort and headaches. If your activities don't have any relationship to company goals, be warned, you are expendable and replaceable. Understanding the business helps you control your destiny.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-19644013331333579582007-06-06T14:10:00.000-07:002007-06-06T14:59:27.986-07:00Look out below, the FUD abounds ...The battle for the <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">virtual server throne</span> is on. A few days ago <a href="http://searchservervirtualization.techtarget.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">searchservervirtualization</span>.com</a> posed the question, who is using <a href="http://servervirtualization.blogs.techtarget.com/2007/05/27/whos-using-microsoft-virtual-server-and-not-vmware/">Microsoft's solution</a>? Open-source challenger, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Xen</span> has tons of benchmarks about the performance of their <a href="http://blogs.xensource.com/simon/?p=15"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">hypervisor</span></a>. And this week a user fires back singing the praises of <a href="http://servervirtualization.blogs.techtarget.com/2007/06/04/vmware-esx-configuration-cost-problems-spur-users-switch-to-microsoft-virtual-server/trackback/">Microsoft's Virtual Server</a>. Scrolling through the comments, it only took 3 before a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">VMWare</span> fan piped in about <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear%2C_uncertainty_and_doubt">FUD</a> (fear, uncertainty, doubt), chastising the user's story praising Microsoft. In the war of the Virtual Servers, we are still in the early goings, but as with all tech battles, the challenger, the incumbent or the fans accuse the other of defending their market position with BS to throw off the marketplace and prospective customers.<br /><br />Let's do a quick web search to get a handle on how prevalent these FUD accusations are. I did a search for a few top of mind tech companies, and a general search for the term.<br />FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=fud">5.65M</a><br />Apple and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+apple">1.25M</a><br />Apple and FUD without Microsoft: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+apple+-microsoft">189,000</a><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">VMware</span> and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+vmware">662,000</a><br />Microsoft and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+microsoft">1.37M</a><br />Sun and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+sun">1.25M</a><br />Sun and FUD without Microsoft, Oracle or Apple: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+sun+-apple+-oracle+-microsoft">633,000</a><br />Oracle and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+oracle">956,000</a><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">EMC</span> and FUD: <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fud+emc">131,000</a><br />Blog Search for FUD: <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&client=news&q=fud">833,888</a><br />Blog Search for FUD without Oracle, Sun, Microsoft and Apple: <a href="http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&client=news&q=fud+-apple+-oracle+-microsoft+-sun">28,757</a><br /><br />Looks like Microsoft, Sun, Apple, and Oracle account for about 2/3 of the web references to FUD. Interestingly enough 97% of blog references to FUD include references to one of these four companies. You'll also note these organizations have some of the most famous, and infamous Silicon Valley <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">CEOs</span>. Coincidence? I think not.<br /><br />Here's the moral: increasing your 'thought leadership' or blog comments only requires a quick mention of <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">FUD</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-15885908725735858622007-06-05T14:59:00.000-07:002007-06-05T15:26:19.612-07:00Logos SmogosQuite a few of <a href="http://money.cnn.com/magazines/business2/business2_archive/2007/03/01/8401042/index.htm"><span style="font-style: italic;">Business 2.0's</span></a> fast growing net companies were interesting. One of my favorite new school business ideas is the <a href="http://www.logoworks.com/">Logo Works</a>. I don't remember who was first, but this is one of the best concepts around for a small business without the time or the design skills to build a logo. At my company, finding a logo was a 2 year process where no one could agree. Our designer was ready to strangle our team and now has a portfolio full of concepts. So paying a fixed fee, for a fixed number of concepts, is a great idea. Basically it lets you cut to the chase and get your logo. As you can imagine, a million other companies are doing the same thing; hire a team of designers who spit out concepts. It is really a great way to get your feet wet as a designer, and still get paid. Win win for everyone.<br /><br />How many concepts did it take for the 2012 Olympic team take to come up with this?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy3OsQmxIVlpTmHbC2wPnJFhQiVwZ19zBTSfrrHp74393aKxpOmDnF10-h-T6K4AfRb9rvM1wt3mOIK17RvMYSO77t1LJ8J6zxVHd-EkmfjmAorhZ52I2DRkJ0boFvH8CH4lnPK9wjntq3/s1600-h/olympiclogo.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 147px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy3OsQmxIVlpTmHbC2wPnJFhQiVwZ19zBTSfrrHp74393aKxpOmDnF10-h-T6K4AfRb9rvM1wt3mOIK17RvMYSO77t1LJ8J6zxVHd-EkmfjmAorhZ52I2DRkJ0boFvH8CH4lnPK9wjntq3/s200/olympiclogo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5072706936536016242" border="0" /></a> Can anyone tell me what this is, and how it says Olympics or London? Pretty hideous color and shape combo. This looks like a combo of skewed Tetris shapes. I think it's time to go back to the drawing board. Maybe the Logoworks team will step up to the plate.<br /><br /><br />Thanks to <a href="http://www.thepcspy.com/blog/2012_olympic_logo_debacle">PC Spy</a> for alerting me to the travesty of design taking place over in England! There are also some great alternative concepts over at PC Spy as well.Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-69115612930574704632007-06-04T14:39:00.000-07:002007-06-04T16:13:08.035-07:00185 Million Results and Counting<span style="font-size:100%;">Are we done yet?<br /><br />Just a quick check. A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">google</span> search for </span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:100%;" >"web 2.0"</span><span style="font-size:100%;"> turned up 185 Million pages. That means there is about 1 page for every 2 Americans. This is worse than the 1 to 50 ratio of <a href="http://www.therealestatebloggers.com/2006/05/24/california-has-a-real-estate-agent-for-every-52-adults/">people to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">realtors</span></a> ratio in 2006 in California.<br /><br />Once there are a few conferences/expos/summits dubbed Web 2.o, that signals the end of an era. Other <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Internet</span> terms put out to pasture:<br /><br /></span><ol><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://searchwebservices.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid26_gci213801,00.html">ASP </a>-- Application Service Provider, renamed <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Software</span> as a Service (SaaS)</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid5_gci345131,00.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">SSP</span> </a>-- Storage Service Provider, lumped in with the Managed Services Provider Umbrella (MSP)</span></li><li><span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Dotcom</span> --- no explanation needed here, replacement Web 2.0 Company</span></li></ol><span style="font-size:100%;"><br />Have we identified <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_Web">Web 3.0</a> yet? There are 1.4M pages are already speculating. And don't worry, some fortunetellers are already predicting <a href="http://www.thepcspy.com/blog/web_50__a_glimpse_of_the_future">Web 5.0</a>.<br /><br />I'll just cut to the chase and jump to <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_15/b4029001.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_today%27s+top+stories"><span style="font-style: italic;">Web Google</span>,</a> since there is no need to call it <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Web </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Googol.<br /></span><b><b><sup><br /></sup></b></b></span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6986492041379758990.post-4285948804859845872007-06-04T14:30:00.000-07:002007-06-04T14:39:29.654-07:00Everybody's Got An Opinion .....<span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;" >And some people look to share theirs with more people than others. </span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;"> </span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;">One of the funniest things about the so-called "blogger" revolution, is the number of sites and self-published authors out there. If the dotcom boom taught us anything, its that everyone has an idea (and multiple people probably have your idea), but only some people get to cash in on it. </span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;">Now that anyone can have a website, what makes yours stand out? It's clearly your </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;" >thought leadership</span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;">...or attempts at building it.</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:100%;">So what's the point here? I wanted to take some time to celebrate and ridicule the absurdity of our post-Web 2.0 world. Look here for insights on technology marketing, the web, and any other examples of thought leadership I can get my hands on. Enjoy the absurdity.</span>Jamehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04219246814014412067noreply@blogger.com0