Figure 1 - “Look, I’m all about loyalty. In fact, I feel like part of what I’m being paid for here is my loyalty. But if there were somewhere else that valued loyalty more highly, I’m going wherever they value loyalty the most.” – Dwight Schrute – The Office, ABC-TV

Seriously… Tim Berners-Lee had no idea how huge his concoction was going to be when he first unleashed the Web on the world. Like the Internet itself, all he wanted to do was make it possible for researchers to share/update information with other researchers. Somewhere along the way, it got “a little” outta’ hand! Well, not really. There’s just a little chasm between boomers, Gen Xers, Gen Yers.

There’s also a little chasm between C-level execs, marketing/communications, workers. There’s little to no chasm between work and home. In “the company”:

• 93% own a cellphone, compared to 78% of industrial country adults
• 85% have a desktop computer, compared to 65% of all adults
• 61% own a laptop, compared to 39% of all adults
• 27% own a Blackberry, iPhone or similar device, compared to 13% of all adults

For the most part, all generations, work levels agree that these and other technologies have had a positive effect on their productivity.

Figure 2 - Technology Helps – Regardless of the generation, company personnel feel that today’s advanced technology has helped them become more productive in their jobs. Source – Kelly Services

They use their computers, use email and most even use an Internet browser. The majority (90%) believes the new technology; new software helps them perform better, faster. C-level executives see the social networking tools as a means of achieving marketing/sales success, but don’t think it’s for use by everyone.

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You’ve decided it’s time to launch your PR campaign.  You’re ready to move forward.  Now you need to figure out who your public relations partner in this journey is going to be.  Believe me, it is a journey (and can be a great one) and in the best of cases the PR company that you choose is going to be functioning as a trusted partner, at least in this one arena.  But how do you pick a firm that fits your particular needs?

The first mistake that you want to avoid is to only consider companies that specialize in your field.  You definitely want to consider them in the mix, but what you’re primarily looking for is a firm that knows PR, that knows how to develop and place stories in the media, if they’re good, they can use their expertise and know-how and apply that to any field.  Remember, PR is a communication business, for it to truly work, you need to be able to comfortably communicate with them and they need to expertly craft your message and communicate that to the media.  The following are a few topics to consider and questions to ask, when interviewing a PR firm.

Questions to ask your potential PR firm:
1)  How long have they been in business and which media outlets have they placed stories in?

2) How they would define a successful campaign.  Get a sense of their mindset and how they view the process.  Discuss how you would define success and see if there is a common thread.

3) How do they work when it comes to developing story ideas?  Are they looking for you to do all of the work?  Are they asking you for the story ideas and then simply turning those into pitches or are they a firm that will work with you to develop creative and unique pitch ideas?

4) What do they see as your campaign’s greatest potential strengths?

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“Those of you lucky enough to have your lives, take them with you. However, leave the limbs you’ve lost. They belong to me now.” – The Bride, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 - Miramax (2003)

If computer and consumer electronics technology is so entrenched in a man’s world, why do we have to get clearance before we make a PC/CE purchase for home?  Yes we can buy the device without asking or discussing our decision but we do like our limbs and associated parts.  Don’t jerk us around…we aren’t alone!!!

According to a Pew Research study 43 percent of the women in the U.S. call the shots.  A male/female study by Synovate turned up the fact that 60 percent of women in 12 countries felt they were more financially responsible.  Only 40 percent of the men agreed but then they haven’t answered any other surveys.  Some executives have long understood the importance of the woman in the buying decision.  After all most men are “a little slow,” not stupid!  In our household she repeated O-Ren Ishii’s statement right after she took Tanaka out, “So you all will know the seriousness of my warning, I shall say this in English.”

Multitasker
So…we know she is the:

• CFO
• Community volunteer
• Friend
• Caregiver
• Chairperson
• Sister/daughter
• Sex goddess (she’s looking over our shoulder right now so…)
• Communicator
• Gamer
• Chief memory office (we’ll explore this area later)

According to research conducted by Ask Patty! (popular female website/blog) and Maria Bailey (head of BSM Media and author of Mom 3.0) women account for 85% of all consumer purchases. They spend about $5 trillion annually – over half the U.S. GDP. They purchase:

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Buying a business can be a valuable business strategy.  Synergy is an interesting concept but what can it really mean when buying a business.  In my prior business I had made many acquisitions to supplement organic growth.  The analysis of buying these business followed the below simplified numbers.  A brief explanations of the below numbers.

Say you have 2 like businesses that  both are in the business of  distributing products or services to homeowners. Both companies have overhead cost of rent, advertising, utilities , insurance, phone, office cost etc. When buying a like company many of these cost become readily duplicitous - i.e. you don’t need 2 offices, you don’t need 2 phone systems.

The below example shows that when Company A buys Company B the fixed cost will not increase at all.  When  a company does buy another like company many of the fixed cost are eliminated but rarely are all of the fixed cost eliminated.

The example below shows the financial gain available in a well thought out acquisition and this format can be used as a starting point to analyze the synergistic benefits of such an acquisition.  The fixed cost that will remain can be added to the Combined company and the projected bottom line should be reviewed to see if the bottom line still looks appealing enough to make the acquisition.

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We all want that sense of achievement that comes with reaching our goals. Whether we are working for ourselves or working within a larger organization, we get a deep sense of satisfaction when we accomplish what we set out to do. Some people seem to achieve their objectives without much effort. Others never quite seem to get there. Have you experienced frustrations such as these?

• Only half of your managers are using the new system after spending over one million dollars on its implementation.
• The incidence of customer complaints continues to rise even after the latest product redesign.
• Members of your department continually change focus so nothing gets finished.

If so, then you may need to revisit how you set goals and plan for their accomplishment. From my years of working in a number of organizations and on a variety of projects, I have condensed the lessons I have learned into a simple five step process. I call this process the Five Cs approach. This approach does not use any rocket science, just the basics needed for getting things done in your organization. By using the Five Cs process steps you will improve the chances of achieving your and your organization’s objectives.

The Five Cs approach can be used for activities as basic as organizing your team’s leave calendar to the more complex planning and rollout of your organization’s annual fundraiser. The approach consists of these five basic steps:

Create   >>   Commit   >>   Communicate   >>   Carry Out   >>   Check

The steps in the process are essentially sequential, meaning that you will need mostly to complete an earlier step before proceeding to the next. Shortcutting steps in the process will only increase the amount of rework that you will need to do later on.

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Creating Your Dream Business
Behind every successful company is a founder who had a dream that eventually became a reality.  Examine any of today’s prominent entrepreneurs and you will discover a shared thread of traits.  These are talent, vision, and perseverance in the face of all obstacles.  If you possess an idea that you believe would make a great business, there’s no time like the present to make that move.  Innovative business ideas are spun off into new enterprises all the time - both in good financial times and bad - so don’t abandon the fight due to a perceived weak economy.

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Creating a Viable Business Planning Strategy
New owners of businesses should feel compelled to engage in the business planning process, whether they are starting a brand new venture or taking over one that is already up and running.  Anyone who fails to take this all important step - akin to jumping out of an airplane before making sure that your parachute is working properly - is in for a big surprise at the end of that journey.  A business plan makes good sense for so many reasons, but primary among them is the fact that no one will loan you money unless a formal, written business plan is available - and one that realistically examines the pros and cons of your enterprise.  In its most basic form, a business plan serves two functions.  First, it must convince a banker or some other investor that your enterprise is worth their effort to put money into it.  Second, and more importantly, it is the master blueprint you will follow to achieve your financial success.

Business Plan Process: Small Goals Lead to Greater Achievements
There are some simple goals that every business owner shares.  They want to build an honest business that makes them proud to own it.  They want to make a comfortable living commensurate with the effort they expend.  They want to build something for the future.  They also believe in the product or service they are offering for sale, convinced that it will improve the lives of their customers in some large or small way.  Your business plan does not need to be hundreds or even dozens of pages long - unless you’re building the next Intel or Microsoft, in which case, best of luck!  Anywhere from four to ten pages should be enough to get your point across, both to your investors and yourself, especially if your goals are small and easily attainable early on.

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“I’ve been there myself. The fear, the adrenaline, you find yourself imagining things, impossible things, crazy things, insane things … takes years to get over it.” – Dr. Peter Silberman – Terminator 3:  Rise of the Machines (2003)

Maybe because our kids attended the same high school as Jobs and Woz they can’t imagine things as barbaric as communications using dial-up modems.  They laugh when they see the photos of the Motorola brick.  The idea that they would have to search out a pay phone or wait to call someone until they can use the home phone seems … ridiculous.  Especially when they have their flip and slider phone in their pocket.  The cellphone for millions has gone beyond being trendy.  It is a necessity – a means of staying in touch with friends and family, added safety and security.  Growth came rapidly because people could stay in touch on the go:

• 33 mln mobile phones sold in the US in Q2 2007
• 70% of teens 12 to 14 have a cell phone
• 34% of US households to use only mobile services by 2011
• Mobile subscriber churn is at 2.5% a month
• 25% of young Americans do not have a landline
• Men spend 458 minutes a month on wireless, women - 453 minutes
• 63% of users feel their phones are very personal to them
• 44% say the phones have strengthened their personal relationships

Of course a lot of folks wanted more.  Heck … they wanted it all.

Naturally a lot of companies as well as service and content providers were all too willing to give consumers what they wanted.  Conventional wisdom engineers were determined to pack every feature, every capability and every service into the small devices … regardless of the cost to useability, financial outlay.  Their research showed folks were ready for it … all:

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