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August 31, 2005

Travelblog

Readers of Transit Authority, Fast Company's business travel resource center, and our frequent business travel articles in the magazine might find a new blog of interest.

The just-launched InflightHQ offers a list of recommended reading for those in transit, tips on how to carry up-to-date timetables with you all them time, and pointers on finding Wi-Fi hotspots, wherever you are. The blog is young, but looks promising.

What other business travel blogs do you read?

Posted by Heath Row at 1:20 PM | 11 Comments

DIY Not?

In response to our August 2004 article on phishing, reader Robin Grimes pointed me to PhishFighting.com, which deceives the scammers. There's something to be said about fighting the internet's ills yourself.

This notion of do-it-yourself can be extended to more areas. For instance, franchise owners create new practices to help their business, such as mounting more effective displays. And workers develop routines to increase their productivity, like using a computer program a certain way or documenting a process efficiently.

All these DIY activities could be adopted by appropriate businesses. These best practices that few use can be shared with everyone. Not only could such a move potentially help countless people, it could be a source of business for established companies. Any holes in services or product capabilities can be filled this way.

What DIY or consumer-created innovations would you like to see become an established business?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 12:48 PM | Add Comment

Intellectual Property

Type in "stole my idea" or "taking credit for my work" into a search engine and you'll get thousands of hits. Clerks at retail chains, programmers, bloggers, middle managers, VPs at major corporations... folks from every line of work get ripped off. Just swing by one of the online work message boards -- sites like iworkwithfools.com, toxicboss.com, and fthisjob.com. People get mad -- and rightly so. Who was the last person to steal one of your ideas? Coworker? Manager? Underling?

Whether it's just a bright idea you brought up at the watercooler or an important proposal you hammered out overnight for your boss, the feeling of being cheated is the same: burning injustice and spite. Stealing ideas and work hurts morale and puts kinks in the chain of command. Managers and their employees both suffer. Everyone's got war stories. What's yours?

Posted by Lucas Conley at 10:55 AM | 7 Comments

Out of Pocket

Last night, I watched the documentary Smothered: The Censorship Struggles of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. In an interview segment filmed at the 2000 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival, which included a 30th anniversary Smothers Brothers show reunion, one of the panelist's comments struck me as important and insightful.

Steve Martin, one of the program's early writers, was discussing his early pay: $300 a week. Then the interesting bit: "Mason [Williams] was paying me out of his own pocket."

Think about the people on your team. Who would you be willing to pay out of your own pocket?

Posted by Heath Row at 10:10 AM | 2 Comments

Where Are the Cruise Ships?

In watching all the horrific tragedy and devastation in New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast, I can't help but wonder: Where are the cruise ship companies? Maybe they've offered and I've missed it. Maybe it's geographically or physically impossible to make it happen. But an offer from a cruise ship company to take the folks in the Superdome out into the Gulf of Mexico for a few days sounds like both a way to get thousands of people out of the misery of that area and -- while I don't mean this opportunistically in any way -- a PR gold mine. Large corporations have both the means -- and at times, the motivation -- to do well by doing good. Again, it may be physically impossible at this point, but even making the offer would capture a nation's sympathy and engender an outpouring of loyalty in the future. What do you think?

Posted by Jena McGregor at 9:39 AM | 24 Comments

August 30, 2005

A Bulls' Eye

For a nice take on Target's sole-advertiser week in The New Yorker (the Aug. 22 issue of the magazine only runs ads by the design discounter), check out Barbara Lippert's take in AdWeek. I had a similar reaction: I too was bothered when I first heard the idea -- until I fell head over heels for the beautiful illustrations within. Who says advertising is dead? If it could all look this good (see a few here), a long happy future is in store.

Posted by Jena McGregor at 5:43 PM | 1 Comment

Express Yourself

Focus groups may be losing cred in the business world, but in the music realm, they appear to be something new. For an upcoming album, Madonna has been secretly testing out songs by watching video of clubgoers dance to her newest tunes with her vocals removed. Of course, that's not really a focus group -- the subjects didn't know anyone was gauging their opinion -- so she might hit on some true reactions. The Telegraph article above raises one question about the practice: Since when has the Material Girl doubted herself or her songs? But here's another: Is this a smart business practice for Madonna? Or a shameless effort at engineering commercially successful content rather than the music she wants to produce?

Posted by Jena McGregor at 4:59 PM | 7 Comments

Creative Confab

Any designers in New York next weekend might want to check out this conference which "delves into the creative side of design" and focuses on "the passion that creative people have for their work." The lineup of speakers looks great (Diller + Scofidio and Visionaire magazine, for instance), and the location -- Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center -- sure beats any hotel conference center.

Posted by Jena McGregor at 12:29 PM | 1 Comment

Leading Ideas: Progress Isn't Linear

"We shall not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." -- T.S. Eliot (1888-1965), from the poem Little Gidding

Currently I'm working with a client that's slowly building market share with a new software product. One of the biggest hurdles to sales has been the education of the sales channel. Just when they think a certain partner has "gotten it," the partner stumbles in the next several deals. While frustrating, it's become obvious that this is part of the process -- continually revisiting the basics to hammer out the nuances. It's the only way everyone gets smarter and better.

Continue reading "Leading Ideas: Progress Isn't Linear"

Posted by Doug Sundheim at 10:55 AM | 3 Comments

August 29, 2005

The Geek Shall Inherit the Earth

Last night I laughed when I saw a Heineken TV commercial that featured superheroes -- an obvious attempt, if you ask me, to appeal to comic book readers and sci-fi fans. There's also an Earthlink spot in which their customer service workers proclaim themselves geeks who get the job done. And Best Buy keeps announcing on the tube that they're now using the "Geek Squad" to fix your computer problems. All these advertisements have something in common, the declaration that geek is cool.

Companies have marketed to the geek demographic because they often have more disposable income, which they're willing to spend on expensive toys. As a subculture is pushed to the forefront, companies may jump on the bandwagon to appeal to this niche market. Businesses should be cautious though: The original demographic may feel they're being pandered to, and that this marketing has adopted a degree of artificiality.

It's smart to aim for specific groups -- the Long Tail model can be successful -- but companies must be careful not to upset the niche they're pursuing.

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 11:10 AM | 4 Comments

August 26, 2005

Games Business Women May Have Played

Not long ago, a friend of mine came across a board game that might partially explain gender roles in the workplace. What Shall I Be?, the "exciting game of career girls," dates from 1966 and inspires the question: Did this game truly encourage and inspire young women to go into business and become professionals? Or does it merely parrot the same old stereotypes and career options? What might have been considered progressive at the time still feels faintly dangerous in its limitations. Fascinating.

Posted by Heath Row at 4:38 PM | 6 Comments

Setting the Productivity Standard

Scott Bateman, a Portland, Oregon-based editorial cartoonist and Flash animator has undertaken an interesting -- and inspiring -- project. Under the umbrella of Bateman365, the animator will produce one Flash animation a day... for the next year.

Not all of the installments are work safe, so be mindful. But parallel Bateman's effort -- and goal -- to your own work. How productive can you be? What kinds of daily milestones will help you achieve your project and organizational goals? What is the end result of your work -- and how can you ramp up your productivity?

Posted by Heath Row at 1:03 PM | 4 Comments

Past Imperfect

This news, about GM and Chrysler cooperating to create their own Hybrid Cars, is an interesting development. Both companies announced their SUVs would be using the Hybrid engine in 2007. Why only mention the SUVs and not other kinds of automobiles?

True, the SUV is a gas-guzzler that could use hybridization. But, really, I think they singled it out because of the slump in SUV sales. With gas prices so high, consumers aren't buying cars with low fuel-efficiency. So now, auto-makers are moving to put SUVs back on top. But a hybrid sedan would still be more fuel-efficient than a hybrid SUV.

Companies should not worry about reestablishing the glory of former top-sellers. They should look to the present and what's hitting big now. If a company's strategies are formed by the past, their bolder competitors will pass them by as they head toward the future.

Is it a risk to recapture past success, rather than moving forward?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 10:52 AM | 10 Comments

Book 'Em, Dano

Yesterday, I was talking to a colleague about the importance of uniforms at work. "When you wear a uniform, you're in a different mindset," he said. It's true. Whether on the job or at a trade show, wearing a uniform -- even if it's just a suit and tie, business's traditional uniform -- means that you're focusing on performance.

In New York, actors are no longer allowed to buy or carry law enforcement uniforms -- even if their role requires them. And on the West Coast, the California Highway Patrol is targeting potential imposters, including Fast Company-profiled tech support team Geek Squad (access code required).

Clearly, it matters what uniform you wear, consciously or unconsciously. Do you wear a uniform -- of any kind -- to work?

Posted by Heath Row at 10:31 AM | 8 Comments

August 24, 2005

High Def Anxiety

It's war! A format war! At least that's what seems to be coming down the pike, now that talks have broken down between Sony and Toshiba in their attempts to merge their two competing high definition DVD formats.

Continue reading "High Def Anxiety"

Posted by at 6:45 PM | 5 Comments

The Oreo Cookie: Not So Black and White

Is Kraft doing enough? That's the underlying question in The Chicago Tribune's series this week on the Oreo cookie. It's the best-selling cookie on the planet, but, like the Big Mac, it contributes to this country's current obesity epidemic. The Oreo's recipe -- almost 60% sugar and fat -- is high in calories, with its creamy filling loaded with trans fat (which can elevate cholesterol and endanger your ticker). Kraft's conundrum: How can it act responsibly and market junk food at the same time?

Continue reading "The Oreo Cookie: Not So Black and White"

Posted by Chuck Salter at 3:35 PM | 21 Comments

Leading Ideas: What Is Great Leadership?

"The signs of outstanding leadership appear primarily among the followers. Are the followers reaching their potential? Are they learning? Serving? Do they achieve the required results? Do they change with grace? Manage conflict?" -- Max De Pree (1924 - ) Former Chairman, Herman Miller Furniture

FC's current issue on Leadership got me thinking about the definition of the word. In my consulting and coaching I often ask my clients to define great leadership. The most common answer I get is a list of traits. It usually includes descriptions such as effective communicator, strategic thinker, visionary, smart, charismatic, and straightforward, among many others. I point out that while these lists are interesting and useful, they don't actually define great leadership. They merely define possible characteristics of great leaders. What they don't tell you is how effectively a leader is actually leading.

Continue reading "Leading Ideas: What Is Great Leadership?"

Posted by Doug Sundheim at 3:25 PM | 12 Comments

Sacred Ground - Revisited

Last week, I blogged about the specter of marketing during church, funerals and wakes. A couple days later, I came across this, a tombstone concept that incorporates a video screen. I was sure the issue was dead at that point, but this morning I stumbled upon a story (I swear I'm not looking for this stuff) about military tombstones emblazoned with "slogans."

The slogans, it turns out, aren't for Big Macs or long-distance phone cards.

Continue reading "Sacred Ground - Revisited"

Posted by Lucas Conley at 11:51 AM | 3 Comments

Blame Google

Gary Rivlin has a great piece on the front page of today's NY Times, the premise of which is that Google is becoming as much of an establishment company in Silicon Valley as Microsoft has been since the 1980s.

"...[M]any in Silicon Valley are skittish about its size and power," writes Rivlin. "They fret that the very strengths that made Google a search-engine phenomenon are distancing it from the entrepreneurial culture that produced it - and even transforming it into a threat."

But what struck me (and the friend at EMC who called the quote to my attention) was the griping about salary inflation.

Continue reading "Blame Google"

Posted by Scott Kirsner at 11:48 AM | 3 Comments

August 23, 2005

Offbeat Offsites

The New York Times reports today on new approaches to corporate team building. No longer will rope courses and trust games suffice. Today's corporate trainers are turning to cooking contests, drum circles, and dinner party-like mystery games.

Despite an occasionally sketchy reputation -- Toobers and Zots, anyone? -- extreme offsites can do a lot in terms of improving communication and collaboration.

What's the most effective offsite activity you've ever participated in?

Posted by Heath Row at 4:53 PM | 5 Comments

Ziggy Zaggy

They're baaack! According to today's Wall Street Journal, those fascinating but ultimately disappointing financial instruments called Bowie Bonds are making a comeback, thanks to the tremendous growth in digital song downloads. Designed for David Bowie, who was able to raise needed cash with the bonds by selling a piece of his future earnings, they turned out to be, like many rock concerts, more about the flash than the cash. They now trade at close to junk bond status. So what do you think, folks? Is this an idea whose time has come? Would you be willing to sell off a piece of your future earnings if you could get the cash up front?

Posted by Jennifer Reingold at 2:53 PM | 1 Comment

Shoring Up

Wrigley is relocating a factory that produces Altoids mints from Wales to Tennessee. I wonder if this will start a new trend: companies strengthening American operations. Or does this move have to do more with Wales being a poor place for their facility and less with reversing job exportation? Then again, you wonder why they didn't move the factory to India or another country notorious for receiving American jobs. Maybe the tide is turning against offshoring.

What do you think Wrigley's move indicates? Should other businesses emulate this strategy?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 1:11 PM | 2 Comments

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

If you have children, how did they spend their summer vacation? Did they go to summer camp? When I went to camp, I learned how to build towers out of logs -- and rope we made ourselves. Today, it seems like there are a lot more options.

Case in point: The Girls Inc. Corporate Camp. Last month, 15 young women -- ages 14-18 -- participated in a six-day program that took them inside the operations of important businesses, alongside the leaders who run them. Participants developed products, as well.

What other learning-oriented camp experiences do you know about?

Posted by Heath Row at 12:23 PM | 1 Comment

August 22, 2005

Communication (Turn) Style

Dave Gray, founder and CEO of Xplane, recently started a new blog entitled Communication Nation. To date, he's addressed such business communication challenges as information overload, dimensions of quality, project management, email templates, and how to leverage new ideas. The blog is young, but there are several interesting ideas here already -- fingers crossed Gray can keep it up!

[via Evhead]

Posted by Heath Row at 1:05 PM | 4 Comments

Can You Spare Some Change?

Looks like Amazon's changing its book business model from just being a seller to also being a publisher -- the company will be publishing short stories as e-books for 49 cents. As an unpublished writer of fiction, it immediately drew my interest. Then I read Amazon would mostly deal with established writers. What about the many authors who haven't been adopted into the industry yet?

I think businesses should be open to unexpected opportunities. Sometimes it's the outsider's perspective that could lead to great insight. A company's culture and routine may blind it to betters way to achieve success. Or even worse, management could be blind to the holes they've dug themselves into unless someone a step removed points that fact out to them. And while consultants can provide this service, it usually takes a new face with lofty goals to really change things.

What do you think about freelancers and unorthodox talent?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 1:01 PM | 9 Comments

And the Driver Is... the Future!

Today's New York Times sneaks in a notable feature on Autopia, an old-school Tomorrowland exhibit at Disneyland. Staying true to its 1955 opening day intent, Autopia offers a now-dated utopian view of car culture.

While pulling the heart strings by evoking visions of retrofuturistic idealism, the piece sidesteps actual developments in car making. In an age in which car companies seek reinvention, autos become more information rich, the target market is younger, alternative fuel sources are increasingly available, and design matters more than ever -- what can we learn, if anything, from Autopia?

Posted by Heath Row at 9:34 AM | Add Comment

August 19, 2005

And the Driver Is… Bill Gates!

It's an interesting technology: a phantom car displayed on your windshield that you "follow" to a destination. But I'm curious about it coming from Microsoft. Are they expanding into vehicular technologies? There seems to be a movement in the computer world to keep expanding to new frontiers. Google adds more services and rumors of further diversification persist. Apple's adding more media to their iPod. And Microsoft seems to always be spreading its tendrils.

A smart move? If a company wants to invade a new market, they should do so. The company should break-in to that new industry and shake things up. Maybe their ideas are true innovations. Maybe their arrival will stir up the field's past leaders. Of course, care must be taken. They shouldn't overextend. But, then again, sometimes caution will slow your hand, missing you an opportunity.

Should companies aggressively branch out to new industries? Should they do it cautiously? Or should they not do it at all?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 5:04 PM | 5 Comments

Why Diddy Do it?

So what was the biggest marketing news of the week? That single-advertiser (Target) New Yorker issue? Some new strategy Apple has for it's iPod? A new Martha Stewart probation violation? Nah. It was an exhilarating moment carried live on the Today show and reported in every newspaper from USA Today to the Winnetka Kindergarten Gazette and consequently discussed under the fluorescents everywhere. That's right: Sean "P. Diddy" Combs will stop 'P'-ing. He asked to now simply be known as Sean "Diddy" Combs.

Continue reading "Why Diddy Do it?"

Posted by at 4:50 PM | 15 Comments

Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Hearts of Men? The Shadow Knows!

Just got a demo of Shadows, a new community-search product from the folks at Pluck (featured in our November 2004 issue). The dream behind Shadows: let humans index the Web, allowing smarter, quicker searches and creating impromptu forums and on-the-fly blogs. You see something, you like it, you tag it. By leaving tags with keywords and opinions, not only are sites easier for you to find later, but they boost the relevance of the site for all users, creating a community memory (of sorts).

Perhaps the most important feature is something called the "shadow page." Just as it sounds, this is a page-behind-the-page that reveals any comments people have left about a site. Essentially, it brings the functionality of user reviews (a la Citysearch with restaurants, or Amazon with books) to any site on the Web. Love the new Porsche SUV? Make a note on the page. Didn't buy one because of a crappy salesman? Say so.

Shadows isn't the only product swimming in the murky waters of community search…

Continue reading "Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Hearts of Men? The Shadow Knows!"

Posted by Lucas Conley at 4:30 PM | 15 Comments

Friday Fun: Office Dares

This has been floating around for awhile, but it recently crossed my transom. Office Dares: Let hilarity ensue!

Posted by Heath Row at 2:55 PM | 1 Comment

August 18, 2005

For in That Sleep of Death What (Marketing) Dreams May Come...

The body hasn't even cooled on my last post about marketing in church (and at funerals) and I just saw this today! Please, when I shuffle off this mortal coil, just burn my corpse and throw the ashes to the wind.

(And no sponsorships.)

Posted by Lucas Conley at 1:46 PM | 2 Comments

How NOT to Succeed in Business

On Tuesday, Profit, an obscure TV series, was released on DVD. The 1996 drama followed the exploits of a Machiavellian sociopath named Jim Profit, as he manipulated his way up the ladder in the acquisitions department of fictional multi-national Gracen & Gracen. What makes the show intriguing is that everyone is compromised morally. Profit, our Richard III, is the worst of them all -- and yet, you root for him to succeed!

The company is filled with psychopaths and people with balance issues. It's as if the creators wanted to show exactly how not to be a well-liked CEO. I recommend the series to everyone, and not just because it's entertaining and politically incorrect, but because you could learn something from corporate dysfunction.

Are there DVDs you would recommend to learn business lessons from?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 12:14 PM | 16 Comments

August 17, 2005

Death and Taxes

It's a hot button issue, the Estate Tax, also known as the "Death Tax." The political sides are fairly well defined -- republicans want the Estate Tax abolished and are pressuring democrats to make this happen. Should this happen, the New York Times projects that it may cost the government a trillion dollars by 2011.

But what would this mean for business? Most support dissolving the tax, since that would let more money remain in their pockets. But such support may be short-sighted. Even if the hit is a quarter of the Times' estimate -- say, $250 Billion -- it would have an impactt on our economy. The government may have to raise sales tax to make up the difference, a measure that may hurt business if product sales decrease. And if the income tax increases? Employees will desire raises to maintain their financial status.

Of course, maybe the government won't raise taxes to make up for the loss. They might just cut certain services. While that may not affect business directly, it could hurt employees, shareholders, and customers. Then again, maybe the repeal of the tax won't hit the Government that much. Do you think the Estate Tax should be abolished? Why?

Posted by Kevin Ohannessian at 1:48 PM | 12 Comments

Yawn and Guarded

Are you bored at work? According to the Gallup Organization, 55% of employees in the U.S. are not engaged at work. The key cause? Jobs that have very specific instructions -- but very little autonomy.

Additionally, people who think they're taking on too much work are more satisfied with their jobs than those who feel underworked. Which would you rather be? Overworked, underworked, or "just right"? Take the Fast Company poll.

Posted by Heath Row at 10:29 AM | 6 Comments

Balance Isn't Getting Better

According to a survey conducted by Ajilon Office earlier this year, 55% of men polled say balancing work and home life is more difficult than it was five years ago. And women? 63% say the challenge has increased.

Interestingly enough, however, 77% of women surveyed indicate that being a parent helps develop leadership and management skills. 68% of men say the same: Despite the added stress parenthood brings, it can help improve your office skills.

What think you? Do parents make better leaders or managers? Take the Fast Company poll.

Posted by Heath Row at 10:13 AM | 1 Comment

August 16, 2005

Leading Ideas: Making Communication Work

"When it comes to improving performance, most organizations' problems can be traced to their inability to think and talk together at critical moments." -- Paraphrased from William Isaacs's book Dialogue, p.3

What passes as "communication" in most organizations is nothing more than people talking at each other. Firing different opinions around a room with little structure to productively move any action forward. The conversation is dysfunctional -- meaning that it doesn't produce a deeper understanding of the issues at hand. Eventually, when a decision must be made, it's often the person who has spoken the loudest, longest, or with the most conviction that wins -- whether it was the best idea or not.

Continue reading "Leading Ideas: Making Communication Work"

Posted by Doug Sundheim at 9:50 PM | 9 Comments

Fast Company... on the Air!

Tomorrow morning at 7:40 ET, Fast Company senior writer Jennifer Reingold will appear on CNBC's Squawk Box. The topic of discussion: CEO See-Ya!

Posted by Heath Row at 5:27 PM | Add Comment

Marketing to the Grave

This one just came over the transom -- sure, it's really a plug for a conference on buzzmarketing, but what a question for debate: Will marketing ever reach the altar? Apparantly, it already has. Next stop: funerals and wakes?

Posted by Lucas Conley at 2:17 PM | 6 Comments

How Valuable Are Your "Graduates"?

Workforce Management recently published an article about how people who used to work at PeopleSoft are consistently sought after by companies today.

PeopleSoft was much more than just a technology firm with good marketing. It was a company built in large measure on customer service, hitting the market at the right time and utilizing the risk-taking entrepreneurial spirit of [Dave] Duffield and people he brought into the company.

Fast Company has published several articles that draw on lessons leaders can learn from PeopleSoft. But this piece raises an interesting question: Is your company the kind of company that others look to for new hires? "I want to hire someone who works... there." That's gotta be good to hear.