April 2009 - Posts

• Business Week: Social Gaming Scores in the Recession

  Sarah Lacy from Business Week reports: Gaming goes gangbusters in a downturn. In 2001, the Nasdaq was plunging and such tech mainstays as telecom, e-commerce, and enterprise computing were in a tailspin. But gaming giants Electronic Arts (ERTS) and Activision (ATVI) soared. Titles including The Sims, Grand Theft Auto, Halo, and the Madden sports series became national big-budget obsessions. In the current recession, amid declines in computing and online advertising, gaming again is on a tear. Only this time around, it takes more than producing a pricey console or a slick blockbuster in a shrink-wrapped box to win big at gaming. In a way, it takes a lot less. Some of the most impressive growth of late is in technologically stripped-down games that offer players social, communal experiences. The most talked about are Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and several interactive titles associated with Nintendo's (7974.T) Wii. And the trend isn't confined to the living room. Less talked about is a surge in social games, played with friends on smartphone platforms such as Apple's (AAPL) iPhone and on mass-market sites such as Facebook and News Corp.'s (NWS) MySpace. Many Games Are Free Social gaming is less about killer graphics and quicksilver hand-eye coordination and more about connecting with friends. The best games aren't impressive in terms of technology, though they're quite adept at harnessing media that let players interact. For games on social networking sites, that means letting far-flung friends and families share an activity, rather than just photos and wall posts. On the iPhone, games utilize sophisticated multitouch technology that lets the screen respond to more than a single touch at a time. The number of people playing social games is expected to surge to 250 million in 2009, from 50 million in 2008, by some industry estimates. During recessions, people tend to look for low-cost entertainment, often staying at home. Many social games are free; often even power users pay less than $50 a month. Despite the low costs associated with social games, many actually make money. That's where entrepreneur Mark Pincus comes in. Pincus missed the last countercyclical gaming surge. Unlike most Silicon Valley geeks, Pincus isn't into video games; and in the early part of the decade he was too busy starting a company called Tribe, an ultimately failed effort to merge local newspapers with the burgeoning social networking trend then made popular by Friendster. Pincus doesn't intend to make the same mistake twice. So he started Zynga, a site that specializes in social gaming. He's raised almost $40 million from some of the most well-regarded names in venture investing, including über-angels Reid Hoffman and Peter Thiel. Other investors include Union Square Ventures' Fred Wilson, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Zynga's Disco Holiday Party Zynga's most popular game is Texas Hold 'Em on Facebook. It gets 2 and a half million players a day. Across all networks, 45 million people per month play Zynga games. The bulk of that is on Facebook. In April, Zynga passed widget maker RockYou, owned by NetPickle (NetPickle), to become Facebook's top application maker, with 40 million monthly active users, according to Facebook. That's one-fifth of Facebook's 200 million users. And here's the shocker: Zynga is actually generating a lot of revenue, and it's profitable. The site has annual sales of about $100 million, according to several people close to the company. That's about double what many blogs have speculated. Zynga has swelled to 250 employees who get Google-like perks. The site gets some revenue from selling ads, but mostly from the 2% to 10% of users who pay $1 an hour to play premium games or buy virtual goods. Even amid the recession, revenue is rising. This recessionary disconnect was palpable during Silicon Valley's holiday party season. Zynga's fete was unlike the bare-bones holiday office lunch or the prepaid lavish affairs that came with a dour mood due to recent layoffs. Held at a club in San Francisco's North Beach district, the party featured Zynga staff in disco outfits, free drinks, and a 1970s-style band that also played at Pincus' recent wedding. Borrowed Platform Carries Risk So why isn't a Twitter-and-Facebook-obsessed press talking about social gaming more? You've got me. After all, Zynga isn't the only one benefiting from the surge. Playdom is the other giant of the space, reportedly generating almost $50 million in revenue. And while Zynga has big-name backing, Playdom is a much leaner and more profitable operation, according to some investors in the industry. In Pincus' view, PlayFish represents even bigger competition. Its title Pet Fish is the most successful application on Facebook, with 2.5 million daily active users, just seven months after it launched. Then there's Social Gaming Network, better known as SGN, which is funded by David Sze of Greylock Ventures, the well-respected backer of LinkedIn, Facebook, Digg, Oodle, and other closely watched Web 2.0 names. More than 10 million people have downloaded SGN's iPhone and iPod Touch games, and more than 1 million people play its games across social networks every day. As attractive as the social gaming phenomenon may be, it also carries risk. Building the bulk of your business on someone else's platform is always dicey. And games that do well are restricted to poker and mob war-style contests. Every big player has its own version of each, with little to set one apart from the others, critics say. Whether they can continue to build a catalog of titles that resonates with gamers remains to be seen. And like all things Web 2.0, social gaming may turn out to be a passing fad that people drop as soon as the next new shiny diversion comes along. Disdain from Developers There's also the risk for fraud when it comes to certain online transactions associated with social gaming, such as the sale of virtual goods. "We've found once you get into these digital-only goods and services there's massive opportunity for fraud," Pincus says. "We couldn't find a single company that could manage or solve that problem for us. We had to build the whole infrastructure in-house. We had to go out and get relationships with credit-card processing companies." What's more, social gaming is not only bringing in a new type of gamer, but also a new type of developer. While they're highly adept at tailoring games to a social platform, these developers often don't have the high-level programming skills needed to build more advanced games. The barriers to entry have effectively dropped. Many in the gaming Old Guard look down their noses on social gaming. "I've detected disdain," Pincus says. "Critics say, 'These aren't real games. These aren't real game companies. There's no technology here.'" Not surprisingly, Pincus is still hopeful. "I've also detected excitement," he says. "A lot of people come to the game industry who aren't typical developers and they can unleash their creativity on these massive platforms without the constraints of cost and time to market." Pincus can afford to shrug off the naysayers—so long as Zynga keeps making money in the fractured Web 2.0 world. Posted Apr 30 2009, 02:47 PM by blogadmin with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Entrepreneur, social media, social gaming

• Philly Daily News reports: Jobs are the heart of Nutter's sustainability plan

  Catherine Lucey, from the Philadelphia Daily News reports: If talk about greenhouse gases or carbon footprints makes your eyes glaze over, think about this: New parks and leafy trees throughout the city, more farmers' markets with fresh food for sale, cheaper household energy bills and - most importantly - more than 10,000 new jobs. That's Mayor Nutter's vision for the city in his new sustainability plan, Greenworks Philadelphia. The agenda, which Nutter was to reveal today, sets 15 targets to make Philadelphia a greener place to live by 2015. The targets include weatherizing city homes, to make them more energy-efficient; increasing recycling rates; lowering greenhouse-gas emissions, and providing local food within walking distance of more residents. Federal tax dollars from President Obama's $787 billion stimulus package will help the city achieve some of the goals, officials said. "Greenworks Philadelphia is about the future of Philadelphia," Nutter said. "First and foremost it's about jobs and the economy, it's about energy savings, it's about reducing our dependence on foreign oil and about decreasing our carbon footprint." With a walkable Center City, extensive public-transit network and massive urban park system, Philadelphia is already considered an environmentally sound place to live. The sustainability Web site www.sustainlane.com last year ranked Philly as the nation's eighth-most environmentally friendly city out of 50 surveyed. But the city is burdened with older energy-inefficient buildings, a relatively low recycling rate and air quality that does not meet new federal standards. Director of Sustainability Mark Alan Hughes said that Greenworks builds on the sustainability work already under way in the city, and sets short-term goals to improve lagging areas. "We tell you exactly what we're going to do," Hughes said. "Unlike other cities, this is not a 2030 plan; this is not a 2050 plan. This is a 2015 plan." Hughes also stressed that this effort will impact Philadelphians directly, improving quality of life in the city and creating jobs. "My job is not to sell Philadelphians on carbon reduction," Hughes said. "This is about poverty reduction. This is not about polar bears. This is about prosperity. This is much more an economic-development plan than a traditional environmental plan. This is about jobs, jobs, jobs." Green jobs, loosely known as work that provides an environmental benefit, are at the heart of the plan. Hughes said that now is the time for this effort because of funding for green jobs in the stimulus package. Hughes said that the city is set to receive millions in federal dollars for weatherization of homes and for green-jobs training. Those green jobs could be in weatherization, agriculture, landscaping or engineering, he said. By 2015, the city hopes to double the number of green jobs in the city, from 14,379 to 28,800. Hughes said that most of the costs associated with the plan will be covered by stimulus or state money, or through money already in the city budget - like funds that have been put aside to provide an incentive program to encourage greater recycling. And he stressed that a higher recycling rate and more energy-efficient municipal buildings will save the city cash. For example, if energy consumption in city buildings is reduced by 30 percent, the city should save an estimated $36 million in 2015. Many other major cities have put out environmental or sustainability plans in recent years. New York announced an environmental plan in 2007, Chicago put out a climate agenda in September. Like those cities, Philadelphia aims to improve air quality and make buildings more efficient. But the local plan includes goals like the green-jobs target and a pledge to bring locally produced food within a 10-minute walk of all residents. Christine Knapp, director of outreach for the environmental group PennFuture, said that those goals are what sustainability is all about. "Sustainability is about sustaining a community," said Knapp, who serves on Nutter's Sustainability Advisory Board. "People need jobs, people need access to health care and health equity. I think this is a broader look at sustainability." *   Posted Apr 29 2009, 09:11 PM by blogadmin with no comments Filed under: green, sustainability, Mayor Nutter

• Ivory tower needs to adapt to online media landscape, scholar says

  The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign news bureau reports on education professor Michael A. Peters,  saying universities need to embrace new online media, social networks and a culture of "openness" as part of their pedagogy, or they risk becoming seen as anachronisms in today’s hyper-connected world. 4/9/09 Phil Ciciora, News Editor 217-333-2177;pciciora@illinois.edu CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Universities need to embrace new online media, social networks and a culture of “openness” as part of their pedagogy, or they risk becoming seen as anachronisms in today’s hyper-connected world where information is available freely, says a University of Illinois expert who studies the knowledge economy’s effect on higher education. Michael A. Peters, a professor of educational policy studies in the U. of I.’s College of Education and a co-author of “Creativity and the Global Knowledge Economy,” says that while forms of social media and social networking are transforming all of major institutions, including business, media and government, higher education has fallen behind the curve in adapting to the realities of information flow in the 21st century. “Schools are built on industrial models whose logic often lags behind what underwrites new media, social networks and the creative economy,” Peters said. “Now, we’re living in a radically networked age, and higher education hasn’t quite come to terms yet with what these new forms of the learning economy are, or how to adapt to them.” In the classic model of education, students received information from teachers and textbooks in an almost one-way informational flow. Now, Peters said, the viral nature of communication on the Internet is rapidly displacing the “old school” model. In an age of file sharing and open academic repositories, he said, it’s not reasonable to assume that knowledge need be something that’s handed-down from on high, especially when the course materials used in the teaching of virtually all of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s courses are available free of charge online. “When the scholarly ideas and information contained in a PDF file can be downloaded, viewed and shared by hundreds of millions of people worldwide in a matter of minutes while an ink-and-paper version languishes on a dusty library shelf, what that does is radically de-center forms of educational authority,” Peters said. “It also flattens the academic playing field, and puts a greater emphasis on the social aspect of learning.” With the ubiquity of the Internet in college classrooms, and with the wealth of free information available online, Peters said students still need teachers who are savvy synthesizers of knowledge. “One of the critical concepts we in higher education have to come to grips with in this era of transformation is openness, and the diffuse, decentralized availability of information that’s available for free,” he said. “Openness sets up all new knowledge ecologies, especially in a networked environment, and these new ways of communication are based on social principles and cultural logic. As professional educators, we need to think about how our curriculums can be rebooted so they fit better into a networked environment.” In some sense, Peters said, a lot of the leading developments in adapting higher education to a Web 2.0 world are happening on the fringes, almost despite education. “You already have people in the sciences doing this voluntarily, where experts and amateurs will collaborate on a time-intensive subject such as astronomy,” Peters said. “But that’s the exception to the rule, not the norm.” The major questions, Peters said, are: “How do we redesign our schools to make use of the new logics. How do we begin to refocus these institutions to promote the kinds of innovation that businesses and governments around the world are trying to encourage?” Citing the Web 2.0 principles of participation and open collaboration, as exemplified by Web sites such as Wikipedia and Wikiversity, Peters said traditional “bricks-and-mortarboard” universities need to embrace “Education 3.0,” which he defines as “a cross-institutional, cross-cultural education where the learners themselves play a key role as creators of knowledge.” Seen through a historical lens, the Encyclopédie, an Enlightenment-era publication written by many of the French intellectual giants of the time, including Voltaire, Rousseau and Montesquieu, was a precursor to the raft of free content available today, Peters said. The creative impulse behind the Encyclopédie was to compile and publish a compendium of human knowledge in order to cultivate a well-informed populace capable of self-government, Peters said. “Back then, access to knowledge was seen as an absolutely profound political principle, not unlike today,” Peters said. “So this idea of participatory knowledge for a well-informed polity to create better self-government has been affecting all of our major institutions for quite some time. Over 200 years later, this is something that everyone is still trying to wrap their heads around. But it’s also a very exciting time to be involved in higher education.”   Posted Apr 29 2009, 02:45 PM by blogadmin with 1 comment(s) Filed under: social media

• Language, Innovation & Social Media for Business--Sam Lawrence at Interactive Austin

  Alora Christiakoff from the Social Computing Journal reports on Sam Lawrence, former CMO of Jive Software, speaking at the Interactive Austin conference.  How We Say What We Say One of the challenges social media evangelists face is based on the language we use. As with all emerging technologies, the language is new and it's not compatible with standard, well-worn executive jargon -- worse yet, it has the unfortunate tendency to be too "cutsie" to be taken seriously by business leaders. In order to get past the knee-jerk language reactions, stop using tech-speak and start using business-speak. The business already has a language, so use it. Evangelists can't expect that the population at large is going to adopt a new language for a technology for which they are not yet onboard. Technologists and evangelists need to remember to speak the language of business. The value of using the business' language is clear in everything from initiating change, to clarifying the value of social media, to measuring the impact. In and among all of the ROI debate on social media one key is often over-looked: businesses already measure their efforts. For social media to be understandable to that business, it needs to be measured using metrics those executives already understand, expect and are comfortable with. The Push-Pull Between Entrepreneurism and Process As companies grow, entrepreneurism gives way to process until people can sleep walk through their day. Unthinking action is unthinking business. If your business is being run by unthinking people, then your business isn't innovating. Innovation is key. Even more importantly, innovation is different. Improving on a competitor's product is not innovation. To truly innovate you must create something new, you must do it first, and you must own the market space. Innovation Is Not Just for Products In order to have innovative products, organization's can't fall into the trap of doing things the way they have always done. Instead of highly-connected leaders, most organizations have a collection of independently run fiefdoms. Lawrence calls these "Un-Knights at the Round Table." In order to have the internal organization necessary to support true innovation, internal silos must be broken down, and all players must re-engage with each other. One example Lawrence gives of how internal organizational patterns can benefit from social media is in its ability to "shorten the ramp." Getting new employees up to speed quickly on new roles, projects or teams can be radically improved in organizations that leverage social media. Instead of having to spend six months learning who's who and where to find what, an organization with an internal social media eco-system (facilitated by robust search capabilities) can provide opportunities to catch up quickly and start contributing to the team's value much faster than traditional on-boarding processes facilitate. In Conclusion Social media has transformative capabilities, but the true transformation is in the people using technology to facilitate change, not in the technology itself. Like so many other lessons learned in social media: no matter how sexy the technology may be, business transformation is driven by people.     Posted Apr 28 2009, 02:49 PM by blogadmin with 2 comment(s) Filed under: social media

• Creating a National Innovation Framework

  Innovation Philadelphia board member and founder, Rich Bendis, co-authored this fascinating Science Progress article with Ethan Byler stressing the need for the United States to develop a national innovation framework in order to remain globally competitive during the economic downturn and beyond. View the article here. Posted Apr 23 2009, 06:21 PM by blogadmin with no comments Filed under: Innovation Framework, Rich Bendis

• 10 Tips for the Creative Entrepreneur

  Ladies Who Launch have some great tips for the creative entrepreneur.  Jennifer Lee writes: Do words like “business plan” or “profit and loss statement” make your skin crawl? Do numbers numb you out? Would you rather draw, write, and create than organize, budget, and plan? If so, then you’re probably what I call a “musepreneur.” A musepreneur is a creative entrepreneur who uses her right-brain intuition and inspiration to launch and grow a business. Sure, maybe your feathers get ruffled when you hear the letters ROI, but that doesn’t mean you can’t artfully run a business. The key to being a successful musepreneur is to fully embrace your creative nature. Your artistic gifts can actually help you find fresh solutions to your business challenges and enable your ventures to grow in ways you would’ve never dreamed possible. Here are 10 creative tips to help you do just that: 1. Enlist your imagination. Use your creative intuition to paint the biggest picture of your business success (literally or figuratively). Spend some time envisioning where you want to be a year from now and have fun with it. When you’re in touch with your vision, it’s easier for the details to follow. 2. Create a Right-Brain Business Plan. Your business plan doesn’t have to look like a traditional plan. What’s key is that you’re clear about your goals and that you have them on paper. My Right-Brain Business Plan is a collaged accordion book. The front has inspiring images to connect me with my big vision. The back holds details like financial targets, milestone dates, and marketing goals. 3. Play with the Post-it Note project plan. If detailed project plans overwhelm you, try planning with Post-it Notes instead. Write each task on a Post-it Note. Use different colors to categorize. Then begin arranging them on a large piece of paper attached to a wall. You can draw rows on the paper to show weeks or months and start sequencing the notes on a timeline. The cool thing is your plan isn’t set in stone. You can easily move the notes around as you gain more clarity about what’s next. 4. Track your progress (with flair, of course). When you’re juggling many creative projects (as most musepreneurs do), it can feel like you’re not getting anything done. Rather than getting frustrated, acknowledge that you’re moving forward even if it’s one baby step at a time. A great way to do this is to find a beautiful bowl, and each time you complete something from any of your projects, drop a bead into the bowl. Before you know it your bowl will runneth over! 5. Follow the flow. If you’re feeling stuck, do something creative to find your flow again. Maybe you sing a song or knit a scarf. The important thing is that you keep your creative momentum. See what fresh perspective emerges. 6. Build on what you know. Use something you’re already familiar with to gain clarity on an unfamiliar issue. For example, how is creating a budget like following a recipe? What’s the first thing you do when you prepare to cook? Perhaps it’s finding the right recipe (or a template for the budget). Next, you gather all the ingredients (or the line items on your budget). Then you measure the ingredients (or you put numbers to the different line items). By walking through the steps of something you know, you’ll discover your own creative resourcefulness and the new tasks will feel less daunting. 7. Learn something new. What do you want to know more about as it relates to your business? Find fun ways to pick up that new knowledge. If you enjoy reading, get an interesting book about your business that speaks to you. If you love interaction, take a class. The more you know, the more empowered you’ll feel. 8. Make time for reflection. At least every quarter, carve out time to look at where you’ve been and where you’re going. What targets did you set for yourself in your Right-Brain Business Plan? What action steps did you outline in your Post-it Note project plan? How many beads do you have in your bowl? Identify where you might need to course-correct and acknowledge your successes and accomplishments. 9. Ask for help. You don’t need to do it all! Outsource what you’re not as good at or don’t enjoy. Hire an accountant to set up QuickBooks. Gather a board of advisors to strategize on marketing. Get a virtual assistant to schedule meetings. Delegating frees you up to focus on the heart of your business. 10. Connect with creative cohorts. Get inspired by other musepreneurs. Reach out to someone you admire for some mentoring. Make a date with your fellow creative cohorts to brainstorm ideas and support each other. Together you can help each other grow your businesses! Posted Apr 21 2009, 10:53 PM by blogadmin with no comments

• BBC Tech News: UK high-tech firms under threat; Prime Minister announces new investment plans

  BBC News reports:  New start-up investor considered Gordon Brown The announcement came in a speech at Loughborough University The government is considering setting up a new bank to invest in start-up and high risk business ventures. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he would look at the case for setting up such a bank, targeting hi-tech firms. He said the proposed bank would "provide the finance for more difficult and more risky start-ups for high-technology businesses of the future". Earlier a business investment group warned that many young high-tech companies were under threat. The National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (Nesta) said government funding was needed as the credit crunch threatened a generation of small high-tech companies. It said that there was a 70% fall in new venture capital funding last year and warned that the UK could lose its global standing in areas such as healthcare and biotechnology. Nesta called on the government to go half-and-half with the private sector to provide £1bn for high-tech investment. Industrial renewal Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he would be examining the case for setting up "a bank for industry and innovation". One of the options to be considered would be a public-private partnership scheme similar to the Industrial and Commercial Finance Corporation (ICFC). The ICFC was a partnership between the Bank of England and major banks, set up in 1945 to provide funding for small and medium-sized companies. Last month, Richard Lambert, head of the employers' group the CBI, called for an investment corporation like the ICFC to be set up. All departments The prime minister made the announcement while launching a report called New Industry New Jobs, which said that government needed to recognise the impact that decisions on taxation and spending have on the development of British businesses. "This means making Britain's economic and industrial renewal the remit not just of the Department for Business, but of all Government departments," the report said. The government has said that decisions on the funding of academic research will take greater account of its economic impact. Nesta's report identified healthcare, green technology and digital media as sectors where the UK could lose its leading international status unless the government offered support. Serious consequences It also urged Chancellor Alistair Darling to use the government's multi-billion fiscal stimulus package to support lending to companies working on new technologies. It said: "The effects of not investing in these sectors are serious. "If the innovative capacity of our healthcare sector weakens, over £8bn worth of pharmaceutical exports and over £1bn of domestic sales could be lost annually. "The cost to the NHS and to society in terms of poorer health outcomes would be considerably larger," the report concluded. Meanwhile, a minimum wage freeze has been called for by business leaders as part of measures to help private industry drive the economy out of recession. The British Chambers of Commerce wants more supportive measures for firms in the forthcoming Budget, including cutting small businesses' corporation tax.  Posted Apr 20 2009, 03:40 PM by blogadmin with no comments

• Strategic thinking in eras of change

  Pichaya Changsorn from The Nation reports: There is no 'one best way' in today's business world, says consultant and author Surapit Promsit Dr Surapit Promsit, a young business consultant who titled his recent pocketbook "Management One Night Stand", is by no means a religious extremist. But he believes strongly that the Buddhist principle of "anicca", or impermanence, applies to the modern business world. When seeking advice from a consultant, most companies tend to ask for an ultimate solution that will enable them to survive and prosper into the future, Surapit said. Unfortunately, given the rapidly changing and highly unpredictable nature of today's business world, such overarching solutions are not possible, said the president of Bangkok Training International. "There is no more 'one best way' in today's business world," said 30-year-old Surapit. After obtaining a PhD from a foreign university at the age of 23, Surapit set up consulting firm Bangkok Training International about four years ago. In an interview, he told The Nation that seeking a permanent solution or clinging to a particular system for too long is to take the wrong path, as things become obsolete quickly in the current era. Rather, in order to survive, firms must forgo their culture of consistency and lean toward flexibility and a culture of adaptation. "In the past, organisations changed slowly. It was not unusual if nothing changed for 10 years. But now, going three years without some kind of change is unusual," he said. It's not only an organisation's structure and systems that have to be flexible, however. The most important element is the people within the company, who must be highly adaptive to change, Surapit said. It's time companies provided second-job training for employees, who must equip themselves with multiple skills, he said. "Many people ask what they should do in 2009. They are in a panic to cut costs. Instead, today is an opportune time for us to review: Are we adaptive enough? There are no 'best people'; there is no 'best structure'. The person you hate today might be the 'best person' next year." Surapit said Jack Welch, the legendary former CEO of General Electric - the consultant's favourite company - had a policy to fire 20 per cent of his staff every year. "Jack Welch always said the firm's management would make the mistake of not preparing staffs for change, and thus would have to fire them. If you are not training staff for change, you' ll have to let them go. But for Thais, we treat staff as brothers and sisters - and we're kreng jai." Kreng jai is often defined as deference. A firm's top executive must have an overview in mind and stay on top of the situation, instead of limiting him or herself to a certain belief or perspective, Surapit said. "The commander must give himself multiple choices, learn to think according to several aspects, have several strategies, knowing there is not a single tool with which to fight all battles," he said. And since the future is not just about acquiring knowledge but also participating in a creative economy, an organisation will not thrive unless a majority of its workers can think, Surapit said. As a result, training in strategic thinking is necessary, he said. pichaya@nationgroup.com Posted Apr 20 2009, 03:19 PM by blogadmin with no comments

• WE WENT! BlobLive at Rembrandt’s

  “If you're feeling inspired, you'll share your idea with the crowd. If you're not, you can hang back and hear from others. We'll all chime in with our wisdom, and at the end of the night, we'll be better connected, better informed and better prepared to make our dreams and ideas a reality.” –Ami, founder of ideablob With Ami moderating, BlobLive kicked off at 7pm at Rembrandt’s in Fairmount with a great bar, tasty appetizers, and a buzzing crowd. This is the second BlobLive event Innovation Philadelphia has attended and this time we took the mic first as the business partner for the evening. We sought advice for one of our new program initiatives, PhillyCreativeJobs.com. Specifically how do we reach both employers and jobseekers with a tiny (aka zero) budget? The suggestions from the audience centered on social media, networking and just plain hitting the streets. Thanks for all of the advice! Many nebulous and not so nebulous ideas broached the stage last night. One was putting music therapy machines in schools and she asked specifically for ideas on funding. Another was a consulting service that would help biz owners or orgs explain complicated ideas, such as engineering products or government policies, to the general target market. Ami encouraged the group to act on the idea and one entrepreneur left with the language to explain their complicated idea. This was a great opportunity to discuss among the group the importance of acting on ideas. An entrepreneur has great thoughts, but if one doesn’t jump right in, the thought becomes meaningless. Lesson: Start forming your idea into a reality. Just start now. Every BlobLive event is intertwined with social media. Audience members tweet throughout the event with #bloblive, moving them up the hashtag charts. Curious people who can’t make it to the event watch a live video stream from the comfort of their home, coffee shop or wherever they are. Ami’s 8 year old son now has a twitter name, @miniblob, and joined us from home (although a bit late) with some fun comments. My favorite: “hanging out with bigblob and grandpablob grandmablob mommyblob and miniblobet.” This event is truly inspiring and pulls entrepreneurs out of the lonely life of upstarts, focusing on their computer screens in coffee shops, and forces interaction with open-minded folks. The ideas of others are inspiring. Even if you don’t have an idea and just want to feel inspired, this is a calendar worthy event. The next opportunity is THIS Monday April 20th at Kildare’s Manayunk  www.ideablob.com  Be there or be a blob. Posted Apr 17 2009, 08:55 PM by blogadmin with no comments Filed under: IdeaBlob, BlobLive

• The Insider: Empowerment Group to Host Entrepreneurship Week 2009

  According to MSNBC, small businesses and entrepreneurs are the driving engine of economic growth, responsible for 60 to 80 percent of all net new jobs.  These jobs are community-based and are not typically the types of jobs that are outsourced. In addition, as tougher economic times are upon us, it is becoming crucial to retain earnings within the community. The role of the entrepreneur becoming increasingly important, as small businesses play a large part in driving growth and wealth creation in any region. This spring the Empowerment Group will host their fourth annual Entrepreneurship Week. The week-long event, held from April 20 to April 25, will provide key resources for budding entrepreneurs and celebrate the achievements of community businesses, and the entrepreneurs behind them. Throughout Entrepreneurship Week 2009, the Empowerment Group will offer a myriad of programs that will aid entrepreneurs, whether they are starting or growing a business in the Philadelphia Region, by providing them with skills and knowledge needed to succeed. Entrepreneurship Week was established in 2006 and, with a successful annual turn out, continues to produce quality workshops and programs for the emerging and established entrepreneur. “A lot of new programs will be introduced to the line up, including ‘Finding Funds to Fuel Your Business’. We also are hosting a Small Business Resource Fair, which is back by popular demand,” says Emily Smith, Special Events Coordinator at the Empowerment Group. The Empowerment Group is a non-profit organization with a vision to sustain and enrich communities by cultivating local entrepreneurship in the Greater Philadelphia Region. Established in 1998, The Empowerment Group has launched various programs such as the “Women Entrepreneurs’ Circle,” Entrepreneurship Training Course,” “One-on-One Consulting” and a “Youth Entrepreneurship Program.” With the belief that small businesses are the backbone of the local economy, the Empowerment Group continues to work towards giving entrepreneurs the tools and motivation to succeed. The events planned this year are geared towards providing entrepreneurs with networking opportunities, panel discussions, marketing workshops and resources needed to run a successful business. A seminar entitled “Get Noticed: Creative Marketing Strategies,” held at the Helium Comedy Club, will impart marketing skills and strategies that will help small businesses stand out from the crowd. Entrepreneurs will also have opportunities to network at events such as the “Women Entrepreneurs’ Circle.” Entrepreneurship Week will culminate with a day long “Shop Philly!” that will be held all across the small businesses in Philadelphia. “Shop Philly!” will encourage patrons to shop locally, keeping shopping dollars in the community. There are currently 270,000 people employed in small businesses in Philadelphia and for every dollar spent on small businesses, up to 50 cents is retained in the community. To encourage patrons to shop locally, businesses will provide discounts, deals, or featured items. “This is a shopping incentive to encourage citizens to support their local business districts. The participating districts are New Kensington, El Centro De Oro and Mt. Airy,” says Smith. As part of Entrepreneurship Week, the Empowerment Group will also spotlight entrepreneurs and small business owners from the Philadelphia Region that have displayed excellence in their industries. Among them are Bill and Nancy Barton, founders of the Philadelphia Brewing Company, and Napoleon Garcia, founder of local newspaper Impacto Latin Newspaper. These entrepreneurs have displayed fortitude in adversity and are the catalysts for positive change. Many of the featured entrepreneurs, like Robin Schimpf who manages the El Bar in Fishtown, had enrolled in courses hosted by the Empowerment Group and used their resources to grow their business in the region. All events during Entrepreneurship Week 2009 are free and open to the public. “People are often shocked to find that there are free resources available for them in Philly. There is a wealth of resources for business owners, especially during Entrepreneurship Week,” says Smith. For more information about Entrepreneurship Week 2009, visit www.entrepreneurshipweek.com. Posted Apr 01 2009, 09:32 PM by blogadmin with 2 comment(s)