SXSW 2010: My Thoughts Have I missed the window to offer some feedback and analysis of what happened at SXSW Interactive this year? Well, I am going to do it anyway…
Fri Apr 9, 2010
SXSW Suggestion #1: Write It Down [There are so many ways that SXSW could change the way we think, operate, and organize around big ideas, exciting new tools, important issues, and as a community of smart, passionate people. There are so many ways that SXSW is already disrupting the ways that we think about how technology can be utilized, creativity should be applied, what communications can achieve – but that mostly/only happens on site, during the event, and the momentum behind so many potentially exciting things is lost when everyone flies back home to the rest of their lives.
Fri Apr 9, 2010
SXSW Suggestion #2: No More Panels [There are so many ways that SXSW could change the way we think, operate, and organize around big ideas, exciting new tools, important issues, and as a community of smart, passionate people. There are so many ways that SXSW is already disrupting the ways that we think about how technology can be utilized, creativity should be applied, what communications can achieve – but that mostly/only happens on site, during the event, and the momentum behind so many potentially exciting things is lost when everyone flies back home to the rest of their lives.
Fri Apr 9, 2010
SXSW Suggestion #3: Set My Schedule [There are so many ways that SXSW could change the way we think, operate, and organize around big ideas, exciting new tools, important issues, and as a community of smart, passionate people. There are so many ways that SXSW is already disrupting the ways that we think about how technology can be utilized, creativity should be applied, what communications can achieve – but that mostly/only happens on site, during the event, and the momentum behind so many potentially exciting things is lost when everyone flies back home to the rest of their lives.
Fri Apr 9, 2010
SXSW Suggestion #4: Be Your Own Media [There are so many ways that SXSW could change the way we think, operate, and organize around big ideas, exciting new tools, important issues, and as a community of smart, passionate people. There are so many ways that SXSW is already disrupting the ways that we think about how technology can be utilized, creativity should be applied, what communications can achieve – but that mostly/only happens on site, during the event, and the momentum behind so many potentially exciting things is lost when everyone flies back home to the rest of their lives.
Fri Apr 9, 2010
My (Updated, Slightly Changed, Hopefully Improved) Business Book Challenge Almost a year ago I issued what I called my ‘Business Book
Challenge.” I presented the
challenge as follows:
Thu Apr 8, 2010
My Thoughts On the 2010 Superbowl Ads I was unimpressed with most/all of the advertising during last night's Superbowl -- and I know I am not alone. There are, of course, several different lines of attack I could level against the brand and advertising community: - The ads lacked creativity or originality -- isn't that the very thing the brand and advertising community pride themselves on most?- The ads weren't funny -- and even if they were funny, was that the best (or only) way to attract attention and deliver a message to the audience?
Mon Feb 8, 2010
Sports and Change I am leading a discussion about 'how to handle what's next' at the USA Today Sports Philanthropy Forum later today in McLean, VA. To help set up the discussion I wrote the following -- about how the sports world is in a position to help us address causes in new, powerful ways because of the important role that sports play in people's lives. Take a look: Everything is changing – and what it means to sports and causesOur society has changed - dramatically - over the past few decades.
Tue Jan 26, 2010
Why do I follow brands on Twitter and Facebook? My sister emailed me this morning and asked why I follow brands on Facebook and/or Twitter. Here is my response:
Fri Jan 22, 2010
Why? We spend a lot of time talking about, and trying to understand,
people's behaviors. But the approach is wrong.
Fri Jan 15, 2010
Thanks for the $20 million, but... Google announced (very quietly) yesterday that they would take the money that they normally spend on creative gifts and lavish parties for their advertising partners and instead give the funds to a list of charitable organizations. Google explained on the announcement page for the gift that they would give $20 million to a list of approximately 25 charities. They also offered this brief explanation:
Posted Tue Dec 22, 2009
Is Social Media Changing The World? Not yet. Jared Cohen, a member of the policy planning staff at the State Department penned an essay on HuffingtonPost asking whether social media was really changing the world. He has some good perspective, an interesting background, and definitely some credibility on the subject of global organizing and social change. But he's still presenting the same old tired conversation about social media and social change.
Posted Wed Nov 25, 2009
Need motivation to change the status quo? Do we need more motivation to change the status quo than being told that the status quo isn't going to change?Trendwatching, one of the leading global trend firms, released its "10 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2010" today. Their first big trend for the coming year is entitled "Business As Usual" and suggests we lower our expectations for change. They write:
Posted Tue Nov 17, 2009
What's Wrong With the Analysis of "What's Wrong With Charitable Giving-and How to Fix It" Pablo Eisenberg, a Senior fellow in the Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership at Georgetown Public Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., penned a terrific op-ed in The Wall Street Journal Tuesday entitled "What's Wrong With Charitable Giving--and How to Fix It." But his analysis of the challenges facing the nonprofit and charitable community and his suggestions for how to fix the system didn't go far enough.
Posted Mon Nov 9, 2009
CNN's Model For Success (and what we should learn from it) The big news out of the TV ratings report this week is that CNN is in fourth place -- last place. That's right, the 24-hour cable news giant is floundering in the eyes of the viewers. But CNN isn't concerned. In fact, the big cheese at CNN, Jon Klein, said that ratings don't matter as much as you think. Here is an excerpt from his comments on a cal
Posted Wed Oct 28, 2009
The trouble with innovation Innovation is important. Necessary. Critical to success. We've all heard it. Innovative or die. We here it all the time. There is a lot of new talk of late about how innovation can fix the economy, save education, solve the healthcare crisis, and more. Very smart people argue that innovation is the core of a successful company. Books and cover stories about innovation are making the rounds like never before.
Posted Tue Oct 6, 2009
Why Google Wave Will Fail I should note at the top of this post that I have not received an invitation for Google Wave. I haven't seen the platform in action - other than a few screen shots that various bloggers and media have shared. I haven't spoken to anyone directly about Google Wave or its functionality yet. But even without any of that direct, first-hand knowledge of what Google Wave is designed to do, I know it will fail.
Posted Thu Oct 1, 2009
The People Formerly Known As the Audience Our society has changed - dramatically - over the past few decades. We talk about it all the time in the context of business (flattening), government and politics (opening) and community (connecting). What about media and arts?
Posted Thu Aug 27, 2009
Forcing Social Innovation The White House has created an Office of Social Innovation, and a $50 million Social Innovation Fund, to "identify the most promising, results-oriented non-profit programs and expand their reach throughout the country." As the White House blog explained in early July:
Posted Fri Jul 31, 2009
