If you are a non-profit organization, you need to get connected with TechSoup.org which provides information, resources and support for any technology need or requirement. TechSoup helps non-profits leverage technology to execute their goals and objectives. If you need consultation, a trusted advisor or an experienced organization that works specifically with non-profits on technology projects, contact TechSoup.org!!!
TechSoup Impact:
* $1.1B in savings for non-profits since 2002
* $312M retail value of technology products donations distributed
* $296M potential savings for social benefit organizations
* 901,000 technology distributed to sector
* 35 Techsoup global donor partners: Microsoft, Cisco Systems, Symantec, Adobe, Intuit
* 155,000 documents downloaded
TechSoup Reach:
* 45,000 organizations receiving technology product donations
* TechSoup Global Network serves more than 19 countries and will reach 60 countries by 2012
* 400,000 unique monthly visitors to TechSoup website
* 25% overall traffic to TechSoup from outside the US
* 115,000 monthly TechSoup online forum visitor sessions
Cisco Systems and TechSoup Case Study:
In 1998, Cisco created its Product Donation Program and partnered with TechSoup to help Cisco deliver new and refurbished networking equipment, such as, routers, switches, and firewalls to non-profits.
Recipients of Cisco product donations reported the following benefits:
* 76% saw a significant in networking performance
* The number of non-profits rating their network reliability "great" grew from 25% to 75%
* The savings in operational costs averaged 7%
"The partnership with TechSoup Global has enabled Cisco to donate to as many organizations per month as we previously donated to in one year." Robert Deustch, Sr. Community Investment Manager, Cisco Systems.
When I caught up with Rebecca Masisak:co-CEO of TechSoup Global, here is what she had to say:
"The vast majority of nonprofits are very small, under-resourced organizations without a formal IT support department. TechSoup connects "accidental techies", technology experts, volunteers, and those working for the greater good. It's a trusted resource for everything from donated technology products to down-to-earth advice to cutting-edge social Web applications. In order to fulfill our mission, we rely on dedicated partners like Cisco Systems, (Symantec, Microsoft, and Sage), who share our aspiration to ensure that every social benefit organization on the planet has the resources they need to further their own missions."
It's safe to say that if you are a nonprofit in need of technical advice or consultation, contact TechSoup. Overall, TechSoup is an impressive organization with impressive stats, technology partners, and is truly doing what it can to change the way nonprofits do business.
Thanks,
David Chao
The Web Conferencing Expert
Saturday, October 03, 2009
Xobni New Product Release
In January, I did a product review on an email management application called, Xobni, "inbox" spelled backwards. Loved the application then and loving it even more now.
Since that posting, Xobni invited me to this year's Sales 2.0 this past March in San Francisco where I was finally able to put names to faces: Eric Grafstrom: VP of Business Development and Matt Brenzina: Co-Founder, who happens to be a healthy 6 feet 3 inches tall!!! (Of course I could actually see their faces through the Xobni/Facebook integration but meeting them in person was great.)
The exciting news is that Xobni is releasing their latest version (v1.7) and removing the "beta" label! As any good company, Xobni has done a great job listening to end user requests, taking notes on feedback to ensure that the Xobni experience is super easy, fast, efficient and highly productive. The latest release focuses on SPEED and PERFORMANCE.
As much as I love Xobni, I did find that the startup time in Outlook took some time. The newest version dramatically reduces this startup time and loads much faster in Outlook. Other areas that were upgraded:
- Faster Message Loading: Xobni profile data is now cached, reducing delays between loading messages.
- Indexing Controls: users can now control how often and how much of their email is indexed.
- Sidebar Controls: users can now choose for Xobni to open automatically with Outlook or only open when they need it.
- Reduced Outlook Startup Time: as mentioned above.
The new version can be downloaded tonight after 9pm Pacific Time at www.xobni.com
On a side note, Eric Grafstrom also told me that Xobni has secured Round B funding from Blackberry Partners Fund, which focuses its investment in the mobile industry. If you are in the tech industry, you have heard of Blackberry Partners Fund, Blackberries and Research in Motion. (Could there be a mobile version of Xobni? I'll have to ask Eric and Matt but makes sense if I can access my Outlook from my Blackberry device why couldn't I access Xobni also?)
The Round B of funding only means even better things to come from this awesome email management application. Just when I thought it couldn't get better, Xobni gets more funding, which now means even the best can get better.
(Author is not affiliated with Xobni and was not financially compensated for this blog.)
Develop One Weakness, Makes All the Difference
When you are good at something, it's very easy to rely on that strength to get you through most situations. You know you are good at it an it's worked in the past. Don't fix if it's not broken right? I get this but often times, what once worked in the past does not work in the present. One needs to constantly find ways to get better and improve.
A colleague of mine is a tennis player and he's an excellent player. When he first started playing, he had a great forehand and used it all the time. Instead of developing a backhand all he did was take two extra steps to his left and hit a forehand: powerful, accurate, down the line, WINNER.
Over time, he realized that to progress his tennis game, he had to develop his weakness, his backhand. Doing this would require hard work, training, and practice. Note that he did not focus on developing all areas of his tennis game, just one vital component: his backhand. He did not worry about all his "weaknesses," just the immediate and most important one that would pay the highest dividends once he mastered it.
Turning a weakness into a strength provided him with a competitive edge. What better way to reveal a killer backhand when everyone is expecting a forehand!
In order to survive in today's business environment, you need to push yourself to get better and round out your skills by improving your vital weaknesses, one at a time. Focus on developing skills and behaviors that drive the greatest results. Change at a faster rate than what is changing around you. If change is happening faster than you can adapt, you will not survive.
Thanks,
David Chao
The Web Conferencing Expert
What Makes a Bad Leader?
Every leadership book or article that I have ever come across always focuses on top leadership qualities, probably the easiest way to look at leadership I suppose. Select a handful of top companies and their respective CEO's and see what they have in common. Jack Welch: ex-GE CEO, John Chambers: Cisco, Steve Jobs: Apple, Meg Whitman: ex-CEO EBAY, Jeff Bezos: Amazon, Warren Buffett: Berkshire Hathaway, and Larry Fink: Blackrock. Qualities or traits that most often come up:
- Clear vision and forward thinking
- Hires the right people for the right roles
- Collaborative in vision development
- Establish benchmarks to measure progress
- Results-based
- Admits errors or mistakes
- Commitment to maintaining integrity across the organization
- Leads by example
- Communicative and persuasive
- Business and financial acumen
It would make sense than that bad leaders would be the opposite of the traits listed above. In a recent Harvard Business Review article by Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman, they found this to be the case. More specific, the biggest difference between the best leaders and the worst was their energy and enthusiasm. No surprise that some of the best leaders are known for their "charisma" which in many cases can also mean enthusiasm and passion for what they are doing.
What I found interesting is criteria such as inexperience, lack of "proper" education and unproven track record did not appear on the list of worst leaders. Inversely, one could then conclude that experience, an MBA degree from a top program and a proven track record are not the important traits for the most successful leaders. (The one X factor for me would be an MBA. I just think to be a top leader, you need to have an MBA. My case is partially stated below:)
- Jack Welch: BS from University of Massachusetts and MA from University of Illinois-Champaign
- John Chambers: BA and Law Degree from West Virginia University and MBA in Finance and Management from Indiana University
- Steve Jobs: Reed College studying physics, poetry and literature
- Meg Whitman: BA Economics from Princeton and Harvard MBA
- Jeff Bezos: Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from Princeton
- Warren Buffett: a stint at Wharton, then to University of Nebraska at Omaha. Rejected by Harvard Business School. MBA from Columbia University
- Larry Fink: BA and MBA from UCLA
If you want to be a top leader use the list below and do the opposite! Again, everything on the list can be controlled. Nothing states, "Get 15 years of management experience, get an MBA from Harvard or Wharton."
It all starts with energy and passion, believing in what you are doing and exciting those around you to feel just as passionate. Don't accept mediocrity, raise expectations. Have a clear vision of where you are now and where you want to be in 3 months, 6 months, 12 months. Collaborate with others and flatten out your organization. Encourage people to take risks, to innovate and to brainstorm new ideas. Communicate openly and be transparent.
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CEO Pay Cuts AND Pay Raises
Yesterday I provided information on CEO pay cuts from some of the largest companies in the US. I did some research tonight to see what companies are paying their CEO's top dollar even in the midst of painful downsizing and economic challenges.
2008 CEO Salaries:
- Michael Jeffries of Abercrombie & Fitch: 39% increase in pay, though the company's stock fell 72% and he cut 9% of staff.
- Mark Hurd of HP: $42.5M. Laid off 6,000 employees in May. Remaining employees face 5% - 15% salary cuts and Murd is taking a 20% cut in 2009. HP stock is up vs the S&P 500.
- James Mulva of ConocoPhillips: $29.4M and almost $100M the previous two years.
- Larry Ellision of Oracle: $56.8M but recently agreed to a $1 salary for 2009.
- Ron Sargent of Staples: $8.4M.
- Vikram Pundit of Citigroup: $10.8M but taking a $1 salary until the company is profitable. 52,000 jobs were lost at Citigroup.
* Information provided by BusinessWeek, Sept 2009.
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