This month we showcase Harvard professor Clayton Christensen.
Dr. Christensen is a Rhodes Scholar and received an MBA and DBA from the Harvard Business School. He is currently the Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School. Before joining the HBS faculty he co-founded and was chairman and president of CPS Technologies (CPS).
The following quotes are from the HBS Website. “His seminal book The Innovator’s Dilemma (1997), which first outlined his disruptive innovation frameworks, received the Global Business Book Award for the Best Business Book of the Year in 1997, was a New York Times bestseller, has been translated into over 10 languages, and is sold in over 25 countries. He is also a three-time recipient of the McKinsey Award for the Harvard Business Reviews’s best article.”
I like Dr. Christensen’s perspective because it comes from an entrepreneur and an Academic. His books The Innovator’s Dilemma and Disrupting Class, where he applies the concept of disruptive technology to education, are truly insightful and are a must read for anyone with an interest in technology, business and education.
Here is a video of Dr. Christensen in action.
This is a video about Lowell Sando, a Silicon Valley Entrepreneur and the Founder of Diversified Software. Lowell provides some valuable lessons about what it really takes to make it Silicon Valley. In the spirit of full disclosure, Lowell and I worked together at Diversified and I learned a lot for him. We are also working on some projects for his new firm, Ponderosa Ventures. I created this video for my Video Journalism class at Stanford. I recorded the video with a Flip and edited in an old version of iMovie. Although the quality is not great, this proves anyone can create a video. My thanks to Lowell, a truly great entrepreneur and friend.
Founded in 1972 by Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia started out ‘green’ and has grown to be one of the most environmentally friendly companies in the world, being awarded the Eco Brand of the Year by the Volvo EcoDesign Forum in 2008. It all began with a man passionate about climbing who started making his own pitons. And it took off from there.
Unlike most retail website, Patagonia doesn’t bombard visitors with the latest products and most recent discounts. In fact, the website allows visitors to choose what to do first; whether it is checking out the eco-friendly clothing & gear section, the environmentalism section or the contributive blog.
As our favorite entrepreneurs tend to follow the guidelines of innovation, passion and positive employee relationships, it is here where Patagonia gets an A+ from us.
A leader in the eco-friendly clothing market, Patagonia has used all organic cotton since 1996 and even uses recycled bottles for their Synchilla Jackets. The company has also launched the Common Threads Program which aims to make all their clothing recyclable by 2010; 65% of the Spring Catalog is, in fact, recyclable. Patagonia urges customers to return old polyester based jackets, and then the company will have them forwarded to a processor to be remade into fiber or forms of plastic for reuse.
In addition to their environmental ways, Patagonia is also known for its’ employee relationships. The company started an in-house day-care center back in 1984; just one of 150 at the time. Patagonia employees also enjoy the benefits of casual work clothes, some even opting for barefoot workdays. On breaks, employees can also be found surfing, playing beach volleyball or eating with their children. “It helps keep the company atmosphere more familial than corporate.”
Saving the Earth, pleasing employees, what else is there? How about keeping customers extremely well informed utilizing Web 2.0 Technologies and helpful employees? Starting out at Patagonia.com visitors can view The Footprint Chronicles which details both the good and the bad about how products are made. Visitors can also check out The Blog for employees, friends, and customers with topics ranging from Environmental Activism to Innovative Designs. Then, read the personal Field Reports from Patagonia employees detailing their most recent adventures. You can also find Patagonia on Facebook (5,000+ Fans) and Twitter (614 Followers), once again, keeping everyone up-to-date and creating a unique community.
There is a lot to this well-established company; from causes and charities to corporate social responsibility and environmentalism. One thing is for sure, Patagonia lays it all out for visitors on their site; whatever you want to know about the company, it’s there.
View Mr. Chouinard talk about his personal history, how he created Patagonia, and the philosophy he uses to run the company. And, be sure to check out his book Let My People Go Surfing.
Here’s some Early Buzz on the Upcoming Book: Surfing The Rift
Our upcoming book, Surfing the Rift co- written with Dr. Tanuja Singh is starting to get some attention. Check out the following articles and I’ll keep you posted on our progress.
Introducing The Entrepreneur of the Month. As we kick off this new section, a few quick words are necessary. Within the entreprenuerial world, this feautre will look for companies that are both successful and passionate who also treat their employees and customers right. We also value new, unique ways of doing business and the thought leaders that are making it happen. More…
Zappos. Founded in 1999 and recording revenue of “almost nothing”, Entrepreneur Tony Hsiesh has taken Zappos to over $800 million in 2007. This kind of growth can be contributed to Hsieshs’ continued focus on customer service, stating, “We’re a service company who happens to sell shoes.” His passion to provide the best customer service has led to a 4-week customer loyalty training program, mandatory for all employees, with an offer of $1,000 cash (no strings) to quit afterwards. Roughly 90% of all trainees refuse the money. Now that’s a way to find dedicated employees.
Over the years, Zappos has learned not only an abundance of knowledge selling online, but has delved deeply into the Social Networking aspect of the internet. If you visit Blog.Zappos.com you can read employee blogs ranging from couture to parenting to comfort. Also on the blog page, you’ll find Zappos TVwith videos from inside the workplace, with the most recent video about the Zappettes, a singing group inside Zappos. And, of course, you can also find these videos on Zappos YouTube Channel. Lastly, you can remain up-to-date on all Zappos conversations via Twitter.Zappos.com. Here, you can see tweets from the general public, Zappos employees, and even the CEO Tony Hsiesh himself.
So, what can we learn from Zappos?
1. Cherish Customers: Zappos does a fantastic job of letting customers inside the organization to get to know the employees. This can be viewed as comfort factor for uneasy internet buyers. And of course, the 365 day return policy, 24-hour customer service, and exceptionally fast shipping doesn’t hurt either.
2.Follow Passion: Always remember what you set out to do. If you are passionate about your idea(s) and work hard at it, success will follow.
3.Be Kind: Treat your employees well, they hold up your business. Zappos is now ranked No. 23 on Fortune Magazine’s Top 100 Companies to Work For: See Video Here. Psst. Also look for Mig Pascual, a former NIU Student of Joe’s
“The last day of a recession is the best day to start a business,” says Carla Fried, an editor at Money Magazine. So why not get prepared now? In Fried’s most recent article on CNNMoney.com, she discusses the 10 Steps in “The Would be Entrepreneur’s Handbook” and enlists the aid of professionals in the field, including Mr. Joe Cullinane, for quotes and advice.
The Ten Steps include topics such as Leveraging your Expertise, Chase the Moola, Lure Customers on the Cheap, and Go 2.0. In the latter two, Cullinane is quoted in reference to using Word of Mouth Marketing, Social Networks and Google Adwords to gather customers. On the topic of Social Networks, Cullinane is quoted as follows:
“Facebook lets you start a page for your company, run promos and post polls. Sign up for Twitter, which lets you broadcast your doings; and use it to remind pals about your business.”
Joe has been collaborating with Dr. Tanuja Singh on a new technology-based book. Dr. Singh is the Chair of the Marketing Department at Northern Illinois University with an impressive background in Global Marketing and a great interest in Web 2.0 Technologies. This duo is preparing a useful guide to the strategic uses of Web 2.0 Technologies for c-level executives. Such technologies include social networks, blogging, and search engine optimization. Great progress is being made for the books release, but in the mean time stayed up-to-date with regular visits to this community. Questions or Comments; Please email joe@joecullinane.com
Here’s a common problem. You’re driving down a highway and need to send a message to your team, but you have no internet access. Plus, everyone is at a different location. What do you do? Enter Twitterfone.
To understand Twitterfone, you must first become familiar with the phenomenon that is Twitter.com. Put simply, Twitter is a website that enables you to share short, bite-size updates about your life with your followers. These followers are those friends that choose to remain updated with your life by following all your updates. You can also choose to follow friends to keep updated with their short, bite-size updates. These updates can be followed by logging onto your Twitter Homepage, via an RSS Feed, or via Text Messaging.
Now, what about Twitterfone? Twitterfone allows you to update your short, bite-size updates by calling a toll free number and speaking the update into your cell phone. Once you confirm your update, this message will be posted and your followers (including your team) will receive the update right away via Text Message (or by checking their Twitter Homepage or RSS Feed). But wait, there’s more. You can also listen to your friends’ new messages and reply to other messages (publicly or privately) using your cell phone, no internet access required.
Sign up for Twitter today and you can choose to follow all my updates by searching for “Joe Cullinane”. Enjoy!
No Asshole Rule Stanford professor Bob Sutton provided a lively and entertaining presentation of his best selling book The No Asshole Rule. It made all the assholes in the audience uncomfortable.
Hammer Time
Hip Hop legend MC Hammer along with platinum selling Chamilionaire and producer Quincy Jones III provided a spirited discussion about tech and the world of Hip Hop. How we should work together. It was cool, peace out!
Twitter
Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter receives an award from Alwayson CEO Tony Perkins for being the top private company of the Alwayson 250.
