CEOs Weigh in on Government 2.0 at Obama Administration Briefing

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

On January 14, the Obama administration held a series of events to support its campaign promise to use technology to make government more transparent. A selection of executives and CEOs, largely from the tech sector, were paired with government officials and asked their opinions on how technology could be better used to streamline government programs.

Among those in attendance was Craig Newmark, founder of Craig’s List and Microsoft’s CEO, Steve Ballmer. The administration is pushing for the use of new technology in an effort to improve the efficiency of antiquated government processes using technology similar to the private sector.

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The Jury is In: You Can Grow Your Firm in a Down Market

By Lee W. Frederiksen, Ph.D.

Case closed. You can maintain a high growth rate in a down market. This may sound like fantasy to some of our readers, but the data is in. We just completed the analysis for our fourth major study on building a high value, high growth professional services firm. The study is scheduled for national release next week, and the results are stunning. Here’s a quick preview.

We conducted primary research on 102 professional services firms across North America. During in-depth interviews with managing partners and CEOs we explored financial performance, strategy, client targeting, marketing and management. The study period covered the years 2008-2009 — the heart of America’s worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

We uncovered a group of companies that not only survived, but thrived… big time. Covering every industry segment, these exceptional companies grew an average of 9 times faster then their peers and were 50% more profitable. And as if that weren’t enough, they pulled it off while spending less than average on marketing and sales.

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What Apple’s iPad Can Teach Us

By Aaron Taylor

After last week’s iPad unveiling, you may or may not find yourself sucked like a Slurpee into Apple’s marketing distortion field. No matter how you feel about their new tablet computer, however, most of us can agree on one thing: Apple knows how to get people talking about their products like no other company on the planet.

Consider this. Even before last Wednesday’s reveal, millions of words had been written about the device — and every bit of it was rumor and speculation. Until Steve Jobs stepped out on a stage in San Francisco and unveiled the iPad, Apple had never said a word about their mystery product. Did it even exist? Nobody outside Apple and a few suppliers knew for sure.

So how did a nonexistent product get so many people worked up? The answer, without a doubt, lies in the Apple brand. Long ago, the company decided it would change the way people think about computing. And today an awful lot of people are drinking the Kool-Aid.

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Why Pepsi Traded in a Super Bowl Ad for Social Media

By Beth J. Bates, New Media Special Correspondent

The Super Bowl is right around the corner. And what’s the best part of the Super Bowl? The commercials, of course. This year, Pepsi has stunned the advertising world by skipping their beloved 30 second, $4 million dollar commercial for something that they think will be more effective – a social media campaign.

By investing $20 million dollars in a combined social media and crowdsourcing campaign, Pepsi appears to be trying to connect with its fans for the long-haul. Pepsi is hoping its “Refresh Everything” campaign will have a longer shelf life than the typical Super Bowl commercial.

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