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Article: By any other name: Beyond Meat grows beyond belief. Linda discusses how to leap forward with business innovations on MultiBriefs: Exclusive.
Article: A climate of change: What should your organization do?. Linda discusses how climate change might impact your business on MultiBriefs: Exclusive.
Article: Two Successful Female Business Partnerships on Life Lessons at 50 Plus. Linda Popky and Lisa Anderson who talk about being co-executive directors of the Society for the Advancement of Consulting (SAC).
Podcast: "We Built This City" - Linda Popky shares stories about her 40+ years in tech marketing in Silicon Valley. She says, "Don't ever listen to somebody who tells you you can't do something." - Listen!
SAC® Press Release: "Ethics Come from the Inside-Out in Exceptional Leaders" - Linda Popky talks about how ethical behavior becomes a key brand differentiator. – Read release.
Podcast: Linda Popky interviews Maria Ross who explains why empathy is so important in today’s workplace. - Listen.
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Harvard Business Review: "Identify the Marketing Metrics That Actually Matter" by Linda J. Popky - Read article
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Top of Mind Thursday October 17, 2019: Democracy Can Get Messy
I’m in Barcelona this week for a Society for the Advancement of Consulting (SAC) workshop tomorrow.
Barcelona is a wonderful city, but this week it’s in a bit of disarray. All week there have been protests against the convictions of Catalan politicians for their acts in support of the separatist movement.
Monday, the airport was closed down by protesters. Last night, there were street demonstrations, with dumpsters set on fire. Tomorrow, thousands of people are supposed to be marching on the city to signal their protest. People have been arrested, but for the most part, life goes on.
It’s messy and a little disconcerting, but not like the situation in Hong Kong where protests are now in their seventh month as China attempts to clamp down on the situation. The NBA was caught in the midst of this when a team official sent out a tweet supporting the protesters, angering the Chinese government and cutting off support for the league.
Even worse, consider what happens to people who don’t support the government in fully totalitarian states. They’re often not heard from again–jailed, exiled, or killed for their actions.
In America these days, we see polarization and strongly worded accusations by both sides. The House is conducting an impeachment investigation, and the White House is accusing Congress of a witch hunt. It’s not particularly fun, but it’s all happening without violence, arrests, or firing squads.
Yes, democracy can be messy, but considering the alternatives, that’s not such a bad thing.
How do you act in a climate of change? Read my article.
Join me for the free online video interview series The Inspired Leadership Show: Discovering Secrets to Being an Effective Leader Through Communication, Positive Influence and Sustainable Productivity. My episode is live NOW!
Contact me to find out how to get heard above the noise.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday October 10, 2019: Playing Power Ball
Starting yesterday, nearly a million people in Northern California are having their power shut off for days at a time as a way to prevent wildfires.
The preventative shutdowns are utility PG&E’s way to avoid a third year of catastrophic wildfires caused by down electrical lines. Over the last decade, PG&E has been responsible for nearly 400 deaths, billions of dollars of property loss, and the destruction of the entire town of Paradise, CA last fall. Now, a convicted felon in the midst of their second bankruptcy, PG&E admits they can’t clear enough trees fast enough to maintain an adequate fire break during dry/high wind conditions.
Meanwhile, residents and businesses are scrambling to find a way to stay safe during the shutdowns. Anyone who relies on electricity to keep perishables cold or to operate critical medical equipment has to find alternatives quickly or suffer the consequences.
How did we get here? Decades of delayed maintenance and an unwillingness to tackle a tough problem have put PG&E in this bind. But no one should be surprised by the preventative shutdowns. The utility threatened to do this last year (which would have likely spared the town of Paradise). They’ve repeatedly told the public since then they would implement these actions during times of high fire danger this year. Yet until this week, it appears most people didn’t take steps to be prepared.
The lesson here: Don’t avoid tough issues in the hope they’ll go away. Whether it involves preventative maintenance or contingency planning for loss of power, the warning signs were there. The consequences of not acting on them are severe.
The only winners in a power struggle like this are those who don’t need to participate because they’ve developed a Plan B. That’s a dark lesson many will be learning this week and beyond.
How do you act in a climate of change? Read my article.
Join me for the free online video interview series The Inspired Leadership Show: Discovering Secrets to Being an Effective Leader Through Communication, Positive Influence and Sustainable Productivity. My episode is live NOW!
Contact me to find out how to get heard above the noise.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday October 3, 2019: The Sun Never Sets
Last Saturday evening, nearly 1000 people gathered at a hotel near San Francisco Airport to celebrate the high tech company for whom they’d all worked.
There were discussions with some of the industry’s leading technologists, videos, music, dancing, and all of the elements you’d expect of a big high tech party.
But this was no ordinary celebration. The company was Sun Microsystems, which ceased to exist nearly a decade ago when it was bought by Oracle. Yet, from the excitement and enthusiasm in the air, you would have thought this was a living, breathing entity that still employed all of these individuals.
In many ways, it still is. We celebrated not only where Sun had been, but where it is today–with nearly 400 Sun-alumni founded companies and dozens of former Sun people as senior partners at venture capital firms. We tried to map out where Sun alumni have gone–and there isn’t a technology company in existence that doesn’t have Sun employees on staff. In some cases, like Google and Microsoft, they’ve even been running the show.
As an organizer of the event, it was rewarding to hear time and time again how important this reunion was–to have hundreds of people tell me that Sun was the best place they’d ever worked in their career.
Why has Sun culture endured when so many other organizations have faded into the sunset? Last Saturday, it was very clear: the network is the people.
How do you act in a climate of change? Read my article.
Join me for the free online video interview series The Inspired Leadership Show: Discovering Secrets to Being an Effective Leader Through Communication, Positive Influence and Sustainable Productivity. My episode is live NOW!
Contact me to find out how to get heard above the noise.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com
Top of Mind Thursday September 26, 2019: End of an Era
This weekend marks the end of Bruce Bochy’s tenure as manager of the San Francisco Giants.
During his 12 seasons with the club, Bochy managed the team to three World Series wins: 2010, 2012, and 2014. He has the second-most wins of any Giants manager, and recently notched his 2000th managerial win.
More interestingly, in an era when managers and coaches are fired almost on a whim, in 25 years of managing, Bochy has never been fired–even when his team didn’t have a winning season. In fact, Boch is only the 5th major league manager to manage for an uninterrupted quarter of a century.
Team management gave him leeway to manage the team as he chose. Players respected his managerial style and the way he supported them Even when it was apparent the team was not headed to the post-season, Bochy never ceded ground–he wanted to win every game he could. Many players say he is responsible for finding ways to turnaround games that seemed unwinable at the start.
Bruce Bochy’s career will end on Sunday, but his legacy will not. It’s widely expected he will enter the Hall of Fame for his managerial accomplishments.
From those of us who had the pleasure to watch you, thanks Boch! You’ll be missed!
How do you act in a climate of change? Read my article.
Join me for the free online video interview series The Inspired Leadership Show: Discovering Secrets to Being an Effective Leader Through Communication, Positive Influence and Sustainable Productivity. My episode is live NOW!
Contact me to find out how to get heard above the noise.
Check out our marketing thought leadership podcasts and the video trailer for my book, Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing that Matters.
.
Let us help your business rise to the top.
linda@popky.com
(650) 281-4854
www.leverage2market.com