Event of Interest: Women Presidents' Organization (WPO) 13th Annual Conference April 22-24, 2010

Register now for the Women Presidents' Organization (WPO) 13th Annual Conference in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on April 22nd-24th at the Westin Beach Resort.

To view the Conference schedule, registration (for both members and non-members who qualify), and all Conference information, click here.

This year's theme is:

Thriving in the New Economy

Keynote speakers: Professor Neeli Bendapudi, Ph.D., Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University; Jean Chatzky, Best-Selling Author and Financial Expert; Professor Rebecca Henderson, Harvard Business School; and Frances Hesselbein & Marshall Goldsmith, Chairman and Founding President of the Leader to Leader Institute, former CEO, the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. (1976-1990) and Best-Selling Author and Executive Coach.

There will also be five substantive workshop programs, and our closing session on Saturday is Salsa Away your Stress.

Hope to see you there!

Seeking: 50 Fastest-Growing Woman-Owned or Woman-Led Companies

The Women Presidents' Organization is in search for the 50 Fastest-Growing Women-Owned or Women-Led Companies in North America! Applications are now being accepted through Wednesday, February 10th. Yes, that's right. Only two days left to make your move.

To be eligible, companies must be:

• Privately owned
• Women-owned/led
• Must have generated $500,000 in annual revenues by the first week of 2005
• Must have reached revenues of $2 million by year-end 2009

You do not have to be a WPO member to apply. What are you waiting for?

Click here to access the application form. Any questions can be e-mailed to fastgrowth(at)womenpresidentsorg.com

Article of Interest: 11 Ways to Create Great Online Content

Are you trying to snag new clients for your business with the content you produce on your website, blog, Facebook or Twitter platforms?

Then take a good long look at these magnificent ideas on how to WOW your readers, actively engage them and integrate the material across all online media channels.

Snippet (which begs me to ask you: Are you a silo-buster?):

11. Bust silos. Do you have a print newsletter? Do you produce a regular podcast? Run a version of a print article on the blog, upload the best headlines to Facebook, post transcripts of your podcast online, and chat everything up on Twitter. A lot of the ideas here reinforce the notion that you should not silo your content. Rather, sprinkle it freely across any of your platforms. It's important to think like a publisher, and leverage any publishing platforms you've created.

Read more here.

Case Study of Interest: How To Leverage Twitter For Your Business

The BIG question: Why Twitter? And why Twitter for your business? Find out via an interview conducted by Mack Collier of The Viral Garden with Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs.

Hint on an a-ha moment:

When I (Ann Handley) saw that with Twitter came tremendous opportunity to report, filter, and engage. Later, a plane would land in the Hudson, and there would be wildfires in California, and demonstrating in Iran, and so much more (Obama, Susan Boyle, Motrin Moms, and a thousand moments in between).

Read the entire discussion here.

See how the Women Presidents' Organization uses Twitter by following us @WomenPresidents

When you visit, take a moment to let us know your Twitter handle (mine is @LaurelDelaney)!

eBook of Interest: What Matters Now

Seventy influential thinkers share an idea for you to think about relative to your business as we progress into the new year.

From bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert to brilliant tech thinker Kevin Kelly, from publisher Tim O'Reilly to radio host Dave Ramsey, there are some cool people delivering important ideas here.

The free ebook includes Tom Peters, Fred Wilson, Jackie Huba and Jason Fried, along with Gina Trapani, Bill Taylor and Alan Webber.

For a fresh look at our new world, go here. Shortcut (download here).

Illustration source, here.

Event of Interest: Women's Leadership Breakfast 1/27/10

The Executives' Club of Chicago Women's Leadership Breakfast, "Global Inclusiveness -- What It Takes to Succeed" will be held Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at the The Hilton Chicago, Grand Ballroom (720 South Michigan Avenue) from 7:00-9:00 a.m.

Description:

What is inclusiveness? How are diversity and inclusiveness defined domestically and internationally? Are women uniquely positioned to deal with cultural challenges? How do men deal with those same cultural challenges? Discover how women are using their inclusive skill set to guide their companies to success.

Moderator: Karen Jordan, Weekend Anchor and Reporter, ABC 7 News

Panelists: Gisele Riba Di Spigno, Director, IBM Global Opportunity to Order, IBM; Kelli Stokes, Director of Global Diversity and Talent Acquisition, Caterpillar Inc.; Homa Sabet Tavangar, Author, "Growing up Global: Raising Children to be at Home in the World."

The Women Presidents' Organization Chicago is a proud partner of this empowering high-level women's program (look for our tabletop with brochures).

Registration is 7:00 a.m. Seated Breakfast, 7:30 a.m. Panel Discussion, 8:00 a.m.

Registration Deadline:

1/26/10

For more information and to register, visit here.

I hope to see you there! Feel free to contact me to pre-arrange a meeting (ldelaney(at)globetrade.com).

Article of Interest: What's On Your EcoMind for 2010?

Recall Michael Porter's five (5) forces analysis he provided that determines and shapes the competitive intensity and attractiveness of a market?

Attractiveness in this context refers to the overall industry profitability. An "unattractive" industry is one where the combination of forces acts to drive down overall profitability. A very unattractive industry would be one approaching "pure competition".

Another force we need to look at today is green initiatives. What is your green strategy for your business in the new year, the new decade -- over a life time?

... views going green as an essential strategy in a global commercial landscape increasingly contoured by environmental policies, regulations, and attitudes. These companies recognize that consumers’ concern for the environment has morphed into buying behaviors that are at least somewhat recession-resistant.

Take a proactive look here at strategy+business: Green Is a Strategy. Interestingly enough, the authors offer five steps (not forces) to "differentiated" sustainability for a full embrace of environmentalism.

News of Interest: 2010

Event of Interest: WPO Chicago Downtown III Chapter Holiday Party

Celebrating our successes. Celebrating the holidays.

Wishing all of you a very
Merry Christmas and Happy 2010!

Article of Interest: What Facebook Can't Give You

Before Facebook, MySpace, Linked In and Twitter, there was and still is the Women Presidents' Organization and according to the article referenced below, there was also the Wednesday 10 (a group of men ... for a reason!) which mentions:

"In 1957, it didn't occur to us to include women," says Mr. Menschel. "If we formed it today, it wouldn't occur to us not to include women." When asked about the homogeneity, other members point to the many banquets that included wives and their invitations to Ms. Walters, Gloria Steinem and the late "Feminine Mystique" author Betty Friedan, each of whom addressed a Wednesday 10 meeting as a guest. Ms. Walters says she recalls nothing from the meeting she attended. Nor does Ms. Steinem. "It may not please them to know that I don't remember," she says. "But I would urge them to change the name to the Wednesday Men's 10."

This article is priceless because, if you kick it up a notch, it reminds me so much of WPO and all our promising members who meet monthly to strategize about opportunities they face while growing their operations and to develop solutions to their most fundamental business challenges.

The article goes on to state:

To begin the meetings, each man gave an update on his life. Impending marriages and expected babies were nodded to, but the thrust of the discussion centered on career development. "It was a professional support system," says Mr. Meyer, 82. By the end of each meeting, he had a snapshot of what was going on in the realms of law, media, art, finance, real estate, public service and cancer research. "It was like reading a newspaper cover to cover," he says.

Read the entire article here:

(The Wall Street Journal, November 26, 2009)

What Facebook Can't Give You
Over 52 years, These Men Have Evolved Into Mover and Shakers -- Together

Another hat tip to Elisabeth Ritz, Ritz Communications, for the nudge to make sure we caught it. Many thanks.

Article of Interest: Wise Up

Around this time of year, we tend to reflect on all the things we did well (or in some instances -- not so well) to keep our business thriving during turbulent times. And one issue I constantly challenge myself on and wonder if you do too, is this: How effective have you been as a top executive?

The late Peter Drucker can help us address this question. As I was I straightening out my office this week, I stumbled upon a June 2004 edition of the Harvard Business Review and came across his classic article entitled, "What Makes An Effective Executive." I re-read it on the spot. It's a magnificent piece and one that is a must-read for anyone interested in becoming a more impactful leader, especially when we are readying up to face a brand new year.

The article begins like this:

"Great managers may be charismatic or dull, generous or tightfisted, visionary or numbers oriented. But every effective executive follows eight simple practices."

And the eight simple practices are as follows:

1. They asked, "What needs to be done?"
2. They asked, "What is right for the enterprise?"
3. They developed action plans.
4. The took responsibility for decisions.
5. They took responsibility for communicating.
6. They were focused on opportunities rather than problems.
7. They ran productive meetings.
8. They thought and said, "we" rather than "I."

Drucker throws in a bonus practice at the end of the article: "Listen first, speak last."

You can order an e-copy here.

In preparation for 2010, think about these eight best practices and how you might apply them as you grow your business. It only requires a healthy dose of discipline.

Article of Interest: Thought About Moving Your Business to An Urban Area?

If ever there were a consideration, now is the time to think about moving your business to an urban area. Why?

Goldman Sachs recently announced that it would provide $500 million in support for 10,000 small businesses, particularly those located in urban neighborhoods. A Who's Who of business leaders including the billionaire investor Warren Buffett and Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter have signed on the help.

But the person who will be responsible for running the initiative day-to-day is Dina Powell (pictured), a former State Department official in the Bush administration who worked with Karen Hughes on education and cultural issues. Powell joined Goldman Sachs in 2007, as the global head of corporate engagement. Her first task was to set up a program called 10,000 Women--an initiative to foster entrepreneurship among women around the world. The small business outreach effort will be modeled on that program.

Find out how the money will be spent by reading an interview conducted by Inc.com editor Mike Hofman with Dina Powell, the executive in charge of the program here.

Hint of how you get on the list:

Our criteria are that a business must have between $150,000 and $4 million in revenue, four or more full-time employees, and that it has been in operation for two years at a minimum.

News of Interest: Women Business Owners Have Huge Economic Impact, Study Finds

In case you did not know:

U.S. businesses owned by women have an economic impact of $3 trillion annually. That translates into the creation or maintenance of 16% of all jobs in the country, according to the Center for Women's Business Research. If U.S.-based women-owned businesses were their own country, it would have the fifth-largest GDP in the world.

A new study reveals the above and the economic impact of majority-women owned firms for the first time.

Download report here: Econimpactreport-final.pdf

A hat tip to Elisabeth Ritz, Ritz Communications, for letting us know about the study.

Resource of Interest: Choose Chicago

One of the points of interest we forget to blog about is our great city Chicago which many of you know is an incredibly delightful place to visit and conduct business.

Since we have so many WPO members in Chicago, we naturally assume you will be doing business with a few of them at some point or another. If you need specific introductions, drop me an email (refer to right sidebar of blog). Happy to oblige.

When you are ready to button down your schedule, explore Choose Chicago to make no small plans. We welcome your visit and look forward to connecting with you soon.

Pictured: Millennium Park sculpture.

Resource of Interest: 20 Tips for Best ROI in Social Media

Should ROI (return on investment) -- a very popular investment metric -- in social media be based on outreach efforts and bottom line profit results or based on a new ROI (return on influence) -- that of more a creative investment metric -- that you develop contingent upon your group of friends and colleagues?

You can decide here.

In the meantime, let us know how you measure success or what constitutes a win in your mind.

Resource of Interest: How Women Presidents Can Use Social Media

Here's a look at how smart companies, especially those run by women presidents like us, are using Twitter and Facebook to get ahead.

• Social Media Beachcombing: Survival of the Twittest?

  Twitter and other social media are quickly entering the mainstream, but it will be years before we see which innovations will endure.

• Slide Show: CEOs Who Use Twitter

  Dozens of CEOs who find Twitter to be a personal and professional delight. Here's how they use the service, and who they like to follow.

• A Twitter Code of Conduct

  To prevent information leaks and other liabilities, companies are drafting guidelines for social media interaction. A rule of thumb: Don't be stupid.

• Keeping Momentum in Social Media

  A few simple steps can keep employees involved in a company-sponsored social media platform long after the excitement of the initial launch.

• Starting a Corporate Social Network? Don't

  Save your company's cash. Leveraging Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter is fast, easy, and free.

Resource of Interest: Complimentary Business Entrepreneurship Courses Online

Who would ever think or imagine that if you want to brush up on a few critical business skills while running your business that it can be done online, at your own convenience and at no cost to you. Yes, that's right.

While reviewing local entrepreneurship programs at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, Entrepreneurship & Innovation Program, University of Chicago Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Loyola University Chicago, I stumbled upon this:

7 Universities and Websites Offering Free Business Entrepreneurship Courses Online

Sounds suspect to me but then I see that MIT - Sloan School of Management (mit.edu) is featured first with the following program modules:

• Global Entrepreneurship Lab
• Entrepreneurial Finance
• Law for the Entrepreneur and Manager
• Developmental Entrepreneurship
• Introduction to Marketing

Course materials include video, audio, text and many other multimedia elements.

Next up is Carnegie Mellon (cmu.edu) and U.S. Small Business Administration (sba.org)

In this tough global economy, maybe online education -- especially when it's top quality and free -- is worth a serious consideration. It can't hurt to get a refresher course that might very well strengthen your competitive position in the business world.

Event of Interest: The Founder of The Pampered Chef

We are delighted to have had the remarkable opportunity on October 20 to hear how Doris Christopher, founder of The Pampered Chef, grew her business from a kitchen table (started in 1980) into what it is today: a global empire that Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. acquired.

And we are even more thrilled that Deloitte sponsored our event. All three WPO Chicago chapter members had a chance to attend, network, learn and grow their business.

It is with these kinds of programs and companies, such as Deloitte and The Pampered Chef (along with our other chapter hosts and sponsors), that not only support us but make WPO even more special and a remarkable value for women business owners worldwide.

Aren't a member yet? You should be. Contact us when you are ready (check the right sidebar for email and telephone information). We just might have room for you in Chicago!

Event of Interest: WSJ Insight Exchange

I had the great opportunity to attend the Wall Street Journal Insight Exchange -- a business owners breakfast series -- on October 2nd at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago, where business leaders gather to learn from the experience of other, highly innovative CEOs. Wendy Bounds is the moderator of the program (she does a fantastic job I might add) and they are hosting these events across the country throughout the year. Next up is Atlanta.

Two WPO Chicago members attended the program: Kate Koziol, President of K Squared Marketing & Public Relations and Karen Barnett, President and CEO of Valley Screen Process (and the new BigShots!), served on the panel. Karen did a great job discussing creative ways in which she has kept her company growing despite tough economic times.

Learn more about the program here. And watch for more highlights about it soon here on this blog.

Article of Interest: Is Reverse Innovation Like Disruptive Innovation?

What is the relationship between reverse innovation to disruptive innovation? Is there any? For those of you new to disruptive innovation, that's Clayton Christensen's model for describing the impact of new technologies on a firm's existence, and you can learn more about that theory and Christensen, here.

According to authors Vijay Govindarajan (blog) and Chris Trimble, there is an overlap between reverse innovation and disruptive innovation but not a one-to-one relationship.

They go on to say:

We see three primary situations that create the possibility of reverse innovation. Only the first is also an illustration of disruptive innovation.

Find out about the three situations here and think about how you might execute on one or all three within your organization.