The New Political Leader

24Mar10

Web 2.0 technology has dramatically transformed the way the government communicates with its constituents. I recently had the opportunity to work with a US Navy Captain (O6) who wanted to pioneer cloud computing technology within the Department of Defense – basically open source communication within a non classified arena – something the commercial sector has been doing for years.  He forsaw the need of bringing this open source/web 2.0 technology to the US Navy as globalization is rapidly crossing technological borders. This Captain is example of the new political leader.

Political leaders have begun employing social media tactics to help gain support for policies that would otherwise go unnoticed via normal communication channels.  For instance, during the whole health care reform debate, Pres. Obama and the Democratic team of social media experts took charge and began their forlay against those who did not support the bill. The hash tag #hcr (health care reform) has been one of the trending topics on Twitter since the debate began, and has allowed for all interested parties to debate on a free for all forum.

The 2.0 effect can have good and bad implications as people will be more inclined to believe information they see via this new media (I’m not sure how many for instance actually read the entire 900 page reform bill…). However, at least the word is getting out to even the youngest of constituents who may have not had any other way of knowing about the issues at hand.

This impact correlates with the organizational change of young people obtaining traditionally tenured positions within the government since they better understand this new technology. Jared Cohen (member of the Secretary of State’s Policy Planning staff) and Rania Al Abdullah (Queen of Jordan) are both examples of brilliant young minds at work.  They have both used political influence and celebrity to spread their causal messages to all of their online followers.

Just watching current trends in tech and politics, makes me question what will happen next – online voting anyone?

Filed under: Politics, Social Media   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: government, healthcare reform, jared cohen, Politics, queen rania

Long-term FTW

18Mar10

Long-term planning can ensure happiness, health, and success in both the professional world and in personal relationships.  Of course there may be times when plans are derailed by situations that no one can anticipate.  However, acknowledging a flexible plan which pinpoints the risks that may occur along the way will help counter any unexpected roadblocks.

The following are situations in which long-term planning takes the win:

Health – With the unsurely nature of what impact the new healthcare reform will have over time, long-term health plans should be taken into account, especially if you know have genetic risk factors or reoccurring illnesses in your background.  Some things you can do now are: open up a 401K (or even better a Roth IRA), get a gym membership (a lot of big businesses offer a generous corporate discount), and take your daily vitamins (if you don’t know which ones, check out WebMD or GNC).

Retirement – The ING Financial Calculator is a great tool that gives a basic summary of your possible retirement expectations based of the information you give them.

Career – Of course aspirations change over time, however setting aside a flexible professional development plan can help in a) organizing your thoughts b) keeping you on track with your end goal. For instance, I have a very basic scratch version of my development plan that I mapped out on Word. If you’re obsessed with planning like I am, setting aside a plan B and C will lessen any blows that you encounter to your primary aspiration.

@Work – Business plans are there for a reason. The main reason being that it helps consider the current details of your project/business as well as its future.  Starting with a business plan will help save you money and time since you won’t have to revert back to the drawing board every time you encounter an issue. For startups, business plans serve as good management tools and help attract investors.

Filed under: Career, My Experiences   |  1 Comment
Tags: business plan, Career, healthcare, long-term, planning, retirement, startup

The Fashionista’s Guide to Professionalism

16Mar10

I recently splurged my tax refund check to buying a new wardrobe for a gig in the East Coast. All I kept thinking while at the check out counter was loans… rent… movers…

The fact is though, as much as I hate to admit it, looks matter. The way you present yourself in a professional environment will define how others perceive you, especially if you work in the B2B/B2C realm – think of it as high school 2.0.  You don’t need to wear the latest trends or brand names – simple cleanliness comes a long way.

Golden rule - always read up on your company’s guidelines and see if they value the corporate stickler look (suit + tie) or if they are pretty chill (the Google way).

Here are some DOs and DONTs:

Fellas

- No shorts. Let the ladies handle showing legs at work. Stick with slacks, and make sure you have your khakis, navys, blacks, and greys pressed and ready to go the night before.

- Lay low with the tats and earrings. If you have them it’s fine, but understand that it’s simply attracting unnecessary attention to yourself than the work you have to present.

- Tuck in your shirts, especially the collared ones. It just looks messy if you don’t.

- A nice belt, is the best and most attractive accessory for a guy. This is one way you can showcase your personality, yet still be classy.

- No tennis shoes, sneakers, or cowboy boots (unless you work at a ranch or Google).

- No Hawaiian/silky shirts. Be GQ, not “the Situation.”

Ladies

- Tuck in the girls before going to work. Unless you want to be known as “that girl” who gets what she wants because of what she has, make sure that you look chic instead of exuberating sex appeal.

- Do away with minis. Save them for a night out, and find skirts that hit your knees. My favorites are pencil skirts since they define your shape.

- Don’t overdo jewelry, it just makes you look flashy. If you have your ears pierced, try nice diamond (or sterling silver) studs. They will match every outfit, and if you’re on a budget are cost effective.

- As girls, we have so many options with shoes – Wedges, Peep toes, Boots. Here are some online shoe portals that sell name brand shoes at a fraction of the price: Endless, Bluefly , the OutNet, Net-a-Porter, Zappos

- Remember, “A girl should should be classy and fabulous” ~ Coco Chanel

Filed under: Career   |  2 Comments
Tags: interviewing, professional attire, fashion, discount shopping, business casual, work

The new “it girl” of digital marketing

05Mar10

Social media is the new “it girl” of digital marketing. Traditional media (i.e newspapers, television) is in collapse as consumers have more pull in the market than journalists.  I attended a seminar sponsored by the San Diego Software Industry Council (SDSIC) this morning where Cherry Park, Director of Digital Marketing for Qualcomm (the mobile giant), took us through various scenarios of how businesses can successfully use social media.

The following are insights I gained from her presentation:

You must connect your social media campaign with the company’s communication objectives

1. The goal is to increase your brand message and awareness
2. We want to try and humanize culture by giving consumers the outlook to speak their minds
3. Companies should create “think campaigns” to raise awareness and constantly engage their users instead of employing tactics to get users to simply add/follow/fan their social media applications

Should concentrate your efforts, meaning that you start small and slowly get big

1. For instance, analyze the spaces that work for your company and by geographical region
2. i.e. If 80% of the people in Brazil use the social networking site Orkut, then a company who is trying to create their global footprint in Brazil should not expect to have a fan base by using Facebook

A social media campaign can consist of the following:

1. A “newsroom” that acts as the hub and links to all other social communities
2. A multi-contributor/multi-topic blog – Acts as a reinforcing avenue for subject matter experts (SMEs) by giving them a chance to speak out. It also gives a behind the scenes look from the company’s team perspective (i.e. OpenForum).
3. Must make sure that their is a consistent message being iterated from all bloggers
4. Twitter – You can design your Twitter page as a promotional venues.  Incentivize people to tweet; this in turn will create a buzz.
5. Facebook – Give fans a reason to become a fan of your page.  You can build apps within your fan page and take advantage of the built in analytics system.
6. Youtube – Is a great way to tell your story visually
7. Bookmarking – Spread relevant, interesting content to millions.  Tagging content relevant to your company increases search engine optimization (SEO)

Set up metrics and key performance indicators

1. Target fans, followers, and readers
2. Nielsen is an example of an online metrics monitor

If you don’t have the resources to dive into the social media realm – DON’T. You must continuously foster and highlight your social media channels.  Build a crisis communications plan for your social media strategy just in case you run into problems. For instance, if someone tweets something false about your company, you’d want to mitigate this situation ASAP before others retweet the post.  And remember, there is not a “one size fits all” social media strategy – so tailor accordingly.

Filed under: Branding, Social Media   |  1 Comment
Tags: blogging, digital marketing, facebook, mobile, Social Media, traditional media, Twitter, youtube

Personal Branding – What we can learn from Elle Woods

04Mar10

Competition is fierce, so differentiation is key. Any positive defining characteristic makes a difference in the both the corporate world, relationships, and “real life” itself. For instance, my name Virgilia (pronounced Vur-jill-ee-ah) is extremely unique. I walked into an interview with a Fortune 100 company, and the first thing the interviewer did was ask me the background behind my name. This one question ended up lasting 20 minutes and minimized any initial barriers that existed.

Obviously you don’t need a crazy name to differentiate yourself. Here are some small things you can do:

- Print out your resume on beige paper instead of white. Recruiters screen through so many resumes, that it will immediately pop out.

- Send personalized (handwritten) thank you notes to your interviewers right after your interview.

- On your resume and during your interview, paint a picture of yourself so that the interviewer sees more than your work life (i.e. hobbies, volunteer work). Depending on the nature of the job, you are not only required to work, but you’re required to network. So being able to show off your personality from the get-go will help you in the long run.

- In a difficult economy such as our’s, employ new tactics when looking for jobs. One of my friends sent Starbucks coffee cups with the name of the person he wanted to speak with to the company he wanted to work with. With a note “would you like to chat over coffee?” He ended up landing meetings with all of the ‘cup receivers.’

- Build a portfolio of your work in addition to your resume. This will be extremely helpful when attending career conferences like NSHMBA, NAWMBA, and NBMBAA.

- ALWAYS carry personalized business cards. I’ve gotten in so many situations that because I did not have a personalized card (not a business sponsored/company card) I had to resort to quickly pulling out my iPhone and finding the person on LinkedIn. When designing the card remember the MBA student’s favorite acronym: KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid).

Elle Woods (the pink-loving, sorority girl that went to Harvard Law) is probably one of the most defining characters of modern film. Okay maybe she took the whole pink resume mixed with a hint of perfume to the extreme, however she created a storm everywhere she went, and people remembered her.

Filed under: Branding, Career   |  4 Comments
Tags: Branding, differentiation, interviewing, personal branding, resume

Give Relief A Chance

28Feb10

Two months ago, I was pulled onto a disaster relief effort to help bridge the communication gap between the US Navy and people on the ground during the Haiti catastrophe. Since then I’ve had the chance to work with some extraordinary people who have taken it upon themselves to make a difference in disaster stricken areas rather than depending on larger non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the governments themselves to take charge.

After learning that 80% of all relief efforts are coming from small NGOs and faith based organizations, myself and a few others were inspired to start a campaign for disaster relief. Thus we are focusing on raising $5,000 during the month of March for a few highlighted NGOs that have made a proven difference to those on the ground.

These funds will not go to a particular relief effort, but more so towards organizations that are continuously working together to help those who have been affected by natural disasters (i.e. the Chile and Haiti earthquakes).

http://www.giveforward.org/disasterawareness/

Filed under: Fundraiser, My Experiences   |  2 Comments
Tags: afghanistan, chile, disaster awareness, disaster relief, earthquake, Fundraiser, haiti, hawaii, japan

The Blind Sheep

26Feb10

I vowed never to discuss my political ideologies with others unless I understood where they were coming from. But, for the sake of this entry will go ahead and say my piece. I am a registered Independent, and my views encompass a more fiscally conservative outlook with a socially moderate standpoint.

This is difficult to explain to others who don’t understand why I can’t stick to one political party: The Red or The Blue.

The fact is that I personally don’t understand is how a country with a population of more than 308 million can simply concur with completely opposite ends of the political spectrum.  This is one lesson we could learn from Europe (who trust me I am not defending… as seen by their latest EU debacle with Greece). However, what they do allow is for a diversity of opinions from their people. I’m not saying that a multi-party system is the solution, however we should be able to vote by an individual as opposed to a party and not be looked down upon.

In my opinion, if you don’t have a good reason to be a staunch follower of a particular party, don’t blindly follow what’s most popular without doing your own research.

Filed under: Politics   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: Europe, political spectrum, Politics, United States

One Size Fits All?

23Feb10

You’ve just coasted your way through undergrad, thrown your cap in the air, and are ready to step into the “real world.” But are you really prepared for what’s ahead or are you just following the preconceived notions you had of post-grad life?

Many recent graduates don’t understand the importance of how a job should be based on your passion. For instance, the ritz and glamour of a Beverly Hills surgeon’s lifestyle overlooks the 100+ hours he works per week, and the 1000 + hours of preparation/competition/and pure endurance he had to go through over his 8 years of schooling. A career does NOT come in a one size fits all package.

It’s hard to decide what you want to do in life when you’re 18, barely legal, and more focused on how to recreate your image in college than find your life’s passion. However, being open-minded and willing to change your mindset is key in finding your calling.

If you take my example: I was 16 when I started college, and was hell-bent on becoming a neurologist. At 18, I wanted to go to law school. Because of family pressure and the fact that all my friends were figuring out what they wanted to do (Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers) I decided to enroll in a Masters program and delay law school. Little did I know that this was the best decision I made in my 4 years of undergrad.

Those who aren’t flexible on their career choices and in finding the time to understand what they are passionate about will quickly become negative. It’s always easier to figure out what you don’t want to do before actually realizing what you do. Taking the opportunity to do so isn’t wasting time as long as you continue to work or learn along the way. Simply writing down what you love, and following that by creating scenarios of possible ways you can work towards what you love is the first step if you’re lost in what you want to in your career.

What about continuing education vs. gaining experience in the field?

Unless you are absolutely sure that you want to go to graduate school – DON’T. Experience is essential in figuring what you do and do not want to do. Experience builds confidence, and fills in all the gaps your college professors tried to teach you.

However (and I can only talk about B-School), along the road if you decide you want to change functions, an MBA is a great investment to make. Think about it, if you’re willing to invest in the stock market where you’re taking a large risk, why wouldn’t you invest in yourself when you have a sure return? The basis of business school is networking and getting an internship so you can change fields. So unless you’re planning on working in the same company, or can’t afford to leave your job – take the 2 years and work towards your end goal. Loans are there for a reason, and after your done with graduate school, you will be earning enough to pay them back. It’s better to be doing something you love and have loans, than do something you hate and be debt free.

Now at 22, if someone asks me what I want to do – I say “today I want to be Secretary of State.” How can they respond to that? =)

Wouldn't you rather invest in yourself?

Filed under: Career, My Experiences   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: Business School, Career, Education, Graduate School

In Search of the FemGeek

22Feb10

The Valley is the hub for all things high-tech related. No wonder why people dream of moving to Silicon Valley in hopes of finding an angel or VC to fund their startup venture.

I recently attended a Women 2.0 conference at the Microsoft Corporation in San Francisco and was shocked to see the number of women entrepreneurs who were there for the same reasons – to network, learn, and possibly find an incubator.  Many of the women (such as myself and my friend) had actually flown out to SF just for the weekend long event. It hit me then that if I wanted to compete or collaborate with any of these girls (let along the vast majority of male) wannabe entrepreneurs it was going to be difficult sitting in my cozy SoCal apartment.

Thus started my quest to find other entrepreneurial/risk seeking girls, also known as “FemGeeks.”

As our globe slowly becomes integrated due to the spread of technology, women should use these resources to their advantage and connect via the mobile and virtual spheres. Simply starting another chapter of organizations like Girls in Tech, Women 2.0, Tech Cocktail, etc. that have already established their brands is a good first step. The next is up to the FemGeek’s persistence.

Filed under: My Experiences, Women in Tech   |  2 Comments
Tags: Entrepreneurship, Networking, Silicon Valley, Technology, Women