A Great Teammate Is a Great Listener

According to the New York Times writer, Adam Bryant, sports do not stop before adulthood, they continue onto the business world. The article consisted of an interview between John W. Rogers, chief executive and chief investment officer, with Ariel Investments and the writer, Adam Bryant. Adam started off the interview by asking Rogers what sports he was involved in. Rogers replied that he was Team Captain of Princeton Basketball Team and was a vendor and Cubs and White Sox parks. He then went on to ask Rogers what lessons he learned playing basketball and Rogers replied by telling his story. He said he was not the best by far and the only reason the coach kept him on the team was because he worked so hard. Rogers explained that his coach taught him two things: teamwork and caring about your teammates and precision, and those two things changed his life. Later in the article Adam went on to ask Rogers how his leadership is today. Rogers replied by explaining how critical it is to remind people that you do want their opinion and that you are really listening. Also, letting them know how much you hear them and respect their opinion. Rogers states, “If you’re going to be an ultimate teammate, you’ve got to be a great listener.” The article then goes into the hiring process and what Rogers specifically does in regards to that. Rogers states that they look for independent thinkers. Those who are comfortable standing alone and have their own point of view. Another thing they look for as a company is teamwork. Someone who likes to see other succeed. A way to sense this is if someone needs to be the center of attention the entire time. The last thing they look for is someone who will work hard and genuinely love their job. At the end of the article, Rogers gives advice to soon to be college grads. One piece of advice he gives is to work hard form Day 1. Show your boos you are willing to go the extra mile. Another piece of advice is to look for ways to help your teammates and live up to your commitments. Be that rare person where people know your word is your bond and you are going to do exactly what you say. 

 

There are many takeaways that come from this article. One takeaway is the fact that Rogers stems his success back to sports and his experiences. He talks about how Priceton basketball changed his life and conducts a business model for his company around the team motto which is, teamwork. Another takeaway form the article is that Rogers looks for teamwork qualities during an interview process. Even though you cannot very much exemplify this, he looks for certain things that portray team work or not. The last takeaway is the advice for college graduates. Rogers knows first hand what he wants out of his employees and is laying it out for everyone to see to be successful in their work. 

One of the greatest articles I have ever read. 

First Girl to Ski Jump in an Olympic Event

According to Yahoo! sports, the first ever women’s ski jump event took place this past week in the Sochi Olympics. Kevin Kaduk, writer for Yahoo! sports, went inside the U.S. team and covered a story on one special woman jumper, Sarah Hendrickson. The article does not start off as good as it ends talking about Sarah’s. Late last year, Sarah’s hopes of a first time ever gold medal, not only for herself but for all women almost came crashing down due to a torn ACL and MCL that resulted from a crash. This knee injury led to Sarah having a lower gate at this years Olympics, which is understandable knowing how long a torn ACL takes to heal let alone get back to such an extreme sport. Even though the injury is a disappointment to Sarah, she still will proudly be the first woman ever to take on the jump at an Olympic game. This is the first time since men starting the ski jump in the 1924 Olympics that women are allowed to compete. Kevin later explained in the article that in the past women were good enough to test out the hills for the men, but never good enough to compete. The reason for women not being able to compete was because they faced discrimination and medical claims that the jumps were too dangerous for them and could possibly harm their reproductive systems. In 2008, Hendrickson sued the Vancouver Games for the right to compete in 2010. They were successful and were allowed in Sochi in 2011. 27 women were apart of this movement, and all have something to be proud of.

There are many takeaways from this article that can be interpreted in many ways. One takeaway is the fact as to why women were never allowed to compete. This is something that is not ethically correct just because of the fact they could not do it because of their bodies. Ultimately, women are not that different from men having two legs and two arms which is good enough credibility to perform something that they are fully capable of. Another takeaway from the article is the fact that the women had to sue the Vancouver Games to get their point across. This might possibly lead to other sports wanting to do the same thing. Discrimination should not be tolerated in the Olympic Games and the women skiers made that apparent. Lastly, another takeaway is how much our society has progressed in the last years. Women are no longer to be thought of as a lower to men, but equal and just as strong!

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/american-sarah-hendrickson-will-be-the-first-woman-to-ever-ski-jump-at-the-olympics-131831026.html

Do Six-Ton Captives Dream of Freedom?

Writer of the New York Times, Jeanette Catsoulis, decided to bring to the table the most talked about film of summer 2013, Blackfish. In the article posted in the New York Times she lures readers in just with the title alone. The article talks about the film and those who were involved. The beginning of the article introduces the director of the film, Gabriela Cowperthwaite, who took a risk to defend these helpless animals that are victimized daily in the parks of Sea World. The movie, Blackfish, focuses heavily on the killer whale named Tilikum, who allegedly killed 3 trainers while being held captive. The article states that movie simply unfolded the truth about what Seaworld was hiding from all and the false public image that the parks have. The article continues to go into detail about the amount of deaths that have happened at these types of parks and the author uses direct quotes from the movie, such as, “a trainer crushed between two gigantic beasts with only his wet suit holding him together”. Lastly the article ends with a direct quote from the director of the film. She stated, ” I question the advisability of exploiting mammals whose brains may be more complex than our own”. 

 

There are many takeaways form this article solely because there is an entire documenatry behind it. One takeaway, is how much this film hurt the Seaworld brand image. No matter if this documentary was true or false, it was still put into the public eye and people have the right to believe what they want. Therefore, someone can use this information given against Seaworld and not attend their parks. Another takeaway form the article, was the title alone. The author took an unbiased approach to the article, because in reality  people are entitled to their own opinion and it will ultimately lure a reader into the article. A final takeaway from the article is teh amount of marketing that can be done with this movie is very apparent. Ocean protection agencies can take full advantage of this film and advertise their industries and ultimately take the market advantage away form Seaworld. 

Commuting Can Kill

Commuting Can Kill

According to Yahoo’s most recent news, a long commute for workers can be affecting them in the long run. The article talks about how the luxury of a vehicle as been utilized by many Americans. They use vehicles for travel in search for “better lives and better jobs” as the article states. The article then gets into how much a long commute or the easy convenience of a vehicle can hurt you. The first thing the articles states is how it can lead to diabetes as a result of high blood sugar and cholestrol. A Texas study revealed that people who commute more than 10 miles to work had significantly higher levels of blood sugar and cholesterol. The second thing the article states is how commuting can lead to depression and anxiety. The same Texas study says that a long commute can have a negative impact on someone’s mood which leads to depression and diminishing the quality of life in not only the work place, but ones personal life. Commuting can also lead to exhaustion and sleep deprivation.  Erik Hansson of Lund University stated that, ” the farther a worker lives from her place of employment, the greater chance she has of suffering from exhaustion, lack of sleep, and sickness”. Lastly, obesity can happen because desk jobs are also lack of movement. Also, people are more inclined to eat fast food with a long commute. In conclusion, the article states that this issue can be extended how a long commute seriously harms the environment. 

 

There are many takeaways that marketers can use from this article.  One takeaway marketers can use is the fact that people will commute a long way for a job. People will do whatever it takes for a job even if that means going a long way for it. Marketers need to keep this in mind when creating their team because it is not only stressful on the commuting individual, but the team as well just when it comes to relying on one another. For example, if there ever is an outside event with the marketing team they all need to take into consideration the commuter. Another take away Marketers can use is that the commuter might be sleep deprived or depressed that can lead to lack of performance . This is not only hurting the individual, but the team and company as well. The last takeaway marketers can use is taken form the last line of the article. Commuting is not environmentally friendly and the marketers do not want to be advertising a company that is harmful to the environment by their commuting workers. 

Panera Lags Behind

Panera Lags Behind

According to Business Week, there are current problems in Panera and it simply because they are too slow when it comes to their competition. The core of their problems come from the kitchen. Panera kitchens do not have enough workers, insufficient equipment and telephone calls that slow down labor. Panera raised their prices which in turn drove sales down for the company not only at a corporate level, but franchise as well.

Panera Chief Executive Ronald Shaich defined Panera as in between the “red hot” competition which is fast food and casual dining. One way Panera is trying to keep up with competition is by making their menu more complex by constantly adding on items. This does not only frustrate the customer, but confuse them into what to get. Another thing the customers do not like is their speed expectations are not met. The reason for that is because of the competition Panera is against like Chipolte. Even though Panera is at the higher end of fast food almost being at casual dining, customers still expect quick service with quality food. Panera is lacking on both ends when a year ago they were leading their market.

Panera has come up with many ideas that the company will implement after Thanksgiving. The company chain will add kitchen-display systems to help move orders along. The company will also simplify their menu still offering all dishes, but taking the McDonald’s route in presenting their items in store. Lastly, Panera will stress online orders along with phone orders. Even if that means leaving a customer at the counter…

There are many takeaways from this article for marketers. The first takeaway is how much workers affect the company. Slow workers can have a strong presence just because not only are they slowing down operations, but slowing down the team. Marketers can keep this in mind when creating the marketing teams and the camaraderie that goes along with the team. Another key takeaway from the article is the competition that is going on between the fast food chains and how important customer service is. Marketers can use this when advertising companies and how much of an affect the fast food companies can have on the industry. The last takeaway is the customer experience and how much of an impact it has on society. Marketers can use this in many ways, but one way is when they advertise their business they can stress quality customer service and testimonials. They can also monitor what customers say on social media.

Google’s Idea of Women

Google’s Idea of Women

United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women put out an article that went viral on October 21, 2013. the article was mostly pictures, but pictures can speak a thousand words. There was a description to the article and it basically was making aware what happened when you search women on a Google search. The UN Women described these Google searches to be disturbing and illustrated that sexist attitudes still exist in our society today. Google searches like “women cannot”, “women should”, “women need to” and “women shouldn’t,” ended up with these auto complete results: “women need to be put in their places,” “women cannot be trusted,” “women shouldn’t have rights,” and “women should stay home.” The reason these results come up is because they are the most popular searches, which is just unthinkable. The article proved itself to be credible because it stated that each image was found on September 9, 2013. Google is the most popular search engine and its job is to keep things current and appeal the most popular items. The article wanted to make aware that gender inequality still exists and we have a long way to go.

There were many takeaways in this article in regards to marketing and this is the most interesting  articles I have read in a long time. The first key takeaway is how influential Google is. The fact that this grabbed the attention of UN Women all because of Google searches  is very influential. This is key for marketers and how they represent their company and brand. One small thing can go viral and the company can be looked at negatively by Google, the world’s largest search engine. Another takeaway for marketers is the idea of women in society today. Marketers want to be sure to keep women in a positive light not only to attract them, but be a a part of the movement of gender equality. The last takeaway is how credible is Google. This is key for marketers because they need to know what to use and what to ignore when doing research for their company. 

New Facebook for Millennial Generation

New Facebook for Millennial Generation

According to the New York Times, Facebook for current teenagers is now becoming more public due to privacy restrictions. In the past teenagers were only able to post privately within friends, but as a result of a recent change they can now share posts publicly. The motive behind this change were for what the New York Times calls the “savviest” of teenage users. Some examples of these types of teens are musicians are humanitarian activists. 

This kind of service relates more to blogging and tweeting and how they can reach a wider audience. This change was used as a motive to keep up with their social media competition, Twitter. Facebook and Twitter are still in competition for which site is the better site for reaching consumers interested in events like sports, television shows and the news.

The privacy changes also came from the Federal Trade Commission. This would give Facebook the legal right take a user’s post, including a post made by a teenager, and turn it into an advertisement broadcast to anyone who could have seen the original post. 

 

There are many takeaways from this article in regards to marketing. The first takeaway is that teenagers and their activity on Facebook is even being considered. This is very important to from a customer perspective because they have seen the company of Facebook grow and ultimately are the biggest users. They are the main target market to hit. Another takeaway from teenagers being considered on Facebook is from a future employee perspective. They are the ones using the site and have for most of their internet life, therefore they are the ones with the most knowledge. In the future they will be key assets to the marketing departments and the social media presence of a company. Lastly, another takeaway from the article is how Facebook and Twitter are still in high competition. Marketers need to create ways to differentiate their company through marketing. 

Fill Your Company with Athletes

Fill Your Company with Athletes

David K. Williams with Forbes Company gave 6 reasons to fill your company with athletes. He explains that there are some literal athletes within the company, but he advises his employees to hire people with athlete traits. An athlete will exemplify leadership which will always make for an exceptional hire. 

Reasons to hire athletes and exemplify their traits:

1. Athletes are relentless and have exceptional work ethic. They know what it is like to succeed, but also fail and will not give up until they succeed. 

2. Athletes make and achieve goals. When something goes “unplanned” they find another avenue of succession. They use mentality over physicality.

3. Athletes conform to necessary skills. They have their own special skills, but will always work on new skills to enhance current skills and overall performance.

4. Athletes are like entrepreneurs. They know how to see the big picture and make long-term goals and then create a strategy to ensure success. 

5. Athletes know balance. They know what to do to be the best possible worker and let nothing unnecessary get in the way. 

6. Athletes are team members. They know the strengths of each member of the team and highlight them. They know that having negative attitudes and bad “sportsmanship” is not the answer and gets you no where.

 

There were many takeaways from this article. One is that advising employees to hire athletes because it is an exceptional hire because of their athletic traits. This is key for any marketing department because they need team players to ensure there will be collaborative ideas and work being done. Another takeaway is that athletes are leaders. A Sales Manager can take this when looking to hire the Sales people because that new person could possibly be a manager one day. The last takeaway is that athletes know balance. As a marketing manager or team member you want someone that will be reliable inside and outside of the office just because there are often times in marketing where work is taken out of the office. 

Forbes thought of the day: 

“ Good sense is at the bottom of everything: virtue, genius, wit, talent and taste. ”

— J.J. de Chenier

Apple is now #1 Brand

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/30/business/media/apple-passes-coca-cola-as-most-valuable-brand.html

 

According to Stuart Elliot of the New York Times, Apple has now passed up Coca-Cola as Most Valuable Brand. Apple is now the number one brand in the world and this is backed up with the annual report of Best Global Brand. This is the first time in 13 years that Coca-Cola has not been the number one brand.

A surprising comment from Jez Frampton, global chief executive at Interbrand, explained the number one brand and said, “This year, the king is Apple”.  Frampton also mentions in the article that every so often a brand changes the lives of others; this year Apple changed lives because of its ethos. The article continues to explain that Apple is the true example of marketing, being the poster child for every community. In fact, the top 10 brands are all involved in technology and their marketing has changed consumer behavior in how we buy and communicate.

On the other hand, a Coca-Cola executuve mentioned last year when they were the number one brand that “nothing lasts forever”, which can be interpreted as they new it was coming. When Apple received its number one brand, Joseph V. Tripodi, executive vice president and chief marketing and commercial leadership officer, congratulated Apple and was humbled to still be apart of such an esteemed group of brands.

 

There were many takeaways in this article and many people in the marketing field can find the information useful. One takeaway was the comment last year about “nothing lasts forever”. This can be taken away as negativity and defeat. There was a year ahead of the company and you never know what can happen, that a company should never stop striving to be number one. Another take away can  be the Coca-Cola can use this technology brand as number one to their advantage. People want to stay virtually connected as companies want to do with their customers. Coca-Cola can continue to share their brand within friends and family for decades to come. the last take away is that above all, Coca-Cola, remains far ahead of Apple in likes on Facebook fan pages.

It’s all about marketing…and women.

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