Breaking the rules on pizza delivery. Will Papa John's 10-minute pizza bring them to number one?

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2006-04-24-fast-pizza-usat_x.htm

Question: If you order pizza when you are camping, is it really camping?

-Adam

Snippet from CNN Money about how large media firms are acquiring video game companies and gaming websites in an effort to attract new customers and as a potential new channel for advertising.

Big media: Time to play games

Interesting article about CEO of Sun, Scott McNealy, stepping down. We talked in class about Sun potentially being the biggest threat to IBM, but now this is the fourth Sun executive to either resign or retire in the past two months.

The article, McNealy steps down at Sun, is from cnet.com

Here's a snippette on Honda and their Civic that runs on natural gas...

http://reviews.cnet.com/4531-10921_7-6490981.html?tag=blog

Here is another Apple snippette... Apple has release a new version of their remote desktop manages networked MAC OS X systems. The new version is designed to work with Intel based MACs.

http://www.forbes.com/business/businesstech/2006/04/11/apple-remote-desktop-0411markets15.html

"Google Calendar"

Here is another Google snippet.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technology/2006-04-12-google-calendar_x.htm

Sorry, the link in my last post didn't work. Here's a working link.
Protective parents: Gold for cellular services?

Disney to offer new cell phone service for kids, but with features aimed at protective parents, such as GPS to follow child's location and the ability to monitor voice and text messages.
Protective parents: Gold for cellular services?

The following link discusses a new possible strategy for Google and how you search for information.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/11/technology/google_search/index.htm

"The Forgotten Strategy"

If you are interested in global strategy you might want to check out the article " The Forgotten Strategy" by Pankaj Ghemawat. See link below. I came across this when I was doing research on the strategies used by CEMEX. They place a very high value on information technology and international knowledge workers. Based on their stock chart, NYSE: CX, I would say their strategy is a success.

http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=cache:0SPakRWfYLwJ:www.farrell-associates.com.au/Ops%2520Mgmt/Forgotten%2520Strategy.pdf+cemex+strategy

Hello Class.

I started a new blog for my posts. I thought it would be a good way to get rid of the piles of magazines I have at home.

Feel free to visit and comment as well as to this Blog.

The URL is www.geneawright.com

Gene A. Wright

Interesting article on e-waste from businessweek.com - HP Wants Your Old PCs Back. I found the section towards the bottom, which discusses Apple's pushback to such recycling programs and the impact it's had on the company's "progressive" image.

Found and article on CNet.com discussing the future of WiFi and cellular networks. The article is titled The skinny on CTIA Wireless 2006.

There's a section of the story that I found particularly relevant after last weeks class titled "A WiMax Combination," which discusses how some larger companies (ie. Intel and Motorola) are working together to lead in the push of these new technologies.

I had to check out Gary Hamel's company Strategos on the web, and while doing so came across an interesting article on Whilpool. See links below.

http://www.strategos.com/

http://yahoo.businessweek.com/innovate/content/mar2006/id20060306_287425.htm

Hamel has definitely left his mark on Whilpool. They now have thousands of people involved with innovation, whereas before it was just Engineering and Marketing. I like that they have a knowledge management system that can be used as an avenue for the (hidden) innovators. They also have "I-mentors" (like Six Sigma black belts) that help facilitate innovation projects.

Never before have I read or thought about Google as much as I have this quarter.

David Pogue, Technology Editor of the New York Times has a weekly e-column called "Circuits."

This week he covered Google's latest unveiling: free, easy to use websites.

See
http://www.nytimes.com/circuitsemail for more information.

Brian

One of the key things we do in class is discuss the importance of innovating strategy. There is an excellent article in FORTUNE Magazine, April 3, 2006 issue. Entitled "Best Buy's Giant Gamble".

In the article, the author, Matthew Boyle, presents the position of Brad Anderson, CEO of Best Buy that the retail giant must innovate or become a member of the "retail hospital" where companies go when their strategies get sick.

The article makes a number of great points about the need for strategic innovation and describes a few experiements that they are conducting around "customer-centricity". Best Buy, according to the article, is going to be shifting from "pushing gadgets" to "catering to customers".

Very Interesting.

Gene A. Wright

Product Development Management Association

Here's an article KM systems. There are a lot of sources in this article to retreive information setting up KM systems. I thought some people may benefit from it.

http://www.line56.com/articles/default.asp?articleID=7317&TopicID=10

MSOE Strategic Management
hear is an article that shows alot of strategic focus by milliken, their meeting a huge need with this product.
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/feb2006/id20060210_209422.htm

Interesting article on time management re: meetings

From the February 10, 2006 print edition Business Journal Milwaukee The People Pro Runaway meetings are the top time-waster at work Barbara Bartlein

A new nationwide survey finds that "runaway" meetings are the biggest time waster in the workplace. More than 27 percent of workers polled said meetings are the largest culprit for inefficiency and lack of productivity.

With today's lean staffing levels, there is increasing pressure for employees to manage their time effectively. Yet, many employers actually sabotage time management with runaway meetings and interruptions. Industry Week calls meetings "the Great White Collar Crime," estimating they waste $37 billion a year.

Some "red flags" that can indicate a mismanaged meeting:

No one in charge -- If the leadership of the meeting isn't clear, there is a tendency for attendees to waste time, pontificate their points and not draw any conclusions.
Not starting on time -- This practice "trains" employees to come late and expect additional time for socializing.

Lack of objectives or agenda -- With no clear purpose or agenda to follow, it is easy for the meeting to get off track. Participants may not be clear as to what needs to be discussed or for how long.

Lengthy guest list -- As a general rule, the more people at a meeting, the less work accomplished. When the list of attendees is extensive, it is often because there is a focus on not excluding anyone, not because each member's participation is necessary.

Just part of the routine -- Regularly scheduled meetings can lose value as circumstances and staff change. All routine meetings should be periodically evaluated to determine whether they should be held at all.

Effective meetings
To learn how to make meetings more productive, I contacted Chris Clarke-Epstein, who wrote the book, "I Can't Take Your Call Right Now, I'm In a Meeting." The former president of the National Speakers Association, she works with clients to help employees learn faster and work better. She offers concrete ideas to make your meetings more effective.

Not every meeting should take place. The right times to schedule a meeting are when conflicts need to be resolved, groups of people need to start working together or information needs to be shared at the same time. Meetings are a group activity so they can be effective when a group needs to reach consensus or rally around an idea or plan.

The person who calls the meeting has more to do than reserve the room. They need to also consider other logistical issues, including time, equipment needed, and food/beverage. They need to take ownership of the content, including preparation of an agenda and distribution of review materials. It is important to have a system to follow up on assignments and monitor the results of the meeting.

Meetings are no better than the people attending them. According to the Wharton Center for Applied Research, the primary cause of unproductive meetings is not having the right people in attendance. The most effective participants at any meeting are people who have the information you need, people who can make decisions, and people who will implement the decisions.

What gets recorded at a meeting has a chance of getting done. All meetings need some form of collective, agreed-upon memory. Without documentation, consensus can quickly evaporate. Meeting notes need to summarize the decisions made, itemize the actions agreed upon, fix accountability and document the deadlines for all actions.

Meetings that end without assignments are doomed to be repeated. Groups are often very good at decision-making and unbelievably poor at implementation. There needs to be an identified person to implement each decision within a specific time frame. Watch to make certain that everyone is getting some of the responsibilities.

Teams that evaluate their meetings have better meetings. Take two or three minutes at the end of each meeting to evaluate the process. Use index cards and answer the following questions: Were the meeting's objectives met? Was the meeting's format effective? Was the meeting of value?
The true value of any meeting is what actually happens after the meeting takes place.

Make sure individuals are held accountable for meeting results. And remember, if you don't measure it, it won't happen.

Barbara Bartlein is president of Great Lakes Consulting Group, Milwaukee. She can be reached at 888-747-9953, barb@ThePeoplePro.com or www.ThePeoplePro.com.