August 29, 2011

Bromance… It’s Official!

You’ve got some new “official” tools in your proverbial tool shed for that blog post, press release, etc. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary just added roughly 100 new entries and most of them resemble something that you’d find in an Urban Dictionary rather than one that has its roots dating back to 1806.

Let’s cut to the chase. Here  are some of them (verbiage taken directly from Merriam-Webster):

— Americana: genre of American music with roots in early folk and country music.

— boomerang child: young adult who returns to live at her or her family home, especially for financial reasons.

— bromance: a close nonsexual friendship between men. ***NOTE, MY PERSONAL FAVORITE***

— cougar: slang term for a middle-aged woman seeking a romantic relationship with a younger man.

— crowdsourcing: the practice of obtaining needed services, ideas or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people, especially from the online community, rather than from traditional employees or suppliers.

— duathlon: a three-part long-distance race typically having a running phase, a bicycling phase and a final running phase.

— fist bump: a gesture in which two people bump their fists together, as in greeting or celebration.

— helicopter parent: a parent who is overly involved in the life of his or her child.

— m-commerce: business transactions conducted by using a mobile electronic device, such as a cellphone.

— parkour: the sport of traversing environmental obstacles by running, climbing or leaping rapidly and efficiently.

— robocall: a telephone call from an automated source that delivers a pre-recorded message to a large number of people.

— social media: forms of electronic communication, such as websites for social networking and microblogging, through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal message and other content such as videos.

— tweet: a post made on the Twitter online message service.

— walk-off: ending a baseball game immediately by causing the winning run to score for the home team in the bottom of the last inning, i.e., a walk-off homer. Also, won by the home team in the bottom of the last inning, i.e., a walk-off win.

This was the first time Merriam-Webster added new terms since 2009 when it  added “vlog,” “webisode,” “flash mob” and “pdf” to its dictionary.

How are new entries chosen you ask? Peter Sokolowski, editor-at-large for the dictionary, says it’s an informal process “It’s just a process of seeing a word used frequently and in many different sources,” he says.

What could be other possible new entries in the coming years? Sokolowski says there are a few words on his short list including “man cave,” “millennials” and “mashup.”

Man cave and bromance… the possibilities are endless.

Twitt
July 26, 2011

Local award competitions: get your game on

Award competitions are often an important component in a company’s campaign to raise its visibility with its constituency.  It might make sense for your company to take a look at entering local competitions; even if you don’t win, it gives you some idea of what you’ll need to do to compete on a national level down the road.  And if you are fortunate enough to win or even place, it’s great publicity… and it’s good to support the organizations in your backyard.

In the Seattle area, here are a couple upcoming competitions you might consider:

The U.S. Small Business Administration sponsors Small Business of the Year competitions across the nation.  Any individual or organization can make a nomination, and there are multiple categories to consider; for example, last year, the Washington State winner for the family-owned business of the year was Tate Technology in Spokane).  In Seattle, the deadline for this year’s competition is November 29.  You can get more information here.

Seattle Business Magazine sponsors several award competitions.  Currently, the magazine is accepting nominations for its first Washington IT Awards competition (deadline is July 20) and the Washington Family Business Awards (deadline is August 15).

The Puget Sound Business Journal also sponsors recognized competitions, such as its popular 40 Under 40 and Women of Influence (deadline is August 19).

There are other competitions throughout the year, sponsored by organizations such as WTIA — a little digging on the Internet will help you formulate a list.  So get your game on…and good luck.

Twitt
February 2, 2011

Moving on up…to Afghanistan

The VOXUS team has had the pleasure of working with a number of interns over the years. Like most agencies, we believe that it’s important to give students working experience in their careers — not to mention the fact that we appreciate having an extra pair of hands to help out with any number of tasks during crunch times.

Sometimes, interns become employees (such as Lindsay Stril). Regardless, we like to stay in touch with them, and it’s always interesting to see where they end up. Erick Saks is a former intern from many years back who is now serving in Afghanistan as the chief of public affairs for the U.S. Air Force. We asked him to tell us a little about his life today, and to share any advice he might have for communications students considering a career of public service in the military.

Erick Saks on duty

Question: You’ve traveled a long way, in your career and geographically, since you left us as an intern. What’s your current job title and responsibilities? What’s your average day like now, and what do you find most rewarding about this phase of your career?

Answer: I’m currently about a third of the way through a six-month deployment to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. As the chief of public affairs for the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing, I provide communication support for the largest Air Force organization in Afghanistan. Our unit consists of more than 5,000 airmen and aircraft including the C-130 Hercules, our air mobility workhorse; close air support jets including the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon; HH-60 Pave Hawks, which are combat search and rescue helicopters; and MC-12s which provide an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance function. We also run the theater’s most advanced hospital and coordinate all aeromedical evacuations from the country.

Based on the significant mission of my organization and our proximity to Kabul, we receive continual media attention. I average a media embed per week; however, I’ve had up to three simultaneous embeds. The biggest challenge I face is the staffing. I only have three folks assigned to my office (a military journalist, a broadcaster and a photographer). My days are never average. I arrive slightly before 6 a.m., prepare news clips to spin leadership up on the media climate surrounding Afghanistan, then move down my priority list. Sometimes that involves prepping for and attending meetings and briefings. Sometimes I’m coordinating and executing media visits. Always, I’m providing guidance to my staff on office direction and internal coverage priorities.

I regularly meet with organization leadership to provide communication counsel and advice. Recently, I escorted a Wall Street Journal reporter to a tiny forward operating base near the Pakistani border to cover the importance of airdrop to remote bases. We got snowed in there for about two days, but I’m looking forward to a great article.

Generally, I work 13- to 16-hour days, six days a week; however, there are no true days off here. When I’m not in Afghanistan, I’m the chief of leadership development for Air Force Public Affairs at the Pentagon. The most rewarding part of this phase in my career is that I’m finally at a point where I can really influence operations, and I feel my voice matters.

Question: What’s your ultimate goal as a communications professional?

Answer: It’s still too early to tell. I’ve had many “ultimate” goals during my time in this field (which began in 1994), but I’ve found that it’s easiest to focus on the task at hand and let your abilities and successes speak for you. As long as my leadership appreciates the my work and the value of my organization, I’m content.

Question: How helpful were internships as you were determining your career path? What advice could you give to young communications professionals looking at potential careers in the military?

Answer: My internship was a key part of my development as a communication professional. Earlier in my career, I would find myself thinking “OK, now I know everything I need to know.” Now, I finally know that I will never know everything I need to know. Does that make sense? What I’m trying to say is that every experience along the way has provided experience and knowledge that has made me a stronger communicator. Every day, I will learn something that I can file away and use again in the future. My advice to young communications professionals is take advantage of every experience to advance your skill set. Everyone will have jobs that they don’t care for or bosses they don’t like (not at VOXUS of course!), but it’s critical that you take advantage of those experiences. I believe there’s little worse than stagnation and wasted time.

Twitt
March 27, 2009

Earth Hour – can you survive one hour?

The 2009 Earth Hour will take place this Saturday, March 28th, at 8:30 pm (local time). During this event, people from all over the world are asked to turn off electronics – smartphones, computers, lights, etc. – for one full hour. This year’s event organizers, the World Wildlife Fund, are hoping for 1 billion participants and have turned the 2009 event into a sort of election between Earth and global warming, saying that switching your lights off is a vote for Earth, while leaving them on is a vote for global warming. The WWF plan to present the results of the “election” to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference later this year.

Earth Hour first began in Sydney, Australia in 2007, when 2.2 million businesses and residents turned off their lights. During the following year, 2008, such world landmarks as the Golden Gate Bridge, the Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all jumped on board and went dark for the hour. This year, the Empire State Building, the Acropolis and the Eiffel Tower all plan to participate, and many electronics manufactures have joined the cause as well.

According to an eWeek article, the following companies have taken action for Earth Hour:

-Research in Motion has launched a special website for their Blackberry users supporting Earth Hour.

-Belkin International released a statement reminding people of the importance of Earth hour and that they should remember to make sure to unplug devices from standby power to save the most electricity.

-HSBC will have all employees switch of all non-essential electronics, such as light, TVs and computers for the hour.

-Vodacom, South Africa’s largest cellular network, will turn off its electronic billboards and shut off lights at 15 offices throughout the country.

-Suntech Power Holdings will turn off lights at its solar headquarters in China and hold an event themed “What do we do if the Earth has no electricity?”

-Con Edison will turn off the lights at the company’s Manhattan headquarters and have teamed up with WWF to ask NYC resides to join the cause.

The concept is simple enough and an hour is such a short amount of time, but will you participate? Can you shut off your iPhone or TV for one hour in the name of the Earth?

-posted by Stephanie

Twitt
February 26, 2009

Down economy drives down traffic

It’s a thought that’s crossed my mind once or twice during my daily commute from Seattle to Tacoma, but now I have some actual proof that the down economy is contributing to driving down traffic in the Seattle Metro Area. Kirkland, Washington-based Inrix claims the Seattle area saw a 28 percent drop in traffic congestion over the last year ranking 9th in the country overall. The report also says the United States as a whole saw a traffic decrease in 2008 from 2007 and blames two factors — fuel price volatility and rising unemployment. On average, Inrix found Americans spent 13 fewer hours struck in traffic last year. And get this, Inrix claims Detroit say a whopping nearly 47 percent drop in traffic congestion last year alone!

Inrix made the findings based on GPS-enabled vehicles, road sensors and other methods to gather traffic information on the nation’s roadways. The company spun out of Microsoft Research and claims to be the “leading innovator of real-time, historical and predictive traffic information, offering the broadest coverage, exceptional accuracy and innovative technologies to ensure the success of our customers’ navigation and traffic-enabled solutions.”

Before we all jump up and collectively do the no traffic dance, a point to consider as pointed out by Inrix’s CEO Bryan Mistele, “While less traffic is generally good news, the causes of it aren’t necessarily something to celebrate. Traffic congestion is an excellent indicator of trends, telling us whether businesses are shipping products, whether people are going to work, and whether shoppers are going to the mall.”

Downer or not, I’m enjoying smooth sailing for the time being.

-posted by Andrew

Twitt
July 16, 2008

Go green

Seattle has always been a ‘green’ city — and now its taking it one step further. Right now, Seattle is currently considering putting into effect a bag fee and foam/plastic ban.

The bag fee, if passed, would charge shoppers 20 cents for each disposable plastic or paper bag used at grocery, convenience and drugstores starting in January 2009. Stores would keep a nickel to cover the cost of administering the fee. Small stores that gross less than $1 million annually would keep the entire 20 cents. Each household would receive at least one free, reusable shopping bag.

The foam/plastic ban, if passed, would require restaurants and grocery stores to switch from Styrofoam or other polystyrene containers and cups to plastic or biodegradable alternatives in January 2009. In July 2010, the ban would expand to include plastics, such as utensils and deli containers. Businesses would have to use all biodegradable containers.

Personally, as much as this may take some getting use to… This is an initiative that everyone in Seattle, and perhaps all of Washington, should support for a cleaner city and for future generations.

-posted by Shawnna

Twitt
January 15, 2008

Mac vs PC (Microsoft), Good vs Evil, Blah Blah Blah

So I just started working at Voxus and have the unenviable or enviable task (depending on how you look at it) of migrating from a PC to a Mac.

Let me just preface with the fact that prior to Voxus, I worked for one of Microsoft’s PR agencies and in fact was in New York City for the launch of Windows Vista. I’ve got everyone breathing down my neck saying, “what do you think about the Mac?” From a mom in education whose worked on a Mac for years to a dad in high tech that’s lived with a PC for years. As for me… we had a Mac in our house when I was really young, but like the rest of the world migrated to a PC in the early 90’s. In absolute delight that her son is becoming a Mac user, my mom has sent me article after article explaining why a Mac is so much better than a PC. Having lived in the San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle most of my life, I’ve heard it all… “Microsoft is big brother”, “Microsoft gives you so many more options”, “Apples are for creative types”, “Windows makes it easier to do what you want, when you want”, blah blah blah.

Honestly… after a few days… I can’t tell much of a difference. Sure, an apple is “cooler looking” with their super-sleekness and all. But when it comes down to it for us business types I just need a computer that turns on, allows me to use Word, Excel and Power Point, has an email application and lets me surf the net. My point is, and this is quite anti-climatic, it’s all about preference. I’ll keep you posted on how my experience is down the road, but until then…

“Hello, I’m a Mac user and I’m a PC user”.

-posted by Andrew

Twitt
November 12, 2007

Looking for affordable office space?

OK, I know this isn’t strictly technology related…but with all of the entrepreneurs out there looking for affordable office space, I wanted to at least mention My Day Office, one of the most interesting startups in town. It’s coworking, or community space collaboration, at its best — Shauna Brennan opened it in Belltown last month. So if you’ve been holding so many business meetings in area Starbucks that you know all of the differences in decor, you might want to consider an upward move.

-posted by Rachel

Twitt
July 9, 2007

But I have a note from my doctor!

So I know that we tend to write about Northwest-based tech companies, but I just had to pass along crucial information for anyone who has ever thought they needed a mental health day from work, but couldn’t take it due to human resources requirements. There’s a new website, myexcusedabsence.com, that’s dedicated to providing relief to beleaguered workers everywhere. Brought to you by two geniuses in Oklahoma (a state where a doctor’s note is frequently a requirement for sick time), for a one-time fee of $25 you get very official-looking notes covering illnesses, emergency room visits, funerals, jury duty, etc. You also get some tools to help manage your absences (i.e., did you already attend grandma’s funeral?).

-posted by Rachel

Twitt
May 30, 2007

In honor of Memorial Day: The War Prayer

It was a big holiday weekend, so I’m coming to this a bit late, but I thought it worthwhile posting something in honor of Memorial Day. “In 1904, disgusted by the aftermath of the Spanish-American War and the subsequent Philippine-American War, Mark Twain wrote a short anti-war prose poem called “The War Prayer.” His family begged him not to publish it, his friends advised him to bury it, and his publisher rejected it, thinking it too inflammatory for the times. Twain agreed, but instructed that it be published after his death, saying famously:

‘None but the dead are permitted to tell the truth.’

“The War Prayer” was eventually published after World War I, when its message was more in tune with the times.”

The Washington Monthly has created a video of the prayer, narrated by Peter Coyote. The English Major in me finds it fascinating because this is a piece of Twain’s work that I wasn’t familiar with. That, and the fact that it is a powerful comment on today’s political climate. So: The War Prayer.

-posted by Paul

Twitt
« Older Entries