Maybe I Am Reading Too Much Into This

Mitch, let me say that if I ever left the company, I would definitely recommend you as my replacement.

- My Boss during my performance review last week

I thought this was just his way of telling me that he thought I was the best in the group. He didn't say he was leaving, but that if he ever did...

Today he sent out an early morning email that he had a doctor appointment in the morning and would be in the office in the afternoon. He never showed up and numerous attempts to reach him during the day failed.

So is something going on? I seriously doubt it. I was jumping to all sorts of conclusions last month when my Senior VP scheduled a visit with me out of the blue, and that turned out to be nothing (Ed: Unless that meeting was a part of this conspiracy? Maybe the SVP knows this guy is leaving and is already sizing you up???)

I assume this is what it appears to be, but you have to admit that quote is a bit odd.

Another Reason To Hate Hollywood Liberals

Hollywood liberals continue their descent into madness by continuing to turn everything they do - even stuff that is fun - into a political screed. I think they are in need of some serious counseling.

The latest example is the "Razzies", the awards that lampoon the Oscars by giving awards to the worst movies of the year. This is usually a bit of Hollywood fun where everyone gets a little chuckle. Who doesn't like poking fun at movies that were bombs? And it is usually done in the spirit of good, clean kidding around (hence the name "Razzie", short for sticking out your tongue and blowing through it). Even actors and directors sometime get in on the fun by doing an acceptance speech or commenting on their award (as Halle Berry did this year for her award for "Catwoman").

But this year the Hollywood liberals managed to turn comedy into some sort of sour political statement. They decided to give Razzies to Bush and other political leaders for "acting" in F911. The movie itself certainly deserved one, but to give one to real people for "acting" in a "documentary"? A bit of a stretch to make a political statement if you ask me, but just another example why more and more people are tuning out Hollywood. (maybe they are admitting that F911 isn't a real documentary, but I don't think that is the statement they had in mind).

I expect to see some more of this with Chris Rock at the Oscars tonight. These sort of people can't do anything without letting their own personal opinions get in the way. They seem to miss the fact that the vast majority of people don't care what they think.

On The Road Again...

As mentioned previously, Rorschach has done picked up and moved from California to Indiana. Him and his Missus is traveling the roads of this here fine land, so he is going to check with us now and then to tell us of his experiences. Here is his first entry, from the finest state of the union, my home state of Texas:

Stayed the night in Amarillo, went to Dyers BBQ for dinner.

Now this will likely not be any shock to all-y'all but dinner was tremendous not only in taste but in proportion as well. My dinner platter came with:

+ 5 large slices of beef brisket
+ 4 large ribs
+ 1 large (7") polish sausage
+ Family-size bowl of ranch beans
+ 4 onion rings (LARGE)
+ raw onion slices (after the fried rings? Good Lord why?!?!?)
+ 2 slices of Texas toast
+ large heap o' cole slaw (at least 1 cup)
+ large heap o' potato salad (ditto)
+ cup of apricots (dessert presumably? They was good)
+ 4 pickles
+ parsley
+ bowl of extra sauce
+ I also had a 32oz shiner bock

The kids' milks came in a cup that in California would be considered "Mega-Gulp" size. (Director Mitch: Boy, hadn't you heard that evythin' in Texas is BIG?)

Real transcript of the conversation as I paid for the meal:

Girl: "Git full?"
Me: "Yep. Sho did" (me being the chameleon-shape-shifting-bastard)
Girl: "Well, if ya don't heah its nobodies fault but yisself."

Total cost for family of 4 with 2 massive beers: $31.

DYERS IN AMARILLO IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Heck, sounds like you found yoself a fine dining establishment. Sounds like to me that you should just STAY in Texas instead of going to that small, cold state of Indiana.

P.S. Before hitting the road, Rorschach posted a nice photo montage of California on his web site, which I recommend going over and taking a gander.

Delete THAT Contact

Does anybody find it weird to go through their contact database and having to delete people because they're dead?

I just removed two people from my Palm who I never got around to deleting after they passed away in the last year. It's a little weird to hit that delete button. It's like I killed off a little last part of them than still remained.

Marketing Versus Sales, Japan Style

There are several epic battles that endure the eons: good and evil, God and Satan, Marketing and Sales...

- Director Mitch

If you think the battle between marketing and sales was tough, try making the salesforce Japanese and the factory Korean, and then you have a huge battle on your hands. There are several cultural issues going on in this scenario:

1. No Love Lost Between Japan and Korea - WWII was a long time ago. Today Japan and the U.S. are the best of friends although we carpet bombed their country, nuked two of their cities, and turned their God-Emperor into a symbolic figurehead. Since we were the winners, and the Japanese were pretty magnanimous in defeat, we are all friends today.

The same can't be said of some of the countries in the former Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere, especially those that lived through a brutal Japanese occupation. For example, Japanese businessmen to this day are sometimes refused service in Philippino establishments. And, except for China, no other country lived longer and more oppressed under Japanese occupation than Korea.

Now if you get Japanese and Korean business people into a room, everyone is smiles and handshakes. Everyone happily goes out in the evening together for soju or sake, or both. But just underneath those smiles there are attitudes still lingering from over half a century ago: The Japanese still have a feeling of superiority. The Koreans still have an attitude of dislike and distrust.

And these attitudes come out just beneath the surface in business dealings. I had my Japanese sales manager ask my Korean factory manager if the quality his customer was going to receive will be as good as if it were produced in a Japanese factory. I've subsequently got requests from this Japanese sales person to the Korea factory get "lost".

These little things add up, so the round-eye marketing guy has to step in and act as the buffer between the two. In this case I have put myself as a complete buffer between Japan and Korea, and now have everything running smoothly. In another, similar situation, I haven't yet been able to put myself completely in the middle, so things are still a little rocky.

Japanese Sales Philosophy - Non-Japanese companies who set-up local sales offices in Japan always end up asking the same question: Do our sales guys work for us, or the customer?

This is a completely different level than in the U.S. where your sales guy might ask the factory to lower the price, speed delivery, and other activities that "champion" his customer. In Japan you will face a complete lack of respect for the business needs of the parent company, and having your employee totally take the side of the customer.

I know of meetings where a company's own salesperson berated his visiting vice president to lower the price further after the VP and customer had already agreed on a price. I know of Japanese salespeople sending confidential pricing and cost information to their customers to give them an upper hand in dealing with the U.S. parent. I know of salespeople totally going against their company's best interest in order to "service the customer".

I am not alone in this observation. I've experienced it in two companies and have talked to a number of managers in other companies who have experienced the same thing. There are, of course, exceptions - I worked at a third company where our Japanese sales guy was totally awesome. But the Japanese salesperson problem is more common than not. If you berate them about it, they will say "You do not understand the Japanese way" (which is what I was told just last week).

What it means for the American marketing manager is that you really have to go in and control the situation, more or less micromanaging everything that is going on. It also means frequent visits to put yourself instead of the salesguy in front of the customer, which is why I get to go to the Land of the Rising Sun again in just a couple of weeks.

The Japanese Circle of Truth - I've already written on this.

But, in the end, I am still quite a Japanophile. My sales guys present me with problems that I have to fix, but on a personal level I like them and have a good time with them when I am over there. The country is fascinating and the food fantastic. So while they are a pain in the ass, at least they give me a chance to go over there and experience the country some more.

Famous Last Words

Ah, the things I said when I was young and knew it all...

"Sushi has got to be one of the most disgusting foods invented" - Today I consider it one of my favorite foods in the whole world.

"I'll never leave Texas. And if I do, it sure as hell won't be to join those fruits and nuts in California" - I moved to California in 1998

"When it comes to cars, I'll always buy American" - I've owned a Japanese car since 1999 (maybe California did it to me?)

(On drinking my first beer, smoking my first cigar, and having a martini for the first time) "I don't think I like this" - Let's just say I've acquired these tastes.

"How can anyone in their right mind pay $3.00 for a cup of coffee" - I have been a regular at my local Starbucks and Diedrich's since about - well, the time I moved to California - although I brew from home most days of the week now.

I'm sure Mrs. Director could come up with a few more...

Sometimes Firing Customers Is Necessary

There are two main theories in business when it comes to dumping customers:

1. Never, ever get rid of customers. You never know who or what that customer might end up to be, and getting new customers is harder and more expensive than retaining existing customers.

2. Always dump customers who are non-profitable, take up inordinate amounts of resources, or who make it hard to service other customers.

I am firmly in the second camp and believe dumping customers is sometimes necessary. However, it must be done carefully.

Early in my career at TI, Apple refused to do business with us. It turns out when Apple wasn't far beyond the garage shop stage TI dumped them, and from that time Apple refused to business with TI. It wasn't until Jobs was unceremoniously dumped for that soda pop salesman that TI got back in there, and remains to this day (even when Jobs took back the reigns). But TI still dumps small customers to this day.

But I don't think it's the fact that customers are dumped that creates animosity, it is how they're dumped. In most instances, I think showing the customer why they are being dumped can leave the door open for future business when conditions change.

I am going through the situation right now of having to dump one customer so I can service others. This customer is one of the top ten revenue producers for my corporation, but is a nobody in my product category. My group didn't want to service them originally because of their lack of revenue in this market, but we were forced to support them due to their relationship at the corporate level. However, we are now in a situation where even senior management agrees they need to be dumped.

Here is my factory's open capacity from 2004 to 2005. I have taken out the scaling in the Y axis, but let's just say that my open capacity is swinging from the positive six digits to the negative seven digits:




We are working to expand capacity, as seen by the small blip upward in March, but it won't be enough (I should note that this demand was unforecasted by my customer base and has come in the last 60 days). The situation means that customers are going to have to be cut - we just can't expand the factory in time to support everyone. And the customers who are being cut are those who are not in a market leadership position in this product category.

I plan to walk this customer through the issues and show them we simply don't have the capacity to support them this year. I am also providing contacts at my competitors who may be able to support them (although I think my entire industry is facing the same situation, so I don't think it will help).

Will the customer be upset? I have already given them verbal notice of what is going on, and they have not reacted badly yet. I am giving them the capacity numbers and other data this week to outline the business case, so we'll see where it goes. My guess is they will try to outrank me with senior management, but I already have that channel covered - the customers who are creating the crunch are deemed more important than this customer in this product category, so everyone is on board with the decision.

Not to Gloat About Where I Live, But...

Good friend and colleague Rorschach is moving from SoCal back to the MidWest this week. While he might be buying a house that is 3x the size of mine at half the price, I can remind him that this photo was taken off Newport Pier, about three miles from my house:

And it never gets below 60 all year long. When I want a little winter activity, I can drive a little over an hour, like I did this weekend, to Mountain High, where this pic was taken yesterday:



All the rain we have been having has meant a ton of snow in the resorts in SoCal, which have actually made them pretty good this year for skiing.

Surfing AND skiing! Just thought I would rub it in a little before he leaves.

Taiwan Should Know China Manufacturing is Inevitable

One must bend like the willow and not be rigid like the oak.

- Chinese Proverb

This was a surprising move by the Taiwan government: Taiwan Government Raids UMC Offices Over China Fab Links

Taiwan's Ministry of Justice raided the offices of United Microelectronics Corp. on Tuesday, looking for information that might prove the company illegally invested in Chinese foundry Hejian Technology Corp.

Worried about the loss of its core foundry business to political rival China, the Taiwan government restricts investments in certain technologies, including semiconductor plants capable of processing integrated circuits on 200-mm diameter and 300-mm diameter wafers

Now, I am not a fan of the Red Chinese government. But Taiwan, like the rest of the world, has to realize that manufacturing is moving to China, and can get in on the game and make money at it, or fight it and be left behind. Taiwanese companies are uniquely suited to play the game since they are, well, also Chinese, so this is a way to bring in even more revenue to its island-based companies. Better their companies that those from other countries.

But this isn't just about making a buck. It is about exporting democracy. Rising standards of living and capitalism are precursors to starting a democratic movement (another way to establish democracy is to invade and set up a democratic government, like Germany, Japan, and...Iraq). After all, if you are making money and own property, the last thing you want is a government that can easily take it all away.

In addition, if your own people are making money hand over fist, the last thing they would want is to stop all that economic activity, which would happen if China invaded Taiwan. The economic engine in China would grind to a screeching halt as its biggest buyer - the U.S. - cut off all sales and blockaded its coast. How long do you think the Chinese government would last if millions of workers were suddenly idle?

So I think Taiwan should be encouraging economic partnerships between its companies and China. While there may be short-term economic issues, I think long term it is a benefit to the island nation.

Why I Blog

Jim has a post on why he blogs. Both my former roommate and I have what would be called "lifestyle" blogs, essentially documenting what we are experiencing in our daily lives. We comment on articles, technology or gadgets that catch our eye, the latest headlines, sometimes throw in a political, religious or philosophical observation. I have dispensed advice on several occasions and have put up primers on marketing, sales and business development.

We are not doing hard-hitting investigative blogging, news blogging, insider political blogging, or detailed business or tech blogs. It's pretty much whatever comes into our head on a particular day, and the variety reflects our diverse interests and tastes.

So that is what I blog. But why? In addition to Jim's reasons, I would add:

Boredom - The reason I started this blog is in the name. As noted to the right, a "Window Manager" is someone in a large corporation who essentially has nothing to do. This might sound like an ideal job to a lot of people, but it isn't.

I was the only American in an Asian company's U.S. division and was outside the political, social, and power structure of the entire organization. I was the token white guy. I was treated with respect, but never given anything to do. Ideas and projects I suggested were simply ignored. But I had to be in my office from 8:30 to 6:00 every day. I thought about starting my own company from my office, but I ended up blogging. To anyone wandering by it looked like I was working.

Since I got a "real" job, I am not nearly as bored and thus blog a lot less - and my articles are a lot shorter.

Therapy - Don't laugh. Blogging is great therapy for depression, anxiety, anger management, frustration, you name it. Just write it out of you and achieve tranquility and peace, Young Grasshopper.

Getting The Last Word - Ever hear someone say something where you wanted to respond, but didn't have the opportunity or couldn't find the exact words. With a blog you can think about it, then blog it.

If HE can blog... - I "lurked" on other people's blogs for a long time before I finally started my own. The tipping point was when I realized that I was smarter and could write better than some of the more popular bloggers I was running across. Does that mean I am more popular than them now? No, but I certainly feel better about doing it.

Networking - I blogged on this before, but I still find it surprising that I have actually developed regular conversations with bloggers and readers whom I have never met in person. And I have met in person some of my fellow Bear Flag League team members when we had a get together last year.

The Love And Admiration of My Readers - On days I don't post I feel like I let down the 80-90 of you who stop by here every day. I feel it's my duty to provide you with a minute or two of interesting reading that you won't find anywhere else, which is one reason I usually avoid posting on topics that are already covered on the major blogs.

There are a few other reasons, such as practicing my writing skills and pointing out to the public what a smart, funny, and creative guy I really am. But these reasons, along with Jim's, should just about cover the entire list.

Punching Him In The Nose Is Also A Possibility

(Guest Blog by Mrs. Director)

When your boss communicates organizational changes to your subordinate without telling you, you should.....

A) Immediately call him on the phone and inform him that you will be marching to his office to discuss something of great importance.

B) Send your boss a nasty email outlining his COMPLETE lack of soft skills and the impropriety of skipping chain of command in decision making.

C) Run to a trusted friend's office and vet out all possiblitites, paying close attention to those that are career limiting.

As a sign that I am maturing in my professional career (or resigning myself to the ways of corporate America), I chose option C.

Here's what happened: Today, while I was at lunch, my boss informed MY analyst that she might be taking on some additional accounting responsiblity. So, when I returned from lunch the first thing she did was ask me "So, I undertsand that I will be taking on some additional accounting responsiblity?". I said, "Oh, who told you that?". After learning that it was my boss, I smiled and said "Oh yes, we have been talking about giving you some additional responsiblity but have not yet worked out the details which is why I have not told you". Meanwhile, steam is puring out of my ears.

My gut response was to go flying into my boss's office screaming at the top of my lungs "How DARE you make organizational changes affecting my organization and impacting MY analyst without talking to me FIRST!" (Comment From Mitch: This would not be a pleasant experience, trust me). The voice of reason (or experience) took over and instead I headed to a friend's office to vent.

This was probably the right move. After all, my boss is the CFO of the company...

This Is Worse Than Getting Fired For Blogging

File this under Stupid Employer Tricks: Beer Choice Costs Man Job

Isac Aguero, 24, said he was fired from his job with a Miller Brewing distributor, the same day a picture appeared in The Journal Times of Racine of him drinking a Bud Light, which is brewed by Anheuser-Busch Co.

Apparently this is the month of getting fired for stupid reasons. Note that this is a distributor and not Miller themselves, which I would assume (or hope) isn't stupid enough to fire someone for using a competing product.

Keep in mind that I worked in companies that used competing products of their own companies. I was also on the opposite side of the fence - when I was at TI we won a large DSP socket at Motorola, which had a DSP that competed head-to-head with our product.

But being a supporter of "at will" employment, while I think the employer is being petty, I do think he is perfectly within his rights.

How To Not Get Fired For Blogging

Wizbang pointed me to a story of a Google employee who got fired for blogging. It seems the company that "does no evil" (and the owner of the blogging service this post is on) didn't like the benefits package details and vague financial info he posted.

The original blog, which has the offending posts removed, is here. The offending posts are saved for posterity here. Reading through the offending posts I found nothing I would fire anyone about (I found the blog rather entertaining, actually), so I guess am not as much as an ass-hat as the people at Google.

That being said, I have to lay the blame on the employee. If you are going to blog on work details, you don't know if you are going to get an understanding Director Mitch or a "I know we say we don't do evil, but we are evil so that is a lie" Google manager. This is why I stick to these rules of blogging:

o Don't blog under my full name - I've posted on managing your digital trail before, and just have a different philosophy than Jim and Michael who blog under their full names (Mitch is my real first name, but a web search under "Mitch" doesn't pull up this blog in the first 100 entries. My real full name pulls up some professional articles I've written).

o Don't Reveal Too Many Work Details - I blog about work from time to time, but in a general way that could be from almost any company. The best a reader might glean is that I work in tech in something related to cellphones and my company has factories in Asia. That narrows it down to about 1000 companies.

o Never Use Real Names - If I blog about my boss, management or customers, I use pseudonyms or initials (like calling my Executive VP just EVP).

So if someone who knew me (like my boss) ran across this blog, could they figure out this was mine? Absolutely. But the chances of my boss or someone at my company doing it are pretty slim, and there is nothing in here that identifies or defames my company.

In this guys case, however, what makes his blog interesting is that it was about the inside workings of GOOGLE. If he had just blogged about a "major tech company in the Bay Area", his blog would not have gotten as much traffic, but he would probably still be employed.

I Want To Become A CEO So I Can Get Fired

Techdirt reports on an article in Business Week that says that Carly is negotiating a $21 million dollar severance package from HP.

Read that again. $21 million. For getting fired. That's more money than HP project managers - you know, the people at HP who actually get stuff accomplished - see in an entire lifetime. And it would support all those Compaq people that Carly laid off for years.

I am a capitalistic, pro-business kind of guy, but when I see stuff like this, it makes me realize how corporate governance has really broken down. There is a club of CEOs and board members who keep scratching each other's back by looting corporate coffers. Shareholders hold so little stock, or hold it indirectly through 401Ks, mutual funds and the like, that it is impossible for them to fix outrages like this. The mutual fund and money managers who do control the voting stock are in on the game themselves (check out who is on the HP board for example), so they have no incentive to change anything. So we keep seeing - and will keep seeing - outrageous pay packages for failure.

I don't think the solution is the government, however. Time and again government regulation has created far more problems for shareholders than management (Sarbanes-Oxley being the latest example of shareholders losing corporate value in the government's attempt to "help"), so I don't know what the solution is at this point.

This Isn't Your Father's Rental Car

A big thank-you to Avis for allowing me during my out-of-town meeting to say "Gentelmen, let's go to lunch in my ride." (my company booked the normal econobox, but they upgraded me to a PT Cruiser that had 125 miles on it):

While the exterior styling is definitely eye-catching, I found the interior lacking. It drives and handles like a car, but there is no pick-up to speak of whatsoever. I assume if you were buying one yourself you could upgrade to a bigger engine.

I Love Email Like This

There's nothing like getting an email like this to give you a smile at the end of the day:

Thank you very much for corresponding for last week. Significant meeting was done last week by your full cooperation.

Please cooperate continuously.

Please receive a good new year.

Hey, I am not laughing at my customer - his Engrish is a hellovalot better than my Japanese, domo arigato.

More Engrish here, which is always good for a chuckle or two.

Supernanny Is Missing One Technique

On the advice of Wizbang, I Tivo'd and watched Supernanny last night. I found it mildly interesting, if very predictable: family has horrible kids, Supernanny comes in and teaches proper parenting techniques, after a few stumbling blocks the parents finally catch on, kids' behavior improves, everyone gushes on how they have found life fulfillment with their family thanks to Supernanny.

I have a 3.5 year old myself so related to some of the issues the parents were going through (the terrible threes are worse than the terrible twos). But the two parents had totally lost control of their twin 4 year olds. Supernanny disciplined them by sending them to the "naughty corner". This is fine, but I thought one weapon was missing from Supernanny's arsenal: fear.

Now I understand that we are in a PC world and you just can't have Supernanny or the parents whip out a paddle and spank the kids on national TV. But these two little brats needed a good spanking the way they were terrorizing their parents. So in addition to the "kindler, gentler" techniques of Supernanny which will get you into scoring position, here are two plays that will put you into the inzone on kid discipline:

The Sergeant Yell - I think everyone who has seen An Officer and a Gentleman or who has played high school sports know what this is. This isn't done from across the room, or some ineffectual "will you pleaaase stop!", which was what the parents of last night's show were doing. This is done inches from the face at high decibels - minus the cussing for a small kid. This sort of thing brings adults to tears, so it definitely works on small kids. Recently, Little Miss Director learned that this is Daddy's response to when she says "No!", so she isn't saying that word to me any more.

Spanking - Definitely non-PC, and not effective in all situations, like when the kid is already in a tantrum, when you just have to let her rant. It's the nuclear option, but does have to be pulled out when the kid declares jihad.

Of course, now that Little Miss Director has learned that she can't get what she wants through demanding it, arguing for it, or throwing tantrums, she is learning how to get what she wants through methods that don't incur discipline. All she has to do now is take my hand, look up into my face, stick out her lower lip a little and go "Daddy, can I have a piece of candy pleeeaaaaassee."

How can I not give a little angel like that anything she wants? Mrs. Director figures that, using this technique, she'll have me buying her a BMW by the time she is 16.

Let's Party Like It's 4702!

In case you forgot, today is New Year Eve - by the Chinese calendar. Tomorrow is the first day of 4703, so party your socks off tonight. If you have trouble remembering that number on your checks, you can just remember that we are bringing in The Year of the Cock Rooster (so today is the last day of the Year of the Monkey).

So what does a Rooster Year mean? It makes you wish you were staying Monkey:

(The Year of the Rooster) may require a great deal of effort this year to resist going off on wild goose chases. Refrains from making speculative ventures. Disappointments and conflicts will result. The Rooster likes to flaunt his authority and a lot of trouble can come from his domineering attitude. But since he also symbolizes the good administrator and conscientious overseer of justice in the barnyard, the peace will still be kept. Everything will be precariously balanced in the Rooster's year, as his dramatic personality can set off all kinds of petty disputes.

This year we may have to expend maximum effort for minimum gain. Try not to fuss too much. Details do need looking into, but don't forget to view the whole picture. Be cautious. Do not aim too high. One is liable to get shot down.

I think I'll have a couple of extra martinis tonight to bring in this type of year.

I Won A Hundred Bucks!

Actually, Mrs. Director won $200 in her office Super Bowl betting pool.

Since California is a community property state, I'll be claiming my half.

Sorry, Aunuld, No Amendment For You

Mrs. Director and I watched "See Arnold Run" this week. Like Instapundit, we thought they did a great job casting "young Arnold" and an "eh" job casting "old Arnold". Mariel Hemingway as Maria was great. Overall we really enjoyed the program, and give it 4 out of 5 stars in the "made for TV movie" category.

One of the themes of the movie, especially at the end, was potentially amending the Constitution so Aunuld could run for President. Now, I like Aunuld, voted for Aunuld, think he is doing a faantasteek job as governor, and hope he runs and takes out moonbat Senator Feinstein in a future senatorial election. But there are two fundamental reasons I am against a Constitutional amendment for allowing Aunuld to run for President.

First, I don't think the Constitution should be changed for the sake of one man, which is the trial balloon being floated here. The whole idea of a Constitutional Government is to prevent personalities from dictating how a government is structured.

Secondly, there is the Law of Unintented Consequences. We don't know what effect changing this part of the Constitution will have down the road. Since I don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with requiring the President to be born in the U.S., I think it should be left the way it is. Sorry, Aunuld.

Red Tie or Blue?

You can check all those other blogs for a coherent analysis of the SOTU. What I want to talk about is ties.

You may not realize it, but Bush created a fashion sensation four years ago with his blue tie. It became his trademark and (nearly) everyone followed. Retailers had to rush at first to get them in stock and have kept them on the rack for the past four years.

Mrs. Director even got me one a couple of Christmases ago. She went in and asked for the "Bush blue tie" and the salesmen knew exactly what she was talking about. So I was up to date in my wardrobe and what does Bush do tonight but wear a red tie?



So now the Mrs. will have to rush out and update my wardrobe. But why the change? A signal of thanks to the Red States? A new tie color for a new term? An effort to help clothing manufacturers and retailers increase sales in 2005? Your guess is as good as mine.

Wired Magazine: Unethical Scumbags

As I mentioned a few months ago, I am let my subscription to Wired expire. It had turned from a tech magazine into left-wing political rag, and I just wasn't interested in getting it.

I got my last few issues along with subscription renewal notices. I ignored them. My last copy of the magazine came with a tag saying LAST COPY. I ignored it. I got a letter every few weeks asking "Have you forgotten to renew?". I ignored them.

Today I got a letter from a "collection agency" saying they were collecting a "debt" in reference to my Wired Magazine subscription. Since I no longer get the rag and didn't renew, why do I owe anything?

Turns out this is nothing but an aggressive - and threatening - tactic to keep subscribers. As explained by P. Sherman (not on Wallaby Lane), this is now Wire's attempt to scare you into renewing. It is not a real debt notice. He copied his "Debt Collection" letter and posted it here, so you can judge for yourself how misleading this thing is.

As both a consumer and a marketing manager I am appalled at this tactic. It borders on the illegal - similar to sweepstakes "winning notices" put into subscription come-ons, which have been banned in some sates. In addition to writing a letter to Wired telling them to #$(% off, I also wrote a letter of complaint to the California Consumer Protection Agency. They use enough of my taxpayer money, so I might as well see if they can do any good, but I rather just get the word out and have anyone who gives money to these scumbags cancel their subscription (and then get the notice).

Update: I got the following email this morning from Wired:

Our records indicate your previous order had information on it that registered you for our auto-renewal program, where your subscription would automatically be renewed annually.

(Mitch: I don't THINK so. What, that was the default when anyone orders a new subscription?)

We have removed your name from our auto renewal list. As you requested, your credit order has also been cancelled. Please disregard any further billing you may receive. (Mitch: You're still unethical scumbags)

If They Play Christmas Movies On Christmas...

...why don't they play Groundhog Day on Groundhog Day? A quick search through Tivo revealed that this great movie, loved my Calblog among many others, is not playing this evening.

While I appreciate the comedic aspects of the movie, I also like the subtle message: most of us just keep reliving the same day over and over and over:

Phil: What would you do if you were stuck in one place, and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?

Ralph: That about sums it up for me.

So learn the message from the movie: go out there today and make a difference!

Plagarism Doesn't Exist Inside Companies

I got an email forwarded to me today. It was written by my Executive VP, who is outlining a new strategy he is initiating. The orignial email went to the CEO and a few other senior execs. The reasons behind the strategy - about 80% of the email - were cut and pasted from a marketing overview I wrote and sent him recently.

Nowhere in the message am I mentioned. Nothing like "...based on a marketing analysis from Director Mitch..."

Ten years ago I would have been furious. Today...well, I really don't care. Really. Maybe because I am jaded. Maybe because I am more experienced in business and understand how things work:

Email Doesn't Have Footnotes - To be fair, there was probably data in there not only from my marketing analysis, but also from the sales force, other marketing people he talked to, etc. And my analysis wasn't generated in a vacuum - there were people who I could have thanked. There is no opportunity to put this sort of information in footnotes in an email or a put in a "I would like to thank Mitch and John and Fred and Joanne...." for every single thing sent out.

Your Job Is To Make The Boss Look Good - Your job - any job - is to make your boss look good. In an ideal situation, he in turn takes care of you. If I make him indispensible, he makes me indispensible. And I ride his coat tails all the way up. I haven't worked long enough with this guy to find out if this is the case, but as I noted before, he has brought me into his staff meetings although I am technically one rung too low to be included.

I Am In A Good Place - I work remotely from HQ, from my house or a local sales office if I want to hop into a "real" office. As noted before, I'm happy with this situation and he is welcome to use whatever I send as long as he keeps me in my present situation until I am ready to move. I have no desire to go to HQ or anywhere else just yet.

The one thing that bothers me is that he didn't copy me - or bcc me - on the original message. Someone else on the original list recognized that it pertained to an area I specialize in and sent it my way. An oversight? Maybe. Maybe not...

Dear Director...

Another reader writes in for advice, but I think the value in these columns is from readers' input, so add your $0.02 in the comments section.

"Dave" writes in with the following (edited slightly for length):

I have been at a tech startup for almost the past 2 years as the director of marketing. The startup is backed by top tier Sand Hill VCs and in the hottest tech segment right now. I feel it's time to move on for several different reasons: my passion is no longer strong at the company, there's no real carrot here in terms of salary and options, and I need to build up my resume with other successes to enter a top tier MBA program.

I've explored options with several companies where I have gotten a similar pushback--lack of experience and/or track record (these were high level 100k+ jobs where other candidates were late 20's and over 30). Keep in mind that I am in my early 20's and this is my first full time job after college--although I have done several high profile internships. I'd prefer to make a latteral Dir Mktg to another startup, although I might be open to a senior mktg role at key segment in a larger company.

I'm really stuggling on my next step and where I want to take my career. What I do know is that I have a knack for mktg and am an entrepreneur. On the side I am launching a new B2C startup, manage my own real estate rental investments and supplement my income with stock/options trading. On the other hand, I realize that part of the issue is that I may be just a tad too ambitious and just want to win too bad.

There's a lot of info in there, but I will put in my two cents on a few issues that caught my eye:

1. Getting that Carrot - Have you talked to your manager about getting that carrot? While I wouldn't tell him you are considering leaving, I would bring up what you have done for the company, how you feel about your compensation, and your desire to be rewarded along with the company's growth and success. You might be surprised at his response. If you haven't said anything, he may just assume you are happy with your current situation. And getting those options might do wonders for your motivation.

2. Business School - With your background and inclination for entrepreneurship, I am not sure that you really need or would benefit from B-school, except for the possibility of networking. Even then, there are other ways to get the same level of contacts, so I am not sure taking a couple of years off and spending lots of money for a degree is needed in your case. I do believe b-school is helpful for things like finance, accounting and the drier parts of business that are harder to "pick up from experience", so just make sure you are eyeing business school for the right reasons.

3. Putting in the Time - You mention that you are in your 20s and this is your first full time job. And it sounds like you are doing pretty well at it, but just aren't currently excited about it. Unfortunately, a lot of career growth means putting in the months and years at one job. A job isn't always running around 100 mph with your hair on fire, but doing the little things day in and day out, even to the point of drudgery. What this does is your case is get you experience past the point of product introduction and growth, so rounding out your experience in the product life cycle. For large companies looking at resumes, seeing lots of time and experience as a Marketing Director in one company looks better than job hopping between start-ups and an MBA, but this sort of brings me to the next point.

4. Strike Out on Your Own - From what I read, it sounds like the large corporate marketing path isn't right for you - at least not at this stage in your life. You say you are an entrepreneur and have a deep desire for winning, and that just says "start-up" to me, but one where you are pulling the strings instead of being an employee. My biggest recommendation is to go down this path - start your own company where you are in the lead, or with a group of people where you are the top marketing person. I think this would give you the excitement, job satisfaction and sense of accomplishment that you aren't getting in your current start-up position.