THG@SXSW: Last Day to Vote!

on August 31, 2012

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Last week, we told you about our very own Allison Hemming’s SXSW panel “Corporate Alums: Why Big Companies Invest in Ex-Employees.” The panel is an in-depth look at the future of corporate alumni networks and features some of the best minds in the field. This week, we find ourselves in the home stretch as voting at SXSW.com ends at midnight tonight! (Friday, August 31) We’d love your support! If our panel interests you, vote! (With only hours left, there’s no time for subtlety.)    Read More →

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Rules Are Rules. Or Are They?

on August 23, 2012

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When it comes to “rules,” which of the following statements do you most agree with?

(a)    Rules are rules…period.
(b)    Rules are meant to be broken.
(c)    It depends.
(d)    All of the above.
(e)    None of the above.

While there is no one “right” answer to the above question, the way you respond says a lot about you. The way you think and feel about rules in general will influence the decisions you make and the actions you take in different situations.

Let me tell you about two controversial, thought-provoking, and emotional incidents that occurred in the past week – both of which involved “following the rules” – and see what you think:    Read More →

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THG @ SXSW 2013: The Future of Corporate Alumni Networking

on August 21, 2012

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SXSW voting is upon us and we need your help! The Guns’ panel, “Corporate Alums: Why Big Companies Invest in Ex-Employees” is up for voting over at SXSW.com and we’d really appreciate your support. Our panel, headed up by yours truly, is all about the increasing role that corporate alumni relations is playing and will play in the future of professional networking. My fellow panelists are amazing (and humbling) and head up the corporate alumni networks at companies like Morgan Stanley and IBM. Find out more after the jump.    Read More →

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Working Under the Influence: An American Tradition

on August 10, 2012

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This week’s Economist ran a more-than-a-little nostalgic piece about the disappearance of the wet workplace. The article wastes no time in establishing historical precedent for workplace tippling, noting that workers on America’s earliest government buildings were often paid in brandy and that 19th-century railroad laborers apparently drank like crazy. Of course, there’s an obligatory Mad Men reference. But has the tradition of the three-martini lunch really gone the way of the dodo? Don’t be so sure.    Read More →

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It Takes More Than Buzzwords to be an Expert

on August 8, 2012

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The other day I took part in a hysterical exchange on Facebook: After watching AMC’s The Pitch (think Mad Men meets reality TV), my friend Deb Gabor, who heads up Austin-based consulting shop Sol Marketing Concepts, posted that she couldn’t stand hearing the contestants talk about “about mind spaces, brand platforms, value propositions, empowering consumers and other sundry bullsh*t.” She followed that with a comment along the lines of, “I’m afraid I sound like this at work – please help me.” Of course I jumped in with a snappy and equally buzzword-laden response, as did a few other folks. We cracked ourselves up. (I know, I need to get out more.)    Read More →

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It’s All in How You Look at It: Good News Among Mixed Job Stats

on August 7, 2012

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Last week, news outlets reported an odd set of seemingly contradictory statistics: 163,000 jobs were added in the private sector, while 1.2 million jobs were lost. While the latter figure certainly sounds dire, it’s actually not. As WaPo scribe Brad Plummer explains, most of the jobs shed were “seasonal adjustments.”    Read More →

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All Aboard the Nerd Bus: Connecting the Dot-Coms in NYC

on August 3, 2012

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Senator Chuck Schumer, a longtime ally of the New York tech crowd, recently called on the MTA to create a “Nerd Bus” route — yes, that’s actually what he called it — to connect all points along New York’s dot-com frontier. His statement followed the MTA’s announcement of a proposed “Brooklyn Tech Triangle” connecting DUMBO, the Navy Yard, and Downtown Brooklyn.    Read More →

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How to Build a Team That Builds Great Products

on August 2, 2012

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Chili PeppersToday we are pleased to welcome Wyatt Jenkins, VP of Product for Shutterstock, to the blog.  Wyatt shares his insights on breaking into the product management game and how he built a world-class team.

Hiring is a topic I’m passionate about because I like to work with bright, enthusiastic people who challenge me every day. I’ve spent the last decade building teams (most recently a product organization that includes designers, researchers, and product owners), and I’ve learned a number of lessons in that time. Let’s focus specifically on product ownership — a role that many gravitate toward, but few do well. I’ve seen many different types of people find success as product owners — from former developers, English majors, designers, and project managers, all the way to former CEOs and small business owners. (I prefer the term “product owner” to the more well-known “product manager” because managers manage and owners own, and building great products demands ownership.) I want people who are technical enough to dig deep with the development team and at the same time enjoy interacting with customers to discover value. Finding the right person with the right combination of customer focus, consensus building, and technical savvy isn’t easy, so I’ve put together a few things to look for during the interviewing process.    Read More →

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Write Well: The Gray Lady’s Guide to Getting Your Point Across

on August 2, 2012

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In the Times‘ Sunday Book Review, novelist Colson Whitehead provides a great refresher (or primer, depending on where your writing chops sit) on the art of good writing. Mercifully, Whitehead eschews the treacly mysticism present in so many “how tos” for writers. He doesn’t advocate drawing a bath and reading Foucault by candlelight in order to find your muse. Instead, he provides good, actionable advice for writers at all levels. His notes are purely practical and great for the working or aspiring blogger. If you find yourself awash in great ideas but unable to translate them into words, Whitehead’s advice should help you considerably.    Read More →

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Product Management, User Experience, Information Architecture, Interaction Design, Usability Testing

Project Management, Program Management, Production, Content Production

Animation, Art Direction, Creative Direction, Corporate Identity, Flash Design/Dev, Graphic Design, Web Design

Content Strategy, Editorial, Copywriting, Copy Editing, Research, Blog Outreach

Brand Management, Business Development, Sales, Product Marketing, Event/Conference Planning, Promotions, Marcomms, Corporate Comms, Direct Marketing, E-Marketing, Public Relations, Market Research

Account Management, Account/Brand Planning, Media Strategy, Communications Planning, Media Planning/Buying, Social Media, Search (SEM, SEO), Web Metrics & Analytics

Web Development, Front End Development

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