Polly Pearson's Blog

Culture Contrast: Harnessing the Power of People

A colleague emailed me this NYT article titled, "Apple's Obsession With Secrecy Grows Stronger."

It reeked of old world thinking to me. I truly hope it isn't true ... because up until reading this I've had a secret professional crush on Steve Jobs. Let's face it, he's charming and the products his vision and his team create either make you smile, or woo you with their beauty.

But wow.

Contrast the "lock it down, speak nothing, tweet nothing" culture, as depicted in this article, with what EMC has going on.

While we take confidentiality seriously, we're also moving at warp speed to the model that leverages more connections, more collaboration, more sharing, and everything else 2.0.  (Kudos to EMC leaders like Board Member, Jack Egan; Division President, Mark Lewis; HR EVP, Jack Mollen; and CTO, Jeff Nick; Marketing VP & CTO Chuck Hollis; and the influence of folks who joined us from RSA Security like Dr. Burt Kaliski, for "getting this" early on and encouraging EMC to learn new skills to unlock the business magic within 2.0 management and behavior models.)

The evolved EMC culture is a mecca for empowered Intrapreneurs, for people who like to be treated like adults, who enjoy the riches of connections and collaboration, and who have an abundance of gifts to share which, when harnessed, can fast-forward growth of nifty things like revenue, profit, markets, market share, brands, life-saving efforts, market value, awards, and customer appreciation of game-changing strategies.

Earlier today, I wrote a comment on another blog which discussed how one might position the value of a 2.0 model to companies looking for ROI.  My reply is intimately related to this discussion of workplace cultures -- and the business value of that culture model decision. It follows.

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"Yesterday I presented my thoughts on the next wave of social media to an audience of business leaders for the TARA Exchange. I found myself using the analogy of a Triangle to show the value.

 

Imagine the top of the triangle as the "normal" top down driven way of getting information out and engaging audiences.  This is the typical command-and-control world.

 

Now look at the relative size of the bottom of the triangle.  Consider the backdrop of today's global business world where things change in a flash, and companies are looking for "strategic agility" to get growth, growth and more growth.

 

Would you like to have just the precious few engaging the world with your mission -- the top?  Or everybody? Will “just the top” get you there fast enough?

 

• Entrust your people. (99% will do the right thing; they really do want to help your business rather than hurt it.)

 

• Allow them to practice these new skills.  (Try an internal social network first. Ensure that the environment is supportive, and people understand that mistakes will happen – this is good. This is the place to learn. Encourage peer mentors in these new skills.)

 

• Provide them with some guidelines. (Be genuine yet positive; Connect & Engage as well as promote; Be careful to share only 'public' information; Mentor your peers with external tools as well and look out for one another; invest your time wisely; etc.)

 

And watch them become the most powerful and engaged organic brand managers you've ever seen! They'll do it for free, willingly, on their own time even ... and have a blast as they see the needle moving as a result of their efforts! They are a new type of leader in the 2.0 world. Here, leaders emerge at every level and pay-grade … and they come with faithful followers.

 

By leveraging the other side of the triangle, everyone is working with you to achieve growth, growth and more growth.

 

Look again at your triangle. 

You know what else it represents?  Think 'Delta,' the symbol of 'Change.'"

------------------------- Talk Back ----------------------

Thoughts?

I like to think that when the triangle is turned upside down, it really makes music ... for your shareholders, your business results, and the happiness of your really engaged people.

http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

EMC: Best Place to Work, New Video

It is crunch time for every company working on big Best Places to Work submissions, such as the one for FORTUNE.

Kudos to Taline Badrikian in EMC's Executive and Internal Communication Group who volunteered to put a little video together to share EMC's recent slew of recognition in this regard!

I especially LOVE the Austin Powers-esque sound track! Dig it baby.

----------- Talk Back -----------

Talk back all right. For EMC, the FORTUNE survey is currently taking place in America. Next week the Boston Globe Best Place to Work survey happens in Massachusetts. And the week after that, every EMCer can add his or her voice in the global Employee Satisfaction and Motivation Survey.

What? It's end of Quarter?  Didn't anyone tell the survey hungry people that?!

Well, at least someone is asking. I just saw a research report by an HR consultant firm that listed everything companies are cutting back on given the cost environment.  Seems a ton of companies cut the employee survey.  

http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

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Pride and People: Great News

A Story about Wonders

Years ago, when I was running Investor Relations for EMC, a little voice in my head said, "This is fun and all, and gee, a lot of people are making a lot of money thanks to these efforts ... but one day, it would be nice if I could really and truly feel as though I was also working toward making the world a better place."

... and now I see our folks in IR, Marketing (including me!), Human Resources, and every where else here, making differences in ways well beyond commerce. Yes, our technology inventions and services keep the world of on-line everything humming every day ... and we're also helping families. We're helping to save a life. Not in a slogan sort of way. Truly.

[About the illustration:  This artwork is hung on the walls of our Mothers Rooms. These rooms are set up to be Oasis' for our nursing mothers, so that they can continue to keep their focus on their family, while knowing that the EMC family supports them doing just that.]

Enter the story of Nick Glasgow.

 

Exactly 30 days ago, EMC's EVP, Jack Mollen, heard that Nick, a 28 year-old EMC employee needed a bone marrow donor in order to save his life. His doctors told him there was zero chance of a match due to his Asian/Caucasian mix. In minutes, Mark Fredrickson, VP of EMC in Marketing, was engaged and asked to see what we could do to help. Within an hour, our PR and Marketing Communication/Social Media abilities and practitioners worked to help get the word out to see if we could help Nick find a bone marrow donor that could match his needs ... F-A-S-T!  (I think most every EMC blogger, micro-blogger and Facebook user put out the word to their network as soon as they got the news.)

The full, and still unfolding, story of this journey is documented on a blog, "The Race to Save Nick Glasgow," Mark and Dave Farmer, our head of Corporate PR, set up to help rally more interest and help while keeping everyone informed of the progress.

The most recent chapter can be found here, in an email Mark sent to all 42,000 EMCers tonight. (Shared with permission from Mark.)

Hope has been Found: Two Matching Donors Located.

_____________________________________________
From:   Fredrickson, Mark 
Sent:   Thursday, June 18, 2009 4:55 PM
To:     EMC ALL-Employees
Subject:        Nick Glasgow: Great news on an employee in need

In the weeks since we first shared Nick Glasgow's desperate situation with the EMC community, thousands of you have responded with action, support and kindness in ways that have provided tremendous hope and encouragement to Nick and his Mom, Carole -- both EMC colleagues in our Content Management & Archiving business based in Pleasanton, California. 

This week, Nick and Carole received the best news they have heard since his ordeal with Leukemia first began -- the hope of two potential bone marrow donors who appear to be extremely well-matched and willing. I am forwarding Carole's message about her son's encouraging news, as so many of you have asked to be kept informed. 

Nick still has a challenging road ahead of him. What is clear is that the heart of EMC people, which quickly spread beyond our company and into many other communities and businesses through the speed and efficiency of social networking, really can make a difference in ways beyond the work we all have in common.

Nick's story has brought unprecedented attention to the need for more people to register as potential donors, and the volume of new registrations has skyrocketed. We truly hope that Nick's life is the first of many to be saved by this compassionate response -- and that anyone considering joining the registry will do so.

For those who wish to follow Nick's progress, this blog will continue to be updated:
The Race to Save Nick Glasgow

Best,
Mark

Nick, we're with you.

----------------- Talk Back ------------------

What are you thinking right now?

A big "thank you" for the efforts to find a match goes to EMC customers, partners, employees, bloggers, Tweeters, and most of the entire tech industry for contributing in ways such as: getting tested personally, setting up and funding testing centers,and getting the word out to others via Facebook,Twitter, phone calls, emails, and personal pleas.

http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

The Other Kind of "Culture" Alive and Well at EMC

Artists.

This gorgeous, living photography show is a Flickr stream populated by EMC photographers, globally. It greets me every time I log into our internal social network, EMC|ONE.

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Another art-oriented group really seems to be taking off at EMC as well.  This one is known as the "Creators, Artists and Art Lovers" group.  In this group, they encourage and celebrate one another's work via monthly "art challenges." Lately, they started a monthly personal challenge by posting an illustration for inspiration (that evolution of the idea came from an employee in India). The work created, as a result, is posted in the community for all to appreciate.

Creators, Artists, Art-Lovers Group

A place to share creative efforts or discuss them. Painting, Photography, Dance, Sculpture, Poetry, Music, Literature, Pottery/Ceramics, Fabric, etc.

Featured work within this group has included watercolors, poetry, quilts, Persian rugs, and oil painting portraits like this employee-created wonder by Ian Kabat:

------ Talk back -----------

Suprising? Cool?

I think so.

Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson.com
@pollypearson

EMC folks add to the discussion: "Why Do I Work at EMC?"

Joe Tucci started this bit of sharing. 

He wrote an open letter to Data Domain employees telling them a bit about what it is like here and how they would be treated if they decided to join the EMC family.

Now lots of folks are weighing in on why they work at EMC. These are

Real

Live

Folks

Working here in

THIS age of EMC. 

Here's what some of the folks are saying THIS WEEK:

Scott Waterhouse "Why would you want to be an EMC employee?"

Dave Spencer "Why work at EMC?"

Chuck Hollis "Why Do I Work For EMC?"

Steve Todd "What a Difference a Decade Makes" 

  Natalie Corridan-Gregg "I work for EMC because EMC works for Me."

Mark Twomey "Why do I work at EMC? For the 1%."

  Chad Sakac (Virtual Geek):  "Why I work for EMC..."

   

   Kathrin Winkler, "Have I mentioned that I love my job?"

  @MichelleLavoie, via Twitter: "Why work at EMC? Challenging, busy, learning, contributing, adding value, fun, people, even the occasional hug"

  @csiswim, via Twitter: "Why work at EMC? An expanding smorgasboard of diverse personal, business,and technical opportunities to whet any appetite for success."

     @phatphoto, via Twitter: I agree 100% with Scott W's blog post! EMC is a great place to work!

@NuzhatMkarim, via Twitter: "Why work at #EMC?" Cause I can b myself. I have a voice & am never just a number. I own what I do. Love the super smart down 2 earth ppl!

  @GMinks, via Twitter:  "Work w smart people, good place to find a partner too!! (Its how I met @brianrosenthal) :)

@kellylavin, via Twitter:  "Why work at #EMC ?" Employee Showcase, Visual Talk Radio show, @C2Cboston volunteer initiative, Campus Hires community, EMC Square/Store

  @dyoung322, via Twitter: "Why work at #EMC ?" Challenging, Endless Opportunities, Initiative is Commended, Involved w/ Community, Passionate People, Fun

  @mike_fishman, via Twitter: "Work at #EMC offers Opportunity, innovation, diversity both cultural and technical, reward, recognition, leadership, challenge, excitement"

  @mike_fishman "Why I work at #EMC" - And did I mention that working for EMC is wicked good fun! - It's nice to actually love your job and I do.

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Care to see body language in these sentiments?  Visit this site on YouTube.  Hear many more personal stories that were shared over the past few quarters about EMC:

Tom about his experience with his career development in Sales.

Renee about her career opportunities in HR.

Marisol about defining her life on a small island, in the Navy, at Harvard, and at EMC.

Glenn, a Stanford Grad, on empowerment and how EMC gives you the tools to create your personal  success.

Tom, about his experience at the front door of EMC.

Many of the stories can be heard in languages other than English. Such as:

Brittany's story, spoken in Mandarin

Stephan's story , spoken in German

Jose's story spoken in Spanish.

Dan's story, in Hebrew.

Nuzhat, in Bangla

+++++++++++++++++

I tend to think, at the end of the day, that work is personal.

Not everyone wants to think, play and grow in the land of Big opportunity.

That's cool. Keeping it small is just not our speed.

---------- Talk Back --------------

Why do you work where you are? Does the opportunity it presents match the size of your aspirations?

Polly Pearson
http://www.pollypearson
@pollypearson

"The Start-up Within ..."

What is the value of being part of EMC?

 

Soon after EMC added several software companies on the West Coast to its family earlier this decade, EMC's recruiting organization was tasked with attracting and hiring over 300 top-notch software developers into a newly formed software division (now known as the Content Management and Archiving Division).

DATELINE: March, 2006: The head of recruiting gave me a call asked for my help in shaping the conversation the recruiters had when presenting the EMC opportunity to the talent market.

To tackle the best way to convey EMC as a place to work, we decided to interview software developers to get their view.  We interviewed developers who recently accepted a position with EMC's software division; who refused a position with EMC's software division; and who have worked at EMC in software development for some time.  We asked them questions such as:

- What aspects of EMC did you find appealing?
- What aspects of EMC did you find unappealing?
- How would you describe the ideal situation/job for a software developer?
- How would you describe EMC as a place to work to a peer who worked elsewhere?

This ended up being one of my favorite projects.  I've worked in high-tech nearly my entire career and still, this little research project taught me so much. I won't say that the research was industrial-grade quality or that every element stands the test of time. But it did serve to validate some assumptions and cast new light on a true, compelling value of EMC as a place to work.

So what were the findings? Let me jump to the "unappealing" perceptions before I go to the appealing and the ultimate discussion point when seeking to engage people in the value of being part of EMC.

The Unappealing attribute perceptions:  There was a fear of the unknown. They were concerned about process at such a big company and the work challenge, in particular.

The Appealing attribute perceptions: EMC's company strength, inclusive of management, strategy, finances, viability, benefits, resources, market leadership and people.

The Ideal situation:  Technical challenge and an environment with technical management, freedom and flexibility, honesty, friendly, high-energy teams, technical resources, celebrations & rewards, visibility for work and a variety of challenges from which to learn and grow.

Many described EMC in quotes similar to this:  "EMC is a place where multiple, cutting edge projects are taking place -- all fueling growth and a differentiated strategy," and this: "EMC offers the challenge, career advancement, energy and freedom of a start-up."

Netting it all out:

"The Start-Up within ... a $10B+ Global Leader."

"At EMC, you experience the flexibility, freedom, and energy of a start up,
but with the resources and opportunities that a global leader brings."

In the subsequent years, we explored more deeply what EMC brings to the table as a place to work -- such as the ability to innovate every day -- you can find out more about that at EMC.com/careers and you can listen to folks, many of whom come from companies once acquired by EMC, on EMC's Career site on YouTube. There, you'll also hear words that get reflected across every product group and organization within the company -- like "passion," "energy" and "drive" in a "dynamic" environment. As one person said, no two days here are ever alike!

-------------- Talk Back ---------------

What's your ideal situation in a place to work?



Polly Pearson
18 years with EMC
"I signed on intending to stay for one year. It has never stopped being interesting or inspiring. My role here has changed as often as I've wanted. For me, that's fun."
http://www.pollypearson.com
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

Coolness and the Cash Register: New Way to Engage Employees in Strategy Execution

Yesterday I visited EMC's internal social network (EMC|ONE), and I noticed a lot of activity around a new group known as VCE -- standing for the VmWare, Cisco and EMC strategic vision involving Cloud Computing.

The VCE vision is new, and compelling, and interest in it is spreading like wild fire throughout the community of information technology buyers and beyond.  Let me stress the word "new," from the vantage point of sales reps that would be engaged in this discussion -- and the word,"compelling" from the vantage point of IT customers. 

That is the Wonderful Problem.

Customers are eager to hear more. Sales reps are being asked to discuss the strategy so customers can start planning for this new paradigm in their shops. Time is money to everyone involved ... but how do you ready your field organization and beyond to lead such new strategic discussions ... NOW!?

ENTER: The Internal Social Network.

Within this platform the experts on the strategy, in the field and in HQ, are sharing real-time updates. They're sharing tips for how a rep can engage in the discussion. Reps are offering play-by-plays for how discussions went during recent Executive Briefings between customers, VMware, Cisco, and EMC. Everyone is acknowledging concerns a rep might have to a degree you wouldn't see in a "normal" piece of communication from HQ to the field forces. (Example: no one wants to mess up.) It is all very personal feeling, very real-time, very two-way, and very helpful. It is serving to build knowledge, confidence, and lessons learned. It is genuine and honest. It is motivating!

Reality TV and Warp Speed

It is also oddly exciting (even to me, as a person who has lived in this world for years). Like watching Reality TV right before your eyes on how a company of our size and scale (3 companies, actually) charts new territory -- only now, it is at 2.0 warp speed and everyone at EMC gets a voice and a seat at the table!

------------  Talk Back ---------------

If you're inside of EMC, check it out and share your impressions on this new model. 

Outside of EMC, has your company experienced this shift?

To me, I've seen great value and benefits from the happenings inside of EMC|ONE -- but this one is special. It feels really big. It represents mega engagement from the field forces to a new degree with obvious $$$$ value.

Kudos to the EMC folks who moved to leverage this platform and share your real-time info. Wild-fire away!!

Polly Pearson 
http://www.pollypearson.com;
http://twitter.com/pollypearson

Workplace Culture: You want "Passion?" Here's 6 Times the Passion.

A colleague of mine just wrote a blog post that shows the mood flowing through a lot of this place.

I had to chuckle, then I had to stop and count the amount of times certain words were used:

"Passion" 6 Times
"Cool" 4 Times
"Amazing," "Wonderful," "Engaging," and "Success"  2(+) Times.

All in a normal-sized blog post!

Makes me recall this recent quote from another EMCer's blog:

[photo: NBC]

"Optimism Returns To The IT Professional?"

We seem to have moved beyond the doom-and-gloom life-really-sucks outlook of just a few months ago and firmly towards the newer opportunities that lie ahead for all of us.

I'm just glad so many of these IT optimists are associated with EMC -- our employees, our partners and our valued customers. 

Makes working here more fun, it does.

------------------- Talk Back --------------------

Are you feeling it?

If you're not, connect with someone who is.   And, consider reading this short wonder of a book:

Shellana Henderson over at Gallup Consulting made my day last week when she sent me the book "How Full is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life."   It is filled with proof that moods are  contagious -- and -- the destruction that comes from lack of engagement (either positive or negative).

Actually, she sent me TWO books.  The other was "How Full is Your Bucket? For Kids."  The latter is a gorgeous and powerful children's book -- that potentially does as well, or better, than the adult book at conveying the concept.

My daughter Margo was so excited with the kids book that she brought it to school and had the teacher read it to her first grade class.  The teacher was so excited, she wrote to me and asked where she could get a copy of her own.

 

Margo's passion for the concepts in the book continue. She has sound effects she uses for when people are adding to the environment, or subtracting from the environment. She suggests time outs when someone is operating in the wrong direction.

The economy is lousy. We can get sucked in by it, or look to the opportunity within it. 

Brand Promises: Google and EMC Compared.

We usually take for granted what we're good at. 

Rob Enderle's recent article in Datamation, "EMC, Google and the Enterprise Market," spoke to me.  In this article, and a second with the same theme, this long-term tech analyst compares EMC's strengths as a company managing truly critical information with Google's. 

What these articles made me think about:

So much of what EMC's brand stands for to customers, and what we're really good at generally doesn't get headlines.  Inside of EMC, it is sort of taken for granted.  We don't promote it and we don't revel in it. We just "are" it.  (On reflection, isn't that a near-perfect illustration of "brand?")

What are the necessary strengths required by the organizations that the world depends upon? As Rob sees it (and I agree):

• You have to be trustworthy.
• You have to maintain relationships and protect the buyer.
• You have to deliver consistently what you promise.

You don't get those things overnight, or without millions upon millions invested in what makes things work like oxygen. (See Rob's articles for his recap of Microsoft's journey in this space.)

On-line Information and Oxygen.

 

Are they Sexy? Not really.  But the world doesn't run without them. As an executive affiliated with HP recently said to a large audience:

"When EMC is not present, really bad things happen."

   

EMC is present where all information deemed important is present -- from critical surgeries to President Obama's blackberry. 

In research into EMC's brand conducted by Interbrand, the number one one take away from our customers was this:

"EMC is seen as a Promise Keeper."

So is Google or EMC in a better position? Read Rob's article (s) to see his views, and then share what you think.

--------------- Talk Back ----------------

What do you think?

Personally, I can't imagine not having the great search product that Google developed. I also can't imagine my life without the many applications and activities that depend on EMC to operate. 

Like what?

My Visa card, ATMs, Fast Lanes through toll booths, Check-free banking, my blackberry, on-time airplanes, on-time package delivery, and EMC's Mozy back up for my home PC, for example.

You can find Rob on Twitter at @enderle. You can find me at @pollypearson



Polly
http://www.pollypearson.com

Workplace Culture: "If you can see it, do it."

Culture at EMC

About eighteen years ago, in my first week working at EMC, I asked the head of my department this question, "How do I become successful at EMC?"

I love that the answer he gave that day is still so appropriate.

He said, "If you see an opportunity to do something, ask if you can do it and chances are they'll say 'Yes.'"

An even more up-to-date version of this, thanks in large part to social media tools and EMC's 2.0 management philosophy:

"If you can see it, do it."*

There is ALWAYS opportunity to jump in and work on something here, regardless of how it fits into your official day job. 

My colleague Dave Spencer, wrote a post on this today sharing a bit of his story and other observations he had while at EMCWorld. Below is an excerpt:

"A while back I told Polly one of the things I’d tell a new (or potential) employee about EMC is that there’s always something that needs doing that isn’t being done, and that if you can find a way to do that, you’ll always have a place here.  It’s never been more true, or more easy, than it is today.  I can’t imagine this is unique to EMC, but I certainly admire the way which EMC has allowed and encouraged us to explore those opportunities."

Dave was kind enough to sit down with me a couple quarters ago to answer the question, "What inspires you about EMC?" This is one of two clips we posted to the EMC Careers channel on YouTube with his answers.You can get to know Dave a bit better and hear more on this in the short clip below. (At 1:19 he talks directly to this subject of this post.)

* The only caveat, deep in the code of the EMC Culture, is that you continue to execute your official job inclusive of meeting all your goals. Anything you wish to do on top of that is essentially an open door.

--------------------- Talk Back -----------------------

What's your story? Are you doing things at work because you saw an opportunity and jumped in?

Brands. "What comes to mind when you hear 'EMC?'"

I like this quote on Brands,

"Brand identity either leads or lags reality."

 

With that in mind, I always love to hear what people most associate with my bread-and-butter brand.

A lot of people have long equated EMC with storage. This is goodness! We're the category leader in this IT space. We're also a lot more than this today. In the following fun video clip, you will hear storage a few times as well as some other long-standing and cherished attributes such as "Reliability, Quality, Service, Excellent" and, what the heck, "Money!"

There are many new attributes, as well, in these one-word associations. Attributes which speak volumes to the newer dimensions of EMC and our value to the market.  It is exciting to see these being heard and appreciated to this degree!  I also find it awesome as a brand-centric person that the "new" list is even longer than the "enduring" list. The speed of such a brand identity additions is remarkable.

There is a big word missing though, can you catch it? It might just be that with this audience it is assumed -- though I suspect it really means EMC has some brand work to do!

Here's what was said at EMCWorld this week in this up-beat, man-on-the-street type of vid.

 

The words I captured:

Infrastructure

Unified Storage

Virtualization

Security

DR (disaster recovery)

Celera

Reliable

Storage

Documentum

Money!

Services

Back Ups

Quality

Enterprise Suite

Global Player

My Goodness!

Storage Innovation

Excellent

Reliable Player

 

----------------- Talk Back ----------------

What word is missing?! 

Hint: While a few major product names are missing, I'm looking to a word that speaks to a higher, and increasingly vital level of brand association.

My answer will come in a future post.

How is your brand doing?  Have you done this lately? We could all likely use a touch-base, and a tune up on our bread-and-butter brands ... and well as our own enduring brand: ourselves. 

"How to do Social Media for Business" Case Study in Action

How EMC is leveraging Social Media at its conference, EMC World, is a great case study to observe. It must be far from perfect -- and at the same time I'll say I've never seen anything as comprehensive and engaging on this scale. There are global followers of the thousands of tweets, blogs, news clips, and videos coming from the attendees originating from 96 countries  -- interacting with the attendees as if they were there, too. And that is from the "target audience!"  The "official" content from EMC  and mainstream journalists is on top of that.  

What's been happening?

- ENGAGING COVERAGE: Our customers and other attendees have been doing the reporting on what they find noteworthy in real-time on Twitter, with a hashtag (#EMCWorld) for everyone to keep track of one another's "coverage," and in their blogs and news reports.  (One  remote observer compared it to the relative silence that comes from Live Webcasts.  Twitter engages; it is 2-way communication.  Webcasts inform, but don't engage.)

- ENGAGING COVERAGE CONTENT: Our customers, bloggers,  employees and traditional journalists are sharing the photos and video clips -- you're seeing the event in the eye of the attendee.  See this cool composite of photos they're taking over on my colleague's Len's blog. He did a search on Flickr, embedded it in his blog, and it shows up as a living photostream. In another example, an attendee turned on his flip cam during a Q&Awith CEO Joe Tucci and had it loaded into his Tweetstream moments later for everyone to see.

- ENGAGING RELATIONSHIPS:  See the blogs by my colleagues Stu, Dave and Chuck. They all remark on the sea change they're feeling and experiencing in the quality of relationships with the attendees -- due to the fact that we've been engaging all year long via our blogs and Tweets  (on top the more typical "remembering people from last year's event.")

- ENGAGED AUDIENCES:  See what this "cynical" journalist had to say about EMC's use of social media and how EMC actually listened and responded in real time to what attendees needed and wanted during the conference, thanks to microblogging over Twitter and EMC's attentiveness to it. She also mentions how following the conference on Twitter made it that much easier for her to know what was going on where. In short, it added clear value and service to her.

- COOL and ENGAGING OFFICIAL COMPANY CONTENT:  Frankly, seeing this site is what put me over the edge to write this blog.  Check out EMC's social media site for this event containing video, blogs, presentations, event news updates via @EMCWorld on Twitter and more  -- most having  a 2.0 feel -- from the official company channels. See the 1min, in-the-hallway video of Frank Hauck, EVP of most of EMC, giving you the take aways from the conference. That's cool. See also the EMCWorld 2009 site on YouTube -- filled with customer videos, EMC brand videos, and an even an EMC employee/exec rock band, RunEMC playing a tribute song to our 30th anniversary as a company (look for my cameo!).

- Infotainment!  Attendees and observers alike seem to love it! This buzz is rounding the globe.

So with my marketing and branding leverage hat on, what this engagement communication model has done is to multiply (100x?) the value of the event itself.  This is one tree that didn't fall in the forest where no one could hear it.

So what about the substance?!

Is this just a pretty bowl of marketing whipped cream?

 

[photo: @ferne Arfin]

I'll point you to my colleague's Chuck's blog on that one.  There Chuck reminds us that this is no marketing event. Aside from the keynotes, this conference is all about engineers presenting technology to audiences of engineers. There are over 500 EMC Engineer presenters. I don't make a habit of going to this event because frankly it isn't meant for me. It would make my head explode. They're talking in techie speak that hurts even the minds of advanced Phd's. Its like a Mensa-convention-meets-MIT on steroids.

 -- The audience for this event spans 96 countries and numbers about 7,000. After JUST 1.5 days of the show, it was reported that over 1500 tweets were sent by attendees with the hashtag #EMCWorld. As over 200 attendees joined Twitter just today at the conference, I imagine this is growing exponentially as well. --

Kudos to everyone at EMC who put together what is clearly such a fine, well-received, and valued event.

----------------- Talk Back ------------------

What else did you notice in this case study?

This is one where new examples and value statements will continue to occur to me and everyone else who watched this study evolve for months to come.

And heck, the show isn't even half over yet.

eGo: See Jay's million dollar drive.

Remember the Dell ad with a laptop that fits into an InterOffice Envelope?

I couldn't help but think of that when Jay Krone, EMC Product Marketing Director and Iomega enthusiast, came bounding into my office last week with the newest from Iomega which seems to one-up the Dell ad.

Check it out for a chuckle.

According to Jay, what just a couple of years ago would cost you $1 Million dollars (insert Austin Powers expression here), you can now have for $135.00 and it slides into your back pocket with less lift (unfortunately for Jay) than a wallet.

Great job EMC Iomega folks on the latest, very cool eGo drive!

-------------- Talk Back -----------

I can't wait to see it in our HQ's coffee shop -- the only place in town where you can pick up a half terabyte and a nice cup of coffee.

Those of Asian and Caucasian Background, Please Read, Share

Let's Prove The Odds Wrong!

On May 13th, doctors at Stanford Hospital told Nick Glasgow that he has a 0% chance of finding a donor, given his unique ethnic make-up of ¼ Japanese and ¾ Caucasian.

Nick, 28 years old and an EMC employee, is in the race for his life. The need to find a qualified bone marrow doner is at a critical stage.

In mid March, Nick was diagnosed with Acute Leukemia. There was a 70% chance that Nick would go into remission after one chemo treatment, however, Nick’s fate lies in the other 30%. He went through two treatments, and he is still not in remission. Nick’s only hope is to find a bone marrow donor.  The National Bone Marrow Registry only has a handful of such potential donors, and the likelihood of them being a match is slim to none.

 

Please see the following, an email just distributed to all 40,000 EMC employees ... the race is on to save a friend and a great guy:

*******************************

 

On Friday we circulated word through the global EMC community and beyond about Nick Glasgow, a 28-year-old EMC employee in California who, in the span of just weeks, has been diagnosed with Leukemia and now is in desperate need of a bone marrow transplant. Over the weekend, the compassion of the EMC family was abundant as hundreds of EMCers responded to this plea -- either by getting tested as potential donors, passing the information along to friends and family members, or just offering their prayers, personal experiences, and asking what they could do. When word reached Cisco, a company larger than EMC that has been a strong partner in the marketplace for years, Cisco people also sprang into action. 

 

Nick's mother, Carole Wiegand, also an EMC employee, has expressed her and Nick's deepest gratitude at the outpouring of help and support. But the race to find a qualified donor is at a critical stage, so I am sending this update with more specifics on how a potential donor can expedite a possible match. Please feel free to circulate this message beyond EMC (social media vehicles were used to rapidly spread word about Nick throughout the weekend).

 

Here are the essential facts:

 

-- Any person whose ethnic background is a mix of Asian and Caucasian, and is in good health with no history of cancer or major illness, and is between the ages of 18 and 60, is a potential donor for Nick. Expanding on the initial information, one does not need to be 75% Caucasian and 25% Asian -- any potential mix could work. While the most likely match would be from a person who is 75% Caucasian and 25% Japanese, it is absolutely possible that other combinations of Caucasian-Asian background in different proportions could work. The Asian background should be Sino-Asian, rather than Indo-Asian. Finding an ideal match with all of Nick's markers is very difficult, and we do not want to exclude any potential donors.

 

-- Go to the "Be The Match" National Marrow Donor Program at http://www.marrow.org/. Rather than ordering a test kit (time is too critical for that), read the facts about donating and then you can register yourself and enter your zip code at http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Join_in_Person/index.html to find drives in your area in the next few days. If there is not a local drive in your area within the next few days, please call one of the labs listed and request a time to drop in for urgent testing. (These instructions apply to people in the US. Other countries have similar programs.) People who join the registry can help any person, not just Nick.

 

-- The test is a simple cheek swab. The actual donation can be a blood draw or a more complex procedure, which would have some side-affects from which people bounce back quickly. This link has facts about the procedural aspects of bone marrow donation: 

http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Myths_%26_Facts_about_Marrow_Don/index.html. If a qualified donor is identified and medical or travel costs are an issue, this will be taken care of.

 

-- Special drives for Nick are also being arranged for the next few days. We are looking at possible locations where a drive could facilitate good numbers of potential donors (San Francisco/San Jose area, the Boston/Hopkinton area, and Orlando, where EMC World is taking place this week). Carol Gillespie at the Asian American Donor Program (AADP) is providing testing if you are located in the Bay Area in California (all ethnic minorities and Caucasians wishing to join will be asked to pay a portion of their testing costs, $25).  Please contact AADP directly at 1-800-593-6667 and speak to anyone on the staff if you are local, to have your testing done more quickly . 

 

-- If you get tested, it is important that you expedite the process by sending an email to all three people in the cc line on this message:

Carole Wiegand (wiegand_carole@emc.com), Nick's mom and fellow EMC employee

Stacy Morales (morales_stacy@emc.com), a friend and EMC colleague of Nick and Carole who is helping to coordinate all this

Carol Gillespie (carol@aadp.org) at the Asian American Donor Program 

 

In the email, include your registration ID number, the location where you were tested, and testing date.  The reason for this is that the national database usually takes a few weeks to be updated with a new potential donor's test results.  For Nick, time is of the essence. They will be expediting these samples for Nick so his doctors will be able to urgently retrieve possible matches. 

Thank you to all who have tried to help and expressed concern. I would like to close with this message from Stacy Morales:

"Thank you does not begin to express the gratitude that Carole and Nick have for you all right now.  You have given this family hope, and quite possibly, the gift of life."

 

--------------- TWEET IT! BLOG IT! STATUS IT! --------------

Nick is fighting for his life and time is limited. Please help raise awareness among the Asian/American community and encourage them to register their marrow through www.marrow.org. If you or ANYONE you know is ¼ Asian and ¾ Caucasian, PLEASE register today.

Please publicize this cause by posting it as your status and spreading it. Nick's time is limited, so please act NOW. Together, we can help save Nick!

Do Women Leadership Conferences Add Value? How?

EMC was recently the big deal sponsor of the Simmons Women's Leadership Conference. I wrote a bit about it here.  Today, I happened upon a blog by a colleague, Jamie Pappas, which covered her take aways on the conference. In good blogging practice, she ended her blog with a question which sucked me right in and made me want to reply.

In doing so,  I was reminded of how moved I was at the conference – and how surprised I was to be so moved.

I'm interested about what you think about these curious conferences...

... where women have to wake up and get going at o’dark-thirty, deal with taking heat from husband and kids for leaving them to fend for themselves all day, only to talk business, sit in <sigh> conference ballrooms, eat conference food, for 10 hours, on a Saturday – on top of having to plot to find a way to beg for, or cough up 4-5x the price of a concert ticket to gain entry.

I could have thought of such events like this as follows:

• It cost how much?!
• The fact that women can be successful in business today should not be remarkable to the point it needs to be celebrated and have a conference dedicated to the topic.
• Are men and women leaders all that different? Don't we get all the role modeling, motivation or inspiration we need right where we work? Or in books, classes, etc.?
• Why don't we have Men Leadership Conferences? ... which brings me back to, "Is this really necessary? ... especially in times like this?"

A little voice inside my head still says all those things, frankly.

As a result of going to the conference -- and being conditioned a bit more than normal perhaps with the recent launch and ripple from EMC's  The Working Mother Experience book, here is an excerpt of what I found myself sharing on Jamie's blog:

At EMC "we’re surrounded by confident, successful people who conduct business in a global playground. Seeing people like that doesn’t impress me so much.  What has become profound, for me, is that I now have a mental, visual quilt of powerful, yet gentle, intelligent, confident, moving people who cherish womanhood, talk like a girlfriend, and yet also manage to move or lead  major organizations and communities. As they talk about their audiences of Presidents and Kings, they also talk about kids, wine, strength, weakness, hope and compassion. They sing. They’re playful. They’re funny.  They’re human. More human than we’re used to seeing from our daily business interactions. And you know what else? They mean business, and they deliver."
 

To me, seeing  successful women act like "Women!," hearing the benefits women distinctly bring to the business, sharing professional knowledge that doesn't generally get covered during the course of a normal business day, and discuss things I'm used to minimizing on the job -- like degrees of emotion, compassion, mothering, and the need for vision and personal meaning -- was as refreshing as an ocean sail on a hot and windy summer day.

[PHOTO: My daughter, Margo, taken by her sister, Sophie]

How might this add value to back to the business? I don’t know for sure, and here is my impression:   It unleashes leverage. It adds knowledge and affirmation. It builds our connections and convictions – which we know in business adds to results. It brings the osmosis which came from being enveloped in a blanket of female success back into the business. For most of us, there are no other times in our entire lives where we are in an intellectual achievement environment with all women.

For the men reading this, can you even imagine a day where you were not surrounded by men, free to be, well, men?

Maybe conferences like this are like all forms of solid education and nutrition.  They’re just good for you.  

------------------- Talk Back ------------------

What do you think?
Why have women's conferences?
What do you get out of them?

Employment Branding and Culture Building: How to Double the Effect

"Emotions are Contagious. Your Mood Matters."

At the Simmons Leadership Conference a week or so ago I heard Annie McKee, author of "Becoming a Resonant Leader" speak. Wow. (See her, and read her books, if you ever get a chance.) 

In her presentation, she mentioned that it was recently discovered that we have in our brains, "Mirror Neurons."  (According to Wikipedia, "Some scientists consider mirror neurons one of the most important findings of neuroscience in the last decade.") These neurons offer evidence that we're physiologically tuned to pick up others emotions. Further, she said, certain emotions will shut down idea generation and creativity, and others will attract it.

An angry boss stomping toward your office will put you on high alert, for example. When this happens, you will get in "lock down," or safety mode. Idea generation and creativity shut down.  (An animal survival mechanism.)

On the flip side, when emotions such as hope, joy, compassion and excitement are exhibited, you are in an environment ripe for idea generation and innovation.

So how does this relate to Employment Branding and Culture Building?

Ask yourself what others might be mirroring in your environment. Are you creating environments where you could get two-times the goodness? Or two-times the bad?

See this post written by EMC's Dave Spencer today to get a real-time case study on a positive mirror effect and how this relates to building culture.  -- There is a ripple effect when a person says "yes," and when s/he experiences positive energy. --

Mirror Neurons bring the Gandhi quote to life, "Be the Change You Wish to See."

*************************************

Following is my tweet stream capturing take aways from this Annie McKee presentation if you're in the mood for more.

 

---------------------- Talk Back ------------------------

What do you think?

Can you see how a positive culture, tone, program, or person could be contagious?

Can you see how it doesn't have to cost any money?

I was at an event over the weekend with a family friend in the banking industry. He shared how poorly his company handled the tough subjects of pay cuts and layoffs. Clearly, these are terrible subjects.  Then, I considered how well EMC handled the same subjects a couple weeks ago. Sure no one liked the news of sacrifices, but we understood it. The company started with listening and when the time came to share the bad news, it led with empathy and the desire to save jobs and keep the family in-tact.   The employee response? Applause.

Here are other case study blogs on the power of these mirror neurons on culture building -- and how anyone and everyone in a company can add to the culture by taking the time to share the positive: Information Playground, "I'm Engaged!,"  "Confessions of an eBiz Junkie: Culture is Cool at EMC."

Other *free* options for culture building are listed in Annie's comments: "listening, caring and helping." 

Happy Mother's Day! My State-of-the-State.

I have a very rare statement to make ... one that will certainly change ... one that, on this occasion of Mother's Day 2009, I thought appropriate to call out as the best possible gift to this particular mother.

The Statement/Gift:

"My Kids are 100% Great and the cause of Zero Pain or Strain."

 

This is the fist time in a long time, if ever, I've said this. Let's face it, diapers are a pain. Whining kids are a pain. Kids with hormones, I imagine, are a pain. Kids asking for money are a pain. Right now, at this very small moment in time, my husband and I are free from parenting pain!

(Our family, on April 25th, on the Boston Common. Seen here, Oscar, Margo, Kurt, Sophie and a wonderful street performer named Steve.)

 

Our Oldest, Sophie turns 14 on Monday.

She just brought home a report card with high honors.  She's sweet, makes her own lunch, does her own laundry, helps watch over the kids.  We love hanging out together on the weekends. She plays the oboe in an award-winning wind ensemble.She plays Lacrosse. She is confident enough, suddenly, to apply, interview, and go to Australia for three weeks this summer as part of the People-to-People Ambassador program.

Our Middle, Margo-a-Go-Go, just turned 7.

She's spirited and spunky. Recently, she has dialed back her at-home frequent state of "dominant-assertiveness" into a type of maturity that is great to see. Her brain is a bon-fire of activity. She has just learned to read. Her artwork is amazing. She is patient and playful with her little brother. She listens and is respectful. She does sneak stuff she shouldn't -- like Reeses's Peanut butter Cups bought for her sister's birthday, but come on, who doesn't love a peanut butter cup?

Our "Little Man," Oscar, just turned 4.

He lives for super heros, dirt, cars, cartoons, and sports. He loves his mommy (and his daddy, but this is about Mother's Day!). When no one is looking, I get the sweetest hugs -- and sometimes a kiss -- than anyone could ever ask for.  Our hearts melt for Oscar. He's kind, determined, curious, easy to be with, and just fun to watch. We also learned recently that he is comfortable on stage. He inserted himself and broke dance for a crowd of about 100 people in Boston a couple weekends ago -- only to one-up that by respectfully inserting himself into the center of the Big Apple Circus and a crowd of about 1,000 to direct the orchestra with the head-clown.

So hold the cards and the jewelry. I'm good. No, I'm down right great.

------------ Talk Back -----------

Share how you and your family are doing. 

One request, avoid telling me my state of kid bliss is about to change.  I suspect as much and am working to celebrate the moment!

Branding & Employee Engagement: Employees as Authors

 

An Environment

That Enables

Employees to Become Authors

"Speaks Volumes."

 

A few days ago I was on the phone with an editor  from BusinessWeek about the book published by EMC and written by 96 employees named, "The Working Mother Experience." 

She made a quick but assertive remark, "You'll have to update your profiles now to include the word, "author!"

Author?  Humm. 

How cool is that?  96 employees just became "Authors."

Today, it happened again. 40 EMC employees wrote a "definitive reference book" which was published with EMC's logo and blessing called "Information Storage and Management." This one is structured to be a college text book and reference guide for industry professionals.

Both books have accompanying web 2.0 properties.

The books -- both quite different -- occurred serendipitously, with no orchestration between them. 

They also have many strategic and similar attributes. They:

• Elevate EMC's brand. By merely existing, they speak to our values and culture as a company.
• Enhance the relationships we can have as a company with current and potentially new connections such as employees, customers, partners, professors, and informal influencers.
• Act as a sign of respect and recognition on behalf of the company to the Authors.
• Elevate the Personal Brands, as well as the sense of pride and accomplishment of everyone associated with writing and producing the books.
• Stretch the skills of our people and our company (we've never published books before!).
• and likely will ... meet the business case each advocate came up with when pitching the idea to his/her business unit or executive sponsor.

How cool is that?

 

This, to me, looks like the new face of branding. One that is experiential and participatory. One that has soul and is reflective of genuine people, passions and intellect. One that is not made on Madison Ave or in a PR person's office.

And unlike most ads or news releases produced by some very important and exclusive entity, you'll find regular folks who have a relationship with the company proudly telling and broadcasting the news about EMC's new books. They're telling their friends, neighbors, families and business associates. They're blogging about it, and tweeting about it.  The reach is far and wide and true.

How Cool is That?

------------------ Talk Back ------------------

Do you see potential brand and employee engagement benefits by having a company publish books by employees?

What about the same idea, on a smaller scale -- having the company be okay with employee participation on social networks in a brand-supportive manner?

What's Working For You?

 

(Me, in my then-office, about the time I started this blog.)

Would you mind giving me a little perspective and feedback?

This blog is now one year old and I'd like to get a feel for what's working and what isn't.

This is my first blog, and I pretty much just jumped in with the hope to personally connect with others regarding employment brands, careers, culture and cool. 

I saw this blog as helping to add value and connect with:

•  Job seekers. I imagine seekers to be evaluating careers and companies similar to how you would go to "TripAdvisor.com" before booking your travel plans for a more genuine and testimonial-based review. This blog, in that context, provides a view on what it is like to work at a global, high-tech, innovation-oriented company which is EMC. 

• Current EMC employees. EMC has grown massively, inclusive of over 50 acquisitions, multiple divisions, and operations in over 60 countries. I've long been in the business of communicating about EMC's culture, strategy, offerings, financials, and vision -- it seemed only right to find a way to share these stories with the people of EMC as well as the typical external audiences -- media, customers, investors, analysts -- companies spend so much effort on.

• People interested in the field of employment branding and forms of engagement, or relationship, marketing. I'm passionate about this subject and its value to people, and to running a successful business in the knowledge economy. In this blog, I offer a look to EMC's journey in this regard.  I share a bit of the strategy, approach, reception, and case studies on how we're doing in our evolution toward becoming the ultimate place to work, while providing some updates on how we're delivering business results for our customers and shareholders.

• The unknown. The reach of the Internet brings unexpected connections.  My commitment here is to be open, genuine, and unedited to the point that you get to know me, and EMC, at a deeper level. If you like what you see, maybe we can work together one day.

The topics I've tended to focus on include:

Culture, Employment Branding, Employee Engagement, Career Development & Advice, Cool developments, Social Media for the Enterprise, Management Models, and my personal life & career.

My stats tell me that this blog has been viewed this past year about 25,000 times with up to several hundred views per day. Roughly half of my visitors in April came directly to this site (subscribers primarily).  About 40% of my visitors come from referring sites -- such as Twitter, EMC.com, and other blogs.  The balance comes from search engines sending folks here. (I have not deployed any SEO strategies.)

Over the past year, I've written just shy of 90 blog posts and have had about 150 comments.

------------ Talk Back ---------------

What, if anything, has connected with you?

What would you like to see less of?  More of?

What do you think would improve this blog?

The Relevance of New Fortune 500 Rankings and other Cool Recognition

I like EMC's upgrade on the FORTUNE 500 list!  By jumping from #201 to  #172, EMC is now "A FORTUNE 200 Company." Nice ring!

In related news ...

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal ran an article on FORTUNE 500 use of social media (inclusive of a snazzy quote by EMC's Chuck Hollis). Can you believe only 81 of the F500 have company sponsored blogs? Of those, only 23 have a company sponsored Twitter address linked to their blogs.  EMC, gladly, is in that elite list of 23.* 

Are more than 4/5ths of largest companies in America not aware of the shift to social media and blogs as a primary means of on-line communication -- now more popular than email? [See this Nielson report.] Or are their lawyers & leaders fearful of Web 2.0 to the point that they find it preferable to NOT engage the way customers and other business-generating communities wish to communicate today?

Other recognition I liked includes this NY Post article from last week on Employee Engagement. It profiles EMC's use of social media as especially beneficial for employee engagement and business value during an economic downturn.

Lastly, I don't think I ever called out Mashable ranking EMC as a Top 40 Brand on Twitter.

What's the point beyond "Hurray for EMC?"

Relevance.

The business climate is tough. In times like this you want to partner with companies that feel "safe," right?  But what made a company "safe" won't keep it safe.  All companies need to adapt. A FORTUNE 500 company that shows it can embrace new communication and engagement models -- and turn them into business leverage is a good thing. And, just maybe, such a company is also worthy of getting cozy with.

--------------- Talk Back ---------------

Is it important to you that companies you depend upon (financially or otherwise) show an ability to lead, adapt, and in this case, embrace emerging communication models?

Why do you think so many FORTUNE 500s are hesitant to embrace social media as a means to engage with talent, customers, prospects, investors, and more?

*Many of our bloggers can be found on EMC.com/community where you can also find EMC's FriendFeed inclusive of our Twitter accounts  such as @EMCCareers, @EMCWorld and @EMCCorp.

Tough Times, Tough Jobs, and Blooming Flowers

I was asked recently to think of the worst job I ever had.  It came immediately to mind. Oddly, I then found myself smiling.  When I look back, it ultimately was the best job I could have had.  It made everything that came after (like the expectations and pace that comes with working at EMC!) seem like a pleasure trip in comparison.

Okay, can't use that job to answer the question.

I then thought of the next toughest job I ever had.  A form of rage filled my head just thinking about it because it involved working for someone I didn't connect with.  But again, I then found myself smiling.  Looking back, working for that person benefited me more than most other positions I've held.  In that role, I learned -- grudgingly at the time -- about work styles and the value to my work product that comes from someone who approaches problems differently.

Okay, can't use that one either.

This realization, I believe, carries over to the current tough time in the economy.  Most of us are being impacted personally by this point.  Those of us who lived through the last recession, however, are better prepared and less phased by the current unfolding.

That old saying, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger," comes to mind.

...As does the powerful observation that an "Unfolding Flower" could also be considered a "Blooming Flower."

photo: sarah girard

Something to consider.

----------------- Talk Back -------------

Was there a tough time in your life that you now see as a growth period -- a blooming -- for your personal development?

My first tough time was in the 7th grade. I got "kicked out" out of my group. This was a group of girls who sat together every day for lunch, all other school activities, and hung out in general. On being "kicked out," I only had about 15 minutes to line up another group to sit with before the lunch bell, else risk total humiliation.

I saw that "girl" who kicked me out just recently. Of course she was really nice to me, and we didn't discuss the kicking out part.  Like the memory of my tough boss, my brain still fills with a bit of rage at the thought of this 7th grade pain. But again, I smiled when I saw her. Because of her, I ended up with the best friends of my life.  Many of the girls I ended up sitting with that day have been through every major life curve and thrill with me for the past 30 years. They were the friends I was meant to have.

Getting kicked out in the 7th grade also gave me an experience that shelters me from fear of ever getting unceremoniously "kicked out" again. It might happen to me one day. I won't like it, but at the same time I know I could handle it if it did. Been there -- and I'm stronger for it.

 

How I got hired ... Brands ... and the Boston Marathon

When I first interviewed at EMC, there was a recession happening in the US; EMC was laying off employees, the concept of hiring recent college grads was far from in vogue; and I had no legitimate experience for the job I hoped to land.

How did I get in?

The Boston Marathon comes immediately to mind.

To help convince the marketing department at EMC that they needed to hire me, I waged a PR campaign. Every couple of days something new would arrive at their offices which I hoped would get them buzzing, curious, and wanting more.

One of the campaign elements was a giant map of the world with a pin point over Hopkinton, Mass.  I wrote something that suggested that with me doing PR for EMC, Hopkinton would be on the global map for people due to EMC, as well as for the Boston Marathon.  (That was a bold concept as EMC was fairly small and little known at the time. Today, if you Wikipedia Hopkinton, it appears, however, the prediction came true. Wink.)

For the notion of brand-drafting and more, I love having EMC associated with the Boston Marathon. They are two enduring brands suggesting "the ultimate" in their space. They require passion, drive, mental determination, and the guts to do what many others would fear attempt. They are not for everyone -- but for those who have what it takes, there is no equal.

This week marked the running of the Boston Marathon. People pack elbow to elbow, helicopters hover overhead, VIPs make speeches, and photographers work to capture the electric mood and the gigantic scale of the packed crowd. 

 

EMC made the Marathon our own this year. We hosted in our homes, and celebrated in our headquarters, about 30 employees and customers who trained, and flew in from around the world to run this race. EMC athletes from Hong Kong to Brazil took part.

 

 

This week also marked a series of cool awards for EMC in the space of being a great place to work for the college-aged set -- Collegegrad.com named EMC a best employer for new grads, interns, and masters grads alike. (If you want to apply to EMC or connect with others about working there, check out www.emc.com/careers and the EMC page on Facebook.) 

EMC's college grads have long been making EMC their own. They're doing work other companies might say "falls beyond their years in the business."  They're helping to set the pace for the industry and the bar of what can be achieved. And they're also doing stuff that makes EMC just cooler to be part of. For example, a recent Marketing new college hire is behind a space at EMC HQ called "The Square." It has a Starbuck's-like coffee bar for lattes, hot soups, and healthy-foods to go. It has a large flat panel that broadcasts CNN, CNBC and happenings like the induction of a US President. It has a store where you can buy EMC gear, 500 gig home networked storage equipment, and candy bars. And it has a large gathering space with upbeat music where business meetings are a bit more personal, where the social media crew can hold Tweetups, and where we celebrate events such as a book launch dedicated to EMC Working Mothers and an Open House dedicated to our EMC Marathon Runners from around the world.

Where You Have to Run to Keep Up

In the realm of happenstance brand affinity and an anecdote so perfect for this post you'd think it was scripted...

A few weeks ago I asked a colleague who also joined EMC as a recent college grad about 20 years ago, "If you were a recent college grad evaluating all the top companies today, do you think you'd still choose EMC?"  His reply, "Absolutely. The culture of EMC is such that you have to run to keep up." The statement was finished with a wide smile and a head nod-- a gesture that said, "and man, that type of environment is exhilarating for folks who get into this type of pace and stimulation. 

--------- Talk Back ---------------

Would you still pick your company as the place for you today?

Think back to those days you were interviewing at your company. Were you lucky enough to have your vision come true?

If not, check out some of the amazing job search and career help blogs today. A few that I'm aware of, and visit often due to my day job at EMC, are:

http://www.brazencareerist.com/*

http://www.collegerecruiter.com/jobs/*

http://personalbrandingblog.wordpress.com/

http://www.cheezhead.com/

http://lindseypollak.com/blog/

http://www.jibberjobber.com/blog/

http://alltop.com/*

http://www.downtownwomensclub.com/dwc/index.php

 

*Note: These blogs/sites  marked with an (*) syndicate my blog.

Photos from HopkintonMarathonCommitte.org and NuzhatMKarim.

 

Starstruck and Amazed at EMC

So I'm in the company cafeteria today and as I turn to head back to my office I see my friend Amnon -- a quiet, humble engineer with a giant smile, and a warm nature. 

Amnon waves "Hi" to me with that excited twinkle in his eye that I knew to be about the awesome launch from the Symmetrix labs this week, the Symmetrix V-Max. 

When I walk over to his lunch table to share a quick congrats I turned to my right to say hello to the man sitting with him.  I learn that this man, Haim, with a face I recognize but have not seen in a long time, is among the five original engineers on the Symmetrix platform.

I am Starstruck.

How to I describe why? These men are major contributors to a platform that has become one of the most well-known, long standing technology platforms in the industry. You can't send a text, book a flight, visit an ATM, trade a stock, make a purchase with a credit card, have a medical procedure, take a pill, or do most anything else in the course of your day without their work touching your life.

All that stuff I knew, and am used to ... and yet looking into the sparkling, proud eyes of a Symmetrix Founder, and an industry tech guru* on this week, where Symmetrix again captured the industry by storm, I was moved to my core. At that moment, I realized so much of the life I have built is largely related to the work and sacrifices these men and their colleagues have made.  

And then, call me Amazed.

On returning to my office I check my email to find a bunch of the editorial reviews on this week's Symmetrix launch. One read unlike any tech review I am used to seeing. It was written by the editor-in-chief of InfoStor, Dave Simpson. Some excerpts follow:  

Even the analyst community couldn’t resist hyperbole in covering this announcement. For example, Pund-IT Research’s Charles King and the Mesabi Group’s David Hill wrote that the Virtual Matrix Architecture and V-Max systems “are likely to incite a tectonic shift in the enterprise storage market” and that the improvements (relative to DMX-4) “range from the simply impressive to the seriously jaw-dropping.”

And, sending me agoogling, King and Hill noted that the Symmetrix V-Max systems are “based on highly integrated ‘layers,’ resulting in a delectably enterprise-class equivalent of a Sachertorte.”

In the past, every time EMC made a momentous move (say with the acquisitions of Documentum, RSA and VMware), I questioned their strategy and even predicted that some of their acquisition follies would end in failure. I was always wrong.

I quit nay-saying the Hopkinton honchos a long time ago. Sure, there are a few chinks in their armor, but they have more arrows in their quiver than a few of their competitors combined.

Wow.  Thanks Dave Simpson!

This week has been exhilarating, and it is still only Thursday.

On Monday, I got a heart-felt and personal note inclusive of reflection on his life as a working parent from EMC founder Dick Egan on hearing of our Working Mother Experience Book.  He told me to "Pass onto all the EMC working Moms (and Dads) my admiration for their outstanding work at EMC "... and of "how I am very proud of them." (He also enclosed his own self-published book of lawyer jokes -- which made me smile even more.)

On Tuesday, I saw masses of the company get engaged and rally around this new Symmetrix announcement.  And that an unprecedented 13,000 customers took part via attending a virtual world launch. Cool.

On Wednesday, I had my mailbox flooded with emails from ecstatic people who have discovered the Working Mother Experience book -- like a former EMC woman sales rep/mom from the 1980s! -- and from ecstatic executives and employees involved in the successful Symmetrix launch. I even got a visit from an engineer who said, with an exasperated smile and shaking of his head, "I'm just having so much fun!"

On Thursday, I have a casual encounter with some humble stars and read some very remarkable reviews.  

[*Amnon is so remarkable, btw, the Storage Anarchist dedicated a post to him titled, "I work with smart people" upon Amnon's receipt of an award that put him on a peer level with such tech gurus as the "fathers of" the world wide web; Netscape; Java; and the subject of analysis of computer algorithms.]

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Don't you find it weird that a person who has been with a company for almost 18 years could possibly say she is starstruck and amazed at stuff happening within her company walls? I do. I kind of can't believe it myself. It truly is weird. And I like it.

If you enjoy stories like this on brands, careers, culture and cool, consider subscribing to this blog and getting bite sized morsels by following me on Twitter (twitter.com/pollypearson)

Employee Engagement Case Study in Action: Social Media to the V-Max!

Today, I believe, could mark a milestone for the case study of Employee Engagement in the Enterprise; where employees themselves, in record dimensions, are building and branding careers, culture and cool.

Such voluntary,passionate actions from employees at every grade level can't be schemed or concocted, or even effectively paid for.    

See this Tweet that just came from fellow EMCer Dave Spencer:

davidkspencer@pollypearson What's cool is I can't imagine working at a company that didn't engage bloggers/etc like this. How far things have come.

Where the Goals of Both Company and Employees Meet:  Social Media

Currently, EMC's internal social media platform -- a fully opt-in, mostly viral platform for employees to be heard, do what they love, be intellectually stimulated ,connect and collaborate with others in alignment with our company's strategy, and most everything else "good" is being enjoyed over 4.6 million times per month. Over 50% of our employees have crossed the 2.0 chasm and are actively participating every month. 

Once employees get a hang for how this 2.0 stuff works, they tend to find "their voice and have a greater understanding of the compelling value they can bring." What happens next? Many go outside the firewall. They contribute to the global discussion about your company and your products. They support one another. They become even more engaged along the way. 

• See EMC's Community of Bloggers on EMC.com
• See EMC's posted Social Media Links on that EMC.com Community page, such as FriendFeed listing all the engagement on today's launch
• And Wow! See all the EMC folks & fanatics on Twitter  (wefollow.com/tag/emc): 8,600+!! 

Today, Barry Burke of EMC is blogging all day about a product launch that, you'll see, he's hugely passionate about (I love the bootleg video he took!) and which is also highly strategic and compelling for our company.  On his blog, he's keeping a running list of all the blogs other EMCers are writing about it. 

 

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Can you feel what is happening here?  Brand and Product Marketing fully unconnected with size of budget or number of people "officially" tied to a given job task.

Great for the CEO, shareholders, customers, and employees alike. Maybe a bit painful for competitors. Bonus!

How cool is that?  

The Unexpected Reception of the Working Mother Experience Book: Part 1

The publishing of a book covering the personal lives of employees has never before been done at EMC, and for most other companies I would imagine. This book has rapidly become an invitation to having a type of discussion at work, and at home among spouses/significant others and families, which may not have ever taken place.  

In short, this is uncharted territory.

Following  are two quick interviews on the reception of The Working Mother Experience book. -- The one with Natalie opened up an entirely unexpected can of worms for me.  See "Talk Back" below. --

Seen below:  Natalie Corridan-Gregg, the first President of EMC's Women's Leadership Forum (referred to as WLF in the video) and the key force, or "Founding Mother" behind making this book become a reality, shares how it has been received within our company to date.  NOTE: turn up your volume so you can hear it well, my video interviewing skills are entirely amateur still. ;)

Seen here:  My daughter Margo, just moments after the book launch. She is sitting in my chair, in my office for this review.  I can assure you the interview with Natalie is much more informative.  The remarkable aspect of this video, for me, is the ripple effect that came from bringing to the surface the big role of working mothers for my daughter -- and by extension, 

• for her teacher who heard all about it from Margo, and who on receipt of a copy for herself expressed her deepest thanks and shared the fact that it was comforting to know she is not alone in her experiences as a working mom,  
• for the kids in my daughter's classroom who discussed this book about working moms as a result of "Margo being in a book, in a newspaper about a remarkable book, and on the computer talking about her experience with the book,"
• for the fellow teachers and administrators at Margo's school who have now seen and likely discussed the book,
• for my friends on Facebook who were moved to comment and ask for a copy when I attached a clip of Margo on the front page of the local paper doing a book signing,
• for a a long-ago friend, whom I can't recall speaking with since grade school, learning of the book via the newspaper clip of Margo on Facebook, now wanting to interview the people behind it for her Newspaper readers -- and -- start her own blog to "capture the other side;" stories of the stay-at-home working moms. She sees the opportunity to bridge awareness between moms themselves, as we all share the common goal of nurturing the next generation.

Humm. Who knew? And it has only been a week. 

You can download a copy of the book via emc.com, or if you'd like, send me an email to pearson_polly@emc.com and I'll send you a signed copy -- available while they  last.

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 What were your thoughts on hearing Natalie's recap?

What about the Manager who, in essence, said he never felt comfortable with talking with his women employees about their personal lives before ... and that having read the book, he feels more informed and aware?

Wow. It NEVER occurred to me that this situation could be happening among men managers with women employees.  

And yet, as I thought more about it, can any of us say this hasn't happened to us at work when it comes to having a personal/casual conversation with a person of a different race or sexual orientation where we don't know the norms or the subtext of what is appropriate and what isn't?

In those instances, I too, have opted NOT to have the conversation at all rather than saying something that might offend.     Is that a good practice?