I thought I would dedicate this blog to Reality TV where life just might imitate ‘art’?!?

On March 29^th, I ran my seventh endurance event, the ING Half Marathon in Atlanta. My running partner, Jeff Hancock from Accenture, and I raised $6K US for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  Special thanks go to my Connect friends and colleagues for their ongoing support.  We’re not just the largest global association of the largest IT company in the world, we’re family.

After the race, I raced to the airport to catch a flight to San Francisco and spent the evening preparing for a full day of meetings on Monday to not only present Connect to HP execs but garner their support for some of the ‘big’ initiatives Connect has planned for its members.  Stay tuned, that’s another reality show.

Last year when I met Mark Hurd at HPTF&E, he suggested that Connect present to HP CMO, Michael Mendenhall, and HP SVP of Marketing, Deb Nelson. Those meetings were held on Monday, March 30^th and while I was thrilled and awed to present to HP ‘stars’, I was ever so proud to share the Connect story and vision to them. 

Deb Nelson and team were also thrilled to hear about our social media efforts, educational opportunities, chapter growth and the direction that Connect is heading. She is committed to working with us in our efforts to support our members and help them not only get the most out of their current HP business technology investments, but also to make wise investments today.

Deb, you get 3 10s! 

Last year the Connect Board put together a team to evaluate our operational model and make recommendation to the board. We are currently outsourcing our management to an association management firm. The recommendation was to hire our own Executive Director/COO and let that individual further evaluate our model to determine the best course of action.  In January, we hired Kristi Browder from our community to take on the task.

The association business is like any other today, looking to create efficiencies to ensure customer satisfaction and have resources available to not only sustain current programs, but to create new ones. As a result, our ED with the support of the Connect Board has determined that Connect will be run by dedicated hired staff members who work for Connect.

The transition process has already begun and we look to complete this process by the end of June and hire 1-2 additional staff by the end of the year. We will also be engaging more with volunteers to help us with various activities. After all, we are a volunteer-led organization.

Are you with me people :-) ?!?!?!

Over the years as I have developed my own leadership style, I have followed others who I feel are tremendous leaders and assets to their organizations. A couple include Avon’s Andrea Jung and former GE CEO, Jack Welch.

I’m pleased to add Mark Hurd to the list.  Hurd has made bold moves to make HP the number one IT company in the world, he is well respected and supported by the team around him, he understands the business of technology and most of all, he listens to and cares for the customer.

He certainly listened to Connect as I spent time with him last year telling him about the user community and he followed through with his support.   For that Mark, you get BIG PROPS but please don’t try any skits this year at HPTF&E :-) , be yourself, share the HP vision and your passionate commitment to the company and its customers and you will get a ‘Standing O’ !

Until next time,

Buik Out!