Kathleen Matthews to Speak at Bring Your Daughter to Work Day

Kathleen Matthews

Put your family first and invite your daughter to a memorable and inspiring luncheon event on April 26th at the McLean Hilton designed to celebrate successful women, honor role models and smash the glass ceilings. Instead of having your daughter hang around the office or worse yet, not be included in the celebration of “Bring Your Daughter to Work Day”, plan to attend this very special event. Participation is for members of the Potomac Officers Club and ExecutiveBiz and their selected employees. Click here for information and registration. If you have questions about the event please contact Kara Kelch at 703-752-7453 x212.

Have your daughters meet the other professionals in our community. Are you a CEO? You should send your best employees and their daughters for a memorable event that reflects your company’s commitment to them and their family. (Minimum age of 12 required.) We are planning special activities just for Daddy’s little girl or Mommy’s future best friend.

The world of M&A has success stories that need to be told.

Jim Ballard

Attend our popular series “Been There, Done That” and hear Jim Ballard speak on Perot Federal Systems acquisition of QSS and participate in the discussion of the very hot M&A market that our region’s government contracting sector has been enjoying. This event is made possible by the investment banking firm of Aronson Capital Partners and is being held on March 21. Register here.

Meet Governor Kaine

Aneesh Chopra will introduce Governor Kaine on 3/22

Tim Kaine will speak at the upcoming Potomac Officers Club event on March 22 in Tyson’s Corner. Governor Kaine will be introduced by Virginia's Secretary of Technology Aneesh Chopra. This is Governor Kaine’s second appearance at the Potomac Officers Club. Timing couldn’t be better – POC members and their guests - don’t miss it! Members register here.

Amit Yoran, Former Cybersecurity Tsar for Homeland Security and new CEO of NetWitness is highlighted in our Executive Spotlight.

Best place to post a job and reach the executive crowd. executivebizjobs.jobexchangenetwork.com

Spotlight Events that you should attend:
Organization	Event	Speaker	Who Should Attend?
[ JOIN NOW ]	March 21 Been There Done That [ REGISTER ]	Ballard	Entrepreneurs, M&A, Government Contractors. Limited to ExecutiveBiz Members and their Guests. [ MORE INFO ]
[ APPLY TO JOIN ]	March 22 Virginia Governor Tim Kaine [ REGISTER ]	Kaine	Potomac Officers Club Members and their invited qualified guests. [ MORE INFO ]
[ JOIN NOW ]	April 12 Government IT Series featuring Barry West [ REGISTER ]	West	Entrepreneurs, M&A, Government Contractors. Limited to ExecutiveBiz Members and their Guests. [ MORE INFO ]
	April 26 Bring Your Daughter To Work Day [ REGISTER ]	Matthews	This is a combination event. Potomac Officers Club and ExecutiveBiz members and their invited qualified guests.

I'm a member of ExecutiveBiz of ExecutiveBiz Samuel Seymour     ""ExecutiveBiz has enhanced our ability to forge meaningful professional relationships within the National Capital Region. Their focus on highlighting relevant topics facing today’s business leaders in both industry and government make them an invaluable source for leveraging information and relationships in our market space. ExecutiveBiz is worth your time and money because it pays dividends." -- Samuel Seymour, Executive VP and COO, Centurum Incorporated Learn More or Apply for Membership Advertise with ExecutiveBiz Advertising in ExecutiveBiz means you will market to nearly 50,000 DC-Area executives each week. For rates and information, contact Caroline Blevins at ads@executivebiz.com.

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Bob London is president of London, Ink LLC, a full-service marketing and communications firm and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth-stage companies that need hands-on project-based leadership in marketing strategy and planning. More information is available at www.londonink.com.

Approaching Re-Designs in the Age of Social Media: A Lesson from USA Today
by Ken Yarmosh, Internet Strategy Specialist at Viget Labs
[Republished from from Viget's Four Labs blog]

Earlier this week, USA Today re-launched its online presence with a larger emphasis on engaging readers. They launched a handful of new features, including being able to create a personal profile page that tracks a reader’s contributions. Parts of the site definitely have a social network feel to it a la MySpace or Facebook. You can check out all the new features they list via their Quick Guide.

USA Today’s re-launch included: 1) adding social media elements to the site (mentioned above); and 2) changing the look-and-feel and organization of the site. Neither element of the re-launch was well received. You can browse the comments of readers on the announcement post To our readers.

Don Dodge, a member of Microsoft’s Emerging Business Team, had some good initial take-aways from the re-launch:

So, I would have introduced the new features, but applied them to the existing layout and design. I think the 92% of readers with negative comments were reacting to the layout changes, not the feature enhancements.

The lessons for entrepreneurs?

1. Test changes carefully with a test group of users before implementing a design.
2. Don’t change features and UI design at the same time. Do one or the other, not both.
3. Communicate with your users well in advance about coming changes
4. Listen to user feedback and respond immediately

I’m assuming USA Today didn’t simply push this re-launch / re-design on its readers. They hopefully tested and incorporated feedback from all important stakeholders through the re-launch process. The key is having the appropriate representation of those stakeholder groups.

You cannot please everyone through as massive an undertaking as this one. But, from the comments, it’s obvious that there is a large group of readers whose voices were not heard at all. And, in the Age of Social Media, people are eventually going to be heard (whether on your site or their own). It’s better to hear them sooner, rather than later.

Ken Yarmosh is an Internet Strategy Specialist at Viget Labs, a DC-area web consulting and development firm that plans, designs, builds, markets, and supports leading web solutions.

2007 HR Leadership Awards: Call for Nominations

A Call for Nominations --- The HR Leadership Awards Committee for the Greater Washington Capital Area is now accepting nominations for the prestigious 2007 HR Leadership Awards. It’s time to nominate the HR professionals you know who are ground-breakers and achievers in the profession. The HR Leadership Awards of Greater Washington celebrate HR executives for outstanding contributions to their organizations and to the field of Human Resources Management. Your nomination tells their story, so others can benefit from their innovation and accomplishments. It’s a chance to honor those who have taken the risks and pushed for excellence in the field.

Please see www.hrleadership.org for additional details and to prepare your nominations!

Grow Fast Grow Right 2007 Business Growth Summit:
Moving Beyond Inclusion to Competitive Advantage
May 3, 2007, 8:30 am-5:30 pm
International Square, Washington DC

Learn from top experts in the field the importance of workplace and leadership diversity in achieving competitive advantage and strategic business goals. Fortune 500 companies are already implementing a wide range of diversity initiatives to boost profits in the rapidly shifting global economy by hiring workforce talent that reflects the demographics of their customers. This strategic approach to diversity, beyond the hiring process and into core business functions, will fuel the successful businesses of tomorrow. Join us in Washington, D.C. for the second annual Business Growth Summit, a one day, in-depth conference on the role and importance of diversity for America’s growing companies.

Register at www.growfastgrowright.com

NFTE's 2007 Dare 2 Dream Gala: May 2, 2007

About the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE)
We're giving kids hope. Through entrepreneurship education, NFTE helps young people from low-income communities improve their business, academic and life skills. Help us empower young people in the U.S. and around the world. Read more ...

When: Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Where: Marriott Wardman Park - 2660 Woodley Road, NW, Washington, DC
More Info: www.nftegw.com

Advertising here is smarter. Find out why & reach nearly 50,000 execs each week.

ExecutiveBiz works in partnership with The Potomac Officers Club. The Potomac Officers Club is a non-profit board of trade dedicated to improving business conditions in the Greater Washington area. For more infomation, please visit www.potomacofficersclub.com.

Thanks, Potomac Officers Club Sponsors

J.D. Kathuria

Message from the Editor

This digital magazine is designed to serve the needs of the local business community. Please contact us with your content ideas or advertising requests. We currently reach nearly 50,000 area executives.

I would also welcome the opportunity to speak with you about our membership organization. We're growing fast and already have over 700 members, with more joining every day.

J.D. Kathuria
ExecutiveBiz Editor
jd@executivebiz.com
703-226-7010