Sunday, December 20, 2015

Washington DC Radio News #JackIsBack WNEW Reformatted



I am reading the Washington Post report that says

"Bloomberg Media, the New York-based arm of billionaire Michael Bloomberg’s business empire, will take over Washington radio stationWNEW-FM and will change its format from general news to business news and talk"
Not sure what this means but I hope my friends at WNEW will be Ok with this change. Will I get to hear Jill Schlesinger?

I am glad in November Jack Diamond is back on 107.3 again as the Jack Diamond Show. Loved listening for over 10 years as I drove my daughter to school and was very disappointed when 107.3 changed the format. Love you guys - Jack, Erika and Jim. 

Of course Jack's Protegee Tommy McFly is awesome on 94.7 along with Kelly Collis and Jen Richer.

Washington DC Radio stations rock.

Star Wars Mania and Google - Turn your phone into a Light Saber


Have some down time and are a ardent fan of Star Wars? That seems to be half the internet ! Yesterday I was listening to This Week in Google podcast and heard about this new "experiment" from Google. You can now turn Chrome browser on your desktop into a Star Wars Game and use your phone as a light saber. Very interesting try it out. Go to g.co/lightsaber  and happy escaping!

Monday, August 10, 2015

Alphabet abc.xyz and Abc.wtf

Did you read the news about Alphabet on Abc.xyz? Now try going to ABC.WTF

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Windows 10 Launch event today at Microsoft Store at Tysons

 Microsoft at Tysons Corner Center Launch Events with Ali Krieger

Microsoft at Tysons Corner Center is hosting a series of in-store activities and events TODAY to celebrate the launch of Windows 10. They have a community reception from 4-6 p.m. to honor local non-profits  House Studio and DaVinci Challenge, among others.

Other activities  taking place today

· Visit the Answer Desk where  technicians will be on-hand to answer any Windows 10 questions and provide a free upgrade assessment on all devices.

· Free Windows 10 Workshops will be offered throughout the day, to learn how get the most out of new features, how to personalize your Windows experience, work and play across all your devices, and achieve more with new productivity capabilities.

· A Community Reception will take place in from 4-6 p.m. to recognize local community organizations and nonprofits that upgrade their community every day including House Studio and DaVinci Challenge, among others.

· Windows 10 Experience Zones located inside Tysons Corner Center on Level One, near Macy’s from July 29 - Aug. 9, will offer customers Windows 10 demo experiences on products like Surface Pro 3, Xbox One and Minecraft.

· Special guest, World Cup Champion, Ali Krieger. She will be in-store from 7-8:30 p.m. to celebrate Windows 10 with the community.

Friday, July 03, 2015

President Obama Notches Another Communication Win WIth Podcast Interview


Marc and President Obama in the garage(Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Among the things that I admire about President Obama is the winning strategy that his team has executed using technology, communication tools and data. Identifying influencers, direct messages, using Twitter, Facebook, See the White House Flickr feed which is awesome.

You should listen or download the podcast on Marc Maron's website. where the President made history by getting interviewed on a podcast with Marc Maron.

A few weeks ago the President got his own Twitter id  which the Comm team is using to their best ability
Now we know what the President listens to ( BTW I have to listen to this song ad thanks for the recommendation)
And then lo behold we also know that the President does not like Peas i his guacamole ! Atleast we know the communication coming out of the White House is from a human and not a bot

Monday, May 18, 2015

Awesome and getting ready for xPotomac 15 this June 12.

 xPotomac 15 is being held on this June 12. and I have enjoyed attending  this event very much
There is a good line up of speakers and t he  keynote this year is author Mark W. Schaefer, who just released The Content Code, which highlights how the marketing world has gone mad.  In his new book, Mark challenges communicators to break through information density by thinking about audiences in a new way
.

xPotomac will be at Georgetown University Campus,the Healey Family Student Center, which includes an in-building parking garage. Kudos to the event host and sponsor the Communications Culture and Technology program. My friend Shana Glickfield, cofounder of the Beekeeper Group, will again emcee xPotomac. Yay!
Other panels: 
  • It’s a data driven world, but you still need creative free thinking to succeed. Senior Vice President for Social@Ogilvy Kathy Baird will discuss some lessons she learned at the Burning Man festival as they apply to digital communications.
  • Next up, Gannett’s Director of Social Media and Engagement Jodi Gersh and Assistant Managing Editor, Video for the Washington Business Journal Jen Nycz-Conner will discuss how digital media continues to impact the way news is developed and shared.
  • The first millennials are now 35 years old and taking over executive leadership positions. How does the new digital-savvy leadership impact workplace culture. DC-based authorsJamie Notter and Maddie Grant will discuss the concepts discussed in their new book, When Millennials Take Over.

Crisis communications expert and Commcore Consulting Founder Andy Gilman will join xPotomac cofounders Shonali Burke and Geoff Livingston for a digital crisis communications bootcamp.  Help resolve a digital crisis live! For those that don’t know Andy, he has counseled clients for 60 Minutes appearances, Congressional hearings, and most notably provided counsel to Johnson & Johnson during the Tylenol 1 crisis and the Government of Canada for the SARS Outbreak.

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Local Service Business can use Waze for customer service


How to use Waze for Customer ServiceSmall business who serve customers in their homes or business very often give...
Posted by Surefire Social on Saturday, April 18, 2015

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

See You at Tech Cocktail on April 8th with author Ben Parr and Khorus’ Joel Trammell



I have been attending Techcocktail for probably as long as they have been held.  At the event yu will enjoy  meeting the #DCtech Startup community, entrepreneurs, VCs, Tech, marketing ninjas, journalists. The room has a lot of magic and I have made several serendipitous connections there.


Event Details: 

Day: Wednesday, April 8th
Time: 6:00-8:30pm
Location: 2231 Crystal Dr. Arlington, VA 22202 United States
Register at :  http://tech.co/event/tech-cocktails-dc-sessions-1

Hope to see you there.

Monday, March 09, 2015

Tech news Blog GigaOm Announces a Shutdown

A few minutes I saw this tweet. I have been reading GigaOm for a long time and have watched the success of GigaOm, so this came as a shock.

In his post on his personal blog :

Business, much like life, is not a movie and not everyone gets to have a story book ending. 
There will be time for postmortems, but not today. Today, I want to thank all the people who make (and have helped make) Gigaom. Their role in this journey was what really made it all worth it. They are great people and they will all do great work wherever they go. I want to thank our investors who believed in the business long before it became fashionable. And most importantly, I want to thank you dear readers for coming along on this trip of a lifetime.  

See the post on GigaOM https://gigaom.com/2015/03/09/about-gigaom/ 

Tuesday, March 03, 2015

#3C15 CapitolCom - Convergence in Communications Conference, This Friday March 6th at Arlington's Artisphere


On March 6, 2015, DC's local news source for PR, Social Media and Communication professionals, Capitol Communicator is organizing a second full-day Convergence in Communications Conference for Media, PR and Communications professionals

Where:  Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22209

When: 
Friday, March 6, 2015 from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM (EST)

Registration 
:
Convergence in Communications Conference 2015
A special offer for my readers and friends. Use the promotional code FRIEND to get a 20% discount.

Conference Details
 : Agenda | Speakers
  • The keynote is Frank Eliason, Global Director of Social Media for Citi. 
  • A list of someof the speakers who I know very well
    • Geoff Livingston, Founder, Tenacity5 Media
    • Shonali Burke, President & CEO, Shonali Burke Consulting, Inc. Speaking about -Measuring Your Online Success
    • Adele Cehrs Owner of Epic | A Brand Voice Agency will be speaking on the topic “Get Real Time or Get Lost”
    • Rob Terry - Managing Editor, Washington Business Journal
    • Jennifer Nycz-Conner, Assistant Managing Editor/Video, Washington Business Journal
    • Cary Hatch, CEO, MDB Communications
    • Jason Jue, CMO and Cofounder, Triblio
    • Rebecca Davis, Executive Vice President, Social/Digital,Ogilvy
    • Shana Glenzer, VP of Social Marketing, SocialRadar

Hope to see you there.

Monday, March 02, 2015

LinkedIn Personal Branding Strategy Checklist

Human beings are so individualistic that no two human beings have the same behavior and attributes.The best personal brand that we project today is with family, friends, co-workers or community we live in.
In the hyper-connected age that we live in the internet and the real time nature of information flow makes it very imperative for us to make sure that there is alignment in the perception and reality of our brand .

Saturday, February 21, 2015

When Millennials Take Over - Jamie Notter and Maddie Grant

When Millennials Take Over - Jamie Notter and Maddie Grant
Being a parent of a millenial, this book ( I received a pre-publication review copy) was a book I was craving to read. No, I did not go with my kid to job interviews , as you will read a few millenials did in this book.

Many articles have been written about millennials and their expectation of  "continuous positive feedback, immediate promotions, and unreasonable amounts of authority" Jamie Notter and Maddie Grant draw attention to the fact  -
"Every 20 years or so, a new generation enters the workforce, and the rest of us, quite frankly, freak out about it."

In the book the authors draw attention to the fact that the way we are doing business is changing. There is a an entire generation that grew up taking the internet for granted and the social communication as a right.

The three trends that the authors highlight in the book  :

  • • The decline of traditional management
  • • The social internet revolution
  • • The Millennial generation entering the workforce.

The change in the workforce is not too far away. The authors say, "In 2020 Millennials will be the largest segment of the workforce, just as they are ascending into management positions."

I am in a digital marketing role and we attract a lot ofmillennials as they  are comfortable in a digital world. They love places where change  is continuous and they can continue to learn. There is nothing stable about a working environment that is stable for millennials.
Before I give away the whole book. If you are in a work place where you are likely to employ, work with or train millennials - that means probably any business that exists now , read the book.
Print book on Amazon or Kindle on Amazon

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Abu Dhabi Pre-Clearance for US Immigration and Customs Experience



Hope this is helpful to all who transit through Abu Dhabi to the United States. I flew EY 275 to Abu Dhabi yesterday from Hyderabad India. Our flight was delayed by 30 minutes from Hyderabad and due to Fog over abu Dhabi we circled the Abu Dhabi Airport for over an hour and landed. Once we landed we were taken by bus to Termnal 3. We originally had 4.5 hours to transit and due to the weather and circling this was reduced to 3,5 hours. Our niece who traveled with us was going to New York and her transit was reduced to 2.5 hours from 3,5 hours. My recommendations is that you need at least 2 hours to transit.
Between the wait for the bus and walk to Terminal 3 it will take at least an hour. If you have more than 3 hours I would recommend stopping at a food court to eat before you go to the gates 59-61 where US preclearence is done. At the US preclearence gates there is only a small coffee shop.
Due to the weather delays on the day we landed in Abu Dhabi they were rushing passengers to Chicago and New York and told us passengers toWashington DC to say in a holding gate to prevent the Pre Clearance area from being too crowded.
To enter the pre clearance area you will have to show your travel documents at least twice and then enter a security zone. This security cone is manned by UAE personnel and even though it sounds like it, their intention is not be rude but try to hurry you. HEre you have to remove shoes, belts etc like at any US airport and additionally also take out electronics like iPad, cameras etc. It was quick and there were several people controlling the lines.
Once you are through security you enter the US Immigration line. This is just like the Immigration counter at any US airport. Depending on the time and the lines, they may send you to a self serve Automatic Passport control if you have a U.S. and Canadian passport and international visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries.
The APC lets you answer questions instead of a paper custom form and takes your picture and gives you receipts for all family members. . Once you are done a self serve immigration officer looks at your receipts and boarding cards and then shoes you your luggage photographs. If your luggage does not arrive you will be asked to wait till they transfer the luggage.
After this you go back to the gate and wait. Boarding process is orderly and when you arrive in the US you do not have to claim baggage if you are traveling to the another destination. in Washington we went through the gates like a domestic flight.
You hear rumblings about the Pre-Clearance at bu Dhabi but the biggest advantage is that all passengers traveling to the US have a convenient way to go through US Customs and Immigration and not have to lug their luggage at their post of entry into the US.
I think there is a disadvantage for First and Business class passengers which I hope Etihad will fix. Economy passengers should rejoice at flying Eithad to the US.

Sunday, January 04, 2015

Check List for traveling from India

Thought these few points will be useful if you are returning back from your trip to India.
1. Remember to carry a printed copy of your travel itinerary.  Without this you will not be allowed into the airport for check-in.  They do see Mobile boarding passes but I would advice carrying a printed copy.
2. Hand baggage  tags. While passing through airport security,  your hand baggage tags will be stamped.  At the gate a have to is done to see if the  carry-on baggage has a security seal.  If you don't have one,  you will have to go back to security.  An avoidable inconvenience.
3. No embarkation card for non-Indian citizens.  After check-in you had to fill out an embarkation card and that's not a requirement so you now save time.
4. Carry-on baggage.  Many airlines limit the weight of the carry-on baggage to 7 kgs (about 15 pounds). If they feel your carry-on luggage is heavy they may weigh your carry-on,

5. Separate lines for men and women at security.  If traveling together families can expect to go through security separately. Just don't be surprised.  I have seen kids choose to go either with  mom or dad.

Special note for OCI (overseas v citizen of India) card holders.  You must carry the  OCI card along with the passport having the  lifelong visa.  If the visa is in an expired passport,  you must carry the expired passport as well.
It is quite stress free to travel through most Indian airports.  Hope these points will help you.

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