Higher Education Could Benefit from Change Management

The low hanging fruit from President Obama’s speech on higher education at the University of Michigan last week was the request  that colleges and universities continue to focus on cost containment.  Since public institutions have been faced with huge decreases in state funding, cost cutting is nothing new and these efforts have met with some initial success.  However, it’s not the only remedy as University of Michigan President, Sue Coleman’s rhetorical query articulated … ”can we cut our way to excellence?”

To truly accomplish the bigger goal of making higher education affordable for every family in America requires a much larger, inclusive effort.

It seems premature for the government to start by changing the criteria under which funds from three federal aid programs are awarded before colleges and universities have had the opportunity to devise plans for increasing access and completion.  These are initiatives that require the kind of innovative thinking that equates to major changes in business models, institution culture and executive mind-set, education delivery systems, and alliance/co-opertition development.

Perhaps the underlying objective is that this first dramatic step will be the impetus for colleges and universities to act, and the competitions with the big dollar rewards being proposed are designed to soften the blow.  After all, you can’t have a carrot without a stick.  Trouble is, not everyone can win a competition and those that lose may find themselves without incentive or the ability to continue on the quest to create an “America Built to Last”.

That may leave but one course of action for each and every institution of higher education.  Embrace change management now.  Follow the processes necessary to embrace it, instill it enterprise wide and  implement boldly and with courage.

Tags: Higher Education, Higher education marketing, president obama's speech on higher education, Sue Coleman, university of Michigan

Door-to-door sales: timing is everything

It seems that Direct Energy is taking a little bit of heat this week.  The retail energy provider is canvassing door-to-door to attract new customers in Con Edison’s service territory. Unfortunately, an urgent public warning was released by the utility last week…urging the public to be aware of scammers. Three types of scams were described in the utility warning. One was related to fraudulent meter readers. The neighborhood watch must have immediately gone on high alert.

It’s easy for the average citizen to fail to distinguish between a fraudulent meter reader and a salesperson who is asking to see their electric bill. And it’s easy to understand why Direct Energy would utilize door-to-door sales… to manage their cost per acquisition while reaching elusive consumers at a place where they have access to their electric bill.

Perhaps suppliers should test the use of door-to-door efforts as an education channel that drives sales, rather than a closing channel. Of course they’d need to weigh higher cost per acquisition vs. lower cost to reputation.

But retail energy providers should definitely suspend any door-to-door campaigns immediately after a utility scares customers out of their socks with threats of imminent home invasion.

Don’t you wonder, though, if this was just a case of unfortunate timing for Direct Energy, or a shrewd move by Con Edison?

Tags: Con Edison, Direct Energy, door-to-door marketing, energy marketing, energy providers, energy suppliers, meter readers, utility providers

A Fresh Perspective from Southeast Asia

Only last week I returned from across the globe, having traveled to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. My worldly travels were through participation in a study abroad course offered through my MBA program.  The course, titled Consumer Behavior, required approximately 15 pre-departure class hours where we covered general history, culture, and consumer behavior in each country.  But we of course knew that the real learning would partake during our immersion experience.

I was amazed by the beauty, development, and unique nature of each country.  I had the opportunity to chat with the natives, taste diverse cuisines, and even met with business professionals.  In an effort to share my experiences, I will be composing a few subsequent blogs.

Food ingredients come in the freshest of form in Southeast Asia.  In cities like Hoi An, Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia, you shop at the local market – supermarkets do not exist.  Families typically plan out a few meals and head to the market to do some bargaining.  The market is not only where you shop for food, but also for clothing, furniture, and living necessities.  Each market is organized by category, each with a unique purpose – i.e. produce, jewelry, meat, clothing, etc. Continue reading

Tags: Pho, Southeast Asia, study abroad

My refrigerator won’t let me buy it

The Consumer Electronics Show just wrapped and a highlight – to me, at least – is the newest in Big Brother (I mean, “smart”) appliances.  LG brings us the ThinQ refrigerator that “transforms the appliance into a food management system”.  Here’s the deal … ThinQ is equipped with a scanner, inside camera and voice recognition software.  Go to the store, bring home your food, scan as you put it away and voila! You’re on your way.  The ThinQ lets you know what foods lurking in there are about to expire, alerts you to veggies reaching their final days, comments that you’re running out of eggs, etc.

Even cooler is ThinQ’s ability to impact your personal food plan.  Whether you want to lose weight, eat more protein, or even cut certain ingredients out of your diet, each person in the household can input their goals, plus details like weight, BMI, etc.  ThinQ then lets you know whether the foods you’re about to eat fit your preferences, suggests recipes, even turns on your stove.  The sensors in ThinQ link directly to your smartphone, sending you texts to keep on track, to let you know what you’re running out of and/or to give you shopping suggestions while you’re in a grocery store.

The technology in the ThinQ refrigerator is advanced in other ways, too.  Like its ability to chill wine or beer in minutes!  The refrigerator is just part of a new line of smart appliances … washers, dryers, stoves, etc. that keeps humans informed about energy use and myriad other things – hopefully, making our lives easier and more streamlined.

According to LG, appliances like ThinQ – that monitor, suggest and send you a text – are the wave of the future.  This particular refrigerator will be available to our friends in the UK later this year; coming soon thereafter to the states.

Tags: CBD, Energy, LG, Lori Colman, Smart technology, smartphone, Technology, ThinQ

Economic Outlook: Extreme Outbursts Predict Market Jumps as GDP Slumps

While last week’s Economic Outlook luncheon hosted by the Executives’ Club painted a rather dull picture for the U.S. economy in 2012, the event was anything but boring. The panelists exhibited emotional extremes, laid explosive blame and presented outrageous solutions and predictions as each delivered a relatively similar forecast of anemic 2% growth in the GDP along with an optimistic upswing in the stock market.

Diane Swonk, Chief Economist at Mesirow Financial began her comments by blaming today’s global ills on men and the lack of women leaders. She also believes we should insist on Santorini as collateral should the Euro zone melt down. One of her biggest concerns is that Europe could derail us.

“Decoupling is a myth,” said Swonk. “When one major economy falters, the whole world falters.”

However, she believes the euro will survive, because the cost of it failing would be greater than the cost of continuing the Euro zone.

She forecasts the U.S. economy will grow at 2.25% and the Dow Jones industrial average will end up at 13,500 this year. Her prediction for last year, that the Dow would end up between 12,500 and 12,700 was pretty close. Continue reading

Tags: 2012 economic forecast, Chief Economist at Mesirow Financia, dennis gartman, diane swonk, dow jones industrial, Economic Outlook, Economic Outlook luncheon, Editor of The Gartman Letter, euro, euro zone, Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Strategist for Wealth Management at The Hartford Financial Services Group, Executives' Club, executives' club economic outlook luncheon, Executives' Club of Chicago, gdp, hartford financial services group, mesirow financial, robert froehlich, the gartman letter, u.s. economic forecast, u.s. economy