Justin G. Roy

Jason Jacobsohn wrote a post on tips for networking when you attend a conference.  Great tips for any conference, especially those Architects and Engineers who are attending industry (or non-industry) events!

1. Research speakers
2. Research attendees
3. Don’t discount sponsors/exhibitors
4. Maximize break times
5. Sit near new people
6. Attend happy hours
7. Immediate follow-up
8. Congratulate the organizers
9. Volunteer

Please click here to view the full post with comments on each suggestion.

What is social media and how does it benefit you?

Chris Brogan wrote an article explaining the different mediums of social media and what they do for individuals and for a company.  I have posted them below, and feel free to visit his blog.

• Blogs allow chronological organization of thoughts, status, ideas. This means more permanence than emails.
• Podcasts (video and audio) encourage different types of learning, and in portable formats.
• Social networks encourage collaboration, can replace intranets and corporate directories, and can promote non-email conversation channels.
• Social networks can amass like-minded people around shared interests with little external force, no organizational center, and a group sense of what is important and what comes next.
• Social bookmarking means that entire groups can learn of new articles, tools, and other Web properties, instead of leaving them all on one machine, one browser, for one human.
• Blogs and wikis encourage conversations, sharing, creation.
• Social software, like Flickr and Last.fm and even Amazon.com, promote human-mediated information sharing. Similar mechanisms inside of larger organizations would be just as effective.
• Social news sites show the popularity of certain information, at least within certain demographics. Would roll-your-own voting within the company be useful?
• Social networks are full of prospecting and lead generation information for sales and marketing.
• Social networks make for great ways to understand the mindset of the online consumer, should that be of value to you.
• Online versions of your materials and media, especially in formats that let you share, mean that you’re equipping others to run with your message, should that be important (like if you’re a marketer).
• Online versions of your materials and media are searchable, and help Google help you find new visitors / customers / employees.
• Social networks contain lots of information about your prospective new hires, your customers, your competitors.
• Blogs allow you to speak your mind, and let the rest of the world know your thought processes and mindsets.
• Podcasts are a way to build intimacy with information.
• Podcasts reach people who are trying out new gadgets, like iPhones, iPods, Apple TVs, Zunes, and more.
• Tagging and sharing and all the other activities common on the social Web mean that information gets passed around much faster.
• Human aggregation and mediation improves the quality of data you find, and gives you more “exactly what I was looking for” help. (See also, Mahalo).
• Innovation works much faster in a social software environment, open source or otherwise.
• Conversations spread around, adding metadata and further potential business value.

I wonder….how many Architecture and Engineering firms use social media?

Please click here to read the full article.

Here’s the intro to an interesting article on human resources, recruitment, and retention issues:

Forward-looking human resources executives are working with their line-of-business partners to identify high-potential leaders, to foster emotional intelligence and to manage generational diversity.

Interesting article with some bulleted key points. Have a look.

Chris Brogan recently wrote a great post on his blog, on tips for blogging.  Here are just a few of them:

1. Write to be helpful.
2. Tell a story.
3. Connect others, if appropriate.
4. Publish often enough to build a relationship.
5. But be mindful of your audience’s time.

Please click here to view the full post.

Summer is here. Vacation is most certainly on the minds of many employees. As a recruiter for the engineering industry, I make contact with dozens of engineers daily. During the summer months, I find it can be increasingly difficult to track down some of these engineers. The reason? Well, quite simply, a lot of them are either on vacation, busy getting ready to take time off, or absolutely swamped with the workload that awaited them upon what is then undoubtedly viewed as a too-soon return.

With vacation on the minds of many, there are surely an array of questions that arise. Here are some Q&As I came across in an article by Rosemary Haefner, VP of HR at CareerBuilder.

Q: Those first few days are so hectic. How can I make sure I’m not overwhelmed when I return from vacation?
A: Schedule your time off far in advance. Not only will you guarantee a great airfare, but you’ll be able to better manage your workload and prepare co-workers and clients for your absence. And take an extra day if you can to take care of laundry, stock up your refrigerator, reset your body clock or even get a head start on your work e-mail.

Q: I want to make myself accessible while I’m away, but only for emergencies. What should I do?
A: Make one co-worker, and only one, your point person. Give them your phone number and permission to contact you if an emergency pops up. If you must check in with the office, schedule specific days and times that you will do so that you aren’t answering e-mail or returning phone calls three times a day.

Q: How do I shake the guilt that comes with taking a vacation?
A: You’ve worked hard and earned your time off. Preparation is the key to banishing guilt. Improve your planning and scheduling — the more you prepare, the less you’ll worry about the work you’re leaving behind.

Q: I’m new on the job but have a vacation planned. What should I do?
A: Weddings, family and class reunions and vacations abroad are some of the events that people schedule far in advance. Let your boss know as soon as you start or as soon as you find out about it so you can prepare and also make sure you have enough time off.

Q: I won’t be available at all while I’m out of the office. How do I make sure all my work is covered?
A: Completely leaving work behind is necessary for achieving total relaxation and rejuvenating your spirit. Make sure you let people know when you’ll be out and when you’re expected to return. Your voice mail and e-mail messages should include contact information during your absence. Train people to take over the tasks you’ve left for them and take time to do it well; otherwise, you’ll pay for it in the end.

Q: My boss just assigned a huge project due the week I return from vacation. Do I have to cancel my trip?
A: Sometimes unanticipated projects crop up and clash with the best-laid plans. Ask your supervisor what the project expectations are, your role and how your time away might interfere.

Q: I’m burned-out but my boss says now is not a good time for me to be out of the office. What should I do?
A: Sometimes all you need is a long weekend. Breaks, even short ones, are beneficial. They reduce stress, improve productivity and lift your spirits. Try scheduling one or two three-day weekends over a short period of time and don?t connect with work at all.

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Erica Foreman from Volunteers of America at Networking For A Cause.  Erica is the Community Relations Coordinator at the Illinois Chapter of Volunteers of America.

Erica is coordinating the 3rd Annual Operation Backpack this year.  If you are not familiar, this fundraiser / event is designed for donations of backpacks and school supplies that will be given to the hundreds of foster children under their care.  Supplies can be dropped off at their office at 47 West Polk Street, Suite 250 in Chicago from July 14 – August 18.

For more information, please feel free to visit their site.  Also, to contact Erica directly: eforeman@voail.org.

The nonprofit group provides free services and launched the Open Architecture Network. Transcript of radio broadcast:
06 July 2008
 
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This is the VOA Special English Development Report.

Slums are densely populated areas of housing where people live in poverty and dirty conditions. The United Nations Population Fund estimates that by two thousand twenty, a billion and a half people will live in slums. These are among the people that a group called Architecture for Humanity wants to help.
Architecture for Humanity is a nonprofit organization based in California. The group provides free design and architectural services to poor communities.

Cameron Sinclair is the executive director. He says Architecture for Humanity has developed a network of about four thousand architects in one hundred countries. They partner with local communities to work on projects. Cameron Sinclair says a “community design” process gives everyone an equal share in the project.

Architecture for Humanity also provides money and skills training to build structures. In some cases, this training has led to separate micro businesses within communities.

Architecture for Humanity is ten years old and has built about two hundred fifty structures around the world.

The group is building schools in West Africa through a partnership with UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund. And it is working with football’s governing organization, FIFA, to build sport centers in Africa before the two thousand ten World Cup.

The group also designed housing and community plans in Sri Lanka after the South Asian tsunami in two thousand four.

Structures built by the nonprofit do not require electric power.

Two years ago, Architecture for Humanity launched a Web site to make architectural plans and drawings freely available for download. The Open Architecture Network has about twelve thousand registered users and two thousand projects. Anyone can add projects and ideas to the site, openarchitecturenetwork.org.

Cameron Sinclair predicts that the Open Architecture Network will one day have enough designs to fit any environment or situation.

Architecture for Humanity has a budget this year of almost one and a half million dollars. The executive director says about ninety percent goes toward materials, labor and skills training.

And that’s the VOA Special English Development Report, written by Jill Moss. A link to Architecture for Humanity can be found at voaspecialenglish.com. You can also find transcripts and MP3s of our reports, and learn about other nonprofits working in the developing world.