Corporate Culture

Everyone goes job shopping.

If only the process was as easy as actual grocery shopping.  How marvellous would it be to walk into the job bank, grab a cart, walk to the PR section  (aisle three, right next to the marketing jobs and journalism jobs;)  ) and pick out the ideal jobs to apply for.  It would make life a lot easier.

Unfortunately, things don’t work that way.

I’m not currently looking for a job, but I’m definitely getting ready to, so in a sense I’m a job window-shopper.  Aided with the Internet, I’ve been browsing several corporations and agencies, trying to figure out where I’d fit in, what I can do for each company and what they can do for met, etc.

In my window-shopping, I’ve come across the greatest statement for a corporate culture I’ve ever seen, in my opinion. (A thank you goes to Tanya for linking me up with this site.)

How amazing is this:

I love it, I love it, I love it.  For so many reasons.

It’s inspiring, it’s comforting, and it’s all I need to know about Apple’s corporate culture to get me applying!

Integrating your social media

One of the things I love about social networking and social media sites, is that its an open community.  Developers consistently come up with ways to link and share information, regardless of who’s network, site, blog community, etc. you are on.

Facebook is the latest craze.

Blogging, though not the latest, is still going strong, and is finally starting to become understood by the new generation of bloggers.  (side note: I love that the new generation doesn’t necessarily mean younger people.  Truly, young folk put blogging where it is today.)

 So.  How to combine them?

The Flog Blog application on Facebook.  For those of us who are facebook-inclined, search the applications for “Flog Blog.”

It feeds your blog (or whatever blog you choose) right to your facebook page.  It doesn’t give each post in full, only enough to catch your readers’ interest, directing them to your actual blog url.  You can set  it to automatically update each hour, or you can manually customize your settings.

Here’s a screenshot:

It’s a great way to gain extra exposure for your blog.  It also makes it easier for people to keep up with your blog, who may otherwise not actively visit your site.

Check it out, and see if it’s right for you!

Will the real Peter Pan please stand up?

Peter Pan is the tale of a young boy who never grew up.

Traditionally, the role of Peter Pan is played by females.

As the times change, so too do the conventions around the role. This year, BMO and Ross Petty present PETER PAN at the Elgin Theatre, starring…Kurt Browning? Seriously? Can we never get it right?

First we have young adult to adult females playing the role of the eternally young Peter. Now, we have a forty-something year old balding man playing him. It’s not that I’m against balding men in any way. It’s that I don’t think a balding man can portray the freshness of youth very well, that’s all.

I understand artistic license and everything, but er…no. I’d actually be interested to see at least a part of it. I can only imagine how awkward it will appear on stage.

Jackson Pollock — cool and unrelated

Some of my postings stretch to related to public relations and communications. It’s actually not that hard, since most things are related to one or the other in some way, shape or form.

However there are some things which don’t relate, and I’m not even going to bother trying to make them relate. Today’s posting is of that variety.

For everyone who wanted to be an abstract expressionist, but just never got the chance to, check out this Jackson Pollock site. (Warning: be prepared to lose at least ten minutes of your life to this.)

This highly addictive applet is so much fun, and actually really interesting.

When I first started “playing” I went overboard with colour etc., trying to make each picture have a theme or something organized and planned. But such obsessions only ruin the piece. Go ahead and try. Less is better, truly. I guess it’s a good excercise for those of us who are perfectionists, who go over the top, etc., to teach constraint. (I thought I was going to make this post have no meaning?)

Or it’s a highly entertaining waste of ten minutes. You decide.

Dancing Hitler and dead body float banned from Rio carnival

 

I admit, I get a lot of my news from the Internet.  Particularly the international news.  For one, we just don’t cover news the way they do in other countries; they give a different perspective.  Also, I enjoy reading news coverage from the country the event(s) occur in, for a closer perspective.

And other times, its simply because often we cover completely different stories.

Thursday was case-in-point for me.

Whatever you think it means, I log on to Al-Jazeera at least weekly.  They actually have a really unique way of covering the news.  It’s at the very least a completely different perspective.  I figure, if I can watch CNN, then to be fair I should read Al-Jazeera. (Actually I don’t even watch CNN any longer, because I don’t have cable…Does that mean I should log onto CNN now, to be fair?)

Anyhow, steering away from politics, I also read Al-Jazeera because they cover things many other news organizations do not.  They also will show pictures where others will not.

Judge bans Holocaust carnival float

First of all, the title is misleading (but remember, it’s Al-Jazeera, so the way the words were played could arguably have been done to suit the audience), though the article lives up to the sensationalism the title emotes.

If you’re too lazy, time-pressed, or brain-dead to read the article (it opens into a new window) basically, the article is about a samba carnival float in Rio that was banned by a judge for being offensive.

The float is made up of a realistic-looking mass of bodies, topped by a Hitler fully swathed in swastikas, dancing the samba for the crowds.  How do they possibly justify this?  Well, the theme of the carnival was “SHOCKERS.”

First of all, with a name like “Shockers,” these floats could have looked A LOT worse (Shame on you, those of you who caught that reference! get your mind out of the gutter!) 

The Hitler float was “The Shock of the Holocaust,” float, made to depict the horror and reality of that tragic period in time.  Other floats in the parade include “The Shock of Birth,” “The Shock of Death,” and “The Shock of Cold.”  The carnival directors say their float is out of respect for Jews, to show the brutality of the Halocaust, which they never want people to forget.  Jewish groups complain it is an instrument for racism.

What do you think?

It reminds me a little of when Nirvana came out with “Rape Me.”  I remember being upset that the album “In Utero” was banned from shelves over the song.  It angered me because the song was in support of rape victims.  The people banning it didn’t even bother to listen to the song it seemed.

This is different though.  I can’t say why I think it is exactly, I just think it is.  Who can say if either horror is worse than the other? No one.  Myself included.  Maybe I feel that way because I know that Kurt was100%  singing in support of rape victims, and I don’t know much about the carnival, its directors, or even the about the samba.

On the other hand, I hate censorship.  I know that doing nothing would be a major PR risk, and just plain stupid.  At the same time, I wonder if there’s any way they could have toned down the float, compromising for both parties?  If what the directors say is true, their hearts are in the right place.  I don’t see why a compromise could not be found (if there were enough time to redo the float).

Maybe that’s the Canadian in me.  Or the trouble-maker

 AMENDMENT:

I just found this msnbc article:

 Float depicting Hitler, dead Jews banned

Apparently, they did compromise.  It’s a much more informative article than the Al-Jazeera one.

The marriage of music and social networking

The shift in music industry marketing over the past decade has been undeniable. The advent of mp3’s and mainstream file sharing has completely changed the way we record, package, distribute, price, sell (…you get the point, the list goes on and on) music today.

Just as undeniable is the way in which social networking sites, such as MySpace, Facebook and the millions of music blogs in syndication, have changed the way artists emerge into the music industry.

Today, the best of new music arguably comes from the Internet.. Now more than ever before, artists can take control of their own publicity and promotion, and can built a personal fanbase with audiences across the world from their own homes, unlike the days of yore, when touring was the only real option for personal connection. In a very short period of time, artists can develop fanbases and communities to a level which would have taken years to achieve with traditional methods.

There are two camps of artists that grew from social networking sites. Actually, there are more, but two of importance to this topic. The first includes artists such as OneRepublic, My Chemical Romance, Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen, among others. These artists began on MySpace, and were either picked up by a larger entity who noticed them from MySpace, or they grew gained such massive attention from MySpace that record labels had no choice but to notice them.

You gotta love the OneRepublic example, really. Timbaland finds the group on MySpace, signs them, slaps “featuring Timbaland” onto their song, and BAM! An instant hit!

Then there is the second camp of artists who began on social networking sites, and remain on social networking sites; but in no way is this negative. Social networking sites (chiefly MySpace) allow artists to gain an incredible fanbase and community around the world.

These artists are famous enough and have enough of a demand that they can solely DJ or perform for a living, but they rarely break out larger, either because their music is simply not mainstream or “radio-friendly” enough to make play, or because they love the DJ lifestyle so much they have no desire to become corporatized. This area of music has even developed its own sound. Much of it is now categorized under the label “bloghouse.” I hate categorizing, especially with a genre that is so difficult to define, but the name has stuck.

I find it fascinating how the music industry has completely changed in a very short period of time. Power has shifted somewhat, making industry execs nervous, to say the least. Suddenly artists and audiences have more control over what they listen to and how they get it. Social networking sites have worked to give choice and power back to “the people,” fostering countless socially and economically valuable communities along the way.

This post could continue forever (and I know, it feels like it has), but the resulting conclusion would be the same: social networking sites are a major driver in today’s music scene. If the corporate industry wants to keep up, they have to do so in a meaningful way.

Too often I see corporations (music industry or not) create and applaud their “new corporate blog,” only to produce pages of information that tell me what I could already find out on their website, or worse to put me to sleep. These companies are making unmeaningful blogs either “because everyone else is doing it,” or because they don’t really understand what the role of blogging is (or could be) to their company.

I will leave you with two songs that refer to social networking (yes, both were obtained from social networking sites) The first is a Tegan and Sara track remixed by Tyler Fedchuk, an incredible DJ out of Vancouver. The second is Funk do Orkut by Rodney Dy. It’s a Baile Funk song (in my top three favourite genres) that references Orkut, the social networking site heavily used by Brazilians (or that’s who I use it with at least). It means Orkut Funk (duh). Not the best example of Baile, but definitely fitting for this post.

Click the link to listen. If you like it, right click and save to keep it.

Back In Your Head (Tyler Fedchuk 1/2 Alive RMX) - Tegan and Sarah

Funk Do Orkut - Rodney Dy

10 Things you probably didn’t know about me

I am 100% jumping on the bandwagon with this post.  So many blogs have caught “10 Things…” fever, methinks I’ve come down with it meself.  Here they are, 10 things you probably didn’t know about me: 

1. I have a killer Howler Monkey call.  So good in fact, that I can use it to call troops to the area.  They are usually none too happy about it mind you, and are prone to projecting faeces on you, but what can I say? It’s an amusing hidden talent.

2. I used to beta test for Fujitsu.  In 1985 Fujitsu created Habitat II, the world’s first online virtual world.  In the 90’s they expanded to create WorldsAway.  I beta tested the Dreamscape and the experimental Hallway world for glitches in gameplay, graphics, and the like.  It was great.  Because not many teenage females do such things as beta test (or not in the 90’s in any case) I always had great opportunities to beta text.

3. I’ve never ever had mustard, mayo, relish, pickles, or olives ever. ever.  Well, okay, that’s a lie.  I’ve had mayo in a couple egg salad sandwiches by accident(I make mine with sour cream or cottage cheese, and often forget others do not)  and my friend Shar once cooked a sauce with mustard in it that was absolutely divine — but that was a freak accident, and I’m convinced it’s only because Shar is an incredible cook.  I guess I can eat it if its a specialty mustard hidden in a sauce.  Anyway, I can’t explain why I don’t like those condiments.  I can’t even try them.  It’s not that I’m close-minded; as soon as they get near my palate I gag at the odour each give off.  In any case, they’re not particularly healthy for you, so even though I’m told I’m missing out, I see no point in starting to eat them now.  I do enough to my arteries as it is. Here’s a pic done by my friend Donovan back in the 90’s, who thought it was hilarious that anyone would be afraid of condiments.  My friends and campers used to actually terrorize me with condiments.  Funny guys, real funny. (Sorry for the poor quality…that’s just my copy, not Don’s work!)

4. I’m an Irish dancer.  I excelled with jigs (hard-shoe) though I can hold my own in reels as well.  I no longer practice it, but get me drunk and take me to an Irish pub, and you can’t keep me off the tables.  Combine that with my broken gaelic, and, well, you see why my friends no longer humour my requests to go to Irish pubs.  I’m Chirish (that’s half Irish, half Chinese, with tidbits of other races on both sides) and I’m proud my heritage(s), and I like to actively experience each culture. I wish I had digital pics of my in the Irish get-up with the curls and all.  A gas I tell you, a gas!

5. I can climb a palm tree with the aid of a machete.  Don’t worry, the machetes are inserted at an angle into the dead bark and cause little trauma to the tree if done properly.  Or so I’m told.  It’s a handy skill to have when you want fresh coconuts or to look inside bromeliads.  I learned when I was living in the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica.  An amazingly diverse area, the rainforest I was in was so isolated that you could only be airlifted or boated in at the time.  I know many of you probably can’t imagine it, but some of the best memories I have were of being in the rainforest completely alone, with no one but my thoughts, the flora and the fauna.  Sweet, sweet bliss!

6. I love learning music!  All aspects of it.  (Except those painful Rudimentary Elements books…anyone else have to do those?) Now I spend most of my musical time doing production (Ableton for now, until we get a Mac and therefore Logic) but I play the guitar, and was formally trained in piano, violin, drums (we have a set of original pearlized white Ludwig’s from the 60’s in our basement,) as well as I tinker with a few other instruments. 

7. It’s only recently I can admit this one. I. Have. A. Problem. I am a Sims addict. Well, Sims 2 and the affiliated expansion packs, to be specific. I know it’s problably not something I should really let people know. But there’s so many people out there who share my affliction, I am hoping to meet others like myself, to maybe start a support group. Yeah right, ok its so we can swap cc (that’s custom content!) I guess it should bother me that there’s no way to win, no real point to the game, but it doesn’t.  Simoleons, Simglish, plumb-bobs…I love it all! 

8. I’m a seamstress.  I love sewing.  There’s something relaxing about it, and its obviously rewarding, as you have a piece of clothing to wear when you’re done!  I did all of my prom dresses, which I’m quite proud of.  It comes in handy when it’s 8 pm and I have nothing to wear — I can whip something up on the machine, et voila! I have a new outfit that I know no one else in town will have!

9. I’ve worked with some pretty amazing animals.  I’ve touched rhino horns, patted elephants, hugged camels, and have had most of the insects of Fear Factor fame on my arms, face, or head at one point.  When I worked at the zoo I was lucky enough to have had a job which allowed me to go into whatever area of the zoo I needed to.  I got to become friends with many of the zookeepers, which always gave way to amazing opportunities.  I am so thankful I got to work at the zoo, because I got to do some pretty stellar things while I was there.  How many people get to play with baby Nigerian Dwarf Goats, or have ostriches crush on them?  Animals are truly amazing, and I’m lucky to have gotten to work so closely with beasts of the not-every-day variety.

10. I am an avid bird watcher.  My world list includes the Russet Nightingale-thrush (Catharus occidentalis) and the Resplendant Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) which is pretty sweet, especially the former find — the species is endemic to a mountain range in Mexico.  Just because most of the people I bird with are retired seniors doesn’t mean it can’t get extreme.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve fallen off cliffs, or into rivers due to an overexuberant bird hunt.  Or how many cell phones I’ve ruined/lost that way.

And what about you?  Tell me something about yourself that most people probably don’t know! I love learning interesting tidbits about people. 

Dish!!!

Solution to McDonalds’ understaffing

I found this on a friend’s site, idgrid[dot]org.

This week in class we had to submit an assignment handling McDonald’s chronic understaffing problem for the morning shifts. I do believe I have found the solution:

If we had regular, choreographed group dance breaks during morning shifts, I’m pretty sure we’d see a turnaround!

WARNING: DO NOT TRAVEL TO COLOMBIA, THE CONGO, AND CANADA

My classmate Ashley recently cancelled her trip to Venezuela because the Canadian government issued a warning about travelling there, citing it as an unsafe country.

Well, imagine reading this, then cancelling your travel plans to Canada?

Australian Government Dept. of Foreign Affairs and Trade - Travel Advisories: Travel Advice for Canada

haha, How hilarious is that?

Here are some highlights for those of you who don’t want to navigate away from the PRn:

-Alberta and British Columbia are also subject to avalanches

-Tornadoes can occur in some areas of Canada between May and September. For more information on tornadoes see Environment Canada’s website and the National Hurricane Centre. In the event of a Tornado you should monitor local and international weather on local television and radio.

-Bush and forest fires can occur any time in Canada.

-All oceanic regions of the world can experience tsunamis, but in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, there is a more frequent occurrence of large, destructive tsunamis because of the many large earthquakes along major tectonic plate boundaries and ocean trenches.

-We advise you to exercise caution and monitor developments that might affect your safety in Canada because of the risk of terrorist attack. Pay close attention to your personal security and monitor the media for information about possible new safety or security risks.

It’s true, these things can and do happen in Canada…but not to the extent that its an issue. They did amend the site after complaints from Canada; the pieces I’ve pulled for you are from that revised site. Apparently the original had an even more ominous tone of warning. I just think it’s funny to read. Imagine not knowing anything about Canada, and having this as your introduction? The picture it paints of Canada is so far off — I really hope no one turns down the opportunity to come here because they fear they could be consumed by a forest fire, car-bombed, or toppled by an avalanche at any given moment!

Behind every great woman is a sleepy man

Obama recently said he felt he was running against both Clintons.  Well, does it make it easier when one of them is sleeping?

Just when Hilary was really getting going…

I wonder what their PR people are doing right now?