I’m so grateful for all the support I received in my participation in IMD’s Global Leadership Challenge! I finished #27 out of 5,380 contestants from 124 countries on five continents and I couldn’t have done it without all of the help I received. The contest was broken down into three sections, each of which embodiedContinue reading “The IMD Global Leadership Challenge is Over!”
Category Archives: Leadership & Entrepreneurship
Happy Birthday, Smart Office Energy Solutions!
Wow. One year ago today we incorporated Smart Office Energy Solutions. As impatient as I am, it is never moving along quite quickly enough for me, but it is still important to look back at all we have already accomplished in a relatively brief time. When we incorporated last December, we had completed tremendous analysisContinue reading “Happy Birthday, Smart Office Energy Solutions!”
The Right Path
Last Friday I had the privilege to attend the dedication event of the new Rice Center for Engineering Leadership. What an exciting new center, dedicated to helping engineering students identify and solve the world’s most pressing problems. How I wish something like this had existed back when I was a Rice engineering student! The eventContinue reading “The Right Path”
Starting a Company Is Hard
Today isn’t quite the one-year anniversary of me beginning my full-time focus on Smart Office Energy Solutions but it is about the one-year anniversary of my departure from Poken, and that gives me pause to think about what has–and hasn’t–been accomplished since then. When I look back at it, the clear conclusion is that startingContinue reading “Starting a Company Is Hard”
Space . . . The Final Frontier
Last week I had the honor and pleasure of presenting at the imagine09 conference of the American Astronautical Society. Breaking from tradition, the AAS followed the lead of TED this year and invited many speakers from across the US and across industries to present topics about which they are passionate. Some of these topics wereContinue reading “Space . . . The Final Frontier”
We Choose To Go To The Moon!
Last night my extended family and I attended the annual John Glenn lecture at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air & Space Museum. This year was a special occasion as the lecture was jointly given by the original Apollo 11 crew and was a real treat. Each of the astronauts is almost 80 now but theyContinue reading “We Choose To Go To The Moon!”
And I’m Off!
No time to rest, no time to reflect, today was my first day on the job. It was hectic, unstructured, and wonderfully exciting–everything life at a startup should be. I’ve been through all of this before yet I feel somehow . . . “displaced.” The same stuff is happening that used to happen at R7Continue reading “And I’m Off!”
First Full Day in Nairobi
Today was a busy Saturday, packed with meetings with the Swiss ambassador to Kenya, the executive director of Climate Network Africa, and the Deputy Head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in charge of Kenya’s Diaspora. We were also due to meet with the Prime Minister, Minister of Trade, and former Minister of Finance, butContinue reading “First Full Day in Nairobi”
Living the Startup Dream
A major component of our IMD entrepreneurship education is the Startup Project. 18 startup companies have come to IMD asking for “help.” “Help” means anything from business strategy to market research to marketing to manufacturing and production optimization to HR to . . . any other aspect of business. Frequently they need help with severalContinue reading “Living the Startup Dream”
The Rite of Spring
As I mentioned last weekend, spring is in the air here in Lausanne. Or at least it was. Today, the first full day of spring, is cold and foggy with wet snow and high winds. That’s no problem for me, though, as I’m planning to spend most of the day indoors anyway. We have todayContinue reading “The Rite of Spring”