RINexus Blog

Lessons from Geese

JackTemplin — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:35:16 -0400

I just got out of an afternoon working session for the GPCC and Providence Foundation's Knowledge-Based Economy project. To set the mood, Richard Seline, the consultant running the sessions, played the following video. Despite the hokey music, I think it's a brilliant metaphor for working together to take our local economy to the next level. Honk!

Posted on May 9th, 2008 by JackTemplin

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John Maeda + "Innovation Afternoon" at Business EXPO Tuesday May 6th

JackTemplin — Mon, 05 May 2008 10:03:45 -0400

Tomorrow I'm going to be speaking at the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce's Business EXPO 2008.

I feel honored to be included in the lineup the Chamber has put together. This year's EXPO has a ton to offer entrepreneurs and innovators, and especially those of us in the info-tech and digital media fields.

Below, I highlight some of the goodness scheduled for tomorrow, and remember - it's all "FREE with a business card". (Note this is just a small selection, check out the full two-day calendar here.)

10:30am Associate Director of MIT's Media Lab and RISD President-Select John Maeda kicks things off with his keynote - "The Future of Technology, Design and Simplicity." This will be Maeda's first public address in Rhode Island since his appointment.

Maeda's keynote alone is reason enough to attend the EXPO, but there's much more on tap - now on to the line-up dubbed "Innovation Afternoon":

Noon Online strategist David Meerman Scott will present, "The New Rules of Marketing & PR: How to use news releases, blogs, viral marketing and online media to reach buyers directly ." Last year, Scott wrote a best-selling and highly-regarded book of the same title.

1:30pm Management Consultant Jack Derby tackles "Sales Planning in a Tough Economy." Jack leads Derby Management, a top Boston-based consultancy with deep experience, expertise, and relationships in the info-tech and digital media sector. The Chamber has engaged Jack and Derby Management to lead its upcoming Entrepreneur Launch Pad, so this is a great opportunity to check them out.

3:00pm And then at 3pm it's yours truly on "Tapping RI's growing Geek community to win on the Internet." It goes without saying that this is going to rock. ;-)

4:30pm Topping off "Innovation Afternoon," is the announcement of the winners of the 2008 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition. Over $170,000 in cash and services will be awarded. Among the finalists are a couple of very promising info-tech and digital media startups: Digital Wingman and MissingPatient.com.

It's going to be a great day. I hope to see you there.

Posted on May 5th, 2008 by JackTemplin

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The making of FotoRetina - learning from photographers in order to serve them better

tiffanye — Thu, 01 May 2008 12:35:25 -0400

Tiffany Edouard, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Virtual & More, a Providence-based Internet & digital solutions provider and the developers of FotoRetina, is a young innovator who secretly wants to own an eclectic/unique tea cafe... something that has never been done before.

Recently, my business partner - Abdul Muizz - and I were surfing the internet when we came across a banner flashing, “ATTENTION PHOTOGRAPHERS!” The link led us to site hawking a professional photo management system - it had average aesthetics and weak technology. After sizing up some of the other online showcase options for photographers, we realized that we had the creative and technical chops to create something much better.

Requirements were gathered. We had discussions with numerous photographers about how they worked and what kind of website they wanted. We also tried to find out why some photographers were not willing to establish an online presence.

Overall, this collaborative process with these creative professionals was extremely fruitful. We set benchmarks and started the product design process.

During the design process, we shared our creations with the photographers. They gave great feedback which deepened our understanding of them and their audiences.

Initially, we did a very minimalist design, but found that we were missing a few key features due to our emphasis on compactness.

Here are some of the "challenges" that we faced:

Initially we were only loading thumbnails for every image. The app was a little sluggish, and we realized that there was a need for sequential loading of images (both full size and thumbnail versions) to support a faster browsing experience.
We also had to create a module to display images fully, no compromise on height, as well as perfect the image panning feature. Feedback from photographers enabled us to implement these changes successfully.

And, what is the product?

FotoRetina is an “editable interactive website” for photographers to showcase their work online. Features include adding and sorting images, supporting multiple clients, creating galleries, adding & editing content pages, and styling the homepage with different options. In addition, website visitors can play slideshows, control playback speed, and download images.

Posted on May 1st, 2008 by tiffanye

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Keep Connecting the Circles Redux: Let's get "Concentric" May 8th

JackTemplin — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:46:03 -0400

A few weeks ago, I posted about how many of us in Rhode Island's creative community were trying to create more "connectivity" between the state's many different "circles" of designers - architects, graphic designers, urban planners, industrial designers, software architects, product designers, information architects, user interface designers. These professionals have more in common than they don't. We all share an understanding of the creative process, an apprection for the value of collaboration, and, most obviously, a deep love for good design.

In that spirit, Matt Grigsby and Andy Cutler have organized what promises to be terrific event:

We're cross-pollinating social networks in a way that only Rhode Island can. The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), The American Institute of Architects (AIA), AIGA Rhode Island, plus the Congress for New Urbanism (CNU ), plus Providence Geeks and RI Nexus are having a casual gathering at the Wild Colonial Tavern in Providence to get acquainted... share ideas, and get have a great time.

CONCENTRIC (like circles - get it?)
May 8th, 5-11pm
The Wild Colonial Tavern
250 South Water Street
Providence, RI 02903
RSVP to party@ecolect.net

You won't want to miss this!

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Speaking at Business EXPO 2008: "Tapping RI's growing Geek community to win on the Internet"

JackTemplin — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 06:46:11 -0400

Early next month, I will be speaking at Business EXPO 2008 - the largest Chamber sponsored business to business exposition in the nation with close to 350 exhibitors and 8,000 attendees. (Attendance at the vast majority of the EXPO's events will only cost you a business card.)

The Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, the event's host, has put together a killer line up, of which I'm honored to be a part. Among other notables, RISD President-Select John Maeda will be making his first public address in RI with his keynote: "The Future of Technology, Design, and Simplicity." (We will be taking a closer look at the EXPO's entrepreneur & innovator-friendly speaker lineup in a future post.)

In developing my presentation, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to address a broad swath of Rhode Island businesspeople. It seemed only natural for me to inform them of the great info-tech and digital media (ITDM) community right outside their doors, and how they could best leverage it to grow their businesses.

As crucial and exciting as national and international business are, there's something special about doing business locally, about working with one's neighbors. It's more personal, more integrated into the rest of our lives, and in many other ways, generally more rewarding. In addition, ITDM is a special case: not only is it a major industry in its own right, but it's also a primary driving force of innovation and productivity across virtually every other industry. We ITDM professionals have a lot to share with other businesspeople, and who better than with our own neighbors. In doing so we improve our communities. My hope is that increasingly before going beyond RI's borders for ITDM services, more businesses will start by looking in the own background. But first, we have to make them more aware of our presence.

So in that spirit, here's what I came up with for my presentation:

Tapping Rhode Island's growing Geek community to win on the Internet

Whatever your line of business, it's likely that the lead companies are those that are best leveraging the Internet. From ecommerce to online advertising to digital video to social networks, you know that the right online strategy can produce impressive results. But did you know that Rhode Island is home to a burgeoning info-tech and digital media (ITDM) community? In fact, the recent successes of this local sector has recently been both featured in The Boston Globe. and named one of the Providence Business News's Top Stories of 2007.

Jack Templin, independent strategy consultant, Co-Founder of Providence Geeks and Project Lead of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation's RI Nexus initiative, will show you how to tap into this deep well of talent, experience, and expertise. We will survey the wide array of world-class Internet services that are available right outside our doors. In addition, you will learn how to best approach an Internet project, and to find, evaluate and engage with local vendors. Sponsored by RI Nexus empowered by the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation.

So the presentation isn't so much targeted at geeks, as it is about geeks. If you or anyone you know would benefit from such a talk, please let them know. I would love to see you there.

Here are the details:

Tuesday, May 6th, 3pm - 4pm
Show Floor Theater
RI Convention Center
1 Sabin Street, Providence
FREE with a business card

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The Little Engine that said it could: The Corporate Marketplace (TCMPI)

ChrisCrawford — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 10:50:42 -0400

According to former college professors and court in-take officers, Chris Crawford, CEO and Founder of TCMPi is a world class dreamer who aspires to be an International-Yachtsman and Sailor beyond his bathtub where he claims to already dominate.

Chris and TCMPi CTO Peter Mackey will presenting at the April 23rd Providence Geek Dinner. All are welcome. Details and RSVP here.

Once upon a time, there was a crazy man named Chris Crawford who thought he had an idea that had merit in the form of a software company. On a Friday, with no plan, he quit his job off of Route 128 in Massachusetts and started out to make his idea a reality.

This company would be an 'engine' of sorts that would also act as a procurement hub, streamlining processes that, at the time, took weeks into minutes. The company, TCMPi, focused on Corporate America because it was very wired, and because Corporate America was where the vault of money was. According to Jesse James, that's where you wanted to be.

To reach that vault, Crawford had to loot his vault of all money (savings, loans, 401K's, credit cards, etc.) and learn to sell the engine's potential to critical employees, banks and investors. They could only find fault and no reason to open their vault. "First mover, sustainability, what is the out", the mantra was as predictable as rising taxes. Along came the Small Business Loan Fund of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation who listened, and Sovereign Bank who listened, loyal employees and a few loans later, investors were no longer disbelieving. The Engine that could, was. And best of all, the company is invisible. No one knows anything about it. A Rhode Island hideout.

Today, just a few years into being, TCMPi is profitable, has no debt, and is the 8th fastest growing privately held software company in the United States with 1868% growth over the past three years, and according to INC magazine, the 73rd fastest growing, privately-held company overall in the United States.

Come hear the story at next week's Geek Dinner (details and RSVP here), and learn from our technology team about their burgeoning relationships with Amazon.com, American Express, the Fortune 1000 and how 1868% may well represent the slow years.

Posted on April 17th, 2008 by ChrisCrawford

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RINexus Blog

Lessons from Geese

John Maeda + "Innovation Afternoon" at Business EXPO Tuesday May 6th

The making of FotoRetina - learning from photographers in order to serve them better

Keep Connecting the Circles Redux: Let's get "Concentric" May 8th

Related Items

Speaking at Business EXPO 2008: "Tapping RI's growing Geek community to win on the Internet"

Related Items

The Little Engine that said it could: The Corporate Marketplace (TCMPI)