Seriously, people. As much as we like to talk about tools, do we stop and think about the purpose behind them?  Just because Flickr is getting redesigned and may look more like Pinterest does not mean they are competition.  To be fair to Mashable author Zoe Fox, she does not suggest this will happen in her article.  But I have seen plenty of articles or posts about Pinterest killing Flickr, Pinterest combining Flickr and Delicious, etc and this is not even mentioning the Twitter stream.

While you could theoretically use Pinterest in the way you use Flickr, that isn’t in my opinion what it’s set up for.  Flickr allows users to upload and share photos, create albums, etc. I can then share photos on behalf of my company, or share pictures of Piper’s birthday to the masses.  The cross over here, perhaps, is for artists that may post their photography on Flickr and then also create a Pinterest page to share their work.

Personally, I don’t WANT Flickr to try to be Pinterest. I love the focus on a more visual interface, and more power to you on the redesign.  But what I love about Pinterest is the ability to visually share ideas.  I can share products I love, which can also serve as a bookmarked visual list of things I love to buy and where to buy them.  I can share home decor items that all visually go together but are collected from hundreds of different websites.  And no matter whether the item is still available from that store or retailer, I have an idea of what it looked like and possibly what it was called or who made it so I can search elsewhere.

Then, there is the wonderful Pinterest stream.  I can view Home Decor again, for example, but this time see all of the other things thousands of Pinterest users are posting.  It is a great way to expose yourself to new items AND new retailers.  I think Pinterest will turn into an excellent referral source for online retailers.  While some of these home decor items, such as furnishings, are quite expensive…I still have my handy Pinterest board that I can reference later.

So do I see new Flickr taking away value from Pinterest? Not in the slightest.  Do I see Pinterest “killing” Flickr? No, not really.  I think there could be some crossover, but given the fundamental idea of sharing that is engrained in Pinterest, I only see crossover for professionals and why wouldn’t they keep both sites?

Lately, you’ve probably seen every guru come out of the woodwork trying to explain how you can use Pinterest for a business purpose.  I would caution that while you can think of ways to use this for any business, the current greatest value is in online retail.  For instance, check out how one of my favorite home decor websites, Layla Grace, is using Pinterest to share ideas and vignettes with users.

What do you think the greatest value is for Pinterest? And what is it’s greatest threat?

I heard recently about a local private sector leader who is very skeptical of hiring public sector folks.  Many public sector employees are looking for work right now nationwide due to the recent election and various changes of administration.  This prejudice seems so unfounded to me, as I know many public sector employees who are exactly the kind of people I’d want to hire.  I hope that this person and others like her will reconsider their misconceptions and interview some of these potential candidates.

Here’s five reasons why public sector employees are great hires:

1. Loyalty - Public sector employees are trained to protect their agency or organization.  Especially at the senior staff level, you will find employees who know how to give 100% support to leadership regardless of their personal opinions.
2. Management Skills - Many public sector employees have the opportunity to manage people.  This often means they have extensive experience with hiring and firing, disciplining staff, working with unions, and keeping up on HR rules and laws.  These employees are not scared of managing and generally know how to work with levels above and below them to keep the peace and move things forward.
3. Crisis Control - Whether it’s handling a crisis communications situation or preparing a pandemic flu plan, public sector employees are experienced in preparedness.  These employees can help you navigate through unexpected challenges, keeping your business running smoothly and your reputation intact.  I’ve never met a group of communications professionals who were more adept at handling investigative reporters than those in the public sector.  Any normal business would be astounded by the number of media calls and records requests we receive monthly (hundreds.)
4. Big Picture Perspective - Public sector employees know that they are employed to serve their constituency, whether that means a nation, state, city, etc.  We are constantly reminded of the true purpose of our work.  These employees also have to regularly balance the wants and needs of stakeholders, legislators, and partners in with those of citizens.  Public sector employees will understand that you have multiple reporting lines, a board, stakeholders, lawyers, employees, and customers all in the mix and it won’t faze them.
5. Commitment - Employees in the public sector generally don’t job hop every year.  They look for stable job opportunities where they can do good work and be treated fairly for a competitive wage.  They value good benefits and reasonable work hours.  This is not to say they won’t work more than a 40 hour work week—public sector employees have the same challenges as private sector.  We have outreach events, projects, or crises that keep us late into the evening.  All we generally want is recognition for our commitment and praise for a job well done.  Not so much to ask to gain a stable, loyal, committed employee.

These five reasons are based on my personal experience.  What else would you add?  I know there are even more reasons why public sector employees can be tremendous assets in other sectors.

Providing value to your organization or team means different things at different times.  In my opinion, an employee is most valuable being a specialist and “doing” things as well as being a strategist and thinking about doing things differently or better.  While I value the specialization of having someone who just sees the nuts and bolts or someone who just sees big picture, these folks may make blind decisions.  What happens if a politician makes promises that are impossible to keep?  Or a worker fails to see to the possibility of innovation?

This yin and yang is sometimes frustrating.  The specialists may feel that they have heard all these big ideas before and that they are a waste of time.  The strategists may feel limited and oppressed by the specialist’s lack of vision.  I don’t think it’s possible to find a 50/50 equilibrium.  But I do encourage strategists to not lose sight of their speciality.  If you know how to do web design or marketing or media relations or whatever you did before…try to find ways to still use these skills.

Tips for the strategist to find and maintain balance:

• Commit to maintain your skill sets.  Don’t lose your aptitude for your specialty just because you were promoted.
• Talk to the people who are specialists.  Especially those who report to you!  Know what is going on in the industry, what the problems are, and what the areas are for improvement.  You might come up with a great idea.
• Cross train employees.  Having your specialists gain a broader perspective for organization functions helps improve workflow and communication.  Again, you may find that ideas are born just from getting another perspective on a project or task.
• Serve as a back up.  When a specialist takes a vacation or is off sick, cover their duties.  This gives you an opportunity to keep your skills sharp and provides a balance to your big picture strategy.  This also helps you maintain relationships with contacts and vendors.

How do you maintain balance in your job between strategy and specialization?  What did I miss? 

Once upon a time in business, government, higher ed, non-profits…somebody somewhere must have been responsible for encouraging organizations to adopt email.  This post dates me, but I imagine a time in the 1980’s when businesses still relied on carbon copies, phone calls, and letters.  And maybe people had personal word processors…but hardly anyone had networked, online computer systems. (I seem to remember my parents starting to use computers at work in the early 1990’s.)

Who were the people that stood up within these respective fields and said “There’s this thing called email and we need to look at the business implications”?  And why are we not hearing their stories or advice more?  I, personally, would love to know how these advocates and evangelists convinced people that email was a good thing.  I want to know, were there immediately guidelines issued for email use?  What were the roadblocks or crisis communications situations that occurred?

I have yet to meet any self-identified email evangelists.  I have to believe they are out there…but I have no hard proof.  What happened to them?  Have they retired, moved on to other innovations, etc.  I think there are things we could learn from them about social media and the potential stumbling blocks we face.  We are trying to change the way we do business, just like these email evangelists must have done.

If you have encountered any of these thought leaders from the email revolution, I have a few questions:

• Who was responsible for helping government and higher education see the light?  How long of a process was it to gain buy-in and adoption?
• If you have talked with these people, where are they now and what advice have they given you regarding social media?  Do they support social media in business?

What do you think we could learn from the email revolution?

Business lessons come in many ways and sick days can somtimes provide necessary reflection time.  In my case, I spent yesterday home sick with my 2 1/2 year old.  This involved lots of educational preschool television, including Dora the Explorer.  Here’s several Dora inspired business lessons:

1. Carry a map.  Strategic planning is important…do you have a plan in place before you begin a new project or venture?  Mapping out the why, how, and what you expect to achieve will help keep you focused and goal-oriented.
2. Ask for help.  Dora frequently asks her friends or the audience for assistance or answers.  Asking for input and getting buyin first makes the process a lot easier.
3. Different languages are to be expected.  I don’t know about you, but I have definitely encountered situations where certain departments seem to speak a totally different language than the other.  Dora speaks both Spanish and English and helps others to see that sometimes you have to learn a little bit of another language to communicate effectively.  So speaking a little IT or policy or marketing is a good thing and makes you a more valuable team player.
4. Swiping is not cool.  Swiper the Fox is always stealing things.  In business, it’s important to be mindful of what belongs to or originates from you.  If you use someone else’s ideas, give them credit and get their permission first.
5. Leadership doesn’t negate teamwork.  Dora may wear the mermaid crown in an episode, but that doesn’t mean she sees herself as better than Boots the monkey.  She is always thankful for her friends and the help they provide her in any adventure.  We have to remember as leaders to foster and encourage our employees and set a positive example of collaboration.

So, what did I miss?  And what business lessons have you learned from other kids shows?