On Monday 26 January 2009, Paul Flint wrote: > Greetings List Lurkers, > > The invitation below is to meet with some of the most powerful folks in > Information Technology with the attention of the current > state administration.
I hope you've said above whilst keeping your tongue in cheek. "The most powerful folks"... where? In whose mind's eye? The greater Burlington Chamber of Commerce? ..."have demonstrated tremendous growth during the past five years"... News Flash: what hasn't grown tremendously during the past 5 years (besides my salary?). Elvis has left the building... Richie Tarrant Jr? 5 will get you 8 that myWebGrocer hasn't seen a dime of profit since it's inception. Not that there's anything wrong with rich kids and deep pockets, but it begs asking: "What's the relevance of the questions in and of themself; and the panelists' answers to the questions juxtaposed against the soundness of their company's business model?" #1 Why are you in VT? Who cares; they grew up here, their spouse grew up here, they like the working landscape, sailing on the lake, they dislike the corridor and traffic .... #2 is probably "No, not growing" considering the national economy. But even if the answer is otherwise, it is no indicator of increased revenue, only access to capital. And if the company is publically owned, or even not, what officer will say anything other than "our company is sound and coping OK"? #3 Vermont's economic development strategy? Buy lobbyists?, line up for Fed Funding? Call-centers in the kingdom? If even coherently answerable at all, it will probably be spun beyond recognition; because though Douglas is able to explain it in under 100 words, where are the markers or milestones by which to measure it. #4 A State makes itself attractive by lowering taxes, (legalizing pot:), reducing crime, improving education in K-12 and community colleges; raising the quality-of-life index. It should not be pimping for any business sector. That's how State's get themselves in trouble; incentives like deep tax cuts to out-bid their neighbors last only until the good-times end and operations move overseas. I repeat for effect: businesses have no loyalty beyond maximizing shareholder profits; they make THEMSELVES attractive, or not. A States' loyalty should belong to it's citizens. Recognizing trends and the writing on the wall. If leadership cannot make that work, then they should be thrown out of office for lack of vision. #5 By what authority would they have an answer to the effectiveness of education in VT? Inferentially? Their ability to hire better .Net/mono programmers? Their employees' skill running MSOffice/Powerpoint, or balancing their checkbooks and choosing an IRA? Granted, three of the companies are solidly based in engineering (vs SAAS); and fulfilling the need for talent locally should be everyone's desire. But that is related to post-secondary education and is more apropos to be asked of UVM, Champlain college, St. Mikes, et al. It should not be the State's business, unless the question is defined to mean office/administration personell who have little advanced education. Besides, for all the rants of "how difficult it is to find talent to hire" nobody has yet to argue that people won't move to our state for a decent job. I know, 1st hand, so many people who would move to VT in a heartbeat if there was work to be had. Because of the winter, or despite the winter, Vermont is as attractive to the 20-30 crowd and to the family-values crowd as much or more as it is to retirees or 2nd homeowners. Yes, we obviously need industry and jobs, but is it really the State's role to be the economic engine? I'm not trying to say that the panel won't have something to offer. It appears that all are small businesses (under 500 employees or under 5 million in sales) and Vermont, like the rest of the nation, runs on small business. Paul Millman certainly seems like a person of interest: www.inc.com/magazine/20080701/a-socialist-grows-up.html and fun to have a beer with:) Steve Arms seems like a good "local boy makes good" success story: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/6/bb1/a21 http://www.zoominfo.com/people/Arms_Steven_764119.aspx Lisa Baril-Groeneveld likes bernie, peter, and in deference to forrest, most likely doing something right. www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/lisa-baril-groeneveld.asp?cycle=06 But, do these people deserve the full "attention of the current state administration" or is this another dog-n-pony show that's sucked into the pro-business paradigm that Douglas has persued, uneventfully, for so long? > > We need to bring some truth to these powerful people. Truth is in the eye...... and (powerful) people do not like hearing anything that counters their own 'facts'. They only recognize truth in the external actions/events that force them to confront those beliefs they cherished. If you want to get their attention, then create something that works better, differently, and is more successful. Anything else is just in the realm of ideas (of which we have so many:) Rion > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:09:26 -0500 (EST) > From: Vermont 3.0 <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > Subject: Wednesday: Legislative Forum at the Statehouse > > > Hi Flint, > > Tech CEOs to Speak at the Statehouse > Please join us for the Vermont 3.0 Legislative Forum, a report from the front > lines of Vermont's creative/tech economy. > > Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2009 > Time: 4-6 p.m. > Place: Rm. 11 at the Statehouse in Montpelier > > Guests: > - John Canning, President, Physician's Computer Company, Winooski > - Lisa Baril-Groeneveld, President/Owner, Logic Supply, South Burlington > - Paul Millman, President, Chroma Technology Corp., Rockingham > - Rich Tarrant, Jr., CEO, MyWebGrocer, Colchester > - Steve Arms, President and CEO, MicroStrain, Williston > > Moderator: > Paula Routly, Publisher, Co-Editor and Co-Founder, Seven Days, Burlington > > Purpose: > Vermont lawmakers will have a chance to meet and talk with five chief > executives from locally owned, creative/tech companies that have demonstrated > tremendous growth during the past five years. > > Our panelists will come prepared to discuss the following questions: > - Why did you locate your company in Vermont? What keeps you here? > - Is your company currently growing, and if so, at what rate? > - Which aspects of the state's economic development strategy are working? > - What more can the state do to help you attract and retain qualified > employees? > - Are Vermont schools adequately preparing students for tech jobs in the > state?
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