ANY PORTAL IN A STORM?

I particularly enjoyed "Any Portal in a Storm?" by Jay Kingley and Andrew Robinson [CEO User's Guide, Winter 1999]. It described very well a phenomenon I've encountered in consulting engagements. When facing any profound change, particularly one as sweeping as e-commerce, we have an overwhelming tendency to apply familiar models. Doing otherwise seems to instantly devalue all of our hard-earned experience.

In these circumstances, however, as with skiing and confronting a raw oyster, the comfortable is seldom the correct. We shouldn't venture into new terrain unless we're prepared to live by new rules.

—Ronald J. Helow
Chief Executive Officer
Registry Systems

I read the article by Messrs. Kingley and Robinson with great interest. I, too, have been surprised by how rapidly the economics of e-commerce are changing. It is not yet clear how a business will make money on its Internet activities.

The portals continue to raise the price of entry, which means we must avoid providing the same old activities on-line. I believe those companies that supply customers with unique on-line experiences and offers will win. Never forget that the same principles apply anywhere—take care of your customers (read this interchangeably with community), and they will take care of you.

—Mark S. Casady
Director, Mutual Fund Group
Scudder Kemper Investments

While reading "Any Portal in a Storm?" I was struck with the thought that "the more things change, the more they stay the same." Messrs. Kingley and Robinson point out that businesses must adapt to survive. Of course! Even though the Internet has been touted as a force of disintermediation, the authors point out that "portals" [which are actually new middlemen] are consuming a large portion of the profits. Where have we seen that phenomenon before?

I realized as I was doing my Christmas shopping this year (from my PC at home) that there is no replacement for a well-recognized brand name and a well-understood, consistently delivered value proposition. I shopped at several different sites, never once visiting a portal, and did most of my shopping at L.L. Bean.

—Howard Coon
Vice President,
Corporate Development
Unum



IT TAKES A VILLAGE

Thanks for the thought-provoking article [Digital Strategy, Winter 1999]. Retailers such as myself have made communicating with the customer a poker game. We treat our customers as opponents, anticipating their next moves and calling their bluffs, instead of concentrating on their wants and needs.

Providing a more open forum and a nonjudgmental environment can go a long way in fostering customer retention and customer satisfaction. I don't know about you, but relationships mean everything to me. Word of mouth is the most powerful force on the planet. Sharing an experience with other community members can provide data that most data-mining applications won't unearth for a while.

—Larry Peña



ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE

I couldn't agree more with the ideas laid out by Lance Secretan [Impact, Winter 1999]. A couple of years ago, in a meeting discussing my sales goals for the year, my managers asked me what my values were. I said, "love, beauty, and truth." They were quite surprised by my reply and wondered what it had to do with business. Why wasn't I talking about profit or success?

People forget that money has been a major part of people's lives for only about 200 years, if that. Modern concepts of work, money, and success are not integrated with what humans really think about. What people really care about are the answers to such questions as: Whom do I love? Whom do I want as comrades? How do I want to spend my time? Real life has little to do with packaged and media-driven images of success. This is why, ultimately, 80% of people dread going back to work on Mondays, as Mr. Secretan suggests.

The emotional and spiritual starvation most people experience in their daily lives results in big social and economic distortions, as manifested by war, racism, economic exploitation, and the kind of go-for-the-throat competition that Mr. Secretan discusses in his article. If we cannot find, love, and honor our true nature and that of others, all will be lost.

Keep up the good work in bringing this issue to the fore.

—Eric Arnow
Agent
Northwestern Mutual Life

Thanks to Lance Secretan for his fine article, "All You Need is Love." A business associate once told me that he could be nice, or successful, but not both. I bet most of the business world shares that opinion. What a sad thought.

Profitability and spirituality are not mutually exclusive activities. In fact, long-term success in all areas of life depends on our finding ways to integrate values into the workplace. Unless we do, we'll find only partial success. For example, maybe you've got lots of money, but your marriage is a mess and your health is breaking down.

Wouldn't it be nice to be rich in all aspects of life? Lance Secretan shows us how to have it all. His "front wheel" value shifts—you before me, people before things, love before fear—are concise reminders to move toward a more balanced life.

We can have it all—fun, success, integrity, profits. It's really as simple as being truthful and brave, acting with grace and honor, and viewing the workplace as a playground, not a battlefield. What a liberating approach!

Thanks for the "spot on" article.

—Ellen Rohr
Educational Director
MAXROHR Coaching Basic Business Skills



CONTEXT

After receiving the most recent three issues of Context, I must share that it has become my most anticipated read. I find myself looking forward to the next copy as soon as I finish the current one. Not only are the topics interesting, they are most certainly timely and on target. I cannot believe anyone who reads the magazine is not immediately examining their businesses and determining future strategies.

Keep up the good work. You are creating the only magazine that I find myself reading from cover to cover!