Autumn in New York

Those of a certain age (and you know who you are!) will remember the haunting melody of the song "Autumn in New York".
The crisp air and turning leaves are back in Upstate New York and it reminds us of how much we enjoy living here.
There are hills to show off the fall colors and yard chores to gather up those fall colors and compost them or set them by the curb.
Our dogs love to run in the piles of leaves.
Reminds us of when we were kids and used to create enormous piles of leaves for jumping.
That unmistakable fragrance of autumn leaves is in the air, too.
Let's savor it.
It won't be long before we're living up to our Golden Snowball reputation again!

Team Insidedge

Employee Engagement is the mission of the practice at Insidedge here in Chicago.
The team includes full-time staffers, as well as interns.
I met Stephanie Gurtman, an intern from Boston University who knows my friend and fellow SU alum, Dr. Edward Downes.
Dharma Subramanian, a recent graduate of Purdue University, is an Account Executive at Insidedge. I learned she can sing "Happy Birthday" to her colleagues in FOUR DIFFERENT LANGUAGES!
And Jessica Brubaker, an Account Supervisor who holds communication and graphic design degrees from St. Norbert College, was very helpful in making sure I knew how to locate the office and helped with many other final trip details and questions a day or so before I left Syracuse.
I'll be watching the careers of these wonderful new colleagues and friends with great interest!

Farewell, Chicago

I leave my two-week adventure at Insidedge with mixed feelings.
On one hand, it will be good to be home to my partner and "kids" (translation: pets) after being away for two weeks.
On the other hand, I wish I had more time to spend with these smart, dedicated people here at the firm.
I envy them being in the practice and it makes me think where I might be now if my career had taken some slightly different twists and turns.
But, all in all, I know I'm doing what I love best, teaching, mentoring and learning for a living. It's a good gig, as my colleague Dr. Dennis Kinsey, would say.
So, as another colleague, Dr. Carla Lloyd, always says at the start of a new semester, "It's time to go teach college!"
A special shout-out to Keith Burton, President of Insidedge, whose care in planning and preparing for my visit made it a big success, and to Helen Loosevelt, his right hand and all-around organizer and miracle worker.
I'll post more pictures of all the team members you've yet to meet in my last post.
Thanks, gang. I'll never forget you and hope this is just the beginning of a friendship and partnership that will go on for years to come!

Millenium Park

I haven't had a chance to mention a treasure tucked into the city of Chicago, Millenium Park.
The Park boasts wonderful artwork, like "The Bean" which I discovered my first full day here when Keith Burton and Dave Duschene took me to the new restaurant in the modern wing of the Art Institute. It's a luxurious stop for a meal!
The Bean reflects the city and adds some whimsical fun to the Park. I ate lunch one day in the park, relaxing on a bench and people-watching.
Flower beds are beautiful and the energy of the city balances nicely with a spot to rest and refresh.

Gourmands!

Last night was very special.
The Insidedge Team, of which I am now a proud honorary member, celebrated my visit with a special dinner at Red Light here in Chicago.
I've visited several restaurants since arriving here and this one, undoubtedly, was the best of all. The company of new friends made it even more special.
We sampled many exotic Asian dishes and appetizers.
The most spectacular (and delicious) of them all was the catfish.
The desserts included a "Chocolate Bag". Very clever and tasty!
My final posts from this trip will include a picture of the team with me at dinner, as well as some farewell thoughts.
Thanks, team. I'm proud to know you all!

Meet Linda Kingman

Linda Kingman, Executive Vice President at Insidedge, Chicago, took me out for lunch today and we had a wide-ranging discussion about corporate and agency PR, what students find interesting these days, and how her background has prepared her for her role at Insidedge.
Linda has an extensive background, including work for Kemper Insurance and Hill & Knowlton. Of particular interest was her experience working at Kemper during the 9/11 tragedy. Fortunately, no Kemper employees were lost in the terrorist attacks, but the challenges of helping employees work through the aftermath and recovery from this tragedy were significant.
Linda loves her work with clients, especially the opportunity to train both communicators and front-line managers as the clients she counsels work to establish better employee engagement.
Linda also has responsibility for the firm's blog. Check it out at http://intake.insidedge.net/

Using Research to Solve Client Problems

Earlier this week, I met Hertha Meyer, Senior Vice President, Research, at GolinHarris. We had a fascinating conversation about how she uses research to solve client problems and also look for opportunities for clients.
Much of her work involves analysis of secondary data. So often, we think we must rush out and do more primary research, but secondary data can be rich in information that clients and their strategists at GolinHarris find helpful.
Hertha has had a very interesting career and lived around the world while working for several different companies.
Her work here allows her to also track issues for clients. Issues management is becoming increasingly important in public relations.
Societal trends and issues are of great interest to clients, too.
The secondary data available through a number of different vendors can be analyzed to create client reports and track media coverage, too.