The role of Silicon Valley in the future of the automotive industry

See message below from Prof. Sven Beiker.

Dear Students,

This is Sven Beiker, you might know me as the instructor of "The Future of the Automobile". I am writing you today to let you know about a seminar that I will be co-teaching with faculty at the business school this fall. We want to put together a group of business and engineering students that will examine "The role of Silicon Valley in the future of the automotive industry". As you have been indicating interest in automotive topics in the past, you might also be interested in this course. Here is a brief summary of the 4 unit seminar (special enrollment process explained below):

S373 Bass Seminar Strategic Thinking in Action - In Business and Beyond:
The Future Role of Silicon Valley: Prospective Strategic Analyses
Robert A. Burgelman with the participation of Andrew S. Grove and other domain experts
The seminar’s aim is to develop participants’ ability to create strategically informed action plans that are imaginative, inspiring and workable in highly dynamic environments. The seminar’s pedagogy involves informed debate to evaluate and hone well-researched views by the participants and instructors, as well as the writing and presentation of position papers by small groups of seminar participants on the seminar’s focal theme. In the course of the seminar discussions, we aim to deepen our understanding of strategic dynamics and transformational change at the societal, industry and organizational levels of analysis.

The focal theme of the seminar will be “The Future Role of Silicon Valley: Prospective Strategic Analyses.” Within the overarching theme, we will research four sub-themes: semiconductor, computer, automotive, and U.S. employment. Domain experts have committed to co-leading the related sessions with the instructors, Sven Beiker will take over that part for the automotive group.

- 4 units, letter grade, Thursdays 12:00-3:00 PM, class room to be announced at GSB, see also attached class synopsis for details

Enrollment Process
When enrolling in a GSB course as a non-GSB student, certain rules apply. For instance, the GSB has different academic policies, grading, and academic dates and deadlines. Please review the GSB Grades section, as well as the 2010-11 GSB Academic Calendar.

You need the instructor's permission to enroll in this seminar. Therefore, we are asking all interested students to write a brief (1 page) essay discussing the question:
What can the automotive industry learn from Silicon Valley?
Think about new players in the automotive arena, suppliers, systems integration, product strategies, outsourcing, life cycles, innovation, funding, etc.

Please send your essay of maximum one page to Sven Beiker (beiker@stanford.edu) by Sept. 15th. We will notify you to proceed and enroll in the course shortly afterwards.

I am sure we will have a great class and tackle some very interesting questions together. Please let me know if you have questions about the enrollment process.

Enjoy your summer,
Sven Beiker


Sven A. Beiker, PhD
Executive Director, Center for Automotive Research at Stanford - CARS
416 Escondido Mall, Bldg 550 / Room 131, Stanford, CA 94305-4021
Lab Address: 473 Oak Rd, Stanford, CA 94305
office: +1 (650) 736-1504, mobile: +1 (650) 714-0536
beiker@stanford.edu, http://automotive.stanford.edu

Small Business Tip - Referrals and Ambassadors

Here's more wisdom from my friend Harold Larson of Visiam ...........

“Referrals” - We hear the word all the time! It is true that in the age of communication, we must compete with the background noise of the internet, social networking and blogs, so any path that can usher your message to a potential customer is a cool breeze on a hot day. So today, I would like to introduce the concept of creating ambassadors as referral engines.

“Ambassadors” will look for opportunities to sell your services because they have a deep understanding of your value proposition and who you are. This is more than a satisfied customer that will passively endorse your product, give you a lead or act as a reference if it is convenient.

Granted many of your professional relationships do not have the profile or comfort zone to “sell” your services, however a positive comment or a recommendation from an introvert to one of your relationships could be understood as screaming your “value” from a mountain top!

So what creates Ambassadors and what fuels their participation in your success?

First, you should mirror the activity you would like to create or see in your ambassadors, by:

• Providing robust introductions - in a way that jump starts a personal and professional relationship so that they might afford you the same.

• Understanding their business – by respecting their opinion and professional journey to invite that same amount of interest in yours.

• Acknowledging their Achievements - and celebrate their successes so that they could take credit for yours.

Second, develop an offering that is of value specific to their relationships and not necessarily for them. If they receive a “thank you” from the relationship they referred to you based on their satisfaction with your product or services, it will fuel their desire to remain your ambassador.

Conclusion –Networking events, LinkedIn, blogs, chambers, industry associations are all part of the playing field. But it gets crowded!

My question: What could be so personal/priceless/valuable that would cause you to introduce me to your inner circle? Now you can start down the path to offer the same.

Free Press Release Distribution Service

Earlier in July Phil Davies of BigNews.Biz launched about 18 new, FREE press release distribution services that cover some very specific subjects. By offering these new services, his intent is to reach a very targeted audience with your press releases.

When you post a press release to one of these new sites, it will also AUTOMATICALLY be posted to their flagship press release distribution site, BigNews.biz . They are also setting up Twitter accounts for each site. As an example, the Twitter page for the new PR distribution site BigTravelNews.info can be viewed there. They’ll also be setting up Facebook Fan pages for each Web site as well as offering the press releases you submit to Google News.

They will also feed your release via RSS to sites like Weblogs.com, Blo.gs, Technorati, Feed Burner, Syndic8, NewsGator, My Yahoo!, PubSub.com, Blogdigger, BlogRolling, BlogStreet, Moreover, Weblogalot, Icerocket, News Is Free, Topic Exchange, Google Blog Search, Spinn3r, Bloglines, AideRSS, SkyGrid, Bitacoras. As well as all of the major search engines.

Here is a list of all the sites in their new network. Pick one that fits your business and give it a try today!

* News-Antique.com - A free press release distribution service for the Art, Antiques & Collectibles trade

* News-Sports.net - A free press release distribution service covering all things sports related

* BigTravelNews.info - A free press release distribution service covering all things travel related

* BooksMovies.info - A free press release distribution service covering books and movies

* EatsNews.com - A free press release distribution service covering food and restaurants

* PetNews.biz - A free press release distribution service about pets

* PoliticalNews.me - A free press release distribution service covering domestic and international politics

* Real-Estate-News.net - A free press release distribution service covering the Real Estate business

* SEO-News.biz - A free press release distribution service covering Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

* TechyNews.net - A free press release distribution service covering Technology, Computers, Cell Phones, Smart Phones, Tech Gadgets, Software, Games, etc.

* CraftingNews.biz - A free press release distribution service covering arts & crafts hobbies.

* Eco-News.info - A free press release distribution service covering the ecology of the planet and “Green” issues.

* GardenNews.biz - A free press release distribution service about gardening and plants.

* LINews.biz - A free press release distribution service covering Long Island, New York businesses

* Auto-News.me - A free press release distribution service covering the automobile industry

* Fashionews.info - A free press release distribution service covering the fashion, jewelry, accessories and clothing trade.

* Health-News.me - A free press release distribution service covering health, medical, fitness, diet and well being.

If you have suggestions for other targeted topics, drop Phil an email at phil@Bignews.biz and he’ll consider them.