This weekend I spent about 37 hours inside a windowless room at Drexel University.
It was actually a total hoot.
Continue reading Random Hacks of Kindness Philadelphia: organizing, judging hackathon
Month: June 2011
Fifteen businesses Philadelphia should poach from the suburbs and how they might
In a Technically Philly Entrance Exam back in March, Wil Reynolds called for reminding suburban companies of the value of being in the city: transit, regional hub, talent, quality of life, innovation and the like.
In truth, large companies followed their employees to the suburbs in the 20th century for many of those same reasons, in addition to space and taxes. I wonder if these companies would ever follow their employees back into cities. It’s tricky as Mayor Michael Nutter has repeatedly said during his tenure that he won’t compete with the region for business, and organizations like the Chamber of Commerce and the Economy League have been built up around lobbying for the region, not for the city in particular.
I, too, believe in the strength of the region, but I think it’s disingenuous to ignore that Philly is both the region’s face to the world and its driving force, so Philly is the hub and everything after is ancillary. Fundamentally, I believe a strong region starts with a vibrant city. That means jobs to me. (Philly and Pittsburgh each have five Fortune 500 businesses headquartered there)
When I look at Philadelphia regional employers of large size, I can’t help but think of courting them for Philadelphia locations. It makes my blood curdle when I think of Philadelphia leaders who transplanted from homes in, say, New York but upon relocating here, they go to the ‘burbs. Admittedly, there are a lot of cultural and perception issues that go along with that, but I think jobs and high-profile businesses is a big part of that. So I got to thinking how you’d pitch these companies… and why it might never work.
Below is my list of businesses to chase and dissection of how.
Continue reading Fifteen businesses Philadelphia should poach from the suburbs and how they might
How to choose a credit card for my small business
Over at Technically Media, I had a bear of a problem for a few days trying to figure out how we could get a company credit card.
We had no credit. We were a new business. Plus, there were three of us, and we wanted all to have equal footing. What was more, I struggled to find good, meaningful information about credit cards online, instead I found spam.
I took to social media and was repeatedly recommended American Express and other cards that had credit limits that precluded our new business.
I did a little reading — tried BillShrink, this BusinessWeek story and a Business.com option — but in the end, I went to the bank where we have our business account.
In the end, all three of us became guarantors — putting our personal credit on the line — to get a business credit card with a small starting balance. We’ll be able to wean off of our personal reliance, I’m told, and continue to build business credit, which is our goal.
“Being a reporter is only lately a respectable occupation:” Calvin Trillin
Former Time and New Yorker journalist Calvin Trillin on why there is less drinking in journalism. He references this New York Times story on the changing face of big name journalists.
“Being a reporter is only lately a respectable occupation.”
Former New York Times reporter Gay Talese telling a story about drinking in his old newspaper days