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Posted by Ariel Killen

http://www.techlinks.net/community/articles/article/17780-tamy-awards-and-web-2-0-social-media-world-keynote-videos-launches-on-tag-tv
TechLINKS

Who was named the 2009 Technology Marketing Executive of the Year? Who and why did the chosen companies earn category awards for Corporate Repositioning, Marketing Tactic or Marketing to the C-Level? Tune into the TAG TV TAMY Awards video and learn this and more, such as exploring the Web 2.0 social media world with Penny McIntyre of The Coca Cola Company.

Learn who won awards now

McIntyre, The Coca-Cola Company senior vice president and general manager, Water, Tea and Coffee Divisions, delivered a keynote speech entitled “The New Rules of Brand Management - Leveraging New Media in the New Economy.” She shared the challenges and benefits of applying Web-based communications to reach buyers directly in the era of social media. An inside take on the do’s and don’ts of the new media world expanded to best practices of online brand management. Watch the McIntryre keynote now from the convenience of your office!

Organized by the TAG Marketing Society, each year the TAMY Awards ceremony recognizes a technology marketing executive who has made a positive impact, not on only their own company’s results, but also on the advancement of technology marketing as a whole. Companies competing for the coveted awards must be an emerging or large company that demonstrates excellence in creating and executing technology marketing programs.

“We’re extremely pleased with the quality of the submissions in this year’s competition,” said Stein Soelberg, TAMY Awards Co-Chair, TAG Marketing, commenting at the culmination of the May event. “In each case, these winners have differentiated themselves as marketing professionals and, importantly, in a competitive marketplace during one of the worst economies in the modern era. So, we extend sincere congratulations to all.”

Watch the keynote and learn about the Web 2.0 social media world, plus discover who won TAMY Awards

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Posted by Kaylyn

Interesting website on how state and local governments throughout the nation are utilizing emerging technologies as solutions to problems, making government processes more effective and efficient.

Check it out:  http://www.govtech.com/.

Comments (0) Legislative Issues

Posted by Josh Lewis

From technologys impact on news and politics, an Apple keynote introducing the Snow Leopard OS while poking fun at Windows 7 and local community translations empowering world bloggers to a thrilling world of wireless energy and how Germany encourages alternative home energy, a new show is launched every week day on WebVisions: a TAG TV compilation of tech news and information clips from various popular Internet video sites.  Watch a show a day to expand your tech IQ! 

Go to WebVisions Now!

Monday: How Technology is Impacting News and Politics
Internet expert Clay Shirky explores how Facebook, Twitter and TXTs help citizens in repressive regimes such as Iran report on news, bypassing censors briefly. Technology, impacting the end of top-down control of news, is changing the nature of politics. 17 minutes

Tuesday: Apple Keynote Pokes Fun at Windows 7 and Introduces the Snow Leopard OS
Bertrand Serlet, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, makes fun of Windows 7during his Apple WWDC 2009 keynote and explains some of the new features and technologies in the Snow Leopard OS which will ship in September. 11 minutes

Wednesday: Local Community Translations Empower World Bloggers
Blogger David Sasaki describes how the Global Voices website bridges blogging communities around the world by harnessing the power of community translation. Sasaki says each blogger is a “window into their country’s or their community’s or their language’s blogosphere. 3 minutes

Thursday: The Thrilling World of Wireless Energy
Peek inside the electrified world of Omega Recoil, a group of engineers and “makers” who craft giant Tesla Coil and stage humorous and thrilling performances with the large electrical display devices.  But, seriously, its still a quest to make wireless energy a reality.  5 minutes

Friday: How Germany Encourages Alternative Home Energy
Germany’s Renewable Energy Act (EEG) makes it profitable to invest in solar and other renewables, and now people are looking at it is as an extra source of income during the recession.  2 minutes

Go to WebVisions Now!

Other TAG TV Features: Weekly Tech Talk on TAG Radio
TAG President Tino Mantella interviews Atlantas top executives, with a new show launching every Tuesday afternoon. Click to listen to Tinos latest interview!

Comments (16) Notables What’s New?

Posted by Ariel Killen

http://www.corespeed.com/community/content.php?cid=1058
Core Community Networks

Last week, I had the honor of sitting on a panel discussion on the use of social media (I and others use this interchangeably with “social networking”) in the training space. Thanks to Paul & Sherry for getting me there! The panel was made up of 5 smart people and then, well, me and was put on by 2 “societies” of TAG (Technology Association of Georgia) which were the Workplace Learning Society and the Enterprise 2.0 Society.
There were some great ideas and resources shared. Here is a quick rundown from my notes:

Coca-Cola USA takes social networking seriously enough to have developed a SN certification course for employees who will be sponsoring these resources internally. Sheri Simon of CC-USA was on the panel and I would like to find out more about what this course covers.

IBM has published their social media guidelines – http://www.ibm.com/blogs/zz/en/guidelines.html – and many use this as a model.

Some are using Yammer, including some groups at Turner that I was unaware of. The comparison was made:
o Twitter answers “What am I doing?”
o Yammer answers “What am I working on?”
Selah Abrams of Turner was on the panel and was great on this stuff, showing us some screen shots of what the Turner production groups are doing with the technology.

Some were using social networking in the classroom:
o Allows learners to post questions in real time
o (This was pretty significant in the ensuing discussion) It equalizes the voices of introverts and extroverts

Sharepoint is picking up a lot of 3rd party partners who supply social add-ins.

You can’t push this technology out like you would the new accounting system. It is primarily a learning application and as such, the role of the training professional is to create or identify incentives for people to use it…

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Posted by Ariel Killen

http://www.globalatlanta.com/article/17323/
Global Atlanta

Atlanta has most of the right ingredients to become the South’s hub for information technology companies and Indian investment, said NIIT Technologies Inc. President Lalit Dhingra.

“I’m a firm believer that this is a great place for the IT hub of the South,” Mr. Dhingra told GlobalAtlanta in a broad-ranging interview.

Mr. Dhingra’s company is an Atlanta-based branch of NIIT Ltd., an Indian company that started off in IT education and workforce training before it began creating software solutions in the late 1990s.

The software operation broke off into its own subsidiary in 2004. Now, NIIT Technologies takes in $100 million in yearly revenues in the U.S. and $250 million globally.

Since Mr. Dhingra came to Atlanta to oversee the establishment of NIIT’s technology arm, he’s seen tremendous growth in the city.

“When I came here 14 years back, we had an office in Dunwoody, and there were not that many buildings,” he said.  Now, looking out the window, offices have risen all around.

“If you look at the growth, it was extremely high in Atlanta for the last five or six years,” Mr. Dhingra said.

Mr. Dhingra listed a few of the attributes that give Atlanta its economic vitality and make it a good place for IT companies, especially from India.

The weather is warm, which makes Indian people feel at home, he said.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport connects Georgia with the rest of the world.  Atlanta’s cost of living is relatively low, and with a broad pool of quality universities, its talent levels are very high.

In addition, Atlanta has many Fortune 500 companies that make good clients for IT companies.

NIIT has worked with Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., banks, logistics and retail companies, among others, Mr. Dhingra said.

Another Indian IT company, Wipro Technologies Ltd., also noticed the city’s advantages and announced in 2007 that it would open a software development center here.

Wipro has stalled the opening to weather the economic downturn, but company officials say they remain committed to the center, which officials have said is set to employ up to 500.

Mr. Dhingra said NIIT has done relatively well in the current recession.

“The business is a little slow in the last couple of quarters, but not too much,” he said. “This is the first quarter where we have had flat growth, absolutely zero growth, but we are looking at growth in the (second) quarter.”

He said Atlanta has some obstacles to overcome if it wants to become the South’s central point for information technology companies. The venture capital scene here needs work, as people still think of the main hubs in Boston and California as the places where technology companies can most easily raise money, he said.

The other hurdle is marketing, getting the word out about the advantages Atlanta does have, he said.

The Georgia Institute of Technology is one of the top biotechnology schools in the country, and the state should focus on that sector.

“I think the investments of the VCs and the private equity funds have to make sure that the state becomes a hub for biomedical engineering and biotechnology companies,” he said.

Doing so could help Atlanta attract many Indian firms that are “dying to start biotech or biomedical engineering operations in the U.S.”

Mr. Dhingra has been working with the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and tech-focused organizations like the Technology Association of Georgia, or TAG, to make sure a clear case is presented for Atlanta on the world stage.

“The environment is there; it just has to get everyone together and say, ‘Let’s create this,’” he said.

Hans Gant, senior vice president of economic development for the metro chamber, said at a recent event at Wipro’s Atlanta office that the chamber is focused on attracting Indian companies.

“We want to make sure that Atlanta and Georgia are one of their primary areas for investment,” Mr. Gant said.

India has announced that it will open a consulate general in Atlanta this year.

Mr. Dhingra said that will help with “community and immigration” issues for Indian workers.

On a different note, Mr. Dhingra mentioned how NIIT’s technology solutions helped inspire the Oscar-winning film “Slumdog Millionaire.” The movie portrays a poor Indian boy’s rise to fortune when he wins the Indian version of the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”

He knows the answers to the questions through life experience, the same principle NIIT used when building its “Hole in the Wall” initiative.  As an experiment to help kids learn technology, the company put computers programmed with education software in kiosks around slums in New Delhi.

Without any supervision, the children began learning how to use the technology.

The program inspired Vikas Swarup, the author of the book “Q&A,” upon which the movie was based.

Its success helped Mr. Swarup realize “that there’s an innate ability in everyone to do something extraordinary, provided they are given an opportunity,” an NIIT press release quotes him as saying

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Posted by Kaylyn

With the ever changing, fast-paced nature of our federal and state government, TAG and TechAmerica are partnering to provide our members with daily news clips from our nation and state’s capitol. 
A unique goal for our organization is to become a key strategic information repository for our membership. TAG seeks to “Educate, Inform and Unite” members of Georgia’s technology community. This new member benefit will facilitate our goal of educating and informing our colleagues about the latest advancements in federal and state specific polices relevant to the high-tech industry.
We invite you to stay current with daily updates by opting into this new feature at the following hyperlink: http://www.tagonline.org/TAG-TechAmerica-Headlines.php.

Comments (0) Legislative Issues

Posted by Ariel Killen

openPR http://www.openpr.com/news/88088/Solar-Velocity-s-VP-of-Sales-Marketing-named-to-TAG-Smart-Grid-Society-s-Board-of-Directors.html and
from Solar Velocity http://www.pr.com/press-release/165407

Solar Velocity’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing Scott Burkey was appointed to the new Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) Smart Grid Society’s Board of Directors.

The TAG Smart Grid Society will work to educate, enlighten, and accelerate the development of smart grid technologies in Georgia by exploring the technologies and collaborations necessary to drive the smart grid systems into reality. Burkey and the other board members are working to foster relationships, develop a meeting schedule, and raise awareness about the society.

Burkey serves as the Business Development Executive for Solar Velocity, a leading interactive marketing and technology firm based in Atlanta, Georgia. The award-winning firm has over 700 creative projects to its name and counts AT & T Wireless, AFLAC, Lotus Automobiles, FSBO.com, and 99X.com among its clients. Burkey is responsible for developing new business, expanding his company’s brand recognition, and providing critical e-business insights for his clients. In addition to consulting key Fortune 1000 accounts that his company serves, Burkey contributes to many publications and mentors young technology and marketing professionals in the Atlanta area.

“I am extremely honored to be named to the TAG Smart Grid Society’s Board of Directors,” says Burkey. “Our state is on track to become a prominent player on the global stage. The next few months and years will surely be exciting, as we work to increase the import and export of new energy creation, distribution, and consumption technologies.”

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Posted by Josh Lewis

From a new supercharged alternative fuel (electric) motorcycle introduced at a TED Talks event and a Microsoft discussion on the evolution of cloud computing, including future benefits and unintended consequences, to Google’s VP talking about the “incomplete Internet,” an expert predicts your power in the user-generated real-time Web and a TGIF look at Japan’s robot chef, a new show is launched every week day on WebVisions: a TAG TV compilation of tech news and information clips from various popular Internet video sites.  Watch a show a day to expand your tech IQ! 

Go to WebVisions Now!

Monday: Sleek Supercharged Electric Motorcycle Introduced
Masters of design Yves Behar and Forrest North unveil Mission One, a sleek, powerful electric motorcycle, the result of their shared dreams and passion for alternative fuel solutions in an entertaining TED Talks presentation.  4 minutes

Tuesday: Microsoft Exec Discusses the Past, Present and Future of Cloud Computing
Join Microsoft Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie for an expansive discussion on the industry’s evolution to the cloud, where we are today, and the potential future benefits and unintended consequences. 85 minutes

Wednesday: Google’s VP Talks about the Incomplete Internet
Vint Cerf, Google VP and Chief Internet Evangelist, speaks at TechAmerica’s Technology for Government reception last week about incomplete aspects of the Internet, including security and impact on economics.  12 minutes

Thursday: The Power of You in the User-Generated Real-Time Web
Steve Jurvetson, of a worldwide venture capital group, explains how user-generated content is more important than centralized media, predicting the rising popularity of real-time search (a la Twitter) trumping that of Google’s web crawling and indexing method. 7 minutes

Friday: Japan’s Robot Chef
TGIF: What’s cooking at Tokyo’s International Food Machinery and Technology Expo? For this amazing robo-chef, it’s okonomiaki, Japanese pancakes. 1minute

Go to WebVisions Now!

Other TAG TV Features: Weekly Tech Talk on TAG Radio
TAG President Tino Mantella interviews Atlanta’s top executives, with a new show launching every Tuesday afternoon. Click to listen to Tino’s latest interview!

Comments (0) Notables What’s New?

Posted by Kaylyn

From July 15 –18, the city of Atlanta will host state legislators from across the nation for the 36th annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). This is the first time the Peach State will serve as host for ALEC’s meeting.

ALEC serves as a nonpartisan association for state lawmakers who share a vision of “limited government, free markets, federalism and individual liberty.”

Each year, over 2,000 state legislators and other interested parties, including groups from the private sector, join together for thoughtful discussions on pressing issues facing our states, ranging from education to healthcare to fiscal policy.

This year, the Host Committee Chairman is Georgia’s very own, Rep. Earl Ehrhart (R-Powder Springs), along with co-chairs Sen. John Wiles (R-Marietta) and Rep. Calvin Hill (R-Canton). Rep. Ehrhart serves Georgia’s General Assembly as the Rules Committee Chairman.

Featured speakers for the event include, but are not limited to:  Hermain Cain, The Honorable Newt Gingrich, Daniel Hannan, Dr. Art Laffer, The Honorable Zell Miller and Stephen Moore.

If you are interested in participating in ALEC this year, please visit their website for further information on event registration at http://www.alec.org.

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Posted by Ariel Killen

http://localtechwire.com/business/local_tech_wire/opinion/blogpost/5330141/
WRAL Local Tech Wire

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. – Entrepreneurs, take heart. Speed dating, “lounge” events and “Calling All Entrepreneurs” are just three events this week that serve as examples of where you can meet potential investors and get feedback about your business plans…

Participating in events like these, attending venture conferences and related events such as networking mixers put on by the Council for Entrepreneurial Development or the Technology Association of Georgia and others can open the right doors for entrepreneurs. But you may have to do your homework and spadework to find the doors on which to knock.

Comments (0) TAG in the News

Posted by Josh Lewis

From the social challenges of rapid innovations such as Twitter and futurist Ray Kurzweil’s exploring the future of technology to a rare glimpse of Microsoft’s visions, the newest gaming products and CSPAN’s interview with the acting chair of the FCC to analyze the role of digital television and the relationship of the Internet in safeguarding the public’s interests, a new show is launched every week day on WebVisions: a TAG TV compilation of tech news and information clips from various popular Internet video sites.  Watch a show a day to conveniently expand your tech IQ!

Go to WebVisions Now!
Monday: The Challenges of Rapid Innovations Such as Twitter
Nicole Wong, deputy general counsel at Google, examines the challenges associated with rapidly adapting to new communication mediums like Twitter and how society no longer has enough time to figure out the rules because periods between innovations continue to shrink. 3 minutes

Tuesday: Futurist Ray Kurzweil Explores the Future of Technology
Inventor, author and futurist Ray Kurzweil explores how technology’s breakneck advances will only accelerate—recession or not—as he discusses his new project, Singularity University, to study oncoming tech and guide it to benefit humanity. 9 minutes

Wednesday: A Rare Glimpse of Microsoft’s Visions
Reuters News enjoys a rare glimpse of a ‘whereabouts’ clock, ‘sensecam’ and Second Light which are just a few of the futuristic visions revealed at Microsoft’s flagship European research laboratory.  2 minutes

Thursday: The Newest Gaming Entries Announced at E3 2009
A look at the E3 2009 Media Briefing in Los Angeles, CA. Announcements included Rock Band Beatles, Tony Hawk Ride (using a skateboard), Crack Down 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Metal Gear Rising, Alan Wake, and the Project Natal.  Its gaming, gaming, gaming!  7 minutes

Friday: The Future of Digitized Media
CSPAN interviews Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Acting Chair Michael Copps about the June transition to digital television and the relationship of the Internet in safeguarding the public’s interest.  28 minutes

Go to WebVisions Now!

Other TAG TV Features: Weekly Tech Talk on TAG Radio
TAG President Tino Mantella interviews Atlanta’s top executives, with a new show launching every Tuesday afternoon. Click to listen to Tino’s latest interview!

Comments (0) Notables What’s New?

Posted by Ariel Killen

http://hrdindia.com/2009/06/meet-t-reed-gary-17-year-veteran-blue-chip-corporate-recruiting-consultant/
HR India

Reed is passionate about the art & business impact of Talent Acquisition. He has a track record of crafting recruiting strategies; candidate sourcing and candidate development; plus, pre-closing candidates & increasing offer acceptance rates. Reed’s experience includes 17 years in corporate Human Resources plus 14 years of Contract Recruiting with focus on: US Government / Public Sector; PhD, MS, & BS Engineers; subject matter experts in Information Technology; territory & large account Sales; and, market research; brand; analysts relations; SEO specialists in Marketing....

Six Degrees: Tell us about your broader involvement within the staffing industry:
Reed: As much as possible I attend meetings; events; and/or, stay on top of articles of interest by Technology Association of Georgia; ERE; RecruitingBlogs....

Comments (0) TAG in the News

Posted by Ariel Killen

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/blog/atlantech/2009/06/accelereyes_bags_gratag_biz_launch_competition.html
Atlanta Business Chronicle

AccelerEyes has won the GRA/TAG Business Launch Competition — pocketing prestige and $300,000 in cash and services.

The Atlanta startup develops software tools to allow applications to run on graphics processing units. GPUs are ten times faster than CPUs and allow computers to process information faster and be more productive.

AccelerEyes CEO John Melonakos said he was “ecstatic” about winning.

The business competition was an opportunity to get “great feedback from seasoned VCs and entrepreneurs,” the 29-year-old entrepreneur said.

David Eckoff, a semi-finalist judge, said was impressed with AccelerEyes’ “strength of their management, value proposition and core technology IP.”

The publicity and interest generated from the win is also likely to help AccelerEyes raise the $500,000 in seed funding.

AccelerEyes competed with finalists Band Metrics and TalentSoup in the annual competition, organized by the Georgia Research Alliance and the Technology Association of Georgia.

This year’s GRA/TAG competition focused on Internet Technology, which includes companies developing products, online services or technologies that use or extend the reach, flexibility, and ease of the Internet.

Band Metrics, a TechCrunch50 2008 semi-finalist, helps bands, musicians and music industry professionals understand their popularity by aggregating online information about how many times their music has been played, purchased or shared. Read AtlanTech’s review here.

TalentSoup is an Internet service that provides a highly efficient matching engine to connect talent with advertising projects.

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Posted by Ariel Killen

By Allan Maurer

Knowing where a band’s fan base is located or where its music is played most often on the radio can help it focus both its marketing efforts and plan its tours. But the availability of solid analytics about bands that may be “under the radar” also helps producers in the television, radio and commercial industries find artists with breakout potential they can sign relatively inexpensively.

So says Duncan Freeman, founder and CEO of Band Metrics, one of three finalists in the Georgia Research Alliance/Technology Association of Georgia business launch competition wrapping up this week. “It’s my third start up,” Freeman notes.

The company, one of the brands developed by Indy Music Inc., was founded in 2006. Freeman initially self - funded the effort, but the company did a small Series A round under $1 million in 2008 in with Allen Graber and another investor providing the funds.

“We’re presently closing a Series B under $1 million that includes new investors,” Freeman says.

The two-employee company does data analytics that act as decision making support for professionals in the music industry. “We collect and aggregate massive amounts of data from the Internet relative to musicians,” he says. “We analyze it and provide key insights and trend information to music professionals such as booking agencies, band managers, music labels and others.”

Band Metrics tracks how many friends they have on social Web sites such as Facebook or Myspace, the number of comments, how many people click on “like” buttons related to their music, and other analytics. “It drives insight on how they can best market,” Freeman explains. “Should they focus their updates on a particular site?”

The company also pulls in radio plays from 1,000 different radio stations that tells its clients how many times songs were played in a market, giving artists an idea of where their music is being played most often. “It helps them capitalize on their fan base,” says Freeman. “If they know where most of their fans are located, they can concentrate their marketing in those areas and it helps with tour planning.”

The chief competition to the online service, Freeman says, are companies that use focus groups. The Band Metrics advantage, he points out, “is that we keep our data and can show how artists and songs are doing over time, and compare them to others. You can’t do that with a focus group.”

Although the service is still in beta testing, it already has about 4,000 users signed up, says Freeman.  Bands testing the service include The Beastie Boys, R.E.M., and Metric.

While it will eventually use a subscription model, it is currently free.
Freeman says the site can help music supervisors of popular TV shows or commercials find new talent at inexpensive prices. Music supervisors, a relatively new position at media companies, find the songs that play during shows such as “Gray’s Anatomy,” and “Smallville.”

If they sign a little-known group and end up with a hit song, everyone benefits, says Freeman.

The site helps music supervisors find tunes that appeal to just the right audience, he explains.

“Let’s say Nike is releasing a new type of shoe they want worn by a particular demographic, say the tween market. They want music supervisors to find a song the tween market is really liking so they can cement that demo to their product.”

Freeman says a lot of brands are looking at “sonic branding to help cement a demographic” to their product.

“In that sense, we’re a sales tool,” says Freeman.

He says that while the company’s technology is “agnostic toward any vertical” it is solely focused on the music industry right now. For one thing, Freeman says, it’s a space he knows. He paid his way through college with a cover band that toured the Southeast.

Eventually, however, he says the company will license the technology to others who might want to use the same system for wine or athletes or other areas.

“It’s called sentiment analysis,” says Freeman. It would be useful to marketers he suggest, “If you could gauge how people think about a particular athlete.”

Comments (7) TAG in the News

Posted by Ariel Killen

http://www.techlinks.net/community/articles/article/17692-technology-marketing-excellence-awards-earned-by-arketi-for-three-clients
TechLINKS

High tech business-to-business public relations and marketing firm Arketi Group, announced three of its clients earned TAMY Awards from TAG Marketing, a society of the Technology Association of Georgia. The awards, given at the 9th Annual Technology Marketing Excellence Awards (TAMY) ceremony, recognize Georgia-based companies that demonstrate significant and measurable accomplishments in technology marketing and PR.

Arketi’s work for the following clients helped earn them a 2009 TAMY Award: ERDAS, Reveille Software and Virtual Premise. For the fifth straight year, Arketi’s corporate positioning work swept the positioning categories.

“These technology companies really embrace the notion that effective and integrated marketing affects the bottom line,” said Rory Carlton, principal of Arketi Group. “By working hand-in-hand with these clients we were able to not only generate exciting PR and marketing programs, but were able to track the results of these efforts back to key business measurements.” ...

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