Archives March 2010

I promised myself I wouldn’t write something on the Census.. this is after I initially silently complained about the LETTER I received informing me that the Census is coming soon. (Although I did do some pretty extensive searching on the cost of Permit G-58 items, and what the likely cost to us for that single mailing was)

And then I got the actual census, riddled with inaccuracies and insanity – I’m sure if I mail in my Census now.. it’ll be invalid since it speaks about “April 1 2010” as the date I get to choose who ‘lives’ here.   But even that… I simply tweeted and vocally complained.. but I didn’t actually go so far as to write this post.

However, I can remain silent no longer.   … Why you might ask?

I received this in the mail today.

Seriously? Seriously? I mean, SERIOUSLY FRANCINE?!  WTF IS THIS?!@?

That’s right.   Not only did I receive one piece of post which effectively said “Save the date”, and then I received “the date” and now I’m given… not a tutorial.. not anything which WASN’T disclosed in previous mailings… No.  I’m not even sure WTF this is about and why my tax dollars and TREES, screw the tax dollars, my frakking TREES are going to waste for this utter BS. (Yes, first time I’ve ever used the acronym BS)

I totally get that you need to do this Census.  I’m willing to let it slide that in the year 2010. What’s that? the Year twoooooooo thousand and ten.. you don’t have a DIGITAL option, yet all of your forms you mail are effectively keyed to individual.. but no, I get that.   But do you seriously need to SPAM my frakking home mailbox? Destroy millions of trees? Make me write stupid blog posts?

So what will come next? Can I expect to receive a swimsuit catalog of the Census?   Will there be a “Best of the Census”, or a continuous revisiting of this experience again?   I hope I don’t see YET another mailing to come on this same topic, but we’ll see…

I’m not sure what the cost of this is to the tax payers (hey, that’s me!) but I thought TWO mailings was a bit severe.  Three is downright idiotic.

Though for what it’s worth… I’d love to hear if you agree, or disagree even, especially disagree! 

I get a lot of emails, tweets, IM’s, comments and more about getting 20% off your certification exam!  And I know I’ve discussed this in the past Increasing your Microsoft Certification Discount from 10% to 20%, Certification and MeasureUp Discounts 20% off Certs! and You deserve a Second Shot at Microsoft Exam’s, until June 30th, 2010! – and even more than that, but I won’t bore you with the other redundant links!

What this really means is… I’ve said this a damn lot! So why am I saying it again?!!$!?   Because June 30th is coming up, and that is when all of the vouchers will expire – Second shot AND the 20% off vouchers! So what this means to you is… Let’s get rid of all of my vouchers!

I currently have vouchers for EVERY country which give you a “Second shot” on your exams – so if you want insurance if you fail, let me know and I’ll hook you up!

If you want 20% off on your Certification Exams though, I’m limited to the following countries:

It bears repeating – I only have vouchers with 20% off in the above mentioned countries.   It’s either 20% off or Second Shot – Only!

As far as how many of these vouchers I have available.. most of the countries I have 10 or 20 total.. except for the US, where I have ~150 vouchers left.  So don’t be afraid to ask for as many vouchers as you need!

Now get out there and get certifying before this opportunity passes us all!

Yea I know I’m a bit delayed… and most of you who attended the EMCForum in Chicago have probably gotten an email with all of the decks, but there may be some of you who missed it, and who otherwise couldn’t attend, so check out these decks!

Disclaimer: I was asked not to publish this data until a week after it was released, so I honored that (and then got busy the month after the Forum, so the lesson is.. don’t embargo me ;))

If you’re anything like me, you’d love some of these slides which were published, and if not.. well, here are some rocking slides! Two in particular which really speak to most organizations as a whole!

However, there were so many sessions to speak of, so make sure you go and download the respective slides and decks you missed!

So, for those who enjoyed the EMCForum in Chicago, I know I did! It would take me hours to walk a few feet, but it was great to see old friends, new friends and more!

If you find yourself still missing some details from the Forum, don’t hesitate to let me know and I’ll get those details taken care of for you!

If you’re on the internet (Yes, I still read my blogs via fax) you likely have heard that Jeremy Burton has just been announced as EMC’s new CMO – Chief Marketing Officer

So, a hearty Welcome Jeremy is in order, but what does this mean for the organization?

EMC up until this point has not had an emphasis on marketing, however in Jeremy’s role he’ll be reporting directly to Joe Tucci, and in Joe’s words on Jeremy’s joining:

“EMC has the people, vision, technologies, and partnerships to lead what we believe will be the most significant wave of change and opportunity the IT industry has ever seen – cloud computing.  Jeremy’s deep software industry experience and marketing leadership credentials provide a strong complement to our executive leadership team.  We look forward to the contribution he can make in helping us extend EMC’s presence and relevance on the world stage, in building and guiding our global reputation and brand, and in further enabling the success of our sales teams and partner ecosystem.”

So it sounds like not only is this role ready to be fulfilled, but I’m sure the inbox is filling with opportunity for ways to take EMC from a shining star to the appropriate Super Nova of industry it has been exhibited itself out to be.  

You’re fresh in to the hot seat Jeremy, though you’ve been served up a smoldering hot hand.    With opportunities abound I look forward to how you help drive our success forward even further.  Welcome Jeremy, You couldn’t find yourself in a better place, at a better time, I know we certainly have the right person.