As I have mentioned before next to working here at Stagis I'm currently writing my thesis on corporate blogging. I was reading a few articles when I came across one about how blogs could come back to haunt you later in life. It might sound scary but the issue was regarding students who love sharing personal details about what they do on Friday night on one of the many blogs out there. In making private information public they could face problems (besides the obvious of having embarrassing pictures or video of you being circulated on the Internet). Some believe that the blogs ability to store and copy everything joyning a virtual community could be more dangerous than you think. The worry is about employers having a perfect opportunity to give you a back ground check when you look for a job. If your blog is full of good stories and pictures, there is a good chance it will only take seconds for the HR Director of Whatever Inc. to find it on Google. I don't know if it's an American worry or paranoia? What do you think? Isn't it just the consequences of living in this century? The conclusion in the article is "these virtual communities are part of today's student culture and are how they communicate. Student's shouldn't necessarily avoid being part of it altogether. They just need to make smart decisions about what they post online". I will sacrifice myself for the sake of a social experiment and leave a few drunken pictures and see what happens!!!

Yesterday I spoke with Jacob Benbunan, CEO of Saffron Consultants, who works with corporate branding and country branding (Chairman at Saffron is brand-guru Wally Olins whom I met earlier). One of the countries that Saffron is working with is Poland. I asked Jacob if an organization can have any single identity when there are 40 million members of the organization. And what the difficulties are when the client is only sure to be in charge for four years?

Hear The Talk: STAGISTALKS Jacob Benbunan [15:50 min, 10,9 mb]

A friend of mine asked me the other day: Do you feel close to the people you work with?

I was on the radio this morning, DR Københavns Radio asked if they could do a live interview about the job-swop that Lars Konggaard from Deloitte and I did a couple of month ago. "On deep waters" they called it, metaphorically mentioning my being away from my own safe haven. Jette Beckmann who reports on the traffic situation and "Øresundssnak" (what is that?!) told me I have a great voice and should consider being on the radio some more. Thanks, Jette. I will consider it. Listen to the interview and see if you agree on DR's website (danish). I'm not sure I do. But don't we all feel strange about our own voices?

See one of the old posts about the job-swop or check out Master of Management Development at CBS.

As mentioned in an earlyer post, danish companies are just about to discover corporate blogging as a coomunication tool with many purposes. However, the picture is slightly different when you consider the danish music business. Every band with worth mentioning has a profile on Myspace, and here blogging is a very central feature. Bands of all kinds use blogging to reach their audience and to make the audience feel like a part of the bandlife. It has become one of the most important ways to mobilize an audience and to create a hype in the music business. More important than the website itself. And no wonder! It's the perfect way to communicate with fans, giving them a chance to see what is going on when the band is not on stage. And in the long process of making a record, it's a perfect way to remain contact with the audience.

For example I have a friend who plays in the danish band Entakt. They are just about to to finish their debut album, and that's what takes most of his time right now. But I feel like i'm allmost with him and the rest of the band during the proces, as I follow them on their weblog. Through their many activities on different blogs, they have created a great interest in their product before it's even finished. Not bad. Not bad at all. I think we could all learn something...

The first podcast on stagisblog is a talk on authenticity with Professor Mary Jo Hatch from McIntire School of Commerce at University of Virginia. Mary Jo is known for a number of academic papers, articles and books on organization theory, leadership, identity, image and organizational symbolism.

You can find two of the companies that Mary Jo mentions here: The Body Shop and Interface Flooring Systems.

See a list of books by Mary Jo.

Hear the talk: STAGISTALKS Mary Jo Hatch [11:46 min, 8,1 mb]

Lately I have had a lot of experience with PostDanmark. It is always exciting what is going to happen when you mail something or when you are waiting to have something delivered, because in PostDanmark, everything is possible! ...Except bringing out mail or handling packages.

I am expecting two packages from Canada, and three days ago I came home to a postformnote, that said that one of my packages had arrived and that I could pick it up at the nearest post office. Because of earlier experiences with PostDanmark, I thought that this was to good to be true. And it was. The next day there was another postformnote waiting for me to come home from work. This one was not filled out, but instead the postman had written ”wrong address, sorry” and then signed it The Postman. Wrong address what? Mine? I’m sure this is my address! Or wrong address to the Post office? I knew that the note wasn’t going to give me any answers, so I figured to wait a day or two, and see if there was going to be more notes and clues from the postman. And there was. The day after I received a new postformnote saying that there was a package for me from Canada and I could pick it up at the nearest post office, but this nearest post office had a different address than the first nearest post office? I was confused. Had a received the two packages I was expecting, and where they lying in two different post offices? Or was it the same package there by mistake was delivered at the wrong post office first, and then shipped to another? And which of these two nearest post offices is actually the one nearest?
I decided to call PostDanmark and ask, and then at the same time get the packages shipped to the post offices nearest to my work, so I also would be able to actually pick the packages up, for off cause the post offices are only open while I work.. The first lady at the customer service I talked to, wasn’t really any help, but she informed me that it would cost me 31,50 dkkr to get the package shipped from one post office to another and then she put me through to the post office where one of my packages where, so that I myself could explain what it was I wanted them to do. The lady there was also very confused about shipping a package from one place to another, and actually asked me how to do it! And then she informed me that it would cost me 33 dkkr to do so. That is 1,50 dkkr more than the first price I got, but no reason mention it, wouldn’t want to confuse the poor thing even more. I asked her if she could put me through to the other post office that had the other package, so that I also could get that one shipped, but she couldn’t and said that I had to call the costumer service again, and then they could put me through. So I called customer service again and talked to a third lady, who also was very confused about the whole shipping packages thing... I explained it, and then she said ” Oh ok, it will cost you... wait... it will cost you.. is it.... you know I twill cost you something Wright?” “Yes, 33dkkr” I answered, “but I will bring 35 just to be on the safe side, 'cause it seems that the price gets higher and higher the more people I have to talk to...”. She called the other post office where my second package might be, while I was on hold. But there was no package. She tried to explain to me why I got that many postformnotes, and said that the postman probably had used the second one as greaseproof paper.. Since I got the three notes three different days, I knew that that wasn’t the case, but again, no reason telling her that, and make the poor thing more confused. So now there was only one package to have shipped and pick up, but she was not sure how long it would take. She told me that I could try and go down to the post office the day after, and see if they had received the package. Or else just try another day.

Today is the day after, and I am soon to find out if my package is there. I will bring 50 dkkr just to be on the safe side, because you never know how many people you have to talk to, and what will happen when you are dealing with PostDanmark.

I know someone who knows everyone. I mean seriously everyone. I know a person who is a living prove of the fact that there is only seven links between you and me – only in her case there is not seven but one: And she is always the one link! She is the Danish version of the theory “The Bacon Number” (if your Bacon number is relatively low, say three, it means that there is only three people between you and the actor Kevin Bacon).
And to be honest that is only the half of the truth because actually I don´t know her in person but I feel that I do. Lets just say she has had a certain influence on my working-life the past three months – she has made things a little easier so to speak.
Let me sum up and give you an idea of what we are dealing with here:
My boss (Nikolaj) and I have tried to reach a prominent politician for months but without any luck. Who knows a way in? She does.
I am about to make a paper on Organisation and Culture and ask a friend if he by any chance can recommend me some quality books on the subject. Who wrote the book he came up with? She did.
After picking up Nikolajs jacket in the airport the other day I went back to the office to send out letters to some of the people he had met on his trip to New York. One of them, an Executive Vice President in a well-known medical firm, happens to be the brother of …exactly.
While searching for different funds concerning a specific project whos name occurred in several Boards? Hers!

It would maybe scare me a bit - but not surprise me at all if she is the one standing behind the alter the day I am getting married. I am starting to realise that she in some way must be connected to the one above.

Last friday, Stagis celebrated summer with friends and customers. The first guests started showing up at five o´clock in the afternoon, and the last guests left at four o´clock in the morning ( I actually think it was the same guests...). So it was elleven hours of partying. And what a party it was!! Thank you, to all of you who came at made the evening a great one together with us! We are looking forward to see you at our next arrangement. And thank you for helping us, to have something to do on our saturday aswell (cleaning up big time!)
You can see pictures from the party here

Hackney council in London is threatening Nike with legal action since they became aware of the fact that the famous brand had "borrowed" the Hackney council logo for several of their products such as shirts, footballs etc. for the promotion of its grassroots football campaign for the World Cup. Nike´s comment to the case is: "Nike has produced a small range of products that celebrate Hackney Marshes as a symbol of all that is great about amateur football". I guess there is only one amateur in this picture. It amazes me that a corporation like Nike would even think of "borrowing" a logo, unless it was their intention to get the free publicity? Imagine if the roles were reversed? There is 2 things I can think of as to why this has happened.1) Nike didn´t know that Hackney is an up and coming area of London and thought no one would notice it one their products. 2) Nike knows that Hackney council is one of the poorest ones in England and therefore thought the pay off couldn´t be that high. Regardless of what went through their minds the ride is probably not going to be free. Hackney Mayor Jules Pipe says: "I was shocked that such a huge global company would use it without even approaching us for permission" and "Nike have taken for their own profit something that belongs to the people of Hackney." Having lived in Hackney myself (next door to the council) I know that the area could use a big injection of Nike cash towards giving kids better equipment and clothing for sports - so if that is what comes out of this case - it might not be all bad for Hackney after all.