Change Agent at Work

"Think Local Planet, Act Regionally"....

... is the title of a blog focused on Regional Communities.

Check it out:  http://regional-communities.blogspot.com

There are many links and stories about what other communities and regions are doing around the country and world to collaborate and work together.

I would be remiss if I didn't insert a selfish plug...

Tompkins has something to offer...

I was recently interviewed by The Cornell Daily Sun.  (read the article by clicking on the "read more" link later in this post).

Expanding on the coverage... it is important to stop and think about what Tompkins County is doing different.  What do they have?

It is true... Cornell University and Ithaca College certainly help - A LOT - but more than that (and in part due to the two colleges) Ithaca is doing a good job of promoting and sustaining...

Pipeline 4 Progress - WIVT/WBGH Newschannel34

P4P looks at ways to improve the Southern Tier’s economy by recruiting and keeping young talent in the area.

read more

South of the Border...

I've been extremely busy the last few days.

Pipeline 4 Progress is gearing up for the first of four Regional Input Meetings scattered throughout the Upstate P4P Region. 

Our first meeting is Friday - March 7th - in Binghamton, NY.

Please feel free to join us and participate in the collaborative discussions.

Earlier this week - on Tuesday...

I was NOT in Upstate NY talking about regionalism and collaboration.  I was in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Tough choices...

It is a little ironic that my first thought it writing this entry was the title "tough choices"... 

It's also the title of a book - Tough Choices: a Memoir by Carly Fiorina - former CEO of Hewlett-Packard.  I'll mention why later in this post (so keep reading).

The "tough choice" is whether or not I should write on political issues.  But this is very important - and after all - this is mikefullerblog.com - so why wouldn't I talk about it?

Thirst for communication, connection and community

Following up on my entry about talent...  Did you happen to read the opinion page in the Star Gazette yesterday?  Newspapers close to turning page on history was written by a Watkins Glen High School Student - Margaret Amisano - who is a member of the Star Gazette Youth Editorial Board.

Margaret does a great job in talking about the under 40 demographic.  She touched on several issues involving communication and how different modes of communication has changed and evolved with younger generations.

A lesson from Cali and Jody (Workforce of the Future)...

One of the blogs that I frequently read is "Cali and Jody"... "two social visionaries, workplace activists and agents of global change..." read more about them at:  http://caliandjody.com/.

Cali and Jody came up with this concept - ROWE or Results-Only Work Environment.  It's a very real and true concept facing employers today.  Especially in the P4P and NY Pipeline Region.

Cynics and Skeptics need not apply...

On February 13th Pipeline 4 Progress (P4P) and other community stakeholders held a Regional Action Initiative Kick-Off Event at the Corning Museum of Glass.

Robert Simpson, President Elect, of the Metropolitan Development Association (MDA) of Syracuse and Central New York was one of the closing speakers.  The MDA has established a successful regional initiative in Central NY - The Creative Core.

Simpson shared his thoughts and experience about the success and obstacles the MDA faced in pulling together the Central NY Initiative. 

"Often, we let the cynics within the region and critics from outside the region define our region for us," Simpson said.  "Don't let the skeptics and the cynics stand in the way of (P4P's) initiative."

P4P Regional Action Initiative

Over the past two years, Pipeline 4 Progress (P4P) has focused on developing strategies to attract and retain talented individuals in our Region.  In 2007 we launched our P4P Connection and Come Home efforts… in 2008 we plan to expand and focus more energy on making those and other programs successful and vital to the area.  We have built exciting new partnerships and look forward the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

Rebuilding an upstate empire...

...is an article from the Albany Times Union that outlines Dan Gundersen's three-pronged approach to retaining and bringing businesses to New York. 

In the article Mr. Gundersen says the first step is preparing upstate NY to compete in the "innovation economy" and highlights "the jobs of the innovation economy" - - citing BAE Systems (Binghamton) and Corning, Inc. (Corning) - - both located in the Southern Tier!