Social Media Strategy: “Dirt Cheap Labour” meet Game Theory

In the social media stampede, how long would free be truly “free?”
I just read the article “Dirt cheap labour – How businesses are getting the public to work for them for free” by Stephanie Findlay in the Business section of Macleans’ online magazine, published last week. Check it out.
OK. Let’s repeat the question: How long [...]

Tim Hortons & Social Media: Learning about the power of the crowd

Today, Tim Hortons learned about the power of social media.
In a release from Change.org, “Urge Tim Hortons to Stop Supporting Anti-LGBT Group” they indicate:
Oh, don’t you hate it when doughnuts decide to go homophobic? The Canadian mega-giant Tim Hortons (which in Canada is the largest coffee chain in the country), has decided to co-sponsor [...]

The Power of Web 2.0: Jian Ghomeshi… this is your moment.

It’s time to soak up the gravy!
We all hear the stories of musicians, writers, politicians and other bon vivants slugging it out on the interview junkets. While it is often not glamorous shuffled off from one interview to another, convened at odd times and with diverse bunch of interviewers (including the proverbial “wild and crazy [...]

Canadians less trusting in economic downturn: New survey shows substantial decline in societal trust

With stock markets in decline, lay offs at historical highs and consumer spending severely curtailed, consumer confidence is at historical lows. But this does not tell the full story of where the public’s mind is at in this economic downtown. What happens to one of the pillars of relationships and transactions [...]

The Family Challenge: Thoughts on Eating a Meal Together

For all of us, the sharing of a meal is a common, anticipated ritual that reunites us with loved ones and brings a sense of balance to our lives. In today’s fast-paced world, it has become more challenging to bring people together for this important, soul-filling experience, so it is my heart’s desire to help [...]

New Zealand’s Darkest Hour & Canadian Politics

When I was in Form 5 and studying for my O Levels (and 6 months of never-ending exams), my beloved Windies cricket team went on tour to New Zealand after drubbing the Aussies 2-0. What ensued was a travesty of justice, unruly behaviour and among one of the most acrimonious cricket series ever played.
Fazeer Mohammed [...]

When Humanity Reigns…

As a researcher, I seek to find those common threads that connect a breadth of ideas with the diversity of mindsets. I am also an ardent traveler, as I find it the best education. But every once in while, something comes along that reminds me about what we as a society should aspire to.
When we [...]

Strategy, Organization & Collaboration 2008: Welcome, President Obama

November 4, 2008 was a historic day. The election of Barack Obama is an event of our lifetime. While he ascended to presidency on his strength of character, integrity, powerful oratory skill, ability to connect with diversity of America (and the world!), calm and persuasiveness, there are a number of other aspects – much based [...]

Canadian 2008 Federal Election: Reflections on a $300 million+ Vanity Project

October 14 came and went and little has changed in structure of representation in our parliament. There is a still a minority Conservative Party of Canada government in power, and the relative strength of the opposition is still the same. But there are some subtleties to reflect upon.

Before presenting my thoughts, let’s revisit the obvious [...]

The Global Financial Crisis: 5 Points to Consider

At this point governments around the world are grappling with a major financial crisis, no more so than the U.S. Government. At this time, they have presented a Bill before Congress for the transfer of $700 billion taxpayer dollars to purchase the distress assets of several failed financial institutions. This was rejected on Sept. 29 [...]