Sign up to attend the Sacramento Region Clean Energy Showcase on October 11, 2007, at UC Davis. This event is hosted by CleanStart and SARTA.

Click here for details.

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 7:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

"The Golden Capital Network, Nevada's Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, and the Sierra Angels announced there are still a few slots open for presenting companies at the 7th annual Silver and Gold Venture Capital Conference conference occurring on October 22-23 at the Siena Hotel in Reno."

Gillian and I have been to this conference numerous times. The combination of angel investors, venture capital firms, professional service providers, and entrepreneurs makes this the region's premier event for entrepeneurs seeking to meet investors.

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Click here for conference details.

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 6:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I clicked on CNN International this morning and watched in horror the crackdown on the citizens of Burma. The people, led by the Saffron robed monks who are revered as the moral authority of Burma, were peacefully demonstrating when the military began firing into the crowd. Many were dragged away and beaten. The monasteries around Burma were raided during the night and many monks were taken away. The rest were looked into their monasteries. Eyewitnesses were calling CNN International and relating the facts and begging for help from the world community. It reminded me of the student protests in Tiananmen Square, China, where many died also. And the world watched on CNN worldwide as witnesses to the brutal government crackdown.

After watching for 30 minutes or more, I switched to CNN (the American version) to see their take on the subject. Escaped Gorilla was the first story, 100 Cosmo girls appearing bikini-clad on Bondi Beach in Australia to beat a Guinness World Record. 30 minutes later, not one word about what was happening in Burma.

Maybe that was the most horrifying part for me. The rest of the world is shown, and chooses to watch, real news, the United States is watching Entertainment Tonight masquerading as real news. When did this diversion take place? When did the population of the United States agree to watch pablum over hard hitting news? As Rome burns...

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 6:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

1. Be excited
2. Be enthusiastic
3. Expect to Win
4. Exchange negative bad thoughts for good thoughts
5. Elevate your dreams
6. Change your environment
7. Eliminate some people
8. Eliminate bad habits
9. Eliminate envy
10. Evaluate your gifts
11. Educate yourself
12. Strive for excellence
13. Give the right effort
14. Stay strong when the eye of the storm is passing
15. Encourage yourself to be an expert manager
16. Enjoy the ride

Pierre Cutler
Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 3:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

9 Tips On Conducting Fabulous Meetings
1. Have fewer meetings!

Many regularly scheduled group meetings are unnecessary. Often a telephone call, memo or e-mail will suffice and is a better solution.

Meetings involving several staff members are very expensive. Just compute the hourly cost. You will be amazed! Clearly, it makes economic sense to only schedule meetings that are absolutely necessary.

2. Limit attendance.

Invite only the people who are absolutely necessary to the outcome of the meeting.

3. Start and stop meetings on a strict timetable.

Whether or not some people arrive late, start and stop at the scheduled time regardless.

4. Limit the time of the meeting.

Keep most meetings to 30 minutes. Only if absolutely necessary go to 45 minutes. In rare cases go to 60 minutes, or 90 minutes. If a subject is not covered within the scheduled time, simply shelve it to the next meeting.

5. Plan the meetings carefully.

Distribute a meeting agenda at least a day in advance. List the subjects of discussion. The decisions which need to be made. Who is responsible to implement the decision. The agreed upon completion date.

6. Preparation is critical for all attendees. .

Ask participants to prepare in advance for their part of the meeting agenda

7. Appoint a person to keep notes of the meeting.

Ideally, keeping meeting notes is a rotating responsibility. Distribute the notes within 24 hours of the meeting. Tape record the meeting to be sure you have a record of what transpired. Especially important is the action to be taken. Who has agreed to do what by when?

8. Avoid the so-called open door policy.

This is highly overrated. Do not conduct most one-on- one meetings in your office.

Some people just don't seem to know when to leave your work area and thus waste a lot of your time with small talk.

Instead, stop by the employee's office. Conduct your business. Then politely terminate the meeting and leave. You are much more in control of your time visiting an employee.

9. Use meeting performance as an important part of your periodic employee evaluations.

An evaluation can be an ideal time to communicate with an employee as to whether or not they are "getting it" insofar as your meeting culture.

Author: Ted Nicholas

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 1:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

According to the Motley Fool, "The best time to start saving for retirement is yesterday. The second best time is now."

And who's saving? Apparently not many. Facts:

• Fifty-six percent of eligible employees participated in defined contribution plans in 2006;
• 39% of Americans age 55 and older have less than $25,000 saved for retirement;

The Fool's take on the power of time value of money:

If you start contributing $250 a month to a 401(k) at age 20, and match the market's historical annualized return of 10%, your nest egg will reach $1.4 million by the time you're 60. That $1.4 million nest egg assumes no employer match. Include an employer match of 50%, and your retirement account rises to $2.2 million!

Are you making the same mistake as 44% of Americans by not participating in your company's 401K plan? Are you on the path to having less then $25,000 saved for retirement? If so, you need to read The Motley Fool.

Check out The Fool here.

I agree with The Motley Fool ... read how my son Nathan is becoming a millionaire. You can be a millionaire too!

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Are you looking for tools to develop your next generation of leaders? If so join Sonoma Learning Systems for the The Leadership Challenge® Preview. This free seminar is based on the best selling book The Leadership Challenge by Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner. Those who attend will gain insight into the Leadership Challenge, the worlds most trusted resource for developing better leaders.

Organizations both public and private are using the Leadership Challenge as a tool to build their bench strength of leaders. Whether you work for an entrepreneurial start-up or a major international conglomerate, the solution to bringing your workforce to the next level is the Leadership Challenge. Join us!

When: October 12th, 2007 (8:30 AM – 12:00 PM)
Where: The Sacramento Residence Inn Marriot, 1501 L Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
Cost: FREE (Limited to the first 60 people who sign-up)
Register

I agreed to plug this event because I have been very impressed by those who have gone through it and the person who asked me is an impressive graduate of the Sacramento Entrepreneurship Academy and works at Sonoma Learning Systems. I am picky as to what or whom I plug, but this made the criteria, without question.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 2:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Sacramento Business Journal - 11:15 AM PDT Thursday, September 20, 2007
by Celia LambStaff writer

Two fuel cell companies, one based in Folsom and the other based in Westwood, Mass., and headed by the chairman of a Sacramento clean-technology business incubator, have agreed to partner on developing mobile fuel cell systems for military and commercial markets.

Jadoo Power Systems and Acumentrics Corp. want to make small-scale generators for mobile command-and-control centers, remote power backup a portable generator for emergency services, construction and recreational equipment markets. They plan to combine Acumentrics' solid-oxide fuel cells with Jadoo Power's N-Stor fuel canisters.

"Providing generators that are silent, clean and efficient and can operate on conventional fuels like propane is a winning product that can replace light-duty generators," said Jadoo Power chief executive officer Lee Arikara.

Acumentrics' chief executive officer Gary Simon is also chairman of CleanStart, a clean technology incubator in McClellan Park.

"...the Acumentrics Jadoo system is expected to double the run time of the current 500 pounds of batteries carried by soldiers for a five day recon mission, weigh 80 percent less (including fuel), and operate silently," Simon said in the press release. "Silence is very important. Small generators give away our soldiers' position."

The combined system is designed to work for equipment that needs 5,000 watts or less. The two companies expect to begin evaluating applications of the new unit with prospective users in the first quarter of 2009.

This is a great outcome that I am sure was based on introductions made through CleanStart. Let's hope many more come from this great organization.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 2:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Online social networking phenomenon Facebook Inc announced that its backers have created an unusual $10 million fund to dole out grants to start-ups with ideas for innovative Facebook applications.

Facebook is working with its primary venture backers, Accel Capital and The Founders Fund, to create a way for people with new ideas to receive an initial funding grant of $25,000 to $250,000. The grant will not require the entrepreneur to give up any equity in his business, unlike the usual requirement of venture capitalists.

"We are looking for innovative and disruptive things," Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, said of projects the grants might fund.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 7:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A don't miss TV event - The War, a 15-hour documentary on PBS, depicting World War II with special emphasis on the effect it had on four US communities - one of which is Sacramento.

A look at Sacramento during wartime, from the PBS pressroom:

Sacramento expanded rapidly during the war, as tens of thousands migrated to the city to work at the two local aviation installations, McClellan Air Force Base (a repair and maintenance facility for aircraft, engines and flight instruments, as well as a training center for mechanics) and Mather Field (a training school for navigators and one of dozens of flight training bases that grew up all across the country during the war). McClellan was instrumental in providing operating support for many critical missions in the Pacific Theater, including retrofitting the bombers used for Lt. Col. James Doolittle’s raid of mainland Japan in April 1942. McClellan and Mather provided thousands of jobs to Sacramentans during the war; by 1943, McClellan alone employed 22,000 workers.

But not all Sacramento residents shared in the good times made possible by the war. In the spring of 1942, soon after President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 authorizing the War Department to designate “military areas” and then exclude anyone from them whom it felt to be a danger, hand-lettered signs saying “Japs must go” went up all over town. In May, the Japanese residents of Sacramento, with one week’s notice, were forced to abandon their homes, farms and businesses and were sent to inland internment camps. Ordered to bring only “what they could carry,” most would spend the remainder of the war in the camps, fenced in by barbed wire and guarded by soldiers wielding loaded machine guns. Immigrants from Mexico, some of them part of the “bracero” program, were eventually brought into Sacramento to work in the fields in their stead. When the war ended, only 59 percent of Japanese citizens who had been exiled chose to return to Sacramento County to try to reclaim their property and rebuild their lives.

It starts on your local PBS channel this Sunday evening. A companion book by "War" writer Geoffrey C. Ward and a soundtrack album will be released this month; a DVD boxed set of the series is set to bow October 2.

A review in the Washington Post states:

the film tells a collective story that unfolds grandly, horribly, painfully, proudly. It exposes the gaping divide between that era and the current day, while mounting a mighty effort to bridge it.

Simultaneously emotionally wrenching and intellectually challenging, Ken Burns has created yet another masterpiece that illuminates America’s past in a way that should bring us both pride and shame, helping us move forward as a culture.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 3:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The five fatal flaws are:

1. Inability to learn from mistakes

What's interesting about this flaw is that the research indicates that "derailed executives made about the same number of mistakes as those whose careers continued onward and upward." Derailed executives, however, did not use setbacks or failures in an assignment as a learning experience. As a result, they continued to make the same type of mistakes over and over again. These type of executives tend to try to cover up failures and don't take steps to correct the mistakes for fear of being found out. The most common refrain of Board members or the derailed execs boss is, "We tried to tell him, but he would not listen." I constantly tell aspiring leaders: Successful people aren't perfect, they fail a lot because they take risks and, they make course correction fast when they are wrong.

2. Lack of core interpersonal skills and competencies

The lack of core interpersonal skills cannot be surmounted by any "combination of intelligence, hard work, business acumen and administrative skill." Zenger & Folkman list the "basic human skills" as:

When you talk to people, look them in the eyes.
Learn and use people's names.
When talking with people, say or do things that let the other person know you are listening and understanding.
Do not dominate the conversation and talk all the "air time."
Sincerely inquire about others' ideas and activities.
Laugh at others' jokes and attempts at humor.
Praise others' hard work and efforts in furthering a good cause.
Smile when meeting and greeting other people.
You may look at the list and wonder how anyone couldn't do the above. Unfortunately, the prevalence of interpersonal ineptness keeps a lot of developmental coaches very well employed. It's not without reason that the saying "we hire people for their technical competence and fire them for their interpersonal incompetence," has become a cliche.

3. Lack of openness to new or different ideas

This particular flaw is a major de-motivator for subordinates because they will feel "ignored, their ideas unappreciated and their contributions undervalued." Furthermore, the organization becomes stuck. New ideas are "squelched and people stop thinking about better ways to do things." The upshot is that talented people get frustrated with these types of leaders and leave for greener pastures. The organization then becomes ladened with "yes men" who are fearful and will not take any risks. Zenger & Folkman characterize these type of leaders as "arrogant and complacent." They feel threatened by good ideas coming from others but cover that up by the delusion that they are brilliant.

4. Lack of accountability

Executives who exhibit this characteristic tend to find fault in everybody else. They set the bar impossibly high for everyone else but themselves. Some are adept at scapegoating. Frequently they blame their bosses or others behind their backs. This flaw goes beyond the minimum requirement of accepting responsibility for one's personal behavior to that of "not assuming complete responsibility for the performance of a work group" or the organization. Effective leaders make decisions and accept responsibility for the results of those decisions. Effective leaders accept criticism for mistakes from upper management and "buffer" their subordinates "from excessive criticism." They pass along "praise and credit" for ideas and things produced by others under their direction. They put the "organizational goals ahead of their own department or unit." They place "more emphasis on acting responsibly than on their desires for power and authority." The "buck stops with them."

5. Lack of initiative

Lack of initiative is the failure to "make things happen." Effective leaders do not wait to see what happens and then responds. Effective leaders ask questions like:

What is missing that would make a big difference?
What could I do that would make a significant difference to the performance of my team or organization?
They then take steps to make those things happen.

What's interesting about all of these flaws is that they are basically "sins of omission." The are "marked primarily by an inability to do something."

Can the flaws be corrected? That depends. It depends on four critical factors. All four must be present:

1. The individuals willingness and capacity to acknowledge and accept critical feedback.

2. The individuals commitment to work on making the necessary changes over time. No silver bullets and quick cures because it will take time to convince others that the individual has made lasting changes.

3. The organization's willingness to give the person a second chance and to not harbor ill feelings. Key stockholders have to be able to forgive the flawed executive and give him/her a real chance to succeed. They need to be willing to forget past "sins" if the person makes real changes.

4. The organization's leadership willingness to allow sufficient time for the individual to make the necessary changes knowing that it's impossible for the change process to be a perfect linear progression upwards but instead is more likely a series of 2 steps forward with the inevitable one or more steps backward.

At the senior level most executive have the capacity to make the necessary changes. The real hurdle is - do they have the guts and stamina to work hard to make the changes? And, no matter how committed the individual is to changing, if their bosses aren't committed to giving them the necessary time, they are doomed. How much time? Minimum 6 usually 12 sometimes 18 months and that's assuming that they are only exhibiting one of the flaws. If they have more than one of the fatal flaws - even I would be hesitant to take on the challenge of coaching them?

By Carl Robinson, Ph.D. copyright 2007

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 8:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Internet is the great level playing field. It gives everyone a voice. It provides information to all. It is the same internet for the CEO of the largest company and the young child in the poorest neighborhood who has access. And now this great treasure is in danger of being regulated and those who can pay more will get more and the leftovers will be for those who can't pay. Or maybe, over time, there will be no more free usage at all.

I urge each of you to watch the video below, learn about the impact that the loss of net neutrality will have. And if you believe as I do, that things should be left the way they are, please contact your congressperson and senator and urge them to defeat this attack once and for all.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 7:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike Gravel, Democratic presidential candidate and former Senator, declared that Americans are getting fatter and dumber. Has Mike been reading my blogs? I said the exact same thing in a post on May 3, 2006. Here's what he said to Bill Maher on Tuesday...
Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In a world where markets change in nanoseconds, up-to-date knowledge is a major source of competitive advantage. Business owners are often so wrapped up in the day-to-day issues facing them that it’s hard to keep up operationally, let alone strategically. This can stymie the ability of the business to grow, complicate decision-making to the detriment of the business, and keep the company from recognizing new, profitable ideas. Is there a creative and cost-effective solution to this problem?

Setting up an Advisory Board of experienced industry executives can provide a significant advantage over competitors that are relying solely on internal talent. For businesses, no matter the size or stage, an experienced and well-connected board of advisors can help your business grow and prosper in ways you’ve never imagined.

As more and more executives who have successfully led companies to lucrative exits, are retiring and looking for something meaningful to do on a part-time basis, you can put their vast talent and experience to work for your company – and at a surprisingly reasonable cost.

What is an Advisory Board?
An advisory board is an outside group that is informally organized to provide business owners and corporate leaders with support, advice and

assistance. While formal boards of directors have legally defined responsibilities and fiduciary duties, advisory boards have no formal power or binding legal authority. They serve at the pleasure of the business owner or CEO.

Benefits of an Advisory Board
There are several advantages that companies with advisory boards have over their competition. A board offers your business:
• An unbiased outside perspective.
• Increased corporate accountability and discipline.
• Enhanced CEO and management effectiveness.
• Greater credibility with investors, vendors and customers.
• Help in avoiding costly mistakes.
• Rounding out skills and expertise lacking in current management team.
• A sounding board for evaluating new business ideas and opportunities.
• Enhanced community and public relations. Listing high profile names on the website gives the company instant credibility
• Improved marketing results and effectiveness.
• Strategic planning assistance and input.
• Centers of influence for networking introductions, specifically for sources of capital, customer introductions or recruiting of executives.
• Help anticipating market changes and trends.

Over 80 percent of all private companies are operating without a board of advisers or board of directors. Odds are your competitors do not have one. Because of this, developing an Advisory Board can give your company a distinct advantage over your competition. This is particularly true for start-ups and family run businesses. Often these companies need fresh perspective to help expand their operations.

I already have a Board, why do I need an Advisory Board?
Unlike a board of directors, an advisory board does not have a legal, binding vote; it is what its name says: advisory. Industry luminaries are more likely to be willing to serve on an Advisory Board, as there is less legal exposure.

I already have Paid Professionals working for my company, why do I need an Advisory Board?
In all companies, there are certain functions that can best be performed by paid professionals. Examples are:

• Outsourced accounting and payroll services;
• Legal services; and
• Marketing services like logo design, literature creation, etc.

These individuals may not be the right people, however, to provide you with specific industry experience, strategic advice, and completely unbiased input.

There is more to learn on compensation, motivation and engaging your Advisory Board to ensure you get the most benefit. Stay tuned for Part 2.

Gillian Parrillo
Sacramento Executive.com

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 6:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Our 4-Hour Workweek is about breaking the rules we are taught and embracing new rules. It's a lifestyle change. How so? Quite simply - work smartly to build a business. Delegate and outsource. Set up the organization and stay off the critical path. Empower the staff to make decisions. Allow them the freedom to make mistakes. Force them to have skin in the game. And reward them. Once these rules are in place, execute and execute well. Change when things don't work. Focus on things that work well.

And stay out of the way. Take time off and play. Take a lot of time off. Put excitement back in life. Remove the yoke of the office. Make the world the office. Live anywhere, travel anywhere, and work from anywhere. But the key - work less. Let the organization work on its own.

New rules. Skeptics? Of course. But don't worry about the skeptics. Take advantage of skeptics. Use them as motivators.

Work smart. Play hard. Forget about retirement. Retire is not a part of the new rules. Throw this rule out.

Read more...

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 2:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike Posehn, move maker extraordinaire. At it again! Per Mike:

I spent last weekend at the Great Reno Balloon Race making a new video for YouTube. It was three days of waking at 3AM to capture timelapse on three cameras. It turned out pretty good.

You can help jump-start it on YouTube by watching it, giving it a high rating, leaving a comment, asking editor@youtube.com to feature it, and sending the link to your friends....

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 1:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Sacramento, Calif., will play host to the world's biggest track and field competition in 2011, the World Masters Association announced today in Riccione, Italy.

The WMA Championships are an international track and field competition for masters athletes, age 35 and over. The 2007 WMA Championships taking place in Italy this week have attracted more than 9,000 athletes from 90 countries.

Sacramento competed for the 2011 WMA Championships against Porto Alegre, Brazil. Following one-hour presentations from the two bid cities, the WMA Council voted 69-39 Tuesday morning to award its biennial event to Sacramento.

The tentative date of the Sacramento event is July 7-17, 2011. Contestants will compete over 11 days at Sacramento State (Hornet Stadium), Sacramento City College (Hughes Stadium) and Folsom High School.

The Sacramento Sports Commission previously bid for the 2005 WMA Championships but lost out to San Sebastian, Spain. Sports Commission executive director John McCasey said his group learned from that loss and focused its bid and presentation on the athletes' needs - good facilities, transportation and housing.

Joining McCasey in making Tuesday's presentation were masters competitors Bill Collins and Joy Upshaw-Margerum. Collins, a 56-year-old sprinter from Houston, Texas, was the World Male Masters Athlete of the Year in 2006. Upshaw-Margerum has won a pair of medals in the 45-49 age class in Riccione and serves as the masters chair for the Pacific Association of USA Track & Field.

The WMA Championships were last held in the United States in 1995, when Buffalo served as the host city. That was the year when Sacramento began its run of high-profile track meets. The 1995 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hughes Stadium led to the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials at Sacramento State. In addition to holding the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials, Sacramento also hosted four NCAA Division I Championships and the 2002 Junior Olympics.

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A net 3 percent of chief financial officers (CFOs) in the Sacramento area expect to hire accounting and finance professionals during the fourth quarter of 2007, according to the most recent Robert Half International Financial Hiring Index. Seven percent of executives surveyed plan to add staff during the quarter and 4 percent anticipate reductions in personnel. The net 3 percent increase is down one point from the area's third-quarter 2007 forecast. The majority of respondents, 88 percent, foresee no change in hiring.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

The local results reflect a two-quarter rolling average based on the responses of 200 CFOs from a stratified random sample of companies in the Sacramento area with 20 or more employees; 1,400 CFOs were queried for the national data. You can also view the national results.

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 1:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

SynapSense Corporation, a leading provider of wireless instrumentation solutions, based in Folsom, CA, has received $10 million in a series B financing round. The funding is led by Emerald Technology Ventures, with participation by all current SynapSense investors including Sacramento VC firms— American River Ventures and DFJ Frontier. The company will use proceeds from this financing to expand all corporate operations supporting its data center market initiatives.

SynapSense also introduced the SynapSense Wireless Green Data Center Solution. This initial product offering from SynapSense enables green data centers to dramatically reduce energy costs and carbon footprint while optimizing data center operational efficiencies. Customers have found that the SynapSense Wireless Green Data Center Solution provides data center operators up to one million vital signs per day, which can enable savings of up to 30 percent of energy costs by providing new data intelligence, triangulation and tools to monitor and react to actual data center conditions.

The SynapSense Wireless Green Data Center Solution is already deployed globally in numerous data centers operated by major companies. IBM, the Lawrence Berkeley National Labs and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group are among the early proponents of SynapSense’s technology.

SynapSense was formed in May 2006 by Peter Van Deventer, a former Intel Corporation sales and marketing executive, and Dr. Raju Pandey, a University of California Davis Computer Science professor who is SynapSense’s Chief Technology Officer. The company’s solutions can be found in numerous Fortune 500 companies, and extend beyond the data center to providing wireless instrumentation solutions to the entire enterprise.

Could this be the first traditional technology company that is also a green technology company. Exciting stuff - a home-grown startup with lots of promise.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 7:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Gillian will be hosting the first SacWomen networking event at the Sacramento Children's Home on Sutterville Road in Sacramento.

Megan Seely, activist, teacher, feminist, and author of "Fight Like a Girl", will speak. Megan's bio can be found at www.fightlikeagirl.org.

The Casa Garden Restaurant will be catering the event. The Casa Garden is a volunteer organization and funder raiser for the Sacramento Children's Home.

Mark your calendars! Knowing Gillian's past events, this promises to be a fun evening. Reservation details will be posted later this week.

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 6:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Sacramento - a top ten city for:

Where People Are Losing their Houses - #4

Use of Renewable Energy - #2

Markets With Highest Mortgage Risk - #8

Have Your Identity Stolen - #9

Bike Commuters - #6

Greenest Economic City - #1

Car Theft #7

Underrated City for Travel - #10

Urban Areas With The Roughest Pavements - #7

Most Overpriced Real Estate Markets - #3

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 3:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For far too long, the problem of youth violence has been growing with more deaths and more of our young people sentenced to multi-year prison sentences. Finally, the Governor has appointed an Anti-Gang Director and a 10 member Board of Advisors. The new Director will be Paul Seave, a former US Attorney. He noted that, "Over the last 20 years more than 10,000 Californians have been killed in gang-related violence." The Governor also has released $2.8 million to expand job training for at-risk and gang-involved youth and gang members. Next year $11.5 million is expected to be provided for anti-gang efforts.

The Governor noted that during his discussions with many leaders of various California communities, two common issues kept coming up:

• No. 1, that we can't arrest our way out of this problem. It is very important to acknowledge the fact that we need to do more than just lock people up.
• And No. 2, that it is a local issue, and that the locals know best how to really deal with that. But at the same time it became clear that it needs a coordinated effort, a state effort, and this is why we are getting involved in the state for the first time in history.

Let's hope that California is finally going to do something besides blame gangs, suppress all youth in various targetted communities, and spend millions of dollars locking up young people.

As I have written once before, when there are only bad voices in a community, then bad voices sound good. Let's start getting some good voices going, and some jobs, and some hope, and some great role models...and everything else that will turn this tragic situation around.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 1:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 1:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In my post on August 5, More On the 4-Hour Workweek, I noted that my favorite magazine is Business 2.0.

Sadly, I read today in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that parent company Time, Inc. is pulling the plug on the magazine. Next month will be the last issue.

I am bummed. There is nothing like it in the magazine business. I kept up with the hot tech market by religiously reading Business 2.0. Ironically, the current issue featured the cover article on "The Next Disrupters".

Well, the trend for online advertising dollars appears to have disrupted Business 2.0. According to the WSJ, the magazine suffered a 34% decline in advertising revenue the first six month of this year.

Ouch!

Good-bye Business 2.0.

I wonder what will happen to my pre-paid subscription fee?

Pierre Cutler
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Pierre Cutler at 4:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

What a great talent. What a great hole you will leave in the world of opera.

Check out YouTube to see all the outpouring of grief at his death today.

This is a cut from one of my very favorite CD's - Zucchero & Co.

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 10:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Diabetes death rates are about twice as high for Hispanic men and women as for their white counterparts. The diabetes death rate for black women is three times higher than for white women.

Death rates from heart disease are approximately 40 percent higher among black men, and 50 percent higher among black women, than they are among whites.

HIV infection ranks in the top ten causes of death for black and Hispanic men. It is also the 11th leading cause of death for black women, compared to the 29th for white women.

The homicide death rate for black men is nearly 10 times higher, and for Hispanic men nearly two and a half times higher, than it is for white men.

If black men reach age 25, their mortality gap with white men shrinks by more than one year due largely to a decline in homicide deaths after that age.

Asian men have slightly higher death rates than other groups from stroke and stomach cancer. Asian women have the longest life expectancy rates. At 85.2 years, they can expect to live, on average, more than 15 years longer than black men.

White men and women are more likely than any other groups to die of Alzheimer’s disease and suicide.

Source: Public Policy Institute of California

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 3:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

From Sactown Royalty :

The Cal Expo hammer has finally dropped, after months of unsubstantiated rumors. Well, a hammer in the form of anonymous sources talking to The Sacramento Bee's Mary Lyne Vellinga, anyway.

The NBA has settled on Cal Expo as the preferred location for a new Kings arena, according to sources familiar with the league's behind-the-scenes effort to build the team a new home in Sacramento.

Despite its location on one of Sacramento's worst freeway bottlenecks, Cal Expo appeals to the NBA because it offers a ready supply of vacant land and a name already recognized as an entertainment destination, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the league hasn't yet unveiled its proposal.

Business 80 would need to be virtually rebuilt in that stretch if you put the arena at Cal Expo. A serious question will be how that cost compares to the cost of infrastructure needed for a downtown entertainment center.

Vellinga talks about Cal Expo's status and needs, and an interesting Senate bill which figures heavily in this whole thing. SB 282, sponsored by Sacramento Republican Sen. Dave Cox, would allow the leasing of Cal Expo land to private developers... something which could clearly help defray costs for an arena there. And as far as I can tell, it's a way to escape some portion of public/Maloof funding -- Cal Expo sells bonds (with authorization from the joint powers authority, which I'm assuming would include state, county, city, and Cal Expo representatives) to fund improvements at the location, which are then used to facilitate the building of an arena (and associated sundries). Every dollar of investor money spent on fixing Cal Expo is a dollar saved by us and the Maloofs.

Think about it. The Maloofs wouldn't have owned the downtown arena -- they were the (cash-minting) operators under that scenario. All events, parking, concessions, retail... the Maloofs made money on that and paid a (rather modest) payment to the city and county for it. Fast forward to Cal Expo: the state owns and would continue to own the property, the Maloofs become the operators of the new arena and take in money from concessions, all events at the arena, retail associated with the arena. There's just one problem; a problem which was reportedly the reason the downtown effort imploded so spectacularly.

Parking. That's how Cal Expo makes the bread. That's an important revenue source for the Maloofs. Plenty of parking already exists -- and it wouldn't likely sit on land leased to the Maloofs. Sticking point, anyone?

What would we do without the latest Where's Waldo (oh, that would be Where's the Next Proposed Arena Site?). And there goes the biggest reason that Sacramento was behind the downtown deal - the downtown location. What now for the railroads?

Gillian Parrillo
The Sacramento Executive

Posted by Gillian Parrillo at 3:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)