A 2015 Pew study shows nearly two-thirds of Americans own a smart phone, and for many of those users, their phones serve as the main point of access to the online world. The majority of people use their devices for important life activities like looking up health information, banking, job and real estate searches. Mobile has become such an integral part of how we live that, for many people, losing a cell phone is like losing a limb. Everybody knows mobile is the future, and every business wants in, but what are the elements of mobile success? Mobilized: An Insider’s Guide to the Business and Future of Connected Technology (©2016, Berrett- Koehler Publishers), by SC Moatti, a Silicon Valley veteran former executive with Facebook, Trulia and Nokia, is a strategy manual rather than a technical treatise. The book includes case studies from such mobile pioneers as Facebook, Uber, Pandora, Tinder, WhatsApp. Moatti has created a formula that makes it easy for to develop a strategy for creating mobile products that count and focuses on three concepts:
- The body rule: Because of the small size of mobile products, nothing can be wasted. And the visceral feeling we get when we see a beautifully designed mobile product skips our consciousness. Mobile designers need to distill tasks and flows to their essence while building products that wow us.
- The spirit rule: One of the most disruptive aspects of mobile products is that they are with us always. To be successful, they need to understand what matters to us and our communities. This comes through personalization and community.
- The mind rule: Mobile products must also constantly adapt. Mobile companies understand that the more people use their product, the better it gets. They need to learn fast to adapt to changing expectations and conditions. It’s a culture change in most organizations.
The world of mass media, in which a few, prime national outlets controlled the messages we all saw and heard, has largely vanished. The giant boulders you once had to move to get coverage—Oprah, the New York Times, CNN—have been smashed by the Internet, supplanted (but not entirely replaced) by scores of pebbles: websites, social media, blogs, podcasts, and more that Barbara Cave Henricks and Rusty Shelton, authors of Mastering the New Media Landscape (©2016, Berrett-Koehler), call micromedia. This new breed of outlets is key to capturing public attention. To get attention, you need to think more like a media executive than a marketer because these days it’s not about selling yourself; it’s about making yourself valuable. This will help you with earned media, where you have to work to persuade someone—an editor, a producer, a webmaster—to let you in. It will draw followers to your rented media—places like Facebook and LinkedIn, where you can get on easily but where someone else makes the rules. And it is vital for building up what the authors argue is the most important media of all: owned media, the personal website and email list that you control.
Why do some nonprofit and government leaders succeed in changing the world, while others struggle to point to their impact? According to Liana Downey, author of Mission Control: How Nonprofits and Governments Can Focus, Achieve More, and Change the World (©2016, Biobliomotion), successful social sector organizations share a laser-like focus on their goals. They deliberately identify and target their efforts. Her book provides a process for how leaders can develop a focused strategy to make decisions, increase impact, and ultimately change the world. The book offers ways to prevent mission creed, including:
- Strategy before structure: Get a leader in place and work out where you are headed and how you want to get there. Then, and only then, think about how your teams should be structured, who should be involved, and if and when you may need to get someone external involved.
- Get the facts: Gather and clearly communicate critical information, such as who your clients are, where they live, which other organizations are working in the sector, which laws and regulations are most likely to impact your work.
- Narrow it down: Determining your goal should involve your mind and your heart. If your organization could only deliver one thing for your clients, what would you choose? Choose the outcome that will have the biggest difference for your clients.
- Tell a great story: One of the unique things about telling a story in the social sector is that you are inviting your audience to step in and play a part in your story. The best way to do this is to keep it simple, powerful, and adaptable.
- Use positive language and imagery: Refer to the strengths your clients bring to their challenges and what they have to offer the world. Most people want to be a part of a positive change, and this will help create two-way, long-term relationships with donors and other supporters.
Leadership Lessons from a UPS Driver (©2016, Berrett-Koehler), by Ron Wallace, who was a UPS driver for six years before he rose through the ranks to become president of UPS International, describes how UPS inspired generations of motivated employees, and teaches leaders at any level how to build strong, unified teams and successfully weather the inevitable storms that come with running an organization. The books covers such topics as: delivering a value-based culture; building a successful team and developing their unique talents; targeting critical information; cultivating the X factor; maintaining an ethical environment; fostering positive interactions; and preparing for the unexpected.