Biznik RSVP's ~ Any Purpose? Any Value?

Over the past 6 months we have been in Biznik, we have noticed an interesting phenomenon that quite frankly, we're not used to in the circles of business professionals that we work with...when members RSVP for an event, and then with no communication, don't show.

Since we were new, we thought this was just a passing trend, or something isolated to a few. Interestingly enough, we learned it seems to be more of an epidemic. In fact, many Biznik hosts have warned us of this fad..sharing that "RSVP's really don't mean much." It just is so foreign to how we do business, both personally and professionally, that we felt it warranted a general comment.

Now, if this was a teenage my--space events, social network, etc., no shows/no RSVP's makes sense. But when the network is in fact professional/business people, well, it just holds little rationale.

In fact, there have been business professionals we have invited to join Biznik who have observed this no-show phenomenon as highly unprofessional. We have all valued the no rules/no penalties guidelines. On the other hand, the respect of one's time/energies/efforts in the same manner you would want with a client would seem a simple standard.

Perhaps it could be a personal Biznik standard that instead of being known as a 'no-show/no response bunch', that we could change that perception by some simple, uncomplicated manners.

Below is our general comment.

Jane Bakken and Jack Fecker

Thank you to all those of you for coming to this event...we both agree...the funnest time we've ever had yet with Bizniks! To hear of your dreams, your journeys, your passions, what you all are bringing to life... fabulous! And to meet your friends and family members was such a bonus. Budy's son, Bryan, age 16, honored us with a song from his last production of The King and I and it was wonderful!

We appreciate all those who RSVP'd even if you couldn't make it...thank you, and we missed you.

We have observed an interesting behaviour that we find odd in a business/professional group, over the past 6 months, and felt a need to make a general comment.

There were four individuals who did not RSVP call/e-mail their cancellation. This seems to be part of a larger trend...others have mentioned to us, 'Well, that's just what Bizniks do...no shows...with no communication."

It seems that "RSVP" with many Bizniks carries little credence. Over our professional years, we've noticed that when others carry little respect for the time/energies/monies of others in simple scenarios, it carries over into their business practice. If a client used your time/energy/gas...didn't bother to call or show up, excepting an emergency, chances are you would choose to invest your time with other clients, especially if it occurred more than once.

We've decided that the simplest thing to do is to request that if you have a tendency to RSVP, and not show with no communication, please refrain from signing up for any of our events hosted by Jane Bakken, or Jack Fecker. That would give us more of a choice with regard to our time/monies/energy~ thank you.

We've also thought it wise not to refer any of our other connections to these individuals' businesses, in that we've found through the years that this lack of respect for another's time/money/energies carries over into business practices.

When we have invited other folks to meet our Biznik network, it was interesting to note their observations of more than half cancellations the day of as 'unprofessional'.

We are not including those obvious emergencies who also notified us. Others mentioned that well, this is just what Biznik folks do...RSVP really doesn't mean much.

This has not been part of our professional etiquette, and while there is no need to belabor the point, we felt a need to speak to the issue. Before now, since we were new to Biznik, we thought it was just a passing trend.

It appears, not so.

Thank you again for all who those who attended ~ It was a great day!

Jane Bakken and Jack Fecker

"Performance with a Purpose"

This article by Richard Deitsch in The Costco Connection for June caught my eye. Always have been passionate about mind/body/spirit integration in the market place, and being in the process of writing a book, Healing of the Corporate Soul, I'm always on the lookout for great articles around this subject. It also ties into The "Soul" of Business events I am doing with Jack Fecker. Will share a brief recap. Also, check out the March issue of Fortune Magazine on Nooyi.

New PepsiCo Chairman and CEO, INDRA NOOYI, has come to the forefront of the corporate scene. Her focus and message are inspirational.

"If I were to die today and people were to write my epitaph, it would actually be a pretty damn good one. It would say, she lived wisely, agreeably and well." And the business community is taking notice.

19 months ago, Nooyi took over the Chairman and CEO position of the world's fourth-largest food and beverage company. She has promoted the concept of 'Performance with a Purpose' to the company's 180,000 employees. Her question on point: "Can a company have a soul and still produce for shareholders? Since she took over, the company's stock is up more than 10 percent. She also reorganized the company to increase its global reach which now contributes 40% of its $39 billion total annual revenue.

She appreciates that delivering shareholder value is imperative, however, doing it the 'right way' has been critically important to her...performance with purpose...thus driving her focus to provide healthy eats...not just the 'treats'.

She qualifies all the media hype humbly, stating clearly that she would feel more comfortable when her track record has been reviewed in some 3 - 5 years. "I am just getting my feet wet. I am earning my stripes. I want those stripes to be bright. I want them screaming."

Adopting a management style that is at once demanding and caring, she espouses her cornerstones of success to be grounded in 'the five C's.' She states that the first four she has never changed. However, the fifth "C" has developed over time. Competence, courage, confidence, compass ('you can have everything, but if you don't have moral integrity, it is all for naught'), and coaching. Coaching has developed its importance because of the mentors influencing her life. "Mentors find you. You don't find them. A mentor has picked you because you have the competence, the courage and confidence, you are a great communicator, and you have a moral compass. They say, 'I want to hitch my horse to yours because I think you are going to go places and you will take me with you. Not because I need it, but because I like the ride.'"

Speaking some seven languages, Nooyi is definitely a global citizen. The big question as a child around the family dinner table was what would you do to change the world? When not in the boardroom, Nooyi sings Karaoke, plays the guitar and is an obsessive Yankees fan.

Biznik has many who are living these same precepts in their personal businesses, and it has been a privilege meeting with you at events, reading your articles and serving you in your evolving profitability.

Jane Bakken