Attention, Attention: How One Executive Catches and Keeps It

In an era in which attention spans are famously short, options are endless, and shifts in entertainment paradigms occur seemingly every day, it takes skill to direct a business’ lasting success. How does a corporation in the entertainment industry keep its audience not just in the flashy moment or gimmick, but the long term? How do we cater to people used to digesting tiny bit after tiny bit, hyperlink after hyperlink, and somehow sustain their loyalty? To explore this question, today we profile a high-performing executive who watched the industry change and rose to meet the rising tide.

When Jed Drake graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Science in Broadcasting and Film, he entered his industry as a sports anchor with an NBC affiliate in Plattsburgh, New York.  This gave him a strong foundation in audience interaction, the value of strong coverage, and the nature of industry. In 1981, then-nascent ESPN offered the young professional a position as Producer, and he went on to demonstrate his talents in architecting innovative, engaging content. Over the years, Jed has been responsible for a number of acclaimed initiatives, among them the artful re-construction of baseball coverage with various forms of commentary, the implementation of numerous subsidiary channels, and the launch of ESPN High Definition. While Drake has drafted creative change across many aspects of the network, the initiatives bear a united goal in that they realize and meet the wants of the modern sports fan. He presently serves as Senior Vice President and Executive Producer for Event Production.

Shaadi.com: Providing Indian-style Marriage that Works Online and Offline

In March 2009, five months after they met on Shaadi.com, Kavita and Nirav Ranpuria got married. The couple would be indebted forever to Shaadi.com, which is arguably the most successful provider of matrimonial service in the world.

Shaadi.com’s founder Anupam Mittal became very disappointed with traditional online matchmakers. His disappointed led to the establishment of Shaadi.com. Unlike other matchmaking sites, Shaadi.com’s goal is to help people find their soulmates and end up in marriage.

Since its founding in 1996, Shaadi.com has helped to introduce 1.4 million couples together. More people are finding their life partners and countless others are making special friends through Shaadi.com’s revolutionary way of matchmaking.

Shaadi.com has a quite simple objective. It was established to expand the opportunities for anyone to find his life partner. In spite of being known worldwide, Shaadi.com continues to touch millions of lives.

The success of Shaadi.com rests on the three pillars that built Shaadi team:

• Conduct research and analysis in order to come up with a clear understanding of the concerns and needs of singles everywhere around the world.
• Provide these singles with superior matchmaking experience without compromising their security and privacy.
• Provide users with friendly interfaces so they can have complete control in identifying sorting and contacting potential life partners.

Shaadi.com is blessed to have a team of hardworking people who has the passion to provide users with the ultimate experience in matchmaking. These people believe that Shaadi.com provides value.

In the future, Shaadi.com plans to hit the mobile with the development of an app that would be used on mobile phones. Shaadi.com would also open a marriage counseling site to help the couples manage their marriages.

Maybe this time, Mittal would find his own life partner through the matchmaking company he himself has founded.

Red Hat: Access to Open-Source Enterprise

Red Hat is a US-based software company engaged in the supply of open-source software products. This American company established in 1993, is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. Red Hat operates worldwide through its satellite offices.

Red Hat became prominent since its association with Red Hat Enterprise Linux, its enterprise OS. This was strengthened further by the purchase of JBoss, an open-source enterprise middleware vendor. Red Hat does not only provide OS platforms but also on middleware and applications vending, management products, training, support and consultancy services.

Red Hat is also a creator and contributor to several free software projects.  It has acquired a number of propriety software. It has its source code in GNU GPL.

A publicly traded company, Red Hat is ranked eighth in the companies with the biggest first-day gain in Wall Street’s history. The record was achieved at Re Hat’s IPO on August 11, 1999. Red Hat also holds the record as the first open source company to hit the one-billion mark in revenues.

ABB: A Tradition of Excellence in Automation and Power Technologies

ABB is a Swiss automation and power technologies company. It has operations in over 100 countries and employs 145,000 workers. Its shares are traded on the New York, Stockholm and Zurich stock exchanges.

ABB started in 1988 although its roots have started 120 years back. The company’s success for over a century can be attributed to its commitment to research and development. The company operates seven corporate R&D centers worldwide. Its commitment to R&D is seen further in ABB’s investments to R&D projects regardless of market conditions.

The company’s track record of innovations speak volumes about its successes in R&D. Most of ABB’s technologies are used by modern industries today. For instance, the high-voltage, DC power transmission was developed by ABB. The records for the world’s biggest supplier of power grids and industrial drives and motors, and the biggest supplier of generators to the wind industry are held by ABB.

ABB’s Power Products division provides power products used in the generation and transmission of electricity. Among these products are circuit breakers, switchgears, transformers and cables. This division also provides maintenance services.

The Power Systems division provides systems and services needed in electricity transmissions and distribution grids. The primary recipients of these systems are power plants, and substations. Among the highlights of the division are network management systems, HVDC (high-voltage direct current) systems, and FACT (flexible AC transmission) systems. The division also offers specialized services such as power plant electrification, control and instrumentation.

The Discrete Automation and Control division offers industrial products and services such as generators, electric motors, programmable logic controllers (PLC), power electronics, solar and wind energy generators, and industrial robotics. So far, ABB has installed more 200,000 industrial robots.

ABB also produces low-voltage circuit breakers, enclosures, switches, wiring accessories, control products, and cable systems that protect people, equipments and installations from electrical overload.

The company also serves other industries like marine, pharmaceuticals, gas and oil, paper, metal, chemicals and minerals through the Process automation division. ABB provides control systems, plat optimization systems and other industry-specific automation needs.

ConAgra Foods, Making Great Foods Everyday

Food has great power. This is what ConAgra Foods believes. ConAgra is a consumer foods company that produces foods that are a part of our everyday lives. And these foods do not just fill the stomach, they actually satisfy.

Ninety five percent of US population consumes ConAgra products. Twenty eight of ConAgra brands are ranked either first or second in their individual categories. These brands mirror ConAgra’s passion: to make foods that people everywhere would love.

ConAgra is divided into two divisions, namely the Commercial Foods and Consumer Foods. However, Consumer Foods has the greatest contribution to the company’s revenues. Among the major brands under this division are PAM®, Orville Redenbacher’s®, Hunt’s®, Healthy Choice®, and Egg Beaters®.

Through the years, ConAgra has developed a strong business presence. Its products are found in every convenience store and groceries across America and other parts of the world. No wonder why ConAgra has one of the most popular consumer food brands in the world.

Halliburton: A Prominent Icon in the Gas and Oil Industry

Halliburton is one of the world’s leaders in providing products and services to players in the energy sector. With operations in over 80 countries and 70,000 strong workforce, Halliburton helps gas and oil companies in the life cycle of oil reservoir; beginning with locating hydrocarbons, to managing and monitoring geological data, to oil drilling, and to formation evaluation. Halliburton also provides assistance in the construction of wells and optimization of the oil field’s life span.

Halliburton was founded in 1919. The company holds a rich history of continuous innovation beginning with Erle P. Halliburton, the company’s founder. Erle borrowed a wagon pulled by a team of mules, and an old pump. With just a wooden mixing box he built out of old stock of lumber, Erle started a business of cementing oil wells in Duncan, Oklahoma.

What started as a small business grew to a company that understands the importance of research. In fact, Halliburton was able to build his first research lab in the early 1930s. Halliburton started testing cement mixes and started to offer acidizing services so that resistance of limestone formations are broken down. Acidizing increased the production of gas and oil.

Soon, Halliburton started offshore cementing contracts with the use of barge-mounted cement mixer at a Creole Field located in the Gulf of Mexico. This contract marked the beginning of what will become the most extensive offshore cementing service in the world.

Halliburton started to become a global company in 1926. It started its operations in the eastern hemisphere by selling five cementing units to a Burma-based English company. Then, Erle’s brothers moved to Alberta, Canada to begin their operations there. In 1940, Halliburton commenced operations in Venezuela. More expansions to the Latin American markets started in 1946 when operations opened in Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. Halliburton also took the Middle East markets with a contract entered with the Arabian-American Oil Company.

Halliburton also expanded to Europe with the opening of its operations in Italy, Germany and England in 1951. Then in 1984, Halliburton also moved to Mainland China. In 1991, Halliburton also entered Moscow.

Today, Halliburton offers the widest array of products and services with integrated solutions to gas and oil companies throughout the world.