Archive for the ‘awards’ tag
Inner City 100 Awards
Last night I accepted an award from the Institute for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC). The Inner City 100 award recognizes the fastest growing businesses in urban America. This is the second year we have won this award–moving up to 27th on the list, compared to last year when we ranked 83rd.
I am deeply grateful to Harvard Business School professor Dr. Michael E. Porter for creating the ICIC as a vehicle for inner city business development. In May 1995, Professor Porter published the ‘The Competitive Advantage of the Inner City’ in Harvard Business Review. This was the first time that anyone had suggested that inner city businesses could have a competitive advantage over businesses located in more affluent areas.
Although I had never read the article (or practically any other business publication except for Jay Conrad Levinson’s Earning Money Without a Job), I was destined to be one of many entrepreneurs who proved that Professor Porter’s ideas on inner city competitiveness were real world. A few months after the article appeared, I visited every subway stop on the MBTA Red Line, looking for a spot to locate my new used computer store. I went from Harvard Square, where I had seen a retail space with no parking for $2,500/month, to Andrew Square, where a larger space could be had for $800 for the first year, building up to $1,600 in year three. It was directly across from the subway station. And it had tons of parking! Read the rest of this entry »
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When was the last time you were really down on yourself, and someone came along with a kind word, a sympathetic smile, or a little gift to brighten your day? For me, that moment came last Thursday. I was walking around the office in shock, unable to believe that I had missed an event that meant so much to me. My Outlook calendar had let me down in a big way. Mayor Menino had invited me and the six other Boston winners of Inc Magazine’s Inner City 100 Award for Urban Excellence in Business to an exclusive award ceremony at City Hall.
This award meant a great deal to me. Yet, unbelievably, the appointed day had come and gone, and I was oblivious to my error until someone forwarded me a copy of the Boston Globe article the next day. When I realized my error, I was devastated. I told a few people around me, including my HR director, Donna Barry. “I can’t believe it,” I told them. “This is an award I have been working towards for three years. And now I’ve missed the ceremony!” I was really sad. I had let everyone down, including me, my staff, the other award winners, and even Mayor Menino.
For the next few hours, I tried not to think about my mistake. I buried myself in work and kept my head down. I didn’t notice any unusual activity until Donna pulled me out of the conference room while I was in an interview and led me over to another office. Surprise! At least 20 members of my staff were standing in the room, waiting to give me the award, which Donna had picked up, along with a delicious cake from Rosie’s Bakery!
As I looked around the room at everyone’s smiling faces, I realized that this was better than any award ceremony at City Hall, no offense to Mayor Menino! This was an act of pure kindness, and one that I will not soon forget.