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If you’re over 18 click here.  A funny on-line promotion from Canadian Club awaits…

Hallmark.com encourages you to build your own greeting cards using personal photos. It seemed a perfect way to send a card to my Mother in the USA. Thirty minutes later a very personalised card is built - and I’m registered to use the site as a “Non US Resident.”

But then the sting - they only accept US-based credit cards for payment. No PayPal, no bank transfer, no international cards.

So one moment I am loving the site and developing a perfect card. And now its locked up in their US-centric site with no reprieve possible.

Maybe that’s what should be expected from a Kansas City-based company. But Hallmark lift your game. If you’re going to do business on-line then wake up to the global community.

Until then save your time and effort. Hallmark.com is an awful experience!

Every once in awhile you read something that makes you laugh out loud. And usually it’s one of those embarrassing snorts because the humour catches you so unaware. Hence my embarrassment flying on Qantas guffawing to an essay in The Economist:

All countries are exceptional. But America likes to think of itself as exceptionally exceptional, different from other advanced industrial countries not just in its social arrangements but also in its underlying values. America has a smaller state than other comparable countries and a more unequal distribution of wealth. It is also more strongly committed to what Margaret Thatcher once called “Victorian values”—individualism, voluntarism, patriotism.

The rest of the article provides a ruthless, insightful commentary on the American psyche. But what is truly noteworthy is the conclusion, stating that the sense of “exceptionalism” is not at risk - but the American sense of triumphalism is under threat. Terrorism, recession, political in-fighting are all leaving the psyche damaged after “winning” the Cold War:

The main challenge facing the next president will not be to blunt American exceptionalism, but to make sure that American triumphalism is not replaced by a grumpy and irresponsible isolationism.

I agree with The Economist. If America picks up its toys and goes home, the world will be a lonelier and more dangerous place.

The Democrats in Pennsylvania - No Surrender

The latest issue of “The Economist” has a stunning photo and headline combination (see above). It says in a few words and with a dramatic photograph what the rest of the article confirms.

In public relations, we work with clients to develop strong, focused messages and train managers how to handle media interviews. All this can be undone - or reinforced - by the choice of headline (by the subeditor) and the photograph (photo editor).

If yours is a company in trouble there will no doubt be an unflattering photo. If you’re on the top of your game a dominant, strong image will be used. And if you’re a “take no prisoners” Democratic contender for the White House, chances are you’ll be portrayed like Tina Turner in concert.

And now for my encore…

One of my clients is looking to better its profile in the business media. We’ve built a strong communications plan and have trained their leadership team. Now I need a business media specialist to join the team here in Sydney. The focus is on B2B corporate profile raising. Anyone interested or know someone who is?

Mssrs Palter, Rehm and Shih at McKinsey offer an insightful analysis of investor behaviour in “Communicating with the Right Investors” (McKinsey on Finance, Number 27, Spring 2008).  They break down investors into three categories: Intrinsic, Mechanical Investors and Traders.

Investor relations departments need to conduct a similar analysis of their shareholders to determine which make the most sense to focus on.

Both Mechanical Investors and Traders are influenced by figures - they buy and sell on specific financial models or short term news. Interaction with management will not influence their decisions. McKinsey says to relegate these to the investor relations department.

Intrinsic investors spend more time researching companies, and will want to understand from management their strategy. These investors probe deeply and stay for the longer term.

In short, IR departments need to segment their shareholders (existing and potential) and allocate management’s scarce time to investors in for the long term.

With the nightly news broadcasting protests along the route of the Olympic torch, it’s easy to forget the monumental effort being put into this year’s Beijing Games. I was living in Sydney when we pipped China to the post for the 2000 Games - Juan Antonio Samaranch’s announcement made Sydney a three syllable word.

China has waited patiently for these Games - and now is a time to celebrate all the country has achieved. Every host country has issues and the Games can be a chance to deepen the dialogue.

Until then - watch in awe as China prepares for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. My son is adopted from China. I can’t wait to show him this clip tonight!

Leadership is covered extensively in news publications and this week two contrasting examples are highlighted in “The Economist”.

The first is a positive case study of Disney, showing how creativity and profitability have flourished under CEO Bob Iger. Iger opts to release the reigns and allows creative leaders the freedom to develop new ideas. He’s axed “junk” production (straight to DVD sequels) and is building franchises around new concepts (”High School Musical”) that attract new audience segments (”tweens”).

The second is a negative review of the performance of General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt. Finance unit GE Capital missed performance results leaving the CEO in the embarassing state of missing financial forecasts - that he’d committed to a few weeks earlier.

On Saturday The Sydney Morning Herald had an excellent column by Ross Gittins on the common mistakes of CEOs when managing staff. I heartily recommend the article and especially liked the advice on information sharing. Gittins says the more the better. Companies that keep information from staff create resentment and a sense of distrust.

I’ve witnessed it recently, when a company was undertaking a massive and complex project. The leadership team felt it best to keep all information from staff yet occasional slips led to information “haves and have nots”. Those not entrusted to the information felt excluded. Their trust in leadership was not reciprocated - if they can’t trust me, why should I trust them?

Leadership is the hardest task for any CEO, and recent articles point out good lessons of leadership. Trust, delegation, empowerment, sharing - all words we’ve heard before. But it’s great seeing the lessons supported by success (Disney’s Iger and creative empowerment) and failure (GE’s Immelt on missed promises).

Read the Gittins article - it’s required reading for any leader.

A friend in Sydney writes regularly for “The Globes”, a financial magazine in Israel. Today she asked a series of questions for an article she’s submitting on Australia and Israel. I will have to rely on the translated version as it’ll be published in Hebrew. Here are her questions and my responses:

1.      What’s the thing that upsets you most about Australia? (can be anything!)

Until recently it was the “matchy-matchy” policies that mimicked America. Australia has always been an economically conservative yet socially liberal country. Former Prime Minister John Howard tried to mimic the USA and introduced a wide range of conservative social policies. It was like wearing someone else’s skin!

2.      What would you like to change if you had the chance?

My partner of 17 years and I had the good fortune to adopt a baby when we lived in America. Today Australia prevents same sex couples from adopting. There are so many needy children in the world – why can’t governments make it easier for giving couples to make more room in their home? It makes me so angry and sad.

3.      If not Australia, in which country would you like to live and why?

I have this vision of retiring in the South of France and writing a book! I could never live in America again (where I’m originally from). Yet I don’t think I’d survive in the old culture of Europe. I love the climate of the Middle East – could a Unitarian Universalist survive in Israel?

4.      What’s your impression of Israel (if you haven’t been - then from what you know/hear)

We’ve never been to Israel – but here it goes! My impression is it’s a tough yet warm country filled with pragmatists who realise how lucky they are to have their own space in the world – and will fight to defend it. It is a country that deserves peace yet is in a quagmire. Bad neighbours mean peace may always be an illusion! That makes Israel edgy, vibrant, contemporary and full of people wanting to “seize the day”. Who knows what tomorrow may bring?

5.      If you didn’t live in OZ, what would you miss about it the most?

I love the climate and the laid-back attitudes. People in Australia are just as nosey as anywhere else in the world but they won’t pry into your private life. There’s a great respect for personal boundaries. I also love the sense of space and lack of crowds. This country is the physical size of the United States yet has only 10% of the population! So no strip malls, crowded highways, bland suburbs (or at least not as many!).

6.      How do you celebrate Australia Day?

Australia Day is a summer holiday so it’s less about patriotism and more about enjoying all that is good about Australia. You must be outdoors and with friends. It usually involves a barbecue or a day at the beach. Australia Day means sand between the toes, fireworks, friends and a lot of sunshine. What else do you need in late January?

Clinton’s win in Pennsylvania yesterday means she lives to fight another day. Yet it also means that prior to the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August the party will have no clear winner. And whoever finally succeeds will take over a bifurcated party. Barrack’s people will stay away from the polls in November if Hillary wins - and Hillary’s power base may boycott Barrack.

This was to be the election the Democrats couldn’t lose. America is angry over the Iraq war, recession, the politics of divisiveness. Last month 81% of American said they didn’t like the direction the country was headed in. But the pre-selection process for a democratic candidate has become so rough and bruising November may turn into a “gimme” for the Republicans.

It’s odd to watch the USA election from afar. Australian media cover it daily - Hillary is the lead story in today’s “The Australian”. (In typical Hillary coverage there’s a black lining - her win is overshadowed by her dire financial position.) And in the background McCain is slowly, slowly building support.

We’re still six and a half months from the general election. Can the bruises heal in time?

PS: To all you digital artists - can someone take the “Surrender Dorothy” sky-writing clip from ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and change the name Dorothy to Hillary?