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• Our eighth anniversary

  February 03, 2012

  This week, we celebrated FMYI’s eighth anniversary. I started the company on January 28th because in Chinese, eight is good luck. I can still remember that first morning working out of Urban Grind Coffeehouse here in Portland’s Pearl District, which became FMYI HQ for much of the first year. Urban Grind owner Kevin Crawford created a thriving coffee shop for artists, knowledge workers, and the tech community in Portland. The irony is I don’t really drink coffee. I soon became a “social coffee drinker.“

  The goal from day one was to start as a bootstrapped company and focus on revenue, not raising external capital. I’m proud that thanks to the efforts of our team, we became profitably early on, but it wouldn’t have been possible without a little bit of money my grandmother left me when she passed away. Recently, I spoke at the Net Impact conference on a panel called, “Not your Grandma’s CEO.“ I first had to confess to the crowd that I am my grandma’s CEO because her values are integrated into FMYI’s culture (resourcefulness, continuous improvement, helping others, being creative).

  One of the early decisions was a name for the company. The original inspiration for “FMYI” came from all the emails flying around with “FYI” (an abbreviation of “for your information”). Wouldn’t it be easier to just post it in a centralized place instead of emailing it around? Unfortunately, “FYI” was already trademarked. So we came up with FMYI (pronounced “F-MY-I”) which is “for my innovation” because it’s about what all of us can do to spur innovation, not just share information. So now you know the story. And knowing is half the battle!

  Eight years has gone by quickly. Back in 2004, we were one of the first pioneers with the idea of combining a social networking site with tools for collaboration. The vision was to make the software easy to use, offer tools to get things done, host the platform in the cloud so clients didn’t need additional IT help, provide free customer support, and embed the triple bottom line (people, planet, and profit) into our business model. To this day, we are still focused on these things.

  They say it takes a village to raise a child. It definitely takes a community to grow a startup. The team here at FMYI would like to thank our clients, contractors, vendors, community partners, friends, family, and everyone who has helped us along the way. We’re looking forward to celebrating with you as we embark on our eighth year together!

  Onward and upward,
  -Justin

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• Collaboration software: three key moments in 2011 and trends for 2012

  January 10, 2012

  It’s been a banner year here at FMYI [for my innovation] from new feature rollouts, being 14th on the Fastest Growing list, growing list of client testimonials, the launch of our Change Agents Unite campaign with major brands and NGOs, the start of our pilot with the United Kingdom’s National Health Service, and our Sloan Award for Workplace Flexibility.

  But let’s take a step back and survey where we’re at as an industry. I know it’s getting late already for 2011 retrospectives and 2012 predictions, but I still haven’t seen any succinct recaps of last year and a look ahead to this year for the collaboration software industry. So here’s your look at key moments and trends in collaboration from behind the scenes:

  Three key moments for collaboration software in 2011

  1. Jive Software’s IPO is evidence that collaboration software is big business and something Wall Street believes in. Their enterprise sales success is well documented (although losses continue) showing robust interest in purchasing these kind of platforms. The market for collaboration software continues to grow, and Jive going public gives them the cash to try and compete with large players like Microsoft Sharepoint as enterprise IT rolls out more platforms.

  2. Google Wave’s demise came quietly compared with the hype surrounding its unveiling. Google’s official announcement about shutting down their Wave collaboration platform ended a short but wild ride, starting off with much fanfare, followed by eager “Googlers” trying out the software, and culminating with turning off the lights. The cautionary tale? Hype and pedigree can only take you so far - user adoption and revenue is what reigns with collaboration software. Also, if it takes you over an hour to demo a piece of software, it’s probably too complex for mass adoption. There’s a niche open source future for Wave, but for now, Google is content to mimic Microsoft by focusing mainly on their Google Docs service (like Microsoft Office) and traditional Gmail email (like Outlook Exchange). It remains to be seen whether their social (non-work) network Google+ will evolve into social collaboration and workflow productivity tools and get closer to a lofty new vision.

  3. The rise of Dropbox and Evernote is evidence that people are getting very comfortable with storing their information in the cloud, whether they’re files or notes. Why are they so successful? The barrier to entry is low because the user experience is seamless and intuitive, and their freemium model is affordable. As we’ve seen lately with the iPhone, iPad, and social media, enterprise has been following consumer technology because people demand easy and fun ways to work. Although Dropbox and Evernote are primarily ways to store your individual content, they do have basic collaboration features. And their focus on making things easy directly relates to one of the trends I’m predicting for 2012…

  Three trends for collaboration software in 2012

  1. Simplicity for user adoption is going to be the name of the game as collaboration software becomes more a part of our daily work lives. Groups are interested in collaboration software, but there are two main barriers to success: too many steps (from a time and budget perspective) to pilot a platform and struggles with user adoption after the launch of a platform (especially with large enterprise platforms that need a lot of customization, handholding, and gatekeeping from IT). The name of the game isn’t putting out 50 page RFPs and cramming every feature under the sun into a platform. People at work are extremely busy and won’t use anything that requires months (or years) of customization before deployment, and they certainly won’t use anything that can’t be figured out or configured quickly by themselves without IT or training. And being hosted externally in the cloud doesn’t always mean it’s easy to rollout and generate user adoption. Salesforce is a case in point - paid training is needed for greater adoption. Yammer and 37Signals’ Basecamp product are examples of folks doing it right in terms of simplicity. And how will we know if collaboration software has hit higher levels of user adoption through simplicity? As Fred Wilson put it, you know you’re successfully achieved critical mass when you’re “Mocked and Misunderstood.“

  2. Tools for action, not just sharing are going to be demanded this year. People are trying out simple status update software platforms like Yammer and specific tools like Basecamp’s project management service, but to get full value and actually change the game for reaching their goals, platforms are going to need to do more than share info. Solutions need to offer recommendations, such as ways to operationalize ideas, connections with project team members who can help realize a goal, and analyze data posted to the site for productivity adjustments, but in a simple way. There are elements of this in LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman’s Web 3.0 talk at SXSW last year. If ecommerce sites have been doing recommendations for years, it’s high time for collaboration software solutions to do this more.

  3. Creating meaning has always been a tricky subject for the industry. Most lack a commitment to the triple bottom line (people, planet, profit) baked into their DNA. It’s mostly an afterthought, lagging behind the corporate responsibility commitment of other industries. With all of the significant global issues these days around economic growth, the strength of local communities, and the environment, the time is ripe for more collaboration software Benefit Corporations. We don’t want to be lonely. To all our competitors: join us as B Corps and help us provide solutions and business models that walk the talk when helping businesses, government, education, and nonprofits work together to create a more prosperous future for all. There’s enormous opportunities out there to sustainably solve major issues through simplicity, tools for action, and triple bottom line goals. Let’s do this together.

  Onward and upward,
  -Justin

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• GreenGov: Three keys to sustainability integration

  November 15, 2011

  The FMYI team traveled to sunny Washington, DC for GreenGov recently to complete the fourth installment of sustainability conference season (GoGreen, GreenBiz Innovation Forum, Net Impact, and GreenGov). The White House Council on Environmental Quality‘s GreenGov focuses on sustainability within a wide range U.S. federal government agencies such as the Navy, Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense, Department of Veteran Affairs, Homeland Security, the National Laboratory, Department of Agriculture, Office of Management & Budget, and many more.

  FMYI played a role in several ways. The planning team managed the conference using our FMYI platform. FMYI President Justin Yuen moderated a panel on “Green IT and Transformational Possibilities.“ We were also a featured sponsor and an exhibitor. Since we traveled from Portland, we wanted to minimize the footprint of our booth. We were able to fit everything into one normal sized grocery bag. Thanks to the wonderful folks at Capital Bikeshare, we also had a gleaming red bicycle in front of our table to draw interest and to publicize the memberships we raffled off to the lucky winners while raising awareness of our new Change Agents Unite online community.

  Through our many conversations during the week from people stopping by our table, interactions during networking time, attending sessions, and having meetings with agencies in DC, here are the three keys to governmental sustainability integration that I saw:

  1. Clear mission

  
  President Obama’s 2009 Executive Order on Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance sets clear goals for agencies. The GreenGov conference and many new initiatives have sprung up as a result. Instead of a vague mission statement paying lip service to this topic, the Executive Order has very tangible goals that agencies can build plans around to achieve.

  2. Measure your progress

  During the panel I moderated featuring Wanda Gibson (Chief Technology Officer, Fairfax, Virginia County Government), John Tuccillo (Vice President, Global Industry and Government Alliances, Schneider Electric), and Tamim Chowdhury (Realty Specialist, U.S. General Services Administration), everyone focused in on measuring the impact of their efforts. Wanda talked about a “Just Do It” attitude with identifying opportunities to be more efficient and save money. Her efforts won an InfoWorld Green 15 Award for Virtualization and PC power management. John talked about how within a short period of time they were able to save $15,000 annually by cutting energy usage 20% for a 2500 square foot EPA data center. He estimates that there’s $1.1 billion in energy savings opportunities in the U.S. with similarly-sized data centers. And Tamim covered the GSA’s efforts to reduce the footprint of federal office space through space planning and teleworking to achieve $3 billion in cost savings required by President Obama.

  3. Employee engagement

  To scale their efforts, agencies are relying on collaboration across their employee base. The biggest example of this is the Postal Service’s Green Team efforts which saved $27 million last year. Each team has access to a suggested list of projects they can take on, and USPS tracks the trailing indicators that capture the operational savings across the country. The GSA has a sustainability fellowship program to engage and train staff across the agency to create innovative projects. And I gave a brown bag session at the Peace Corps as they ramp up their engagement efforts with staff around the world to create sustainable results in line with the Executive Order.

  We came away impressed by the discipline, resourcefulness, and operational mindset of the different agencies as they identified opportunities and rolled out initiatives to save money, minimize their environmental impact, and engage employees. Many leveraged partnerships with NGOs and the private sector and were energetic innovators. This gives me great hope for creating triple bottom line value on a greater scale, especially considering the footprint and influence of the federal government.

  Onward and upward,
  -Justin

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• The time is now for the new economy

  October 24, 2011

  With the world events in the news recently, these questions have been on my mind a lot these days.
  • Are we at the brink of a new era in our global economy?
  • Will the Arab Spring, natural disasters around the world, the debt crises, the information revolution online, shifting demographics, and other emergent trends result in fundamental change with our economic system?
  • Are we entering an “Economy 2.0” phase where collaboration, sustainability, and technology are changing how the game works?

  I blogged on this topics a few years ago in a series of posts:

  • Economy 2.0
  • Blueprint for Economy 2.0
  • Collaborate and Listen
  • Sustainable Sustainability
  • Check your Tech
  • Economy 2.0 and You

  Here in America, we’ve been hearing more about discontent with the economy, whether it’s the Tea Party’s political pressure and Occupy Wall Street protests, both of which are triggered by unemployment figures that haven’t improved and the feeling that the establishment isn’t serving their needs. As I hear this, I immediately start brainstorming about solutions. We hear there’s a problem, and we see some evidence of it around us. But how do we start to fix it?

  The scope and variety of these challenges demand widespread innovation. Everyone has a role in trying out new ways to address the opportunities they see around them in if the current approaches aren’t working. Or apply strategies that have worked for another sector and in a different industry. I’m reminded of this quote from Phil Knight, founder of Nike:

  “The trouble in America is not that we are making too many mistakes, but that we are making too few.”

  With budgets tight and the flow of capital restricted, we must look at ways to more efficiently use resources through cooperation from leveraging business networks for not just discussions, but also partnering on business deals more frequently. For individuals trying to make ends meet, collaborative consumption is on the rise. As Generation Y (otherwise known as the “Millennials”) begins to have more of an influence, we’re going to see technology used to bring people together and create transparency of information in ways we can’t imagine right now.

  And through these new ways of working together and thinking, the way our economy works today is going to fundamentally change forever. It’s not going to be easy to make the shift, but I would argue that the best way forward is to leverage models that have worked, only in new ways. This will make it easier to achieve change. I’ll be sharing details of the plan in the coming months. In the meantime, in the wake of the passing of one of America’s greatest innovators, I’ll leave you with this quote from Apple’s Think Different campaign:

  “Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. While some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.“

  -Justin

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