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Chamber President, CEO named influential person
Mike Neal, the Chamber’s president and CEO, was recognized as a “leader to watch” in a recent editorial written by Tulsa World business editor John Stancavage titled, “The decade had good people and annoying trends.”
“Mike Neal arrived in Tulsa less than four years ago, but has already had a significant impact as president and CEO of the Tulsa Metro Chamber,” Stancavage wrote. “Neal brought not only energy and ideas, but enthusiasm and considerable ‘people skills.’ He's the one leader in town whose name is praised most often in casual conversations. Let's hope we can keep him for at least the next 10 years.”
Neal appreciates the nod.
“The Chamber has accomplished much in the past four years, but I cannot take all the credit,” Neal said. “It has taken the efforts of our entire team – a team I am extremely proud to lead and one committed to furthering the Tulsa business community in the years to come.”
Also in the editorial, Stancavage declared Steven Turnbo, 2006 Tulsa Metro Chamber chairman, as the “mover and shaker of the decade.”
“The principal of the Schnake Turnbo Frank public relations firm didn't make headlines himself, but was behind the scenes for many of the announcements that shaped Tulsa,” the article said.
Click here to read the full editorial.
Nominations now being accepted for 2010 Small Business Awards
The Chamber will honor Tulsa’s rising entrepreneurs at the 2010 Crystal Star Small Business Awards in April, and the nomination process has begun. Business members are invited to nominate an esteemed colleague to receive recognition for his or her business efforts.
The Crystal Star is awarded annually to small business practitioners who, in the judgment of their peers, exemplify professional skill and leadership and are champions in their fields. Nominations are accepted in 10 categories, including:
• Small Business Person
• Entrepreneurial Success
• Small Business Exporter
• Young Entrepreneur
• Family Owned Business
• Financial Services Champion
• Home-Based Business Champion
• Minority Small Business Champion
• Veteran Small Business Champion
• Women in Business Champion
Nominees must be Tulsa Metro Chamber members and in business a minimum of three years. All nominations will be considered and reviewed by the Small Business Awards Committee. Along with Tulsa-area recognition, winners are nominated for state-level awards with a chance to proceed to regional or national level.
Nominations close Jan. 22. Winners will be recognized at the Chamber’s annual awards luncheon Wednesday, April 28, at Tulsa Marriott Southern Hills.
Nominate Now
Support Conference USA Basketball Championship in March
The 2010 C-USA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships are just around the corner. The men will compete at the BOK Center with the women at the Donald W. Reynolds Center. This is BIG. The combined championship will be the first for C-USA and we look forward to building enthusiasm and support within the community.
Please consider the following as gifts during the holiday season:
C-USA All-Session (11 games, 6 sessions)
Men’s Ticket Prices:
• Lower Level sides $302– includes ONEOK Club access
• Lower Level $172
• Upper Level $82 & $67
For more information and to purchase visit www.bokcenter.com
Personal Partner packages with hospitality, parking, advertising (two and four premium tickets, located first five rows) are $1,500 and $3,000 respectively. Please contact the TSC directly about these packages by calling Whitney at 918-560-0246 or email whitneymiller@tulsachamber.com.
The five skills of real innovation
What is the secret of true innovators? Professors from Harvard Business School, Insead and Brigham Young University have just completed a six-year study of more than 3,000 executives and 500 innovative entrepreneurs. The researchers identified five skills that separate the blue-sky innovators from the rest: associating, questioning, observing, experimenting and networking.
Associating is the ability to connect seemingly unrelated questions, problems or ideas from different fields. The researchers say it’s the key to innovators’ ability to think outside the box.
Questioning is the innovators ability to constantly ask questions that challenge the common wisdom. They ask “why?”, “why not?” and “what if?”
When observing, executives scrutinize common phenomena, particularly the behavior of potential customers.
By experimenting, innovative entrepreneurs actively try out new ideas by creating prototypes and launching pilots.
Finally, networking innovators go out of their way to meet people with different ideas and perspectives. This allows them to see patterns before others can. Tulsa Metro Chamber offers many networking events throughout the year, including the Breakfast Network, scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 12. Click here for information and a look at other upcoming events.
Researchers from this study say anyone can be a better innovator just by acting like one. For example, to improve your questioning skills, identify a problem and write nothing but questions about it for 10 minutes a day for 30 days. Over time, the questions will change, and so will your understanding and approach to the problem.
Source: CNN.com
Chamber offices closed Jan. 1Tulsa Metro Chamber offices will be closed Friday, Jan. 1 to observe the New Year’s holiday and will reopen Monday, Jan. 4 at 8 a.m. For information and a current list of events, please visit the Chamber Web site at www.TulsaChamber.com.
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