Archive for the ‘Sonoma County’ Category

Last night, I had a chance to attend an Open House at the Sonoma Mountain Business Cluster, which is a business incubator. It was a great event and a chance to see old friends and meet new ones.

The business cluster is a great concept and is located at Sonoma Mountain Village. Their mission is to stimulate regional economic development through entrepreneurship and business development. In addition to providing physical offices and other infrastructure for start-ups, it offers many other resources and services as well, among them:

1. Management support in the way of in-house staff and a distinguished board of mentors, who are volunteer staff and leaders from the local business community.
2. Access to venture capital and other financial resources.
3. Support networks and networking opportunities.

In addition, having several start-ups housed under the same roof creates a unique bond and sense of camaraderie that’s out of the ordinary and not typical of the environment that most start-ups find themselves in.

There are a few things I find really are ground-breaking in the approach taken here. The most obvious is that this is the first business incubator in the North Bay, which is significant in itself. Being housed in Sonoma Mountain Village, an innovative local leader in developing and promoting sustainability, the Sonoma Mountain Business Cluster (SMDC) also prides itself in supporting sustainable and “socially relevant” technologies in its tenants. They also are taking the initiative to reinvigorate Sonoma County’s technology industry, which sorely needs all the leaders it can get.

Although this was my first formal encounter with this group, it won’t be my last. They have some tenants that no doubt will be bringing great products to market and will have a positive impact on the local economy as well in the way of new jobs and other opportunities.

Santa Rosa was named as one of America’s 50 Greenest Cities in a recent article in Popular Science magazine (see article here). Ranked #23 overall, Santa Rosa also was featured for its innovative use of geothermal energy from The Geysers.

The criteria used to select and rank the cities aren’t exceedingly clear, but the method seems to be fairly subjective. In its aggressive campaign to lower greenhouse gas emissions and combat global warming, I would think that Santa Rosa and Sonoma County would rather be recognized for current efforts such as setting a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 25% below 1990 levels by 2015, or for its Build it Green (BIG) program, one of the most innovative in the country.

The Geysers is not new news but nonetheless, if it helps Santa Rosa get recognition for its efforts in preserving the environment, so be it. It may, in fact, demonstrate something called the Perseverance Principle.

The Perseverance Principle essentially says that if you work consistently and persistently toward attaining a goal, you may reap benefits in unexpected ways. It may not relate directly to current activities, but somehow,  the level of effort achieves results. In other words, persistence pays.

Congratulations to Santa Rosa and congratulations to the Perseverance Principle.

This week, I had a chance to attend both the Sonoma County Vintners Annual Meeting and the Dollars and $ense Seminar and Tradeshow, sponsored by the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission.

One of the most interesting themes common to both is a new marketing strategy for both organizations to deliver a consistent message, positioning Sonoma County as one of the premier wine regions in the world.

For those of use who live in Sonoma County, that we have world-class wines is not new news, but what is new is the branding and common message.

Honore Comfort, Executive Director of Sonoma County Vintners, and Nick Frey, President of the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission, presented this unified front. It makes all the sense in the world, allowing both organizations to benefit from the synergy derived from delivering the same core message to customers worldwide.

Branding is a powerful tool, and despite an overall cost conscious economy, brands work and brands do sell. This is why marketers will be clamoring all over themselves to show us their best and brightest new commercials in 10 days at Super Bowl XLII for a record $2.7 million for a 30 second ad.

It’s been said that branding is passé here in the 21st century Internet world and our increasing need for instant gratification. Unfortunately for some, brands endure and deliver the goods. Bravo Sonoma County on  a unified front for our wines. Now I wonder if we’ll be seeing any new Sonoma County wine ads during the Super Bowl?

This morning, I attended the 2008 Sonoma County State of the County Breakfast Forum, where the Annual Report to the Community was presented. I received my 38 page copy of the 2008 Sonoma County Indicators, a dizzying array of graphs, charts and statistics published by the county Economic Development Board.

Ben Stone, Executive Director of the Sonoma County Economic Development Board, gave an overview of the Indicators report, and the overall message was that as a county, we’re healthy, but that nationally, storm clouds are gathering on the horizon.

Dr. Steve Cochrane, Senior Managing Director of Moody’s Economy.com, went through many of statistics and gave an overview of the Innovation Council, a  group tasked with developing a 10 year economic strategic plan for the county, certainly not an easy task with lots of land mines and obstacles to be encountered, for sure.

Supervisor Mike Kerns, of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, reviewed the overall State of the County and discussed some high spots as well as some of the challenges facing us. In closing Mr. Kerns said, ”we’re all in this together.” That’s quite a statement easily made and one I wish more people, not just in Sonoma County or California, but especially in other states, believed in. While sales of gargantuan SUV’s are waning and Detroit is suffering as a result, many among us continue our same bad habits despite record oil prices. Although California is setting the example for other states through existing and pending legislation, other states likewise need to adopt a philosophy of “we’re all in this together,” before it winds up being too late for all of us.