The Amtower Report

(The Amtower Report is an e-journal on the Business-to-Government market featuring the opinions of Mark Amtower, and occasionally reader comments. This newsletter is only sent to those who request it. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.FederalDirect.net and if you like this newsletter, please pass it along to your colleagues. To unsubscribe, see directions below. The newsletter is posted each Monday at www.FederalDirect.net, and the latest “Off-Center Observations” is on the home page. All back issues available at http://www.federaldirect.net/newsletterarchives.html)

In this issue:
Amtower Off-Center Observations
The Good, The Bad and the Ugly: 2007 GMBP Hall of Fame
Events Worth Attending
Amtower on the Radio- WFED

AMTOWER OFF-CENTER OBSERVATIONS

Item: My friend Danyetta Fleming of Covenant Security ( www.convenatsec.com ) is co-sponsoring a webcast on June 28 on The Critical Need for Data Sharing in Law Enforcement. If this is an area you are interested in, see Events, below, for the webcast link.

Repeat Item: There are still about 30 copies of Government Marketing Best Practices available; Go to www.governmentexpress.com/ordergmbp.html to get your copy.

Item: More about books – my friend Bob Prosen (Kiss Theory Goodbye) just won the Silver Medal awarded by the Independent Publishing Industry. Bob is a world-class guy and he has written a great book on management. His competition? There were a total of 2,690 national entries from all 50 U.S. states, 8 Canadian provinces, and 17 countries overseas. Bob adds this to the impressive list of being an Amazone #1 best seller, Award winner for USABookNews.com, book of the year for Foreword Magazine and several nominations. Get the book!

Item: My radio show, Amtower Off Center, is now available as a download. Go to www.FederalNewsRadio.com and click on Amtower Off Center (left side) to go to the archives.

Last Call Item: Save the date: June19 marks the return of the Government Marketing Forum (see Events below). Some of you will remember the Forum from 2001-2004 as a monthly breakfast seminar and networking event. The new Forum, like the old, is a collaboration of several companies: Amtower & Co, ConnellyWorks, Federal Business Council, ImmixGroup, Market Connections, Sage Communications and 1105 Government Information Group. These seven companies will act as a steering committee for the Forum, with Larry Rosenfeld and myself acting as co-chairs. The Forum will be designed to be a bi-monthly peer networking event with an educational component. It is geared toward marketing, sales, business development and executives in the business-to-government arena. While all are welcome, early registration is encouraged as our venue will only hold about 100 attendees. If we replicate what the earlier Forum provided, there will be great education and first-class peer networking, plus good food. Beware of cheap imitations – there is nothing else like this!

Item: When you disagree with something you read in the Washington Post, especially as it pertains to the government market, write to them. Also copy Chris Dorobek at Federal Computer Week - Cdorobek@fcw.com – and me – markamtower@gmail.com  - as they may choose not to acknowledge a point of view contrary to theirs. In some recent articles they seem to be offering controversial and incomplete information on the procurement and contracting process, possibly with the intent of trying to influence some nebulous type of  (what they assume would be) reform. Unless and until they understand the government purchasing process, they should keep their vague thoughts on the editorial page, not on the front page.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, and THE UGLY: 2007 GMBP HALL OF FAME

Government Marketing Best Practices, the book, starts with these lines: This market- any market – is about relationships. Careers are about who you know, when you know them, and what people think about you.

When the next edition of the book comes out this fall, those lines stay the same. When I launched the GMBP web site in 2005, I started acknowledging key players in the market for extraordinary contributions. You can see the 2005 inductees at www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com/halloffame.html .

It is past time (I skipped 2006) for the next set of inductees. I do not send out plaques, nor do I host a dinner where sponsors can give me massive bucks. I post their names in the Hall of fame at GMBP and send them my heartfelt thanks for contributions that may have been very visible or may have been off the radar – but are valid contributions nonetheless.

Anne Armstrong, now 20 years into this market, she entered as associate editor of upstart Federal Computer Week in 1987. Without a doubt, Anne is one of the brightest, most respected and most influential people in the market. Having served as associate editor, editor, editor in chief, publisher and now Group President for 1105, Anne has helped build one of the most viable brands in the market - Federal Computer Week. Now she has more to do.

Tom Hewitt, best known as founder of Federal Sources in 1984, has probably done more favors than anyone in the history of our market. While advising many of the most successful firms throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Tom always found time to help friends in need. Whenever a key exec was between positions, Tom would print up some FSI business cards for them and make it look like they were FSI business development folks, all the while helping them find that next great job. He and partner Bob Dornan also started the now iconic Outlook conference – the first (and still best) of the federal IT budget conferences.

Karen Kennedy, founder of KSK advertising and one of the first ad agencies to specialize in the government market. Karen, with her raspy voice and strong point of view, was a force to be reckoned with. Though small in stature, Kennedy was big with ideas and always fun to watch.

Phil Kiviat, partner at Guerra-Kiviat. His career spans 4 decades, starting inside government at FEDSIM in the mid 1960s. A real-time techie, Phil authored books and his Kiviat graph is still used as an IT performance tool. After leaving government, he held positions at Sterling Software, among others. Perpetually active in the association arena (IAC, ITAA AFCEA, and others), Phil has won numerous awards, given hundreds of presentations, and deserves kudos from all. He is also a real gentleman and a nice guy.

Valerie Perlowitz, co-founder of Women in Technology, founder and president of Reliable Integration Services (1988), Valerie remains a beacon for women entrepreneurs everywhere. Tall, blond and brassy, Valerie is among the most capable people in the market.

Dan Young, president of Federal Data from the mid-1970 until the early 1990s, and mentor to more CEOs than anyone else in the market. I met Dan at an IAC event where we were sharing the dais lunch table that faced the audience. I know why he was at that table, but I still wonder about how I ended up there, sitting next to Dan. He turned to me and asked what I did, and that started a friendship that is still going strong. Dan ran one of the most efficient companies in the history of our market. The retention rate (except for those who left to become CEOs elsewhere) was extraordinary, and the average employee stayed over 11 years.

Dendy Young, a student of Dan Young, a great entrepreneur and channel master. Founder of Falcon Microsystems, former CEO and Chair of GTSI, Dendy has also helped mentor a generation of leaders in our market. Someone once told me that Dendy has the uncanny ability to pay 110% attention to anyone he is with, regardless of what is going on around them. It always feels that way to me when I get to spend time with him.

I am not done. I was advised that this next category would be viewed by some with disdain. I hope this is not the case, and if it is, it will be those who either have not had great assistants or by those who still believe little people do not need to be acknowledged. Both of those views are myopic.

A great admin can make an average exec look pretty good. A great admin can make a very good executive look great. When you have great a admin working with a great boss, extraordinary things happen. Barbara Holland and Barbara Samakow are two such people, admins that helped this market grow in ways we may never know.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Barbara Samakow since the late 1980s while she was working with Dendy Young. It is difficult to say how much Dendy would have accomplished without the ever-present and very capable Barbara Samakow. As keeper of both the rolodex and the calendar, she kept Dendy properly armed and aimed at all times. After Dendy sold Falcon to GTSI, Barbara did a brief stint with Eva Neumann at ENC, but when Dendy took over the helm at GSTI about 15 months later, Barbara was there.

I met Barbara Holland about the same time, when she was working at Federal Sources for Tom Hewitt and Bob Dornan. While FSI was in the early stages, Barbara was one of those keeping everyone going in the right direction at the right time, the woman behind the curtain making sure everyone knew their role. She does the same thing now at FSI, though with Bill Gormley and Joe Caggiano.

Companies do not operate of their own volition. While the vision may come from above, keeping everyone on the same page and moving in the right direction(s) is a job that requires great skill, massive patience, and the ability to handle bothersome people with tact and finesse. Occasionally these people  get overlooked. Not here.

 
EVENTS WORTH ATTENDING

Beware of the SCHLOCK EVENT PRODUCERS, producing minimal value events that eat your money with no significant return! The events listed below are among those I think are worth your time, money and effort. Just because an event is not listed below does not imply it is not worth attending. If you want my opinion on a specific event or producer, call me. This topic is addressed more thoroughly in the members section at www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com.

June 19, Government Marketing Forum, Tower Club, Vienna VA www.FBCINC.com/gmf

June 20, AFFIRM Annual Executive Leadership Awards Luncheon, Willard Intercontinental Hotel - Washington, D.C. www.affirm.org

June 21, 2007, Government Women at the Helm, 6 - 830 PM  McLean Hilton, McLean, VA. Speakers: Linda Cureton, Chief Information Officer, NASA Goddard; Deidre Lee, Director, Office of Management, FEMA; Lisa Schlosser, Chief Information Officer, HUD; Kathleen Turco, Chief Financial Officer, GSA;  Moderator: Anne Altman, Managing Director, US Federal, IBM Corporation (invited) www.womenintechnology.org

June 25-28, 2007, National Veteran Small Business Conference & Expo, Las Vegas www.Nationalveteransconference.com

June 26-28, Department of Energy 8^th Annual Small Business Conference,  Washington Hilton, www.smallbusiness-outreach.doe.gov\

June 28, 2007, The Critical Need for Data Sharing in Law Enforcement,  webcast  1-2 PM EST, www.targusinfo.com/lp/govt-webcast.asp

August 1-2,  Federal Information Security Conference, Colorado Springs, Co. Antlers Hilton Colorado Springs. http://www.fbcinc.com/fisc/

Nov 6, 2007 – The SIXTH ANNUAL AMTOWER SUMMIT ON SELLING PRODUCTS to the GOVERNMENT, BWI Airport Hilton. Save the date – details to follow at www.FederalDirect.net/2007summit.html

AMTOWER ON THE RADIO - WFED

Amtower Off-Center airs Friday at 2:05 PM on WFED 1050 AM in Washington, DC and is simulcast on  www.FederalNewsRadio.com.

Upcoming show/guests -  The Future of DHS – Scott Lewis, Ray Bjorklund (FSI),  and a  reporter TBA. ….Stay tuned!

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As always, your comments, questions and suggestions are welcome.

Thanks
Mark Amtower

The Amtower Report is published by Amtower & Company, and is written for companies targeting the government marketplace. The opinions expressed are those of Mark Amtower unless otherwise noted. Contact us at Amtower & Company, PO Box 314, Highland, MD 20777-0314 (301-924-0058). This material is copyrighted and may not be duplicated, reprinted or otherwise replicated without written permission of the publisher. Email subscriptions are free by request: sign up at www.FederalDirect.net