Unfortunately for SmashFly and its CEO Mike Hennessy, their gambit in Boston is taking place just as industrial giant General Electric has announced that it’s moving its global headquarters to Boston from Stamford, Conn. And GE is making the move in part to underscore its intended transformation by CEO Jeffrey Immelt into as much of a force in the digital-tech realm as it has been in American manufacturing.
Does that make GE’s move a bad break for Hennessy and SmashFly? Not necessarily.
“The ‘war for talent’ is an apt term with GE moving in because candidates who are good in software development will have even more options,” he said. There’s always a supply issue.”
But, Hennessy said, “Boston is where you want to be if you are looking to get the best talent in engineering and software development. Living in the suburbs is a great location for our employees in Concord, but if you want to attract younger millennials who are living in Boston, you have to go to Boston. You get the networking effect and other benefits.”
Some other small and mid-market digital companies headquartered in the Boston suburbs, he said, have tried opening a second local office about halfway between their first locations and downtown Boston, such as in Waltham, Mass., “so people living in the suburbs don’t have to go all the way in.”
But Hennessy believes that SmashFly can compete with GE even though simply having a new office downtown “will only be table stakes.”
“We have to compete on multiple levels,” he said. “We have to differentiate ourselves with what our employees will be working on, for one thing.”
The key lesson here for all mid-market CEOs: location, not size, can be the winning factor. You simply have to go to where your market is; don’t make your market come to you.
0
1:00 - 5:00 pm
Over 70% of Executives Surveyed Agree: Many Strategic Planning Efforts Lack Systematic Approach Tips for Enhancing Your Strategic Planning Process
Executives expressed frustration with their current strategic planning process. Issues include:
Steve Rutan and Denise Harrison have put together an afternoon workshop that will provide the tools you need to address these concerns. They have worked with hundreds of executives to develop a systematic approach that will enable your team to make better decisions during strategic planning. Steve and Denise will walk you through exercises for prioritizing your lists and steps that will reset and reinvigorate your process. This will be a hands-on workshop that will enable you to think about your business as you use the tools that are being presented. If you are ready for a Strategic Planning tune-up, select this workshop in your registration form. The additional fee of $695 will be added to your total.
2:00 - 5:00 pm
Female leaders face the same issues all leaders do, but they often face additional challenges too. In this peer session, we will facilitate a discussion of best practices and how to overcome common barriers to help women leaders be more effective within and outside their organizations.
Limited space available.
10:30 - 5:00 pm
General’s Retreat at Hermitage Golf Course
Sponsored by UBS
General’s Retreat, built in 1986 with architect Gary Roger Baird, has been voted the “Best Golf Course in Nashville” and is a “must play” when visiting the Nashville, Tennessee area. With the beautiful setting along the Cumberland River, golfers of all capabilities will thoroughly enjoy the golf, scenery and hospitality.
The golf outing fee includes transportation to and from the hotel, greens/cart fees, use of practice facilities, and boxed lunch. The bus will leave the hotel at 10:30 am for a noon shotgun start and return to the hotel after the cocktail reception following the completion of the round.
