February 25, 2006
The Art of the Blog
Blogging, the latest communication tool, is used for so many purposes that I began reading how CEO's affect the "brand" of their company through their blogs.
Some CEOs have copywriters that write on their behalf and simply put their name to it. Others have to put their blog posts through legal teams to help avoid potential liability. Essentially, these are "bleached blogs" which frankly are unrealistic if they believe that the public at large is interested in such banter when they know its corporate poppycock.
For me, this blog remains a means to express myself so that you, Miss/Mr/Mrs Public, is entertained, provoked into thought or simply educated by what I write. I do not profess to be a "superior mind" in anything, yet I asked for this blog to be established so that I can give my insight into every day solar life, our industry and a host of other issues I wished to write about. My partner Arlene loves to say that one day she's going to get me to write a book. Perhaps it's title would be "Sassy Thoughts".
Interestingly enough, when I advised my blog notification list that I wasn't going to notify them any longer, I received several emails asking me either to reconsider or how to sign up for an RSS which would have the same effect.
The art of the blog is about relevant, honest and thought-provoking writing which leads us all to think just a little more than the superficial process we often give to issues simply due to the lack of time in our busy lives.
The solar world is in its infancy. Hopefully, each time I write, I somehow attract another member to the solar world community. It's a wonderful thing to be involved, to use, to gospel about a renewable and clean energy source. When I was in autoparts, I can't imagine holding the imagination of a young group of kids at school with a lecture about "ball joints". I've done that a few times as a solar industry member, and I have to say, it is extremely rewarding when a those kids can't get enough of what you're talking about. Now I know how their successful teachers feel.
Honesty, ethics, integrity, and democratization of information is partly what my blog is about. I have posted positive AND not so positive comments alike. With 1200 or so different individuals visiting my blog in February to date, I hope they felt enriched by what they read.
Sass
Posted by sass at 02:39 PM | Comments (0)
February 24, 2006
USA = United Solar America !
George Bush has now gone into the solar deep end by actually visiting a solar energy factory in Michigan while his treasury secretary went to Memphis to another one...all in the same week! Somebody please take my temperature!
This is an incredible switch for the american political agenda on the Republican side yet one can perhaps understand it may also be the wake-up call to all american industry that its falling behind the rest of the world and that it needs to pick up the pace to catch up and hopefully (for americans) surpass the other countries in the development of an industry.
Either way, this is great news for solar. What million dollar ad campaign could have the same effect as all the PR the President of the US can generate himself? None I could think of.
So go out there and buy solar...well not just any solar of course (www.sunseisolar.com) and remember that we all can make our little part to reduce carbon emissions. I think I'll send George a solar charger for his Texas ranch's electric fence charger...
Sass
Posted by sass at 06:20 PM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2006
They're baaaaaaaaaaaaaack....
Seems like the ripoff artists are back into the Kenyan market under brand Sunsolar. This force just won't go away despite stringent regulations being brought into the importation process of that most important market for off-grid solar modules.
With the Kenyan authorities being warned, we'll see how long it lasts, yet its a crying shame that some people will simply try to find new ways to part fools with their money every time. I guess the cat won't change its stripes once its tasted the seductive fruit of low cost and high margin (when you fake your ratings, its a game to run away with money right?).
We all know the saying that "quality will come out in the end" yet we also need to be vigilent. While Sunsei is a brand that is exceeding expectations of customers (and growing demand like crazy beyond our wildest forecasts), other forces that use the word "sun" in them are not quite as delivering on their promises.
It's almost like a cat and mouse game which eventually leads the mouse to rethink its territory, yet only if the cat is able enough. A mouse that has found a lazy cat in a house, has a great retirement home in the makings!
Sass
Posted by sass at 06:09 AM | Comments (0)
February 15, 2006
Junk email replaced by junk blogs
As with any evolving medium we learn to use it to maximum effectiveness only with time, rarely out of the gate.
For example, take email. Back in 1996, I was amongst the first vendors to Canadian Tire to get email. They had it back then and I can remember that every two days I would get a joke email from one colleague or another, as they all were discovering the new way to communicate.
Later came spam/junk in its true capitalist form, where we all started receiving the same unwanted mail through electronic means that we have been receiving through print for decades.
And while the buyers stopped the emails because the novelty wore off and their time became more precious than the image of being an "electronic joker", the advent of "junk mail filters" came into play in order to stop those whom you had no desire to hear from.
And then came blogs. Now whereas blogs are not intrusive by their nature and you basically can subscribe, their "notification lists" are in fact are no less intrusive if you've been placed on one without asking. Frankly, I have been guilty of this, as I have often sent notifications of a new blog post, yet recently my thinking has evolved.
For if you or anyone else truly finds what I write to be interesting, then I really need not notify you of a new blog posting. You'll register yourself to an RSS feed and let it notify you automatically. Therefore, I am hereby deleting my notification list and will no longer send you notices of a new blog post. If you believe that what I have to say is relevant, you'll simply sign up to the feeds available on the home page of my blog. If not, then frankly it speaks for itself and simply presses me to think about more relevant thoughts to put down in this electronic journal.
Of course, if there's a sudden flood of "please don't stop Sass", I may reconsider... :)
Sass
Posted by sass at 06:47 PM | Comments (3)
February 07, 2006
That which transcends our lifetime...
Lasting value is not created by what we do for ourselves but rather through what we do for others. Think about it for a second. Your accumulated wealth will only have a legacy if you bequeath it in a manner so as to create value beyond the years which you will spend on this earth.
I invite you now to think about the fact that everyone involved in the solar industry is in some way, shape or form impacting the future of the planet. You can't help but feel good knowing that the products you offer do more than simply make someone money. They actually are helping to shape the future of the globe our children and future generations have lent to us.
At ICP Solar we've already put about $100million worth of solar power into the world market. That translates into a lot of saved batteries, reduced carbon emissions,elimination of the use of gas burning lanterns and so many other benefits. We have learned over the years that those who mislead the consumer only cheat the legacy which they create for their name.
And so with each passing step, as we were able to move the markets, we increased the rigor of power reporting, educated our customers about how to properly test what they were buying and are now so strict in our quality control processes to the point where we actually are under-rating a number of products today.
Some would say we are cheating ourselves. Not so. In no time flat, this will be discovered by the public at large and then our Sunsei brand will be known as the one that delivered "beyond expectations".
A recent event reinforced this belief through a conversation and subsequent product development path suggested to me by Chuck Hawley, VP of Product Dev't at West Marine. Chuck said to me "we want panels that outperform their ratings". Having just been stung by panels which were proven to be cheating their customers, he stepped up and reminded me just how valued the West Marine brand was to him and his team. The value of the brand was that it created an expectation by customers of superior marine solutions. Thanks Chuck. As we will surely meet this week in Orlando at your dealer show, you will forever have a place in our future as someone who impacted the manner in which we brought product to market.
Everlasting value. It's what we should all be about. Is your brand about exceeding expectations? If not, the legacy that survives you may not be what you set out to create when you were just a big-eyed pup full of promise, dreams and "I'm going to change the world" hope.
Sass
Posted by sass at 11:12 PM | Comments (3)
February 05, 2006
One man's freedom...
This past week, the power of the press has been demonstrated once again while exposing deeper issues than simple "freedom of press" surface-level discussion. I'm writing of course about the global uproar regarding the cartoons printed in some European countries of Islam's Prophet in certain manner so as to depict him with bombs and other stereotypical shots.
Not being a moslem, I may not have the depth of feeling of insult that many feel at these cartoons, so I must advise upfront that my viewpoint is without the emotion I might otherwise have if I was a moslem.
There has been much debate on television about the concepts of respect, freedom of speech and violence as an answer to address these issues. It all brings to the forefront the real chasm between cultures which leads different peoples to read the same expression either as a joke or as an insult. In the end, my conclusion is that there is so much context to attach to these events that one cannot have a debate about it within the thin focus of simply the cartoons themselves. Let me explain.
Pre-holocaust, a cartoon depicting Jews being killed would have had a different reaction than post-holocaust. Does anyone remember the outrage that the song "Aqualung" created in the 1960's in the US bible belt states, which today is played on airwaves without any furor? As Einstein once said about having given the same exam two years in a row "the question is the same today but the answer is different". We cannot remove the current context of islamic villification, invasion and extremist fundamentalist or reactionary forces from the current debate. As a pure distinction from Christianity, there is no single voice at the top of Islam today. So whereas a "pope" could have a calming effect on Catholics upset about something a muslim might have written or drawn, the same cannot be said about moslems worldwide.
And yet would Christians react with the same violence level as there have been in the past two days in arab and other islamic-dominated countries? Likely not. Nevertheless, let's also remember that freedom of the press is not something that many of those people are used to. They are used to a single line of thought, whether government or religiously led. Variety of opinion, democracy of thought and freedom of expression are not so common in countries led by sheikhs, dictators or self-elected (and sometimes falsely) so-called "democratic" leaders.
Therefore in the end, we must judge actions within context. And in no way,shape or form will I ever condone violence as an answer to anything. Just as the west must look inwards at the context of the world today and the changes within its own societies that might change the legal definition of libel and slander, so must islamic communities consider the change of reaction that is necessary when dealing with such affronts.
A real eye opener that once again confirms the age-old adage that one man's freedom is another man's prison.
Sass
Posted by sass at 05:10 AM | Comments (3)
February 02, 2006
VW Solar Power
Back in 2000, Volkswagen approached ICP Solar to produce a solar charger to prevent its car batteries from going dead in the time until the car was sold on the dealer lots. Despite our reputation for quality products in the automotive aftermarket, we were ill-prepared to deal with one of the top 10 car makers in the world. The stringent process diligence and quality specification windows were simply too narrow for us to reach. Additionally we had a few gregarious snakes biting at our ankles trying to trip us up on the way to the finish line (competition can be nasty!).
In 2004, when VW was ready to put the contract up for tender again, they once again approached us and asked if we were ready. Needless to say, it was the chance that I had been waiting for after having had it stolen from under my nose (literally!). We put great resources together and just last month delivered our first lot to VW in Mexico. Below is a picture of the product created internally at ICP for the automotive industry:
The press release announcing the launch of our wonderful creation is out tonight. We have patents pending on the intellectual property and have already been approached by others with a view to supplying their needs as well. Not only does this point to yet another great use of solar power, but it shows that our team has come a long way. Indeed there are kudos and thanks which I wish to express publicly for this achievement:
Luc- For perseverance beyond the norm and a drive to deliver.
Phil- For keeping us in check and ensuring we are dead on with quality.
Tony- For keeping the old clock ticking well enough to make new solar technology.
Steve- For simply making the job look so easy.
Spencer- For having helped us drive a team in the right direction of quality, ethics, honesty and integrity.
Andrew- For bringing your good business sense and humor to a most demanding bidding process during your short stay at ICP Solar.
Po- For your patience, wisdom and help to understand that mexican beer only kills off the weaker brain cells.
Arlene- For picking up where many others left off, and taking us to the next level in so many ways, and in such a short time.
...and to many others who have helped to make this dream come true. Thanks to all of you, ICP reached a pinnacle otherwise impossible.
Solar regards,
Sass Peress
Posted by sass at 08:22 PM | Comments (2)
February 01, 2006
"Bush for Solar" Bumper Stickers?
I watched George Bush's state of the union address last night with complete amazement. Here was the President from Texas promoting the idea that Americans needed to drop their "addiction" to oil? I must admit I did a double-take and yet then remembered that with Exxon and other oil companies reporting the largest profits in global corporate history, it's pretty easy for anyone to throw up the "we need another solution" balloon (particularly when its draped in the flag of "foreign dependency").
However, whether through rhyme or reason, the speech last night must have the effect of boosting the spirits of renewable energy businesses in the USA who have frankly had much less support than their counterparts in Japan or Germany. If through a combination of Governator Arnold's plan and Mr. Bush's new research initiatives, a spark is lit under the American renewable power industry's flame, then who is to complain?
With oil prices continuing to rise, a Republican leader in office promoting solar power research and a Republican governor in the world's 6th largest economy promoting solar power programs, we have a developing "perfect storm" to drive an American industry far higher than ever before.
In retrospect, I should have lent him ICP Solar's slogan "Let our Power give you Freedom" for his speech!
Sass Peress
Posted by sass at 08:17 AM | Comments (3)