A few months back, we announced the first ever MITX Future Leaders Group (FLG), who were selected based on their leadership, spirit, entrepreneurialism and early impact on the Massachusetts innovation economy.  

From the 23 nominees, rose 6 shining stars that we look to as a valuable resource; providing a fresh perspective on up-and-coming technology trends, pop culture and consumer behavior and receiving the coaching of senior leadership here at MITX and the opportunity to grow their knowledge and networks.

If you’ve noted the ever-growing number of location-based social networks out there with increasing curiosity, you’re not alone. Yesterday’s MITX event, To Check-In or Not to Check-In?, with Mike Schneider (Allen & Gerristsen), Leighann Farrelly (Yelp), Phil Thomas Di Giulio (Pegshot), and Wayne Sutton (TriOut), weighed out the opportunities and challenges.

Leighann explained that while LBS is valuable in some ways, it’s still simply a gaming challenge for some consumers and not quite yet an accurate portrayal of a brand’s customer base (especially considering that there are still a large number of people without smartphones).  The discussion spanned three key areas of LBS:

At last week’s Top 5 Mobile Marketing Application Strategies panel the principles of creating an intelligent, well-rounded and successful mobile marketing campaign were discussed with a talented and diverse group of speakers which included AJ Gerritson (Founding Partner, 451 Marketing) as moderator, Jim Chou (Product Marketing Manager, Airwide Solutions), Adam Heroux (Account Director, 89 Degrees), Ken Kimmel (Co-Founder & President, On the Spot Systems), Caitlin Remby (East Coast Head of Sales, NAVTEQ Media Solutions) and Mike Wallace (Executive Director of Digital Advertising Strategy, Boston.com). The advice from the panel was critical for anyone considering this marketing strategy.

I recently had a healthy email debate with a co-worker. The discussion centered around whether an organization should be proactive or reactive when an issue arises. I took the "reactive" side while my co-worker (technically, my boss) was in the "proactive" camp.