Photo: _ES on Flickr

I have been re-evaluating my blog as of late. Forgive me for having paid you less attention than you deserve. I have been balancing work and family as usual but I have also been giving Urban Shore some much-needed love because I really feel like my community needs a home online. Anyway, I’ve been re-thinking a little bit about what I put here… at im.seeking.balance. I have decided to do a little less writing but, hopefully, make things a little more relevant, useful or insightful.

This is my home online.

This is where I share my knowledge, my thoughts and struggles, things I’ve learned, things I most certainly haven’t learned, things that make me think and things that make me laugh. But for those of you who have come to know my blog through your business interests, I have put together a bit of an index of some of my most popular business posts, and some that are less popular but I want to share nonetheless.

I do hope you’ll find something you can use. Please let me know if you have any questions you’d like to ask; I’m happy to accept topic suggestions! Thanks for reading and for sharing with me.

Photo: mccun934 on Flickr

Let’s talk about remote offices for a moment…

Telecommuting, e-commuting, e-work, telework, working at home (WAH), or working from home (WFH) is a work arrangement in which employees enjoy flexibility in working location and hours. In other words, the daily commute to a central place of work is replaced by telecommunication links. Many work from home, while others, occasionally also referred to as nomad workers or web commuters utilize mobile telecommunications technology to work from coffee shops or myriad other locations. [Wikipedia]

I’d like to discuss some common arguments relating to telecommuting or the use of remote offices as a viable option for corporate employees:

Pros of telecommuting for the employee

• The ability to set one’s own hours
• Cost savings from an eliminated commute
• Time savings from an eliminated commute
• A lesser need for appropriate wardrobe
• Easy access to lunch

Pros of telecommuting for the company

• Reduced space requirements
• Reduced costs from lower energy needs
• Reduced sick days as people are not spreading germs to one-another
• Reduced environmental impact from eliminated commute
• May reduce the instances of job-hopping by employees

Cons of telecommuting for the employee

• Disconnection from colleagues and the social element of work
• Communication can be more challenged as body language can’t be considered
• May reduce business perspective if removed from the core business activity
• Home environment can be distracting

Cons of telecommuting for the company

• Loss of direct and immediate contact with the employee
• Remote offices don’t promote response to immediacy or last-minute needs

Telecommuting requires a shift in mindset

Photo: esperales on Flickr

I think managers and company executives, particularly from the older Gen X crowd and Baby Boomers, are afraid of telecommuting. At least that’s my experience. I suspect there is a lot of fear that employees will sit at home, play a little Xbox, check their email, watch some TV, have some lunch, make a call or two, type a little bit of that report due next week and then call it a day at 3pm. Despite the numerous case studies that outline some really positive experiences with employee telecommuting – even older ones such as this paper outlining AT&T’s 5 year study of 600 telecommuters – implementation of telecommuting or creation of remote offices as a regular and accepted way of performing one’s duties requires a whole new method of management and a whole new definition of success.

The days of the 40 hour work week are gone.

With today’s highly effective and super simple communication tools we exist in a world that is plugged in 24/7. It’s not possible to just leave your job at the office anymore – not if you work in a white collar or management capacity. It is no longer acceptable to show up at your place of employment, be physically present, move some stuff around, have some conversations and leave without producing.

We’re already in remote offices. They just happen to be in the same building.

We’re emailing the people sitting next to us. We’re phoning those in the next office. If we want to sit and waste time doing nothing we can just hang out on Second Life or MySpace from the comfort of our cubicles; we don’t need to leave the vicinity. How many companies are having regular meetings anymore?

With digital files and internet-based tools, Google docs, Skype, netbooks and laptops, iPhones and our printer/scanner/copier all-in-one’s there is very little need to be physically present to get a job done.

I know I start my day sipping coffee on my couch with my 2 year old while reading my feeds on my mobile device, then I check my work email for urgent matters, go to work, work a regular work day, go home have dinner with my family, check my email, moderate the company blogs, go out for the evening, come home, check my email…

Most jobs nowadays are so specialized, the person doing that job is the only one who can. When productivity increases, so does the expectation. We are doing so much more with fewer people than we were just 10 years ago, that we have no choice but to conduct business outside of traditional working hours.

As I said: We’re already working remotely. For many of us, that’s on our ‘off’ time, whatever that is.

A few crucial elements required for effective telecommuting on a regular basis:

• The right equipment: The right computer, accessories and software for the job
• A dedicated space to work: We still need to be organized somewhere even if we move around from there
• A set of clearly defined and measurable objectives: We need to understand what’s expected of us

Here are my own thoughts on telecommuting:

• I would telecommute at least part time if my company were supportive
• I would enjoy working in my comfiest of clothes (though I’m not known to wear suits anyway)
• I would absolutely need a more appropriate working space at home
• I would have to keep my son going to daycare because I couldn’t work with him there
• I might save money by having my car insurance set to ‘pleasure use only’
• I would save gas money
• I would have a little more time with my family

It all comes down to setting the right expectations and then trusting your employees to accomplish what they’re tasked to do.

What do you think? What are your pros and cons of remote offices? Would you work from home if you could? What would be your biggest challenge?

Image: Annie Mole on Flickr

Can we talk about logos for a moment?

If you’re in business, you need to understand your logo, know what it should look like, and be prepared to use it in everything you do. I want you to understand different file types and what they might be used for.

Because you want your logo to represent your company everywhere, it needs to be able to go anywhere.

Now, if you haven’t yet designed a logo or wordmark, great – you can take these ideas into account when you do. It will make life much easier for your designers and/or suppliers. If you’ve already developed one, make sure your designer provides you with guidelines for use and a few varieties to use under different circumstances.

Be prepared for different coloured backgrounds

Your logo needs to represent you just as well on a black background as it does on a white background. Further, if you can make it work on a coloured background, all the better. Often times, you can’t simply take a coloured logo and place it on black. Does your logo reverse out in white? What does that look like? Do some colours remain?

What if your logo is blue and red, but someone wants to include your logo on top of a photo of blue sky? Is there enough contrast between the blue of your logo and the blue of the sky?

Global BC has done exactly what I’m recommending here:

I recommend having the following files to choose from:

• Full colour logo for use on standard white background
• Black and white logo for use when a) printing with only black ink or b) to use on light colours
• A reverse and/or partial-colour logo for use on a black or dark colour background (Global BC above has both)

Note: If you choose to greyscale your colour logo for use when printing only in black, that’s fine. Just make sure it’s a conscious choice. I’d recommend using an all-black version instead as you get more punch. It’s more eye-catching.

Colours and various production processes

Different production methods require different processes.

Print Production

Photo: Kofoed on Flickr

Print production may use standard Pantone Matching System (often referred to as a Pantone or PMS) colours or CMYK Process (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow & Black inks blended to create almost every single colour of the rainbow – referred to as 4-colour process). When a logo is developed the designer will typically use Pantone colours to create a specific shade that would, ideally, be unchanged across all mediums. Pantone is a type of ink, so from press to press, location to location, the colour doesn’t change. Process colours can change as the blends of the 4 colours can vary slightly.

If you have a colour logo, you need to know the Pantone colours it was created to be.

You should always have a digital version of your logos in their original Pantones. Your designer should also create you one with the closest possble combination of CMYK values to match the original Pantone as closely as possible. Yes, you could just use Illustrator or Photoshop to convert the files, and if you didn’t have one created in CMYK that’s your only option, but the CMYK recipes in the Pantone books aren’t always the best fit. Regardless, you should have a version in Pantones and a version in CMYK values for printing.

Sometimes you hear about 2 colour printing, or 3 colour printing. This is a process of printing that uses only pantone colours to create something. You might use 2 or 3 colour printing to create company letterhead or other stationery. If your logo is 2 PMS colours and black, you can use 3 colour printing – your two PMS colours and Pantone Black. Then, you have consistency every single time.

Alternatively, when you get into printing full colour books or brochures, you may choose to use 5 or 6 colour printing, which is usually CMYK process colours (4 colours), plus one or two pantone colours to get your identity exact regardless of what’s going on in the photos and what corrections need making on the press.

Digital Production

Photo: Editor B on Flickr

For web, TV or photograph quality reproduction, you’ll need your logo in RGB format. That’s Red, Green and Blue pixels. This is less precise because the appearance will often change based on what peoples’ screens and TVs are set to display. However, when printing photograph quality, you can do your best to ensure a colour match by having a proof run. When using your brand identity you want the closest match possible. Coca-cola won’t settle for their red being any less than perfect every single time and you shouldn’t either.

Here is the colour information Global BC provides to anyone using their logo. They do actually have a specific RGB value as well as Pantone and CMYK versions:

What about embroidery? Or vinyl decals? In those cases, you’ll need to select each colour yourself using the closest possible match to your Pantone colours. Ask your embroiderer for their thread colour books or your sign supplier for their vinyl samples to select the closest match.

About vector art and file types

What is a vector file anyway?

Vector graphics is the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves, and shapes or polygon(s), which are all based upon mathematical equations, to represent images in computer graphics.

Vector graphics formats are complementary to raster graphics, which is the representation of images as an array of pixels, as it is typically used for the representation of photographic images.[1] There are instances when working with vector tools and formats is best practice, and instances when working with raster tools and formats is best practice. There are times when both formats come together. An understanding of the advantages and limitations of each technology and the relationship between them is most likely to result in efficient and effective use of tools. [Wikipedia]

Vector files can be expanded exponentially; they’re not limited by resolution or size.

Here’s Kashi’s logo:

You can tell it’s a vector file because all the individual lines and curves can be selected.

You NEED to have vector art readily available to you. In fact, you can’t possibly have a Pantone version of your logo without it being vector art. You need a vector graphic to create cut vinyl; you need a vector graphic to embroider something. You need vector graphics to easily create background-free gif files (so that groovy gradient background on your website or blog actually shows up behind your logo) or place in multi-layered photoshop files (without your graphic designer having to do way more work at your expense).

Please ensure you always have vector files ready to send out to your suppliers. A vector file is typically an Illustrator (.AI or .EPS) file though it could have been created in another format. Please note – saving something as .EPS in Photoshop or Illustrator will not make it a vector file. You need the original.

JPEG or TIFF files are fine for use in print, provided they’re at least  300 DPI at final output size. FYI any file that is only a few kb in size is NOT appropriate for printing. A JPEG file may not be as good as a TIFF of the same size if it is significantly compressed. Whenever you’re printing anything on paper or some other substrate, you should go straight to your vector art.

JPEG or GIF files in RGB colour are used for web or TV. When sending your files out for external production, send the highest resolution size possible and let the person doing the production set the size (resolution will always be 72 DPI for screen output, but size will vary based on how much of the screen they want your logo to take up).

A few don’ts…

• Don’t save a JPEG file as an .EPS file and send it out when asked for vector art.
• Don’t ever send a logo embedded in a Word file. You’ll look foolish.
• Don’t use raster image (or photograph) in your logo or wordmark because it can’t be a vector ever. You will not necessarily be able to use it for certain large format production. If Richard Branson offers you the opportunity to throw your logo on the side of his plane, you won’t be able to make it happen.
• Don’t keep the very very latest Adobe CS4 file versions only – not everyone has the latest software package as soon as it comes out, so you want a version that is compatible with 2 or 3 previous versions.
• Don’t let anyone stretch or skew your logo. Not even a little. If you don’t look out for it, no one else will.

A recap about logos, colours and file types

You want to have 3 or 4 versions of your logo for use on different coloured backgrounds. You want each of those 3 or 4 versions to be able to be used in Pantone ink, CMYK process and RGB colours. You want the original vector art at your disposal. That’s it, really.

If anyone has anything else to add, feel free. Obviously there are a million more details on every one of these topics, but I think everyone in business needs to know and understand how their own corporate identity is being used.

Your logo is a key component to creating and establishing an impactful brand. Make sure you’re getting it out there and using it wisely. When you have questions, ask them. It’s your brand; it’s who you are and what you stand for.

I don’t know if today’s youth have any idea that, collectively, they hold the power to change the world.

If you’re under the age of 25, companies and organizations all over the world are looking to adapt to your needs; and if they aren’t yet, they will. And if they don’t, they’ll lose.

Companies like Deloitte are publishing reports like It’s 2008: Do You Know Where Your Talent Is? (PDF) in an attempt to understand and educate the changing landscape of the business world all because you are standing up for your wants, your needs, your dreams and you aren’t settling for less.

The Millennials, Generation Y, the Digital Generation, Echo Boomers…whatever they’re called, the children born between the years of 1981 and 1993 are shaking things up in the workplace. Unwilling to conform to traditional standards and yet surprisingly savvy about the way business and the world work, Generation Y is demanding that companies adapt to their needs.

When I look at this generation, I feel inspired. I feel inspired to keep up! I feel inspired to put on my best game face and show my skills. If I don’t, I will have some stiff competition by a new generation of very driven and connected individuals. I’m reminded every day by people like Nora Kleinewillinghoefer, like Jess Sloss, like VanCityAllie… that the talent and drive and knowledge and skill of this Generation We, even just in my own city, is endless. Just think what they could accomplish if they found a way to harness that energy for change.

Now is the time, my friends, to figure out your dreams. Know what you want. Go after it.