While the residential real estate market is often driven by emotion and hype (as the season premier of Million Dollar Listing L.A. reminded me), that’s not nearly as true when it comes to commercial real estate. The market for commercial properties is much more data driven, but getting your hands on the right data to make decisions can be very difficult. That’s why CompStak was started. They’re a New York, NY based company that aims to “create transparency in commercial real estate by gathering information that is hard to find, difficult to compile or otherwise unavailable.” How do they do this? By offering a place to buy and sell lease comparable data.
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We live in a world of data. Everything from the prices on financial markets to our weights can be measured and tracked very easily. Even an average person can use easily accessible online tools to fake being a “data scientist.” But what about data that isn’t obviously data? I’m talking about stuff that isn’t neatly sorted into rows and columns–the kind of stuff that you’d have to painstakingly tabulate by hand. We now have technology that can do the hard work for us, and one of the companies behind such technology is ListenLogic. They are a Conshohocken, PA based company that extracts “insights from unstructured big data to drive business outcomes.” Their “big data” technology allows clients to act on information that they never before could have acted on.
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Whenever I buy electronics, outdoors gear, or kitchen equipment, I do a ton of research. I want to ensure that I am buying the best that I can afford. It’s easy to spend hours on this stuff if you’re not careful. While that can be a form of entertainment for some people, it’s a lot of time to spend on something that might only cost a few hundred bucks. What if you had someone to read all of the reviews and even test the products for you? That’s what The Wirecutter does. It’s “a list of the best electronics and gadgetry, each pick chosen mindfully and in accordance with many hours of research, interviews with the world’s most knowledgeable experts and testing, all backing up smart opinion.” While lots of other sites are constantly churning out new content to get more eyeballs, The Wirecutter just wants to give you all of the facts that you need to make the best purchasing decision.
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While we often think that willpower is the only thing holding us back from a healthy lifestyle, that’s not really true. Most of us have no idea what healthy really means, and we’re also terrible at estimating the health impact of our actions. That “three mile run” that you took might have only been 1.7 miles, and the 650 calorie dinner might have been more like 1,100 calories. How can we get better at measuring the impact of our daily decisions? Technology! That’s why companies like Noom are getting a lot of attention. Noom is based in New York, NY, and they an NYC based company that makes healthy living easy by using “cutting-edge technology to accurately monitor your progress and provide expert advice and analysis to keep you on track.”
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Most people see urban centers as the antithesis of nature, but nature always seems to find a way. That’s why we have many thriving ecosystems in the heart of our cities. You may not notice them at first, but they’re there if you look–and with a little help they’ll become truly special places. Natural Areas Conservancy is a New York, NY based non-profit that “works with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to protect, restore, and manage expansive natural areas already within the city’s urban park system.” Whether it’s forests, wetlands, rivers, streams, or meadows, they’re aiming to create a better “home to more than 2000 species of plants, and host to 350 species of birds.”
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This morning I got to do something pretty cool. A friend who is doing research on trout in the Au Sable River invited me to go electrofishing with him. What does that mean? We put electrified probes in the water, stun fish, and then net them. What’s the point? To surgically implant telemetry devices that allow the fish to be tracked so that my friend can write a thesis on their behavior. All of the tracking gear that he uses is produced by Advanced Telemetry Systems. They are an Isanti, MN based company that aims “to provide researchers and managers in ecology and biology with animal tracking and monitoring products of the highest quality and reliability.”
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This year Amy and I signed up for a CSA (it stands for community supported agriculture). It’s essentially a share of a nearby farm’s output for the growing season. That means we get a ton of locally grown fruits and vegetables every week, and it forces us to eat them. I already feel healthier because of it. The only problem is that it’s pretty expensive. We can solve a lot of societal problems “by increasing affordability and access to fresh, locally grown food.” That’s exactly what Wholesome Wave does. They’re a Bridgeport, CT based non-profit with a mission “to empower people in underserved urban and rural communities to make healthier food choices.” Not only can this be good for the environment and public health, but it can also stimulate local economies.
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I wrote a lot of research papers in college, which means that I spent a lot of time poring over academic journals, research papers, and even primary sources. While there is something kind of fun about digging to find facts to support your thesis, I can’t say that I miss it. But I’m sure that there are plenty of you would absolutely love it if you could spend all day searching for sources on ProQuest. In case you’re not familiar with them, they’re an Ann Arbor, MI based company that “is committed to empowering researchers and librarians around the world.” They do this through a variety of products and services that will help you find the information that you need. When Google can’t find what you’re looking for, there’s a decent chance that ProQuest can.
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From what I’ve seen, the non-profits that work at the community level often have the most impact. They may be smaller, but they’re in touch with the most pressing needs and able to react quickly to them. A great model for big non-profits might be to work through smaller non-profits. In fact, that’s exactly what Local Initiatives Support Corporation does. They are a New York, NY based organization that “has connected local organizations and community leaders with resources to revitalize neighborhoods and improve quality of life” over the last three and a half decades. They do this by bringing together public and private resources and making it easy for partners to access them.
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One of the core functions of nearly every government is to provide a justice system. While one would think that justice and fairness go hand in hand, that often doesn’t seem to be the case. Our country may be way ahead of lots of other countries when it comes to fairness, but what we really need is “a society with safe, equitable and healthy communities, just and effective solutions to social problems, and alternatives to incarceration that promote positive life outcomes.” That’s what the Justice Policy Institute is seeking. They are a Washington, DC based non-profit that aims “to reduce the use of incarceration and the justice system and promote policies that improve the well-being of all people and communities.”
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Over the past 7 years, I’ve heard from a lot of frustrated college grads who can’t find jobs. Some of the most frustrated have been international students. They came to the U.S. to get an education, and they’d love to stay here and put that education to use. Unfortunately, the current laws make that extremely difficult. Right now we have a system that is both unfair and economically damaging. We can do better, and FWD.us is a San Francisco, CA based non-profit lobbying organization that wants to make that happen as soon as possible. It was “started by key leaders in the tech community to promote policies to keep the United States and its citizens competitive in a global economy—including comprehensive immigration reform and education reform.”
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I’ve worked in two real offices in my life (I’ve mostly worked from home). The first was in an old tide mill on a bridge in an estuary. The second was a beautiful building located on 377 acres of black bear habitat. They’re not your typical commercial real estate options, but what are? How does a company know what office space is available? I have no idea, but apparently there isn’t much information available online as you would hope. RealMassive is working to change that. They’re an Austin, TX based startup that has developed the “first-ever source of real-time commercial real estate information.”
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I used to like golf, but I quit playing about ten years ago. It started when I signed up for P.E. Golf during my Freshman year of college. To pass I had to play ten rounds of nine holes during the semester. I didn’t play my first round until October 1st. The course closed on October 31st, and it was a really cold fall. The last few rounds were played in a face mask and gloves. After that experience I started to realize that I’d rather catch the fish in the ponds on the course than hit a little white ball around. Then I broke the head off of my driver at a driving range and decided never to play again. It happened to be a Callaway Big Bertha. The Carlsbad, CA based company aims “to deliver the best performing products the game has ever known—products that perform so well, they literally put the joy of the game in your hands.” It didn’t quite work out for me, but it has definitely worked out for lots of other golfers.
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Back to the Future Part II was on this morning. It’s hard to believe that we’re only a year away from that “future.” The future never looks like what we expect it to, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try shaping it. Institute for the Future is a Palo Alto, CA based “independent, non-profit research organization with a 45-year track record of helping all kinds of organizations make the futures they want.” Their focus is on foresight, but it’s not as much about predicting the future as affecting it.
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As a job seeker you know that having a digital presence is essential. This obviously true for brands as well. If someone is going to do business with you, they’re probably going to check out your website at some point. One thing that frustrates me is when restaurants have no website or a website that won’t display properly on my iPhone. All I want to do is check your hours, look at the menu, and maybe make a reservation! Anyway, most restaurants need help with their digital presences, and that appears to be what TVI specializes in. While the New York, NY based “award winning digital agency that designs leading brand experiences” doesn’t say anything explicitly about restaurants, a lot of their clients seem to be in that industry.
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I swear that every kid who grows up in Connecticut goes on a field trip to Old Sturbridge Village at some point. For me it wasn’t until 10th grade (and we were on our way back from a longer trip to Boston and Plimoth Plantation), but I think most kids go earlier in their lives. If you weren’t lucky enough to grow up within a couple hour bus ride of Old Sturbridge Village (which is based in Sturbridge, MA), you should know that it’s the “largest outdoor history museum in the Northeast” and it “depicts a rural New England town of the 1830s.” It’s the perfect place for immature children to try to get the staff to fall out of character.
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I’ve heard that the way math is taught in schools has completely changed since I learned to add, subtract, multiply, and divide. That seems crazy to me, but I know that there is a ton of room for innovation in the way that we educate children. While there are certainly some great for-profit companies working on this problem, there are also some great non-profits. One is Digital Promise, a Washington, DC based organization that “supports comprehensive research and development to benefit lifelong learners and provide Americans with the knowledge and skills needed to compete in the global economy.” Digital Promise is a bipartisan effort that is authorized by Congress, so it has serious support.
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Do any of you remember Flip cameras? They were all the rage for a few years, and then they got completely crushed by smartphones. Who would buy a standalone consumer level point and shoot or video camera when you already have something that offers comparable quality in your pocket? The only good reason that I can think of is that you’re worried you might destroy your phone. That’s where GoPro came in. They’re a San Mateo, CA based company that has built a huge business by offering “the world’s most versatile camera.” While other manufacturers were killing each other with battles over megapixels and size, GoPro was focusing on a niche market of users who wanted to be able to take their cameras on adventures. It turned out that it was a really big niche.
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While having the baby boomers leave the workforce should be a good thing for our generation in terms of employment outcomes, the mass retirement will likely bring new challenges. As people age they not only head more healthcare, but they also need more care in general. Sometimes that can be provided by families, but sometimes it needs to be done by professionals. Relias Learning is a Cary, NC based company that educates those professionals by offering “online training to senior care, health and human services, corrections, and intellectual and developmental disabilities organizations.”
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When I was a little kid, I’d visit construction sites with my dad, the architect. I absolutely loved it, but at some point I lost interest in the construction industry. For me building things online seemed more interesting than building homes and offices. If you disagree, you might want to check out Hanley Wood. They are based in Washington, DC, and they are “the premier media, event, information and strategic marketing services company serving the residential and commercial design and construction industries.” For nearly 40 years they have been the go to source for “builders, remodelers, residential and commercial architects, multifamily and public-works executives, and materials dealers and distributors.”
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Every company and organization in the world is looking for better talent. The problem is that the quest for talent is typically a zero-sum game for employers. The world’s most talent people are typically employed, so the only way to hire them is to steal them from someone else; however, there are some exceptions. The Center for Talent Innovation is a non-profit think tank that focuses on these exceptions. They’re based in New York, NY and have a two-fold mission: “to drive ground-breaking research that leverages talent across the divides of gender, generation, geography and culture; and to create a community of senior executives united by an understanding that full utilization of the global talent pool is at the heart of competitive success.”
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Have you ever sat around and waited for a phone call? It sucks. Believe it or not, there are a lot of businesses in which you sit around and wait for customers to call you. A plumber is a great example, but there are much more sophisticated businesses that have the same problem. They can invest in marketing that drives more calls, but why do that when you can invest online and track every step of the conversion/sales process? Because people who pick up the phone are often much better leads than people who inquire online. That’s why Invoca is bringing online analytics to phone calls. They are based in Santa Barbara, CA, and their “inbound call marketing tools empower you to generate better leads, higher conversions, smarter spends and greater revenue.”
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Yesterday I was telling you about all of the wildlife that I’ve seen during my vacation in Aruba. While there have many interesting fish, birds, and reptiles near the beach, I haven’t seen any marine mammals. Luckily, I have a few more days to watch for dolphins and whales since United canceled my flight and might have left me “stuck” here until Wednesday, but I doubt I’ll see any because they’re not very common here. Marine mammals are far more common in places like California’s Bay Area. That is why The Marine Mammal Center is located in Sausalito, CA. They are a non-profit “veterinary research hospital and educational center dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of ill and injured marine mammals – primarily elephant seals, harbor seals, and California sea lions.” They’ve been at in for nearly 40 years and have rescued or treated close to 20,000 animals.
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I used to be an extremely picky eater, but I’ve grown as a person and become a… somewhat picky eater. There are a number of foods that I find completely unpalatable (mayo, eggs, nuts, and most cheeses are the big ones). While the smell of eggs makes me physically ill, it’s not an allergy. I understand that nothing too terrible is going to happen to me if I eat these foods–I’ll just have a terrible taste in my mouth. Unfortunately, it seems more and more people can suffer severe consequences from eating certain things. The Food Allergy Research & Education is a McLean, VA based non-profit that “works on behalf of the 15 million Americans with food allergies, including all those at risk for life-threatening anaphylaxis.”
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Our government spends a lot of money. $10 billion is essentially a rounding error in the Federal budget. The problem with that is that even the tiniest amount of government spending can have a huge impact on people’s lives. It’s important that our elected officials do a better job of spending our money on the right things. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a Washington, DC based non-profit that “conducts research and analysis to help shape public debates over proposed budget and tax policies and to help ensure that policymakers consider the needs of low-income families and individuals in these debates.” This is an organization that sees the people in the rounding errors.
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So far Amy and I have yet to receive a single Christmas/Holiday card. I’d like to blame it on the fact that we moved a few months ago, but I fear that we may not be as popular as I had previously thought. The reason that I can’t blame the move is that we made sure to update our address with the USPS. The most shocking thing about forwarding your mail is how easy it is to do. That’s why it’s interesting that Updater uses USPS change of address as the free part of their freemium model. It’s smart. The New York, NY based company offers a slightly slicker way to do something that you can do quite easily on your own, and then they use that as an opportunity to sell you a product that helps you will all kinds of other change of address issues.
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I ate a lot on Thanksgiving, and I kept it up through the weekend. I used to be able to do that without feeling any ill effects, but those days are over. I guess it’s time to get back to a healthier lifestyle. Maybe I need to head to the store and buy some natural products. Though I’ll probably just do my typical meat cleanse instead, if I went the natural route, I’d probably be buying from clients of Pure Branding. They are a Northampton, MA based consultancy that “builds leading brands for values-based companies in the natural products industry.” They’re selective about the clients that they take, as they want to ensure that they’re working world changers.
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Skin is the barrier between you and the rest of the world–it’s extremely important both cosmetically and medically. We all have skin issues at some point. It may be as simple as a pimple or as serious as cancer, but more than 100 million Americans are afflicted with some sort of skin disorder. The American Skin Association is a New York, NY based non-profit that brings “patients, families, advocates, physicians and scientists” together to “to defeat melanoma, skin cancer and disease.” If it has to do with the body’s largest organ, the American Skin Association is on top of it.
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The world of non-profits revolves around money. I know it’s counterintuitive, but only the leanest organizations can operate without significant funds. When you’re a business and you’re using money to make money, you typically have some margin for error. But when you’re trying to use money to do good, every bit of effectiveness makes a difference. That’s why The Center for Effective Philanthropy exists. They are a Cambridge, MA and San Francisco, CA based non-profit that works “to provide data and create insight so philanthropic funders can better define, assess, and improve their effectiveness – and, as a result, their intended impact.” They are what I like to call a meta-non-profit; an organization that serves other charitable organizations.
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Have you ever caught someone talking about you behind your back? Whether they’re saying something nice or something mean, it can be pretty awkward. Still, it’s nice to know where you stand with people. For brands it’s a bit different. The awkwardness isn’t as much of a worry, and the information gained from hearing what people have to say can have tremendous business value. The problem is that overhearing a conversation isn’t a reasonable way to compile actionable information. That’s why newBrandAnalytics has developed “a social media monitoring and online reputation management tool that transforms online reviews into operational social intelligence.” The company is based in Washington, DC, and it helps companies pinpoint ways that they “can excel in customer experience management.”
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