Latest publications
Read my latest stories for The Wall Street Journal, Passcode, The Harvard Business Review, JSTOR Daily and more.
What’s wrong with the Ello backlash
My latest blog post for the Harvard Business Review argues that Ello -- the "it" social network of the week -- is a wake-up call for businesses to re-assess their social media strategy in light of growing public concerns about privacy and ad targeting. But what about...
11 best practices for working with an editor
My latest blog post for the Harvard Business Review makes the case for adding an editor to your content marketing team. As I note in that post, Content marketing will only deliver on its promise if it’s good enough to deliver customers–that’s why improving the quality...
Homeschooling as a working mom: the pie chart
It's week two of the school year -- or it would be, if we weren't in the middle of an increasingly frustrating (though well-justified) teachers' strike. We're experiencing the school outage a little differently at our house, because this also marks the beginning of...
Choosing research methods for data-driven storytelling
This blog post does not represent Vision Critical. In fact, I think some of my colleagues are going to argue with me vigorously over this one. Rigorous data gathering and analysis can get in the way of effective storytelling by non-profits. That proved to be the most...
Is this an ice cream? A 2×2
It has recently come to my attention that many people seem to be unable to recognize whether their preferred frozen dessert is ice cream. At last! A modern dilemma I can actually solve, thanks to this handy 2x2: Is it ice cream? Butterfat content 10 to...
Yelpless: What kinds of reviews get squelched by Yelp?
I'm an ardent (some might say pathological) Yelp user, and since I am incapable of putting anything in my mouth without first validating its viability on Yelp, I try to contribute back to the community by sharing my own perspectives and information, particularly on...
Is the Canadian media responsible for Western Canadian alienation?
What is the root cause of Western Canadian alienation? Contrary to common arguments, it's not because the rest of Canada fails to understand the West's "distinct history, economy and society", it's not due to the National Energy Program or even (as my friend and...
Bumper sticker conversation guide: 2×2 edition
This weekend my mind got blown a tiny bit by this unexpected combination of bumper stickers. Naturally, I facebooked the photo, and my friend Steve challenged me to fit this phenomenon into a 2x2. But as with any 2x2, the structure of the table should be determined by...
How 17 essential travel apps can improve your next vacation
Whether you’re packing your bags for a summer trip to Europe or packing the car for a summer road tip with the kids, you may be tempted to define your vacation by what you’re not packing: your computer, tablet or mobile phone. As more and more of us struggle with the...
Making room for messiness
For the past two weeks we've been in the middle of our semi-annual domestic meltdown. Meltdown features include: emergency school visits necessitating precipitous departures from work implementation of new household rules precipitating epically draining tantrums...