On Friday, I received a handwritten note from Molly. She was our company’s first client, and she’s also become a good friend. Her company is located in rural Georgia, close to the Alabama state-line. Sometimes our conversations are about work, while other times, we’re swapping notes on places to visit or restaurants to try. We’ve […]

Yesterday, I discussed how people who work in virtual environments may develop social network “doughnuts.” They have more contacts outside of their home city than within it. Today, I hosted a professional roundtable event for twelve people from six global companies. The participants live across the United States. They’d never met each other before, and […]

If you live and work within the virtual workplace, you run the risk of creating the doughnut. A doughnut occurs when your national or global professional network exceeds the strength of your local network. Few people plan to create the doughnut. However, if you’re a consultant, it’s easy for your network to develop this way. […]

Almost everyone loves an unexpected gift. It awakens the gleeful five-year old inside of us. When you work with people across the country or the world, you can’t take someone out to lunch on their birthday. Over the years, I’ve found that the mail offers a great way to build virtual professional relationships. You have […]