Mark Kolier’s Blog

Posts Tagged ‘Tiger Woods’

The news came blaring across this past Friday afternoon. Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd had abruptly resigned (or had been asked to resign more properly). This occurred after it was revealed that Mr. Hurd had not disclosed a ‘close personal relationship’ with an H-P contractor Jodie Fisher.

Both Mr. Hurd and Ms. Fisher have denied that they had any kind of sexual relationship. As in the case with Tiger Woods and his wife, I say – who cares? What Mr. Hurd (or Mr. Woods) does with regard to his private life should not be any of our concern – but too often that is not the case. The real problem is that Mr. Hurd used $ 20,000 of H-P funds to pay some of Ms. Fisher’s expenses. And that Ms. Fisher was at times paid when there was no legitimate business purpose.

OK, wipe the smirk off your faces now.

Mr. Hurd offered to repay the money. But it was far too late. Just a note for the record – Mr. Hurd made $ 42.5 million in fiscal 2008 http://bit.ly/98dM2P. In 2009 the number was over $ 24 million. I think the real reason Mr. Hurd had to resign is that the directors at Hewlett-Packard were shocked to find out that they man had been anointed a corporate genius in rallying H-P back to prominence was actually not that bright after all.

Is there any reason you can think of to corporate expense $ 20,000 to a still attractive former B-movie actress who was hired as a ‘consultant’ when you made more than $ 60 million over the past two years?
That’s about the worst kind of judgment and were I an H-P shareholder I would have been frightened not to mention furious.

Another shooting star has fallen fast. Is it just me folks or are you also shocked at how smart people can be so dumb?

This is a little bit of a stretch but there is what I hope an interesting thread here.

Anyone that has seen me play golf knows that I have to be a much better marketer than I am a golfer. Lately I have been playing better and more consistently so than ever before. Practice always helps but focused practice has made a difference. I thought about the fact that there are some similarities in honing my golf skills that are akin to honing my skills as a marketer. For both I am in a ‘continual improvement’ campaign. Fortunately for my family do not need to depend on my golf skills to help support us. That’s a very good thing.

I love working on marketing projects for clients new and old. New client initiatives and challenges keep me fresh and interested. I also love playing golf as well as a place to clear my head and focus on the task immediately at hand.

There are a number of tools in my personal marketing toolbox that I employ when working on various projects. If I am doing it right I am using the right tools for the right engagements. I like to think that most of the time I get it right. Approaches for both marketing and golf at times have to be tweaked after learning a better method. That’s how we improve such that we can create an even better program or play a winning game. (Yes both marketing and golf are very competitive if you have not noticed).

I carry 14 clubs in my golf bag and there are choices to be made on which club to hit, whether to play a high or low ball flight and how to negotiate getting around the inevitable trees that always seem to get between my ball and the target.

Marketing at times can have obstacles that remind me of trees, bunkers, and water hazards on the golf course. There are times to be bold and take chances and times to be conservative and play it safe. The right partners can be invaluable in marketing as well as on the golf course. In golf a good partnership is often called ‘ham and eggs’. The same should be said for marketing partnerships as well.

I will never be anything like Tiger Woods on the golf course but I do think I and our agency has the chops to be a Tiger Woods to our clients. But on both counts I won’t ever stop trying to achieve that kind of greatness. It inspires me and keeps me thinking that my next marketing project or golf game has the potential to be my best ever. Until I go out and play again.