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The Ruby Group, a development, construction management and consulting company based in Goshen, N.Y., last week installed factory-made building modules used to create townhouse-style housing for up to 48 students at Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake.
The successful installation means the new housing is on schedule to be ready for students when they arrive for classes in late August.
“Using factory-made modular building components helped ensure that construction proceeds on schedule by eliminating possible delays caused by bad weather or other problems at an outdoor site,” said Howie Berman, a principal with The Ruby Group who is supervising the project. “We’re working on a tight schedule and absolutely must be completed on time, so we turned to modular construction and had most of the work completed in a factory to remove any uncertainty.”
The 11,100-square-foot building has three adjoining residences and is comprised of 18 modules that were positioned atop a Superior Walls pre-cast, insulated foundation. The modules were trucked to the site from a factory in Pennsylvania and hoisted into position by a crane, with workers guiding the sections into the proper positions.
“The whole process only took two days,” Berman said. “It would have taken a month or two to stick-build the housing on the site using traditional methods, even if you did your best to fast-track the work. The modular approach has dramatically reduced the time needed for construction and is allowing us to meet a demanding schedule.”
The modules were built by Haven Custom Homes, a Linthicum, Md.-based company that specializes in energy-efficient modular residential, commercial and institutional construction. Haven’s factories in South Carolina and Pennsylvania have built commercial buildings and homes in prestigious locations ranging from Hilton Head, S.C., to Martha’s Vineyard, Mass.
The new townhouses resemble traditional New England homes, with porches, pitched roofs and exterior walls with clapboard siding and shingles. The townhouses feature living rooms, kitchens, dining rooms and a total of 24 bedrooms, three of which will be handicapped adaptable. The new building will help address the demand for on-campus housing at the 1,700-student college.
The speedy approach didn’t compromise the quality of construction, Berman said. Modular buildings must be able to withstand transportation at highway speeds, Berman noted, so they actually have stronger floors, ceiling and walls than most stick-built homes. This housing was also designed to be extremely energy efficient.
The EcoGreen Community Housing, as it’s called, will meet or exceed Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Energy Star and National Green Building Standards for energy efficiency and environmental sensitivity. Berman is one of a small number of homebuilders who have achieved the top-level LEED Platinum certification of their construction projects, for energy efficiency and construction quality.
The U.S. Green Building Council states: “Based on their Home Energy Rating System (HERS) scores, the average home certified under LEED for Homes since its launch in February 2008 is predicted to use an estimated 30 percent to 60 percent less energy than a comparable home built to International Energy Conservation Code.” More than 5,000 homes have received LEED for Homes certification, the USGBC says, and nearly 21,000 are registered for certification.
The student housing is being built under a unique private-public partnership between The Ruby Group and the Sullivan County Community College Dormitory Corporation. The building is expected to cost about $1.5 million to design and build. The Ruby Group is responsible for arranging financing and has leased the land required from the SCCC Dormitory Corporation. The housing will be managed by Longley Jones, the Syracuse, N.Y., company that manages the SCCC Dormitory Corporation’s existing residence hall.



Cutline: Ruby Group principals Howie Berman, left, and Pete Berman are pictured as modular student housing is erected at Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake. The use of factory-built components let The Ruby Group accommodate the college’s fast-track construction schedule.

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It's been called a 'quiet crisis' by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's President Shirley Ann Jackson. The crisis has been identified by experts in both business and education as a gap in the number of new young talent entering the 'innovation ecosystem' – a shortage of skilled Scientists, Engineers, Technology professionals and Mathematicians – called 'STEM' professions – and the numbers required to perform the jobs. By 2016, the jobs with the highest growth rates will be in STEM related fields. Yet current statistics from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) show that fewer than 300,000 college students are majoring in STEM fields, and only 167,000 are expected to be STEM college graduates by 2011. Testing statistics and other metrics show that the existing pipeline of qualified college students entering these fields may not be adequately prepared to begin first year courses without remediation. ACT test scores show that only 17 percent of high school seniors interested in STEM have obtained proficiencies. Other skills required for these future STEM rich jobs include advanced problem solving, team building, collaboration and a diverse background experience from which to draw, which traditionally can be developed from a broad humanities education. Business and industry of all sizes have had to create specialty training programs to provide basic applied skill development for new hires. The private and public business sectors now both consider that there is a new role for direct involvement in the reform of education to fill their STEM requirements.
Major US projects in the mid 1900s, such as the race to space and the moon, built up a rich and plentiful STEM professional talent pool. But many of these workers have retired or are preparing to retire, leaving a potential hole, and an opportunity, to create a new base for innovation and jobs in America, and in New York State. Participants in the Empire State STEM Education Initiative (ESSEI) agree that this is one of the most important initiatives in NYS education today.
The Empire State STEM Learning Network is a collaborative, self-learning, grass roots initiative, which first convened in June 2009 on RPI's campus. Over the course of the last year, a continuing 'progressive' dialogue has engaged and inspired leaders in both education and business. Using methodologies and guidance from the PAST Foundation (Partnering Anthropology with Science and Technology) that enabled candid anonymous contribution, ensuring accurate capture of the issues, a paper has been published explaining the comprehensive ethnographic analysis of the ongoing conversation. The paper is available for viewing online at http://www.pastfoundation.org/stem/case-studies/ . On June 10th 2010, leaders convened again at RPI to review their progress and plan for next steps.
The Network was initially funded by a grant from the William & Melinda Gates Foundation, and early stakeholders from the business world include AT&T, Cisco Systems, Corning, IBM and Time-Warner Cable. Additional support comes from the Battelle Memorial Institute, the largest independent non-profit research organization in the world. Brainstorming sessions were conducted after the inaugural session in June 2009, and continued on in eight regionally designated meetings throughout the state, involving over 500 participants engaged in 60 breakout group sessions. The groups considered and discussed ways to improve STEM education.
At the session on June 10th this month, 170 thought leaders gathered from education including a cross section of Executive Directors and Presidents from museums and coalitions across NYS, as well as Superintendents, Principals, Chief Academic Officers, State government officials, and student representatives. The Honorable Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D., President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute opened the session. Closing comments were shared by The Honorable David M. Steiner, Ph.D., Commissioner of Education and President of SUNY.
The morning began with two panel discussions led by Margaret Ashida, Project Director of the ESSEI. Ms. Ashida was a guest speaker on June 2nd, at the Greater Southern Dutchess County Chamber of Commerce meeting, discussing the project and congratulating the Annual June Nussbickel Scholarship Award winners announced that morning. The first panel discussion was titled 'Crossing the Chasm in emerging STEM Network Hubs'. The second panel discussed perspectives from Network investors. Luncheon speakers included a student panel from Tech Valley High School. These students shared their experiences at Tech Valley, and how the project focused curriculum builds relevant real world skills that will be instantly applicable for their career choices . Online links to the morning panel discussions and the student panel presentation can be found at http://mms.rpi.edu/index.html .
The afternoon was spent in group workshops discussing moving from a planning and discussion phase, to the next phase of engaging participation and collaboration with NYS community and business leaders.
Throughout the day, the assembled group encouraged each other with ideas and examples of how the network to date has served its purpose. Dr. Jackson's opening comment, “Network IS as network DOES” directed the group to the purpose of the network, to “advocate for and listen to” each participant such that it fosters '”collaboration, not competition”. Stephen Krak, Senior Research Scientist from the Battelle Memorial Institute and Ohio's STEM initative participant, commented on the importance of operational agility and resource sharing, while Steve Barkanic, Senior Program Officer from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation said that their expectation is to be able to double the numbers of students who are STEM college ready without need for remediation. IBM Vice President of Global Community Initiatives, Robin Willner shared IBM's commitment to deliver technology, IBM volunteers and summer camp resources. Additionally, Willner added that while not all IBMers are STEM professionals, they all “get it, all clients need it and all students need it. One of the most critical thinking skills is optimism: engineers must BELIEVE that a problem can be solved.” Willner referred to work recently completed and published on June 2nd, by the non profit group Public Agenda, underwritten by GE Foundation, entitled “Are We Beginning to See the Light?”. This study highlighted the surprising reality that while most Americans agree that STEM proficiencies are important for future jobs, 52 percent of parents believe that the math and science their child is getting in school is 'fine as it is'. The report can be viewed at http://www.publicagenda.org/pages/math-and-science-ed-2010 . Willner stressed keen focus on collaboration, identification of best practices, and getting small and medium businesses involved.
And that, in Project Leader Ashida's opinion, is key to the next step in moving this initiative forward. The team believes that what's needed now to take the foundational work to the next level, is to engage the business community, secure additional stakeholders with a broad and diverse expertise and perspective, and work to promote as opposed to regulate. Enhancing visibility of models already formed serve to inspire. Models such as already developed 'Career Academies' such as those developed by the Long Island Works Coalition, a division of Goodwill Industries or New York Hall of Science's 'Portable Labs' and their 'Youth Employment Program', which are paid apprenticeships, where tangible results show 67 percent of the youth go into STEM careers, 92 percent graduate college and 22 languages are spoken, are impressive examples of what can be accomplished. Corning hosts a Summer Teacher Institute and Summer Science Fairs, creating public STEM awareness. Maker Faires (makerfaire.com) provide open calls to people of all ages to innovate and bring DIY fun to topics once believed by students to be irrelevant to real world situations, much as Alton Brown marries science and technology to everyday meal preparation. As the synergies between community, business, and education develop and form into meaningful incubators where students realize that there is applicability in traditional STEM topics, the hope is that the legacy classroom learning model that has been in place since the 1880s, along with the current system for teaching math and science which has not changed significantly since the 1960s, can evolve into the learning model of the future – restoring New York, and America, as a leader once again in innovation and commerce.
Business and community leaders interested in exploring how to get involved in the Empire State STEM Education Initiative are requested to contact Margaret Ashida, Project Leader, at ASHIDM@rpi.edu to discuss further.



Cutline – A recent STEM conference at R.P.I. focused on boosting student interest in majoring in the country’s under-enrolled areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Phot credit: Rensselaer/Kris Qua

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The message from a recent housing conference was clear: Healthy communities create healthy regions, and that should be the goal for the Hudson Valley.
From keynote speaker Ron Sims, deputy secretary of the department of Housing and Urban Development, to three breakout panels, the integration of housing, planning and achieving vibrant communities was addressed.
“Either we find a way to work together or else we will all not succeed,” said Jonathan Drapkin, CEO of Pattern for Progress, which hosted the conference at the Poughkeepsie Grand.
While a message of unity has been preached for centuries, at this moment in time, it’s critical people respond said Drapkin. He cited the current economic climate, with the Hudson Valley’s unemployment rate doubled over the past three years, the very real cuts in government funding to local programs and the challenges of attracting businesses to the region as a trifecta of woes that can only be addressed through public and private entities in the region working together.
“Collaboration and sharing resources is no longer debatable,” he says.
One theme that has become a battle cry for Pattern is the need to streamline development efforts. The state’s environmental review process, known as SEQRA, should not be confrontational, pitting builders against environmentalists and tying up projects for years, but rather a system of checks and balances that ultimately produces the best project.
“I think we’re seeing the real effects, in New York state, of the high cost of doing business,” said Glenn Hoagland, Executive Director of Mohonk Preserve, and a member of Pattern’s board of directors. “SEQRA shouldn’t be an impediment. It allows citizen input and protects the environment.” Establishing solid comprehensive plans that anticipate what a community wants to become is critical for good planning and will help the process he said.
“We’re actively engaged in helping communities implement comprehensive plans, to save what needs to be saved, and build what needs to be built.” While he acknowledges that open space is a clean and green form of economic development, there is also a need for better business and housing solutions within the Hudson Valley.
“We can not sustain the parochial patterns of government …if we want to be a competitive region,” he said. “It’s a win-win if we can create needed housing and needed employment and create quality open space for health and recreation.”
The need for affordable housing was pervasive throughout the conference. Keynote speaker Sims hinted at new changes that will be coming from HUD, including a shift toward supporting regional planning, rather than just through city and town efforts. As the federal agency that controls fiscal distribution of housing funds, HUD carries immense power in planning efforts.
And affordable housing is no longer a code word for housing the needy. The housing bubble saw prices soar so high that even with a correction, homeownership is not an option for many who work in the community, including teachers and young professionals.
“There’s no where near enough affordable housing,” said Larry Regan, president of Regan Development Corporation and a panelist on a session entitled “Implications for Housing: Daring to Meet the Real Needs of Our Communities,” which was moderated by Mary Paden, vice president of the Community Preservation Corporation.
“The key is the housing - whether it be affordable, market rate, multi-family or whatever - it needs to follow the existing need,” said Regan. “Once the need is determined you can figure out how best to address the need and do that.”
Existing communities need to accept those needs, and then develop a growth plan, he said. He credits Fishkill planners as being “visionaries” for understanding the need for diverse housing options.
“They understood people need to live close to where they work. They’ve been very forward-thinking. If we keep household heads and families close to places where they work we can grow communities in the Hudson Valley.”
As a developer solely of affordable housing, and a recipient of Pattern’s Housing Hero award, Regan chooses to work with communities whose leaders understand their community’s needs, even if there is some opposition from residents. But if leaders and citizens are against it, he won’t even consider the option.
“There’s places for everything. It’s not my job to say where those needs should be - it’s the job of the local municipality,“ he said. “Communities need to accept these needs and develop plan to meet these needs in a smart growth format.”

CUTLINE
Mary Paden, VP of Community Preservation Corp., (far right) moderated a panel at Pattern for Progress’ Housing the Hudson Valley Conference that included from left, Norma Drummond, Deputy Planning Commissioner of Westchester County, Kevin O’Connor, Executive Director of Rural Ulster Preservation Corp., and Larry Regan, President of Regan Development.

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New York State One of the First Passenger Rail Grants Released by the from Federal Railroad Administration
FRA Release of Funds to the Department of Transportation Will Help New York Move Forward with Empire Corridor Improvements to Passenger Rail Service
ALBANY, NY (05/27/2010)(readMedia)-- New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Acting Commissioner Stanley Gee today announced that New York State has received the first allocation of funds from a total of $151 million in grants awarded to New York State for high-speed and intercity passenger rail projects through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). NYSDOT, in cooperation with FRA, will prepare a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 463-mile Empire Corridor, which runs from Albany to Buffalo and Niagara Falls, and that will study and document proposed improvements to intercity passenger rail services in New York State.
"This grant marks another milestone in New York State's efforts to expand high speed intercity passenger rail service across the Empire State, and more specifically the Empire Corridor linking Albany to Buffalo and Niagara Falls," said Acting Commissioner Stanley Gee. "We appreciate FRA's confidence in our high speed intercity passenger rail program, and the continued support of Governor Paterson and our Congressional delegation. This project will examine the impact, costs and alternatives for high speed passenger rail at speeds up to 110 mph, and is key to advancing high speed passenger rail in New York. With the cooperation of all the stakeholders involved, New Yorkers can look forward to a time when rail service is the transportation mode of choice for travel between our major cities."
The $1 million award of FRA assistance is about 20% of the $4.5 million estimated cost for completion of the EIS. The EIS includes market and operational analyses, and will provide ample opportunities for public and stakeholder involvement. The objective is to examine the level of intercity passenger rail service to be provided in the corridor, including, among other factors, variations in train frequency and trip time.
This corridor-level EIS builds on a number of planning studies NYSDOT and others have done over the years to develop a long range, comprehensive, high-speed intercity passenger rail investment strategy and will result in a list of recommended projects. Those projects would be located along the 463-mile Empire Corridor, beginning at Penn Station in New York City (New York County), and proceeding north to Poughkeepsie (Dutchess County) and Albany (Albany County), then turning west to Schenectady (Schenectady County), Utica (Oneida County), Syracuse (Onondaga County), Rochester (Monroe County), Buffalo (Erie County), and terminating at Niagara Falls (Niagara County).
High-speed rail enhancements are designed to improve the reliability and reduce the travel time of passenger rail service in New York State. Design consultant HNTB, of New York City, is expected to complete the project by mid-2012.

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Inner city students, world-class scientists, and environmental leaders gathered at Waryas Park in Poughkeepsie on last week to unveil a new, mobile environmental monitoring system onboard the sloop Clearwater that will help scientists take the pulse of the Hudson River.
The state-of-the-art installation is the latest component of the Hudson River Environmental Conditions Observing System (HRECOS) — a multi-million dollar monitoring network comprised of eight permanent stations located throughout the Hudson River estuary from Schodack Island in Rensselaer County to the New York/New Jersey harbour. The unique partnership will make a range of real-time data taken from the Hudson River accessible in the classroom via the Internet.
The partnership represents a bold collaborative initiative among New York State government, private scientific, and non-profit environmental organizations to bring real, world-class science being conducted on the Hudson River into the classroom, and to also bring the classroom to the River.
“This is a great opportunity for the thousands of kids who sail on Clearwater to see the direct connection between their experience on the river and the work of some of the best scientific organizations in the country,� said Jeff Rumpf, Executive Director of Clearwater. “This collaboration of State government, scientific institutions, and environmental organizations significantly raises the bar of education, and with no additional cost to taxpayers. At a time when educational funding across New York is being cut, a new collaborative model of science, environmentalism, and government coming together in service to kids seems to be working.�
With funding from the Hudson River Foundation, HRECOS is operated by a consortium of partners from government and the research community including DEC, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, the Hudson River Estuary Program, Stevens Institute of Technology, the Cary Institute, Riverkeeper, National Estuarine Research Reserve, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, U.S. Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, and other organizations.
“Having a capability to acquire data in real-time from the Hudson River via the Clearwater as she sails will greatly benefit all those who care about and use the river. Scientists and engineers in particular will use the data to better understand the estuarine conditions that are occurring at that moment and predict what is likely to occur in the next few days,� said Alan Blumberg, Director of the Center for Maritime Systems at the Stevens Institute. “A successful installation on the Clearwater will be a prototype for similar installation on other vessels, enabling an ever more comprehensive view of the Hudson.�
As part of its mission to inspire, educate, and activate the next generation of environmental leaders, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater integrates educational programs and science curriculum by bringing young people sailing on the Hudson and teaching them first-hand the complex ecological issues facing estuary scientists.
HRECOS stations send continuous updates to www.hrecos.org for the purposes of environmental forecasting and assessment. The partnership with Clearwater not only adds a vital mobile dimension to the monitoring network used by scientists, but serves as the key link between scientists and schools.
Thousands of students who participate in Clearwater’s educational sails along the Hudson each year will be able to work with the same monitoring data that scientists use. Moreover, because the data is collected, stored, and accessed online, students will be able to return to the Hudson River virtually as they continue to monitor the heartbeat of the Hudson from inside their classrooms.
The station on the Clearwater will track conditions from Albany to the New York harbor. Instruments purchased by the Hudson River Foundation and installed by the Stevens Institute will continuously transmit the location of the Clearwater, as well as measurements of water quality that include: dissolved oxygen, turbidity, salinity, and water temperature. The eighth station will be installed at Marist College in Poughkeepsie later this year.

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When you’re ill, dealing with health insurance forms, claims and payments can send even the most educated person reeling. Even the healthiest of patients can find the whole healthcare system to be overwhelming and talking to the health insurance representatives don’t always make things easier. This is where The Maxon Company’s new website, www.askmaxon.com, and service come in.

Started just a few months ago, the company’s new website answers many confusing questions that consumers have regarding their healthcare plan, insurance coverage or claim forms. The brainchild came a few months ago when a customer wanted to pick Rubin’s brain. “We realized that this was a service that we needed to create,� says Hana Rubin, COO of The Maxon Company.

The Maxon Company is a full-service Third Party Administrator for medical and pension plans sponsored by public, private, and Taft-Hartley organizations. The company was started by Stanley Rubenzahl, Rubin’s father, and David Rubenzahl, the company president and Rubin’s brother. In addition to many other services, The Maxon Company processes insurance claims for consumers. They provide various levels of management and insurance products to plans with assets in excess of $200 million. Maxon also provides total administrative support for insurance company health, life and disability products. Their main headquarters is in Westchester County, NY.  

Call them ‘healthcare coaches’ if you will, but they are there to help and it couldn’t come at a more perfect time. With new legislation on its way after the health care reform legislation passed a few months ago, 54 percent of Americans say they didn’t understand the legislation and how it would affect their families according to a CBS News poll conducted in March.

While the legislation is being created and consumers still have time to figure it all out, Maxon’s clientele – from all over the country – still aims to understand the current health care red tape and their own policies. One example of a consumer problem that The Maxon Company solved concerned one young man who had lost his job, but wasn’t offered his COBRA package (The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act allows you to extend your health insurance benefits after you leave your job). The father wanted to buy coverage for his son, but after Maxon asked several questions, they were able to look into the situation and get him his COBRA package.

“People are intimidated by forms and applications for insurance or claims forms,� says Rubin. “It’s more effective if they talk to someone. You can call a lawyer for legal advice or an accountant for financial advice, but who do you call for insurance questions?� If your questions aren’t answered on the website, the first 15-minutes with Maxon are free. After that, pricing starts at $24.99 for 15 minutes. There’s no long-term commitment.

“A lot of small companies don’t have human resource departments, so we are there to help,� she says.

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Key agreements have been reached between the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) and CSX Transportation, Inc. (CSXT) to move forward with New York State's high speed intercity passenger rail program. The agreements, achieved between the parties, will establish a framework for progress to establishing high speed passenger rail in the State and will enable NYSDOT to move forward with the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the Empire Corridor, which contains CSX's busiest route carrying both passengers and freight between Albany and Buffalo. The EIS agreement will allow New York State to move forward on other projects funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that involve CSXT, which will create jobs and help improve the economy.
"The State's agreements with CSXT are a significant step toward bringing high speed passenger rail to New York on the Empire Corridor. The deadlock has been broken allowing for the program to move forward," Governor Paterson said. "This agreement was essential to implement the high speed rail projects for which New York State was awarded $151 million in funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I want to particularly thank Congresswoman Slaughter, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood, FRA Administrator Joseph Szabo, Deputy FRA Administrator Karen Rae, and Acting Commissioner Stanley Gee for their efforts. The vision of high speed passenger rail is now one step closer to reality for New Yorkers."
NYSDOT Acting Commissioner Stanley Gee said: "Today's agreement with CSXT is an important milestone in New York State's efforts to expand high speed intercity passenger rail service across our State. We have turned the corner and now, together with CSXT, we will begin anew to move forward on enhancing high speed passenger rail in our State. Having just yesterday received one of the first of FRA's grants, to fund the EIS, the timing couldn't be better for this tremendous announcement. We owe a debt of gratitude to Governor Paterson, Congresswoman Slaughter, FRA and Secretary LaHood for their continued confidence in our program. CSXT is a vital partner to progress on high speed passenger rail in New York State, and we are pleased to have their cooperation on behalf of the greater good."
The two agreements have been executed simultaneously. The Framework Agreement is a broad statement of core principles that will guide New York State and CSXT in establishing enhanced intercity and high speed passenger rail service. Both parties, CSXT and NYSDOT, have pledged their cooperation in fully achieving the national goal of high speed intercity passenger rail, while at the same time recognizing the rights and responsibilities of CSXT in connection with its property.
The Agreement on the EIS enables NYSDOT to move forward with preparation of a Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 463-mile Empire Corridor, which runs from New York City to Albany, and west to Buffalo and Niagara Falls, and that will study and document proposed improvements to intercity passenger rail services in New York State at speeds of up to 110 mph. The corridor-level EIS builds upon a number of planning studies NYSDOT and others have done over the years to develop a long range, comprehensive, high-speed intercity passenger rail investment strategy and will result in a list of recommended projects. The $1 million award of FRA assistance is about 20 percent of the $4.5 million estimated cost for completion of the EIS. The EIS Agreement allows that critical planning effort to go forward immediately by setting forth the cooperative and supporting role of CSXT to the project, which will be lead by the FRA and NYSDOT.
High-speed rail enhancements are designed to improve reliability and reduce travel time of passenger rail service in New York State. Design consultant HNTB, of New York City, is expected to complete the EIS and planning studies by mid-2012.

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Building a personal brand for both you and your company is more important than ever. Does it surprise anyone to learn that the basic precepts you need to develop and evolve that personal brand were the things your mother probably taught you well before you ever set out on your own? In a nutshell, that was what brand and strategy guru David Dirks explained to people at the latest Hudson Valley Business Marketing Association dinner.

“Don’t throw rocks!�

You probably began to hear that one back in your sandbox days, when getting along nicely with peers was as simple as not throwing stuff at them.
“This is more important than ever today,� said Dirks. “One of the most basic things you can control with your personal brand is how you’re perceived. And it is invaluable to be seen by the people you interact with in very positive ways.�
Controlling what you have to say about both colleagues and competitors – and making sure that you aren’t tossing verbal grenades their way – is vital to having folks see you as one of the “good guys.�

“Be nice to people on your way up – because they’re the same people you’ll meet on your way back down.�

 Dirks recalled how he had, at times, “blown this oneâ€� himself in the past – and how it had come back to bite him professionally years later, when he needed that person to make an important connection.
“I never did anything intentionally – we never do – but it can happen and it can keep you from getting that important contract or an introduction you need.�
His best advice? Always, always, always go out of your way to “be niceâ€�  to everyone you might meet – not just because it’s strategically important, but because it’s simply the right thing to do.

“Is your homework done?�

How many times have we heard that one? It doesn’t change once we are out of school and in the real world. Having a deep knowledge and intellectual control over every single facet of your professional life is one of the most telling keys for future success, said Dirks.
“Your brand,� he stressed, “depends upon the depth of your experience.�
Know every single fact, figure, potential scenario about every single project before you need the information – not afterwards.

“Did you say thank you?�

Saying “thank you� is quite possibly the most under-used and under-valued phrase in the English language, said Dirks. And yet, he added, it’s also one of the most powerful tools you can harness to cement your personal brand in the minds of everyone you encounter.
“In these days of emails and impersonality, I like to take the time to actually write personal notes to people,� he explained. “It means a lot more, I believe.�
Dirks told a story about a friend of his who has taken this concept to the point where a “Gratitude Dayâ€� is set aside each week in his company. Every employee is expected to personally write a note or two and “thank  someoneâ€� for something nice they have done for them in the past week.
“The result has been amazing for the company culture,� said Dirks. “It has created a company of employees who are happier and who treat clients with a very positive attitude.’

Following these basic  ideas, said Dirks, are a good way to start to evolve a personal brand that tags you as a person people respect and want to do business with.

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