Given the uncertainty of Itochu and the unsustainable situation at UMAX, I continued looking. I responded to an ad for a publishing company in Emeryville. Sybex had been publishing computer books and manuals for years; they had an opening for an Assistant Editor. I had returned to business school to pursue a greater knowledge of […]
Category: American Business Culture & Society
The way Americans in Silicon Valley invested was quite different from my Japanese counterparts. It was a mix of calculated Fund investments, Wild West risk-taking, and eventually a casino merriment at the IPO tables.
When contrasted with new insights into Japanese society, our behaviors also came in to question.
Turn Right, Go Left
In my calming walks over to the open fields at Mission College, I noticed motorcycles on a trailer and cones carefully placed in the parking lot. On one of these occasions, I approached. “What do you have going on here?” Tom introduced himself and his motorcycle driving classes. “We spend several sessions right here; then […]
Land of Immigrants
I had an early flight out and had called for a car the day before. It beat trying to round up a cab in the morning rush hour. A young woman arrived at the appointed time in a van. I tossed my duffel ahead of me and jumped in, unsure if there would be others […]
New Models
Excitement was high as the Internet economy grew, but so was uncertainty. Companies were building out the network while entrepreneurs cobbled together new companies, with or without revenue models. That was problematic. Who was going to pay for all this build out? The government was not going to fund its growth, despite DARPA’s involvement in […]
Chasing Cisco
Cisco was growing rapidly, providing networking equipment to speed the new digital freeway. To me, networking seemed dull. Yes, it was great for sending data back and forth, and there were lots of business uses for that. But it was just bits in the stream — techie flow control. When my boss and I both […]
Honolulu Stop Over
In Honolulu, the bus attendant showed everyone the two finger salute for “Mahalo,” inviting us to relax and reminding us to tip – a good businessman, hitting them early before they were out of money or more savvy to panhandlers. I reached my hotel on the outskirts of the Waikiki run. I looked at the […]
LSD in San Francisco
Charlie Reis was one of those unique characters on the California landscape so hard to define. He was over 80 when I met him at UMAX. Our Taiwanese President was so impressed with his knowledge and activity level that he called me in to meet Charlie, who was finishing a brochure for us entitled “The […]