Automakers are making their own forays into the digital space. Once the domain of third parties, carmakers themselves are getting into the game. Here we briefly look at the strategic partnerships, pilots and internally-led innovations carmakers are working on, as well as new business models for car sharing (wherein multiple parties own one car, or a corporation owns a car and rents it out fractionally, permitting use by a larger group of people).
What it is: A peer-to-peer ‘social insurance’ company based in Germany that invites customers to opt in to a group policy which is shared between friends.
How it works: Each group policy includes a pool of money, fed by a percentage of each member’s premium, which can be used to pay out small claims. If, at the end of the year, there is money left in the pool, everyone gets their share of the remainder back.
Why it's disruptive: Part of the premiums still go to regular insurance, but the idea of money back each year underwritten by the desire to do right by your friends is an unconventional and attractive value add—especially for people who see in their cultural identity collaboration, community and “pay only for what you use”. In 2013, roughly 90 percent of users who took advantage of the peer-to-peer-insurance model were repaid contributions.
Causeit is proud to be the Principal Partner for TEDxBellevue. This year, TEDxBellevue is also presenting TEDxBellevueLive.
Causeit, Inc. is proud to be the principal partner for TEDxBellevue, an independenty-organized TED event, where we provide thought leadership strategy and production support, project management and leadership through our team members Anna, MJ and Matt. At TEDxBellevue, our mission is to bring together local community leaders to engage in ideas worth doing that will make a positive impact in our global community. Our 2012 theme is Sustainable Happiness, from someday to everyday.
Carolyn Mellor, who we met at Jono Bacon et al's Community Leadership Summit, is the rockstar behind X.commerce, the PayPal+eBay+Magento commerce platform. At CLS, she told the Causeit team about the upcoming X.commerce Innovate conference coming up October 12/13/14 of this year, which has great tracks and an impressive speaker list.
Check out their innovative use of their conference-promo site crazy-brilliant, too—they've looped in a simple hashtag-scraping tool in a slick interface to prompt conversation and a thumbs-up/down about the emerging ideas of commerce which people are tweeting about.
Plan to see Matt, Jeremy and MJ at Innovate, and check in as we'll likely be blogging and tweeting a lot at the conference. We'll put our intended schedules up as we get a bit closer.
Matt and I just spent the day in retreat to do what we always ask our clients to do: work on our business, and not just in it.
Causeit, Inc. is committed that human beings realize their full potential.
Through our life-long work, we contribute to a world where people are loving, connected, effective and peaceful.
- We cause loving, powerful teams.
- We work with technology which amplifies and extends human capacity.
- We help humankind experience higher consciousness through awareness of our profound connection with others.
Our Values
- We are committed to the transformation of the individual in all aspects of their lives.
- We live lives of service and work with people who contribute to the world.
- We are committed that our clients and their teams are unstoppable.
- We are committed to individuals being responsible for their lives.
- Our conversations are about what works or doesn't work in service of world-changing, important visions. We don't dwell in the old paradigms of right/wrong, good/bad, blame, fault, guilt or shame.
- We know that our clients are able to cause any result they want for themselves, their communities, and the world.
- We are committed that people know themselves as perfect just as they are.
- We love all people.
In the coming year, stay tuned for great new changes:
Causeit will be hosting CauseTalks, a showcase series of powerful, succinct, community-sourced meetups about everything from the architecture of teams to diversity to transformational communication. All that cool stuff we're always telling you about? We'll bring it to our new community space in Southeast Portland and will podcast it (and maybe even vodcast it) for you, as well as provide whitepapers online.
Causeit will be unveiling new offerings in the realms of team development, cyborg anthropology, content strategy and community-building. They're top-secret for the time being, but we'll tell you more soon.
A little over a month ago, I headed over to the Historic Mississippi Business Association's After Hours event to meet the business owners and facilitate a sharing event. Dubbed "Speed Networking", business owners would have chance to get to know each other better, and then another, and then another, and then another. . .
Personally, I dislike the idea of speed networking, and not because there's a problem in the interaction itself. We have useful interactions all the time in the bus, elevator, across retail counters that are simple, fast, and cursory. Whether asking for directions, gathering more information in order to make a buying decision, or just asking for clarification, these types of interactions have a useful purpose, but one which is not the goal of 'networking'.
I have a problem with how some people relate to 'speed networking'. This is not a sales opportunity. This is not a time to talk about yourself (surprise!). No, you did not learn everything about this person in the 5 minutes you had to speak. If your goal is to 'know' these people after the short interaction you had with each of them, then you're probably falling short. Like any twitter post, speed networking is really just a means to an end. Exchange contact information, find some points of common ground, and… well, by then your time is almost up.
So why did I accept the request to facilitate a speed networking event? So I could change it, of course! Now, don't get me wrong, it's not my style to deliver something other than the agreed-upon outcome, we still came out knowing each other better, and having met new friends. It's the methodology that I changed.
As a group, we all gave our undivided attention to each person as they recounted not only how they got into their business, but how what they were doing aligned with their passions. Community sharing, after all, is a tradition that dates back far beyond most forms of communication technology we use today, and it's lasted this long for a reason. Ask any person present that evening if they remember each other, and I'll bet you'll hear a lot more details than you can recount of your last 'speed networking' event!
business plans can be a roadmap for your business, provide freedom and stability in a changing economy, and empower both you and your team to make powerful, quick decisions. learn the basics of market analysis, project planning, organizational design and financial measures & projections. leave with an outline for your business plan and connections from networking!
get the word out about your business with our half-day workshop! having a great business is not enough to bring clients in the door. you can have a pitcher of the best lemonade in the world sitting on your porch, but until someone knows they can buy a glass from you, you won't have a customer. learn about print and web marketing, the basics of p.r. and more! networking opportunities included!
come learn about intention in your business, basic planning, finances, the politics of business and the importance of public relations, marketing & etiquette at our sixth small biz 101 conference! workshops will be punctuated by networking-meet other small business people and have fun, and leave with a powerful, succinct plan for your projects!
