Business Protocol: Executive assistant to CEO? Commitment, confidence key

If you've been an executive assistant for 20 years and developed experience enough to be a top manager, how do you break through and move up? Can it be done?

Yes, indeed. I have groomed several executive assistants for executive director positions. Many astute and ambitious admins have developed the business acumen and technical expertise to make the jump. They know the players and are capable of stepping into the corner office.

The biggest single barrier is self-confidence. They have to believe they can. After that, it's all about self-
motivation and cultivating a positive attitude.

You don't have to look far for other examples. Many years ago, Jack Connors, then president of Hill Holliday, one of the top advertising agencies in the country, reportedly told his young receptionist she was the "face and voice of Hill Holiday."

Karen Kaplan took Connors' words very seriously and considered her position to be the "CEO of Reception." Kaplan had the confidence and ambition to take that advice and run with it. Her brains, work ethic and dedication were noticed, admired and rewarded in each of the 12 positions she held at the company.

Today, Karen Kaplan is the CEO of Hill Holliday.

There is great merit in being committed to one's career — especially these days when statistics suggest that most people will hold four, five or more jobs in their lifetime. If you are going to be an admin, be the best. The sky may be the limit.

Sandy Knott, past president of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce's Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals, told me she was thrilled to have almost doubled their membership during her tenure.

She explained the upturn, saying that during the Great Recession, she encouraged admins to hold themselves to a high standard and show they were committed to their careers. She suggested that by showing they weren't going anywhere, admins would be more valued, more respected and more sought-after as professionals in their field.

Knott advocated for professional accreditation and certification and urged admins to join professional organizations such as the International Association of Administrative Professionals. Ultimately this advanced the position of administrative assistants while enhancing their value to the company.

Bottom line: Never approach a position believing this will be the job you will have forever, especially if you don't want it to be so.

Judith Bowman is founder of Protocol Consultants International and author of "Don't Take the Last Donut: New Rules of Business Etiquette."

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The Ticker

BU business school gets $50M gift from graduate

Boston University received $50 million, its largest gift ever, for its management school from retailing executive Allen Questrom and his wife, Kelli. The renamed Questrom School of Business will use the donation to endow 10 faculty positions and help pay for added facilities for the graduate program, the university said. Questrom, 74, who earned a bachelor's degree from BU in 1964 and is a trustee, has led retailers including Barneys New York Inc., J.C. Penney Co., Federated Department Stores and Neiman Marcus. He is currently a senior adviser to Lee Equity Partners LLC, a New York private equity firm.

McDonald's to test all-day breakfast

McDonald's Corp. will experiment with serving breakfast all day at some San Diego-area locations as CEO Steve Easterbrook seeks to pull the restaurant chain out of a U.S. sales slump.

The test, slated to begin next month, will keep hash browns, Egg McMuffins and other sandwiches on the menu beyond the standard breakfast hours. McDonald's is the fast-food breakfast leader, and the morning menu accounts for about 25 percent of its business. As more Americans eat breakfast away from home, competitors such as Taco Bell and Starbucks have tried to take market share from McDonald's with expanded offerings.

Woman denies defrauding One Fund

A Boston woman has pleaded not guilty to fraudulently receiving thousands of dollars by claiming she was injured in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Joanna Leigh was arraigned yesterday on charges of larceny and making a false claim to a government agency. She was released without bail and ordered to surrender her passport and not travel outside New England or New York. Her attorney said she's "a very fragile person."

Prosecutors say Leigh got $8,000 from The One Fund victims' charity; $18,000 from a state victims' compensation fund; $9,000 from an online fundraiser; and $1,700 raised by Boston school students.

Authorities say she was at the April 2013 marathon but wasn't hurt. Leigh, 41, says she suffered traumatic brain injuries, and the charges are retaliation for her criticism of The One Fund for not helping people with brain injuries.

TODAY

 Standard & Poor's releases S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices for January.

 Conference Board releases the Consumer Confidence Index for March.

TOMORROW

 Institute for Supply Management releases its manufacturing index for March.

 Commerce Department releases construction spending for February.

 Automakers release vehicle sales for March.

THE SHUFFLE

North Andover-based Watts Water Technologies has named Todd A. Trapp as its chief financial officer, effective April 9. Trapp most recently was vice president of financial planning and analysis at Honeywell International Inc., where he was responsible for leading the annual strategic planning processes for the $40 billion conglomerate. Prior to his 12-year Honeywell career, he held several treasury and finance operational roles at United Business Media Inc. and Pearson Inc.

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Jay Z launches Tidal streaming-music service at star-studded event

Music impresario Jay Z has launched Tidal -- positioned as an ad-free, high-quality streaming-music subscription service priced starting at $10 per month -- with the participation of numerous big-name artists including Alicia Keys, Beyonce (who is married to Jay Z), Chris Martin of Coldplay, Usher, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Kanye West and Madonna.

Jay Z, the stage name of Shawn Carter, in January acquired Sweden-based Aspiro for $56 million. The artists announced onstage at the New York event Monday were introduced as co-owners of the company, representing the first artist-owned digital-music service -- a salvo lobbed against companies like Spotify and Pandora.

"Our goal is simple: We want to create a better service and a better experience for both fans and artitsts," Alicia Keys said at the event. "We believe that it is in everyone's interests -- fans, artists and the industry as a whole -- to preserve the value of music, and to ensure a healthy and robust industry for years to come."

Tidal's mobile launch partner is Sprint. Other artists participating in the service include Arcade Fire, Calvin Harris, Daft Punk, Jack White (formerly of the White Stripes) and Deadmau5.

The Tidal service will compete with other subscription-music services including Spotify and Apple's forthcoming music-streaming service, based on its acquisition of Beats Music, which is expected to launch this summer.

Tidal will not offer a free version of the service; the standard-audio version (Tidal Premium) will be $9.99 per month and the high-def audio version (Tidal HiFi) will be $19.99 per month. Both tiers are free to try out for 30 days, according to the company.

Tidal says it provides a library of more than 25 million tracks, 75,000 music videos and curated editorial articles. The service is available across iOS and Android devices, as well as in Web browsers and desktop players, available in the U.S. and 30 other countries at launch. Tidal provides streaming quality at more than four times the bit rate of competitive services, according to the startup.

© 2015 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Autodesk headed to Boston

Silicon Valley software design giant Autodesk is moving into Boston, and will open up its new Seaport District office to startups and researchers, focused on the construction industry's innovation needs.

"The Seaport area for us is a perfect location because of the creative activity that's going on right now," said Autodesk spokesman Paul Sullivan. "We really wanted to be in the heart of the academic community."

Autodesk and Mayor Martin J. Walsh will formally announce the move today.

"We're going to make sure we signal this is really important to the city," said John Barros, chief of economic development for Boston. "We want to try to bring (companies) back into the city and (Autodesk) symbolizes an important company coming in and saying to other companies, 'You should come to Boston.' "

Barros said a company such as Autodesk represents the kind of business the city is hoping to attract and retain.

"This is the kind of company we want, these are the kind of jobs we want. This is perfect," Barros said. "This is a company that's at the nexus of Boston's innovation economy and manufacturing, this is advanced manufacturing, this is exactly where we think the sweet spot is."

Autodesk, which makes design software, will move about 175 jobs to the new office at 23 Drydock Ave. from its current office in Waltham. The new office will span 70,000 square feet across three floors at the Boston Design Center, with an option to expand an additional 50,000 square feet. Autodesk plans to move in later this year.

The space will also include a "Building Innovation Learning & Design" space, complete with tools including laser scanners, robots and robotic manipulators, large-scale 3-D printers and water-jets.

"This particular facility is going to be focused more on our building and construction industry," Sullivan said. Autodesk makes a suite of software for architects and building engineers.

The company will also expand its startup in residence program, bringing in companies that fit with Autodesk.

"We're going to be looking around Boston for different creative minds that are out there looking to do great things but they need a little bit of help, they need a little space, they need a little technology," he said. The program has about seven companies right now.

Autodesk plans to start a similar program for researchers.

The company has strengthened its Boston connections recently, including acquiring local Web- and app-development company Terrible Labs and working with connected-office company Robin and 3-D printing company Voxel8.

City Hall has put emphasis on keeping technology companies in the city as well as attracting new companies. Late last year, LogMeIn received a tax break to expand its headquarters and stay in Boston. Autodesk is not receiving any tax incentives for the move to the city.

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The Ticker

Forecasters boost outlook for economy

A business economics group has boosted its outlook for U.S. economic improvement this year and next, particularly for job growth.

The March report from the National Association for Business Economics forecasts more hiring, a lower unemployment rate, a lower inflation rate and more growth in consumer spending in 2015, compared to the group's forecast December 2014.

The report, released early today, also predicts more investment by businesses in both equipment and intellectual property, as well as modest growth in stock prices.

Other factors driving the improved forecast include an increased pace of activity in the housing sector, the strong dollar and continued low oil prices.

The NABE report did contain some negatives, however. Those include a widening U.S. trade deficit in 2015, a 
0.1 percent dip in 2015 hourly compensation growth from December's prediction to 2.5 percent, and scaled-back forecasts for 2015 corporate profit growth, down 2 percentage points to 4.7 percent from December's forecast.

Fishermen to discuss future of shuttered Maine shrimp fishery

Fishery regulators are holding a public hearing in Portland to discuss the future of New England's closed Maine shrimp fishery.

The shrimp fishery closed in 2013 and has yet to reopen because of concerns about shrimp population levels. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is collecting feedback from the public about establishing a limited fishery for the shrimp "for use in the future if and when the stock recovers and the fishery can be re-opened."

The Portland hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. today at the Casco Bay Ferry Terminal Conference Room.

Fishermen from Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts harvested Maine shrimp prior to the collapse of the fishery in 2013. Regulators held prior public hearings about shrimp season in Rockport, Maine, Portsmouth, N.H., and Gloucester.

TODAY

 Commerce Department releases personal income and spending for February.

 National Association of Realtors releases pending home sales index for February.

TOMORROW

 Standard & Poor's releases S&P/Case-Shiller index of home prices for January.

 Conference Board releases the Consumer Confidence Index for March.

WEDNESDAY

 Institute for Supply Management releases its manufacturing index for March.

 Commerce Department releases construction spending for February.

 Automakers release vehicle sales for March.

THURSDAY

 Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims.

 Commerce Department releases international trade data for February.

 Commerce Department releases factory orders for February.

 Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, releases weekly mortgage rates.

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Lincoln Continental, the car of presidents, is returning

DEARBORN, Mich. — Elvis Presley had one; so did Clark Gable. It was even the sedan of presidents. Then the name vanished amid an invasion of newer luxury cars from Europe and Asia.

Now, the Lincoln Continental is back.

Thirteen years after the last Continental rolled off the assembly line, Ford Motor Co. is resurrecting its storied nameplate. The new Continental debuts in concept form at this week's New York auto show. The production version of the full-size sedan goes on sale next year.

After more than a decade of toying with alphabetical names like LS and MKS to be more like its foreign rivals, Ford's 98-year-old Lincoln brand is embracing its heritage. It's a measure of the growing confidence at Lincoln, which is finally turning around a decades-long sales decline. And it's a nod to the importance of China, where customers know the Continental name and appreciate brands with a rich history.

Ford CEO Mark Fields says the Continental always represented the best of Lincoln. Resurrecting it sets higher expectations, both within the company and outside of it.

"When we get a chance to work on an iconic nameplate like that, it's a mixture of pride and a mixture of fear, because when you put that name out there, it's got to deliver," Fields told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

The Continental was born in 1938, when Henry Ford's son Edsel commissioned a convertible he could use on his spring vacation. Thrilled by the reception he got as he drove the elegant sedan around Palm Beach, Edsel made the Continental part of Lincoln's lineup.

The Continental soon became the pinnacle of American luxury. Warner Brothers gave Elizabeth Taylor a 1956 Continental with a custom paint color to match her eyes. A darker historical note: John F. Kennedy was riding in the back of a 1961 Continental convertible when he was assassinated in Dallas.

Continental sales peaked in 1990 at 62,732. But after that, Lincoln's sales began slipping.

Ford had acquired other luxury brands such as Jaguar and Volvo. Lincoln's designs got dull and failed to stand out from lower-priced Fords. The Continental was also squeezed by competition from the midsize Lincoln LS, which debuted in 2000, and the bigger Town Car.

Ford also underestimated the threat posed by German rivals, who were expanding their lineups, and newer Japanese luxury brands. By 2000, Lexus was the top-selling luxury brand in the U.S.; last year, BMW was.

To make its way back, Lincoln isn't trying isn't trying to be sporty like BMW or showy like Cadillac. Instead, Fields says, it wants to give drivers an experience that is elegant and serene.

"We want folks to get into our vehicles and — for lack of a better term — chill," Fields said.

It appears to be working. Lincoln's U.S. sales rose 16 percent last year, making it one of the fastest-growing luxury brands in the market. The midsize MKZ was the brand's top seller.

Full-size sedans like the Continental are a tough sell in the U.S., where buyers tend to prefer midsize sedans or SUVs. U.S. sales of Lincoln's current full-size sedan, the MKS, fell 24 percent last year.

But globally, the segment is growing, Fields says. Ford has high hopes for the Lincoln brand in China, where it's opening dazzling new dealerships complete with waterfalls. Ford began selling Lincolns in China late last year, and the company will open more than 20 dealerships there this year.

The concept car being unveiled Monday in New York is painted a deep Prussian blue, an homage to Continentals of the 1950s and 1960s. But there are few other references to its history.

Lincoln's split-wing grille, a feature that dates to the 1940s, has been replaced by a tight, rectangular mesh grille, its shiny chrome patterned with tiny versions of Lincoln's rectangular logo. The sides are smooth; even the door handles are hidden within a narrow strip of chrome at the beltline.

The concept is a technology showcase. The driver's seat has a patented split cushion, so if the driver holds one leg out further than another, it will support each leg separately. The moonroof glass turns opaque with the touch of a button. Another button automatically moves the front passenger seat forward and fully reclines the rear passenger seat. That's another nod to China, where luxury car owners often have their own drivers.

Under the hood is a 3-liter V6 EcoBoost engine that's unique to Lincoln. Ford isn't yet revealing more details, like whether the car is front- or rear-wheel drive. The Continental switched to a front-wheel-drive sedan in the 1980s, but many of its current competitors — the Infiniti Q70, Mercedes Benz S-Class and Lexus LS — are rear-wheel drive.

The Continental is expected to replace the seven-year-old MKS, which currently sits atop Lincoln's car lineup.

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AG developing online claims system for consumers

The state Attorney General's office is working on an online system for people to file claims when its Consumer Protection Division obtains judgments or settlements calling for restitution to consumers.

The idea of an online claims system was broached as a way to make the claims process easier on consumers in a recent Boston Herald Radio interview with Attorney General Maura Healey.

Earlier this month, Healey announced a $260,000 settlement with Isis Parenting, the Needham-based prenatal and parenting retailer that abruptly shut down last year, leaving many parents and expectant parents in a lurch. Customers still owed money for unpaid merchandise, classes and other services have been advised to start a claims process to recoup money by calling the AG's consumer hotline.

"Isis (Parenting) is the jumping-off point," Healey spokeswoman Cyndi Roy Gonzalez said. "If we can do an online claims process for Isis, then our hope is that going forward, when we have settlements of the same nature, we can put in place the same online process."

"Given that we are in 2015, it makes perfect sense," Gonzalez said. "Our whole effort right now is meeting people where they are. So if it's easier for them to do it online, we want to make that accommodation."

Isis Parenting customers who may be entitled to restitution include those who prepaid for classes never held or completed; prepaid for annual memberships after July 27, 2013; or prepaid for consultations never delivered. Customers with unfulfilled gift cards or credits issued after July 27, 2013, also may be entitled to some reimbursement.

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Mad*Pow forum mixes health care, design, tech

As co-founder and chief experience officer at Mad*Pow, a Portsmouth, N.H.-based company that has offices in Boston, Amy Cueva focuses on "human-centered" design that "involves people — the ones who'll be affected by the solutions we create — in the creative process."

But the health care industry is "a little behind" in how it uses design, Cueva said, because organizations such as hospitals and insurance companies, by their very nature, are risk-averse. So when she realized there was no forum that specifically addressed the overlap of health, design and technology, she created one.

This Wednesday and Thursday, about 500 designers, doctors, nurses and entrepreneurs from around the world will gather at the Westin Hotel in Boston's Seaport District for the fifth Health Experience Refactored conference.

"In the health care industry, one of the most complex problems is getting people to change their behavior," Cueva 
said. "We're telling people they need to lose weight, exercise more, eat better, watch their blood pressure. But behavior change really involves the overlap of design, technology and psychology. What leads to lasting change is finding out what people 
really want in their lives."

Cueva recalled one man who was diabetic and so overweight that he needed to use a wheelchair. He wanted to attend his daughter's wedding, but it was going to be held on a beach, which wouldn't be wheelchair-
accessible.

"So we designed a digital diabetic weight-loss program in partnership with Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston," she said. Mad*Pow took the classroom material from the center's weight-loss program and put it online, with videos and a social network for diabetics in the program.

"It was effective in supporting diabetic weight-loss," Cueva said. "Now, Joslin is exploring how to get that technology in the hands of other hospitals and clinicians so that it can help other patients."
Another of the 50 speakers at the conference is Jon Michaeli of MediSafe, an Israeli startup that raised $6 million earlier this year to open new office space in Boston.

MediSafe created an iOS and Android mobile app and cloud-synced database to remind people when to take their medication and alert their family or caretaker if they did not.

"It's really important to have a holistic approach," Michaeli said.

Another keynote speaker, Dr. Darshan Mehta, medical director of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, will focus on how stress affects health and how meditation can counter that stress. And, to help make his point, Mehta will lead the audience in a group meditation.

"This one will be unique, both in size and the number of savvy individuals with skepticism who'll be there, which is good," he said. "I'm hoping people will see that while we're talking about technological advances, let's not forget about the simple stuff."

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Revamped prayer book offers 
modern take for Reform Jews

Hundreds of thousands of Reform Jews will celebrate the High Holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur this fall with a revamped prayer book that puts a new emphasis on inclusiveness toward gays, lesbians and atheists, according to a Boston rabbi who was instrumental in the book's creation.

Mishkan HaNefesh, or "Sanctuary of the Soul," the Reform movement's first High Holidays prayer book in 37 years, includes gender-neutral blessings for transgender people and refers to God as both "Loving Father" and "Compassionate Mother," while leaving room for those who doubt that there is a God at all, said Rabbi Elaine S. Zecher of Temple Israel in Boston, who served as one of the editorial team's advisers.

"It's a monumental moment for the Jewish community because it's a beautiful work in lots of different ways," said Zecher, who also led the 2008 think tank that ultimately led to the consensus that a new prayer book for the High Holy Days was needed. "It is a recognition of the diversity of our community, a sense of welcoming for the lots of different people who come though our doors."

The prayer book — a major focus of this month's convention of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the rabbinical arm of Reform Judaism — also includes poetry and artwork, and incorporates the writings of Henry David Thoreau and Langston Hughes with the Torah, transliterating Hebrew prayers into English so that anyone can participate, said Rabbi Denise L. Eger, who was installed as the group's first openly gay president.

"This book has had tremendous input — from rabbis, from lay people, from cantors," said Eger, the founding rabbi of Congregation Kol Ami in West Hollywood, Calif. "It takes the best of Jewish tradition and melds it with the hopes and anxieties and joys of today. The result is the product not of a top-down process, but really of a bottom-up one."

Of the first edition of 250,000 copies that will be available in June, about 150,000 already have been pre-ordered through the CCAR Press, she said, although she did not immediately have the dollar amount of sales because various discounts are available through April 1. After that, a two-volume set — one for Rosh Hashana, the other for Yom Kippur — will sell for $42, and a pulpit edition of the set will sell for $75.

"We're hoping it will go into multiple printing editions," Eger said, noting that there are about 1.5 million Reform Jews in more than 900 congregations in North America. Eventually, it also will be available electronically, she said.

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Fenway Remy's: Play ball

Jerry Remy's Sports Bar & Grill, the Fenway restaurant that abruptly closed earlier this month, is slated to reopen under new ownership and management on April 13 — the day of the Red Sox home opener against the Washington Nationals at Fenway Park.

The Boston-based Cronin Group is buying the restaurant from Red Sox Nation president and NESN color analyst Jerry Remy and his partners, founder Jon Cronin confirmed yesterday.

Cronin, who had been an investor in the restaurant, owns and operates the Jerry Remy's location in the Seaport District under a licensing agreement with Remy. The Fenway restaurant also will operate under a licensing agreement.

"It's a good area with a lot of development going on, so we see big potential there for a nice restaurant," Cronin said. "We're going to do a quick makeover, implement a whole new made-from-scratch menu and upgrade the food and beverage offerings."

Cronin hopes to sign a new lease with the building's owner, a Boston Red Sox affiliate, next week. He is also applying to have the restaurant's liquor license transferred to his company.

Remy's namesake restaurant closed without warning March 3, and Remy and his primary partner, John O'Rourke, have been silent about what happened.

Reached yesterday, Remy still wouldn't talk about why it closed, but said he "couldn't be more ecstatic" that Cronin is taking over.

"We feel like it's going to be in very stable hands now that he's going to be the owner and operator," Remy said. "John was our major investor, and I'm glad it is in his hands. We're pleased that it turned out the way it did."

Jerry Remy's Sports Bar & Grill opened in the shadow of Fenway Park in March 2010 after a $5 million build-out. A large roof deck was later added.

There's a lot of work before it reopens, including hiring 200 employees, according to Cronin, who encouraged former employees to apply. The revamped menu will include business lunch options for small and large groups.

The Cronin Group owns a string of other restaurant/bars in Boston, including Tia's Boston, Market, the Atlantic Beer Garden and Whiskey Priest in the Seaport District, and the Playwright and Boston Beer Garden in South Boston. It also owns Temazcal Tequila Cantinas in the Seaport District and Lynnfield, and Tony C's Sports Bar & Grill in Somerville and Burlington.

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