Each holiday season, we select what we consider to be the year’s most influential business book to share with our clients and partners. This year, we chose Free – The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson as our firm’s 2009 Book of The Year.
 
We have simple criteria when picking our book of the year: 1) it must be published in the given calendar year, and 2) it needs to be both meaningful and enjoyable to read. While the selection formula is straight forward, the process of selecting our book is never easy. There are always varied opinions and good options from which to choose. We have chosen Free because the main idea of the book resonated with our firm’s culture and philosophy. It is the intriguing idea that you can make more money by giving services and products away for free.
 
As a professional service provider, we constantly give away our intellectual property for free. Gone are the days when you can simply say you’re an expert and expect to receive someone’s business. You must now fully demonstrate your value proposition and do it in a way that is both meaningful and economically neutral. The fascinating paradox explored in this book is that the more you give away, the more you receive in return. And the game-changing part of this “free,” is that it is not a twentieth-century marketing gimmick with strings attached. Twenty-first-century “free” really is free.
 
It’s a time-honored holiday tradition that giving is more important than receiving. Can this same principle of giving things away be applied to the business world? Can an economic model that is built around the concept of “free” be sustainable, not to mention a way to build even greater profits for your business? The reason this book struck such a chord with us is that we see this principle proven all the time in our business dealings. Serving others and giving value away does increase returns and there is a multiplier effect.
 
If you get a chance, we’d appreciate your comments on the titles we’ve selected as our books of the year.

2005 The World Is Flat
2006 Small Giants – Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big
2007 Wikinomics – How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything
2008 Outliers – The Story of Success
2009 Free – The Future of A Radical Price

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes in the New Year!
 
Diversified Insurance Group

- Diversified Insurance Group was a title sponsor of the Summit 2009 Director & Officer Conference –

SALT LAKE CITY – December 11, 2009 –

“Requirements for today’s corporate directors and officers are evolving more quickly than ever before,” said David W. Steuber, partner in Howrey LLP, Los Angeles, Calif. Steuber joined a capacity group of more than 140 leading executives who participated in the 9th Annual Summit Conference for Directors and Officers (www.summitconf.org) at Stein Eriksen Lodge in Park City, Utah last week. SageCreek Partners, Ernst & Young and Diversified Insurance, along with several additional business support organizations, co-hosted the event.

“The Summit Conference is an event that is well worth attending,” Steuber continued.”It is a practical program for the director and officer who is serious about understanding cutting edge corporate governance issues and implementing measures designed to meet the ever-evolving legal, ethical, and social requirements imposed upon today’s businesses.”

Additional presenters at the event included Reatha Clark King, Ph.D, a member of the board of directors of Exxon Mobil, and Doyle Arnold, the Chief Financial Officer at Zions Bancorp. Working panels and topics included discussions of new SEC regulation, accounting changes and strategies for dealing with risk in organizations and industry. Keynotes included a discussion via satellite with U.S. Senator Bob Bennett. Additional presentations included keynotes by Bob Gay of Huntsman-Gay Capital and Lynn Blodgett, CEO of Affiliated Computer Systems, who spoke about company culture and the importance of being a good human while returning value to shareholders.

The Annual Summit Conference has featured senior management from the SEC, Nasdaq, PCAOB, CALSTERS and ISS, as well as leading industry executives and even a few controversial figures such as now-disbarred plaintiff’s class-action lawyer Bill Lerach. At the Summit, directors and officers of public or nearly public companies meet to receive updates on legal, financial, regulatory and business trends so that they can focus on their responsibilities in their professional roles.