Friday, June 06, 2008

Geeks are all the rage

Ever since Bill Gates became a skrillionaire, the social status of geeks everywhere has been on the ascent.

Not coincidentally, Providence Geek Jack Templin wants the local geek community to increase its already impressive representation in PBN's 40 under 40 sweepstakes:

By my count, last year's list featured 5 terrific leaders from the ITDM community, or 12.5% of the total slots. (And 4 of the 5 are women - who says ITDM is dominated by men?!)

Michelle Girasole , Precision Web Marketing
Gina Lisa Dispirito , GladWorks
Raphael Okelola , Roplab IT Solution
Mary Sadlier , (add)ventures
Sue Tremblay , Creative Circle Advertising Solutions

5 of 40, or 12.5% of the total slots. That's pretty darn good, but we all know just how many "young" stars our community boasts. Folks who not only kick arse in their work, but who also give back to the larger community in big ways.

So, here's my proposal, challenge... whatever you want to call it. This year, let's go for 10 of the 40 slots, a full 25%. That's _a lot_, but I think we have a shot at it. And regardless, by trying we'll only further raise the profiles of ourselves, our organizations, and our comunity. It's a tough moment for the RI economy, and the ITDM sector represents one of the silver linings. Rhode Islanders want to hear our stories - let's share them.

So how do we do it? Apply! The application is here (Word file). I just completed it - painless, and it doesn't take long at all. The deadline is June 13th!