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Kim's Blog
“Passion, I see, is catching.”
Kim Kleeman, President and CEO of Shakespeare Squared, is a former educator and knows what works—and what doesn’t—in the classroom. This blog contains her thoughts on everything from the pending teacher shortage to No Child Left Behind to entrepreneurship and working parents.
I Wish I Had A Crystal Ball ( Part 2)
Posted on January 20, 2009 at 04:09 PM
In yesterday’s post (see “I Wish I had a Crystal Ball [Part 1]” below), I talked about the difficulty of trying to make a 2009 sales forecast. Confident in my knowledge that my company’s commitment to quality was not going to change, I knew another certainty for Shakespeare Squared.
We are the right size. In light of some of the mass layoffs, closures (the entire Mazer community is in my thoughts!), and shaky state budgets, I believe our decision to stick with my original vision might be working in our favor. I wanted to build it as if I were an employee and make it family-friendly, flexible, and have the ability to take on a large capacity of work. By having a database of over 500 pre-screened freelancers (and counting every day) our company can contract and expand as necessary, to take on the biggest projects while still not having to worry about huge overhead costs, or multiple locations we somehow have to fund.
As I entered the business arena in 2003, many development companies were headed up by past publishing executives. I was not amongst that group, but I knew I wanted to be part of making education better from the foundation up. Of course good timing was also key to our rapid growth. But interestingly enough, I found the largest criticism about my company from within our industry was that I wasn’t focused. Some suggested a language arts group, some a K-6 or 6-12 focus. I felt as if that seemed, well to be frank, boring. You see, I like variety. In fact, it’s something I promote so much that we make sure, in our hiring process, that we speak frankly about this. My vision is to have a widely accredited extended network while maintaining a smart group of editors and project managers in house who pay close attention to guidelines, client expectations, and quality content. I do understand the importance of, say, a Spanish editor on staff, and have started to build internally for specific disciplines - but I still stand by our vision. My staff knows it may be working on textbooks, multimedia or web content, leveled readers, assessment or even something completely different like white papers or a Spanish program for a marketing company. These seemingly unfocused projects actually allow my staff to draw parallels from various sectors and it makes us, as a whole, more knowledgeable. It also seems, in this economy, many people are telling me we are now on the right track.
The best part about it? We seem to be doing something right. Our clients are very satisfied and business is pouring in.
Come back tomorrow for part 3.
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I wish I had a Crystal Ball…… [Part 1]
Posted on January 19, 2009 at 02:39 PM
At the end of each year, I sit down and do several things to prepare my company for the upcoming year. One is list out goals for the company and for myself. Another is to create a sales forecast. In the final weeks of 2008, as I was trying my best to prepare a 2009 sales forecast, I found myself wishing for one thing - a crystal ball. So many variables are making any sort of prediction near impossible. Is anyone else having a hard time?
When everyone was riding the high economy a year ago, who would have predicted it would crash down so hard? It seems a predication is more of a guesstimate at this point. So I decided to first write down the things I do know - especially about my company - and then predictions would follow.
The first aspect I was sure about is that we are a quality – driven company. We are not the lowest price on the street. But we are focused and understand our industry as we are almost all former educators. As they often say, you get what you pay for. Our bids have been rejected on projects before because they were too high, only for the client to come back to us later to ask us to fix the work of a “cheaper” competitor. With all the variables out there, I still know my company - and my employees - strives for the highest quality out there. Quality comes in all different forms. But as my VP of Operations Kathy Bretz says, “You can have time, you can have quality or you can have price. You might be able to get two but rarely all three.” One way I know this to be true is that we have repeat business - over and over again - due to the quality we provide.
Reassured that I was finally able to put my foot on some certainties, I was able to come up with a few more. Check back for part 2 tomorrow.
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Educational Publishing a Key Indicator
Posted on December 11, 2008 at 01:04 PM
As I reflect on 2008, I have learned a great deal this year. Much of what I have come to expect out of the ed publishing industry has gone by the wayside. It is a new time, a time to adapt and a time to change the way business has been done in the past. One main lesson learned this year is that we, in education, are a leading indicator of a country heading into economic strife.
I never realized that the housing market and the education market were so closley aligned until 2008 came along. We were one of the first industries to feel the hit as 21 state budget shortfalls came into view. 21 out of 50. Wow!
Since most experts forecast that we have not hit rock bottom yet, then we have to brace ourselves.
This makes me think the housing market and the ripple effect it creates has much more of an impact on me than just my ever-falling housing values. For me it is the livelihood of an industry such as ours. For me, it is an AHA! moment.
So what am I doing? Looking for opportunities. Thinking about ways we can improve our services and trying to discover what is driving our clients decision- making process.
I hope educational publishing will get back on track. I want to continue to develop quality products, but we all have to work together to achieve our end goals.
How might we help?
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Advertising for Educational Supplies
Posted on December 2, 2008 at 01:15 PM
My older brother Tom (www.cleafgroup.com) often sends me links to articles regarding business trends and educational topics. Today he sent me an article focusing on advertising in education to offset district - wide budget cuts. Cutting test materials and expecting teachers to meet AYP standards makes no sense.
What are teachers to do?
http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2008-12-01-test-ads_N.htm?se=yahoorefer
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A Call for Preschool Curriculum
Posted on November 17, 2008 at 02:22 PM
As the election frenzy winds down, education programs and funding become more than just an issue to vote on. Education and the future of the next generation of children are not just conversation at your next dinner party but a timely subject worthy of attention. Of course, the economy and the 21 state budget shortfalls are major reasons difficult decisions will be made as Obama and his education team take center stage. I hope Obama’s platform on the 0-5 sector still takes precedence. Toddlers and preschoolers need to have their basic needs met first and then we can begin to teach them basic skills. It is my hope, we will see real dollars spent on preschool curriculum and programming.
Our television networks have seen real results when they focus on preschoolers. Dora, Kai-Lan ( the Chinese version of Dora), and Sesame Street have been focusing on language development, social skills and the idea that learning is fun for some time now.
I would like to be part of creating an universal preschool curriculum. One that is bilingual with and has an ELD component.
Having preschoolers myself has enlightened me to the joy children feel when they are actively engaged in learning.
I believe all children can learn. A universal preschool curriculum and standards are a great start.
Please let me know if you are thinking the same way.....
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Talking Turkey to Your Customers!
Posted on November 11, 2008 at 02:00 PM
Creating theme related curriculum materials can be a great way to gain traffic to your website during the holiday months. If you are considering how to drive traffic to your website, brainstorm ways to incorporate Thanksgiving, Hanukah, or St. Patrick’s Day into your offerings.
Maybe you’re saying to yourself, we create middle school and high school level materials- how does this pertain to us? When I was teaching both middle school and high school, teachers are looking for great ways to incorporate the holidays into their lesson plans. Think beyond the basic turkey puzzle, or Christmas trivia and think about science, math, and social studies. They could be a great way to promote a new product, book, or marketing initiative. Science and math are often the teachers lacking any creative options in my view.
Another way to address themed materials is to create something digital. This is a great time to explore a podcast, an e- book, or a promotional contest to get teachers and/or students involved. Even teachers who have a plethora of fun materials are always looking for something new!
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Riding the Wave
Posted on November 3, 2008 at 04:16 PM
Sometimes life takes you on an unexpected path. That’s my life in a nutshell. If you’ve ever wondered how I got into this industry, please check out the article written about me in Crain’s Chicago. I was nominated and have been named as one of the 40 Under 40. A wonderful article written about me but mentions my dad and my mom. My two role models:)
Crain’s Chicago
