Patrice D’Eramo
Director, Federal Marketing
Cisco Systems, Inc.

Patrice D’Eramo recently joined Cisco Systems Federal as the Director of U.S. federal marketing, responsible for setting, implementing, and tracking the federal marketing strategy.

Prior to joining Cisco in July 2005, Ms. D’Eramo was the director of federal marketing at Hewlett-Packard where she led the marketing team and programs for the entire portfolio of the Hewlett-Packard computer products, services, solutions, and technologies for U.S. federal customers. Working closely with the federal management sales teams and internal Hewlett-Packard divisions, Ms. D’Eramo ensured that Hewlett-Packard’s yearly initiatives and goals were integrated and executed in the marketing business plan. During her tenure within Hewlett-Packard, the sales revenue numbers grew four-fold to a multibillion-dollar team.

Prior to her marketing management positions, Ms. D’Eramo was a commercial sales representative at Hewlett-Packard, working with the number-one rated commercial sales team two years in a row. Ms. D’Eramo was named HP Federal Manager of the Year in 1999 and received the Hewlett-Packard Federal Teamwork Management Award in 2003. She also held positions in sales and sales management at Entex Information Services, performing within the top 15 percent in U.S. based sales.

Ms. D’Eramo is a member of the IAC Partners Program Class of 2005. She recently won the IPIC Outstanding Contributor Award and was also named a finalist for the Women in Technology Corporate Leadership Award for 2005. Ms. D’Eramo previously served on the 2001-2002 board of directors for Women in Technology and was invited to attend Leadership America in 2000. She was recognized by the University of Maryland School of Medicine as a Community Contributor for raising close to $100K for the Advanced Fetal Care Center.

On a lighter note:

Alma mater: Clarion University of Pennsylvania
Favorite leisure activity: Going to a spa with friends
Last Book You Read: "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd
Ideal Travel Destination: With my husband, somewhere the weather is warm and we can relax, read books, talk, and have quiet dinners. As a family, visiting my brother and his family in the U.S. Virgin Islands where our families can hang out.
Perfect Weekend: Spending time with my husband and our two daughters (Morgan, 6, and Mia, 3) and not having anything scheduled and not having to rush anywhere.

Questions: Patrice D'Eramo can be reached at pderamof@cisco.com.

Patrice will be a speaker at the GovMark Council's May 25 program.

Why Customers Buy - The Federal Marketer's Sanity Check

Government marketing executives base strategic and tactical decisions – and budget allocations – on a series of assumptions about their customers.

This study will examine the validity of these assumptions. We will investigate issues including:

• What information sources are most influential for government IT buyers?
• How do government IT buyers evaluate their vendors? What are the primary evaluation criteria?
• What are the key challenges associated with communicating the value of IT to government executives?
• Are organizations realizing results from new communication vehicles such as webinars, podcasts, and blogs?
• How are government marketing executives measuring and tracking the success of their programs?

The GovMark Council will make highlights of the “Federal Marketer’s Sanity Check” study available to GovMark members at the May 25 program.

"Top 10" Event Seal of Approval
Conference managers are embracing the GovMark studies on the value of Federal Civilian and Department of Defense (DoD) Conferences. We recently met with Becky Nolan, Executive Vice President of AFCEA, to review the DoD study - Ms. Nolan will work with the GovMark Council on a DoD-focused program at our fall offsite meeting. In addition, keep an eye out for our Seal of Approval. Find the seal on the following sites:
• GOVSEC - Rated #5, Civilian Government IT Trade Show
• Army IT Conference - Rated #2, Department of Defense/Military IT Trade Show

Click here to download copies of the studies.

Web Site Launch
As of March 8, 2006 the GovMark Council has a new, easy to navigate Web site offering more services. If you have any feedback on the new Web site or would like to provide a suggestion to enhance the site, we welcome your comments at mokeeffe@govmarkcouncil.org.

Exec Connect Recruiting Center
Exec Connect is focused on providing members with available government IT marketing employment opportunities. Visit www.govmarkcouncil.org/jobs.asp for open opportunities in the marketplace. Current opportunities pay upwards of $140,000. GovMark Council welcomes all employment opportunities as well as resumes. Please forward information to mokeeffe@govmarkcouncil.org.

GovMark Council Forum
Have a government marketing-related question?
Bring up issues, share best practices, and exchange helpful information related to the government IT marketing community.
Topics include:
• Future Program Topics
• Speaker Suggestions
• Vendor Recommendations
Create new discussion topics and post messages today.

Please contact sarchey@govmarkcouncil.org if you need assistance using this feature.

GovMark Council First Annual Award Program

The GovMarks Awards program is the first initiative that recognizes excellence in government IT marketing. Honoring the best government IT marketing programs of 2005, the awards are structured by segment of government – DoD, Federal civilian agencies, as well as state and local government. The GovMarks will recognize government and industry submissions in each category. The panel of GovMark Awards judges includes:
• Larry Allen, The Coalition for Government Procurement
• Alan Balutis, INPUT
• Teresa Bozzelli, IDC Government Insights
• Ann-Marie Clark, CDW-G
• Mary Davie, General Services Administration (GSA)
• Israel Feldman, CMA
• Mark Forman, KPMG
• Stephen O'Keeffe, O'Keeffe & Company
• Steven Toole, immixGroup
• Don Upson, ICG Government

There's still time to enter - Download the GovMarks entry form today. Application submissions are due by 5 p.m. on April 14, 2006. Please e-mail submissions to sarchey@govmarkcouncil.org.

Program Timeline:
Submissions Due Date – April 14, 2006
Judging - April 24-28, 2006
Awards Announcement – May 25, 2006

Feds Put Telework into Drive
by Barbara Crystal
General Manager, Public Relations
CDW Government, Inc.

Telework has gained significant momentum in the Federal government over the past year, according to a recent survey by CDW Government, Inc. The 2006 CDW-G Federal Telework Report, published in March, revealed that 41 percent of Federal employees currently telework – up from 19 percent in 2005.

"41 percent of Federal employees currently telework – up from 19 percent in 2005."

The 2006 Federal Telework Report was based on online, telephone, and in-person interviews with a random sample of 542 Federal employees and an online survey of 235 Federal IT professionals in the greater Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. It is the only concurrent survey of both stakeholder groups.

Telework in Drive: "43 percent of Federal teleworkers said they have started teleworking in the past year."

The report also showed that Federal IT professionals have significantly expanded the technical support that they provide for telework initiatives over the past year. Thirty-two percent of Federal IT professionals indicated that their agency has started or expanded a telework program in the last year. Moreover, 43 percent of Federal teleworkers said they have started teleworking in the past year.

Beyond the obvious benefits of Federal telework, such as reduced traffic and pollution, as well as improved employee retention, the survey demonstrated that Federal telework also provides Continuity of Operations Planning (COOP) benefits. Eighty-seven percent of Federal employees with the option to telework said they would be able to continue their work via telework if their office were closed due to a major storm or some other catastrophe. In comparison, only 62 percent of non-teleworkers said they would be able to execute their jobs remotely via telework.

COOP: "Eighty-seven percent of Federal employees with the option to telework said they would be able to continue their work via telework if their office were closed due to a major storm or some other catastrophe."

CDW-G launched the annual survey in 2005 to determine the state of teleworking in the Federal government and identify reasons for some agencies’ non-compliance with Federal telework legislation, which requires 100 percent of eligible workers to have the option to telework.

>From the beginning, CDW-G worked with industry stakeholders and vendor partners, as well as congressional and administration leaders such as Rep. Frank Wolf, a key telework proponent, and Karen Evans, administrator of the Office of Electronic Government and Information Technology at the Office of Management and Budget, to enhance the validity of the Federal Telework Report and amplify media coverage.

For more information on telework or to download a copy of the 2006 CDW-G Federal Telework Report, please visit www.cdwg.com/telework.

Breaking All the Rules...Nicely
How to Successfully Secure Corporate Buy-In for Non-Traditional Government Marketing Campaigns
by Irene Bender
Senior Marketing Manager, Government Systems
Citrix Systems, Inc.

Traditional marketing activities, such as print advertising and trade show sponsorships, are increasingly losing their impact on government customers. Yet as government marketing professionals shift to more innovative approaches to reach target audiences, these non-traditional campaign ideas often get halted at the corporate level by executives more comfortable with the established (if now failing) marketing tactics. Since 2004, Citrix Federal Systems has augmented its run-rate advertising and public relations programs with several out-of-the-box programs. Though not always easy to execute, the following strategies have been successful in securing support – and more importantly budget – to proceed with programs of real impact in Federal marketing.

Find a Market Driver
Identifying a tangible, market-specific business driver provides two immediate opportunities. First, it clearly defines why this market is different, introducing the requirement to adopt a unique approach for reaching the target audience. Second, it links the campaign to a specific market and revenue opportunity, providing a solid business foundation for marketing strategies and tactics.

Loop In Sales Executives
Your public sector executives are an enormous asset in selling the importance of a driver and corresponding program back to corporate stakeholders. By providing the executives with market intelligence on the driver, you are equipping them to respond to the market buying environment, while concurrently arming them to support you at headquarters. Closely coordinating with your sales executives also ensures that you are in line with the revenue objectives for the quarter and year – allowing you to strengthen relationships with your sales team.

Actively Merchandise Successes
Consistently communicating successes to corporate executives early and often is paramount to proving value in non-traditional marketing campaigns. When Citrix sponsored a COOP study researched by the Telework Exchange, we forwarded all coverage gained to corporate via e-mail and sent all leads gained to our internal sales team for follow up – in some cases on a daily basis. This enabled the executives who approved the program to see the results quickly, validating their initial decision and clearing the way for future innovation for government marketing. In addition to extensive media coverage, the study generated 150 qualified leads.

Communicate the Process
Finally, the importance of communication cannot be stressed enough while implementing a non-traditional government marketing initiative. Repeatedly communicating the government marketing campaign process to every sector in your business enables the government team’s success to translate into larger corporate success – again, clearing the way for future innovation. At Citrix, our open communication with corporate and sales executives through the process of our non-traditional campaign has enabled other executives to begin a similar marketing campaign at the corporate level.

Following these guidelines should make for an easier approval process by corporate when proposing a non-traditional government marketing campaign. While my team did encounter obstacles on the road to our successful campaign, these four tips enabled us to implement a program that not only gained significant traction in the marketplace and achieved great results, it also turned non-traditional programs in the government market into standard procedures across the company.

• GovMarks Submissions Due Date – April 14, 2006
• Interagency Resource Management Conference (IRMCO) – April 23-26, 2006 – Williamsburg, VA
• GovSec – April 25-27, 2006 – Washington, DC
• Systems & Software Technology Conference (SSTC) – May 1-4, 2006 – Salt Lake City, UT
• DoDIIS Worldwide Conference – May 7-12, 2006 – Dallas, TX
• O’Keeffe & Company Anniversary Party – May 18, 2006 – Ireland's Four Provinces Pub - Falls Church, VA
• GovMark Council Spring Program – May 25, 2006 – Falls Church, VA
• GovMarks Awards Announcement – May 25, 2006
• NASCIO 2006 Midyear Conference – May 31-June 2, 2006 – Washington, DC
• Coalition for Government Procurement Conference – June 6, 2006 – McLean, VA
• Software Marketing Perspectives (SMP) Conference – June 13-14, 2006 – Santa Clara, CA
• Telework Exchange Town Hall Meeting – June 15, 2006 – Washington, DC

Visit www.okco.com/2006EventCalendar.pdf to view the O'Keeffe & Company Government IT Events-At-A-Glance calendar. To secure a physical copy of the calendar please e-mail eleahy@okco.com.