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Lunch & Learn: Virtual Law for Non-Lawyers - Justice on the New Frontier

Virtual worlds and video games may be virtual, but the scams, disputes, and risks are very real.  Pillsbury attorney and Virtual Law author Benjamin Duranske joined us today to present a fast-paced guided tour of this rapidly changing landscape. Benjamin touched on knockoff virtual goods, gold farming, fraud, agreements with users, avatar defamation, potential government regulation, and more.

Benjamin focuses his practice on the emerging field of virtual law, intellectual property law, Internet law, and litigation. As the author of Virtual Law: Navigating the Legal Landscape of Virtual Worlds, the first book on this emerging field, as well as numerous online and print articles on the subject, Benjamin has helped define virtual law. He currently co-chairs the Committee on Virtual Worlds and Multiuser Online Games of the American Bar Association's Section of Science & Technology Law, which he helped establish. He is a frequent speaker on the subject of legal issues facing virtual world and game providers, software developers, content creators, and users. Benjamin co-chaired the first Virtual Law Conference, and founded the SL (Second Life®) Bar Association, an informal professional organization of attorneys and other legal professionals with an interest in virtual worlds.

To find out more about virtual law from Benjamin you can contact him at 650-233-4565 or e-mail benjamin.duranske@pillsburylaw.com.

Also, check out Banjamin's presentation slides:

Download Virtual Law for Non-Lawyers

Join us for our upcoming free lunch & learn session!

Virtual Leadership and Team Effectiveness (on Thursday, June 4th, 2009 from 12:00 noon to 12:45 pm Pacific Time)

Register for Virtual Leadership and Team Effectiveness

Our lunch & learn program description and registration

Get your brown bag lunch (or snack) ready, and join us online every Thursday at 12:00 noon Pacific Time for 45 minutes to learn the latest and most innovative tips and techniques for individual and team productivity, and get the latest updates about important workplace and productivity issues.

Review program and register for our lunch & learn webinars

Lunch & Learn: Successfully Managing Your Career Transition in Any Economy

Career transitions are rarely effortless and are often a challenge in any economy – though they can be especially challenging in today’s economy. Regardless of how they occur, career coach, Jerry Pico, sees these transitions as a gift. Jerry believes that career transitions allow us to change our lives in positive ways – if we are open to viewing them that way. 

In yesterday's Lunch & Learn session, Jerry shared his advice and insights about career transitions with participants. Jerry has been working with individuals and teams to define and achieve success in their own terms for over 15 years – including 10 years in his consulting practice, People & Knowledge Works Consulting. He is a Certified Career Coach, and in addition to his private coaching practice he also works as an Adjunct Career Coach with Lee Hecht Harrison (the 2nd largest outplacement firm in the world) doing one-on-one coaching with clients in transition. 

In yesterday's presentation, Jerry pointed out that most of us spend more time working than doing anything else, but surprisingly few people take the time to manage their careers so that they can enjoy their work or, at the very least, balance it with the other areas of their lives. He also explained that an unplanned change, like a layoff, can offer people the opportunity to take control of their careers.

Jerry provideed participants with the overall structure of a proven methodology and Nine Step Process to help them manage their careers in a proactive, organized, and structured way. He explained that people who use this proven methodology have a competitive advantage over other jobseekers who are less prepared, making for successful career transitions and greater satisfaction with results. 

For more insights and advice you can contact Jerry at (415) 425-7426 or jerry@pkwconsulting.com.

Also, check out Jerry's slides from the presentation:

Download Managing_Career_Webinar_4.9.09

For more career management resources check out JibberJobber.com. This is a great tool for the job source structure and keeping track of networking!

Join us for our upcoming free lunch & learn session!

Building Trust and Accomplishment through Agreements (on Thursday, April 16th, 2009 from 12:00 noon to 12:45 pm Pacific Time)

Register for Building Trust and Accomplishment through Agreements

Our lunch & learn program description and registration

Get your brown bag lunch (or snack) ready, and join us online every Thursday at 12:00 noon Pacific Time for 45 minutes to learn the latest and most innovative tips and techniques for individual and team productivity, and get the latest updates about important workplace and productivity issues.

Review program and register for our lunch & learn webinars

Lunch & Learn: Social Networking to Find a Job in Today's Economy

Social networks are communities of people who share interests and activities and are interested in exploring these interests and activities with others. Social networking has become a phenomenon and gone beyond the social aspect to become an integral part of business, especially as the lines between personal and business lives continues to blur. Last week's Lunch & Learn webinar session explored how social networking can be used as a job connection in today's economy.

Our returning guest speaker Jason Alba, CEO and creator of JibberJobber.com, author of I’m on LinkedIn – Now What??? and co-author of I’m on Facebook – Now What???, gave us an overview of social networking, explored its business applications, and explained how business professionals can use social networking tools to secure a job in tough economic times. Jason also provided some valuable live demonstrations and an overview of his JibberJobber.com platform as a career management tool.

Our upcoming session and registration

Eat Well to Work Well (on Thursday April 2, 2009 from 12:00 noon to 12:45 pm Pacific Time)

Register for Eat Well to Work Well

Our lunch & learn program description and registration

Get your brown bag lunch (or snack) ready, and join us online every Thursday at 12:00 noon Pacific Time for 45 minutes to learn the latest and most innovative tips and techniques for individual and team productivity, and get the latest updates about important workplace and productivity issues.

Lunch & Learn: Managing Change in Challenging Times

Think about the recent election. Whatever your political views may be, the betting odds on Barak Obama becoming President started at 1,600 to 1. His campaign was a study in managing change. He articulated a direction, and supported it through every communication: online, in person, and in print. 

Despite this example of its importance, few people understand how to successfully manage change. In last week's Lunch & Learn session, attendees had the opportunity to gain valuable insights into change management from Meryl Natchez. Meryl is the founder and CEO of TechProse, a Northern-California based consulting company that helps its customers navigate change. Meryl grew TechProse from a one-person startup to a corporation with over 100 employees and a run rate of $16 million per year. Based on this experience, Meryl presented our audience with effective strategies for managing change in today's economy.

Meryl explained that the discipline of change management is often associated with the “touchy-feely” side of organizational development. However, as economic challenges affect most businesses, those who can manage change successfully will be the ones who survive. Meryl's presentation set out the elements to manage successfully in the current economic environment, detailing the importance of presenting a clear vision, getting buy-in from employees, and focusing a team in productive activity.

To learn more about managing change in a difficult economy you can contact Meryl at 925-299-3900 x108 or meryl@techprose.com. You can also visit Techprose's resources page.

Also, check out Meryl's slides from the presentation:

Download Lunch_and_Learn_Managing_Change

Join us for our upcoming free lunch & learn session!

Social Netoworking to Find a Job in Today's Economy (on Thursday, March 26th, 2009 from 12:00 noon to 12:45 pm Pacific Time)

Register for Social Networking to Find a Job in Today's Economy

Our lunch & learn program description and registration

Get your brown bag lunch (or snack) ready, and join us online every Thursday at 12:00 noon Pacific Time for 45 minutes to learn the latest and most innovative tips and techniques for individual and team productivity, and get the latest updates about important workplace and productivity issues.