David Byrd : Raven Call
David Byrd
David Byrd is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer for Raven Guru Marketing. Previously, he was the CMO and EVP of Sales for CloudRoute. Prior to CloudRoute, He was CMO at ANPI, CMO & EVP of Sales at Broadvox, VP of channels and Alliances for Telcordia and Director of eBusiness development with i2 Technologies.He has also held executive positions with Planet Hollywood Online, Hewlett-Packard, Tandem Computers, Sprint and Ericsson.
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October 2010

You are browsing the archive for October 2010.

To STUN or Not to STUN

October 29, 2010

I am often asked how many people read this blog. The fact is I have no idea. The blog is posted with PhonePlus,  VON/xchange, TMCnet's IP Communications and SIP Trunking communities, Telecom Reseller, and Broadvox. The target audiences for the blogs are our current VAR partners, potential partners and from time to time the end-user community.

STUNned Unnecessarily

October 27, 2010

It is not often that I hesitate to cover a topic in this blog. I have also not been afraid to name names when necessary. However, a most unusual thing happened yesterday and for the first time, I am reluctant to disclose the full effect. It may have happened only to Broadvox, which would be surprising, but our customers on Avaya platforms had unnecessary service disruptions.

Ham, Fettuccine and FiOS

October 25, 2010

After being on the road for 11 of the last 12 days, I was looking forward to cooking again. However, I would be remiss if I did not describe our last meal in New York City. I was anxious to rest our last night and was planning on having an "acceptable" dinner. As I explained that to my wife a woman overheard me and commented that an "acceptable" meal seemed boring. I quietly agreed and sought out assistance over the web for a final Italian meal that was within walking distance of Times Square, not in Hell's Kitchen and not a tourist stop.

Porchetta and Interop 2010

October 20, 2010

After a train trip to conduct business with TMC in Connecticut, I thought I may as well have pre-dinner appetizers at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station. After 16 oysters from all over North America and sea urchin, my appetizer kind of wiped out my desire for an entrée. Tuesday was better with two new locations found. Lunch was at a small takeout eatery called Porchetta.

Veal Valdostana and Traffic Pumping Update

October 19, 2010

I didn't cook this weekend as we spent the time in New York City. It's an eating vacation. Walking and window shopping are interrupted by dining adventures both planned and serendipitous. Day one was at the Stage Deli across from Madison Square Garden. The Stage deli delivered a good and simple deli meal with a very good version of Manhattan clam chowder.

Making Lemonade or M&A

October 15, 2010

For the months it took to reach a definitive agreement to merge between Broadvox and Cypress Communications, those of us in the know knew that silence was important. When one my direct reports figured out we were performing due diligence and engaging in merger and acquisition discussions, it became a question of making "lemonade". I thought the word fit the effort as our desire was to create something new from separate elements and it rhymed (somewhat) with M&A.

Merging Cypress and Broadvox make fantastic lemonade.

Risotto and Leadership

October 13, 2010

Last weekend I cooked every day. This weekend, I only cooked on Sunday. My wife made a very nice pasta with tuna dish Friday. Saturday, we ate out and that left Sunday.

There is No I in Team

October 13, 2010

We are in Cleveland holding our quarterly sales meeting. It's an exciting week as we celebrate nearly 40% growth year over year and a record number of turn ups. However, the question that I wanted to address this week was whether building a sales team was important. Selling is an individual sport more similar to golf than football.

Risotto with Asparagus and Artichoke Hearts

October 12, 2010

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 3 ounces asparagus, 1 inch dice
  • 3 ounces artichoke hearts, � inch slices (frozen is preferred over canned)
  • 1 Serrano pepper, seeds removed, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • � teaspoon Kosher salt
  • � teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup Arborio rice
  • � cup dry white wine
  • 3 cups chicken broth
  • 2 ounces grated Parmesan cheese, approximately 1/2 cup
  • � cup heavy cream

Directions

In a small pot heat chicken broth to simmering.

In a 3 quart saucepan over medium heat, add the olive oil and butter. Add the shallot, asparagus, artichoke hearts, Serrano pepper, garlic, salt and pepper.

Risotto and Leadership

October 12, 2010

Last weekend I cooked every day. This weekend, I only cooked on Sunday. My wife made a very nice pasta with tuna dish Friday. Saturday, we ate out and that left Sunday.

The Legend of Telemarketing

October 6, 2010

I arrived at IT EXPO Monday morning with a very busy schedule. I was on three panels on Monday along with a video interview. On Tuesday, I represented Broadvox on three additional panels, one solo presentation, press interview, new product interview, and best of show interview. The work was necessary because Broadvox had a number of announcements to make.

Pumping up Meatloaf and Traffic

October 4, 2010

Every dish I made this weekend could have been the recipe of the week. However, on Friday, I decided that the winning dish would be something I have never made, usually did not like and never understood. My decision was based upon my wife's love for the dish, its perception of being one of those comfort foods and the challenge to update something so iconic. However, I needed back up dishes in case I failed.

And Congress Steps Over It

October 1, 2010

While many of us look forward to when congress does even less that it's doing today, there are times when we need them to act. Resolving the concerns regarding net neutrality is one of those times. House Energy and Commerce chairman, Democrat Henry Waxman, was leading the effort to propose a less obtrusive method to ensure that carriers did not abuse the power they have over their customers. The bill would have allowed the FCC to address network neutrality issues on a case-by-case basis with the authority to impose a maximum penalty of $2 million for violations by an ISP.

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