ReadWriteStart Weekly Wrapup

Wow! It's March already? 2010 is chugging along and as we head into the second week of March its time to look back on the highlights from this week on ReadWriteStart. In this installment of the Weekly Wrapup we talk about how startups make use of crowdsourcing, how outsiders see startup culture, and we even glean some useful lessons from one man and his dancing. And finally we take a look at South by Southwest for startups as the even draws nearer.

Sponsor

Are Crowdsourcing and Outsourcing No-Nos For Startups?

Chances are, if you've called customer service to enough companies, you've come across a representative who works for a call-center which has been contracted to handle a comapany's account. Large corporations that don't want to employ their own agents and maintain their own facilities will often outsource customer service to a third party, which at times can mean a company in another part of the world. Bangalore, India was famously portrayed for its role in call-center outsourcing in the Thomas Friedman book The World Is Flat, servicing many large American companies. But tools like outsourcing or crowdsourcing are not always beneficial to every breed of company.

Follow the Hippie: Leadership Lessons Through Dance

When Sigma Partners' Richard Dale posted a video of a random dancing guy to his Venture Cyclist blog I was skeptical. I'd seen the original video sans narration and dismissed it as a strange sociological phenomenon condensed into a quick three minute clip. Nevertheless, when the same video is narrated by MuckWork and CDBaby founder Derek Sivers, it provides some valuable leadership lessons for entrepreneurs.

The Startup Bus: Is This How Outsiders See Startup Culture?

Monday evening I was made aware of a particularly interesting promotion that will be taking place over the course of two days before South by Southwest (SXSW). The event, or tour, is called The Startup Bus, and will challenge 12 participants to create as many tech

startups as possible during a 48 hour bus ride from San Francisco to SXSW in Austin. The question this event raises in my head is whether these "beat-the-clock" entrepreneurship experiments are actually healthy for the broader startup culture.

Never Mind the Valley: Here's SXSW 2010

For all of our startup friends from coast to coast and around the world, we look forward to seeing you at SXSW Interactive!

More and more, we're seeing good folks creating great products outside the SF Bay Area, and we love highlighting and showcasing vibrant startup communities in unexpected areas. As it turns out, we're not the only ones who have a penchant for non-Valley startups! While you're in Austin, check out these ten panels, parties and events focusing on entrepreneurialism outside Silicon Valley.

Discuss

Read More... [Source: ReadWriteWeb - Posted by FreeAutoBlogger]