Orbiting high above the earth, satellites are higher than the tallest broadcast tower and can serve places that fiber or coaxial cable can’t reach economically. That basic advantage, to see users in every corner of our big blue planet, sets our industry apart from earth bound information delivery platforms.
As we close out the first decade in the 21st Century, the satellite industry continues to innovate, adapting spacecraft and ground systems to provide unsurpassed communications capabilities. Our sector has weathered the recent economic turbulence on the strength of long term leases, improving transponder fill rates, the ability to serve emerging markets and provide bandwidth to government customers with unique requirements.
Satellites today can do more than ever in delivering rich high-definition programming, secure data connections, mobile communications, scientific data and imagery to consumers, business and governments around the globe. Over the past decades our industry has been at the forefront in adopting digital compression and frequency re-use technologies that let us get the most from the precious spectrum allocated for spaced-based communications.
As satellites continue to lead the way in high-definition and 3-D programming, the future looks solid, not just in the established markets of the developed world, but also in emerging nations that are able to leap frog to cutting edge direct broadcast systems. Similarly, broadband satellite networks are making huge strides to deliver high-speed connections over the last mile.
Governments have also come to recognize the importance of satellites in providing vital connections to meet ever increasing national and homeland security demands. Commercial earth observation platforms are also providing higher resolution images than ever before for internet applications and to government customers enriching our lives and providing crucial information that protects us every day.
On the ground, consumers are buying and using digital content for new applications in ways that continue to push demand for bandwidth across networks. Internet content via YouTube, Hulu, iTunes, Google Maps, and Netflix, just to name a few, are reshaping how we consume content. New 3G and 4G mobile devices powered by Android and Apple will continue to stretch networks and spur demand for backhaul service in fiber challenged regions of the world.
In 2010 the satellite industry looks strong and the prospects for its premier member-benefit society (SSPI, of course) are bright. SSPI is the professional development organization for our industry, which means our role is to educate and advance the careers or our members while honoring the achievements of leaders who have made a difference. We strive to extend the reach of individuals and corporate sponsors beyond their day to day professional experience. You could say that SSPI was into social networking before it was chic to Twitter, Facebook or be LinkedIn.
We are working hard to improve SSPI’s digital presence on-line to better serve our members. SSPI will also seek to host higher quality value-added events through our local chapters and internationally. Finally, we will renew our focus on education and scholarship, pushing innovative approaches for attracting and retaining a dynamic workforce. Our strength lies in the boundless talent and drive of our membership and we look forward to working with you to continuously improve our organization. Just as satellites can see farther than terrestrial technologies, SSPI can let you see farther, learn more and make connections as never before.
Posted By Richard Wolf,
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Depending on your point of view, 2010 is either the beginning of a new decade or the last year of the existing one. No matter the technical reality in this debate, one thing is quite clear; our organization enters 2010, and a path to the future, under the best of circumstances, with new and invigorated leadership and the continued excellent executive management support of the Alan/Anthony team.
But January of any year offers a time to reflect on the past 12 months, the good and the bad, while always hoping that next year will be better than the one that just passed. So, here are a few quick thoughts about 2009:
A "PC” word that describes difficulty these days is challenging. OK, 2009 was a challenging year (since I was born and raised in The Bronx, there are a couple of other words that come to mind but for now, I’ll be "PC”). The economy was challenging, losing jobs was challenging, keeping jobs was challenging, coming up with a health plan was challenging, balancing work and personal life continues to be challenging. But we got through it and only hope that the worst of our economic ills are behind us and that a bit of prosperity will come our way in 2010. We deserve it!
As an employee of a media and entertainment company, one that is a key provider of content to U.S. Broadcasters and consumers (The ABC Television Network), I would be remiss if, in speaking about 2009, I neglected to bring-up that 2009 saw the end of the analog television standard that, for well over 60 years, was the system that brought over-the-air pictures and sound to consumers. The National Television Standards Committee (NTSC) ended on June 12, 2009 (although in some markets, analog television signals ended as early as Feb. 2009) and officially paved the way for Digital Television (DTV) to become the sole method of offering over-the-air television to viewers. The new over-the-air Digital TV standard, American Television Standards Committee (ATSC), was adopted by the FCC in 1996 and finally, after an extraordinary amount of work, financial investment and human capital, "old analog TV” went away. DTV became the catalyst for High Definition Television (HDTV) to become the dominant method to create, produce and distribute TV content to American consumers and provides a television viewing experience that is truly "theater like” for most of us. We still love TV!
Here’s one that should make every SSPI member proud and put a great big smile on our face; on November 27, 2009, Astronaut Nicole Stott returned to earth aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis after 91 days in space. What makes this so cool is that Michele is married to Christopher Stott, CEO of Mansat and a superb member of the SSPI Board. So, a highlight of 2009 has to be that, through a little "Six Degrees Of Separation,” each and every one of had a place in outer space this year aboard mission STS-1128 of the Space Shuttle this year. Amazing!
Finally, I have to share with you what an honor and privilege it has been for me to serve as President and Chairman of SSPI over the past two years. Frankly, there has always been some guilt that went into these roles. Since I am still lucky enough to have an exciting "day job” at ABC Broadcast Operations & Engineering, I have always done the ”guilt trip thing” regarding my commitment and contributions to this great organization. Now that I am at the end of my term, I can tell you that I am finally over the guilt. Although some of that may be due to the fact that my term is over, I finally realized that the power of this organization is the scale of human resource that makes regular and significant contributions to the mission of SSPI. The old adage, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, may have been written about SSPI and its people. Because of the amazing amount of work and commitment that each and every one of you contributes, our industry and our organization are forever strengthened. So I commend each and every one of you for what you do for this great association, thank you for relieving some of my guilt and I ask that you continue to "do what you do” to assure that SSPI has a rich and exciting future in 2010 and beyond.
I truly wish the very best of luck to the new leadership team of SSPI, including Clay Mowry, our new Chairman, and Keith Buckley, our new President. From what I have already seen from these amazingly gifted leaders, SSPI has never been in better hands.
And maybe one of them can help figure out whether 2010 is the end of a decade or a start of a new one!
SSPI recently conducted a survey, thanks to the financial support of Avail-TVN and the excellent efforts of Tamara Bond, Membership Director, that has resulted in an informative new report entitled "The Satellite Industry Workforce 2009.” That survey and an interview with Tamara is available on the Web site.
As Executive Director Robert Bell wrote to the SSPI board about this excellent body of work, and to paraphrase a bit, we are not aware of any other research that offers this horizontal perspective of the industry.
Without stealing its thunder, there are three things that jumped out at me:
We - that's the collective "we" of the industry - are not "graying”
The industry suffers from a large gender disparity
Nearly one-half of respondents have worked for their currently employer for between 6 and 25 years.
So, after reading the report, I started thinking (as dangerous as that may be sometimes) about some of the facts and figures behind those notions – We’re not that old, there is too much testosterone around and more people stick around awhile, if they are fortunate to do so. Let me try to expand upon these points a bit.
Being the "graying” guy that I am, I am a firm believer that we need a few of us around. Now, I recognize that 30 years ago, I thought a guy my age (55) was so old and feeble that he (or she) could bring very little value to an organization and that the 20-somethings and 30-somethings were the real "workers” of an organization. Now that I'm one of those "old and feeble” people, I take a little exception with that thought (what a surprise). The bottom line to the age thing in an organization is quite simple actually – you need both. You need the energy, hunger and desire that youth may bear but you also need institutional knowledge and business savvy that the more seasoned person offers. This blend of perspective and talent make the organization better proving that Quality Matters.
It is hard to sugar-coat the disturbing disparity in gender that exists in our industry. But, let me state the obvious here again. The satellite industry has been, and is, blessed to have some of the most ingenious, innovative and hard-working women be a part of this business. To echo this view, earlier this year the Online Journal of Space Communication examined the roles women play in the development of space and related industries. Over sixty women across the commercial and government sector, provided inspiring anecdotes about how they entered the industry, obstacles they faced, trends for the future, and offered advice for potential entrants into our business. These women are leaders and serve as role models of our industry. Although we must do better to ensure more women enter our industry in the future, we can only hope that the knowledge, brainpower and integrity that these women provide our industry can inspire other women to enter this great business and validate that Quality Matters.
Now, just a thought about people sticking around at their place of employment for awhile; Again, I may have a "graying” bias here, particularly because I have been blessed to be employed at The ABC Television Network for over 29 years, but I am a firm believer that people want and thrive on stability in their profession, albeit it seems harder and harder to attain. But our survey brings to light that a fair amount of people stick around for some time at their place of employment. Why? you might ask. Well, money is probably a piece of it but one thing is clear about money – we always want more and it never seems to be enough. Fear of losing your job in a bad economy is, most certainly, another factor in seeking to stick around. But I am not a believer that money and fear are the best long-term motivators – although both can be important in the short-term. Long term motivation may come from several factors, including, whether you are challenged by your work, if you enjoy your daily experience, if you're treated with mutual respect among the people you work for/with, are there opportunities to learn, grow and expand your career, and we can't forget having fun. By the results of the survey, I would say that the resounding answer to these questions is yes and we all know that quality employees lead to quality employers (and vice versa) proving, yet again, that Quality Matters.
And finally, a personal note. Please remember to share some quality time with your family during this holiday season because Quality begins at home!
Getting started; two words that are so daunting for almost every activity and event that you may engage in your life but, upon reflection, your start, and what you learn from that beginning, is what molds and shapes your life forever.
When asked, how I got started in this wonderful business, I begin with an obvious response. My start (on the planet) comes from my mother and father, and I am not talking about entering into this world but more about core values that I reaped from them. You get your core values, both good and bad, from your parents and/or those that raised you. These core values are the lessons that you take with you in just about every aspect of your life. Hopefully, if you use these values smartly, they lead to decisions that allow you to take advantage of three things that are critically important to career development – talent, luck and happenstance (a.k.a., timing). For if you can take advantage of these three qualities when they come-up, and if you parlay your core values, the career journey will, overall, be a positive one.
So, let me talk about happenstance a bit. Back in 1976, shortly after graduating from SUNY Oswego, with a B.A in Communications Studios with a concentration in Broadcasting, and after a summer job selling Keebler Cookies (a 6’ 2” guy working a summer at a company known for its “Elf brand” was pretty funny), I canvassed the “Monstor.com” of its day – The employment section of the Sunday New York Times. Here, I found an opportunity at Hughes Television Network (HTN) working in their Accounting and Business Office. Not having a clue about Accounting and not knowing much about what Hughes Television Network was but since I knew how to turn-on a TV set, I thought I was more than qualified for this position.
So, I interviewed with two people at HTN that to this day, I fondly believe where instrumental in helping me develop some basic professional and personal qualities that I take with me today – John Lyndon, the Comptroller for HTN and Gordon Bridge, the Director of Communications Services at HTN. These two guys taught me the importance of Mutual Respect, treating people the way you would like to be treated, that good business relationships drive good business decisions and that running out the door at 5PM, or earlier, is not always the best way to show your boss you “give a rats.” In addition, I began to be introduced to the sports video/audio contribution business, the business of relying on terrestrial (not much fiber optics back in 1976) and satellite service providers to transport the video/audio signal from a Mobile Unit parked at a sports venue to a broadcast and/or cable Network Origination Center for air. How exciting it was to begin to learn about aspects of television production, terrestrial and satellite transmission services and the sports rights business because of course, there was some “sex appeal” to these components of business. What I didn’t realize until much later in my career was that, as important as it was to learn tactical skills in this segment of the media food chain, I was learning something so much more valuable – that the core values I learned from my parents, mostly my mother, matched the core values I was learning from these two men (and so many others) and helped to pave a path of professional development during these early and formative years.
So, I thank the happenstance of looking at The New York Times Sunday Employment section in September of 1976 that allowed me get lucky and land at HTN, be introduced to two profound people in my early business life, that let my core values continue to blossom and, along with the little talent that I may actually have, enabled me to enter this exciting and fascinating business that, some 33 years later, I am so lucky to still be a part of.
Thanks Mom, Dad, John and Gordon for allowing me to Get Started.
Mid-October in New York City! Leaves on the trees in Central Park getting ready for their presentation of color before the coming winter, warmish days-cool nights and a likely post season baseball championship series and hopeful World Series opportunity for the New York Yankees (sorry about that New York Mets fans) are just part of the autumn tradition in the greatest city of the world.
Fortunately for our industry, a new tradition has come to mid-October as we embark upon another Satellite Week in this amazing city we call New York. And SSPI is linking to this wonderful mid-October week by creating its own tradition - The Future Leaders Dinner. The event acknowledges the up and comers of our industry by presenting the Promise Award to three young satellite professionals that have been identified as having the potential to be next generation leaders in our business. The Mentor Award recognizes the selfless contribution of an existing leader in developing and nurturing a young professional to build the needed “bench” our industry requires.
For those that have attended these events in the past, the sense of pride that our young and seasoned professionals have warmly displayed in accepting these awards has become one of our industry’s finer moments. I know the 2009 dinner will not disappoint.
Better yet, a portion of the proceeds from the event go to SSPI’s Education Fund that helps develop and attract new talent to the industry. I urge you to join us on October 13 at The Princeton Club to celebrate the talent that makes up this great industry of ours.
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Orbiting high above the earth, satellites are higher than the tallest broadcast tower and can serve places that fiber or coaxial cable can’t reach economically. That basic advantage, to see users in every corner of our big blue planet, sets our industry apart from earth bound information delivery platforms.
Depending on your point of view, 2010 is either the beginning of a new decade or the last year of the existing one. No matter the technical reality in this debate, one thing is quite clear; our organization enters 2010, and a path to the future, under the best of circumstances, with new and invigorated leadership and the continued excellent executive management support of the Alan/Anthony team. 
