Companies need connections to their markets to create long-term loyalty.

I think that women no longer have to set up a boundary between work life and home life. One of the hallmarks of my thinking is that I bring a lot of my personal life into my work. That's a huge advantage I have over men, who may feel they have to separate the two.

I see women going anywhere they want to. And I do mean want to. Because a lot of people measure success merely by position, title and salary. I think women feel comfortable enough in their own skin to put that secondary to what they want. They don't have to define success by the measure of society.

It's the same reason why someone has a Web page or why people feel comfortable going on reality TV.

In theory, it makes a lot of sense to combine the two operations, especially on the back end. But merging the two actual portal consumer experiences into a unified site will be a nightmare.

The 800 pound gorilla just entered the blogosphere, with Google launching its blog search.

Some of the power has shifted from companies to people. Using social media tools (blogs, wikis, tagging, etc.) more individuals are creating semi-spontaneous 'groundswells' of opinions to which companies and other institutions are realizing they must respond. From marketing to consumers organizations are being pulled into engaging with individuals.