Let me start by saying that “Assets” is not the best way to describe friends with mad skills, it’s just that in the context of this post I just couldn’t find another word that best describes my take on the matter.

Also, the venue I would normally write about this topic would be on “my posterous“…The reason I chose my place of business will soon be obvious.

What is the best thing you could possibly give or gift someone or to a community ?

I believe the answer is “mad skills”

Why?    Because everyone needs them, everyone wants them, but not everyone knows where to find them.

How are mad skills packaged?  They are packaged in fragile organic carbon based containers called People. So I find that one of the best Assets I can give away to my community is the location of one of these Packages or Individuals!

Ken Camp is a friend with “mad skills”

I’m not gonna go thru his bio, you can find out about him here, here and here.

I’d just like to point out why I think his skills are “mad”….because let’s face it, we all have skills…but not all of us have “mad skills”

His skills are mad for the following reasons:

• He’s well connected with thought leaders and technology visionaries.
• He has traveled the path of Academia, Government, Private Sector and Entrepreneurship.
• Has forgotten more about how to apply technology to business needs than some people claim to know…
• He has the gift of maturity…in our business that means you’ve seen them come and go and that you’ve done it all, so you understand technology trends and cycles and how to capitalize on them…What value would you say a Fortune500 or a Tech Startup should place on someone like that?

I’ve written about Ken before, because I like to share my good experiences with others. But since then I’ve learned a few more things about him…

• He has friends in places that National Geographic has not been to yet…concerns about the safety of their field staff Im sure!

• And if you use the word expert or guru while in conversation with him, you won’t hear back from him and most likely you’ll be unfollowed on Twitter.

Needless to say both him and Sheryl have been a positive influence on me. So yes I’m a bit biased, but I’m also not an easy sell.

Here’s the truth, people like Ken should be on retainer or locked under non-compete agreements  by large Corps, Why? Because some of us earn a living based on either what we know or what we can do, but rarely both. When you find an asset like that it’s just good business practice to bring it on to your team. You do this with the understanding that there is a cost associated with it but that the value will always surpass  that cost.

My advice to a mid- large size Corporation would be to find guys like Ken, regardless of who else they might be working with and integrate them to their existing team. Challenge them and put them in a position to produce results that can be measured by today’s Social Technology standards. Involved them in ambitious projects and just let them loose creatively…more often than not these guys can deliver and when they do the ramifications to your Company by any standards can be unexpected!…or should I just say “very expected”.