You will not use our copyrights or trademarks (including Facebook, the Facebook and F Logos, FB, Face, Poke, Wall and 32665), or any confusingly similar marks, without our written permission.

We’re so not interested in fighting that battle with Facebook.  Moving on.

What does Bookbook do, you ask?  Bookbook is the brainchild of our marketing analyst and social media puppet master, Nicole Tripodi.  Being an avid reader, Nicole dreamed up a Foursquare-style app allowing her to keep tabs on what her sister is currently reading, and vice-versa.  An app like this enables that interaction via the concept of “virtual book clubs,” making the act of reading a very social activity for readers across the world.  Think about it: for generations, readers have enjoyed reading books, discussing books, arguing about themes and ideas, criticizing books, recommending great books, and even fraternizing over a common love of reading. But it hasn’t always been easy to convince your friends to read the books you want to read (The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs by Alexander McCall Smith? Anyone?), or to find tailored recommendations for books you’d really enjoy.

As the first step of project planning, we felt it was extremely important to follow agile methodology precepts by defining a product vision statement.  A clear and strong vision statement will help us focus on delivering the best product, minimizing scope creep and analysis paralysis.  Here’s the vision statement we came up with:

Develop a mobile app for avid readers who want to share their perspectives on books, gather perspectives of others on books they are reading, and find new books to read through shared experiences. Bookbook is a social media app for tablets that connects readers.  Unlike other mobile check-in applications, our product focuses solely on checking into books with a delightful user experience that is above the competition.

We’re excited about kicking off the first sprint in this month.  Stay tuned for updates on the project!

In her free time, Deanna enjoys executing a good home improvement project that leaves a hard day’s work on her hands or relaxing by watching a good romantic comedy.  Of course, she likes to point out that no movie is complete without some ice cream (not popcorn!) and her daughter at her side!

If you’re interested in learning about the opportunities at Evans & Chambers, or just want to join me in welcoming Deanna, she can be reached via email at recruiting@evanschambers.com.

Evans & Chambers has been awarded an 8(a) STARS II contract. The 8(a) STARS II Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) is designed to promote small businesses in the federal government by identifying small businesses that exhibit technical proficiency with competitive pricing. The 8(a) STARS II GWAC provides agencies with pre-competed, easy-to-use contracts, access to proven technology providers, a shortened procurement lead time, and 8(a) socioeconomic credit. For a small business like Evans & Chambers, the contract award opens doors for more opportunities within the federal government, and provides an opportunity to lead teams of subcontractors on federal projects, sparking company growth.

Corporate marketing professionals face challenges that parallel those of information sharing promoters in the US national defense community. A great product won’t sell without a strong marketing strategy. In the same way, information sharing initiatives can’t succeed unless the participants (customers) buy-in.

Deeplocal, an award-winning marketing firm servicing Fortune 500 companies, knows a little bit about sharing information with potential customers. As described on their web site, Deeplocal “builds interactive experiences that bridge the physical and digital worlds, generating emotional connections with consumers, earned media, and increased revenue.” The better a brand is able to connect with media and consumers on both the digital and physical planes, the more revenue the brand can expect to generate.

Information sharing benefits are well understood by many: reduction in redundant efforts such as monitoring and data analysis, faster innovation, improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of intelligence agents and analysts. The benefits are clear and the technology is here, yet we’re not seeing the results that we’d expect. Perhaps it’s failing because there’s no buy-in. Information sharing promoters can learn a lot from marketing firms like Deeplocal.

✓ Increase your earning potential
✓ Increase your chances for career advancement
✓ Place you in an exciting role that might not otherwise be available due to its sensitive nature

We have several open positions available, including Java Web Developer, Software Developer, Ruby on Rails Developer, Database Administrator, Database Developer, and Systems Analyst. We’re adding new positions often, so be sure and check out our openings.

And have we mentioned before that we think it’s only a matter of time before we’re recognized as the best place to work in IT? We recognize the amount of hard work and dedication it takes for professionals to hone their crafts and keep up with challenging technologies, so we’re committed to our employees. We offer an excellent benefits package in a small company environment, direct access to senior leadership, exciting team building events, and numberous opportunities to develop your career.

For more information on how to receive or upgrade your government security clearance through your role at Evans & Chambers, please contact our recruiter, Debra Roberts.

Recently, Evans & Chambers announced its new mentor-protege relationship with Metters, Inc. under the Department of Homeland Security’s Mentor-Protege program. Metters is an experienced Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business providing a range of technical solutions to federal customers, including enterprise IT solutions. “This year, Metters celebrates its 30^th anniversary.  We can think of no better way to mark the occasion than by joining forces with a promising newcomer that shares our passion for technological transformation of the very most critical government missions,”  said Santo LaTores, Metters COO.

Through the partnership, the Metters/EC team will develop innovative solutions and concepts to support the DHS mission – and our first task is developing a solution for using social network analysis to cultivate communities that are more resilient to disaster. Part of DHS’ success strategy is in strengthening our nation’s preparedness and emergency response capabilities, and social networking may be the next tool in disaster response. The Metters/E&C solution considers the ways in which social media might help civic leaders understand the first response community and their geographic relationships, identify underserved populations, plan for distribution of public services, enhance collaboration in resource planning, and guide economic recovery after a disaster.

Now, you can finally relive those long-lost pipe dreams of becoming a corporate recruiter! Ok, maybe that was never your dream, but read on; Evans & Chambers has an exciting new referral program that could net you a $5,000 bonus, and we invite everyone to be a part of it.

Put simply: refer your qualified friends, co-workers, and family to us for an opportunity for employment, and receive $5,000 EACH after the referred hire has been an employee with us for 120 days. You don’t even have to be an employee of Evans & Chambers to take advantage of this offer, just follow these steps:

1. Explore your network for IT professionals with at least a TS/SCI security clearance level.
2. Tell your contacts about the scheme, and invite them to check out our job opportunities page for open opportunities and to explore our site.
3. Hone your sales skills and remind your contacts of our small company environment, exciting team building events, great benefits, and direct access to company leadership.
4. Email your friends’ resume to recruiting@evanschambers.com. Keep in mind: we sometimes fill spaces faster than we can update our site. So, we invite you to submit relevant resumes, even if there is no exact position listed on our careers page.
5. If we find a fit, we’ll contact you and your referral to talk about the next steps.
6. While you’re waiting, consider subscribing to our newsletter, which will keep you up to date on our hottest jobs as they become available. Invite your referrals to do this as well, as the newsletter contains important industry news.

It’s just that easy to become an EC recruiter….welcome to the team!

The fine print: Referral rewards are paid out after the referral hire has been an employee with Evans & Chambers for 120 days. Other restrictions may apply. Rewards are subject to change and may be eliminated without notice. Email recruiting@evanschambers.com for details.

A few weeks ago, we began planning for the fair, which included discussion of handouts. Most companies give away pens, or stress balls in addition to brochures and pamphlets containing information about the company. In a flash of pure genius, our recruiter, Debra, suggested we try a different approach – by giving away cupcakes! Everyone was delighted by the idea as we all imagined crowds of people swarming our booth for a taste of our delicious cupcakes and, of course, the possibility of leftovers!

We did quite a bit of research in selecting our giveaway cupcakes, exploring the local cupcakeries and their unique flavors and presentations. We wanted pretty cupcakes that had great taste reviews, with a recognizable name. We finally settled on Georgetown Cupcake, a very popular local establishment that also happens to have it’s own TV show on TLC – “DC Cupcakes.”

The day of the job fair arrived and we showed up with cupcakes in tow. We quickly created a buzz among other vendors, who came to our booth to meet us and get an eyeful of the sweet treats. Our cupcake display was quickly deemed the best among company giveaways.

When the doors opened and candidates started pouring in, we were suddenly very busy greeting, shaking hands, making connections, and offering cupcakes. We were surprised to find that many candidates declined a cupcake, while others came back for seconds. Some people even asked if they were real, thinking that they were for display. Everyone that tried a cupcake agreed that it was delicious! We’re pretty sure the cupcakes attracted at least a few people to our table that perhaps wouldn’t have approached us otherwise.

In the end, we felt that the cupcakes were a huge hit, and much to our delight we even had a few leftovers to enjoy. We got to meet some bright and interesting folks, and we even came away with quite a few resumes to match our available jobs. As we sift through the stack, we wonder: how do we top cupcakes for our next fair’s giveaway?