Nelson B. Heller, Ph.D
President, EdNET
MDR
2009

Bio | Induction Speech | Acceptance Speech

Induction Speech
by Vicki Bigham, Bigham Technology Solutions, Inc., and Anne Wujcik, MDR

Vicki Bigham

As indicated in the video, I first read The Heller Report in the pioneering days of ed tech in the late '70s and early '80s. When funding for my administrative technology position dried up, Nelson was one of the first people I reached out to, and he offered me a complimentary registration to my first EdNET in exchange for taking on a new project idea he had.

That was 1991, and he asked me to coordinate something called "The Educational Technology and Telecommunications Markets Business Video Theater", a continuous program of videos on exceptional programs, important R&D and visions of the future. That particular idea did not take hold, but most of his other ones - the exhibits reception, the 30-second intros, and others - have! That was the beginning of my ever-expanding work with Nelson and EdNET and later the virtual roundtables. That was the beginning of this long and wonderful relationship!

Nelson is a curious man - he is ever the learner, curious about people, ideas and products. We witnessed him demoing his avatar in Second Life when many in the EdNET audience had no idea this virtual world even existed. Nelson has jumped into social media and is exploring its application for the benefit of MDR and the EdNET community. He wants to understand and personally work and play with new products and devices. And those who speak with Nelson always feel as though they are the only two people in a room. When you speak to this man, he is totally engaged in your conversation, listening to your thoughts and words, and genuinely interested in what you have to say.

Nelson is an insightful man - he always has the provocative question. He can pose the question on the minds of the education business community, often before they can adequately articulate it for themselves. He watches trends and studies new ideas but never makes rash predictions. Rather, his reflective and deliberate consideration of market trends, nuances and opportunities has guided businesses in our space for decades now. For that, he is trusted and respected.

Nelson is a passionate man - passionate about this industry and tireless in his work. He has nurtured so many individuals and firms to succeed. He is equally passionate about family and friends and loves to have fun. Just ask those AEP women who traveled with him to China for the Beijing International Book Fair! When I ask his thoughts on retirement, he smiles and says, "this is retirement". He absolutely loves his work, the people he meets and interacts with and making contributions to education.

Nelson has contributed so strongly to educational publishing. He is all about networking and helping others network. He has made that the platform for EdNET and instituted the ideas and tools other conferences now seek to replicate. He is always the one to suggest, "let's go around the room and introduce ourselves to one another or share a key thought", whether it be a small dinner group or a reception full of strangers, as he did in London at the EdNET Global Forum, a gathering of British and U.S. education executives. He pulled people together in our post 9/11 shock when he launched the first EdNET Virtual Roundtable to help people grapple with the unknown. And in smaller but equally significant ways, he has over the years continuously reached out to any who might need support or encouragement, whether it be a company in need of a partner or individuals questioning the next stage of their career or out of work and searching for their next opportunity. His legacy lies in his active support of partnering to accomplish business objectives and in his facilitation of dialogue among business executives, educational administrators and policymakers with the shared goal of improving education.

Little did I know what I was getting into some years back when you offered me that comp registration in exchange for helping you with an EdNET Conference. It has been one crazy, fun, gratifying and meaningful run! Thank you, Nelson. I am so pleased to join Anne and so many others in congratulating you on this much-deserved honor.

Anne Wujcik

I first met Nelson in Chicago in the mid -80's, when he was in the business development role at Scott Foresman that Dick Roberts spoke about in the video you just saw. By 1989, when Nelson was launching the Heller Report newsletter and EdNET, I was working in NY, but Chicago was home and Nelson and I kept in touch. Over the next several years I did a number of research projects for him that eventually grew, the way projects with Nelson are wont to do, to my becoming editor of the Heller Report newsletter, following in the footsteps of a real journalist, Roberta Salvadore, who sadly we lost this year and who had developed and nurtured the newsletter during its first four years.

Over the years I watched as Nelson's venture grew from a one-man, one-room operation to an organization with a stable, if virtual, professional staff and a real back-office operation.

At the same time what the company did and how we did it evolved - responding to and often, under Nelson's insightful guidance, slightly ahead of market conditions. We tracked the first wave of distance learning when that meant understanding satellite technology. We taught ourselves about the telcos and made sure that they were at EdNET to meet the leaders among the content owners and developers we worked with. We experimented with videoconferencing at several EdNETs. When the Internet began to emerge as an educational tool, we launched a second newsletter, Internet Strategies for Education Markets, with Rita Oates at the helm. We moved our print content online, building a searchable database of news and industry announcements. We tested new event formats and launched the EdNET Virtual Roundtable series of audio conferences. When QED acquired Nelson's company, we were able to evolve our marketing strategies and devote more resources to EdNET, culminating in last year's 20th anniversary celebration. We fully expect that this year's acquisition by MDR will usher in even more growth.

But a story of growth and change is not unique to Nelson's organization - that's the business of successful companies. What I see as unique to Nelson and worthy of celebration are two unchanging missions.

First, his unwavering dedication to building the EdNET community. And here I use EdNET in the big tent meaning. It's an evolving place where anyone who serves the education market is welcome, a place to meet, in person and virtually, to learn, to share ideas and ponder the hard questions, to debate strategies and marketing approaches and together find a way to better meet the needs of the teachers and students and parents we all serve, while growing successful, innovative, strong companies.

And that's the second of Nelson's underpinning missions. Throughout these 20 years, as I've watched Nelson play - satellite dishes to Kindles to gearing up a for a Second Life excursion under the watchful eyes of 500 EdNET attendees, he's never taken his eye off the goal of building successful organizations. While I sometimes get too focused on the technology or caught up in the classroom side of a product or service, Nelson never fails to ask - What does this mean for you and your business? How do we optimize the opportunity or respond to the challenge that this technology or policy change or these economic conditions represent? What does this new development, whatever it is, mean for the future of your company and the bottom-line? And as we work together to find answers to those questions, everyone benefits.

Thank you, Nelson for an extraordinary 20 years! I am so pleased to be able to share this day with you and join in congratulating you on this much-deserved honor.