michael burns portfolio
TRANSCRIPT
Digital Portfolio
Ohio State University Medical CenterInteractive Strategy
OneSource Intranet• Extremely difficult to
navigate; as elements were added it became “an inch wide and a mile deep”
• Did not adequately serve needs of divergent audiences: physicians, nurses, educators, researchers, executives
• Limited ability to display multiple news and feature articles
• Poor site search experience
Ohio State University Medical CenterInteractive Strategy
OneSource Solution• Redesign and re-architecting
made site “mile wide and inch deep,” resulting in improved efficiency
• Seven different audience-based home pages; users self-select their view, have ability to personalize links
• Rotating main features with improved graphic display, plus scrolling headlines
• Search improved by adding keyword “best bets,” indexing fewer sites, deleting outdated documents
Ohio State University Medical CenterInteractive Strategy
Cancer Program Site• Did not meet National
Cancer Institute guidelines by failing to include deep research content; overhaul needed to meet NCI designation and grant application requirements
• Outdated design, focused too heavily on patient/visitors audience
• Url (jamesline.com) was non-compliant with brand standards, reflected retired marketing campaign
Ohio State University Medical CenterInteractive Strategy
Cancer Program Solution• Site launched well before
application deadline, including extensive research content; OSUMC received “exceptional” designation and $30 million grant from NCI
• Contemporary design highlights all three audiences of researchers, patients/visitors and donors
• New url (cancer.osu.edu) meets brand standards, follows taxonomy used by other OSUMC sites
Netscape.comContent creation: Cool Site of the Day
Netscape.comContent creation: Cool Site of the Day
Netscape.comContent creation: Cool Site of the Day
GoCarolinas.comContent creation: Column
By Michael Burns
GoCarolinas.com Sports Producer
The Carolina Panthers, bastions of stability their first two years of existence, now find themselves
engulfed in controversy and innuendo.
A team molded by no-nonsense general manager Bill Polian and coached by the earnest Dom Capers
has suddenly become the South's version of the Yankees (New York, that is).
First Kevin Greene, then Kerry Collins. When will it end?
The Panthers took the first step toward cleaning up this mess by dealing with Greene, and in typical
Panthers style it was quick and clean.
Rather than renegotiating with the holdout linebacker, they released him as part of their final roster cuts.
It was the right move, but a polarizing one.
On one hand, how can the Panthers possibly expect to match last season's accomplishment's by
parting with a stalwart of their rock-solid defense?
Column continuedOn the other hand, Greene's holdout had festered long enough and had the potential to become a
season-long plague.
Both sides made their point, and neither is better off for it. Yes, Greene is underpaid, but now he's
unemployed. Yes, the Panthers showed they won't cave in to contract demands, but now they lack
a dominant pass rusher.
The Collins situation is far more delicate. His offensive racial comment to a teammate shows the 24-year-
old has yet to grasp that as a starting NFL quarterback he is accountable for his every word
and action.
Collins, who underwent surgery Monday to have four plates removed from his broken jaw, called his
remarks "unintentional and not intended in a malicious manner."
Whether that is enough for him to regain his teammate's respect -- and his status in this regard was
fragile even before this incident -- will emerge only over the course of the following 16 games.
GoCarolinas.comContent creation: Column
By Michael Burns
GoCarolinas.com
The Hornets did it again Wednesday night. Or rather, they didn’t do it.
For the fourth consecutive game, Charlotte’s first major professional sports team didn’t sell
all its tickets.
That comes on the heels of a streak of 364 consecutive sellouts, covering a span of almost
nine seasons. And by all accounts, this is the most talented Hornets team ever.
What’s going on?
Here’s the team’s explanation: When roughly 4 percent of season ticket holders didn’t
renew for the 1997-98 season, the Hornets decided to make those seats available on a
game-by-game basis, rather than selling them as part of season packages.
That way, the Hornets figured, they could expand their fan base.
Column continuedDuring the streak, the team always had about 2,500 tickets available for each game at the 24,042-
seat Coliseum and managed to sell them all. This season that number is closer to 4,000 (most of the
tickets cost $13 or $9).
The Hornets have said they anticipated the dip in attendance, saying it would take a while for fans to
realize tickets are available; through the first 10 home dates of this season, average attendance is
down 3 percent from last season (23,323 vs. 24,042).
But there seems to be more at work here. In fact, there probably are several factors. In no particular
order, here are several reasons heard around town for the attendance decline:
*The Panthers effect. Fans have only so much time and money to give, and there’s no denying the
new (and successful) kids in town have siphoned some away from the Hornets.
*Anti-George Shinn sentiment. The Hornets owner riled many in the Carolinas when he began
pressing for a new arena just 10 years after the Coliseum was built.
Others soured on him after Shinn, who passed himself off as morally righteous, was recently accused
of—but not charged with--sexual misconduct.
Column continued*Loss of popular players. Larry Johnson and Muggsy Bogues, two of the most popular players in
franchise history, are no longer with the team; Johnson was traded to the Knicks before last season
and Bogues to Golden State in early November.
Their replacements--Anthony Mason, Bobby Phills and David Wesley--have yet to win over the
Hornets’ faithful to the degree that Johnson and Bogues did.
*A sports/NBA backlash. Many people have simply tired of the labor disputes, outrageous
contracts, greedy owners and questionable off-the-field actions that plague sports. And the NBA has
been leading the field in this regard in recent months.
By the way, don’t bother heading to the ticket window for Friday’s game against the
Jordans, er, rather, the Bulls, and same for the Dec. 20 game against the suddenly chic-again Lakers.
They’ve both been sold out since the day single-game tickets went on sale.