I would like a list of the CEO's for all ENR 400 companies.  I have
the list of ENR 400 companies but not the CEO's:
Name
Address
Telephone #
email address

---

Request for Question Clarification by darrel-ga on 07 Dec 2002 14:40 PST

Hello--

I can probably find all the information you need except for the direct
e-mail portion of your request. In most cases I should be able to find
a general box e-mail for the company but not a direct address. Would
this be satisfactory?

Thanks,

darrel-ga

---

Clarification of Question by lesf94404-ga on 07 Dec 2002 20:08 PST

Darrel,
I would prefer the email of the individual, but if you are only able
to get the general email then I would like to enhance the request to
include not only CEO's but also CFO's with the following detail:
Name
Title
Address
Phone & Fax #'s
general email where individual email is not attainable.

---

Request for Question Clarification by missy-ga on 07 Dec 2002 20:31 PST

Hello les,

(May I call you les?  It feels odd to address you by numbers!)

I've been chipping away at your list for a couple hours, and it is
apparent that posting all of this information here on Google Answers
will be quite problematic.  I've been working in Word format, and the
top 27 companies have eaten up 6 pages already.

If it's acceptable to you, I'd like to post a file for you to download
- a Word document, zipped for easy downloading.

If you'd rather I just post the list here, I can do so, but I fear it
will cause terrible browser problems (i.e. crash your browser so you
can't access the information).

Is a Zip file OK with you?  Please let me know.  

I expect to be working on this throughout the night, and hope to
finish by tomorrow afternoon.

--Missy

---

Clarification of Question by lesf94404-ga on 07 Dec 2002 23:51 PST

Missy,
Zipped will be fine.
What is the potential to get it in excel format?

---

Request for Question Clarification by missy-ga on 08 Dec 2002 00:13 PST

Hi les,

I'm about as skilled with Excel as my cat is with a fork. ;)

I'll try put it into Excel, but I can't guarantee it.  I've been at
this since about 8PM EST - it's now 3AM EST, and I'm not sure how
quickly I can learn a new format at this hour.

--Missy

---

Request for Question Clarification by missy-ga on 08 Dec 2002 09:15 PST

Hi les,

Just a quick update:

Gathering your information requires sifting through some 600+
individual web pages.  It's going to take a little bit longer than I
had anticipated, probably at least until this evening.

I've had no luck puzzling out Excel.  A colleague has offered to
convert my Word document (35 pages and growing, will probably ring in
at ~100 pages) - in the meantime, I will post the zipped Word document
upon completion, and, if my colleague can successfully convert it, the
Excel file when he's finished.  It might take some time.

Thanks for your patience.  The research is actually quite intriguing -
I had no idea construction companies would go for such flashy and
complex web sites!

--Missy

---

Clarification of Question by lesf94404-ga on 09 Dec 2002 13:26 PST

Missy,

How's it going?

---

Request for Question Clarification by missy-ga on 09 Dec 2002 14:05 PST

Hi les,

I have about 100 more entries to go.  I had to take a break and get
some sleep, or I was going to eat my children.  *grin*

There are a great many companies that simply don't put things like
contact information on their web pages, and I've had to resort to
looking for other sources.  This was an unanticipated snag.

--Missy

Hi les,

Since the information you requested comprises the contact information
for 400 companies, posting it here would likely cause some
difficulties.  To combat that, I've listed them in a Word document,
and zipped them for convenient downloading below:

http://www.darkfriends.net/princessmoo/extras/ENRCEO.zip

[ File is 1.25MB zipped, and will unzip to 6.32MB and 96 pages. ]

If you do not have WinZip, you may download it here:

WinZip
http://www.winzip.com

Some notes on the listings:

I've kept the list in the ENR rankings order as shown at 
[ http://www.enr.com/people/topLists/topContractor/topCont_1-50.asp ].
 Around #234, the numbering has gone awry - this is a result of yet
another Flash site causing my computer to freeze up and crash.  The
listing is the complete 400 but the rankings are off. Please disregard
all numbers from 234 onward, as some numbers repeat multiple times.

In most cases, direct e-mail addresses for CEOs are not available -
for these, I've listed the general inquiries addresses, web form
addresses or designated contact e-mail address.  In some cases, no
e-mail contact of any sort is available - some companies choose to
communicate externally strictly by fax, phone or snail mail.

Each company name is highlighted in yellow.  Following the heading is
the name of the CEO - in the cases where there is a "global" CEO and
one for US operations, I've listed both - followed by CFO where that
information is available.  Contact information immediately follows.

When contacting a "general" box, it's usually helpful to put the name
of the person you want to reach in the subject line.

Most contact information was assembled from more than 700 separate web
pages, using Google, Hoover's Online Business Capsules and Yahoo
Finance by searching on the company name:

Hoover's
http://www.hoovers.com

Yahoo Finance Search
http://finance.yahoo.com/li

Addresses listed in all caps with a "no further information" notation
were culled from Dun & Bradstreet reports search at Hoover.  Company
reports with full information are available from D&B starting at $5
each.

Not all information requested is available on the web.  In a few
instances, there is no information available at all - the web is still
"frontier" for some construction companies, and they either have no
web page or the pages they do have offer only the name of the company
and a "vision statement", but no means of contacting the company. 
(This was very surprising to me.)  To fill in the small handful of
blanks, you might consider purchasing the ENR Top 400 Source Book,
which lists the most up-to-date contact and market information:

ENR Top 400 Source Book
http://www.enr.com/people/sourcebooks/top400Cont/default.asp

...or the Top 400 Mailing list:

"ENR MAILING LISTS

ENR "Top" lists are available on pressure-sensitive labels or computer
printouts. Included are the principal officer's name and title,
company name and address, and phone and fax numbers."

ENR Mailing Lists
Two Penn Plaza, 9th Floor,
New York NY 10121
Phone: 212-904-4634
Fax: 212-904-4178

The Top 400 list is $300.

ENR Mailing lists
http://www.enr.com/resources/ENRStore/howTo.asp#mailingLists

[ Should you choose to visit any of the company websites listed in the
file, be certain to use MSIE 4.0 or greater, and have the latest Flash
plug-in installed and JavaScript enabled.  Close any other programs
you have running - the majority of the sites are done completely in
Flash, and will crash your browser if you have anything else running.
]

I hope this list is helpful to you.  If you find you need further
assistance or have any difficulties downloading the file, please ask
for clarification.  I'll be happy to help.

--Missy

---

Clarification of Answer by missy-ga on 10 Dec 2002 10:56 PST

Good morning, les!

As you requested, here is the list in Excel:

http://www.darkfriends.net/princessmoo/extras/ENRCEOxls.zip 

The download is 71.8K, and will unzip to a 245K .XLS document.


--Missy

(Many thanks to mathtalk-ga for the file conversion and pafalafa-ga
for his helpful note.)

---

Request for Answer Clarification by lesf94404-ga on 12 Dec 2002 11:20 PST

Missy,
Thanks for the work.  We were able to convert the information to rows
and columns in excel for import.  I appreciate the work it turned out
very well.

Since this is my first google question, what happens next?  How do we
close the question?  What happens to the information?  etc...

---

Clarification of Answer by missy-ga on 12 Dec 2002 12:19 PST

Hi les!

I'm very pleased that the information worked out for you! 

The question and answer will remain posted here at Google Answers. 
However, if you would rather that the file no longer be available for
downloading by others, I can remove it from my server.  Just say the
word - I'll be notified by e-mail of activity on the question, and can
remove the file within minutes.

Researcher Skermit-ga prepared a terrific tutorial recently,
explaining how to use Google Answers, step by step.  To close out your
question, follow the instructions here:

What To Do Once The Question's Answered
http://www.christopherwu.net/google_answers/answer_guide.html#answered

Thank you for your inquiry.  I hope you'll come back to us in the
future for your research projects!

--Missy

---

Request for Answer Clarification by lesf94404-ga on 12 Dec 2002 13:07 PST

Missy,
Thanks for the information on closing out.  I would like you to remove the file.

What is the best way to contact you if I would like to have other work done?

---

Clarification of Answer by missy-ga on 12 Dec 2002 13:22 PST

Hello again,

The files have been removed.  You may verify if you like by checking
the links.

To have me specifically work on a project for you, you need only put
my name in the subject line of your question - if I don't spot it,
someone else will and will alert me.  Thank you very much for asking! 
Of course, any one of our Researchers will work to make sure you get
what you need!

--Missy

Not that I care about this specific list, but is not one of the ideas
of "Google Answers" to reveal the answers?
Regards, tornell

Hello Tornell,

Yes, indeed, one of the purposes of Google Answers is to reveal the
answers - you're absolutely correct.

However, Google does not host files for the Researchers, who are
independent contractors.  If part of our answer requires a file to
ensure that our client gets precisely what he needs, *we* host these
on our own servers.

Typically, such files are removed within 30 days, whether a client
requests it or not - as an independent contractor, I'm not required to
make these files indefinitely available to the general browsing public
at *my* expense.  My space, bandwidth and financial resources are
finite - I will expend these in a limited fashion to ensure my client
is well taken care of, but I feel my obligation ends there.

Warm regards,

-- Missy

Hi Missy,

I understand that you don't want to keep files on your private expense
online forever, but why not put the content of the list here as well?
It doesn't have to be perfectly formatted, and hence it will not take
up an enourmous amount of space.

Otherwise, I as a customer could define the question in such a way
that a file makes sense, and then I am the only one to get the answer.
This could increase my value, but would definitely decrease the value
of Google Answers as well as of your work.

Kind Regards, 
tornell

Hi again, Tornell,

I understand wanting to see the answers.  Unfortunately, it's not
always practical to put some answers out as anything but a file
available for the customer to download.  The ENR list, for example, is
*96 pages* long.

Additionally, this customer specifically asked for the file to be
removed from public accessiblity - he didn't feel the need to allow
the entire browsing population to reap the benefit of what he paid
for.

My first and most important responsibility is to provide the customer
I'm caring for with what he wants as long as

1) I'm capable of doing so and 

2) it doesn't violate the terms of service.  

This customer wanted a specific format, and wanted the file removed
after, both of which I was able to provide, and neither of which
violated the TOS.  It behooves me to adhere to my customer's
instructions, lest he be dissatisfied and not only *not* come back,
but provide negative feedback for my service record.

If the casual browser benefits from an answer I've provided, that's
terrific!  However, if the customer decides that he doesn't want to
share what he has paid for, I believe he is within his rights to
request removal of the file.  At my desk, Customer = God; he commands,
I do.  It's my job to answer to him first.

If you would like to offer an alternative solution or have any other
ideas that you think would benefit the users of the service as a
whole, why not drop our Editors a note with your suggestions?  They
are responsive to the needs of our users, and carefully look over and
discuss all suggestions.  Their e-mail address is at the bottom of the
page.

Thanks for your commentary,

--Missy

Dear Missy,

the reason I (the customer) started to use (and pay for) this service,
was that I saw the other answers. I could then judge the quality (in
general very high - your answers are excellent!), much better than if
only a customer rating was there.

I also like the concept that I can read earlier answers in my interest
area and thereafter ask some other things in depth. This way I get
ahead much quicker with my work.

For the "ENR-400-case" I can understand the problems of putting the
list online, but still I think you erode your future customer base by
not revealing your answers.

Best Regards,
Tornell

As much as it pains me, I have to agree with Tornell on this one. The
Google FAQ says that answers will be publicly accessible. “Your
question and the corresponding answer will be posted on the web and
viewable by the public.” I suppose that you can argue that posting the
answer very briefly does satisfy that FAQ point, but I don’t think
that is what Google had in mind.

I think that Google’s Usenet policy illustrates their intent to make
information permanently publicly accessible. For example: Two-years
ago someone unknown to me obtained personal information about me
(name, place-of-employment etc.) and wrote a libelous statement that
included the personal information and posted it to Usenet. At the
time, other Usenet participants refuted the untrue information posted
but the libelous post still is in the Usenet archive.

Here is what Google suggested that I do if I wanted the offensive post
removed: “(Y)ou need to resolve that problem directly with the person
who posted it.” (Google Groups FAQ) Right, I am supposed to find the
person and let them know that they have upset me and ask them to mend
their ways. I could also sue the “John Doe” who posted the information
and obtain a court order forcing Google to remove it. I’d say that the
cures are worse then the cold. So to this day if you enter my name in
the Usenet archive the first thing you see is a post suggesting that I
am an immoral person.

As you can see Google seems determined that information posted should
remain freely available to the public. The ramifications of having
such information available, whether or not it causes distress, takes
up system resources, etc is not important to them.

Given that the Google Answers FAQ stipulate that questions and answers
will be publicly available, I feel that Missy has no choice but to
make the ENR information available regardless of the strain doing so
places on her system. In my mind, suppressing the annotated ENR 400
list because it supposedly burdens her system resources, is comparable
to me hacking into Google’s Usenet archive and removing the untrue
post, because it distresses me. Since Google does not allow Answers or
Usenet posted to be removed, the server on which they reside is
unimportant.

Oh, but I *do* have the choice of removing the content, and I choose
not to host it indefinitely.  *I* pay for my server space and domains,
not Google.  I am in no way obligated to indefinitely provide
resources for whoever demands that I do so.  The file was hosted as a
courtesy for the customer who paid for it.  My obligation ends there.

If Google's goal is to ensure the information remains freely and
permanently available, then Google must shoulder the responsibility
for (and cost of) hosting the file. How they set policies for the use
of *their* servers in no way affects how I set policies for the use of
mine.  I am an independent contractor, not an employee, and what I do
with my personal property does not fall under the Google Answers FAQ
in any case.

Please do e-mail the Editors with your thoughts on this.  We
Researchers asked repeatedly for file hosting space so that we can
provide our customers with their needs, and were refused.  If it is
vitally important to Google's presumed mission to provide a permanent
archive, it will be up to Google to provide that with their own
resources, not those paid for by their contractors.

Thanks,

--Missy

Missy wrote: “Please do e-mail the Editors with your thoughts on
this.”

No, my goal in commenting is not to get anyone in trouble.
Furthermore, I did not notice that Tornell had revived a
seven-month-old thread. Since reviving dormant threads is usually
considered unwise, I would not have commented if I had noticed the
date. Actually what I thought happened was that Missy uploaded the
answer (like today) and as soon as the OP rated the question, Missy
removed the answer hours later, in essence making the answer private.

For whatever reason Tornell seems interested in obtaining the answer
to the OPs question. He may E-mail the editors because he apparently
has a personal interest in getting the answer. However, my interest in
the matter was that it appeared that the answer was given in such a
way to circumvent the openness of Google Answers. But it is entirely
possible that the Answer was publicly available for six-months and was
than removed.

If Tornell does contact the editors it would be interesting to see how
they respond. They have changed the FAQ in the past and since the OP
seemed to like the idea of not having his answer publicly accessible,
they may very well tell Tornell that if he would like the information
he is welcome to post a new question. I think both the satisfaction
guarantee and the ability for customers to direct questions to
specific researchers were two changes that Google made due to customer
demand. I would not be surprised if the ability to ask private
questions and/or receive private answers is something that Google
implements if customers start asking for it.

Hi,
The answer was live for about an hour (according to the time-stamps).
I really don't care about the answer and I won't comment more on this
nor write to the editors. I just hope for a good future cooperation
with Missy and the other Ask-Google-People!
Regards, Tornell