Description: “I don’t know a single person who watches the Super Bowl,” said a worried Steve Jobs, then just 28 years old. The event he was referring to commanded a television audience of more than 80 million at the time, but Jobs’ nervousness at the prospect of Apple spending $1.6m (£1m) to secure two 60-second… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Part 1 Business in a Global Environment
Scarlett Johansson to fizz up SodaStream
Description: SodaStream named Scarlett Johansson its ‘global brand ambassador.’ But the stock tanked on poor sales of the carbonated beverage maker during the holidays. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Jan 15, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2014/01/13/n-b-sodastream-scarlett-johansson.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for Discussions: Do you think the promotional effort that focused on the eco-friendly character of the product is finished?… Read more »
Mark Wahlberg’s money: Rapper to riches
Description: ‘Lone Survivor’ packed theaters over the weekend. The film’s star and producer, Mark Wahlberg, knows something about box office bucks — his career of movies have earned almost $3.4 billion. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Jan 16, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2014/01/16/n-mark-wahlbergs-money-from-marky-mark-to-lone-survivor.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for Discussions: Explain Mark Wahlberg’s business successes? What does his “brand” represent… Read more »
Inside The Cheesecake Factory culture
Description: Employees who ‘ooze hospitality’ are in hot demand at The Cheesecake Factory where perks like BMWs for its general managers have helped it land on Fortune’s list of 100 Best Companies to Work For. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Jan 17, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2014/01/17/inside-the-cheesecake-factory.cnnmoney/ Questions for Discussions: What did you learn about management… Read more »
Fifty Years of Smoking in Two Charts
Description: Fifty years ago, no laws restricted where you could light up—even hospitals allowed it. Today 26 states and the District of Columbia ban smoking in workplaces, bars, and restaurants, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The bans contributed to a big drop in exposure to second-hand smoke. In the late 1980s, about 88… Read more »
How to Suppress the Apology Reflex
Description: Confidence, at least in the American workplace, means never having to say you’re sorry. I know that now, but early in my career I found myself apologizing over and over as my confidence and self-worth were tested on every level — from my job function to performance reviews, from networking to winning clients. Source:… Read more »
P&G and the big business in sentimental Olympics ads
Description: Everyone loves a warm-and-fuzzy now and then, but from a business perspective, does it pay to make your consumers teary-eyed? In a word: definitely. Source: Fortune.com – video report Date: Jan 07, 2014 Link: http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2014/01/07/procter-gamble-sochi-olympics-ad/? iid=SF_F_River Questions for Discussions: After watching the advertisement, explain why it worked so well. Do you think this style… Read more »
What Wi-Fi’s Popularity Means for Cell Phone Carriers
Description: David Morken holds a Moto X smartphone out for inspection. “This,” he says, “is a Wi-Fi device.” Morken runs Republic Wireless, a national carrier based in Raleigh, N.C., that offers unlimited calls and texts for $5 per month, $40 if you want unlimited data. Republic keeps its prices low by avoiding something most carriers… Read more »
Is the library’s future bookless?
Description: A library in San Antonio, Texas is being hailed as the “library of thefuture.” What makes the $2.3 million Bexar County BiblioTech public library unique? It doesn’t have any books. Source: SmartPlanet.com Date: Jan 05, 2014 Link: http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/bulletin/is-the-future-of-the-library-bookless/?tag=nl.e660&s_cid=e660&ttag=e660&ftag=TRE4eb29b5 Questions for Discussions: What are the practical and economic benefits of this sort of library for governments… Read more »
NPR: Planet Money’s T-Shirt Project – ‘Our Industry Follows Poverty’: Success Threatens A T-Shirt Business
Description: NPR’s Planet Money team is making a T-shirt and following the shirt around the world as it gets manufactured — from the farms where the cotton is grown to the factories where the shirts are sewn together. NPR presents the entire series of stories about the fascinating world behind that T-shirt at http://www.npr.org/series/248799434/planet-moneys-t-shirt-project …. Read more »
