Description:  Silicon Valley is one of the few places where a 27-year-old Web entrepreneur can parlay a photo-sharing application with no known source of revenue into $1 billion — in two years. Source: Bloomberg.com Date: 04/10/2012 Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-10/instagram-s-systrom-builds-1-billion-application-in-two-years.html Questions for discussion: Do you think the background experience of these two entrepreneurs had anything to do… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives
Avon, 125 years old
Description: Avon Products, the iconic door-to-door cosmetic seller, celebrates 125 years in business, Felicia Taylor reports. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 04/02/2012 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/03/09/n_avon_taylor.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion: What does the Avon brand represent to women today? What are the benefits to Avon’s participation in social causes?
Hostess Serves New Batch of Cuts
Description: If negotiations fail, Hostess and its unions will face off in a trial over whether the company can scrap its labor contracts-an example of how wage levels across many once-vibrant industries are falling. Mike Spector reports on Markets Hub. Photo: Paul J. Richards/AFP/Getty Images. Source: Marketwatch.com – video report Date: 04/02/2012 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/video/asset/hostess-serves-new-batch-of-cuts/A64EE3DD-0867-4DE5-B20B-F85496993B9A Questions… Read more »
Online Movies Set to Overtake DVDs and Blu-rays
Description: Web-based movie download and rental services, coupled with tablets and connected TVs, have led to greater online movie consumption Source: emarketer.com Date: 04/02/2012 Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1008945&ecid=a6506033675d47f881651943c21c5ed4 Questions for discussion: Summarize the changes taking place. What are the reasons for these changes? How would you suggest the industry respond?
Is your company like ‘The Hunger Games?’
Description:  (MoneyWatch) Many of us have been there. Your company decided to do “stretch goals,” or, if an executive had recently read a Jim Collins book, “BHAGs” (big, hairy, audacious goals). Someone — often a senior executive — may have encouraged you to “treat it like a game,” and “make it fun.” The tag line… Read more »
Apple’s War on Android
Description:   In her black robe and strand of white pearls, Lucy Koh projects the serious, deliberate demeanor befitting a U.S. District Court judge. Source: Businessweek.com Date: 03/29/2012 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-03-29/apple-s-war-on-android Questions for discussion: What are the issues involved in this conflict? Who do you think has more credibility? How do you think this will play out?
Entrepreneurs jump on co-working bandwagon
Description:  In 2008, Chad and Sandra Ballantyne moved their marketing and Web design company, Rhubarb Media, into its first office – a 1,300-square-foot space in downtown Barrie, Ont., which they shared with another small company. Source: GlobeandMail.com Date: 04/02/2012 Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-marketing/customer-service/entrepreneurs-jump-on-co-working-bandwagon/article2386076/ Questions for discussion: What lessons are there in this report for entrepreneurs? What are… Read more »
Apple Labor Pact Could Ripple Across China
Description: Manufacturers grappling with rising labor costs and worker demands in China could face further pressure if a critical probe of a major Apple supplier sets a new standard for China’s factory workers, Andrew Dowell reports on digits. Photo: Getty Images. Source: Marketwatch.com – video report Date: 03/30/2012 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/video/asset/apple-labor-pact-could-ripple-across-china/ED326ADD-8C33-4B32-B463-A4BD5BA1D89C Questions for discussion: Summarize the… Read more »
Best Buy’s moves meet with investor skepticism
Description: Best Buy Co., the largest U.S. electronics chain, swung to a fourth-quarter loss, hurt by charges and lower sales of notebook computers and televisions. Source: Marketwatch.com Date: 03/30/2012 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/best-buy-swings-to-loss-to-shut-50-stores-2012-03-29?siteid=nwtwk Questions for discussion: Summarize the reasons for Best Buy’s financial problems. Do you think they can be resolved easily?
JetBlue Actions Show How Training Altered Cockpit Culture
Description:  The events aboard a March 27 JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU)flight, on which the co-pilot locked an erratically behaving captain out of the cockpit and diverted the plane to a safe landing, show how much has changed in a culture once typified by autocratic captains browbeating underlings even in the face of potential hazards, safety… Read more »
