Institutional investors ‘buying in bulk’ as homebuying cools

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description: Rising mortgage rates have sidelined many would-be homebuyers, but for institutional investors, it has become an opportunity as home builders try to unload properties.

Source: Yahoo.Finance.com – video report

Date: Oct 12, 2022

Link: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/investors-buying-homebuying-cools-131902326.html

Questions for discussion:

  • What does report say about the state of the industry, buyer behavior, prices and the connection to rising interest rates and other factors?
  • Where do you see the industry headed in the near future?

Microsoft launches Designer, its answer to highly valued startup Canva

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description: Microsoft is launching a simple graphic design app called Designer that will be available for free and as part of Office productivity software subscriptions, the company said Wednesday.

Source: CNBC.com – video report

Date: Oct 12, 2022

Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/12/microsoft-launches-designer-its-answer-to-highly-valued-startup-canva.html

Questions for discussion:

  • What are the reasons for this development at Microsoft?
  • Do you think it is a good decision with long-term benefits?

A New Study Finds a Third of Meetings Are Useless. Elon Musk Has the Solution

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives.

Description: Companies are paying $25,000 a year per professional employee to have them sit in pointless meetings.

Source: INC.com

Date: Oct 07, 2022

Link: https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/new-study-meetings-useless-elon-musk-has-solution.html?utm_source=newsletters&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=IncThisMorning-10-07-2022&leadId=261346&mkt_tok=NjEwLUxFRS04NzIAAAGHYKVMQb7nY_y4tPkeMAjzwn0ppZY0zzrcj3VAc1Cfw5VTq3QctW6LPzUJiAoBYRaoDJE8ssM3vLUxaKMPiqTRcWiuqYRJLk-Gjk_NtA

Questions for discussion:

  • What is the cost of meetings, according to the research?
  • What are the recommendations for reducing these costs?
  • Do you agree with this analysis and assessment of productivity?
  • What might be the consequences of this orientation?

Hockey Canada in overtime: The troubled organization’s next moves will determine its future

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: During the past six months, Canadians have been shocked to learn of sexual assault allegations at Hockey Canada events and how the organization treated the allegations as essentially a cost of doing business.

?Source: TheConversation.com

Date: Oct 12, 2022

Link: https://theconversation.com/hockey-canada-in-overtime-the-troubled-organizations-next-moves-will-determine-its-future-192304

Questions for discussion:

  • What were the managerial errors committed by the organization?
  • Do you think it can be resuscitated or has the brand been too badly tarnished?
  • What would you advise the governments, players, and associated clubs do under the circumstances?

Mismanagement and ‘Monster Trains’ Have Wrecked American Rail

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description: After World War II, railroad companies ceded freight, including mail and perishables, to semi trucks and instead favored goods like newsprint, chemicals and steel coils, which could sit in rail yards for days. Many freight companies made this change enthusiastically; trucking’s rise gave them a strong reason to stop servicing goods that were financial and logistical pains to ship. So long to the rail cars full of livestock.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: Oct 09, 2022

Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/09/opinion/business-economics/freight-train-mismanagement.html

Questions for discussion:

  • How has the railroad industry mismanaged itself, according to the report?
  • What are the solutions?
  • Can truck and rail transportation co-operate and become a a more efficient system?
  • How would this impact prices and supply management?

The economics of Costco rotisserie chicken

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description: Costco’s popular chickens have stayed fixed at $4.99 for more than a decade — even in the face of raging inflation. But it’s come at a cost.

Source: TheHustle.com

Date: Oct 08, 2022

Link: https://thehustle.co/the-economics-of-costco-rotisserie-chicken/

Questions for discussion:

  • Why has Costco kept chicken prices fixed?
  • How has this strategy fit with overall branding strategy?
  • Do you think the company has chosen the “right” product to telegraph the branding message?
  • What other products would also communicate the Costco message, in your opinion?

Micron to spend up to $100 billion to build a computer chip factory in New York

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information, Part 6 Managing Financial Resources.

Description: Micron will spend up to $100 billion over at least the next two decades building a new computer chip factory in upstate New York, the state said on Tuesday.

Source: CNBC.com – video report

Date: Oct 04, 2022

Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/04/micron-to-spend-up-to-100-billion-to-build-new-york-chip-plant.html?__source=iosappshare%7Ccom.apple.UIKit.activity.Mail

Questions for discussion:

  • Why is this announcement so significant?
  • What are the implications of this development for globally operating businesses in this field?

Row, Row, Row: How Mass Retailers And Consumers Are Dealing With Inflation

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information.

Description: Email is the most popular engagement channel among mass-market retailers. But it is not the fastest-growing during this inflationary period, judging by the Verint Guide To Customer Engagement in the Retail Industry, a two-part study released Friday.

Source: MediaPost.com

Date: Sep 30, 2022

Link: https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/378295/row-row-row-how-mass-retailers-and-consumers-ar.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=readmore&utm_campaign=127787&hashid=S0v0SEvtS-SjDpBGmLW7Fg

Questions for discussion:

  • What do the statistics say about communication tools available?
  • What do you think about future planning, as described in the article?

Why Silicon Valley is so excited about awkward drawings done by artificial intelligence

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management, Part 5 Managing Technology and Information.

Description: Computer programs can now create never-before-seen images in seconds.

Source: CNBC.com

Date: Oct 08, 2022

Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/08/generative-ai-silicon-valleys-next-trillion-dollar-companies.html

Questions for discussion:

  • How does this technology work?
  • What are the implications of this development for businesses?

SPOS #845 – Tom Webster On The Future Of Podcasting

Posted by & filed under Part 1 Business in a Global Environment, Part 2 Starting and Growing Your Business, Part 3 Management: Empowering People to Achieve Business Objectives, Part 4: Marketing Management.

Description: Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #845. If you ever need to know anything about the state of Podcasting (or where it’s going), just ask Tom Webster. Tom has a new role as Partner at Sounds Profitable, dedicated to setting the course for the future of the audio business. He is a 25-year veteran audio researcher and trusted advisor to the biggest companies in podcasting, and has dedicated his career to the advancement of podcasting for networks and individuals alike. He has been the co-author and driver behind some of audio’s most influential studies, from the Infinite Dialseries to Share of Ear and the Podcast Consumer Tracker. Tom has led hundreds of audience research projects on six continents, for some of the most listened-to podcasts and syndicated radio shows in the world. He’s done a card trick for Paula Abdul, shared a martini with Tom Jones, and sold vinyl to Christopher Walken. Tom is known as a results-driven consumer insights visionary, and I am honored to call him a friend. We’ve both been in the podcasting game longer than most and enjoy the back-and-forth banter about the industry. Enjoy the conversation…

Source: SixPixels.com

Date: Sep 18, 2022

Link: https://www.sixpixels.com/podcast/archives/spos-845-tom-webster-on-the-future-of-podcasting/

Questions for discussion:

  • What does Tom Webster say about the future of podcasting?
  • How should current players prepare for that future?
  • What opportunities are there for new entrants, content specialists and creative artists?