Description: Zappos is transitioning to a new organizational structure. It’s not what you’re used to, and it’s not a democracy. Here’s a look at how a company can run as a holacracy. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 21, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2014/02/17/n-zappos-holacracy-no-job-titles.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for Discussions: What is this new management practice all about? Is… Read more »
Monthly Archives: February 2014
WhatsApp: From food stamps to billions
Description: Facebook spent $19 billion on WhatsApp, turning its founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton into sensational Silicon Valley success stories. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 20, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2014/02/20/t-whatsapp-founders-food-stamps-to-billionaires-facebook.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for Discussions: What is the main lesson to entrepreneurs in this report? What lesson is there for HR department managers examining job… Read more »
Models hit runway in 3D printed clothing
Description: Designers are seeing benefits in going high tech, printing out clothing with details as precise as a tenth of a millimeter small. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 21, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2014/02/20/t-3d-printing-fashion-show.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for discussion: What are the implications for design and production management as this technology grows in the fashion industry? Where… Read more »
Why Hollywood Struggles to Quickly Clone Animated Hits
Description: With the runaway success of Disney’s (DIS) Frozen and the explosive opening of Warner Bros.’s (TWX) The Lego Movie, animated films have had a great run in recent months. When a live-action movie becomes a big hit, it’s not long before imitators—both real and imagined—show up on the horizon. Doing the same in the animation world… Read more »
Does entrepreneurial experience guarantee future startup success? Not really, study says
Description: Over the course of my career, I’ve encountered many self-described “serial entrepreneurs” — those who have made a career path out of launching new ventures, then moving on to the next. While the people I’ve met appear to have had strings of apparent successes, is entrepreneurial experience a predictor of future success? Source: SmartPlanet.com… Read more »
Coffee Following Upward Trend of Luxury Goods: Illy
Description: Andrea Illy, chairman & CEO at Gruppo Illy, discusses the growing market for premium coffee, his company’s partnerships with Coca-Cola and Samsung, and offers his view of Italy’s economy on Bloomberg Television’s “Market Makers.” Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 14, 2014 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/videos/2014-02-14/coffee-following-upward-trend-of-luxury-goods-illy Questions for Discussions: What does this report tell you… Read more »
VW’s Passat, made in Tennessee
Description: Take a tour of Volkswagen’s $1 billion plant that opened in Chattanooga, TN. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 12, 2014 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2014/02/12/n-volkswagen-vw-plant-tennessee.cnnmoney/index.html Questions for Discussions: What are the main considerations for where to locate a car plant such as the one illustrated in the report? Why do other businesses typically decide to… Read more »
Why Would Comcast Improve When It Could Buy Time Warner Cable Instead?
Description: Cable companies can’t sign up any more people. In fact, they’re losing them to the Internet. So the only way to survive is to monopolize more of the market and up-sell subscribers just as Comcast-Time Warner Cable will do. Source: TheDailyBeast .com Date: Feb 14, 2014 Link: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/13/why-would-comcast-innovate-or-cut-prices-when-it-could-buy-time-warner-cable-instead.html Questions for discussion: What is happening… Read more »
Super-rich CEOs are mad as hell, and not gonna take this anymore
Description: As the insensitive comments and sky-high salaries add up, it’s easy to start thinking that CEOs and other execs have completely lost touch with the lives of everyday Americans. Sadly, that’s likely the case. Source: Fortune.com Date: Feb 14, 2014 Link: http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2014/02/14/out-of-touch-ceos/ Questions for discussion: Summarize the basic argument presented in this report. Do… Read more »
How Airbus Is Debugging the A350
Description: A few times a month, Airbus Flight Test Engineer Patrick du Ché stands up from his desk, takes off his jacket and tie, walks to the coat rack in the corner of his office, and slips into a set of fire-resistant underwear, a bright-orange flight suit, and sturdy black boots. Then he walks down two… Read more »
