As Silicon Valley faces a tech reckoning, biologists point to the next big opportunity

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Strategy.

Description: At one of the world’s largest synthetic biology conferences this week, a food truck handed out papaya and yogurt samples to hundreds of attendees. The papaya wasn’t any ordinary papaya: It was a genetically engineered fruit that Dr. Dennis Gonsalves designed to be naturally resistant to the ringworm virus. Because of his invention, pesticide use dropped… Read more »

Inside the intense world of Birkin bag collectors, who pay up to $500,000 for one bag

Posted by & filed under Communication, Decision Making, Ethics & Social Responsibility, International Business, Management, Strategy.

Description: Would you pay $500,000 … for a bag? In 2019, a diamond-encrusted Birkin handbag made of crocodile, from the French luxury brand Hermes, sold for half a million dollars. The Birkin consistently shatters sales records at auction, selling in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. But experts say the bag cost just $2,000 at… Read more »

The Weekly Listen: Airbnb’s IPO and Facebook Acquires ‘Mind-Reading Wristband’ Company

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Description: eMarketer principal analysts Mark Dolliver and Nicole Perrin join vice president of content studio Paul Verna to discuss Airbnb’s upcoming IPO, Facebook’s acquisition of “mind-reading wristband” company CTRL-labs, highlights from New York Advertising Week 2019 and more. Source: eMarketer.com – podcast Date: Sep 25, 2019 Link: https://www.emarketer.com/content/podcast-the-weekly-listen-airbnb-ipo-and-facebook-acquires-mind-reading-wristband-company?ecid=NL1001 Questions for discussion: What are the highlights… Read more »

Walmart to exit e-cigarette category as pressure mounts on vaping

Posted by & filed under Communication, Control, Decision Making, Ethics & Social Responsibility, Leadership, Management, Strategy.

Description: Walmart (WMT) is exiting the e-cigarette category completely as a rash of mysterious deaths linked to vaping draws intense scrutiny. Source: Finance.Yahoo.com – video report Date: Sep 20, 2019 Link: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/walmart-to-exit-e-cigarette-category-as-pressure-mounts-on-vaping-170930026.html Questions for discussion: What are the financial implications for Walmart’s decision? Do you think management is trying to get ahead of a government… Read more »

The new technology that could turn small businesses into international companies

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Description: Advancements in machine translation technology are helping consumers, gamers and small businesses Source: MarketWatch.com Date: Sep 12, 2019 Link: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/translation-technology-promises-to-break-down-the-language-barriers-of-international-commerce-2019-09-12?mod=mw_theo_homepage Questions for discussion: Why is this technology so significant for businesses all around the world? What are the concerns management should be wary of?

US Consumers Tolerate Ads if They’re Expecting Them or They’re Incentivized

Posted by & filed under Communication, Ethics & Social Responsibility, Management, Strategy.

Description: US digital buyers that were surveyed considered static banner ads (16%), sponsored posts in social media feeds (14%) and sponsored search results (12%) to be the most useful digital ad formats. Overall, however, almost 58% of digital buyers said they didn’t think any digital ads were useful to them. Source: eMarketer.com Date: Sep 11,… Read more »

Can Sotheby’s Find Sales Success by Going Private?

Posted by & filed under Decision Making, International Business, Leadership, Management, Strategy.

Description: How do you turn an ancient, labor-intensive prestige brand into a money machine? That’s the challenge facing French telecommunications mogul Patrick Drahi, who on Thursday won approval from shareholders of Sotheby’s to take the 275-year-old auction house private in a transaction worth $3.7 billion. Source: Fortune.com Date: Sep 06, 2019 Link: https://fortune.com/2019/09/06/sothebys-sale-drahi/ Questions for… Read more »

Nordstrom Tests Accepting Online Returns Bought From Rivals

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Description: Nordstrom Inc. is trying an unusual approach to get busy New York City shoppers in its doors: Letting them return merchandise they bought online—from other retailers. Source: Fortune.com Date: Sep 06, 2019 Link: https://fortune.com/2019/09/06/nordstrom-tests-accepting-online-returns-from-rivals-such-as-macys/ Questions for discussion: Is this a good idea? What is the benefit to customers and to Nordstrom? Would an “any-brand”… Read more »

The Renaissance of Somewhat Controversial Public Transit Ads

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Description: eMarketer principal analysts Nicole Perrin and Andrew Lipsman discuss the wave of contentious subway ads: What’s allowed? What isn’t? Why have startups become obsessed with marketing on public transit? They also talk about YouTube’s latest FTC fine, a new partnership between TikTok and the National Football League and more. Source: eMarketer.com – podcast Date:… Read more »

Change the World 2019: Where Business Creates Virtuous Circles

Posted by & filed under Communication, Ethics & Social Responsibility, Management, Strategy.

Description: You might not expect modern corporations to tackle an urgent problem of the 21st century by looking back to the 1950s. But that’s what one group of companies is doing with a new service called Loop, whose backers refer to its approach as “the milkman model.” Source: Fortune.com Date: Aug 19, 2019 Link: https://fortune.com/2019/08/19/change-the-world-circular-economy/ Questions… Read more »