Will Marissa Mayer’s Yahoo ban on work at home increase productivity? New research suggests not

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Description:  In the selfish spirit of one who works at home quite a bit, I’m tempted to pile on with all the other telecommuters to spew vitriol at Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer for requiring all Yahoo employees to come to work every day — no exceptions, even to wait for the cable guy. Source:  Boston.com –… Read more »

Snapshots of a Commute-Free Life

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description:  Ever since Yahoo! (YHOO) Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer issued a company-wide telecommuting ban, the practice of “working from home” has come under scrutiny. What’s the reality of the commute-free, office-free life? Is it a bold frontier in tech-enabled productivity—or a green light to play Angry Birds full-time? We tracked down some full-time telecommuters… Read more »

At ChristianMingle and JDate, God’s Your Wingman

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Description:  The ads resemble a highlight reel from a Nicholas Sparks movie: Couples twirl, cuddle, and walk hand in hand through golden fields. “Sometimes we wait for God to make the next move, when God is saying, ‘It’s your time to act,’?” the kind-sounding narrator says. “The next move is yours.” Finally, the trademarked slogan:… Read more »

Classic Toys Redesigned to Traverse Generations

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Description:  To Hasbro, no one is too young or too old to play with a Transformers robot, watch a Transformers television show or play a Transformers video game. Source:  NYTimes.com Date: Mar 01, 2013 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/02/business/hasbro-expands-transformers-brand-into-new-media.html?ref=business&_r=0 Questions for Discussions: Describe the strategic planning at Hasbro. Do you think it is a good way to grow… Read more »

CEO to France: ‘How Stupid Do You Think We Are?’

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Description: The CEO of U.S. tire maker Titan International delivered a blistering critique of French working habits, writing to France’s industry minister that his company would be “stupid” to take over a Goodyear factory in France. WSJ’s Grainne McCarthy joins The News Hub to discuss the potential fallout for President Hollande’s labor-reform plans. Photo: AP…. Read more »

At Whole Foods, Low Prices Mean Trouble in Aisle 2

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Description:  WSJ’s Annie Gasparro explains Whole Foods’ efforts to reign in prices and shed its reputation as an over-priced grocer caused it to take it on the chin in its latest earnings report. Photo: Getty Images. Source: WSJ.com – video report Date: Feb 14, 2013 Link: http://on.wsj.com/15f8G8h Questions for Discussions: Describe the change in pricing… Read more »

Steady Gains for Mobile Paid Search

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Description:  Nearly one in four paid clicks came from a mobile device in Q4 Source:  eMarketer.com Date: Feb 22, 2013 Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Steady-Gains-Mobile-Paid-Search/1009686#EqlIRUBFwRKOmTZo.99 Questions for Discussions: What does this report say about the growth of mobile search advertising? How will marketing operations be expected to change as this trend grows?

Women Who Run Tech Startups Are Catching Up

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Description:  Women-led private technology companies are more capital-efficient, achieve 35 percent higher return on investment, and, when venture-backed, bring in 12 percent higher revenue than male-owned tech companies. That’s according to new research presented at a recent conference in San Francisco organized by Women 2.0, a media company devoted to women founders in the tech… Read more »

Why Women ­in Hollywood Can’t Get Film Financing

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Description:  At last month’s Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, some film financiers met for nachos at the Wasatch Brew Pub to toast their comedy, Ass Backwards—a Dumb and Dumber-esque tale of two women who enter a beauty pageant. Dori Sperko, who’d been dabbling in Hollywood funding since selling her Florida-based payroll services company… Read more »

Nike’s long list of tainted sponsorships

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Description: Olympian Oscar Pistorius, now an alleged murderer, is the latest in a string of Nike athletes to fall from grace. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: Feb 15, 2013 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2013/02/14/n-nike-oscar-pistorius-sponsorship-homicide-shooting.cnnmoney/ Questions for Discussions: How should management at firms like Nike handle sponsorship scandals? Do you believe that the publicity generated by scandals actually… Read more »