20 Things 20-Year-Olds Don’t Get

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

Description:  I started Docstoc in my 20’s, made the cover of one of those cliché “20 Under 20” lists, and today I employ an amazing group of 20-somethings.  Call me a curmudgeon, but at 34, how I came up seems so different from what this millennial generation expects.

Source: Forbes.com

Date: July 23, 2013

Link: http://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonnazar/2013/07/23/20-things-20-year-olds-dont-get/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize what the article says about some young people and their orientation toward career and work?
  • Do you agree with this assessment?
  • Which items do you think apply most?
  • Are there other items you would add to this list?

Starwood: Tech boosts hotel bookings

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

Description: According Starwood CFO Vasant Prabhu, the internet and technology has made traveling cheaper without taking away the need for face-to-face meetings.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: August 14, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2013/08/14/f-leadership-starwood-cfo-vasant-prabhu-corporate-travel.fortune/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does Vasant Prabhu have to say about the use of communications technology and the human need to meet people face-to-face?
  • Do you think management should encourage one form of communications over another?

The business of Ashton Kutcher

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

Description: Ashton Kutcher is more entrenched in the tech world than simply playing the role of Steve Jobs. He actually throws around big dollars investing in some of the hottest startups.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: August 16, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2013/08/16/t-ashton-kutcher-business-steve-jobs.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • Is Ashton Kutcher a typical venture capitalist?
  • Why do you suppose Ashton Kutcher has been so successful as an investor?
  • Do you think his “name” association with a firm can influence the stock value?
  • How can management leverage his investment?

Novel Ways to Solve Exporting Riddles for Small Businesses

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

Description: About two-thirds of small businesses that don’t export goods or services would like to start selling overseas, according to a June study (PDF) from the National Small Business Association (NSBA). Almost half of those businesses said a main barrier is that they’re “not sure where to start.” Given President Barack Obama’s promise in 2010 to double exports by 2015, helping would-be exporters navigate the many federal agencies that offer resources to promote foreign trade seems like a good idea.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: August 16, 2013

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-08-16/novel-ways-to-solve-exporting-riddles-for-small-businesses#r=hpt-fs

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about the challenges facing small businesses that wish to export?
  • What are the recommendations for improvements?

Hanging Out at the E-Mall

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

Description: Shopping online is easier than shopping in a mall — as long as you know exactly what you want to buy. The problem comes when you don’t know what you want.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: August 17, 2013

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/17/technology/hanging-out-at-the-e-mall.html?ref=business

Questions for Discussions:

  • Describe how the sites help create a better online shopping experience.
  • How do they influence customer behavior?
  • Which sorts of consumer products do you think would do better with online social support?

 

Carlos Brito: (Brew)master of the universe

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

Description: Carlos Brito is walking the aisles of a vast São Paulo supermarket, continually stopping to pick up pieces of trash — a paper cup, a plastic fork — or to pull certain cartons of beer to the front of the shelves for better visibility. These are the kinds of menial tasks most executives wouldn’t touch. But Brito, CEO of the world’s biggest beer company, isn’t like most executives.

Source: CNNMoney.com

Date: August 15, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/2013/08/15/leadership/carlos-brito-inbev.pr.fortune/index.html?iid=SF_F_River

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does the article have to say about leadership qualities?
  • Summarize the history of the company and its current situation.

How to Make a Tesla: A View From the Factory Floor

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

Description: Aug. 7 (Bloomberg) — Bloomberg Businessweek’s Ashlee Vance tours Tesla’s factory floor. (Source: Bloomberg)

Source: Bloomberg.com – video report

Date: August 07, 2013

Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/video/a-tour-of-tesla-s-factory-floor-mODU5sP6RC~HNgoCzv6uYw.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • How does reducing inventories of parts help control costs of production?
  • How else can management strategy reduce production costs?

Body Glove: Perfecting the wetsuit

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

Description: Twin brothers Bill and Bob Meistrell created the first practical wetsuit out of neoprene. But finding the perfect material meant a lot of trial and error – including with old Pontiac parts.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: August 06, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/smallbusiness/2013/08/06/sbiz-hwgs-body-glove.cnnmoney/index.html

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about management style and the chances of entrepreneurial success?
  • How would you describe the culture of the organization?

Rhea Lana’s Unpaid Moms ‘Don’t Care About Making Minimum Wage’

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

Description: Rhea Lana Riner is on a mission to get government off her back. As chief executive and founder of Rhea Lana’s, a children’s consignment franchise business based in Conway, Ark., Riner has been investigated twice in the past two years for labor violations, first by the Arkansas Department of Labor and then by the wage and hour division of the U.S. Department of Labor.

Source: Businessweek.com

Date: August 09, 2013

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-08-09/rhea-lanas-unpaid-moms-dont-care-about-making-minimum-wage#r=hpt-lst

Questions for Discussions:

  • Do you think Riner is doing anything unethical?
  • What issue is at the center of this debate between the players?
  • What is your opinion on the matter?

How UrgentRx Crashed the Party at the Cash Register

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

Description: The checkout line in Duane Reade drugstores encompasses some of the most coveted real estate in New York. Within a five-foot radius of the cash register, dozens of the biggest brands in the world vie for attention from hooks, racks and shelves, every inch of which have been allocated according to the product’s place in the retail pecking order.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: August 09, 2013

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/08/business/smallbusiness/how-urgentrx-crashed-the-party-at-the-cash-register.html?ref=smallbusiness&_r=0

Questions for Discussions:

  • Explain how Jordan Eisenberg has managed to penetrate the distribution barrier at major retailers.
  • What does this report say about entrepreneurial thinking?