All major social sites see more usage among moms compared with the general population

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

Description: US moms continue to increase their social media usage. According to a March 2013 study by comScore for online parenting resource BabyCenter, more than 90% of US mom internet users reported using social media on a regular basis. BabyCenter estimated that 20% more moms used social media in 2013 than did so in 2010. At this point, moms who do not use social media are becoming practically unheard of.

Source: eMarketer.com

Date: May 01, 2013

Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Why-Moms-Social/1009855#VbHHpt8cXECYS5zs.99

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the highlights in this report.
  • What is the message to marketing managers?

Inventors Paradise Is Coolest Spot in San Francisco

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

Description: Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg Brink” explores how cutting edge technology and high-end machinery are increasingly accessible. Here, Rachel Crane visits San Francisco’s TechShop. (Source: Bloomberg)

Source: Bloomberg.com – video report

Date: Apr 26, 2013

Link: http://bloom.bg/17n0GSV#ooid=03eXI3YjrSOwaG5KTdiQMGS7jtB6IW3Y

Questions for Discussions:

  • What role does a Techshop play in the development of innovation and product development?
  • Which other industries can benefit from this model?

Apple’s 10-Year-Old iTunes Loses Ground to Streaming

Posted by & filed under Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description:  A decade ago, the newly started iTunes Store gave away a song called Over My Head (Cable Car) by an obscure Denver rock group called The Fray. That was, explains lead guitarist Joe King, the band’s big break. “I’ll never forget, our manager e-mailed and said there had been 300,000 downloads,” says King. “Immediately our fan base went from several hundred to thousands, everywhere. Our tour started selling out.” These days, iTunes doesn’t offer that kind of overnight success for undiscovered musicians, despite its 435 million registered users.

Source:  Businessweek.com

Date: Apr 25, 2013

Link: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-04-25/apples-10-year-old-itunes-loses-ground-to-streaming

Questions for Discussions:

  • How has the online music business model changed since iTunes began?
  • Do you agree with the comment that today’s music customer wants “access” rather than ownership of music?
  • What does that mean in terms of the services and features consumers look for from online vendors?
  • Why do you suppose Apple has neglected the iTunes site?

Is it ever OK to compliment appearance on the job?

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

Description: When Lisa Parker was new to corporate coaching, a senior-level colleague she respected brought her in as his No. 2 for a series of training seminars. Time and time again, he introduced her as smart, capable and beautiful. “I was so uncomfortable,” she said. “The first time it happened I remember standing there waiting to take the front of the room and thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe he just said that.'”

Source: Dish.net

Date: Apr 20, 2013

Link: http://www.dish.net/news/read/category/us/article/ap-is_it_ever_ok_to_compliment_appearance_o-ap

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the managerial concerns related to this issue.
  • What is the advice directed at management and employees?
  • Do you think men and women perceive this issue differently?
  • How can management mitigate problems?

Boutique Vintners Turn to Private Equity for Help

Posted by & filed under Management.

Description:  When Ed Sbragia started Sbragia Family Vineyards, it was an accomplishment that was nearly a century in the making. His grandfather moved from Italy to California in 1904 to work in the wineries just north of San Francisco. In the 1940s, Mr. Sbragia’s father bought property in the Dry Creek Valley near Healdsburg and planted zinfandel grapes, which he sold to local winemakers and used for his own home wine.

Source:  NYTimes.com

Date: Apr 25, 2013

Link:  http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/04/25/boutique-vintners-turn-to-private-equity-for-help/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Why would small wineries need venture capital?
  • What are the concerens entrepreneurs would have with taking on venture capital partners?
  • What are the benefits?
  • How can venture capitalists help boutique wineries with mergers?
  • Why would banks be reluctant lenders to boutique wineries?

Internet Sales Tax Coming Too Late for Some Stores

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

Description:  Anita Demetropoulos, a Maine shopkeeper, figured she would never see the day when her most relentless competitor, Amazon, would be forced to collect sales tax.

Source:  NYTimes.com

Date: Apr 26, 2013

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/technology/internet-sales-tax-coming-too-late-for-some-stores.html?_r=0&adxnnl=1&ref=business&adxnnlx=1367075722-WWYd/ji/2PZqa8QTItbNpA

Questions for Discussions:

  • Do you think the tax legislation was delayed to help companies like Amazon get started?
  • Do you think tax avoidance is a major consumer decision-making factor to buy online?
  • How should online and other retail merchants adjust to the new reality?

How a U.S. shoemaker stays competitive

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

Description: Okabashi Brands was founded in the 1980s when U.S. manufacturing was shrinking. But thanks to automation, a U.S. workforce, and recycling methods, Okabashi is a success story.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Apr 1, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/smallbusiness/2013/04/17/small-business-smt-okabashi-shoes-made-is-usa.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the highlights in this report.
  • How has the firm managed to operate profitably?
  • What are the firm’s competitive advantages?

Why Tesco failed in the U.S.

Posted by & filed under Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description:  British grocery retailer Tesco pulls out of the U.S. market after failing to make a profit. Some analysts blame the company’s poor judgment of U.S. consumer tastes.

Source:  CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Apr 18, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2013/04/18/n-cmr-tesco-us-market.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Why did the retailer fail in the US?
  • What does this report say about management decision-making and research?

Need Motivation? Declare a Deadline

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

Description: AT a meeting last Tuesday, I told my colleagues that I would finish this column — which is about deadlines — by noon on Thursday. I spent part of Tuesday afternoon searching the word “deadlines” on Google, but didn’t make much progress. By late afternoon, I felt a tiny knot of fear in my stomach. What if I let my co-workers down? So I wrote something silly just to get started. This paragraph.

Source: NYTimes.com

Date: Apr 20, 2013

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/jobs/deadline-pressure-the-great-motivator.html?_r=0&adxnnl=1&ref=business&adxnnlx=1366485302-E0HxA1WbllkBpW3ibD7bCg

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about motivation and self-regulation?
  • What do you think of these “techniques”?

Amazon’s ‘Betas’ Sends Up Life in a Pseudo Silicon Valley

Posted by & filed under Management.

Description:  If you can peel away from the drumbeat of news coverage from Boston, you may have noticed that Amazon (AMZN) has posted 14 television pilots to its website today and is asking its users to fill in for the role of network executive. The e-commerce giant will evaluate customer reviews and data about viewing habits to decide which programs it will develop into a full series, part of a big bet to add original programming to its streaming video catalog.

Source:  Businessweek.com

Date: Apr 19, 2013

Link:  http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-04-19/amazon-s-betas-sends-up-life-in-a-pseudo-silicon-valley#r=nav-fst

Questions for Discussions:

  • What do you think of this idea?
  • What are the benefits to management besides promotion and publicity?