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

Description:  Three major trends are driving some of the biggest changes in social ad spend and helping kick up growth: the mobile channel, local outreach and native ad formats. Estimates from BIA/Kelsey released in its “Annual US Local Media Forecast: Social Local Media 2012-2017” report showed that the firm expected social media ad spending in the US to total $6.1 billion this year—and be just shy of $11 billion in 2017.

Source:  eMarketer.com

Date: Apr 19, 2013

Link: http://www.emarketer.com/Article/US-Social-Spend-Breakouts-Show-Rising-Influence-of-Mobile-Local-Outreach/1009827#XxhltTU7ZXSXMiyj.99

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about trends in adverstising spending?
  • What should advertising managers be doing about this shift?

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

Description: Bloomberg Contributing Editor Paul Kedrosky speaks discusses teenagers and social networking on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg West.” (Source: Bloomberg)

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Apr 12, 2013

Link: http://bloom.bg/YxnZYR

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say to managers of technolgy companies like Facebook?
  • How can Facebook respond to these challenges?
  • What are the messages in this report to entrepreneurs?

Posted by & filed under Management, Organizational Behavior.

Description:   JC Penney ousts CEO Ron Johnson, replacing him with the company’s former CEO. Is this a sign that JC Penney will be taken private?

Source:  CBBMoney.com – video report

Date: Apr 09, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/investing/2013/04/09/investing-the-buzz-jc-penney-ron-johnson.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • What are the possible reasons for bringing back Ron Johnson?
  • How might this affect overall management of the firm?
  • Do you think the company is preparing to go private?

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

Description: On today’s “Reganomix,” Bloomberg View Columnist Alan Tonelson and Alliance for American Manufacturing President Scott Paul debate the revival of U.S. manufacturing on Bloomberg Television’s “Street Smart.” (Source: Bloomberg)

Source: Bloomberg.com – video report

Date: Apr 10, 2013

Link: http://bloom.bg/YlHzae#ooid=xvMjN2YTqywyRZQs1zShNAxyh2k4Je0H

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this report say about the trends in manufacturing?
  • What should US managers be doing to increase manufacturing domestically?

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

Description:   Sarah Beatty was pregnant with her first child when she learned toxic mold might be spreading beneath the floorboards of her newly renovated Manhattan apartment. Although the scare turned out to be a false alarm, the former MTV marketing executive became concerned about health risks posed by materials in her home. Because her husband, Mark Buller, had decades of experience selling construction supplies, Beatty had wrongly assumed he’d be able to tell which ones were potentially harmful. “We truly didn’t know what was in a lot of stuff, and we didn’t know how to find out,” says Buller, who co-founded national distributor Marjam Supply with his brother in 1979.

Source:  Businessweek.com

Date: Apr 11, 2013

Linkhttp://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-04-11/with-eco-friendly-building-supplies-green-depot-thrives-in-the-construction-rebound#r=nav-r-story

Questions for Discussions:

  • What are the lessons for small business managers?
  • Do you think small business can penetrate the building materials supply chain by focusing on niche product categoies?

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

Description:  WHEN the board of J. C. Penney ousted its chief executive, Ron Johnson — news that broke last Monday — you might say it was, in some small way, because he didn’t understand Tracie Fobes.

Source:  NYTimes.com

Date: Apr 13, 2013

Link:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/14/business/for-penney-a-tough-lesson-in-shopper-psychology.html?ref=business&_r=0

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the importance of pricing strategies, the use of coupons, and other lessons for managers presented in this report?
  • Why do you think research missed this understanding of consumer behavior?

Posted by & filed under International Business, Management.

Description: Aereo allows users to stream broadcast networks over the internet and the major media companies are not happy about it.

Source: CNNMoney.com – video report

Date: Apr 03, 2013

Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2013/04/03/t-aereo-networks-tv.cnnmoney/

Questions for Discussions:

  • What does this technology suggest to you about the future of television distribution?
  • What would you advise networks and cable companies?

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

Description:   A wave of e-commerce companies are trying to build premium brands at discount prices by cutting out middlemen and going straight to manufacturers, Claire Cain Miller and Stephanie Clifford report Monday in The New York Times.

Source:  NYTimes.com – video report

Date: Apr 01, 2013

Link: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/01/daily-report-start-ups-aim-to-build-brands-by-selling-direct/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Describe the method used by Warby Parker and other e-commerce start-ups to capture market share from esatblished competitors.
  • Why do you think the method has been so successful?
  • How is this phenomenon changing the traditional channels of distribution?
  • What other high-priced products do you think lend themselves to this approach?

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

Description:  Ray Lane has stepped down as HP’s chairman, but he needs to leave the board entirely. And interim chairman Ralph Whitworth needs to rework the board’s composition.

Source:  Fortune.com

Date: Apr 04, 2013

Link: http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2013/04/05/hp-board-lane-whitworth/

Questions for Discussions:

  • Summarize the situation and reasons for the advice presented.
  • Do you agree with the arguments?

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

Description:  Investors are cheered by deal to feature Samsung in-store shops

Source:  Marketwatch.com

Date: Apr 04, 2013

Link:  http://www.marketwatch.com/story/best-buy-turns-the-tables-on-showrooming-2013-04-04?siteid=nwtwk

Questions for Discussions:

  • How has Best Buy responded to the challenges related to e-commerce?
  • How has this response changed the traditional channels of distribution?
  • Do you think this strategy will succeed?