Who’s behind the smiling faces of some Airbnb hosts? Multimillion-dollar corporations

Posted by & filed under Entrepreneurship, Ethics, Management, Operations Management, Planning, Social Responsibility, Strategy, Technology.

Description: Personable biographies or even fake photos obscure the operations of big businesses Source: CBC.ca Date: Apr 30, 2019 Link: https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/biggest-airbnb-hosts-canada-corporations-1.5116103 Questions for discussion: What are the managerial implications for Airbnb if the brand becomes associated with “bigger-businesses”? Would Airbnb benefit if management created a visible category of rentals from “bigger-businesses”?

Apple is finally moving beyond the iPhone as the smartphone industry stalls out

Posted by & filed under Decision Making, Global Management, Innovation/Creativity, New product, Planning, Strategy, Technology.

Description: Apple’s iPhone is an incredible moneymaking machine. In the first three months of 2019, Apple sold $31 billion worth of iPhones. At the same time, the iPhone is becoming less important to Apple’s total sales as the smartphone industry stalls globally. Source: CNBC.com – video report Date: May 01, 2019 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/30/apple-earnings-show-company-moving-beyond-iphone.html Questions for discussion:… Read more »

How Social Media Users Have—and Have Not—Responded to Privacy Concerns

Posted by & filed under Control, Decision Making, Ethics, Global Management, Innovation/Creativity, Leadership, Management, Operations Management, Planning, Social Responsibility, Technology.

Description: The Facebook Cambridge Analytica revelations changed the way people in the US think about online privacy. And it should come as no surprise that many have grown wary over the mishandling of personal information. Source: eMarketer.com Date: Apr 29, 2019 Link: https://www.emarketer.com/content/how-social-media-users-have-and-have-not-responded-to-privacy-concerns?ecid=NL1001 Questions for discussion: Summarize the highlights presented in this article. Do you… Read more »

Amazon on pace to spend $7 billion on video and music content this year, according to new disclosure

Posted by & filed under Decision Making, Global Management, Innovation/Creativity, Leadership, Management, New product, Operations Management, Planning, Strategy, Technology.

Description: Amazon disclosed on Friday that it spent $1.7 billion on video and music content in the first quarter, providing a new number that investors have previously been forced to predict. Source: CNBC.com – video report Date: Apr 26, 2019 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/26/amazon-on-pace-to-spend-7-billion-on-video-and-music-content.html Questions for discussion: What competitive advantage does Amazon have in this marketplace? What strategy… Read more »

Startups are racing to commercialize DeepFakes’s powerful, internet-breaking AI

Posted by & filed under Communication, Decision Making, Entrepreneurship, Ethics, Global Management, Innovation/Creativity, Leadership, Management, Motivation, New product, Planning, Social Responsibility, Technology.

Description: A little over a year ago, an anonymous Reddit user named Deepfakes changed the internet. Source: FastCompany.com Date: Apr 23, 2019 Link: https://www.fastcompany.com/90337767/deepfakes-started-a-war-on-whats-real-these-startups-are-racing-to-commercialize-it?utm_source=postup&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Fast%20Company%20Daily&position=1&partner=newsletter&campaign_date=04232019 Questions for discussion: How does this AI software development present opportunities for entrepreneurs? What are the ethical and social issues related to the use of this software?

Pandora Appeals to Advertisers with ‘Co-Listening’ Data

Posted by & filed under Communication, Decision Making, Entrepreneurship, Global Management, Leadership, Management, New product, Planning, Strategy, Technology.

Description: More than 72 million people in the US will listen to Pandora on a monthly basis in 2019, according to our latest forecast. That’s 35.4% of digital audio listeners in the country. Source: eMarketer.com Date: Apr 23, 2019 Link: https://www.emarketer.com/content/pandora-appeals-to-advertisers-with-co-listening-data?ecid=NL1001 Questions for discussion: How are listening behaviors changing? What does “co-listening factor” mean? How… Read more »

SPOS #665 – Cal Newport On Digital Minimalism

Posted by & filed under Communication, Decision Making, Environment, Management, New product, Planning, Social Responsibility, Technology.

Description: Here it is: Six Pixels of Separation – Episode #665 – Host: Mitch Joel. Cal Newport is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Georgetown University. In addition to researching cutting edge technology, he also writes about the impact of these innovations on society. Cal is the author of six books, including the recently published bestseller, Digital Minimalism and (a personal… Read more »

Inside Tesla’s 100% renewable design for the Gigafactory

Posted by & filed under Decision Making, Global Management, Innovation/Creativity, Leadership, Management, New product, Operations Management, Planning, Social Responsibility, Technology.

Description: The factory, which currently makes battery packs and electric motors for the Model 3, will eventually be the biggest building in the world–with the world’s largest rooftop solar array. Source: FastCompany.com Date: Apr 15, 2019 Link: https://www.fastcompany.com/90334858/inside-teslas-100-renewable-design-for-the-gigafactory?utm_source=postup&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Fast%20Company%20Daily&position=1&partner=newsletter&campaign_date=04162019 Questions for discussion: How has Tesla designed for sustainability at the plant? Do you think that by… Read more »

The World’s Biggest Electric Vehicle Company Looks Nothing Like Tesla

Posted by & filed under Industrial Relations, Leadership, Management, Planning, Teams, Technology.

Description: BYD, which built the battery in your ’90s cellphone, now produces more EVs than anyone—and it wants to sell them to you, soon. Source: Bloomberg.com Date: Apr 16, 2019 Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-04-16/the-world-s-biggest-electric-vehicle-company-looks-nothing-like-tesla?srnd=businessweek-v2 Questions for discussion: Summarize the growth story and the reasons for the firm’s success. What are the messages to management at competitors like… Read more »

The 10 highest-paying entry-level jobs in tech

Posted by & filed under Compensation & Benefits, Management, Technology.

Description: The U.S. tech industry is currently adding new jobs at almost 400% the rate of other fields, and it pays workers about twice as much too, according to jobs site Comparably. Source: CNBC.com – video report Date: Apr 12, 2019 Link: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/04/16/comparably-the-10-highest-paying-entry-level-jobs-in-tech.html Questions for discussion: What are the knowledge and skill sets needed for many… Read more »