Monthly Archives: January 2011

There’s a clothing drop box down the street that says, “The American Red Cross of Massachusetts is a humanitarian organization, led by volunteers, that provides relief to victims of disasters and helps people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies.” … Continue reading →

The following interview nightmare comes from when I was sitting on the board of directors of a small nonprofit: We were interviewing finalists for the executive director position, and one director asked the last candidate, “Larry, what do you consider … Continue reading →

I had just woken up in a hotel in San Jose, California, last week and I was brushing my teeth when I suddenly felt a powerful wave of something I can only describe as joy. Perhaps oddly, it was about … Continue reading →

In the wake of President Obama’s State of the Union address and his appointment of Jeff Immelt of GE to chair his new Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, there has been a heated debate in the United States about the … Continue reading →

Most sales and service organization have invested more time and effort in the past five years in improving managers’ coaching of reps than they did in the previous 50. This makes perfect sense: research by the Sales Executive Council shows … Continue reading →

President Obama faced the task of giving the annual report to the nation’s shareholders in the 2011 State of the Union Address on Tuesday evening. He addressed that task carefully, with his usual aplomb, but with a lack of innovation … Continue reading →

In 1996, I switched jobs within Smith Barney from investment banking to equity research; within weeks Smith Barney bought Salomon Brothers. That should have been a good thing, except that I had been hired to start coverage of the Cement … Continue reading →

Even if you don’t love American football, you have to love the business brilliance behind the Super Bowl. The National Football League (NFL) championship game set a record for the most-watched TV program in history in 2010, at 106.5 million … Continue reading →

We are all trying to figure out how to get more value from online social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Most of us are just skimming the surface in terms of the potential these networks offer us as individuals. To … Continue reading →

(See Michael’s earlier notes from Davos here, here, here, and here. And follow Justin Fox’s coverage of the conference.) Probably half the people here have departed already. The Davos week seems to really wind down fast after Friday, which caps … Continue reading →