Recent Articles
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Will the 2020s see the rise of the retail robots?
Katherine Radin RetailGiven the current retail landscape, it comes as no surprise that retailers are diversifying their strategies to avoid closings or losing business to online shoppers. At the National Retail Federation's recent trade show, robots took the spotlight as a solution for retailers looking to improve their inventory management strategies. Some retailers have already been using robots in their distribution centers, and Walmart has recently adopted these high-tech "employees" as well. What does that mean for the industry, retail workers, and in-store shoppers?
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Research: An analysis of travelers’ choices to share or access home-sharing…
Linchi Kwok Travel, Hospitality & Event ManagementOne selling point of a home-sharing service is that it gives travelers unique social interactions with the host. Early literature about home-sharing services also confirms that travelers appreciate the interactions with the local hosts. An argument, however, arises that the "sharing" economy is actually an "access" economy. Some travelers only pay for permission to use someone else's facility with no interest in social interactions. If travelers merely want to "access" a home-sharing facility, the differences between a home-sharing stay and a regular hotel stay become nebulous.
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Creeping prices keep lid on home sales
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsLow mortgage rates helped drive home sales in December. At the same time, shrinking inventories combined with increased demand to push home prices higher. That left some buyers, especially those at entry level, with fewer or no options, holding down the number of potential sales. Nevertheless, analysts are optimistic that market conditions will remain positive in 2020. Sales of existing homes rebounded from a 1.7% drop in November, climbing 3.6% month-over-month in December. Much of that gain came from condo and co-op sales, which soared 10.7% for the month.
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A look at the important state-level criminal justice reforms of 2020
Bambi Majumdar Law Enforcement, Defense & Security2020 has started with a wave of criminal justice reform laws coming into effect across the country. New state laws have come in the wake of President Trump signing the bipartisan First Step Act into law in December 2018. Some states even passed dozens of measures, all of which took effect this month. In particular, the last year was especially eventful for New York as far as criminal justice reform is concerned. The state's Democratic majority wasted no time in pushing significant reforms at the state level.
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4 tips for managing last-minute ideas
Deborah Ike Religious Community"I have an idea…" This phrase tends to mean an avalanche of work is headed your way. While the idea that's coming may be excellent and worth doing, what a church business administrator dreads is the likely effort to cram too many tasks into a short time frame. As you know, turning vision into reality is a tall order. If you've been hearing those dreaded words a lot lately and feel like your team is in a vicious cycle of last-minute planning, here are four tips to break the cycle.
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27 Nosler cartridge debuts at 2020 SHOT Show
John McAdams Recreation & LeisureWhile January and February are usually slow months for actually going hunting, this time of year can be pretty exciting for other reasons. Many big outdoor shows occur during this time of year. Not only are these shows great opportunities to find and evaluate prospective hunting outfitters, but most of the big outdoor companies also like to unveil their new products at these shows as well. Similar to how Winchester formally released its 350 Legend cartridge at the 2019 SHOT Show, Nosler just unveiled its brand-new 27 Nosler cartridge at the 2020 SHOT Show.
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Rest your eyes and listen
Debra Josephson Abrams EducationStories designed to teach particular lessons, such as Aesop's Fables or Chassidic tales, can be used to promote cultural awareness and sensitivity; critical and creative thinking; making predictions and inferences; the elements of literature; and story-making and storytelling so students can create their own lessons. Though we often associate fables and tales with children, they transcend age; the best have lessons to teach all of us. There are a number of ways you can design a fable-making project.
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Non-negotiable needs for struggling learners
Howard Margolis EducationWhen teachers and other IEP team members work tirelessly to accelerate struggling learners' (SLs) rates of progress, they often fall short of their goals. Often, progress regresses, stagnates, or crawls forward by only small inches rather than the 10 yards the IEP team had deemed realistic. Why regression? Why stagnation? Why only a few inches? Some of these SLs try hard but unsuccessfully to succeed. Some don't focus, some lack energy, some show little interest, some angrily resist instruction, and some disrupt instruction with ingenious antics.
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Why you should ban the yearly planning meeting
Robert C. Harris Association ManagementI would ban the yearly planning meeting, preferring a three-year approach to strategic planning. Strategic planning is the process for defining direction, setting priorities and aligning resources. It serves as a guide for successive boards, committees and the staff. It is developed at a multi-year leadership retreat. Some organizations convene a yearly planning meeting where directors are asked to set 12 months of priorities. This is quite different than a periodic leadership retreat, though the two concepts are sometimes confused.
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Little-known secrets of visiting Utah’s national parks
Cindy Belt Recreation & LeisureUtah is known for its gorgeous national parks: Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands. Everyone knows about these parks, so the popular parts of these parks can be too busy to really enjoy and "get away from it all." However, there are places nearby that are less visited and are very special. This article includes six such stops.