Recent Articles
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Taking a vacation when you don’t have enough vacation time
Catherine Iste Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementSummer is a great time for a new job. From new grads looking to put their foot in the door to seasoned professionals just waiting for the summer to move their family across the country for an amazing opportunity, summertime is a great time to transition. Unfortunately, it is also a great time to take a vacation. For new employees at any level, this can be a challenge. Here are a few things to consider when trying to take a vacation without enough vacation time.
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Unique patient identifier ban lifted in House vote, still faces Senate
Scott E. Rupp Healthcare AdministrationThe 20-year ban on the ability of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to establish a unique patient identifier has finally been struck down — in part. A unique patient identifier (or the lack of one) has long been a primary issue for health IT insiders and leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of ending the ban June 12. If it becomes law, it would allow federal funds to create the long-sought-after patient identifiers. The bill now moves to the Senate to be taken up for debate.
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Observing the latest hospitality tech from HITEC 2019 in Minneapolis
Linchi Kwok Travel, Hospitality & Event ManagementI was in Minneapolis recently for HITEC 2019 (Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition & Conference), marking the third time I attended the conference's exposition. This time, I paid special attention to the new technologies and products on the exhibition floor, such as those using facial recognition or AI in providing robotic services. I was unable to recognize any revolutionary innovations at the exposition, but I believe two of my observations may warrant some discussion.
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Falling mortgage rates lift home sales
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsProspective homebuyers took advantage of a drop in mortgage rates in May to scoop up available inventory. Entry-level and lower-income buyers were especially eager to lock in a purchase in anticipation that lower rates will cause home prices to creep upwards again. It was only the second time this year that sales of existing homes increased month-over-month. New home sales, on the other hand, plummeted for the second month in a row.
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Law enforcement agencies, lawmakers develop new steps to combat the opioid…
Bambi Majumdar Law Enforcement, Defense & SecurityThe opioid crisis is real, and it's growing at an alarming rate. Authorities around the country are taking whatever steps necessary to avert further deaths. One example is the new opioid crisis response bill signed by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Now, prescription drug manufacturers and distributors in Minnesota will have to pay increased annual licensing fees to do business in the state. Under the new law, the fee is set to jump from about $200 to up to $305,000 a year. The increased fees will raise $20 million per year, which will go towards addiction prevention and treatment and addressing the opioid epidemic in the state.
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Get more eyes on your company’s blog today
Mashaal Ryan MarketingYou've got the website, logo, and blog designed for your company. Congrats! The more you update your website with top SEO keywords, the higher you show up in Google's search algorithm. Now comes the next step — you've written some articles or had freelancers write them for you, and you've posted them. You are waiting eagerly for those hits, comments, shares — but you aren't seeing them and it's been months. How can you get more eyes on your company's website and blog?
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Manufacturing slowdown sparks new political strategies
Michelle R. Matisons ManufacturingThe White House's official optimistic manufacturing narrative has been seriously disjointed from real-world production and employment issues in the very important and inherently political manufacturing sector. President Trump hung his hat on increased manufacturing jobs to get elected, but a persistent trade deficit haunts his administration — increasing by $100 billion under his watch. Now that this harsh reality can’t be ignored, we see some politicians initiating new strategies to address the slowdown.
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Phoenix Sky Harbor submits 20-year master plan for improvements
Matt Falcus Transportation Technology & AutomotivePhoenix is an airport on the move, and if the FAA agrees, it could soon be spending $5.7 billion on upgrades to achieve a new 20-year plan. With aging infrastructure and a hemmed-in location, its owners have decided that now is the time to deal with the issues hindering its potential. The airport confirmed that the city’s mayor and council voted on June 11 to send its Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Comprehensive Asset Management Plan (CAMP) to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for approval.
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Interior Department announces proposal for hunting, fishing expansion
John McAdams Recreation & LeisureHunters and anglers received some good news earlier this month when Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt announced plans to further expand hunting and fishing opportunities on dozens of properties managed by the National Wildlife Refuge System all over the United States. You're right if you're thinking you've heard news like this before: then-Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke made a similar announcement expanding public access for hunting and fishing on National Wildlife Refuges a year ago. The plan announced by Secretary Bernhardt opens additional public lands to hunting and fishing on top of those opened last year.
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A net loss: Why focusing on Net Promoter Scores can hurt your business
Linda Popky MarketingNet Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty metric introduced in 2003. It scores customer loyalty based on a single question: "On a scale of 1-10, how likely is it that you would recommend our company/product/service to a friend or colleague?" Customers who respond with a 9 or 10 are considered Promoters. Anyone scoring below 6 is considered a Detractor; those who answer 7 or 8 are considered Passive. The NPS score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of customers who are Detractors from those who are Promoters. It's an interesting methodology. The problem is it isn't necessarily right much of the time.