Recent Articles

  • Interior design recovery robust but uneven

    Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

    ​After several years of modest growth following the recession, the interior design industry experienced a surge of activity in 2015 that continued into the first half of this year. Although demand softened somewhat in the third quarter, in most areas of the country the industry has made a full recovery.

  • 3 emerging ways to earn non-dues revenue

    Shawn Smajstrla Association Management

    Despite their nonprofit status, associations — just like any business — require revenue to operate. Traditionally, dues paid by members constituted the operating capital for associations. Increasingly, though, non-dues revenue has become an important and necessary means of supplementing an organization's dues income to allow it to fulfill its mission.

  • 1 quick thing to do today to help your website

    Mark MacDonald Religious Community

    ​When people show up at the door of your church and they've never attended before, you should have a protocol for guests. But pretend you're the only one nearby when they carefully open the door with that "Am I at the right place?" look on their face. You greet them, "Hi! I'm glad you're here. Can I help you find something?"

  • The myths and realities of sighted vs. point shooting

    Mike Ox Law Enforcement, Defense & Security

    A common argument in the shooting world for the last half decade has been whether it's better to focus on your threat when shooting or focus on your front sights. The answer is "yes." OK, so it's a little more complicated than that. But as you get deeper and deeper into shooting, you come to realize it's not a black-and-white issue.

  • New hope for treatment-resistant depression

    Dorothy L. Tengler Mental Healthcare

    Although sadness is something we all experience from time to time, depression interferes with daily life and normal functioning, causing pain not only for us but also for those who care about us. Current research suggests depression is caused by a combination of genetic, biological, environmental and psychological factors. Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects approximately 16 million people in the United States and 121 million people worldwide.

  • So you’ve been promoted to manage your former peers ...

    Ryan Clark Business Management, Services & Risk Management

    Workplace competition can be beneficial to productivity, but what happens when a race's winner is placed in charge of his or her opponents? How do you supervise employees who still see you as (or refuse to see you as anything other than) an equal? For anyone interested in incredibly awkward anecdotes, as well as possible solutions, join me as I kick off the Halloween season with an unfortunately common workplace horror story: managers dealing with workplace jealousy.

  • 7 tips to get the most out of your church management software

    Carol Brown Religious Community

    Your church needs new church management software (ChMS), and your leadership is on board. A committee is formed. Meetings, demos and detailed analysis follow. After lots of research, thought, and great expectations, software is bought.

  • Metals Thoughts: Bank doubleheader

    Brad Yates Natural Resources

    ​The next 36 hours or so are likely to have an outsized effect on capital markets the world over as we get the Bank of Japan (BoJ) statement tonight and the Federal Open Market Commitee (FOMC) announcement and presser tomorrow afternoon.

  • Open access: What’s it all about?

    Charles A. Turek Transportation Technology & Automotive

    First, let's make sure we are clear what open access means — what it is and what it is not in a railroad context in America. Generally speaking, an open-access railway is one that sells slots on its track for trains operated by other companies. In its purest form, these other companies are called train-operating companies (TOCs), and they own trains but no tracks. This is essentially the original U.K. model for open access.

  • Overtime overboard: The numbers game

    Catherine Iste

    The new overtime rules will affect an estimated 4 million workers, according to the U. S. Department of Labor. Many of those will be in the retail and hospitality industries, and much has already been written on how to cope with the changes if you work in either field.