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The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on payroll

Grace Ferguson Business Management, Services & Risk Management

Payroll is a core organizational function that any business with employees must perform. Often, though, it remains in the background, overshadowed by more visible operations, such as human resources and finance. But every now and then, an event comes along to remind us of payroll’s critical existence. Currently, that event is the COVID-19 pandemic. As some states move towards reopening their economies, employers are still reeling from the sudden emergence of COVID-19 and its adverse effects on payroll.

Can pandemic-surviving shopping malls actually thrive?

Terri Williams Retail

The coronavirus pandemic has hit U.S. shopping malls particularly hard. Shopping malls — by definition and function — have numerous stores in close proximity to each other. Typically, that creates a convenient shopping experience, as consumers can easily travel from one store to the next. But in our current environment, proximity is a negative attribute. Can shopping malls survive the pandemic and actually prosper on the other side?

Parenting, teaching, and working from home? Here are a few things that…

John Baker Education

Working from home (WFH) can be challenging in and of itself. WFH with kids calls for Herculean levels of mental — and, at times, physical — fortitude. We totally get it. Family comes first. This, however, doesn’t erase the fact that we still need to get stuff done. The way we go about balancing all of it becomes a decidedly intricate task. Fortunately, we have the world at our fingertips and the well of resources to draw from is vast.

Advocacy during a pandemic: Global perspectives

Bob Harris and Camelia Bulat Association Management

Now is the time to increase advocacy efforts, not put them on the back burner. During the pandemic, members are desperate. Rightfully, they turn to the association, their trusted source and indispensable partner. Every member contact is an opportunity to hear their needs. Through conversations, surveys and cries for help, the association should identify their common of challenges.

How to remain highly employable

Hank Boyer Business Management, Services & Risk Management

The talent gap is the difference between the skills employers want and the skills job seekers and employees possess. As Gallup and others have pointed out, after more than a decade of being aware it exists, the talent gap has not been eliminated and in some cases has widened. Not only have secondary and post-secondary education not been able to fully sync up with employers to close it, the target is continuing to move.

Why now is the perfect time to do an opportunity pipeline review

Doug Himberger and Liz Skarlatos Civil & Government

As industry increasingly invests in working virtually, this is the perfect opportunity to perform an in-depth review of your opportunity pipeline. Companies use a variety of tools to manage their pipelines. These tools facilitate developing "just in time" reports or snapshots of any part of the pipeline; you can showcase these portions of the pipeline in your virtual meetings and update them in real time. Before using one of these tools, it is important to prepare. Start by reviewing how your opportunity pursuits become part of your pipeline.

Be careful issuing bonuses to nonexempt workers who keep working during…

D. Albert Brannen Business Management, Services & Risk Management

Employers who are working hard to stay open during the COVID-19 pandemic are looking for innovative ways to reward and recognize employees who are going "the extra mile" and continuing to work despite the invisible threat of the virus to their safety. Employers who choose to use special bonuses or other lump sum payments need to be aware that bonus payments should be included in the calculations for determining how much overtime is due to nonexempt employees.

Amid pandemic, small businesses eye budget realignment

Kevin Reynolds Business Management, Services & Risk Management

Even as Congress and the White House recently approved another $310 billion for the Paycheck Protection Program, many small business owners are feeling it is not enough. Unemployment has reached its highest level in nearly 100 years, and small businesses believe it will be on themselves to stay afloat more so than any federal aid package. "It's probably actually more frustrating today than it was on April 3," Robert Fisher, president and CEO of Tioga State Bank in Spencer, New York, said in an interview with Forbes.

Multifactor authentication: The balance between access and security

Tom Mowatt Science & Technology

Did you know that fewer than 60% of all businesses and enterprises worldwide use multifactor authentication (MFA)? While that number is already surprisingly low, that same report stated that less than 40% of companies in the tech/software industries use MFA. These figures are shocking, as a password is a company’s first line of defense in protecting sensitive information. It’s a fair question to ask why there is so much negligence in this important data security area.

Ultraminimalism is a fresh, easy marketing approach to expand your brand’s…

Lisa Mulcahy Marketing

Want to increase traffic and sales on your brand's site or platforms in the simplest, most vibrant way possible? As a digital/social media marketer, this sounds like a dream, but it can very much be your reality with an ultraminimalist revamp. In a nutshell, ultraminimalism as a brand strategy means cutting your text and images for message clarity, easier content navigation, and a streamlined message that has strong instant impact. So, what are the right ways to put an ultraminimalist site plan into motion?

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