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A new, blue year
Tory Barringer Interior Design, Furnishings & FixturesIt's official: 2020 will be the year of blue — and no, that's not a political forecast. For more than 20 years, the Pantone Color Institute (PCI) has been the trendsetter for the hues to watch for in the coming year. Its selection for 2020 is Classic Blue (PANTONE 19-4052), which PCI Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman described in a release as a "boundless blue evocative of the vast and infinite evening sky." Pantone isn't the only one calling for a blue year.
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Think the California Consumer Privacy Act doesn’t apply to you? Think…
Catherine Iste Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementThe California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) of 2018 goes into effect Jan. 1. One way to describe it is as California's answer to the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Though there are significant differences in the specifics, both the CCPA and GDPR will and have had significant impacts on business. Before you dismiss either as irrelevant to your organization, here are a few things to consider.
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Knowing when the ruts of life have hit
Anne Rose Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementYou start a new job. It's exciting to learn all the nuances of your responsibilities. Each day is a challenge. Stressful, sure, but nonetheless exciting to be stretched outside your comfort zone. At some point, the job becomes second nature — like driving a car. Frankly, it can get a little boring because you no longer have to think so hard. Next thing you know, that routine becomes your prison. How did you lose your initial excitement? Where did it go and why? Ruts are symptomatic that learning has stagnated.
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A tale of 2 year-end reviews: YouTube vs. Spotify
Tory Barringer MarketingYouTube's 2018 year-end video, "Everyone Controls Rewind," has the dubious honor of being the website's most-disliked video. This year, YouTube played it safe with "For the Record," a video montage celebrating the biggest creator moments of the year. The reaction so far has been more positive than last year, but that isn't saying much. Meanwhile, Spotify recently unveiled its annual Spotify Wrapped, a personalized review of each user's individual listening habits. Chances are you've already seen Spotify Wrapped links posted all over your social media, and for good reason. What did Spotify do right that YouTube seems to be struggling with?
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Does Facebook’s anti-censorship policy ignore violence?
Michelle R. Matisons CommunicationsFacebook's political ad policy has been recently clarified. It retains an anti-censorship position in relationship to political ads while claiming to ban hate speech, but this remains an unclear distinction with many loopholes. CEO Mark Zuckerberg presents his ad policy as securing free expression and allowing users to make decisions. This denies Facebook’s centrality as a U.S. and global news source. It also ignores how remote communications technologies uniquely foment hatred and need to be approached with that awareness.
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Don’t let toxic employees ruin your organization
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementToxic fumes and toxic waste illicit emergency responses because everyone realizes that these poisonous substances must be addressed immediately. Toxic employees? Not so much. Companies tend to have a much more subdued, almost nonchalant response to toxicity in human form. In fact, according to a survey by Fierce Conversations, companies prefer to pretend nothing is wrong. Sidestepping the problem doesn’t bode well in the long run. So, what is a toxic employee, why are toxic employees so dangerous, and how should they be handled?
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Infographic: Breaking up Big Tech
Brian Wallace Science & TechnologyAre tech companies growing "too big to fail?" In 2018, five tech companies — Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft and Google — earned a combined $800 billion in revenues. In March, Elizabeth Warren released a campaign ad calling for the breakup of big tech companies. Facebook removed the ad, sparking bipartisan backlash. Today, 2 in 3 Americans — regardless of political party — support the breakup of Big Tech. This infographic outlines why so many are calling for the tech giants to be broken up and the laws that might make it happen.
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5 things your end-of-year letter must communicate
Mark MacDonald Religious CommunityI get it. You're trying to remind your congregation that it's the end of the year and you would love to be the recipient of their end-of-year donations above and beyond regular tithes. So, you put together a letter or an email and send it. Here are five things you must effectively communicate if you want the right response.
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Survey: Over 40% of job candidates say ‘bye’ if employers won’t…
Terri Williams Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementWe're currently at or close to full employment, and companies need to be more flexible if they want to snag desirable job candidates. According to a recent Robert Half survey, applicants aren't afraid to walk away when companies aren't willing to negotiate — and not just on salary. In the survey, 43% of respondents said they lost interest in a job offer because the company was unwilling to negotiate elements beyond salary. So, what are the other areas that job applicants want to negotiate?
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Who am I?
Debra Josephson Abrams EducationIn my November article, we saw how interrogative pronouns lend themselves to extensive and inventive study. This month, let’s explore how asking "Who are you?" can work in concert with the previous activities or can be used individually. The identity exploration activities we’ll examine this month can be used for kindergarten through university and arguably for even younger students. The activities introduce or review poetry, figurative language (particularly personification, metaphor, simile, idioms, alliteration, and onomatopoeia), and vocabulary development.
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