Category Archives: Work

Cowork spaces give German free agents structure and social support

April 26, 2011 – 12:27 pm

by Jana Branch WHAT’S HAPPENING Any freelance creative or digital nomad knows the struggle of sticking to structure outside of an office environment. In Germany, lone rangers are heading to coworking spaces like ClubOffice, Studio70, Betahaus and Wostel, where a coffeehouse atmosphere and office-type space combine for greater productivity. ClubOffice is an early supporter of […]

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Social networks dress for work

April 20, 2011 – 4:56 am

by Jana Branch WHAT’S HAPPENING If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Instead of seeing social networks as a drain, smart companies are harnessing business-specific networks for more productivity and a faster path to innovative collaborations. Call it the new era of “social business.” Salesforce.com’s Chatter has been adopted by more than 85% of its […]

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A new bottom line for business: Corporate social responsibility

March 29, 2011 – 1:38 pm

by Tim Barlow KEY INSIGHTS With increased initiatives from both employees and management, corporate social responsibility is getting the business. In posts that reference “corporate social responsibility” and “corporate citizenship,” environment is a common theme, with words like sustainability, sustainable, green and environmentalism, all weighing heavily. Additionally, verbs surrounding these anchor terms leave little question […]

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Innovation calling: It’s OK to fail

March 23, 2011 – 8:39 pm

by Jana Branch WHAT’S HAPPENING In contrast to the success-only mantra of the last 20 years, the notion of failure as a natural — and necessary — part of innovation is showing up in education and business circles. Honda’s luscious documentary short film series includes “Failure: The Secret to Success” by director Derek Cianfrance. As […]

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Shriram Transport sets up driving schools

March 3, 2011 – 10:25 am

by Kiran Manral WHAT’S HAPPENING One transport financing firm, Shriram Transport Finance, is setting up driving schools across the country. The first school will start in early 2011 in Kolhapur, where an NGO, with IIT alumnus, will help train drivers in order to create employment opportunities for those who have not been able to complete […]

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British and aged 33 = busy as a bee

December 2, 2010 – 3:19 pm

by Sairica Rose WHAT’S HAPPENING Thirty-three heralds the most hectic time in a Brit’s life. According to research by Hotmail, it’s all work and little play for 66% of British of this age, who spend over 38 hours per week in the office. Over half (56%) regularly take work home and over a third only […]

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Kerala’s KDHP tea plantations brew a worker participatory management model

November 28, 2010 – 8:55 pm

by Rohini Haldea WHAT’S HAPPENING The Tatas’ exit from the Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Company (KDHP), Kerala, in 2005, heralded a new era and a new work culture for its employees. Instead of selling out to another corporate, which is generally how exits go, the workers decided to pick up a majority 69% stake. What […]

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Meet the “99ers” of the Great Recession

November 11, 2010 – 10:31 am

by Hans Eisenbeis WHAT’S HAPPENING Before the economic meltdown of the past three years, unemployed Americans were typically eligible for 26 weeks of unemployment benefits to help them bridge the financial gap to their next job. But since the recession began, the U.S. Congress has had to extend that period all the way up to […]

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Bakery co-op shares wisdom and wealth with new hires

October 4, 2010 – 5:35 am

by Abelardo de la Pena Jr. WHAT’S HAPPENING Old way to staff a new neighborhood business: Put out the want ad signs, then hire and fire at will. The Arizmendi Bakery way: Work with community-based organizations to recruit, train and employ residents who’ll have the opportunity to become coowners. When the Bay Area bakery chain, […]

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Dallas program trains future Latino CEOs

September 27, 2010 – 10:46 am

by Rocio Zamora Arzola WHAT’S HAPPENING When looking at the pool of business leaders, Latinos are greatly underrepresented, occupying only 1% of the top corporate executive positions in the nation’s largest corporations (Forbes.com 8.23.10). That’s why the National Hispanic Corporate Council teamed with Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University to create a year-long […]

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20somethings drag their heels on growing up

September 22, 2010 – 7:39 am

by Cree McCree WHAT’S HAPPENING Young adults in their 20s go through an average of seven jobs, move back home with alarming frequency and marry later than ever. The New York Times Magazine looks at the “changing timetable for adulthood” in a major cover story (8.22.10). While the downturn doubtless amped phenoms like boomerang kids, […]

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The not-so-neat problem of Britain’s “NEETS”

August 17, 2010 – 6:08 am

by Nancy Ludwig WHAT’S HAPPENING An Audit Commission survey of 16- to 18-year-olds has found that one in four of them were classed as NEETs — teenagers not in education, employment or training — between 2007 and 2009, and roughly 43% of them were NEETs for six months or more. The report calls them Britain’s […]

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Art therapy at the office?

August 9, 2010 – 7:00 pm

by Nancy Ludwig WHAT’S HAPPENING Paintballing and outward-bound weekends could soon be replaced by graffiti art, sculpture and pottery as the most popular team-building pursuits among forward-thinking employers (Guardian.co.uk 26.6.10). As staff angst about possible layoffs and pay freezes reaches an all-time high, creative pursuits that encourage them to express their thoughts and feelings in […]

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Is Hotmail’s New Busy too busy?

August 2, 2010 – 2:21 am

by Lindsay Paterson WHAT’S HAPPENING Microsoft has been rolling out an experiential campaign to help the “new busy” manage their hectic schedules and create more time for (sometimes quirky) offscreen interests with a new, improved Hotmail service. Promotional events around London encouraged consumers to take up pursuits like Morris dancing, knitting, throat singing and extreme […]

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NextFab Studio: Coworking + shop class mashup

April 16, 2010 – 9:40 am

by Hans Eisenbeis WHAT’S HAPPENING Coworking studios have sprung up all over the country, allowing Free AgentSM knowledge workers to have some of the advantages of the traditional office — friendly conversation at the water cooler, a color printer, a fax machine. Now a Philadelphia workspace has developed a coworking laboratory that would make any […]

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