About the author: James daSilva | SmartBlogs
James daSilva is a senior editor at SmartBrief and manages SmartBlog on Leadership. He edits SmartBrief newsletters on leadership, sustainability and the chemical industry, among others. Before joining SmartBrief, he was copy desk chief at a daily newspaper in New York. You can find him on Twitter discussing all business matters sustainable and green @SB_GreenBiz, as well as leadership and management issues @SBLeaders
Conference panels can be dull and perfunctory, with everyone sticking to the script. At their worst, they can turn into lectures from on high. There was some of that at last week’s Milken Institute Global Conference, but there were many more genuine moments of clarity, insight and persuasive argument.
Many of the Global Conference’s panels are about solving problems — in areas including finance, health care and research, education, technology — and the policy implications that come with them.[…] Continue Reading »
“God bless entrepreneurs! They built our nation and will continue to keep us strong!”
AOL founder Steve Case has not lost confidence in American entrepreneurialism and its ability to access capital and then succeed. Other panelists at Tuesday’s “Fueling American Entrepreneurship” session at the Milken Institute Global Conference were more reserved, but if there were a one-sentence theme, it might have been, “How can we get to where we need to be?”
And where do entrepreneurs need to be?[…] Continue Reading »
Disney has many businesses, but one of its most successful is in cruise ships. They’re popular and make money. Cruise ships in general are also problematic when it comes to environmental impact, as they are not fuel-efficient and create pollution in the air and water. How much? The Environmental Protection Agency in 2008 estimated that a single cruise ship, each day, produced the following pollution, according to The Daily Green:
“21,000 gallons of sewage
One ton of garbage
170,000 gallons of wastewater from sinks, showers and laundry
More than 25 pounds of batteries, fluorescent lights, medical wastes and expired chemicals
Up to 6,400 gallons of oily bilge water from engines”
Cruise ships haven’t lost favor with consumers, they won’t be outlawed, and they won’t voluntarily quit.[…] Continue Reading »
What do Salesforce.com, Foot Locker, Disney, Whole Foods and Knowledge Universe U.S. have in common? A commitment to success through corporate philosophies that emphasize the value of satisfied employees and customers, and the importance of the long term over the short term, according to C-suite leaders on Monday at the Milken Institute Global Conference.
The session, “Value and Values: Building a High-Performance Company,” was a relatively rare showcase for the value of corporate social responsibility, or CSR, from the perspective of the C-suite.[…] Continue Reading »
New ways of hiring, training and retaining talent. Embracing employee autonomy, feedback and empowerment. Changing the very structures of work and HR.
These are usually the ideas of futurists, outsiders or authors — think Daniel Pink’s book “Drive.” But on Monday at the Milken Institute Global Conference, these ideas were championed by executives from companies such as JPMorgan Chase, Sanofi and FedEx Express.[…] Continue Reading »
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