Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

Dow Jones Drops by Nearly 3,000 Points in One Day

March 17, 2020

Fears over the spread of coronavirus have upended daily life for millions of Americans and countless businesses. The CDC has recommended that organizations cancel any events with 50 or more people, and restaurants around the country are either switching to take-out only or closing entirely. As a result of the uncertainty surrounding this health crisis, financial markets around the globe are experiencing near-record drops in value. In fact, on Monday the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted by about 3,000 points, Continue reading →

Stocks, Health, Crisis management, Coronavirus, Economics, Operations Management, Global, Regulation, Ethics, Dow Jones, Human Resources

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 19: Securities Markets

Major Sports around the World Temporarily Shut Down

March 13, 2020

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Due to concerns about the spread of coronavirus, representatives from athletic leagues across the globe have announced that they will temporarily halt play. On Wednesday, the National Basketball Association was the first to suspend competition after a player on the Utah Jazz tested positively for COVID-19. The next day, the National Hockey League similarly put games on hold while Major League Soccer delayed the start of its upcoming season as well. Shortly after these announcements, Major League Baseball canceled the Continue reading →

Management, Sports, Global, Entertainment, Ethics, Regulation, Human Resources, Health, Crisis management, Coronavirus

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

Coronavirus Closures Lead to Layoffs

March 12, 2020

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Yesterday, the World Health Organization officially classified coronavirus as a pandemic, causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to plummet by nearly 1,500 points. This rapid decline in the market has reversed more than a decade of expansion for the U.S. economy while companies around the world suffer from border closures and shutdowns. As a result, employees in many struggling industries are facing layoffs as business as usual grinds to a halt.

For instance, the Port of Los Angeles has Continue reading →

Demand for Hand Sanitizer Skyrockets by More than 1,000 Percent

March 10, 2020

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Last week we looked at how fears over coronavirus have caused major events to cancel and governments to restrict travel. Since then, organizers of South By Southwest have called off the festival while Italy has expanded emergency measures for the entire country. That means no public gatherings will be allowed in the Mediterranean nation along with a general ban on travel for all citizens unless they receive special permission. This global escalation of tensions surrounding the Covid-19 virus has Continue reading →

Coronavirus, Global, Pricing, Ethics, Regulation, Manufacturing, Supply chains, Labor Relations, Health, Supply & Demand

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

[VIDEO] The Evolution of Open Offices

March 6, 2020

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Last year, we looked at how open office plans can discourage communication between employees despite claims about their supposed collaborative benefits. This video explains the history of open offices and how modern workplaces often fail to live up to the standards of the past due to concerns about cost.

Questions:

How do modern open office plans tend to discourage communication and collaboration between employees?
Do you think more companies should create open office plans based on the principles Continue reading →

Open Offices, Work Environment, Office Culture, Office infrastructure, Motivation, Human Resources

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 8: Organizational Culture and Structure, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Videos

Coronavirus Uncertainty Hits Travel and Hospitality Companies Hard

March 5, 2020

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With winter starting to wind down, this is the time of year that cities around the world usually prepare for incoming business conferences and big events to bring in thousands of travelers. The annual South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, will be held later this month followed closely by spring break holidays and then the Olympics in Japan during the summer. But with cases of coronavirus now appearing in Europe and the U.S., many organizations and governments are either Continue reading →

Regulation, Global, Health, Ethics, Crisis management, Human Resources, Coronavirus, Conferences

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

One Quarter of American Workers Receive No Paid Sick Leave

March 3, 2020

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Although many wealthy democracies across the world mandate paid sick leave for workers, the U.S. does not require companies to grant their employees any time off. About one in four Americans cannot take the day off if they fall ill, with many working in busy businesses like retailers and restaurants. As a result, medical experts fear that a disease like the coronavirus could spread even quicker if potentially sick people must continue going to work.

The nation’s lack of sick Continue reading →

Paid sick leave, Human Resources, Regulation, Health, Global, Coronavirus, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

Global Stocks Plummet Amid Coronavirus Fears

February 28, 2020

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Stock markets around the world have been falling dramatically all week due to fears surrounding the spread of the coronavirus. If global exchanges continue with this cycle of massive selloffs today, then the past week could represent the biggest stock market drop since the height of the 2008 financial crisis. And it’s not looking too good so far: “We’re drinking from a fireman’s hose this morning,” said Patrick Spencer, managing director at the investment firm Baird. “It wasn’t a good Continue reading →

China, Economics, Supply chains, Operations Management, Health, Global, Travel, Stock Market, Coronavirus

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 19: Securities Markets, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

Disney CEO Bob Iger Abruptly Steps Down

February 27, 2020

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On Tuesday, Disney CEO Bob Iger surprised the business world by announcing that he would immediately step down from the top job. After 15 years in charge of the entertainment giant, Iger passed the reins to a company veteran named Bob Chapek who had been overseeing Disney’s theme parks division. Although the news caught many observers off-guard, Iger insists that this plan has been in the works for some time. “It’s only abrupt in other people’s eyes because we haven’t Continue reading →

Product Distribution, Management, CEO, Mergers & Acquisitions, Streaming Video, Product Development, Entertainment, Disney

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Bob’s Red Mill Transfers Company Ownership to Employees

February 25, 2020

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Since 1978, Bob’s Red Mill has made high quality whole-grain products that are staples of upscale grocery stores across the country. The California company generated more than $50 million in sales in 2018 and employs nearly 600 people. Although staffers at Bob’s Red Mill enjoy wide-ranging benefits including profit sharing, their stake in the company got even bigger at a recent birthday party for founder Bob Moore.

During a speech in front of many employees, the 91-year-old entrepreneur announced that Continue reading →

Motivation, Ethics, Entrepreneurship, Forms of Business, Employee Ownership

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 10: Motivation