Ethics - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

Rideshare Companies Combat Regulations

May 23, 2014

Advancements in technology have allowed entrepreneurs to experiment with radical new ideas that wouldn’t have been possible even a few years ago. However, often these innovations end up disrupting established businesses that have operated the same way for years. The latest example of this phenomenon can be seen with the new wave of “ridesharing” companies like Uber, Lyft and Sidecar. Although these startups have made a splash with young, tech-enabled consumers, taxi companies and local governments don’t share the same Continue reading →

Product Development, Cars, Regulation, Ethics, Transportation, Rideshare, Uber, Lyft

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 10: Motivation, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Tracking Colorado’s Legal Weed with RFID Tags

May 19, 2014

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Most state laws designate marijuana as a Schedule I narcotic that is illegal to possess, sell or consume, barring medical reasons in some states. But last year voters in Colorado and Washington elected to legalize the drug following years of lax medical cannabis legislation. While Washington lawmakers are spending a year drafting regulations for retail sale, Colorado’s legal dispensaries opened to customers aged 21 and over on January 1, 2014. Nevertheless, the Rocky Mountain State’s marijuana growers have a Continue reading →

Regulation, Security, Marijuana, Colorado, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Retailers Keep Tabs on Customers with Beacons

May 13, 2014

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Over the last few years, brick and mortar retailers have come up with some ingenious ways to gather data about the customers who walk into their stores. We’ve taken a look at some of them in past posts on this blog, including one story about “smart” mannequins that observe consumer patterns using cameras in the dummies’ eyes. Although that may skew a bit on the creepy side, it’s important to keep in mind that physical retailers are merely trying to Continue reading →

Product Development, Retail, Marketing, Consumer Research, Ethics, Bluetooth

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Using Tech to Curb Smartphone Theft

May 6, 2014

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Like all coveted consumer items, smartphones are a prime target for theft. As the devices have become increasingly common, so have reports of muggings and break-ins involving the gadgets. According to Consumer Reports, more than 1.6 million Americans had their smartphones stolen in 2012. Meanwhile, smartphone thefts accounted for more than 50 percent of robberies in San Francisco and 75 percent of thefts in the neighboring city of Oakland.

The uptick in gadget-related larceny has led to an outcry among Continue reading →

Smartphones, Crime, Ethics, Innovation, Security

Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Hackers Target Small Biz Smartphones

May 2, 2014

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Smartphones have granted people unprecedented access to information, but many users don’t realize they’re giving away just as much access to themselves simply by using the devices. As we’ve previously discussed, retailers and search engines compile loads of data gathered from users’ browsing habits. And if these legitimate operations can easily obtain this info, then it stands to reason that people with more nefarious intentions can find a way into your data as well.

However, many hackers these days Continue reading →

Small Business, Ethics, Security, Smartphones

Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 17: Accounting, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Facebook Limits Reach of Brand Pages

April 7, 2014

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Over the years, thousands of brands have established pages on Facebook in order to reach the social network’s hundreds of millions of users. Although companies can purchase banner ads or sponsor certain posts, many prefer to use the service’s free features to reach consumers organically. But as Facebook becomes stuffed with content, fewer and fewer posts pop up in a user’s feed. In October 2013, just 12 percent of a page’s content reached people who had “liked” that page. By Continue reading →

Branding, Facebook, Marketing, Ethics, Social Media

Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Overcoming the Odds Through Entrepreneurship

March 11, 2014

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When Kevin Hartford lost his consulting job in the mid-1990s, the knowledge and expertise he gained after years of hard work should have been enough to land him another job quickly. However, potential employers became hung up on one particular item not included on Hartford’s resume: his stutter. While his speech impediment had never been a problem at his previous job, Hartford says that it put off recruiters as he went on countless interviews. “I applied for job after Continue reading →

Health, Hiring, Ethics, Entrepreneurship, Human Resources, Unemployment

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 7: Management & Leadership

America’s Minimum Wage Debate

January 19, 2014

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Although the American economy is slowly recovering, the job market is not. Low and minimum wage work has driven much of the recovery while mid-level jobs that disappeared during the recession have failed to rematerialize. Confronted with this bleak “new normal,” many people in both the private and public sectors have called for an increase to the federal minimum wage. Advocates for change point to cases like that of Anthony Goytia, who must supplement his salary as a Wal-Mart clerk Continue reading →