May 1, 2009

Table of Contents:

Keeping Up: Current Events

Wave Power

Pelamis Wave Power in Edinburgh, Scotland, is using the power of the waves to harness energy. The wind creates ripples across the waves, which turn to swells. Each wave can transfer some 800 times more energy than a similar volume of wind.

Recession-Proof Business Degrees

According to research run by BNET, business school professors, recruiters, and companies found that there were four areas of study that remain strong in this economic downturn. The four seemingly recession-proof industries were the Social Entrepreneur MBA, Healthcare MBA, Finance MBA, and the energy MBA.

New YorkTwimes?

Should the New York Times purchase Twitter? According to Harvard Business Publishing blogger Umair Haque, a partnership would provide the Times with four resources it needs to survive in the 21st century: viral distribution, context, relational capital, and business model experimentation.

Give Your Communication a Hook

In your career, you need to stand out from the crowd. You need to make your ideas memorable and persuasive. Making your ideas "sticky" can help you in many forums, whether it is communicating more effectively with your team, other managers or with prospective business partners. Read on to find out what will make your communication sticky.

Is Recovery on the Horizon?

The markets are showing a hint of optimism. Larry Summers, chairman of the National Economic Council, and the presidents top economic adviser, predicts that the economy's freefall will soon end. So your company has survived this far, through various coping mechanisms, cut-backs and resource reallocations.

Editor’s Note

If you are an Atlanta resident, mark your calendars for May 19, 2009.  EDSI will be presenting a Breakfast Briefing on Developing Talent.  This 90-minute session will arm you with strategies for engagement and accountability.  You do not want mediocrity or just good, you want great.   Sign up today, space is limited.  Click here to register.

Book Report

Courage Goes To Work
Bill Treasurer

Weve all seen them in our halls, in neighboring cubicles, and maybe even in the corner offices. Those employees who for whatever reason are trying to skate by, becoming expert on doing the minimum amount of work possible to keep collecting their paychecks. Their actions and attitudes break down department morale and productivity like a rampant virus.

Read more...

Situation Room
When the Top Performer is an HR Problem

You are the sales director in a fast-paced environment, where sales results are closely monitored and rewarded. Until recently the sales force has been organized into teams that compete against each other for top sales receipts. In the increasingly competitive market of the last 18 months, the company has changed to an "interdependent" model; in order for the organization to do well, all sales teams must work together.

Each team has one sales manager and six sales representatives. One team in particular, the Western Region, is having trouble. The salespeople have been complaining about their manager being a "bully". You have known about this managers abrasive style since she joined the company almost 10 years ago, but even though she has a harsh manner, her sales numbers have always been in the top 15% of the organization.

In the competitive economy, the coarse and rude aspects of her personality seem to be magnified---so much that you have seen an administrative staff member crying at her desk after a meeting with this manager and her top sales person has threatened legal action if he continues to be treated poorly by her.

What do you do?

Send in your solutions!

Author Profile

MichaelPort

Michael Port is author of various titles, including Book Yourself Solid, Beyond Booked Solid and The Contrarian Effect: Why It Pays (BIG) To Take Typical Sales Advice and Do The Opposite which was selected as the #9 Best Business Book for 2008 by the Editorial Board at Amazon.com as well as the best sales book for 2008 by 800-CEO-READ (all titles were published by Wiley in 2008).

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