This article covers some of the key issues which need to be considered when selling a company or a business. People often say they are selling but do not know how the transaction is to be structured, e.g. by selling the shares in the company (a share sale) or by the company selling the business and assets of the business (an asset sale). From a due diligence viewpoint the issues…
Generational change is an inevitability, particularly where technology is concerned. The fact that you’re (most likely) reading this post on a computer or smartphone is indicative of how much has changed since Battery was founded 40 years ago, when such devices–let alone more advanced technologies like artificial intelligence–were little more than a theory. Today, technology is a fixture of every aspect of our lives: a trend that will only accelerate…
In today’s modern workplaces, we recognize the growing importance of psychological safety. It’s not just another buzzword; it’s a fundamental concept that we value deeply. Just as we prioritize physical safety measures to protect our employees, we understand that psychological safety is equally vital. The emotional and mental well-being of employees directly impacts their overall health and safety. That’s why we place as much emphasis on their psychological, social, and…
In the fast-paced and dynamic environment of the modern workplace, it’s becoming increasingly challenging for individuals to work collaboratively and harmoniously as a team. Competitiveness among colleagues, stress, and communication barriers are some of the obstacles that hinder positive teamwork. In this captivating episode of Catherine’s Corner, Dr. Kevin takes us on a journey through the transformative power of Positive Intelligence (PQ) and its potential to revolutionize your team’s culture.…
The recent rollout of ChatGPT by OpenAI has set the world abuzz about the potential of artificial intelligence. But whatever happened to the last tech phenomenon, the “metaverse”? The once-heavily hyped future of immersive 3D technology seems to have drifted into the background, its bold virtual-reality future yet to materialize as hoped by its biggest proponents. Chief among its backers: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who two years ago went so…
Employee listening is a key element of understanding the larger employee experience and addressing important business challenges. Designing a survey that delivers the critical insights leaders need to drive change, and make informed decisions, is a careful balance of art and science. It’s important to take advantage of current research and best practices, but it's equally important to acknowledge the nuances of your organizational culture and remain agile when building…
Formula 1’s largest ticket operator, Platinum Group, made a ground-breaking move in the auto-racing industry by introducing NFT ticketing for their upcoming events, starting with the Monaco Grand Prix earlier this summer. This movement follows in the recent footsteps of other industries and companies by exploring opportunities in the digital technology space. What are NFT tickets? NFTs are unique tokens stored on the blockchain. When a customer buys a ticket…
The world is getting bigger, quite literally. By 2035, just over half of humankind will be overweight or obese, with associated costs on the global economy. As complex and multifaceted a disease as obesity is, its link with socioeconomic status is clear: Obesity is more common among people of lower socioeconomic standing. In the United Kingdom, for example, obesity is nearly twice as common in the country’s most deprived regions…
Well-trained workforces are at the core of all successful organisations. Innovative technology, a new vision, and a sparkling office are good investments, but if skills gaps exist, an organisation will never reach its true potential. Put simply, skills gaps can lead to disillusioned staff, dissatisfied customers, and a bottom line in freefall. The value of learning and development in a changing landscape Offering learning avenues internally is also of great…
On August 18, 2023, Judge Beryl A. Howell of the US District Court for the District of Columbia issued a first-of-its-kind federal court decision in Thaler v. Perlmutter, et al., agreeing with the US Copyright Office that works generated entirely by artificial intelligence are not copyrightable for lack of human authorship. The court rejected the plaintiff’s argument that copyright’s adaptability to new technologies is expansive enough to contemplate AI authorship.…
When you think of Geospatial Data Science, you might think of big innovative ideas from forward-thinking dreamers, who sometimes forget for a moment that you have to use data for a practical purpose. Predictive maintenance is an example of an extremely valuable practical application of data science. In this blog, I tell you more about asset management based on predictive insights. Asset management based on predictions Efficient asset management benefits…
The rise of the gig economy — both for individuals and organizations — has accelerated. For individuals, the benefits include increased flexibility, independence, and the ability to do multiple jobs simultaneously. For organizations, contract labor provides a fast way to scale their workforce — both up and down — as needed, as well as access to a diverse pool of workers and skills, all without a long-term commitment. A recent…
Ireland has passed the Regulation of Lobbying and Oireachtas (Allowance to Members) (Amendment) Act 2023 (the “Lobbying Amendment Act”) which was signed by the President on 23 June 2023. The Lobbying Amendment Act strengthens and amends the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 (the “2015 Act”) by expanding its scope and enhancing enforcement for breach as outlined in our previous briefing on the draft legislation. The Lobbying Amendment Act will become…
Welcome to the latest episode of Gowling WLG's global Intellectual Property podcast, where we discuss a range of topics to help you protect your brands, creations and inventions. Kate Swaine: Hello, and welcome to Gowling WLG's podcast on brand and design clearance. My name is Kate Swaine and I am the co-head of our global IP team. I am going to take you through the brand and design clearance process,…
You may have heard of EOTs, and how they are an option for business owners to realise the value of their business. An EOT is an Employee Ownership Trust, which is a trust that allows a company to become owned by its employees. Benefits for you If you are thinking of selling your business, selling to an EOT can be a great way to do so tax efficiently. Provided the…
On March 2, 2023, the European Union’s Court of Justice (CJEU) affirmed the legitimacy of penalties and administrative actions levied by the Financial and Capital Market Commission (FKTK) against PrivatBank to mitigate potential involvement in money laundering and terrorist financing. PrivatBank, based in Latvia, has shareholders A and B, both Cypriot nationals, and Unimain Holdings, a Cypriot company. These shareholders are also PrivatBank’s customers. The FKTK, which is the Central…
On August 10, 2023, the Department of Consumer Affairs (“DCA”) issued additional guidelines for celebrities, influencers, and virtual influencers who endorse health and wellness products or services (“Guidelines”). The intention of these Guidelines is to curb misleading advertisements and unsubstantiated claims, and to promote transparency in health and wellness endorsements. These Guidelines expand DCA’s existing “Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022” and “Endorsement Know-hows!”…
In the past months, we witnessed two major semiconductor events across the globe: The 2023 Global Semiconductor Alliance’s (GSA) European Executive Forum gathered leading global senior executives on June 14-15 in Munich to embrace the most pressing issues affecting an industry caught in the throes of change. SEMICON West 2023 took place in San Francisco on July 11-13 to discuss key challenges affecting the global microelectronics industry. In this article, we’ve distilled the…
Tuck associate professor Lauren Grewal wouldn’t say she was destined to become an academic, yet her odds of following that career path were better than fifty-fifty. Both of her parents have been marketing professors, and Grewal has fond memories of being in their classrooms as a kid and thinking the college students were so cool. by Kirk Kardashian When she herself became a college student, at Brandeis, the influence of…
Fifteen months after the tragedy in Uvalde, many school districts in Texas and around the country are working with their local police departments to place more police officers inside schools. These officers—mostly known as school resource officers—will arrive at a fraught time. Just a few years ago, after George Floyd's murder, many districts ended their school resource officer programs in the wake of a backlash to policing in schools. The…
In a little more than a decade, investors have transformed cryptocurrency from a techno-curiosity into a trillion-dollar-plus opportunity that has the potential to one day reshape the global economy. Yet in the past 10 years, little has been revealed about the investors who have signed on for this wild ride. That is, until now. A new study by Harvard Business School professor Marco Di Maggio shows that on average, cryptocurrency…
The Horatio Alger Myth has resurfaced in headlines this summer in political controversy that shows little insight into the true character behind this myth of American success. Alger was a scandalized failure whose recreated image was later manufactured by publicity seeking publishers in the 1920s several decades after his death. Is that really something partisans of either persuasion should celebrate? The failed writer Horatio Alger of the 19th century…
On average, women earn 79 cents on the dollar compared to men—a figure that has been repeated by economists and politicians for years. It has proven a simple way to underscore a persistent and complex problem in the United States. Although factually correct, the finding that women make less than 80% of what men do doesn’t tell the full story about gender in the workplace. Mushfiq Mobarak, professor of economics,…
The objective is to tax profits based on the tax year instead of the profits for the 12 months to the accounting date in the tax year. The changes will take effect from the 2024/25 tax year, with transitional rules applying in 2023/24. The reform affects individuals who are self-employed, including partners in trading partnerships, if their accounting periods are not aligned to the tax year (dates from 31 March…
Scott explores why gratitude is a form of self-care, why it’s good business to implement a gratitude practice, and the impact of workplace loneliness. He also reveals the reason that 79% of workers leave their jobs, the transformative power of a handwritten note and how 36 questions can build long-lasting connections. Show Topics Lessons from Guatemala for healthcare leaders Gratitude is a form of self-care The power of handwritten notes …
Leaders like to show that they value employees. They proclaim that everyone on the team is critical to the organization’s success. As uplifting as that sentiment is, it simply isn’t true. Talent can be a source of competitive advantage only if great people are in the most critical roles. Having stars in jobs that aren’t critical is just a waste of talent. It’s accepted wisdom in strategy execution that focused…
Launching into a new market requires careful consideration of the industry trends, target consumers, competitive landscape, product mix, and operations investment. This is no different for the pet food industry. The pet food industry is growing yearly and is expected to reach an 8% CAGR by 2023, with consumers spending $51 million on pet food alone. As such, companies looking to take advantage of this market growth should evaluate their potential…
To improve EV batteries, study them on the road. New research shows adding real-world driving data to battery management software and computer models of battery pack performance can lead to longer-lasting, more reliable batteries. By Mark Shwartz Driving styles, temperature, and charging patterns can affect battery health. (Image credit: Getty Images) Most electric vehicles are equipped with an electronic brain that manages day-to-day battery performance and safety. This battery management…
The last time we talked about returning to the office, you suggested that we take this opportunity to think about the workplace—not just how to organize workers and cubicles, and whether we mask, and what the hybrid policy is, but to assess how our organization works, and how we‘re working together as a team. Now it’s 2023. Do you think that those conversations are still needed? Absolutely. For the most…
Divorce is always an emotionally challenging experience for everybody involved. But women often take on more of the financial burden at the end of a marriage. Research from Legal & General shows that there is a significant “gender divorce gap” as women experience a 33% drop in their income, compared with just 18% for men. This could be due to the gender pay gap, where women are likely to earn…
Industrial automation is top-of-mind for manufacturers and logistics companies, especially given the prevailing labor shortage and escalating material and labor expenses. Key market players, such as Robotics Manufacturers, Distributors, and Systems Integrators (SIs), have been widening their offerings to meet evolving demand, causing a surge in mergers and acquisitions. Consolidation across the value chain is intensifying, and players are now having to compete with current and former partners, in addition…
The number and size of public investment funds in Canada that hold crypto assets (Public Crypto Asset Funds) has grown rapidly since the first Public Crypto Asset Fund was launched in Canada in 2020. On July 6, 2023, the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) published CSA Staff Notice 81-336 Guidance on Crypto Asset Investment Funds that are Reporting Issuers (the Staff Notice) to provide guidance to fund managers regarding the operation…
Economic operators play a vital role in ensuring that the sanctions regime is effective. Non-compliance with the sanctions regime by economic operators will dilute the effectiveness of the sanctions being imposed by the EU, the UN or other competent authorities. It is therefore key that the appropriate measures are adopted by economic operators in order to mitigate and manage sanctions evasion and circumvention risks. Circumvention is the practice through which…
Employee engagement is a crucial factor in driving organizational success. Effective employee listening reveals the obstacles hindering employees from reaching their full potential. Research from Perceptyx has repeatedly identified six common barriers to engagement: Recognition and reward Growth and development Continuous improvement and innovation Communication Collaboration and teamwork Empowerment In this article, we’ll discuss these barriers, incorporating recent insights from our research and case studies to provide a…
About that recession…time for a second opinion? vbois August 14, 2023
Bill C-47, An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 28, 2023 (Bill C-47), received royal assent on June 22, 2023. Bill C-47 includes a major expansion of the mandatory disclosure rules for “reportable transactions” and the introduction of disclosure requirements for “notifiable transactions”. These rules require reporting to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) of the reportable transaction within 90 days after the earlier…
Dear retailer, let’s talk about pricing. Pricing holds immense power when it comes to driving profits. The better you wield this power, the greater your returns. In the fiercely competitive retail landscape, it is crucial for retailers like you to assess their competition. Understanding where you stand in relation to your main rivals is key to winning over customers. In a previous article, we discussed the importance of competitor intelligence,…
Congress approved new investments in clean energy at an unprecedented scale in November 2021’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) and August 2022’s Inflation Reduction Act (“IRA”). These laws expanded or created dozens of tax incentives and grant programs to support investment in established renewable energy technologies, like solar and wind, and in technologies earlier in the adoption curve, like hydrogen and carbon capture & sequestration. While the IIJA and…
One of the most noticeable aspects of the cost of living crisis is how widespread it has become. Nobody seems to be immune, not even the wealthy. Even if you have accumulated a comfortable amount of wealth, you still need to buy groceries, take flights, pay bills and visit restaurants. The sharp intake of breath that comes with price rises can be experienced by anyone. Feeling the pinch appears to…
Compared with other critical business functions such as sales or customer operations, software development is perennially undermeasured. The long-held belief by many in tech is that it’s not possible to do it correctly—and that, in any case, only trained engineers are knowledgeable enough to assess the performance of their peers. Yet that status quo is no longer sustainable. Now that most companies are becoming (to one degree or another) software…