Consider this: Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom currently uses more energy than the entire west African country of Sierra Leone. Despite Africa accounting for less than 4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, many of its countries face significant threats from climate change, including increased droughts, floods, heat waves and potential crop…
Almost nine years after the landmark Paris Agreement and nearly halfway through what has been called a “decisive decade” for climate change, the world stands at a critical juncture in their transition away from fossil fuels. Translating into action the ambitious climate targets that have been put in place by…
The Republic of Belarus has clearly expressed a desire to cooperate and build relationships in its foreign policy. As a country with an open economy (export quota exceeds 50%), Belarus has long been actively involved in various integration associations in the region (the CIS, EAEU, and the Union State of…
To power the energy transition, mining companies will need to pivot toward producing critical minerals such as copper, lithium, and rare earth elements, which are essential components of electric vehicles, solar panels, and more. Meanwhile, industry leaders are contending with legacy issues on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) topics and…
Topics Frontiers An MIT SMR initiative exploring how technology is reshaping the practice of management. More in this series Kotryna Zukauskaite/theispot.com In today’s business environment, firms must navigate labor shortages, market shifts, geopolitical tensions that strain supply chains and manufacturing, and mandates to adopt sustainable practices. Meeting these demands will…
If you’re in charge of cybersecurity for a United States government agency, you’re already familiar with Memorandum M-22-09, “Moving the U.S. Government Toward Zero Trust Cybersecurity Principles,” which the US Office of Management and Budget issued in January 2022. This memo set a September 30, 2024, deadline for meeting “specific…
When ChatGPT and other large language models began entering the mainstream two years ago, it quickly became apparent the technology could excel at certain business functions, yet it was less clear how well artificial intelligence could handle more creative tasks.Sure, generative AI can summarize the content of an article, identify…
Applying a growth mindset is the best way for businesses to approach the rapid changes born of generative AI (gen AI), says Clara Shih, CEO of Salesforce AI and today’s guest on this episode of the At the Edge podcast. Shih speaks with McKinsey senior partner Lareina Yee about the transformative…
Extreme weather is leading to more frequent power grid strain and electricity outages. There are a range of regional cooperation agreements among utilities to share electricity. Expanding cooperation areas in the West could cut outage risks by as much as 40%. Expanding cooperation among electricity providers could also help ensure…
There are various theories explaining the motivation of both the past and current leadership of Israel to follow the path of economic rapprochement with the enemy in the regional conflict. According to the political interpretation, the desire to slow down the emergence of a Palestinian state is to blame. Following…
“What Is Seen and What Is Not Seen.”: In the 19th century, French economist Frédéric Bastiat developed a didactic tool that continues to help us better understand — and ultimately better shape — government activity. It is easy to lose sight of the fact that every government expenditure has a…
The economic proposals of both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris present a target-rich environment. In many ways, they ignore sound economic thinking. In one short article, I can’t deal with all of both candidates’ proposals and thinking on economics. In this article, I’ll focus on taxes and spending where, it’s…
Speakers – Kathleen McConnell, Gina Ferrari, and Vincent Smolczynski About the Program: Do you operate a website in California? Are you considering a cookies banner? Does your website terms compel arbitration? Then you need to know about the latest in California Privacy Litigation and Compliance. Join us for an insightful…
In the dynamic landscape of corporate culture, an engaged workforce isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s a necessity for fostering growth and competitive advantage. According to Gallop research, companies with high engagement levels see 17% higher productivity, 20% higher sales, and 21% higher profitability compared to companies with low engagement levels.…
In an effort to introduce a fully digital immigration system, the UK Government has announced that Biometric Residence Permits (BRP), Biometric Residence Cards (BRC) and any other legacy paper documents with ink stamp or visa vignette will be phased out, and that as of January 1, 2025, they will no…
Divorce is an emotionally taxing experience, especially when financial abuse has played a role in the relationship. Financial abuse, which can be subtle and often goes unnoticed, involves one partner exerting control over the other’s financial resources. It is a pattern of behaviour. If you are currently going through a divorce…
As we discussed in our previous blog on non-competes (as well as other types of restraint of trade), the move to add regulation has been gaining momentum since Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced in August 2023 a Competition Review to examine competition laws, policies and institutions. Whilst the move to…
Picture this: hundreds of ant-sized robots climbing over rubble, under rocks and between debris to inspect the damage of a fallen building before human rescuers explore on-site. Downscaling legged robots to the size of an insect enables access to small spaces that humans and large robots cannot reach. A swarm…
Presenters: Daniel Hart, Daniel Whang, and Sierra Chinn-Liu Navigating the complexities of trade secret enforcement often involves more than just traditional litigation. Join us for a compelling webinar in our 2024 Trade Secrets Webinar Series, where our panel of Seyfarth attorneys will delve into the strategic advantages of using alternative dispute…
We’re delivering real benefits to our clients by embedding our payment capabilities in the platforms they use to run their businesses, says Manish Kohli. Digital innovation Our strategy
Quick Hits Voter turnout for the November 2024 elections is expected to be high, meaning many employees will be taking time off to exercise their right to vote. Most states require employers to provide unpaid leave to vote or do not have specific requirements, while some states require paid leave.…
This essay was originally published on TIME. The rousing performances by Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, along with the Obamas, the Clintons, Oprah, and many others, at the Democratic National Convention marked a pivotal moment in the 2024 presidential election. Now that both political parties have formally…
Despite current geopolitical tensions, the global economy remains resilient. Economic growth in surveyed economies is accelerating, as growth in both the manufacturing and services sectors picked up in June. Manufacturing growth was largely stable (except in the eurozone, where it contracted faster) while services sectors remained bright, albeit expanding at…
For the second year, the Microsoft AI Tour will bring together security practitioners, developers, and other technology professionals to learn about the latest AI innovations across the full Microsoft Security stack in multiple cities around the globe. Whether you’re a decision maker who evaluates investments, an IT team member charged…
A country level perspective of Vietnam can provide a good, general overview of what is taking place in the country—just imagine what a pixelated breakdown 230 times more granular could reveal. Such a granular deep dive is now available with a new dataset, Pixels of Progress, compiled by the McKinsey…
Over the past several years, we have observed an increasing rapprochement between Russia and Iran in different areas - political, geostrategic, military, economic, trade and transport. It is not only notable at the level of rhetoric; it is also being expressed in concrete steps. However, we see that a series…
For social media marketing, many companies gravitate to big-name endorsers. But there are good reasons to get “nano influencers” into the mix. Maximilian Beichert, Xiaoxi Zhang, Andreas Bayerl, Jacob Goldenberg, Xian Gu, P.K. Kannan, and Andreas Lanz August 22, 2024 Reading Time: 8 min Carolyn Geason-Beissel/MIT SMR | Getty Images…
Quick Hits Many state and federal laws apply to seasonal workers the same way they do to full-time, year-round employees. These include antidiscrimination, antiharassment, wage-and-hour, workplace safety, and child-labor laws. About half of the states raised their minimum wage for 2024, which could impact many seasonal workers. Highlighting timekeeping practices…
Speaker Progress, a Learning Accelerator from Microsoft, helps educators develop students’ public speaking skills. Designed to accompany Speaker Coach, Speaker Progress enables you to create, customize, and assign speaking projects to your students, and collect insights about their performance over time. With AI-powered real-time coaching, Speaker Progress allows students to…
Creating a financial plan can help you to work towards and achieve your long-term goals. For example, your financial planner might help you by building a well-diversified investment portfolio or making the most of your pension contributions to ensure you save enough for the future. However, it’s often the simpler…
Despite forging ahead with generative AI (gen AI) use cases and capabilities, many insurance companies are finding themselves stuck in the pilot phase, unable to scale or extract value. Jörg Mußhoff sat down with Cameron Talischi and Khaled Rifai to discuss how organizations can escape “pilot purgatory” by leveraging traditional AI…
Q: What does it feel like to be launched into space? It’s noisy. There’s so much shaking. But what you really feel is pressure. With the weight of the solid rocket fuel plus all the hydrogen and oxygen, you move slowly off the pad. Relatively slowly, I mean—you’re going a…
The administrative challenge brought by the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) and another trade association against the Combating Auto Retail Scams (“CARS”) Trade Regulation Rule, issued last year by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), will be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on October 7,…
The ways the energy industry captures, transports, stores, and otherwise removes carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere are changing. Led by the European Union (EU), this new global push toward improved industrial carbon management (ICM) requires sophisticated new support mechanisms, including the development of technologies capable of orchestrating the carbon…
A year ago, most experts thought the US economy was thundering headlong toward recession, as the Federal Reserve moved at a historic pace to slow inflation by bridling interest rates.Yet, despite recent tremors in the stock market, no recession has materialized. Part of the reason may be stock and credit…
Lately when I give lectures on leadership to various audiences, the topic of AI hardly ever fails to come up in the question-and-answer period. From what I hear, many people see AI as an ever-present and very worrisome development.It’s a paradox: On the one hand, plenty of observers are scared by how AI is…
SCO, NATO and the Fate of International Cooperation. Part 1The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, unlike NATO, is not underscored by decades of tradition or any fundamental philosophy. It did not grow out of the experience of several centuries of interaction between states with relatively similar internal orders and a similar view…
The past few years have been a confounding time in performance management. Disruptions of long-standing workplace norms have led many employees to rethink their expectations of employers regarding remote work, employee burnout, and work–life balance. Compounding these challenges, an inflationary economy and a slower hiring market have put pressure on employers…
Coaching for the Future-Forward Leader When you just don’t get along with a colleague, reset the relationship by focusing on trust. Sanyin Siang August 21, 2024 Reading Time: 2 min Topics Coaching for the Future-Forward Leader Leadership roles come with new personal and professional challenges — and Sanyin Siang, board…
Quick Hits On July 3, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas had granted a limited preliminary injunction staying enforcement of the FTC’s final rule prohibiting non-compete clauses, but only as to the parties in the case, pending a final ruling on the merits. On August…