16 December 2024By Stefan Gebauer, Thomas McGregor and Sebastiaan PoolThough overall inflation has come down a lot, domestic inflation remains stubbornly high. This is typical for monetary policy tightening cycles. To understand why, The ECB Blog looks at how monetary policy is transmitted to wages, profits and productivity.In response to…
BLG senior counsel, Rambod Behboodi, was invited to appear before the House of Commons Standing Committee on International Trade on Dec. 9, 2024, to share his thoughts on the potential trade impact of Canada’s leadership in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The following is his presentation, with French sections translated into…
Quick Hits The Connecticut Appellate Court ruled that phrases like “recent college graduates” in job postings are not inherently age-discriminatory under Connecticut law, providing clarity for employers while underscoring the value of careful drafting to avoid litigation risks. The court rejected the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities’ argument…
The legislation to implement Canada’s new system of Patent Term Adjustment (PTA) has been registered with the Privy Counsel and has published. The system will come into effect on January 1, 2025. Canada is required to implement PTA in 2025 to offset administrative delay in granting patents under the terms…
The holiday shopping season has arrived, and we are already seeing some fascinating shifts in consumer behavior and spending habits. From Thanksgiving weekend to Cyber Monday and beyond, the landscape of retail continues to evolve, blending in-store and online experiences with new trends in consumer preferences. 2024 Holiday Shopping Trends …
By: Andrea Davis The U.S. Department of State announced a significant update to the Exchange Visitor Skills List, effective as of December 9, 2024. This action is in response to an Executive Order issued last year, in which the Biden Administration gave instructions to “consider initiating a rulemaking to establish…
Quick Hits The January 2025 Visa Bulletin shows no change from last month’s bulletin for employment-based categories for dates for filing. Final action dates show slight advancement for EB-2 and EB-3 for some countries/categories. USCIS will honor dates for filing for I-485 adjustment of status applications filed in January 2025.…
On July 17, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) launched the new MyCIPO Patents online portal for filing, tracking, and managing patents files, as part of their modernization effort and alignment with the World Intellectual Property Office’s ST.27 standard for the Exchange of Patent Legal Status Data. Significant problems began…
We’ve moved into winter and that means many bands and artists are taking a breather after summer and fall tours. Some seemed to go on for eras. For me, that means waiting a few months to catch some favorite acts. But I’ve got plenty of music to digest in the meantime. To my…
Quick Hits On December 9, 2024, the State Department updated the J-1 Exchange Visitor Skills List, revising the countries subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement. J-1 visa holders from China, India, and other countries may see a significant reduction in restrictions depending on the changes in their respective skills…
In this episode of McKinsey on Building Products, McKinsey partner Rikki Singh speaks with Paul Yacoubian, co-founder and CEO of Copy.ai. They explore how an AI-native company such as Copy.ai leverages product-led growth (PLG), the pivotal role of analytics in the company’s customer outreach strategy, and how start-ups can scale…
In just the past few years, a series of unprecedented and fast-moving threats have disrupted organizations. How companies, particularly financial institutions, respond to these complex risks has profound implications. The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on credit models, and social media has played a leading role in accelerating bank runs to…
By: Erin Dougherty Foley, Sara Eber Fowler, Taylor Iaculla, Ridhima Bhalla, and Hannah Sosenko Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 1, 2025, employers in Illinois must be poised to comply with the looming changes to a host of existing and newly enacted employment laws. The changes reflect the state’s ongoing expansion of…
Transit agencies in the United States are at an inflection point. Ridership—along with revenue generated from fares—remains, on average, significantly below prepandemic levels. Costs continue to rise as agencies (which manage state and local public-transit systems, including buses, subways, light rail, commuter rail, trolleys, and ferries) pay more to expand…
Euro-Atlantic utopia The post-Soviet space is currently experiencing the largest transformations since the collapse of the USSR. They include not only the armed confrontation in Ukraine, the struggle to create an alternative financial and logistical architecture, and the growing activity of extra-regional players. There is also a third dimension, a…
Throwing Away the Contract In Favor of an Environment of Enduring Bargaining: Biden Board Expectedly Reinstates Waiver Analysis for Mid-Term Unilateral Changes | Management Writes: Practical Labor Law Updates Skip to content
Mixed-use real estate developments and neighborhoods, where office, retail, and residential property coexist, were growing in popularity well before the COVID-19 pandemic. McKinsey’s research on how the pandemic affected demand for commercial real estate underscores how these areas contribute to resilience, better quality of life, and financial success. Cities with these…
Future-proof your business Strategic Workforce Planning (SWP) helps businesses align their workforce capabilities with future goals. By assessing skills, forecasting needs, and fostering adaptability, organisations build resilience against market uncertainties. Q5 supports clients with tailored SWP strategies, combining workforce modelling and organisational health expertise. A client example highlights enhanced talent…
Eight years ago, Battery kicked off a research project into what we termed “blue-collar software”. We used the term to describe technology for workers in the field—on a crowded construction site, or on a factory or retail-shop floor—and not those sitting behind a cushy office desk. This software, we wrote…
The used-car market has faced unprecedented upheaval in recent years. From 2014 to 2024, prices increased by an average of 3 percent per year. The beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, followed by the supply shock, sent used-car prices soaring, rising by about 50 percent between second quarter 2020 and third…
Suddenly we spotted a luminous white, purple-spotted flower dangling above our heads. We suspected immediately that it was new to science. It’s so exciting that beautiful species like this are still there waiting to be described.Dr Chris Thorogood, Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum and Department of BiologyThe group made the…
Led by researchers from the University of Oxford’s Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science and the University of Iceland, the review explores how genetic variations can explain differences in reproductive health and longevity.The study provides the most comprehensive review of male and female genetic discoveries of reproductive traits to date, and…
Tips to get your team future-fit for 2025 Chris Parsons, Q5’s founding partner, highlights the importance of becoming ‘future fit’ for 2025. By setting a clear direction, simplifying processes, embracing technology, and fostering a culture of optimism, leaders can drive efficiency and performance. The actions taken now will shape next…
Quick Hits On November 21, 2024, OFCCP released “A Guide to Combatting Harassment in the Construction Industry,” providing information and resources for federal construction contractors and subcontractors. OFCCP’s guide is prepared in a Q&A chart format detailing the agency’s responsibilities, generally, and discussing harassment examples, obligations related to combatting harassment…
Culture can make or break a workplace. If that sounds dramatic, but consider this: 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe a strong workplace culture is critical to business success, yet 69% of employees say their organizations lack a culture where feedback is valued and encouraged. The gap between…
Quick Hits Generally, under the FLSA, employers must pay exempt employees their guaranteed salary during business closures caused by inclement weather, as deductions for employer-caused absences are not permitted. Employers are typically required to pay nonexempt employees for all hours worked, but if they cannot work remotely due to the…
A topic that matters more than ever, and yet is debated more than ever Sustainability matters now more than ever—the increasing need for an urgent step-up in action to meet key climate goals was a common refrain around COP29. Three illustrative facts were often cited: This is the first year…
Q: You are co-authors of “Is Your Use of AI Violating the Law?” published in the Journal of Legislation and Public Policy. What is the aim of the paper? Chertoff: The idea was to survey various ways in which artificial intelligence is impacting the legal landscape. What are the responsibilities…
Topics Column Our expert columnists offer opinion and analysis on important issues facing modern businesses and managers. More in this series subscribe-icon Subscribe Share It takes a truly confident leader to admit what they don’t know — and a brave one to ask their subordinates what they really think. A…
Seyfarth Synopsis: Employees who sign an arbitration agreement with one company cannot avoid arbitration with related defendant-companies by arguing they were not parties to the agreement. The California Court of Appeal held that claims against related defendant-companies that are closely tied to the arbitration agreement cannot not be separated for…
Former General Electric CEO Jack Welch once said: “If the rate of change on the outside exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near.” To remain competitive, companies must adapt quickly to an ever-evolving business landscape. In times of growth, they may expand rapidly and hire aggressively.…
In the midst of negotiations over the budget bill, part of which had already been rejected by the centre-left opposition, which holds a parliamentary majority, President Yoon Suk Yeol decreed martial law, prohibiting all political activity and rallies and putting the press under the control of the army. This extremely…
The emergence of new technologies and geopolitical changes are disrupting industries around the world. Corporations are rethinking how to create value for their customers—whether they are serving other businesses (B2B), consumers (B2C), or both (B2B2C)—and how to rewire their business operations to focus on customer needs. Legacy automotive companies are…
subscribe-icon Subscribe Share Design Work to Prevent Burnout Sharon K. Parker and Caroline Knight Key Insight: Managers can apply a new model for work design to enhance their teams’ well-being and engagement by improving key job characteristics. Top Takeaways: Maintaining employee morale and keeping productivity high are just two of…
Quick Hits Ohio has enacted into law SB 104, legislation restricting transgender access to certain school facilities: On November 27, 2024, Governor Mike DeWine signed into law the “Protect All Students Act,” which mandates that Ohio schools designate multi-occupancy restrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, and shower rooms for exclusive use…
The world’s largest companies increasingly recognize the risks and opportunities presented by nature and natural capital. This awareness is driving more businesses to set specific targets to address their impact on water, biodiversity, forests, and other dimensions of nature. The unprecedented decline of nature and biodiversity underscores the urgency of…
Charterhouse Warren is one of those rare archaeological sites that challenges the way we think about the past. It is a stark reminder that people in prehistory could match more recent atrocities and shines a light on a dark side of human behaviour. That it is unlikely to have been…
The Medical Research Council (MRC), part of UKRI, is launching its first two Centres of Research Excellence (CoRE), which will develop transformative new advanced therapeutics for currently untreatable diseases. Oxford is leading one of these Centres and co-leading the other. Together, these international collaborations will receive up to £50 million…
We can't avoid all impacts of human activity on nature, so we need to be able to compensate for the damage that we cause to nature. Our review demonstrates how challenging it is to do this via a tradeable ‘unit of nature’ and provides guidance on how to ensure biodiversity…
On Thursday, Dec. 5, the Portola Valley Town Council voted unanimously to approve Stanford’s Portola Terrace residential project. Portola Terrace will provide 27 single-family homes for faculty and 12 affordable housing units for members of the Portola Valley community on a portion of “the Wedge” property along Alpine Road, near Westridge…
