The Federal Reserve can be counted on to keep its balance sheet big and interest rates low if President Barack Obama and Republican lawmakers agree on a multi-year deal to slash the $1.4 trillion budget deficit. (Bloomberg/Businessweek)
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A year on, it is too early for a full account of the long-term impact. The Natural Resource Damage Assessment, a process mandated for oil spills, is still in its injury-assessment and restoration-planning phase. (The Economist)
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The return on investment for part-time MBA programs may be difficult to pin down, but graduates say the benefits are real. (Bloomberg/Businessweek)
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"A LOT of my friends are going to Asia and Latin America to do their internships," says Ben Zhang, a student at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business who will do his in Hong Kong with Morgan Stanley. "It may be outside their comfort zone, but they see getting some experience there as helpful, since that’s where many of the jobs will be." (The Economist)
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Why focus on the size of banks? Great Britain shows other ways to achieve financial reform. (Slate)
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At the up-market "Urembo" hair and beauty salon, in uptown Nairobi, entrepreneur Maureen Murunga has her sights set on expanding her business. (CNN International)
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Moving between English-speaking countries is always difficult. Moving to a small French town from west-end London is downright frightening. In spite of this, I have left my comfortable job as a vice-president of investment banking at BMO Capital Markets in Britain to bet on the trend of increased globalization and signed up to pursue an MBA at INSEAD. Why? (The Globe and Mail)
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Last spring, the Harvard Business School quietly took a step that would have been unthinkable only ten years earlier: It welcomed nearly 50 for-hire admissions consultants to its leafy campus, treating them to a private tour of the school’s red brick, neo-Georgian buildings and a chance to chat with both Admissions Director Dee Leopold and Steve Nelson, executive director of Harvard’s MBA program. (Poets and Quants)
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Researchers announced today that they found what look like secret files on the iPhone that track user location and store it on the device, without the permission of the device owner. It's unclear what the data is used for and why Apple has been collecting it in iOS products that carry a 3G antenna for nearly a year now. (CNet)
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Lacking the courage or creativity to come up with something unique, a lot of businesses claim they offer "great customer service" as a point of differentiation. Well, it’s not. (BNET)
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As the economy continues to recover and the job market begins to bounce back, companies with strong and supportive cultures are likely to be the ones leading the way in attracting and retaining top talent. (Entrepreneur)
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Victoria Pauli signed a one-year lease last week to stay in her rental home in Fair Oaks, California. She had considered buying in the area, where property prices have slumped 57 percent since a 2005 peak. In the end, she decided it wasn’t worth it. (Bloomberg)
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Susan Goscewski spent 30 years climbing the professional ladder. It took little over two years of unemployment for her to tumble back down. (Huffington Post)
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Even those who have been diligently preparing for retirement can be in for a rude awakening if it arrives too soon. Let's say you plan to retire at 70 and have based your saving and investing on that. Then an illness or layoff pushes you to leave the work force up to a decade sooner. Too old to easily get another job and too young to hit your desired numbers for a 20-to-30 year retirement, it can be a rough time indeed. (The Street)
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Looking for fresh ideas on how to make the most of your money? Our annual guide to the best and timeliest investments, deals, products and strategies will help you make smarter financial decisions. Guaranteed. (CNN/Money)
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Fifty years ago, the four most valuable U.S. companies employed an average of 430,000 people with an average market cap of $180 billion. This year, the four largest U.S. companies employ an average 120,000 people with an average market cap of $334 billion. The titans of 2011 have twice the the value of their 1964 counterparts with a quarter of the employees. (The Atlantic)
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While solemn commemorations marked the first anniversary of the calamitous Deepwater Horizon oil spill, legal claims filed by the oil giant and other companies involved in the disaster show that lengthy court battles lay ahead. (NPR)
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In a major strategic shift, the Service Employees International Union plans to use its giant political operation to try to build a grassroots movement of public protest and organization similar to the massive show of pro-labor support that overran Madison, Wis. last month. (Politico)
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When the Miami Heat raided the free-agent talent market last summer, many people declared the franchise unstoppable. So far, it's proven to be good, but vulnerable. What's behind the group's struggles? A lesson for us all in teamwork. (Fast Company)
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Among the most striking details of the corporate era depicted in the AMC series Mad Men, along with constant smoking and mid-day drinking, is the army of secretaries who populate Sterling Cooper, the 1960s ad agency featured in the show. The secretary of those days has gone the way of the carbon copy and been replaced by the executive assistant, now typically reserved for senior management. (Harvard Business Review)
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As the fastest long-distance runner ever, Haile Gebrselassie knows a thing or two about ambition and drive. But success for the athlete isn't limited just to running. One of Ethiopia's most successful businessmen, Gebrselassie is the sole importer of Hyundai cars into the country, owns a number of properties in the capital, runs a gym in the city and has recently opened a new hotel near Lake Hawassa. (CNN)
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Searching the web recently for an affordable international trip to take with friends, Suzanne Powell found a $550 three-night getaway to Iceland, including airfare. Extending the trip to five nights bumped the price up to about $900, but it was still the best deal around. (SmartMoney)
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