A majority of Americans have taken on extra duties at work, often without more pay. How the up-and-down economy has redefined multitasking. (SmartMoney)
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Some time after the dotcom boom turned into a spectacular bust in 2000, bumper stickers began appearing in Silicon Valley imploring: "Please God, just one more bubble." That wish has now been granted. Compared with the rest of America, Silicon Valley feels like a boomtown. (The Economist)
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The five-year swoon in home prices has done little to shake the confidence of the American public in the investment value of homeownership. Fully eight-in-ten (81%) adults agree that buying a home is the best long-term investment a person can make, according a Pew Research Center survey this spring. (Pew Research Center)
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David Elkins jumped through a lot of hoops before Becton, Dickinson & Co. hired him as its chief financial officer in December 2008. After eight interviews with company officials, he underwent an executive "assessment.'' (Wall Street Journal)
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What is the best way to cope with feeling overwhelmed while also managing the complaining, gossiping, snarky colleague? How should we respond without becoming that person ourselves? Offer to do some of their work for them. (Harvard Business Review)
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MBA rankings, the bane of every B-school dean, are more important to corporate recruiters than the quality of a school’s MBA curriculum and especially the quality of a school’s faculty, according to new research from the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). (Poets and Quants)
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Undergraduate business programs that excel at teaching 14 academic subjects steal the limelight in Businessweek's ranking. (Bloomberg/Businessweek)
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Visit nbmbaa.org Monday, May 16, to register for the 33rd Annual Conference and Exposition October 4-8 in Atlanta, Georgia. Take advantage of early registration discounts and get a jump on hotel selection, special programs and more!

 

Strategy aside, Microsoft – a giant, slow moving company – must confront persistent doubts about whether it can still summon the mojo to do what Gates and his ragtag team did all those years back, on the floor of an office sandwiched between vacuum cleaners and massage accoutrements. (Huffington Post)
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The story: A big corporate PR firm, Burson-Marsteller, tried to entice USA Today to lambaste a Google feature called Social Circle, on privacy grounds. It also encouraged a security blogger to write an op-ed attacking Google on the product. Burson would not say the name of its client. (Wired)
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No matter how trail-blazing an entrepreneur you are, you can take a lesson about process from big corporations. (Bloomberg/Businessweek)
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See how the passion that drives so many founders is also what leads them to failure, and how to avoid being a victim of that trap. (Inc.)
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Rising gas prices are helping drive big growth in ridership at several public transit systems across the country.bThe spike is being attributed to people going back to work after the recession, and a steady rise in gas prices that's taxing the budgets of many motorists. (CNN/Money)
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Fidelity Investments says average balances of 401(k) retirement plans reached the highest level since the company began tracking account values in 1998. The average account balance in the U.S. rose to $74,900 as of March 31, an increase of almost 12 percent from last year. (Bloomberg)
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While regulators have banned the practice, some banks and others who handle mortgages have still been forcing homeowners into a corner: You want a chance at saving your home? Then you'll have to waive your rights. (Slate)
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Add together all of your energy costs -- for natural gas, electricity and gasoline -- and you're likely spending $7,000 a year. The average U.S. household pays $1,900 annually in utility bills, according to the Department of Energy. And the typical two-car family pays nearly $5,000 a year at the gas pump -- after factoring in price spikes over the past year that have added about $800 to the annual tab. (Kiplingers)
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Thanks to prudent planning, the industrial equipment giant came blazing out of the downturn. Now, with its sales and stock soaring, Cat is expanding aggressively to stay on top. (Fortune)
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Apple has overtaken Google to become the world's most valuable brand with an estimated brand value of more than $153bn, according to new rankings published this week. (CNN International)
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In this excerpt from his new book, Too Many Bosses, Too Few Leaders author Rajeev Pershawaria describes how managers can motivate people by appealing to the three things that really matter to them. (Fast Company)
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From time to time we witness a project that stands out — surpassing expectations, creating exceptional value for the sponsoring company and for customers and eventually having an impact on its entire industry. (MIT/Sloan Management Review)
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