Business

As Film Festivals Go Online, a Competitive New Business Takes Shape to Support Them

By Gertrude Aziz 13 hours ago

As the pandemic forced shutdowns worldwide, no aspect of the film industry faced a more immediate existential threat than the festival circuit. While mainstays from Cannes to Telluride chose not to hold events at all, others did the once-unthinkable: They migrated online. Now, the race is on to provide digital services that support the unexpected era of the virtual film festival.

Enter Shift72, which counts Toronto, New York, and Sundance among its upcoming clients. The New Zealand-based company has provided secure press and industry screening platforms since 2008 and has now emerged as a leading company poised to tackle the challenge of creating online festivals. However, it’s hardly alone in an industry that has just gotten started and could be here for good.

More from IndieWire

In conversations with IndieWire, festival organizers discussed the frantic process of shopping for cost-effective platforms that could meet their needs on a tight schedule

… Read More

Why a business education shouldn’t cost you thousands of dollars

By Gertrude Aziz 22 hours ago

Why a business education shouldn't cost you thousands of dollars
Why a business education shouldn’t cost you thousands of dollars

TL;DR: Work on your business skills without going back to school with the Complete 2020 MBA Hacker bundle for $39.99, a 98% savings as of Aug. 13.

Sure, building a successful business requires financial investment. But all the money in the world can’t buy you success. And while business school can certainly show you the ropes in a big way, it can also put you into debt fast.

Why not find a happy medium? The Complete 2020 MBA Hacker Bundle will help you develop the skills to make it in the business world with online coursework and lectures that you can explore on your own time. Think about this: about 80% of small businesses survive their first year, but that number drops precipitously in the years following. This training can help make sure you don’t fall in the latter statistic.

… Read More

CAA’s Bryan Lourd on the WGA, Black Lives Matter and the Pandemic’s Impact on the Business

By Gertrude Aziz 1 day ago

In a sprawling keynote conversation with Ziffren Brittenham partner Ken Ziffren at the UCLA Entertainment Symposium, CAA managing partner and co-chairman Bryan Lourd opened up about his thoughts on the ongoing Writers Guild conflict, the Black Lives Matter movement and the agency’s efforts to diversify, and the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the entertainment industry.

Lourd was a late addition to the roster; former WarnerMedia Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt had originally been slated to speak before his sudden departure from the company amid a major executive shakeup last week.

More from Variety

On the topic of the ongoing packaging feud between the Writers Guild of America and the major talent agencies, Lourd said that he feels a “great responsibility to the entire culture and the entire ecosystem of the artists’ side of the equation of show business.”

“With zero sort of apology, I hate how this has gone; I don’t like

… Read More

Universities that reject ‘business as usual’ have best chance of surviving COVID-19

By Gertrude Aziz 1 day ago

Businesses — whether large or small, or whether they are healthcare, educational cultural or recreational institutions — all have been tragically affected by COVID-19. For colleges and universities, the beginning of the fall semester will be especially challenging.

Even prior to the onset of the coronavirus, many universities and colleges were confronted with dire challenges, particularly enrollment declines (down for the ninth year in a row and more than 2 million this decade); rising operating costs; and competition from less expensive, online, for-profit educational vendors. Almost 60 institutions of higher learning — public and private non-profit — have gone out of business or merged over the past four years. Urban universities, such as FIU, are projected to fare better because of its neighboring population and affordable tuition. Those most vulnerable for the next round of closings and mergers are small, church-related institutions where private tuition invariably exceeds that of nearby

… Read More

Universities that spurn business as usual have best chance of surviving COVID-19

By Gertrude Aziz 1 day ago

Businesses — whether large or small, or whether they are healthcare, educational cultural or recreational institutions — all have been tragically affected by COVID-19. For colleges and universities, the beginning of the fall semester will be especially challenging.

Even prior to the onset of the coronavirus, many universities and colleges were confronted with dire challenges, particularly enrollment declines (down for the ninth year in a row and more than 2 million this decade); rising operating costs; and competition from less expensive, online, for-profit educational vendors. Almost 60 institutions of higher learning — public and private non-profit — have gone out of business or merged over the past four years. Urban universities, such as FIU, are projected to fare better because of its neighboring population and affordable tuition. Those most vulnerable for the next round of closings and mergers are small, church-related institutions where private tuition invariably exceeds that of nearby

… Read More

Can Google kill the business card? India is about to find out

By Gertrude Aziz 3 days ago

Google might be about to disrupt the business card — and it’s starting with a trial in India.

In a new blog post, the company announced it’s rolling out its ‘people cards’ across the country. It’s like a business card that will appear on top of Search when someone looks up your name. Google first began trialing the feature about six months ago, and it seems it’s finally ready to make it more widely available.

Up until now, you could only find detailed information about celebs and well-known public figures on Search, but the latest change will make it possible for civilians to control what people see when someone searches their name.

“If you’re a business professional, performer, or anyone looking to build up your own online presence, you might have a website, social profiles, and other information spread across many sites,” Google product manager Lauren Clark said. “If

… Read More

Linchpin Of Electric Truck Maker Nikola’s Business

By Gertrude Aziz 3 days ago

The focus on the stock price gyrations of electric truck startup Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) overlooks a major part of its business plan-making and selling hydrogen fuel for its fuel cell trucks and anyone who wants it.

“Hydrogen is a key to everything with Nikola,” says Executive Chairman Trevor Milton. “It’s our ability to separate ourselves from our competitors. “Nikola is not just a truck company. We’re really an energy technology company.

“We’ve spent more time on reducing the cost of hydrogen than we’ve spent on anything else, including building the trucks. The trucks are just a product to consume energy, and also a product to clean up the world.”

The story surrounding Nikola’s zero-emission Class 8 fuel cell trucks is a bit confusing because the company will build a heavy-duty battery-electric cabover model before it makes more aerodynamic conventional trucks that run on hydrogen. 

Production of the Nikola Tre

… Read More

Here’s how your small business can be the next ‘Big Find’ brand on QVC

By Gertrude Aziz 3 days ago

QVC and HSN — two of the biggest shopping destinations —  have helped entrepreneurs achieve their dreams for over 30 years. Now, they’re on a mission to help a new crop of hopefuls have a chance to shine through their new The Big Find initiative. Now through Wednesday, August 19, you can apply here by submitting an application with a video.

Small businesses, like the ones chosen for The Big Find, are the backbone of America. They make our world a better place. Through the initiative, the mega retailers have given these brands — ranging from beauty, apparel and footwear to accessories, jewelry and homeware  — a chance to share their stories and offerings with customers across their digital and broadcast platforms. Even more: QVC and HSN, known for fostering a culture of entrepreneurship, will continue to nurture these companies and support them in their growth. 

If you’re in the

… Read More

Buckle Up 7% on Solid July Sales, Online Business Bodes Well

By Gertrude Aziz 4 days ago

Shares of The Buckle, Inc. BKE have increased 7.4% since the company released robust sales numbers for July on Aug 6. Moreover, the company’s online business, which has been open throughout amid the COVID-19 crisis, is performing outstandingly. Coming to sales data, total net sales for the four-week fiscal month ended Aug 1, 2020 grew 3.8% to $70 million from net sales of $67.5 million recorded in the four-week fiscal month ended Aug 3, 2019. This marks the second-straight sales increase on a monthly basis.

We note that the company had seen an increase of 26.8% for June, following a sales decline of 16.8%, 80.8% and 50.2%, respectively, in the preceding three months. Further, net sales for the 13-week fiscal quarter ended Aug 1, 2020 rose 6% to $216 million compared to net sales of $203.8 million recorded in the year-earlier 13-week fiscal quarter. Moreover, online sales for the same

… Read More

Strategic Plan For A Sustainable Business School

By Gertrude Aziz 4 days ago

Future uncertainties are becoming everybody’s business. I believe it’s our role as a business school to address this challenge, which is the thrust of our new 20-25 Strategic Plan, ‘Impact Future Generations.’ It’s our roadmap as EDHEC embarks on a project of deep transformation, backed by an ambitious investment plan of nearly €230m.

This is a decisive step for EDHEC whose Global MBA is already ranked by The Economist at #1 in France, #2 in Europe, and #7 worldwide for opening new career opportunities. Our undergraduate, postgraduate and executive education participants will be the first to benefit, whether on our campus in Nice, Lille, Paris, London or Singapore.

We are committed to reinventing the kind of leaders we produce. The big shift will be in their ability to deal with global and complex issues. It’s about knowing how to learn, how to think and how to act, so they can

… Read More