Economy, Strategy & Finance Briefs
2018
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Is the Goldilocks economy over?
November 28 | Gad Levanon, PhD, Former Vice President, Labor Markets, The Conference Board | Comments (0)Inflationary pressures will rise in the coming year even though we project the US economy to slow down in 2019. Rumors that the Philips Curve (low unemployment rate = faster inflation) is dead have been greatly exaggerated. A continuing tightening of the labor market and further demographic slowdown will result in higher producer prices and wages. The likelihood for above two percent inflation rate is higher in 2019 than at any other time in the past 25 years.
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Innovation Practitioner Insights: Alex Goryachev of Cisco on Seven Common Mistakes Companies Make Trying to Build a Culture of Innovation
November 07 | Joan Greco, Program Director, Innovation Master Class, Customer Experience Conference, and Women's Leadership Conference, The Conference Board | Comments (0)Alex Goryachev, Cisco System’s Director, Innovation Strategy and Programs, shares the most common mistakes he has seen at companies working to build a culture of innovation. The key concept tying together Goryachev’s observations: the need to focus on the people innovating, not the “innovations” themselves. Goryachev will be speaking at The Conference Board Innovation Master Class this December in Palo Alto.
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Contrary to the Hype—Real Trends in Nontraditional Work
November 02 | Gad Levanon, PhD, Former Vice President, Labor Markets, The Conference Board | Comments (0)The perception about the growth of the nontraditional workforce is out of line with hard data. While the number of independent contractors earning income through online labor market platforms has been growing, except for the transportation sector, these platforms represent a tiny share of income and total hours worked in the US economy, and are highly concentrated in certain specific occupations.
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Temporary Limitations: Why Europe Uses Temporary Workers More Frequently than the US Does
October 16 | Brian Schaitkin, Former Senior Economist, The Conference Board | Comments (0)The share of workers employed in temporary contracts declined from an already low level in 2005. employers still grappling with how to incorporate labor market platforms and other recent technological innovations into hiring practices. Employers continue to value lasting relationships with employees and care deeply about the skills and work habits of those they employ.
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Why are labor markets for blue-collar workers tighter than for white-collar ones?
October 16 | Gad Levanon, PhD, Former Vice President, Labor Markets, The Conference Board | Frank Steemers, Former Senior Economist, The Conference Board | Comments (0)The labor shortages in blue-collar jobs are unlikely to disappear any time soon. An important reason: The combination of the US population becoming more educated and the concentration of disability among less educated people is significantly reducing the share of less educated people in the labor force.
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Non-Traditional Workers Are Less Satisfied at Work, Especially Men
October 15 | Agron Nicaj, Associate Economist, The Conference Board | Comments (0)A forthcoming 2018 report by The Conference Board on non-traditional work is set to address the lack of growth and impact alternative work arrangements will have on the U.S. labor market. Hiring workers through alternative arrangements is certainly a viable option for many employers, but satisfaction levels may make it difficult for employers to significantly change their share of non-traditional workers.
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Measuring Success in Making a Difference
October 15 | Sumair Sayani, Vice President, The Demand Institute and Nielsen | Comments (0)Companies need to build a mechanism to gauge consumers’ preferences for causes and integrate that with a measurement framework across all stakeholders of an organization. Sumair Sayani, vice president at Nielsen and Consumer Dynamics co-Center leader, suggests what this model might look like.
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Innovation Practitioner Insights: Maureen Rinkunas of DowDuPont on Creating a “Startup Culture”
October 01 | Joan Greco, Program Director, Innovation Master Class, Customer Experience Conference, and Women's Leadership Conference, The Conference Board | Comments (0)At the upcoming Innovation Master Class, taking place in Palo Alto December 6-7, 2018, Maureen Rinkunas, Innovation Systems Designer, Specialty Products Division at DowDuPont will be speaking on Thinking Like a Startup – Lessons from Accelerating 100+ Companies. She will be sharing insights gained from having coached over a hundred companies at a startup accelerator, and from bringing that startup thinking to DowDupont.
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Tighter labor markets for blue-collar and low-paid service occupations
September 28 | Gad Levanon, PhD, Former Vice President, Labor Markets, The Conference Board | Comments (1)The threat of labor shortages is more acute in blue-collar and low-paid services occupations than in white-collar occupations.The main reason: The working age population is solidly and uninterruptedly growing for college educated, but shrinking for those without a college degree.