Saturday April 27, 2024

Proper Response

Pharmaceutical company, Sanofi, ducked a controversy with a proper response.  Comedian Roseanne Barr blamed Ambien, a Sanofi medication, for the racist tweet she let fly at a former counselor to President Obama. Sanofi responded with a bit of snark, “While all pharmaceutical treatments have side effects, racism is not a known side effect of any […]

Odd PR

A Swedish brewery is making and selling a beer that uses processed sewage water.  It is its way of making a statement about the need to conserve and protect water.  One wonders if Swedes can overcome the gag factor to try it, and if it is any good.  The name of the brew is PU:REST […]

Luddites?

A number of high tech entrepreneurs and scientists are sounding an alarm about artificial intelligence (AI).  They are afraid machines will take over and move against humans who will be defenseless.  Notable naysayers include Elon Musk and the late Stephen Hawking.  Those who work in AI, however, know both its limitations and advantages.  It is a […]

A Liar

Trump’s spokesperson says it bothers her to be called a liar because one’s reputation is all one has.  She is right about that, but her words belie her. The article cites four instances in which she lied about facts and says there are more examples as well.  Perhaps Sarah Sanders doesn’t know the facts or, […]

Bucking A Trend

It is deeply satisfying to be proven right when everyone says one is wrong.  Target, the brick-and-mortar retailer, finds itself in that enviable position.  Contrary to conventional wisdom that retail is on the way out in an era of e-commerce, Target’s CEO spent “$7 billion to remodel 600 stores, open new small-format stores and grow […]

Chiselers

One sure way to destroy good employee relations is to chisel on wages.  But companies are doing that with their time clocks constantly. It is a nickel-and-dime ploy but it adds to real money over a year that workers don’t get.  There is no excuse for it either.  The days when pay was calculated by […]

Strategic Move

Sony is the ultimate hardware company — TVs, cameras, phones, PlayStations.  But, it is becoming a software company by design.  It is a risky move for its image and long-time strategy.  The company embarked on the new course in 2012 with its incoming CEO who was tired of earning pennies on the dollar for its […]

Jiggered?

Nicholas Maduro has won-re-election in Venezuela, but how he did it verges on fraud, if not outright illegality.  He jailed likely opponents.  He bribed the poor with boxes of food at a time when there is none available for anyone in the stores.  He set up tents near polling places to distribute prizes for those […]

Taking The Fall

This fellow is taking the fall for an error in contracting with Michael Cohen, Trump’s lawyer.  He could have pointed to the former CEO who was a co-signatory on the agreement, but he didn’t.  He took full responsibility.  That is old-fashioned, stand-up obligation to the role he served in the company.  He should be commended.  […]

Addressing A Challenge

Kaspersky Lab has been dogged with the suspicion that it is in cahoots with the Russian government and helping implant malware throughout the internet.  Denials have done no good.  Now the company is taking steps to move some of its core processes to Switzerland, far away from Moscow.  That, plus a new transparency institute funded […]