During the Global Financial Crisis, we saw that no bank or institution was too established to fail (hello Lehman’s). Now, Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA, one of the world’s oldest banks, is being shopped around for a potential rescuer/buyer. Marred by years of scandals and bailouts and loaded full of risks – finding a […]
World’s Oldest Bank Fizzles Out Read More »
Two of my favourite topics today, this is a great example of how the future will involve humans working along side artifical intelligence (AI). Astronomy researchers developed a machine learning algorithm to determine “real” planets from “fake” planets. By using this algorithm, it helped confirm the discovery of fifty new planets by analysing old data from
AI Discovers 50 New Planets Analysing Old NASA Data Read More »
In our sister newsleter, Finance & Money Edge, we brought up the fact HSBC, one of Britain’s largest international banks, has been found to have let a large sum of illicit funds flow through it (again). From past conversations with our Compliance & Risk experts too, it sounds like combatting money laundering hasn’t really been
Is there a bank leadership problem? Read More »
Didn’t we hear this before? Britain’s government stated it is looking to stop money laundering from flowing through its banks after one of Britain’s largest bank, HSBC, has been found (again) to have let illicit funds pass through. Despite the fact anti-money laundering training and recent hefty fines, it still looks like the severity of
Britain Looking to Stop Money Laundering Read More »
There are leaders who lead by leveraging fear. There are leaders who manipulate and pit internal team members against one another (creating an environment of hostility, not healthy competition). Luckily, not all leaders lead with this style. At the opposite end of the spectrum, leaders who try to be everyone’s friend also doesn’t work –
What kind of leader are you? Read More »
Data analytics can help you find pockets of profit opportunities, areas to resource waste, especially these days where businesses are looking for ways to find missed opportunities. If you want to harness data analytics for your business, here’s three pillars of data analytics you should know about.
The Three Pillars of Data Analytics Read More »
While many workers are working from home/remotely, it looks like managers aren’t adjusting too well by scheduling waaaaayyyyyy too many Zoom calls. Sure, I get it, if you’re in a client-facing role, then you might not be able to avoid Zoom calls, but we shouldn’t be wasting everyone’s time with too many internal Zoom meetings.
A few years ago, I took a digital photography class. Peter (not his real name), the instructor, introduced himself to the class and gave us a brief background as to how he ended up doing photography for a living. Peter didn’t start off in photography, he started off as an investment banker in New York…
Half of Finance Workers Thinking of Changing Jobs Read More »
Data science and data analytics are some of the “trendy” areas people are flocking to when it comes to emerging skills. But if you’ve been contemplating a move into these areas, you might be asking yourself: “What’s the difference between data science vs data analytics?”
Data Science vs Data Analytics Read More »
Smartphones. Instant messaging. Email. Zoom calls. We’re constantly barraged with distractions on a daily basis. Do you ever have days where you feel like you’re running around like a chicken but at the end of the day you fee like you got nothing done? One big reason? We’re not allowing ourselves time to think. Not
Are you making these “thinking” mistakes? Read More »
With the increase in work from home digital workers, information security risks are going to be a tough juggling act for many companies. Here’s 8 ways to improve your cybersecurity risk management.
How to Improve Your Cybersecurity Risk Management Read More »
One of the main topics of the Emerging Edge is what’s happening in AI (artificial intelligence), well, the good folks at Emerging Tech Brew, have posted their handy guide to AI (for humans). Have a look here. (With the amazing test results from GPT-3, I can safely tell you this was written by a human…or
Major Canadian bank, Bank of Nova Scotia, has been fined US$127,000,000(!!!) for compliance failures. Massive Canadian bank news!! Bank of Nova Scotia fined record US$127,000,000 by US CFTC just now for spoofing, and compliance failures related to its trading at global trading desks. 3 separate order of enforcement by US government. https://t.co/xbdlSAz5wA — Christine Duhaime
Another Major Bank Fined… Read More »
I have been a life-long ice hockey fan. So, with the announcement of Seattle’s newest expansion team, the Seattle Kraken, I’m pretty excited to see what they can do (just like at the Las Vegas Knights!). One thing the Kraken has done well from their very short existence, is get diversity right. In a traditionnally
Diversity done right Read More »
The job market is in the dumps for most of 2020, but if you want to work for a bank, looks like compliance jobs are experiencing a surge. (Luckily, we got you covered there in case you want to move into compliance). The question is, with the current issues Hong Kong faces, how attractive is
Bank compliance hiring surges in Hong Kong Read More »
Employees hate being micro-managed and if your a savvy manager, you don’t want to be micro-managing your team members either. So, what’s the cure? This tip from Coach Tony on managing the “Cat Circus” can help you get over that micro-managing habit.
How to Cure Micro-Management…The Cat Circus Read More »
Right now companies are looking for every little nook & cranny to save money and stem the bleeding. Expedia (prior to the current COVID-19 crisis) was able to save $100M in customer support costs by doing an 80/20 analysis: what’s the biggest cause for their customer support costs? Ends up much of their customer support
How this company saved $100M in customer support Read More »
The last few decades saw massive advances in globalization. The technology we have access to is affordable for any business size and has resulted in entire companies who have teams dispersed around the world with no centralized physical location. But now, the signals are indicating we’re heading in the opposite direction – less globalization due
Heading Towards Deglobalization Read More »
As countries that re-opened start to lockdown again due to increases in COVID infections, work-from-home/remote work is going to continue as far as I can see. I know some managers and team leaders who are new to having to manage your team members remotely are finding it extremely nerve-wracking not being able to see what
Measuring remote worker performance Read More »
I know this doesn’t really reflect what every worker thinkgs & feels but now that many people are getting a taste of working-from-home (WFH) for extended period of time, some are loving it. (I know I do!) But for many managers and bosses, they’re pulling their hair out and worried about productivity flatlining. What WFH
Workers Don’t Want to Go Back to the Office Read More »
I’m fanatical about productivity. I hate wasting time and time-wasting activities. I’m pretty ruthless when it comes to not wasting time on activities that are meant to make us look busy versus actually producing (I like to “leave” work on time…and no, that is not a sign of laziness but efficency). Here’s just some of
70% of a busy executive’s time is wasted Read More »
After fifteen years, Apple announced they will be producing their own chips for the MAC product line…ending a fifteen year supplier relationship for chips for this product from Intel. While this was in the plans for years, the current pandemic has exposed holes and vulnerabilities in the world’s supply chain. Many companies are reviewing their
Taking control of your supply chain Read More »
Now that many are still working from home, team managers may find it hard to adjust to manage your team’s productivity. I’ve worked & managed remotely for over fifteen years now, so I thought I’d share some lessons learned: Measure performance on outcomes & deliverables: from my own experience working in larger enterprises, the larger
5 Tips for Managing Remote Teams Read More »
High-Performance Email Marketing Email marketing strategies from over twenty years in the trenches Email? Are you kidding? Who reads emails these days? If that’s what you’re thinking right now, then go ahead and stop reading and click away… …this course won’t be for you. Why? The course isn’t meant to persuade you or change your
High-Performance Email Marketing Training Course Read More »
The U.S. is officially in a recession (since Feb 2020) and the global economy is forecasted to shrink by 5.2%. That’s not good news for the travel industry (and industries that rely on people travelling) – in a recent poll by the Wall Street Journal and NBC News, two thirds of those polled said they
Air travel during a Pandemic, here’s what people said… Read More »
Question from a B2B Software Sales professional: “How should I split my time between calling new customers (or writing cold emails) and making follow up calls (or follow up emails)? How much time should I dedicate for each activity each week?” My answer: Firstly, my approach to Sales & Marketing differs from traditional Sales &
I’ve been trying to help answer business questions lately especially during these trying times, here’s another one: In my experience, inconsistency with your salespeople may be signs of: Spending too much time on unqualified leads This is probably the most common reason for poor sales results. Not only that but it creates a vicious cycle
Are there ways to instill consistency for my salespeople? Read More »
I recently was asked this question and wanted to share my answer here with you too (with some minor edits): Great question on one of my favourite topics! I’ll share some of the common mistakes I see in the proposal process: First, proposals take time and resources to prepare – so there is a “cost”
When in the B2B sales process, should I send a proposal to a client? Read More »
I’ve mostly worked remotely for over fifteen years now, add to that I’m an Introvert (on the extreme side of the spectrum) – my wife laughs at me saying I’ve trained my entire life for this global pandemic. But I know many people who are experiencing this for the first time for such a long
Save your sanity working from home with this… Read More »
Over the next few days (possibly weeks), I’ll be sharing more tips and ideas for businesses & companies to overcome the current global crisis we’re all facing. In Canada, local, craft and even large breweries are shifting their production facilities from producing beer to much needed hand sanitizers. Ice hockey equipment manufacturer, Bauer, is also
How can you pivot? | Stimulus Series Read More »
It’s a good chance you’re reading this right now while working from home. Some of you may love it (sleeping in, no commute, chilling out with your pets & family) and some of you may feel like a fish out of water (missing human interactions, being in the office, etc). I’ve worked remotely for over
Working from home? Hear from the guys who wrote the book Read More »
The last 24 hours have been eventful to say the least… I know a lot people are worried about their loved ones, their own health and of course your jobs. Especially when so many industries and businesses are bleeding because of this event. I remember being in the thick of SARS in Hong Kong, and
COVID19, the Questions We’re NOT Asking Read More »
How to Build an A-Level Team the Smart Way Team Craft™ Masterclass In this online masterclass, I share over two decades of practical tips and lessons from hiring A-level team members (including remote recruiting). View the detailed course content and the latest discount promotions: Ready to Enroll? Click on the button below to enroll Have
Team Craft Masterclass: The Art of Building an A-Level Team Read More »
I recently received this question: “If you had to start from scratch all over again, how would you build up your list from zero?” This is a question I see a lot of, and it’s actually something that I think weighs on a lot of people’s minds. I know I think about it as well.
How I would get clients/build a list fast, if I had to start from zero Read More »
Whether you like Elon Musk and Tesla or not (personally, I love his big vision and I love Tesla), the innovation Tesla and SpaceX is providing in their respective industries is leading the way. Here’s some lessons you can take away from how Tesla innovates – see what you can apply to your own company.
How to Innovate Like Tesla Read More »
Can you guess what it is? . . . It’s the flexibility of working remotely from home. No commute (and road rage). Not having to be in the office just for the sake of being in the office. I’ve had the flexibility of working remotely for over 15 years now and I don’t miss the
95% of people surveyed said this one thing would make them happiest Read More »
Retaining talent is tough business these days. It’s already hard enough to find and recruit good people, but then getting them to stay is a whole different ballgame. Harvard Business Review shares some insights on the little things you can do to show how much you appreciate your employees. [Read on here]
How to Make Employees Feel Appreciated Read More »
A lots been said about the latest generation a.k.a Millennials, but in reality every new generation faces new challenges (good and bad). If your company leans more towards hiring more and more millennials (I would think most companies will start to fall into this category), then you need to read this article on hiring millenials.
Hiring Millennials? Read this… Read More »
I get this question very often:“How do I enter/start a career in digital marketing without any experience?”This comes from new graduates and also people already working one to two years but want to change careers and go into digital marketing.Since, I found myself repeating the answer very often, I thought I would share this as
How do I start a career in digital marketing without any experience? Read More »
Google’s AI for detecting breast cancer has been found to be better at detecting the cancer than doctors and radiologists. However, does this mean AI will replace human doctors? Definitely not. It just shows that going into the future, more and more jobs will require humans to know HOW to work along side AI. Skills
AI detects breast cancer better than doctors, what does that mean? Read More »
One of the common themes I like to write about these days is looking at how jobs as we know it are changing and how we need to adapt to these changes in the on-coming job revolution. LinkedIn has published their most recent emerging jobs report of 2020. The report has some interesting information and
The Jobs of Tomorrow 2020 Report Read More »
A common theme I hear from professionals around the globe is their disatisfaction with the work environment they’re in. It could be complaining about their bosses and management to the colleagues they work with on a daily basis. So, it’s safe to say there are plenty of toxic work environments people find themselves in. [Here’s
How to detoxify a negative work environment Read More »
I’m not a big fan of the Myers-Briggs test. I know it’s traditionally been a popular one used by HR professionals and recruiters but I found few other tests that are more accurate and more telling of a potential candidate. My thought is always to question the status quo, just because it’s a popular test
Should you still use the Myers-Briggs test? Read More »
I’ve talked a lot about artifical intelligence (AI) and automation, we tend to focus on the more blue-collar jobs that are at risk but in reality many white-collar and well-paid jobs are the jobs at risk. Have a look at this article at Brookings, to see which jobs are at risk.
Is your job affected by Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Read More »
I recently spoke to one of my closest friends, we had made plans to meet for lunch with another friend. He never made it to lunch because he had his performance review just before lunch and it over-ran by one hour. When I spoke to him, I asked how the performance review went, he just
Are Performance Reviews Killing Your Culture? Read More »
I’m an avid reader and learner. I came across this tweet recently: If you put in 10+ learning hours / week (books, courses, etc) consistently for a year, you’ll get insane results. Think what 2, 4 or 5 years of that will do to your future. Most folks are doing the bare minimum. All top
Want to be successful? Do this… Read More »
Ever since I first read the 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss, it’s really helped me focus and realise how often we can ineffective with our time. I’m very conscious of what I spend my time on versus how much time I spend on a task. So, interestingly enough, Microsoft Japan’s recent experiment with
Would you move to a 4 day work week? Read More »
As a futurist, I definitely see remote work increasing more and more. I’ve done it myself for over twelve years now. Remote work isn’t just limited to tech startups or tech companies. I see lots of benefits of remote work: Great benefit for staff with families, so they can be closer to family No more
Why remote workers are more productive Read More »