These days, a number of large international companies “go green”: use organic materials, apply waste-free, chemical-free or other-bad-things-free production methods. Yet up till current decade, small- and medium-size companies only pursued the business’ main goal: maximize their profits. Fortunately, the awareness of sustainability importance arises among business people, though the reasons for that are not absolutely clear: either it is a genuine care of our environment or just a popular trend of claiming the products to be “environment-friendly”.

One way or another, the business field is making a good progress towards a better habitat. In addition, companies have even a greater incentive as sustainable stock exchanges and sustainability indexes have been created. That is, to make their company look better on the market and increase their profit, owners will need to opt for green production methods since after a while the goal of profit maximization will be greatly influenced by the firm’s ability to carry out sustainable operations. For instance, a Turkish stock exchange has recently created its first sustainability index, which will influence the price of shares substantially. Furthermore, a ranking of the most sustainable companies has been created and will also influence the companies’ success.

Hence, the idea of green production is finally about to go side by side with the main business incentive, creating a path towards a better environment.

References:

Turkish stock exchange launches sustainability index. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.irmagazine.com/articles/stock-exchanges-listings/20447/turkish-stock-exchange-launches-sustainability-index/

Report finds substantial progress on sustainability initiatives at 55 Stock Exchanges. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014, from http://unctad.org/en/pages/newsdetails.aspx?OriginalVersionID=849

There was a fair amount of speculations about the new BlackBerry model and whether it is going to be a changing point for BlackBerry Ltd. Indeed, the company released a new model this autumn, the BlackBerry passport. Long before the sale started, critics debated on whether the new model will prevent the producer from bankruptcy. Luckily, according to IT and business news, it seems like Blackberry’s innovative model created a breakthrough for the firm; moreover, numerous comparisons of iPhone 6 and BlackBerry passport were created. At that point, while the demand on the new model exceeds expectations, the company appeared to start its recovery process; still the Blackberry’s CEO John S. Chen has attempted to assure the company’s success by connecting with Chinese firms like Lenovo and Xiaomi. Now, with the stock prices going up, the company expects “to actually grow again”, says Chen.

From my point of view, the company has all chances to regain the domestic and international recognition. Even though it will take quite a large amount of time and efforts to approach such leaders like Apple Inc. or Samsung group, the company’s CEO seems to have a good strategy and a proper control over the company, which, hopefully, allow him to reclaim the perception of being No. 1 phone for business people and customers who appreciate safety and comfortable typing.

References:

BlackBerry Passport puts company back on road to survival. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/391570/blackberry-passport-puts-company-back-on-road-to-survival

BlackBerry Passport demand has exceeded expectations, Chen says. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/blackberry-passport-demand-has-exceeded-expectations-chen-says/article21147042/

BlackBerry CEO: ‘We will survive as a company’ – CNET. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.cnet.com/news/blackberry-ceo-we-will-survive-as-a-company/

News, C. (2014, November 10). BlackBerry stock up 6% after John Chen meets with Chinese firms. Retrieved November 11, 2014, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/blackberry-stock-up-6-after-john-chen-meets-with-chinese-firms-1.2830274

http://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmourdoukoutas/2014/11/10/why-alibaba-baidu-and-xiaomi-brands-arent-recognized-outside-china/

Soon after I came to UBC, I learned about some Asian, mainly Chinese companies, which I have never heard about before (such as Taobao). Ever since, I was puzzled by the fact that some companies, being as large as Amazon.com, Inc., were recognized only in the domestic markets, but not internationally. Thus, when I read the name of the article, I realize that another mystery is about to be revealed.

As far as my knowledge allows me to evaluate this post, I cannot contradict the author’s opinion that the Chinese companies are not internationally recognized due to the lack of innovation processes, arising political issues and “the lack of presence in the overseas markets”. Moreover, I found the first point (that is, regarding R&D) especially impressive as I was not aware of importance of Innovative companies rankings. However, while reflecting on this issue, I came up with an idea of limiting marketing strategy. My point is that the names of most European, North and South American companies are easily readable; meanwhile, Korean and Japanese companies such as Samsung, Toyota, LG, etc. adopted names that can be pronounced and memorized by people of most nations. Yet when I searched Baidu, I could see only Chinese characters.

I may not be able to argue for my idea plausibly; still, the article gave me another reason to apply my current knowledge of business issues and to strive for a more refined business education.

References:

The World’s Most Innovative Companies. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.forbes.com/innovative-companies/list/

https://blogs.ubc.ca/sraeburn/2014/10/04/wifi-terms-and-conditions-is-our-society-really-that-ignorant/

While reading blogs of my peers, I found a curious post where the author points out two problems of current generation: cell phone addiction and ignorance of Wi-Fi terms and conditions.

A lot has been said about the 21^st–century excessive dependence on our phones, its reasons and dangerous consequences. Moreover, a term Nomophobia was created to describe people’s anxiety when they do not have an access to their phones. Specifically because of the excessive information on this situation, (from scholarly papers to business blogs), I am not interested in commenting on this idea.

Unfortunately, little attention has been paid to the fact that people are illiterate regarding various contracts, from signing an important document to ticking Terms and Conditions’ checkbox. As a daughter of a real estate agent, I heard from my dad how many people become fraudsters’ victims because of their legal unawareness and learned to go though the whole agreement carefully before signing it. Sadly, as the author pointed out, some people may sign a contract where they agree to give away all they possess, whether it is their house or children.

In my opinion, nowadays, countries need to provide education not only in science and humanities (languages, literature, and history) fields, but also basic legal education for the justice’s sake.

References:

Stone, M. (2014, July 31). Smartphone Addiction Now Has A Clinical Name. Retrieved November 11, 2014 from http://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-nomophobia-2014-7

https://blogs.ubc.ca/joeywhittemore/2014/11/01/euro-zone-in-trouble/

Recently, I came across a blog post about the Eurozone crisis. Specifically, in the author’s point of view, Europe, mainly countries like Greece and Spain that are currently experiencing economic and financial troubles, should accept Germany’s vision of the Eurozone economic plan. However, I believe that there is no single correct plan that every country could stick to. If the Southern and Eastern European countries accepted the German plan, they would experience severe unemployment issues and increases indebtedness per capita (1). The current situation, when various sanctions and bans were set between the Eurozone and Russia and the following consequences like extremely low import-export rates, does not make the Euro crisis easier. Even though I cannot judge the circumstances objectively, I deem that instead of revealing who is responsible for the crisis (2) and whose economic strategy is the best, all countries should contribute to a single plan that would be created and confirmed by every Eurozone member.

References:

1) Germany and the Euro Crisis: Is the Powerhouse Really So Pure? Retrieved November 11, 2014 from

http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/article/germany-and-euro-crisis-powerhouse-really-so-pure

2) Greeley, B. (2013, September 12). Is Germany Responsible for the Euro Crisis? Retrieved November 11, 2014 from

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-09-12/is-germany-responsible-for-the-euro-crisis

Currently, almost all the United Nations entities are cooperating with private business companies to reach common goals such as providing humanitarian aid, adequate jobs, and health and education services. However, the money is not the primary reason for this collaboration. Indeed, even if the UN was fully funded, it would still need private companies, and not just as a secondary ally, but as an equal partner.

First, the United Nations focuses on global problems and supports a nation as one big entity. Unfortunately, it overlooks particular needs of individuals, such as those addressed by the Arc Initiative. On the contrary, private companies and organizations, due to their sizes (which are definitely smaller than the UN), while not being able to fully embrace global issues, concentrate on individuals or small communities (in case of the Arc, the people of South Africa, Ethiopia, Colombia and Rwanda).

Second, social enterprises usually make decisions relatively faster than the United Nations. As an intergovernmental organization, a single agreement/compromise should be reached among all the members before any actions can be taken. In private organizations, unlike in the UN, boards of directors or owners or whoever is the head of the company usually make decisions. Hence, due to the small number of  owners/executives, agreement can be reached within several weeks, while it takes several months for the UN to make arrangements.

Thus, the United Nations and business need each other for many more reasons than just money or power. By multiplying connections between the UN and the private sector, more and more pressing issues can be resolved.

The United nations and the private sector. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2014, from http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2008highlevel/pdf/background/UN_Business Framework.pdf