Blackberry is a company known to have struggled within the tech industry for these past couple of years. While having to lay off more than 10 000 employees due to rising costs and sinking sales, this tech giant is struggling to stay afloat above the water. Back in the 2000’s when the company was at its peak, it employed the brightest and most talented candidates around the world. Although the company is no longer thriving, they are doing their best to send their former employees off to new emerging tech companies with the potential to excel in the industry.

When one thinks back to the glory days of Research In Motion (RIM), they would never have been able to predict that the company would be struggling as they are now. As the Blackberry workforce is branching off into new sectors, this provides a good opportunity for other companies to recruit the senior level employees who have a lifetime of knowledge and experience within the industry; this is crucial because Canada has fewer big technology businesses compared with other places around the world. Even though the company is tumbling down, many ex-blackberry workers are now being exposed to brighter opportunities to advance their careers.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-managing/human-resources/canadian-tech-companies-scramble-to-hire-blackberry-castoffs/article14736301/

This article illustrates the impact that professional athletes have on present and potential customers regarding the promotion of unhealthy junk foods. Lebron James, Serena Williams and Sidney Crosby just to name a few. The world of advertising is already mixed up with so much deception and manipulation that consumers have a hard time deciding on what to believe. When it comes down to it, “you have some of the world’s most physically fit athletes promoting really unhealthy foods,” which is detrimental to society as a whole. One is lead to question what the athlete’s morals and values are, and if what they are promoting aligns with that.

The reason why these athletes choose to promote such unhealthy lifestyles is the extrinsic rewards that they receive from doing it, for example the money they receive from the endorsement deals. However, they do not realize how their choices will impact others in the long run; surveys state that the majority of consumers exposed to the advertisements are children ages 12-17. Bragg makes a good point by saying that “professional athletes wouldn’t endorse tobacco today because it would be a liability for them…We’re hoping one day that the same would be true for unhealthy foods.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/study-slams-athletes-promoting-junk-food/article14698232/