Category Archives: Uncategorized

  Google Inc. has cunningly made itself famous for its generous benefits package.  A certain Forbes article discusses Google’s most recent addition to this package.  Apparently, the company will now be paying the surviving partner of a deceased employee 50% of their salary every year for 10 years.  This new benefit, in addition to others, such as “free haircuts, gourmet food [and] on-site doctors” have all earned Google a ‘caring’ reputation. But why does Google want to be such a […]

After attending a few classes based on entrepreneurship, I became more interested in the field.  But should it be considered a field?  Should entrepreneurs be confined by society’s job classifications? A blog from itbusiness.ca describes the individualistic nature of entrepreneurs, but makes a paradoxical statement.  It characterizes the active startup community in Ottawa by stating that “true entrepreneurs… forge ahead regardless of the obstacles”.  This is an ability which all entrepreneurs must have, but it is this very perseverance which […]

According to Panos Mourdoukoutas’ article, the Apple consumer has grown accustomed to getting the most innovative and revolutionary technology, but has been recently disillusioned by the iPad Mini.  In this last quarter, Apple has recycled an old product, rather than producing new, ground-shaking technology.  Investors have reason to be worried, especially because “after a major product release”, Apple’s stock usually soars.  This new product release was a major contributing factor to the company’s stock drop, but perhaps not the most […]

Yesterday’s class on sustainability seems to have stirred several of our interests.  Cathy Lee’s blog post focused on the motives behind Wal-Mart’s environmentally friendly transformation, but neglected to mention the enhanced image which Wal-Mart’s green initiatives have created for itself.  In addition to reducing its costs, legal liabilities and greenhouse emissions, Wal-Mart has managed to build competitive advantage by positioning itself as a leader in sustainability. Customers are much more likely to buy from Wal-Mart now that they are perceived […]

Akanksha Kapil’s blog post about PETA’s advertisement addresses some ethical issues.  The main issue is that PETA targets children by positioning their billboards near schools.  However, it should not be a question of whether or not it is ethical, but rather an analysis of how effective a technique it is. In this instance, one feels a sense of sympathy towards children because they are seen as vulnerable and easily impressionable people without the necessary tools to deal with such a […]

Several years ago, Inditex managed to catch a mistake in time and has been reaping the succeeding benefits ever since.  In class, we learned that a company’s stock value jumps up and down in accordance with the investors’ perception of the company’s strategy and how they think the company will perform in the future. According to the press releases in the Inditex website, “Inditex opened 560 new stores, 441 [of which, were] outside Spain” in FY2007.  In the final quarter […]

In our sixth class, we discussed Facebook’s IPO fiasco.  This led me to research the topic of IPOs and I found an article that discussed the idea of Twitter potentially meeting Facebook’s dreadful fate.  The issue, however, should not be how to successfully execute Twitter’s IPO, but rather whether or not they should have an IPO at all. A 21st century technology company like Twitter has no business in the present day stock market.  Wall Street is crawling with old […]

At one point in its lifetime, Research in Motion Limited was producing one of the world’s most popular cell phones.  Its BlackBerry gained such popularity that people began to call it the “CrackBerry”.  At its peak, RIM’s stock was priced at $148/share.  It is now worth $8/share. How did this collapse come about and how can a bourgeoning entrepreneur avoid the same fate?  Jason Fell wrote an article on this very topic in which he lists four main lessons to […]

Coca-Cola has been selling the world’s most popular carbonated beverage for the past 126 years.  How did this company reach its great success and more importantly, how has it remained at its position for so long? In class, we learned that once a company has positioned itself in the consumers’ mind, it is very difficult to budge.  I believe that Coca-Cola’s enduring success, however, is not only due to its early claim in the consumers’ mind, but also because of […]

This firm’s security shorting may be old news, but it touches on a highly controversial and eternally relevant aspect of commerce – business ethics.  The article I read essentially states that the firm made a fortune “by betting against its own clients’ investments” behind their backs.  Great numbers of people were outraged at this news because they felt betrayed and taken advantage of, as if they were mere pawns in Goldman Sachs’ scheme. But was it immoral for Goldman Sachs […]