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All Posts Term: Business First
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Women Can Thrive in Male Dominated Industries

City and Guilds of London Institute

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Whether you’re unemployed and struggling to find work or looking for new opportunities, many women could benefit from looking beyond traditionally “female” jobs and learning a trade.

UK unemployment levels are high, and set to get higher as we move through 2012. Many of the standard jobs for women – nurse, teacher – are being hit by public sector job cuts and no longer seem like a safe option. Where then should unemployed women – or those looking for a change of pace – look for work? Many may actually benefit from looking beyond traditionally “female” jobs and learning a trade.

Apple’s Best Quarter Ever, But Will It Last?

English: Apple iPad Event

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Even with the passing of Steve Jobs, his company is doing better than it ever has. With $97.6 billion in the bank closing the first quarter results, recent announcements have profits exceeding $100 billion. The sale of 37 million iPhones and impressive amounts of Macs and iPads dominated the Christmas season. But, Apple wants to do better than that.

American Entrepreneur – Reid Hoffmann

Reid Hoffman

Image by O'Reilly Conferences via Flickr

He is one of the top businessmen in the world, without even having a job. American entrepreneur Reid Hoffman has multiple success stories under his belt that the general public know well. If you’ve ever sent money through PayPal from America to Europe or even for payments on eBay, you’ve been part of the entrepreneur’s legacy. His other major achievement that has come to great fruition in the last few years is the business networking site, LinkedIn, which has connected entrepreneurs from offices in Waterloo through to tycoons in Tokyo. Reid Hoffman was successfully changed the way that people recommend business persons and created a internet portal for freelancers and corporate professionals.

The Benefits of Online Media

Image representing YouTube as depicted in Crun...

Image via CrunchBase

The age of turning on the television or flipping open a newspaper is quickly coming to an end, as online media is starting to pop up in every way, shape and form every time you turn your head. The question is, how can online media benefit you and your business? Here's a look.

What It Is

First and foremost, let's talk about what exactly online media entails. Online media is any kind of digital informational resource that includes photos, videos and music, all of which are distributed over the Internet.

What It Does

Online media can be a powerful tool for both everyday use and use in your business. For the everyday user, you can now go online for access to your favorite newspapers, magazines, video clips, music and even TV shows. With a simple click of the mouse, you have access to all the information you need without having to go through piles of printed resources.

Top Business Innovation in 2011

Image representing Steve Jobs as depicted in C...

Image via CrunchBase

The end of the year brings with it reflection and 2011 was certainly a big year in business innovation. From the passing of Steve Jobs, who was in his own right business innovation incarnate, to the video game industry slaying Hollywood; 2011 made an impact and we’ll feel its effect going into 2012. This year will provide new business innovation but just as last year was influenced by 2010 so shall the rippling effects of progression be felt in eternity. Let’s look back at 2011 for some of the top business innovation movements and the skill sets that surfaced.

Blackberry's Year Of Turbulence Comes To An End

Image representing Research In Motion as depic...

Image via CrunchBase

Blackberry would do best to forget the year that 2011 was. Only if it could manage to re-write history and re-define new rules to come off its own inertia would that be made possible. For a technology giant that boasted of 'Corporate Communication' and total control of the business mobility, 2011 was a year full of hard facts and reckoning that would nimble Blackberry fans. Let us review the major points of interest that marked a turbulent year for Blackberry's owner -Research in Motion.

Erosion of market capitalization - For a start, we know that the parent company of Blackberry, Research in Motion is a publically listed and traded firm. And, the last few years have seen an erosion of RIM's market capitalization as if investors have decided to shun the product and the brand associated with RIM. How else could anyone explain a decline of RIM's share price from the levels of $150 to $15 as of December, 2011? This is a 90% decline in its share value and a complete decimation of investors' faith in the ability of the company to cut a new corner.

The Shoppers Have Spoken: Cyber Monday is Here to Stay

Image representing iPad as depicted in CrunchBase

Image via CrunchBase

Black Friday receives a great deal of press as the busiest shopping day of the year, but as consumers are increasingly turning to online retail stores to fill their holiday wish lists, Cyber Monday is rapidly becoming a significant presence in retail sales. Online sales for Cyber Monday in 2011 broke the $1 billion dollar record for the second year in a row, showing a 22% increase in sales from the time of its inception.

Cyber Monday was originally coined in 2005 by Shop.org, the digital division of The National Retail Federation, which is the world’s largest association of retail traders. The association includes many different kinds of retailers, from department stores to chain restaurants and grocers that all offer a variety of savings from discounts to coupons through the Shop.org portal.

Record Setting 2011 Black Friday

FORT WORTH, TX -  NOVEMBER 27:  Shoppers were ...

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Black Friday never fails to make headlines in the following morning’s newspapers—shoppers scramble for hot deals, hoodlums occasionally resort to violence to get an unfair advantage, and the status of an entire economic system is given a 4 AM gut check as bleary-eyed analysts cull statistics from across the board.

On a national scale, Black Friday sales were higher this year than the last, with Shopper Track reporting that Black Friday sales were 6.6% higher than last year. In addition, the National Retail Federation estimates that the average shopper spent $400 dollars during this national event. Between 2008 and 2009, Black Friday sales only increased by 0.3%, and so this year’s figures may indicate a broad-scale improvement in the economy.

What Role Does Social Media Play in the Occupy Movement?

NEW YORK - OCTOBER 31:  Runners and fans wait ...

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The Occupy Movement, which initially began in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in late July of this year, has spread like wildfire throughout the world. The most influential of these Occupy demonstrations occurred in New York City during the month of September, when more than 1,000 protestors marched through the Wall Street district to demand greater social and economic equality. This group, calling themselves the “99%,” wished to make the public aware of the growing disparity between the tiny minority of the wealthy elite and the economically-depressed majority. Since this event, tens of thousands have been forming their own Occupy movements in cities throughout the world.

Should You Upgrade or Replace Your Computer?

Alpha six

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Computers, despite their many useful and entertaining applications, occasionally run into problems. Components can break or malfunction through improper maintenance, mechanical error or simply aging. The average desktop PC has an operational lifespan of two to five years. When this happens to the computer system as an integrated unit the user faces the question of whether to upgrade or replace his computer. Both choices have much to recommend them but the answer ultimately depends on the circumstances surrounding the machine. The user must look at the ups and downs of each option before committing time and money to either one.

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