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The L'Oréal Group is the world's largest cosmetics and beauty company, headquartered in the Paris suburb of Clichy, France. L'Oréal has developed products in the field of cosmetics, concentrating on hair color, skin care, sun protection, make-up, perfumes, and hair care. The company is active in the dermatological and pharmaceutical fields. In addition, L'Oréal is also the top nanotechnology patent-holder in the United States.

The Lally School of Management & Technology is the business school of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the oldest technological university in the U.S. Founded in 1963 at the RPI campus in Troy, NY, Lally’s mission is to develop technologically savvy, entrepreneurial, and innovative business leaders. An advisory council of senior executives provides advice and guidance on all academic programs -- graduate and undergraduate -- as well as priorities for research, admissions, and placement.

Landscape design business is about designing, developing, and installing gardens for both private and commercial properties. Knowledge of environmental issues, including climate zone, indigenous plants and wildlife, objectives, and goals for the property as well as client budget and project cost management are key areas of importance. This topic will also discuss finding and retaining experienced crews.

From massive foreclosures to new high-rise communities and other factors that go along with being the entertainment capital of the world, the Las Vegas real estate market faces unique challenges. This topic covers what’s going on in the Las Vegas real estate market.

The 20-odd countries that make up Latin America offer business opportunities aplenty. But there are also plenty of pitfalls for unwary investors. Check up on the latest deals, policy and regulatory changes, and political scuffles.

The leadership in Latin America has not developed a culture of philanthropy. The wealthy have always been a small minority, and the gap between them and the next economic class is aggravated by political instability, insecurity, and avarice. In the end, out of fear, there is a marked tendency to send money out of the country. It is no small irony that cash flows out of the region are often by the very wealthy, and that inflows to the region are remittances from the poor sending money home.

Information on leadership themes including diversity, engagement, and motivation, and how they affect businesses' bottom-lines.

In light of the economic downturn, many enterprises are going through Lean transformations to streamline their operations. Lean transformation is a comprehensive approach to Lean implementation that produces immediate and dramatic results. Lean transformation requires organizations to change the fundamentals of their culture and to create a place that empowers teams, thrives for continuous improvement, and decrease in waste.

Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University provides undergraduate and graduate students with a professional business education, the technical skills necessary for success, and the ethical, global, and humanistic perspectives that are hallmarks of a Jesuit education. Following its establishment as the first institution of higher learning in California, Santa Clara started offering business studies in 1854 and became AACSB-accredited in 1953, with its MBA program launched in 1959.

Lehigh University’s College of Business and Economics offers business studies at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Lehigh’s business school is proud of its faculty members, who have a wide range of business experience and are considered experts in their fields. Its innovative offerings include combined business and engineering degrees, along with unique opportunities for students to work in cross-disciplinary teams to solve real-world business programs.

Lenovo Group is China’s largest and the world’s fourth-largest personal compauter manufacturer. The company produces desktops, laptops, servers, handheld computers, imaging equipment, and mobile phone handsets. Lenovo also provides information technology integration and support services, and its QDI unit offers contract manufacturing. The topic covers the latest news about Lenovo Group.

Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. Established in the early 1980s and launched in 1989, the Lexus marquee soon became associated with quality, luxury, and superior customer satisfaction. The brand reputation grew quickly until, about dozen years after its launch, Lexus became America's bestselling line of luxury motor vehicles.

Liability-driven investing -- aka LDI -- is a form of investing (primarily used by defined-benefit pension plans) in which the main goal is to make asset allocation decisions so as to gain sufficient assets to meet both current and future liabilities. This topic covers the latest news and information on liability-driven investments.

Boring, you might say, but life insurance companies are suddenly exciting. Falling asset values, declining profits and faulty underwriting on annuities threaten not only the life insurance companies themselves, but policyholders as well.

The Lincy Foundation was established by Armenian-American investor Kirk Kerkorian. Named after his daughters Linda and Tracy, Lincy supports humanitarian and entrepreneurial causes in Armenia and the U.S. Even though his foundation has donated hundreds of millions of dollars, the fiercely private billionaire has never allowed anything to be named in his honor. Kerkorian was named to BusinessWeek's 2008 list of the 50 Top American Givers, which recognizes the most generous U.S. philanthropists.

Linux is a generic term referring to Unix-like computer operating systems based on the Linux kernel. Linux development is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software collaboration, all the underlying source code can be used, freely modified, and redistributed by anyone under the terms of the GNU. Linux is gaining popularity as a desktop/laptop operating system, with the rise of netbooks and the Ubuntu distribution.

Live Nation is an artist management and concert promoter that was formed as a spin-off from Clear Channel Communications. Live Nation has been in merger negotiations with Ticketmaster Entertainment since February 2009. This topic covers the latest news and information on Live Nation, including coverage of the merger.

A loan modification is a modification to the terms of an existing loan made by a lender in response to a borrower’s long-term inability to repay the loan. Loan modifications typically involve a reduction in the principal balance, interest rate, or an extension of the terms. In some cases, loan modification involves securing a different type of loan or any combination of the three.

The local online ad market represents geographically specific areas which are more relevant to small and medium-sized businesses (i.e. businesses without a national footprint). Its currently sized to be a $13B market and saw a 47% growth in 2008. Local online advertising will track news on market size and growth trends, as well as the types of online ads that are most effective for the local market.

Lockheed Martin is the world’s largest defense contractor, ahead of Boeing and Northrop Grumman. Formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed with Martin Marietta, its business segments include aeronautics (F-16 and F-22 fighters), electronic systems (missiles, radar, etc.), space systems (satellites, etc.), information systems and global services (IT solutions, mission solutions, etc.). As of 2005, 95% of Lockheed Martin’s revenues came from the U.S. Defense Department, and other federal agencies.

A top international option with an American flair, London Business School’s full-time MBA, which emphasizes teamwork and projects, often changes to reflect feedback from both students and recruiters. Students live and benefit from London, one of the world’s premiere business capitals. The flexible length of the program gives students ample time to form diverse networks of colleagues from more than 70 countries. The school also draws first-rate recruiters from across Europe, a huge perk.

Long term care insurance, which covers the costs associated with long term care that are not usually covered by normal health insurance or Medicare, is an additional way to plan for retirement. Long term care insurance is a tax-effective way to not burden family with being a care giver and protects an individual’s nest egg when high-cost help with daily life activities is needed.

Typically, loss mitigation is when a third party helps a homeowner, a division of the bank that mitigates the loss of the banks, or a firm that handles the negotiations between homeowner and lender. Using loan modifications, short sales, deeds in lieu, HUD/FHA Hope for Homeowners programs as forms of loss mitigation can help individuals and families preserve their credit and avoid home foreclosure.

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. is a home improvement retailer in the U.S. and Canada. The company provides a range of products and services for home decoration, maintenance, repair, remodeling, and property maintenance. Lowe’s also offers its products online. As of August 1, 2008, it operated 1,577 stores. The company was founded in 1952 and is based in Mooresville, North Carolina.

The luxury car industry includes all vehicles that feature added amenities at an additional cost. The category includes luxury minivans, SUVs, convertibles, sedans. This topic covers news on the luxury car industry, including details on some of the top manufacturers and brands.

Despite a weak dollar, existing markets for luxury products remain strong and new markets in developing economies are opening up around the world. Which luxury companies are succeeding, which ones are struggling and why?