How would Harvard Business School run a law firm? Image via Wikipedia Philadelphia law firm Pepper Hamilton has taken the unusual step of bringing in a non-lawyer as its chief executive, acknowledging the competitive pressures that are squeezing big law firms. The 350-lawyer firm, which serves the pharmaceutical industry and other [...]

  Image via Wikipedia Change has been the buzzword of every business organization, especially in the high-technology industries where competition is intense and products quickly become obsolete. To survive and thrive in such an environment, companies “should strike out on new paths rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success,” to [...]

The IPOs of Zynga and LinkedIn have created roughly $16.7 billion in market value. Assuming that about 20% of the equity went to rank-and-file employees as stock options, the amount of instant wealth could be more than $3.3 billion. I’ve actually talked to some of these employees, who usually are in [...]

  Image by Getty Images via @daylife Stop me if you've heard this one before: Politically ambitious state attorneys general target an unpopular industry with lawsuits based on creative legal theories that would stand a tough time in court. Their sheer legal might brings the other side to the negotiating table. Talks [...]

Mr. McGuire: I just want to say one word to you. Just one word. Benjamin: Yes, sir. Mr. McGuire: Are you listening? Benjamin: Yes, I am. Mr. McGuire: Plastics. Benjamin: Exactly how do you mean? The Graduate (1967) As it turned out, Mr. McGuire gave the Dustin Hoffman character, Benjamin, the wrong one-word career advice for California [...]

Looking for a special location for a wedding, party or big event? Startup Eventup is a marketplace for large venues for special events. Think Airbnb but for the events business. Eventup is the first company to launch from Science, the Los Angeles-based accelerator. With Eventup, people looking to hold a special birthday [...]

image credit: softskills First the bad news: If you’re not willing to embrace change you’re not ready to lead. Put simply, leadership is not a static endeavor. In fact, leadership demands fluidity, which requires the willingness to recognize the need for change, and finally, the ability to lead change. Now the good news: As [...]

Is it April Fool's Day? Has somebody in Paris hacked the website at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development? Have we been transported to a parallel dimension where up is down and black is white? Please forgive all these questions. I'm trying to figure out why any organization - even [...]