Sears, once king of retailers, is now a cash-starved shell whose future is in doubt. Sears was once one of the biggest names in American retail. Today it’s barely hanging on. As shoppers abandon the chain, more and more locations are closing. While Sears Holdings ran...
Who would start a new pizza chain in 2008 smack in the middle of the great recession? Answer: A bold and socially conscious husband-and-wife team from Seattle, who decided to innovate the traditional pizza experience for a new millennium. In his article “THE ANALYSIS...
From ancient warfare to maverick retail, the idea of a “hat” integrated with near-obsessive efficiency has been a crucible for productivity and has changed society itself. In his essay of July 1, 1965, titled “HATS, THE REASON FOR,” L. Ron Hubbard defined the...
Whether you’re playing the same three chords or are a seasoned virtuoso, if you’re a musician, chances are you have strong, even fanatical opinions about your gear. One Chicago company was listening. In his article of 19 March 1982, “EXECUTIVE SUCCESS,” L. Ron Hubbard...
The journey of Edward Marc Chocolatier is one of teamwork, ingenuity, adaptability and, above all, family. Towering over the corporate landscape are monolithic corporations—perceived sometimes as omnipresent, omnipotent and ominous. There’s absolutely nothing wrong...
We live in what has been termed the friction-free economy—where labor, information and money move around easily, cheaply and almost instantly. Overhead is at its lowest. Uber is the world’s largest car service but doesn’t own cars. Facebook is now a monolith of news...
The phrase “Think Global, Act Local” rings true when seeking that elusive commodity called business leadership. We’ve looked up to leaders all our lives, many of whom are worthy of the praise: Founding Fathers (Washington, Jefferson), humanitarians (MLK, Gandhi),...
One company, ironically called Slack, with a firm grip on its mission and market, was the fastest startup to elicit the elusive $1 billion valuation. In startup parlance of today, one buzzword is scalability, denoting an ability to stably and viably expand under...
Rover is an online marketplace for canine care, changing the pet services game—and they do it through know-how, policies based upon compassion, and setting the bar high. In his article of March 13, 1965, entitled “THE STRUCTURE OF ORGANIZATION: WHAT IS POLICY?” L. Ron...
Word of mouth is the Golden Ticket, the Lotto Jackpot and the Holy Grail all rolled into one righteous package that in its purest form costs absolutely nothing. We live in an overcommunicated society where the citizen is inundated with a relentless stream of messages,...
So, you think you want to be a salespeep or you already are one and don’t know what to do with yourself? Salespeople often take a bad rap and it is so easy to burn out. There are promises galore of making the big bucks and cashing in. And then there are the realities...
In this David and Goliath story, David wears stylish, quality eyewear that he got for $95. Monolithic corporations get aloof and arrogant when they fail to pay attention to people’s needs and wants—all while a fresher, leaner business model, attuned to the real world,...