Corporations Need Image Makeover for 2011
With the global recession heading into another year, it should come as no surprise that most average citizens view large corporations in a negative light. Continuing layoffs and extended unemployment do nothing to boost the public morale, while corporations continue to earn (but by and large refuse to hire). Of course, the conception that businesses are doing well may not be entirely accurate, as many struggle just to stay afloat, but how can a corporation impart this information to the public that supports it without sounding disingenuous or whiny? In short, how can the corporate world win back the hearts of consumers? It won’t be easy, but with a little brand magic and a “back to basics” attitude, it can be accomplished. Read more
Catering to the Lowest Common Denominator
A recent article on a member-supported news website called MinnPost recounted an ad posted on Craig’s List in Minneapolis, Minnesota in which an experienced attorney (who claims to have worked for big firms and shysters alike) offers to sell out. The article enumerates the clients the attorney is willing to take on, including mobsters, gangs, and corporations (although the government, notably, is of no interest). MinnPost praises this humorous listing of services as a sign of the industrious and creative characteristics that residents of Minneapolis are known for. But while the article is certainly tongue-in-cheek, it highlights a larger issue, one that is of global significance. If an experienced attorney (one who has at least a master’s degree) is scrounging for work in the seediest areas of the profession, how are the rest of us supposed to pull ourselves out of the recession? Read more
Coal River Mountain Sets an Example for the World
If you haven’t heard about Coal River Mountain, a former coal-mining community located in the Coal River Valley of West Virginia, you need to hear their story and discover what they’ve been doing to repair the damage done by continued mining practices. As the name suggests, the area was built on the promise of an abundant fuel source that lived within the hills. But after years of invasive and destructive strip mining and the newer “mountaintop removal” method, the landscape had been altered beyond recognition and workers who had depended upon mining for employment found themselves out of work. Beyond that, the state was looking at costly reclamation projects to return the affected areas to an acceptable condition (despite the fact that they would be useless for habitation by people, animals, or plants). So what did they do? They turned their lemons into lemonade. Read more