Too many companies botch mass layoffs. Here’s how they should approach them

You commute to the office only to find your security badge no longer works.

You log on to your work computer and are denied access.

A pre-dawn email arrives that you miss — especially if it’s sent ahead of a major holiday.

A dispassionate Zoom call is held with hundreds of people.

You get an automated call.

Or — surprise! — you get a severance payment for the job you thought you still had. READ MORE

'Shark Tank' star Kevin O'Leary trashes blue states for punishing success: 'Heyday years' over

Mr. Wonderful has his finger on the pulse of small business innovation — and is claiming that states like New York, Massachusetts and California no longer do.

Millionaire entrepreneur and television personality Kevin O’Leary called out Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., by name Friday on "Varney & Co.," as well as other anti-business leaders, for punishing American success. READ MORE

'Slashers' Are on the Rise. Employers Are Taking Advantage

"Slashing," or engaging in several vocations simultaneously, is not a new phenomenon. Employees have long pursued side hustles and interests outside their 9-to-5 routine, making names for themselves as writers/musicians, bankers/freelance designers, and coders/photographers. But slash careers are on the rise. According to a recent survey from software company Zapier, 40 percent of Americans dabbled in a side hustle in 2022, compared to 34 percent in December 2020. That's a boon to employers. READ MORE

How Big Tech’s pandemic bubble burst

In January 2021, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke in lofty terms about how the first year of the pandemic had sparked a staggering shift toward online services, benefiting his company in the process. “What we have witnessed over the past year is the dawn of a second wave of digital transformation sweeping every company and every industry,” he said. READ MORE

The Rewards of Hiring Freelancers Far Outweigh the Manageable Risks of Misclassification

Whether or not the global economy sinks into recession in 2023, employers are acting like it will. News of hiring freezes, double-digit layoffs in tech and mediaOpen in a new tab and daily recession mongering suggest two things are coming: the need to position companies to be agile amid the uncertainty; and the opportunity to engage some of the best talent available.  READ MORE

Layoffs signal labor market recalibration

Recent layoffs may signal a recalibration of the U.S. labor market.

Microsoft confirmed Wednesday it would lay off 10,000 workers, which it said in an SEC filing were "in response to macroeconomic conditions and changing customer priorities."

E-commerce giant Amazon also started slashing its headcount by 18,000 on Wednesday. In a Jan. 4 blog post about the layoffs, CEO Andy Jassy pointed to the "uncertain economy" as well as the company having "hired rapidly over the last several years." READ MORE

Disney can imagine a magic kingdom but can't figure out innovative hybrid and remote work

Disney, Apple, Google, and other companies mandating that employees work in the office for most or all of their time claim that any time spent working remotely stifles innovation. According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, "Innovation isn’t always a planned activity. It’s bumping into each other over the course of the day and advancing an idea that you just had. And you really need to be together to do that."  READ MORE

JPMorgan Chase wants to disrupt the rent check with its payments platform for landlords and tenants

JPMorgan Chase is betting that landlords and tenants are finally ready to ditch paper checks and embrace digital payments.

The bank is piloting a platform it created for property owners and managers that automates the invoicing and receipt of online rent payments, according to Sam Yen, chief innovation officer of JPMorgan’s commercial banking division. READ MORE

What to expect at work this year

The pandemic has transformed work over the past three years in ways few expected. It normalized remote work, created a shortage of critical workers and drove home to organizations that employees’ mental health and need for a sane work-life balance are critical to retention and engagement.

So what does 2023 likely hold for you at your job, regardless of your industry? READ MORE

Elon Musk’s Tesla hype machine breaks down

For years, Elon Musk paid zero dollars for traditional advertising while almost singlehandedly keeping Tesla — and himself — front and center. With a never-ending stream of tweets, television and podcast appearances and livestreamed product events, the electric-vehicle maker and its billionaire CEO dominated news cycles and occasionally went viral.

Musk was a veritable hype machine, and his knack for breaking through meant that when Tesla managed to execute, its valuation soared to a stratosphere no automaker had ever come close to reaching. READ MORE

LinkedIn is having a moment thanks to a wave of layoffs

In a normal year at this time, a typical LinkedIn feed might be full of posts about year-end reflections on leadership and professional goals and suggested lifehacks for the year ahead — possibly with a few posts from CMOs offering tips on brand strategy, for good measure.

Those posts are still there. But mixed in are many others about job hunts, offers of support for laid off friends and colleagues, and advice for coping with career hurdles in an uncertain economic environment. READ MORE

Concerns over a 'white collar recession' grow

Concerns about a "white collar recession" grew Tuesday after Goldman Sachs began to lay off workers as part of a plan to cut 3,200 jobs in an effort to cut costs. 

Goldman Sachs is just the latest firm to reduce its size in recent months. Morgan Stanley announced that it would cut two percent of its staff in December, Amazon plans to cut over 18,000 jobs, and Salesforce announced it would cut ten percent of its workforce and close some offices last week. READ MORE