Archives: October 2009

Bruce Mau's Latest Design Is BS

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 28

I'm sitting on a stool watching an info-video at the Dairy Management booth at the Worldwide Food Expo in Chicago. The stool, designed by Bruce Mau Design, is a bright...

Trialing Philips’s DirectLife, Part 2: A reality check for users

Posted by: Venessa Wong on October 27

Going to business events and making frequent trips to the coffee maker do not burn many calories, I’ve learned. In fact, my profile on DirectLife, Philips’s (PHG) new health program...

Rotman Dean, Roger Martin: In Search of the 3D MBA

Posted by: Helen Walters on October 27

Roger Martin is dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. He's a familiar figure around these parts—yesterday, we published my review of his latest book,...

Pop!Tech conference attracts corporations, launches Lab initiative

Posted by: Reena Jana on October 26

The Pop!Tech conference, held annually in the lovely town of Camden, Maine, is rapidly expanding beyond a “big think” gathering of academics, journalists, scientists, and innovation gurus. It's becoming a...

GM taps social media to engage consumers

Posted by: Venessa Wong on October 22

The days when corporate communications meant pushing out information to the public are numbered. As social media continues to permeate consumer culture, companies are trying to learn how to engage...

National Design Week: The Business of Design

Posted by: Helen Walters on October 20

National Design Week is in full swing here in New York, culminating in a swanky gala dinner on Thursday night to celebrate this year's National Design Award winners. One of...

Design Thinking Improves Conscious Capitalism

Posted by: Damian Joseph on October 20

This morning I headed over to the Acumen Fund's New York City office to learn about the non-profit group's progress with Ripple Effect, a joint project with design outfit IDEO...

Putting GE Smart Power Meters to the Test

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 19

General Electric has been testing what it calls the smart grid, using smart meters and smart appliances to push and pull consumers into being smarter about consuming electricity, as my...

IP Video Brings Emergency Advisories Online

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 15

By Venessa Wong of BusinessWeek's Innovation and Design staff With the Internet, we are instantly disseminating all sorts of media–videos, photos, tweets. Yet in emergencies, such as hurricanes, many people...

U.S. Patents Up; Consumer Product Introductions Down

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 15

Feeling blue about the state of innovation? I have some news that could cheer you up—and some that might make you even bluer. The upbeat news first: The U.S. Patent...

Trialing Philips’s DirectLife health program

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 13

By Venessa Wong of BusinessWeek's Innovation and Design staff In a recent meeting with Erik de Heus, CEO of New Wellness Solutions at Philips Electronics (PHG), the multinational health-care, consumer...

Can Innovative Entrepreneurship be Taught?

Posted by: Reena Jana on October 13

A recent survey developed for the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy by research at New York University’s Stern School of Business and NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and...

What Starbucks Has to Do with Wind Farming

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 11

Over lunch with the top execs of Suzlon Energy, Andris Cukurs, CEO of the multinational's U.S. subsidiary, brought up Starbucks. Turns out there's something called the Starbucks Rule when it...

HP and Beats Team Up for Special Edition Digital Music Laptop

Posted by: Damian Joseph on October 08

Yesterday, I got to head over the Westin in Times Square and check out the upcoming special edition laptop co-branded by Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Beats by Dr. Dre. You'll remember...

Too Much Vacant Commercial Real Estate? Here’s How to Fill It

Posted by: Damian Joseph on October 08

To be blunt, the commercial real estate market is horrendous. Vacancy rates have hit multiyear highs, with 16.5% of offices, 10.3% of shopping centers, and 8.6% of enclosed malls empty,...

U.S. Slips to Second in Patents

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 08

Guess which government agency received the most U.S. patents through the year's midpoint. If you had answered the U.S. Navy, you would have been right in 2008. But in the...

George Lucas says art drives innovation

Posted by: Reena Jana on October 07

George Lucas, the film-maker behind such hits as the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, shared some uplifting thoughts on artistic passion and technological invention at the World Business Forum...

A new lab to feed Lamborghini's need for speed

Posted by: Jay Greene on October 06

Ask my 11-year-old son to list his favorite cars and pretty quickly, he'll reel off Lamborghini’s Murcielago Roadster. The zippy two-seater, which runs nearly $400,000, goes from zero to 62...

Show Us Your Home Office

Posted by: Damian Joseph on October 06

We're all about home offices this week. Jay Greene wrote about his recent experience setting up shop at home and I put together a slideshow on the Art of the...

New from Kraft Foods: Vending Machines

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 05

For years Kraft Foods has been supplying cookies, crackers, and other snacks to vending machine operators. Now the food company is getting into the business directly, with its own network...

Wrigley Goes into a New Category: Baked Snacks

Posted by: Michael Arndt on October 01

Wm Wrigley Jr. Co. is the biggest gum company in the world, but it's only in Russia, among the Top 10 markets, where it has the leading candy, Orbit, according...