|
|
ONLINE FEATURES
Book Reviews
BW Video
Columnists
Interactive Gallery
Newsletters
Past Covers
Philanthropy
Podcasts
Special Reports
BLOGS
Auto Beat
Bangalore Tigers
Blogspotting
Brand New Day
Byte of the Apple
Economics Unbound
Eye on Asia
Fine On Media
Green Biz
Hot Property
Investing Insights
Management IQ
NEXT: Innovation
NussbaumOnDesign
Tech Beat
Working Parents
TECHNOLOGY
J.D. Power Ratings
Product Reviews
Tech Stats
Wildstrom: Tech Maven
AUTOS
Home Page
Auto Reviews
Classic Cars
Car Care & Safety
Hybrids
INNOVATION
& DESIGN Home Page Architecture Brand Equity Auto Design Game Room SMALLBIZ Smart Answers Success Stories Today's Tip INVESTING Investing: Europe Annual Reports BW 50 S&P Picks & Pans Stock Screeners Free S&P Stock Report SCOREBOARDS Hot Growth 100 Mutual Funds Info Tech 100 S&P 500 B-SCHOOLS Undergrad Programs MBA Blogs MBA Profiles MBA Rankings Who's Hiring Grads | |
OCTOBER 29, 2007
Edited by Reena Jana SOCIAL MEDIA Keeping in Touch as Interns Head Out This fall, Siemens (SI ) launched a secure social network open only to alumni of the Siemens Scholar program, which hosts college and graduate students who work on projects with the company. The Siemens Scholar Network (alumni.siemens-foundation.org) solicited 2,500 alums to join in September. In the first two days, 277 signed up to build Facebook-style profiles. The goal: to retain relationships with Generation Y talent after they graduate or move on to other corporations. Beyond posting bios and blog entries, members can peruse postings about Siemens job and internship opportunities. By Reena Jana VIDEO GAMES World of Warcraft, Watch Out: Lord of the Rings Is Advancing Popular online role-playing game World of Warcraft (WOW) has serious competition. Lord of the Rings Online, based on J.R.R.Tolkien's books, is growing fast. In the six months since LOTRO's launch, 200,000 copies have been sold at retail, and 4 million characters have been created. The game has innovative features, including Google (GOOG ) Maps to navigate virtual lands. Later this year a free upgrade will offer customized virtual homes, a feature lacking in WOW. Chinese and South Korean versions will launch by 2008. By Matt Vella   INNOVATION METRICS Big Guns' Big Ideas to Track Innovation A high-profile panel of CEOs and academics met last month in Washington to discuss how to measure innovation in the U.S. economy. It's part of an initiative sponsored by the Commerce Dept. that began last year, guided by an advisory committee whose members include Samuel Palmisano, IBM's chief executive. His remarks, submitted in a written statement, pointed out a paradox: Productivity can appear to "decline" when a company is researching and developing an innovative new product. The gathering elicited contributions from the likes of Medtronic (MDT ) Chairman and CEO Art Collins, who believes that market share is the performance measure that most closely aligns with innovation. Harvard economist Dale Jorgenson called for a scientifically designed annual survey to track innovation within service industries. Other notable advisers include Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and 3M CEO George Buckley. Thirteen proposals were discussed, including the development of a national innovation index and a way to measure the "science of startups," or innovation within new businesses. The transcript is posted online at innovationmetrics.gov. Conclusions and recommendations will be published in November. By Helen Walters CARS Jaguar Lets Its Designers out of the Cage Ford Motor (F ) unveiled the Jaguar XF four-door coupe at September's Frankfurt Auto Show and will showcase it at the upcoming L.A. Auto Show. Plummeting sales and dramatic losses at Jaguar prompted Ford to give designers more freedom to reinvent the brand's look. The goal: to lure new global buyers to Jaguar with modern design. Changes include updated sports-coupe proportions (echoing the Lexus GS) and a horizontal grille. "It's about time Jaguar showed its claws," says Chief Designer Ian Callum. By Gail Edmondson
| | |
 Copyright 2007, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.Terms of Use | Privacy Notice |
Printer-Friendly Version