by Xavier Flores | Aug 12, 2021 | Business, Strategy
Over the last twenty-plus years working with executives worldwide, we observed how one of the most crucial steps in educating leaders on the benefits and use of Decision Management Platforms is to help them navigate what’s possible and what is still esoteric.
To an untrained eye, a decision is a simple process of gathering data, turning it into insight, and coming up with a defensible hypothesis. However, as soon as we embark on a Decision Management discovery journey, leaders quickly learn how not all decisions are created equal, and the technology-processes mix differs dramatically.
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by Jace | Aug 11, 2021 | Business, Strategy
Business leaders want to make informed decisions quickly, learn from insight, become more efficient, and stay profitable in today’s world. But extracting insight from data that will lead to more informed decisions is often a long process involving cross-organizational teams from various business areas, bottlenecking the organizations’ ability to make quick decisions and act on them. Decision management platforms like Lithium AI can speed up and automate the insight and decision-making process in many cases. Here is how:
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by Xavier Flores | Jun 17, 2021 | Business
He occupies the largest office in the building, the corner office, beautifully decorated, the furniture is of precious Tropical woods. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer great views of the city. At the private lobby, someone is always waiting for the next set of instructions. Brand-new car. Business dinners with drinks and exotic dishes; events that extend into the late hours of the night. Sunday brunch. Designer clothes. Wristwatch, very expensive…
That idea is sold to us through movies, television, social networks. Many entrepreneurs make this vision their main objective when starting their company. They want fame, glamour, a jet-setting lifestyle.
When inquiring about how to get to that privileged position, those same entrepreneurs have a very wrong idea of how to achieve it. The illusion of the “Head Honcho”, to the likes of Sam “Ace” Rothstein in the movie “Casino” or Gordon Gecko in “Wall Street”, does not resemble the reality of what is a true (and good) corporate boss, a Head Honcho.
Being the Head Honcho, the boss responsible for the company, is very different. At least it should be.
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by Jace | Jun 16, 2021 | Business, PropTech
On May 5, Airbnb announced that it would lay off about 25% of its workforce, that is 1,900 people, in response to the current drop in demand due to the crisis. It also announced that it would stop non-core business initiatives such as Transportation, Airbnb Studios, Hotels and Lux. These changes occur despite the significant US$2 billion capital injection that it had received just a few weeks earlier. But this is not the end of Airbnb; on the contrary, they will be with us for a long time.
The economic recovery in the State will be for everyone, so everyone must participate.
Vacation rental units are not a new phenomenon. However, Airbnb disrupted the market through its technology platform. This is an attractive source of income as Airbnb, HomeAway, and their peers shift the responsibility for real estate investment to individuals, rather than relying on larger developers or operators. With this shift, these companies spurred a new wave of development and ownership structures that seek to profit from unattended lodging demand.
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by Xavier Flores | Jun 15, 2021 | Business
The houses of the three little pigs were the same size, only made differently. When tested, only the brick house, with its solid construction, survived. It was not by chance or accident. The little pig who made his house out of straw was not really thinking about the house, but about doing whatever with what he saw first so he could quickly go play around. The second little pig, the one with the sticks house, had a stronger desire to imitate the one who was playing than to have a solid house, so he finished anyway he could and went to play, too. The last one was the only one who really knew why he wanted a house, and with that in mind he set about building it. He was the only one who understood that a worthwhile house needs to be planned, well grounded, and that it would take time to build.
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by Xavier Flores | Jun 14, 2021 | Strategy
Payroll is generally one of the most important components of a company’s operating expenses. In service sectors, such as hotels and restaurants, payroll is generally the largest component. It is natural that, in times of scarcity, companies seek a reduction in temporary costs to survive. Sometimes these adjustments become permanent, generating greater profits for owners and investors.
This economic halt we are experiencing today is serving as an excuse for many companies to make cuts and adjustments. Since March, massive layoffs have been reported across the country in excess of 346,000. In Quintana Roo, official figures reach almost 64,000 people, being the entity with the most registered layoffs.
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by Xavier Flores | Jun 11, 2021 | Inspirational
The majority of the world’s companies are closed due to the current pandemic. A historic event during our lifetimes. During Phase 1 of the response to this pandemic we saw the implementation of the current stay-at-home policy and closure of non-essential businesses. Phase 2 will be when stay-at-home policies are relaxed while maintaining social distancing, some non-essential businesses re-open, and non-essential travel may resume. Phase 3 is when congregation and travel restrictions are mostly lifted albeit with strong observance of protocols to prevent resurgence of transmissions. These all applied to Quinta Roo.
As governments all over the world are busy dealing with the deadliest pandemic in recent history, many are putting in place measures to re-open economies, commonly understood as the Phase 3 of the action plan. However, this will be particularly drawn out for economies dependent on the pursuit of leisure and subject to disposable income, i.e., travel and tourism. After millions of people have lost their jobs, dip into their savings for survival or take on debt to stay afloat, getting back to the “new normal” will take time.
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by Xavier Flores | Jun 10, 2021 | Entrepreneur MBA
Crises make evident the need to have solid business models with pinpointed solutions as the foundation of a startup. Much is being written these days about how crises periods offer great opportunities. However, following previous traumatic periods such as the dot.com burst and the ‘08-’09 financial crash the companies who survived, and later thrived, were laser-focused on their value proposition. For each one that we know about for having succeeded, many, many more did not make it. Think about Airbnb; but how many remember Housetrip or Wimdu?
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by Jace | Jun 2, 2021 | Statups
SAN FRANCISCO, Ca., June 2, 2020 /BUSINESS WIRE/ — Stateset Inc., a smart workspace for B2B eCommerce companies to optimize gross merchandise volume (GMV) directly on a global business network of merchants, retailers, vendors and lenders, today announced Vikal Kapoor, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, will be presenting at the Bank of America Securities 2020 Global Technology Conference.
Stateset Inc. is scheduled to present on Tuesday, June 2, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. PT (4:00 p.m. EDT) and will be available live via webcast, accessible from the Investors page of Stateset’s website. An archive of the presentation will also be available by request.
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by Jace | Jun 12, 2020 | Entrepreneurship, Uncategorized
In this founder advice segment we go back to our European roots interviewing Yetunde Oshodi-Fraudeau, of Cook’n with Class. Cook’n With Class is a French cooking school that started in Paris in 2007 by Chef Eric Fraudeau a professional French chef with over 30 years of experience in France, the United States, Canada, & Mexico. In 2015, Chef Eric and his wife Yetunde opened a second school, Cook’n with Class Uzès in the South of France in a medieval city called Uzès on the doorsteps to Provence. The school offers day classes in French cuisine with market to table classes, French desserts, and baking classes, & wine and cheese tastings. We also host culinary holidays and tours for a full immersion in French culture and cuisine both in Paris and in southern France.
You can sign up to one of their virtual cooking classes here, and subscribe to their YouTube Channel to get a “taste” of what they do.
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