DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Marc Benioff tells Salesforce workers that new employees are 'facing lower productivity'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Salesforce co-CEO Marc Benioff told employees in a Slack message on Friday that the company's newest hires aren't being productive enough, and he asked for feedback as to why that's the case. Last year, Salesforce acquired communications app Slack, and Benioff said people can work very effectively from their homes. On Friday he highlighted an issue that he said was affecting employees who joined Salesforce this year and last. Here's the full text of Benioff's Slack post:How do we increase the productivity of our employees at salesforce? New employees (hired during the pandemic in 2021 & 2022) are especially facing much lower productivity.

☆ Junior bankers sound off: From how much sleep they get to what kind of company they want to work for next, first-year investment banking analysts spill the beans
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Junior bankers hold an interesting position on Wall Street. While these young investment bankers are often the butt of the joke — something something Murray Hill something something Patagonia vests — they also represent a key piece of the dealmaking machine. That's why I always find surveys of junior bankers so fascinating. Emmalyse examined 10 different slides from the poll, which was conducted by recruiting firm Odyssey Search Partners, that show what junior bankers like, and don't like, about their jobs. Click here to learn more about what junior bankers love, and hate, about their jobs.

☆ Elon Musk says a controversial new feature is coming to Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Last month, Musk said Twitter’s “new” policy is “freedom of speech, not freedom of reach,” echoing an approach that is something of an industry standard. Musk on Friday shared Weiss’ thread in a tweet and added, “The Twitter Files, Part Duex! The release of internal documents from Twitter’s prior leadership comes as Musk attempts to reshape the platform in his image. But Musk has also said he doesn’t want Twitter to “become a free-for-all hellscape” and plans to moderate content in a way that appears largely consistent with Twitter’s prior policies. “Freedom of speech,” the blog post stated, “not freedom of reach.”

☆ The 'Twitter Files' part 2 claimed to 'reveal' that the platform limited some accounts' reach, but that was already public knowledge — and in line with Elon Musk's new 'freedom of speech, not freedom
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | Erin Snodgrass | Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Twitter first announced in 2018 it would effectively hide some tweets from conversations and search results, according to The Washington Post's Will Oremus. Critics, and there were many, especially as prominent Republicans were impacted, referred to Twitter's practice of limiting certain tweets' visibility as "shadowbanning." In her thread, Weiss said Twitter's Strategic Response Team - Global Escalation Team, known as SRT-GET, was the body tasked with deciding which users were marked for "visibility filtering." The description outlined by Weiss of Twitter's internal moderation policy appears to fall in line with Musk's own recently-announced approach to content moderation on the site: "Freedom of speech doesn't mean freedom of reach. But Weiss, a former New York Times columnist, is not thought to be a current employee at Twitter.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says he paid so little attention to expenses that he didn't realize he was spending too much, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam Bankman-Fried claims he paid little attention to his company expenses, per Bloomberg. The FTX co-founder told Bloomberg he didn't realize he was spending more than he was taking in. When demonstrating the company's biggest cashflows to the Bloomberg journalist, Bankman-Fried listed $250 million in expenses for real estate and $1 billion for "fuckups." According to court documents filed by FTX's newly appointed CEO John J. Ray III, the company didn't have a formal accounting department. Company expenses, which reportedly included a $200 daily allowance for food delivery, were approved by emojis on online chats, according to a bankruptcy filing.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried says he 'misaccounted' $8 billion after FTX customers wired money to hedge fund Alameda and the cash was counted twice
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried showed a Bloomberg reporter a spreadsheet of company finances. The former billionaire – who now says he's down to his last $100,000 – showed Bloomberg's Zeke Faux a spreadsheet of FTX and Alameda's accounts. When the Bloomberg reporter asked Bankman-Fried if he had "misplaced $8 billion," the FTX founder replied: "Misaccounted." Then, FTX's internal accounting system counted this money twice by crediting it to both companies. Ray, who also handled Enron's bankruptcy, said FTX is full of "inexperienced" executives and demonstrates a "complete failure of corporate controls."

Black users have long been one of Twitter’s most engaged demographics, flocking to the platform to steer online culture and drive real-world social change. But a month after Elon Musk took over, some Black influencers are eyeing the exits just as he races to shore up the company’s business. And while there is no hard data on how many Black users have either joined or left the platform over that period, some prominent influencers say they’re actively pursuing alternatives. Some signs indicate a slowdown among Black Twitter users that predates Musk. “It’s crippling to the economies of cities when Black folks leave, platforms when Black folks leave, entertainment sites when Black folks leave,” she said.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried apologized to an FTX customer who said he lost his life savings of $2 million, and accused the former CEO of stealing it
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An FTX user wrote to the host interviewing Sam Bankman-Fried at a New York Times summit. He said he lost $2 million and accused SBF of stealing it. Andrew Ross Sorkin – the journalist hosting the summit – shared the email "from a gentleman who said he lost his life savings." It had the subject line: "Sam Bankman-Fried stole $2 million from me." The user wrote: "Andrew, can you please ask SBF why he decided to steal my life savings and the $10 billion more from customers to give to his hedge fund, Alameda?"

☆ FTX hired private planes to fly Amazon packages from Miami to staff at its Bahamas HQ because it didn't deliver to the country, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The US office's 75 employees could spend $200 a day on DoorDash food delivery – a total of $15,000. And when they realized Amazon didn't cover The Bahamas, deliveries were flown privately from Miami. With around 75 staff based at FTX's American firm per Axios, that would mean a $15,000 allowance in DoorDash food delivery credits every day. After FTX moved its head office from Hong Kong to The Bahamas in September 2021, employees realized that Amazon didn't deliver to the island. In bankruptcy court, it was also revealed that staff submitted expenses through online chat platforms, which were approved with emojis.

☆ Lionel Messi: Argentine receives warning from Canelo Álvarez
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Mexican boxer Saul ‘Canelo’ Álvarez has sent a warning to Lionel Messi, who he accused of disrespecting Mexico. “Did you see Messi cleaning the floor with our shirt and flag??? ?” Álvarez tweeted, apparently referencing a video in which Messi appears to kick a Mexico shirt that is on the floor during Argentina’s celebrations in the changing room. There is no indication that Messi kicked the shirt intentionally, instead appearing to do it accidentally as he took off his football boots. Canelo, don’t look for excuses or problems, surely you don’t know about football and what happens in a changing room.

☆ A look back at Elon Musk's chaotic first month at Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-27 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —Sunday officially marks one month since the world’s richest man took the helm at Twitter. After spending months embroiled in an unsuccessful legal battle to get out of his initial proposal to buy Twitter, Musk made his first splashy entrance into the company’s offices on Oct. 26, carrying a sink. (In a video of the incident shared on Twitter, he wrote: “Entering Twitter HQ – let that sink in!) In another dramatic move by the new boss, Musk publicly fired a software engineer who had survived the initial round of cuts, but who then questioned Musk on Twitter. Musk goes onto to grant ‘amnesty’ to most previously banned accountsAfter conducting yet another Twitter poll, Musk said on Nov. 24 that he will begin restoring most previously banned accounts on Twitter starting next week.

☆ A grandmother accidentally texted a stranger to make Thanksgiving plans. 7 years on, they’re still celebrating together.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Becca Wood | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

On Tuesday, Nov. 22, Jamal Hinton shared a photo standing beside Wanda Dench outside The Cheesecake Factory restaurant, revealing the two are carrying on their viral tradition. In 2016, Dench accidentally sent a text to Hinton, telling the then 17-year-old that Thanksgiving dinner was at her house on Nov. 24 at 3 p.m. When the teen asked who sent him the message, Dench replied, “Your grandma,” with an elderly woman emoji. Hinton wrote back, asking for a photo to prove that the number really belonged to his grandmother. However, that year was different as Dench’s husband, Lonnie, died earlier that spring due to complications from Covid-19.

☆ Twitter employees who technically resigned on Thursday say they can still use internal systems, amid speculation the staff responsible for cutting access are also quitting
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Staff who didn't sign up for Elon Musk's "hardcore" Twitter say they still have access to systems. This led to speculation that the the staff responsible for cutting access had also left Twitter. Some Twitter staff told The Verge they were speculating this was because the employees who handled access to internal company systems had also resigned. Out of about 4,000 remaining Twitter employees, less than 2,000 chose to stay on and work with Musk as the owner, Insider's Kali Hays reported. Thursday's resignations triggered a wave of salute emojis and farewell messages on Twitter's Slack, a former worker told Insider.

☆ FTX employees were claiming expenses through online chat and random managers used emojis to approve them, new CEO says in bankruptcy filings
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

FTX employees claimed expenses through chat messages, its new CEO said. Random managers would then approve the official claims by using personalized emojis, John Ray added. In his damning report, Ray said FTX failed to keep communication, hiring, and financial records. New CEO John Ray said FTX employees submitted payment requests to a "disparate group of supervisors," who would approve expenses "by responding with personalized emojis," FTX's Thursday bankruptcy filing shows. Ray said FTX "never had board meetings" and that the exchange used employees' personal names to purchase real estate in the Bahamas with corporate funds.

In a private chat on Signal with about 50 Twitter staffers, nearly 40 said they had decided to leave, according to the former employee. A separate poll on Blind asked staffers to estimate what percentage of people would leave Twitter based on their perception. Blue hearts and salute emojis flooded Twitter and its internal chatrooms on Thursday, the second time in two weeks as Twitter employees said their goodbyes. By 6 p.m. Eastern, over two dozen Twitter employees across the United States and Europe had announced their departures in public Twitter posts reviewed by Reuters, though each resignation could not be independently verified. Early on Wednesday, Musk had emailed Twitter employees, saying: "Going forward, to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0 and succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we will need to be extremely hardcore".

☆ Twitter employees flooded internal Slack channels with goodbye salute emojis and farewell messages as Musk's 'hardcore' stay-or-go deadline passed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter staff flooded internal Slack channels with salute emojis Thursday as Musk's stay-or-go deadline passed. ET Thursday to commit to Musk's "hardcore" vision of be laid off. Fewer than half of Twitter employees have accepted Musk's ultimatum, Insider reported. Twitter's largest Slack channel, "social watercooler," was flooded with salute emojis — company shorthand for saying goodbye to coworkers — Insider's Kali Hays reported. Twitter staff who appear not to have committed to Musk's vision also posted salute emojis on Twitter itself.

☆ This is what kind of legal trouble FTX and Sam Bankman-Fried could now face, based on details from the crypto exchange's latest bankruptcy filing
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Sindhu Sundar | Samantha Delouya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

FTX's bankruptcy filing shed new light on potential legal trouble for the crypto exchange and its former execs. New CEO John J. Ray III delivered a blistering assessment, calling FTX's implosion " a complete failure of corporate controls." Read some of the most incendiary parts of the bankruptcy filing and what experts say it all might mean. Sign up for our newsletter for the latest tech news and scoops — delivered daily to your inbox. "The appointment of the Directors will provide the FTX Group with appropriate corporate governance for the first time."

☆ New wave of resignations hits Twitter after Musk ultimatum
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Lora Kolodny | Jason Abbruzzese | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A new wave of Twitter employees resigned on Thursday after Elon Musk issued an ultimatum telling them they would need to be willing to commit to a "hardcore" work environment. Three Twitter employees who spoke with CNBC asked to remain nameless, citing fear of professional retaliation. It was not clear exactly how many Twitter employees resigned. Musk has asked some top engineers who opted to resign to consider staying on, according to one Twitter engineer familiar with the situation. The recent wave of resignations adds to what is now a combined mass layoff and voluntary exodus from Twitter, leaving the company significantly smaller than when Musk first took over in late October.

☆ Breakingviews: FTX affords a turning point in venture governance
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The new chief executive of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange, insolvency veteran John Ray, uncovered giant financial gaps and signs of looting. Ray’s first in-depth account, submitted to the court on Thursday, reveals a brazen lack of controls and governance. Financial statements dated to Sept. 30, when founder Sam Bankman-Fried was in charge, contain no record of customer liabilities at either the U.S. subsidiary or the international division. Many of the FTX corporate entities never had board meetings. Ray also criticised his predecessor and FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried for making “erratic and misleading public statements”.

☆ FTX affords a turning point in venture governance
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

- Ray said he had secured $740 million in cryptocurrency, a "fraction" of what he hopes to recover during the bankruptcy. Bankman-Fried and his co-founders failed to identify wallets that might contain FTX assets, he added. - Record keeping was so lax that Ray said he was unable to compile a complete list of FTX employees. - The second silo is Alameda Research LLC, which Ray described as a crypto hedge fund owned by Bankman-Fried and Wang with assets of $13.46 billion. - The other silos were Ventures, which manages private investments and had around $2 billion in assets, and Dotcom, which owned non-U.S. exchanges with $2.25 billion in assets.

☆ Emoji for expenses, penthouses and slipshod accounting: The most damning details from new FTX CEO's report
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Penthouses, perks and personal items"In the Bahamas, I understand that corporate funds of the FTX Group were used to purchase homes and other personal items for employees and advisors. Other reports have detailed lavish perks allegedly given to FTX employees in the Bahamas. Ray's filing indicated that corporate funds were used to purchase homes for employees and advisors, sometimes in their name. For example, employees of the FTX Group submitted payment requests through an online 'chat' platform where a disparate group of supervisors approved disbursements by responding with personalized emojis." It isn't immediately clear what platform FTX used, although the company is known to have used Slack for internal communications.

☆ FTX may have used corporate funds to buy homes for employees and advisors, its new CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Some of FTX's affiliates may have used corporate funds to buy homes, its new CEO has claimed. "In the Bahamas, I understand that corporate funds of the FTX Group were used to purchase homes and other personal items for employees and advisors," Ray wrote. Bankman-Fried and other FTX employees including CTO Gary Wang and director of engineering Nishad Singh all lived together in a penthouse in the Bahamas. He said that employees submitted payment requests through an on-line chat platform "where a disparate group of supervisors approved disbursements by responding with personalized emojis." In the declaration, Ray also cited FTX's "inexperienced" execs, auto-deleting messages, and "a complete failure of corporate controls."

☆ Trolls are already abusing Elon Musk's new Twitter verification system, impersonating everyone from George Bush to O.J. Simpson
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Twitter's new verification system is already being abused by trolls impersonating public figures. Neither Bush nor Blair have personal Twitter accounts, but are verified through their foundations. Other examples of fake but verified accounts causing trouble soon after the new verification system came in included a user pretending to be O.J. "I'm ngl I did that shit," the verified account "ThaReal0J32" tweeted, attracting over 55,000 likes before it was deleted. The fake Bush account also responded to tweets about fake verified accounts saying: "Jed [Bush's younger brother] is smarter than Elon."

☆ Factbox: Twitter alternatives that users are turning to
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - After taking Twitter Inc private for $44 billion, Elon Musk has started making changes to the social media platform that have irked some users, making them look for alternatives. COHOSTCohost is an ad-free social media platform. The platform allows users to target an audience to enhance engagement on posts and says users can find experts on topics of discussion. TUMBLRTumblr is a social media website that was launched in 2007 which allows users to post long-form blog-style content with media elements such as photos and GIFs. It also allows users to chat with each other much like Twitter's direct messaging function.

Search resuls for: "Emojis"

25 mentions found