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☆ Agnellis' Exor eyes further healthcare investment for expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Giulio Piovaccari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

After completing the sale of its reinsurer PartnerRE, Exor has around 6.5 billion euros in cash available for investments, including 5 billion euros for acquisitions. It has already said its M&A activity would mainly focus on healthcare, luxury and technology businesses. Through its venture capital arm Exor Ventures, Exor was also developing partnerships with healthcare companies at an early stage of their development, Elkann said. NEW CHAIRMANExor is the single largest investor in carmaker Stellantis and has controlling stakes in companies including Ferrari (RACE.MI), CNH Industrial (CNHI.MI) and soccer club Juventus (JUVE.MI). It said its profit rose to 4.227 billion euros ($4.64 billion) last year, from 1.717 billion euros in 2021 mainly due to the net gain it booked from the 8.6 billion euro sale of PartnerRe.

☆ Exor picks Nohria as new chairman to succeed World Bank nominee Banga
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Netherlands-based Exor has proposed Nitin Nohria as its new non-executive chairman, it said in a statement as it presented its full-year results. It said its profit rose to 4.227 billion euros ($4.64 billion) last year, from 1.717 billion euros in 2021. The holding company's net asset value (NAV) amounted to 28.233 billion euros at the end of 2022, 9.1% lower then a year earlier. Exor proposed an ordinary dividend of 100 million euros, or 0.44 euros per share. Exor said that in the first months of 2023 it had increased investments in its private funds strategies by 400 million euros and committed for a further 300 million euros.

☆ Elon Musk holds the keys to the moon because SpaceX's Starship megarocket launch is crucial to NASA's return
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Kate Duffy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The rocket, which NASA has tagged for upcoming missions, is crucial to NASA's return to the moon. The highly anticipated Starship launch will determine whether NASA's Artemis moon program is on track for success. NASA's SLS relies on Starship for the moon landingA Starship prototype being launched. NASA's SLS rocket, by contrast, has a high price tag for the taxpayer: The project has cost $50 billion in development since the program's inception in 2006. All of this makes NASA's SLS a poor competitor to SpaceX's shiny new rocket.

☆ Why Stock-Market Investors Can No Longer Count on the ‘Index Effect’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Daisy Maxey | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The disappearance of the ‘index effect’ might have one positive: It shows that financial markets have become more efficient. A new study concludes that—at least in the case of the S&P 500—the small rise in share value that once accompanied a stock’s addition to the index has disappeared on average over the past decade. This disappearance of the well-known “index effect” has occurred despite an increase in the amount of money tracking the S&P 500 over the period, says Robin Greenwood, professor of finance and banking at Harvard Business School. He co-wrote the working paper, “The Disappearing Index Effect,” with Marco Sammon, assistant professor of business administration at Harvard Business School.

☆ 4 reasons small businesses shouldn't skip out on advertising in local media
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Erica Sweeney | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Small businesses that invest in local advertising can connect and engage with their communities. Local advertising is a way small businesses can support and partner with other businesses. Companies can help other small businessesAppearing in local media outlets that have been around for generations and are known and trusted in the community can elevate local businesses, Walker-Smith said. He also said that many local media outlets are also small businesses themselves, so advertising is a way of supporting the business community. Even if small businesses think local advertising is too expensive, Walker-Smith urged company owners to contact local media organizations about what options are available.

☆ Gary Vaynerchuk to managers: Forget a 4-day workweek. If you want to make your people happy, fire the jerks.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Gary Vaynerchuk said companies should fire the "assholes" creating "toxic" work environments. He has also said recently that companies need to appeal to Gen Z better, given their many work options. In TikToks posted this week, Vaynerchuk railed against "toxic work environments," slamming companies for retaining employees and management that compromise the "joy" of their staff members. "Joy doesn't come from four-hour workweeks," Vaynerchuk said in one video, seeming to reference the current movement for a four-day workweek. And Vaynerchuk is betting that people also want to be treated right while on the clock.

☆ Harvard expert 'takes issue' with Mark Zuckerberg's Meta layoffs: Cutting jobs over email is 'absolutely horrific'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

As Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to let go of 10,000 more workers in his company's latest round of layoffs, a Harvard University expert says she "takes issue" with the way some of them are being conducted — namely, over email. A bevy of ex-Meta employees have spoken with media outlets or posted on social media about getting laid off via email in recent weeks. Jennifer Haynes, a former Meta technical recruiter, filmed herself checking her email and learning that she'd been laid off in real time. On March 13, one day before Zuckerberg's layoffs announcement, a share of Meta stock was worth $180.90. This story has been updated to reflect that similar reports of recent layoffs though email have emerged from Amazon and Twitter.

☆ Pepsi's new logo takes inspiration from its '90s design, tapping into Gen Z nostalgia for the era
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Pepsi unveiled a new logo on Tuesday, which closely resembles its '90s design. The redesign comes alongside rising popularity for the '90s era among Gen Zers. The old Pepsi logo, pictured in 1990. Jean-Erick PASQUIER/Gamma-Rapho via Getty ImagesBut taking inspiration from a previous design also comes as Gen Zers bring back several trends from the '90s. Burberry was among those companies, replacing its knight logo and serif font in 2018, before bringing them back in February this year.

CNBC: You were the first Hispanic woman to serve on one of the top five Fortune 100 corporate boards, but as of 2022, corporate boards continue to remain majority white and male. What do you see as the biggest obstacle to diversifying corporate boards? Ford director Kimberly Casiano was the first Hispanic woman to serve on a Fortune 100 top five corporate board. I also believe entrepreneurs, who have much more limited resources and leverage than major corporations, are better at compromise and subtle persuasion. Casiano: It is important to remember that gender diversity on corporate boards came years before ethnic diversity started to show its head.

☆ Miami?! San Diego State?! Florida Atlantic?! Frisky First Timers Invade Final Four
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Jason Gay | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

My friends, take a long look at the teams in this year’s men’s college basketball Final Four, because there has never been a final foursome like it before, and there will almost surely never be again:Hamburger University Harvard Business School The Sorbonne DukeOK, fine, I’m kidding, those aren’t really the four schools—the field is actually (for realsies) Florida Atlantic, Miami, San Diego State and something called the University of Connecticut—but it still represents a radical departure from the March Madness norm.

☆ Asian Americans are anxious about hate crimes. TikTok ban rhetoric isn’t helping
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

And the Chinese government’s authoritarian approach to numerous other issues clashes with important American values, said many Asian Americans interviewed for this article. Concerns about China have gone mainstream as US national security officials and lawmakers have publicly grappled with state-backed ransomware attacks and other hacking attempts. People rallied during a "Stop Asian Hate" march to protest against anti-Asian hate crimes on Foley Square in New York, on April 4, 2021. But to Chu, the incident was an example of the way politics surrounding China, technology and national security have fueled anti-Asian sentiment. “Asian American issues are American issues, and all Americans deserve to be treated with respect.

☆ The notion of 'fake work' or coasting in the tech industry has a long history, but experts say it's just an 'excuse for bad management'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Tech workers have been accused of "coasting," as well as "resting and vesting" in the past. Experts said the notion of fake work is part of a larger issue in the industry and often an excuse. People have long accused tech workers of failing to pull their weight — they've just had different names for it over the years. These claims are shedding light on larger management issues and internal problems within major tech companies, experts told Insider. And while some experts say a certain level of "fake work" is a natural part of the boom-and-bust cycle in tech, not all agree.

☆ I'm a SVB employee who lost more than $1 million. Here's the inside story of our struggle to survive.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Darius Rafieyan | Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The best case outcome — which I think is unlikely, given the brand tarnishing — is that we operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary. We spent a whole weekend on the phone, email, chat, any sort of way to get in touch with the VC firms, partners of the VC firms, operating partners, CFOs, anybody we could to try and get them to rally. Originally there was a list of 13 VC firms, which said they were willing to sign a statement saying that they supported us. We spent a whole weekend on the phone, email, chat, any sort of way to get in touch with the VC firms, partners of the VC firms, operating partners, CFOs, anybody we could to try and get them to rally. Whether you've raised $5 million or you've raised $500 million, you have a dedicated person.

☆ TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew got his start in tech at Facebook—now his app is its biggest competitor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Prior to running the most popular social media app in the world, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was an intern for one of his largest competitors. On Thursday, Chew sat before Congress to defend TikTok against spying claims as Congress and President Biden weigh a potential U.S. ban. "We are committed to [being] very transparent with our users about what we collect," Chew told the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Today, Facebook has 2.9 billion active users, according to Meta's 2022 Q4 earnings presentation. "The potential security, privacy, content manipulation concerns raised about TikTok are really not unique to us.

☆ Shou Zi Chew: Who is the TikTok CEO testifying before Congress?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Evelyn HocksteinMarch 23 (Reuters) - TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew has mostly kept a low profile since taking the job in 2021 but on Thursday he is testifying before U.S. lawmakers, many of them suspicious of the popular Chinese-owned social media app. Chew previously worked as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and investment firm DST, which was an early backer of ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok. TikTok pointedly said in a letter to lawmakers last year that Chew was not from China and that the company is independent of ByteDance. Chew, who is married and has two children, raised his public profile last year by creating his own TikTok account, @shou.time. Chew has told media that TikTok does not threaten U.S. interests.

☆ Corporate leaders should be more honest with workers when job cuts are about performance, rather than the economy, a Harvard professor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Josée Rose | Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Layoffs shouldn't be used as a way to cut low-performing workers, Harvard's Sandra Sucher said. That's because layoffs are often the result of a slumping economy or missteps by management. But sometimes, leaders who are eager to sweep away lackluster workers can be tempted to clean house under the guise of layoffs. That's a bad idea, according to Sandra Sucher, a professor of management practice at Harvard Business School who's studied layoffs. Even broad job cuts that purport to target only the lowest-ranked workers can harm a company, Sucher said.

☆ TikTok CEO, Veteran of Singapore Army, Harvard and Goldman Sachs, Tries to Reassure America
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Stu Woo | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON—TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Zi Chew says his company is offering the U.S. government more concessions and oversight than any business in history. On Thursday, the 40-year-old former Singapore army reservist and Goldman Sachs banker is slated to appear in front of a group of lawmakers who say that still isn’t enough. Born and raised in Singapore, then educated in London and at Harvard Business School, Mr. Chew has navigated both Western and Chinese business over the course of his fast rise to the corner office. Many members have threatened to ban TikTok, saying its Chinese ownership poses a national security threat. He runs TikTok from offices in Singapore, but travels often, including frequently to the U.S.

☆ Meet Shou Zi Chew, TikTok's 40-year-old CEO who's entered the spotlight as he tries to defend the company from growing security concerns and ban threats
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Katie Canales | Sarah Jackson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will testify before Congress this week as officials share security concerns about the Chinese-owned app. He's 40 years old, went to Harvard Business School, and interned at Facebook when it was a startup. Sign up for our newsletter for the latest tech news and scoops — delivered daily to your inbox. World leaders, including President Biden, worry the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform is a danger to national security, and they're threatening it with nationwide bans. CEO Shou Zi Chew is 40 years old, from Singapore, and got his start as an intern at Facebook.

☆ 'CEO whisperer' shares the simple brain trick he uses to make better decisions—it only takes 'a few minutes each day'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Colonna, who's often referred to as the "CEO whisperer," has been preaching this theory for 20-plus years now. The process wasn't easy: It required him to confront traumas and "personal demons" that he'd been ignoring for years. Get comfortable with self-questioningColonna's radical self-inquiry process is simple, he says. "Spend a few minutes each day, but not the entire day, asking questions like how am I really feeling? The only catch, says Colonna: Hyper-analyzing yourself can sometimes feel like a "trap," because you can "get stuck" constantly evaluating yourself.

☆ TikTok and its CEO are fighting to save the app in the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

In his talk, Chew, the CEO of TikTok, said the social network would not provide US user data to the Chinese government and has never been asked to do so. Chew stressed the steps TikTok has taken to protect US user data. The Harvard event is just one of several media appearances Chew has made in recent weeks amid mounting scrutiny of TikTok and of himself. “It’s life or death for TikTok, from their perspective,” said Justin Sherman, the CEO of Global Cyber Strategies, D.C.-based research and advisory firm, who was among the researchers TikTok invited to be briefed on “Project Texas,” the company’s $1.5 billion initiative to address lawmakers’ security concerns. But for some lawmakers with security concerns, the latest push “may be too little too late.”In his TikTok video on Tuesday, Chew appealed directly to users of the app.

☆ Mark Zuckerberg is leaning into Meta's 'year of efficiency' the wrong way, and multiple rounds of layoffs will be damaging
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( Rebecca Knight | Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg last week unveiled another round of layoffs hitting 10,000 staffers. The dismissals are part of an efficiency plan boost productivity and turn Meta into a talent magnet. But the job cuts are likely to have the opposite effect, two management experts told Insider. Rather than resorting to layoffs, Sucher said companies should look at other ways to lower headcount, including natural attrition, buyouts, and hiring freezes. "You have to plan for it in order to not have it kill your company," Sucher said.

CNN —Nearly two-and-a-half years after the Trump administration threatened to ban TikTok in the United States if it didn’t divest from its Chinese owners, the Biden administration is now doing the same. The new directive comes from the multiagency Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), following years of negotiations between TikTok and the government body. “If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem,” TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said in a statement. TikTok is really only a national security risk insofar as the Chinese government may have leverage over TikTok or its parent company. China has national security laws that require companies under its jurisdiction to cooperate with a broad range of security activities.

☆ 3 ways your business can survive an economic downturn without layoffs or marketing budget cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Joy Gendusa | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

It can be tempting to go straight to layoffs or cut marketing costs during an economic downturn. Losing new business to less marketing and laying off experienced staff you'll have to rehire are not the best ways to go. The better option is to find smart ways to continue marketing your products and services rather than stop marketing completely. Find ways to reduce expenses and maximize efficiencyYou'll have to get clever to weather an economic storm and come out strong. Review all areas of your business, and find ways to cut expenses, maximize efficiency, and keep marketing consistently.

Greg Becker, who was the longtime CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, pictured last year. "Looks like Silicon Valley Bank is in some deep shit," Uncommon Capital general partner Jamie Quint tweeted. Startup founders scrambled to get their funds out of Silicon Valley Bank after its collapse. Andreessen Horowitz announced this week that it will continue banking with Silicon Valley Bank "for the foreseeable future" but is crafting a longer-term plan to diversify. Even so, he added, "I think we'd be supportive, as they stabilize, for them to be one of many partners that our founders bank with."

☆ Highly successful people use this soft skill, says 'CEO whisperer' Jerry Colonna—avoiding it 'is a prescription' for 'failure'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Ashton Jackson | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Highly successful people possess a skill that helps them grow personally and professionally, says leadership coach Jerry Colonna: They excel at adapting to change. Colonna was even dubbed the "CEO whisperer" by Gimlet's "StartUp" podcast in 2015. "You have to meet each individual team member where they are, not drag them to where you are," he added. "Take a deep breath, take stock of the situation, and discuss it candidly" with your boss instead, Brassey and De Smet wrote. 1 best piece of advice for regular investors, do's and don'ts, and three key investing principles into a clear and simple guidebook.

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