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☆ 10 Things in Tech: Charlie Bell speaks, Amazon RTO, and the lucrative side of teaching ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Amazon needs to watch out for Charlie Bell. A founder of Amazon Web Services and the firm's "best person in the room," Bell shook the industry last September when he joined Microsoft. Bell will be overseeing a new cybersecurity division at Microsoft — but insiders at both Amazon and Microsoft wonder if he'll go more directly up against his former employer. My colleague Ashley Stewart examines the growing threat of Microsoft now that Bell is free from his noncompete purgatory. Look into the future here for Bell — and Microsoft — without Amazon's restrictions.

☆ The layoffs are here for those who chose to 'learn to code'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Grace Mayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

But for those who chose to "learn to code," Vox reported the wave of layoffs in 2023 is challenging that notion. "If we look at 2023 layoffs, it's software engineers who have overtaken recruiters in layoffs," Ayas told Insider. This shift also signals a change in focus for company layoffs, Ayas said. Since then, Revelio's new data suggests that nearly 5% of tech company layoffs impacted recruiters — the position that saw the most layoffs after software engineers. What started as a wave of layoffs in the tech industry has now rippled to the finance and media industries as well.

☆ Mental-health apps have a dark secret — and it raises important questions about the future of online therapy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Hallam Bullock | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

In a video posted by Vice, Clarke addressed Clearlink's return-to-office mandate and said that many of his remote workers didn't open their laptops for a month. Online therapy fills a critical need — but it has a dark side. The data Loris used to create its "empathetic" software was generated from text conversations with people in distress, sourced from Loris' parent company, Crisis Text Line, a nonprofit suicide-prevention hotline. That is, however, according to Musk, who told Tucker Carlson that the two tech billionaires disagreed on safety and regulation. The real reason bosses are freaked out by remote work: they think it's for "sissies."

☆ Your Hair Is Going Gray. This Glitch May Explain Why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Kate Golembiewski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But gray hairs are one of the most obvious clues that the body isn’t working like it used to. Our hair turns gray when melanin-producing stem cells stop functioning properly. “This is a really big step toward understanding why we gray,” said Mayumi Ito, an author of the study and a dermatology professor at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine. Unlike embryonic stem cells, which develop into all sorts of different organs, adult stem cells have a more set path. The melanocyte stem cells in our hair follicles are responsible for producing and maintaining the pigment in our hair.

☆ How Larry Page's flying-car company of the future turned into a stunning failure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Although I'm currently pretty homesick and jet lagged, I'm blessed with "the life-changing magic of working from home." One worker told my colleague Rebecca Knight how remote work transformed her life and how returning to the office has killed company morale. The stunning failure of Google founder Larry Page's flying-car company. In April 2022, company morale plummeted when it axed one of its most promising projects, those former insiders say. The company put together a thorough document to help managers navigate pay-related conversations with employees, and Insider got a look.

☆ Apple continues to quietly build on its fintech ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In payments, specifically, its made progress via Apple Pay, the Apple Wallet, and the Apple Card. On Monday, Apple took another step deeper into financial services, announcing the launch of a high-yield savings account (4.15%) via its Apple Card. And now, as Goldman tries to salvage what's left of its consumer dreams, Apple continues to roll on. What's not clear, though, is what type of terms Goldman gets for serving as the back-end partner partner. Click here to read more about the top eight executives shaking up payments, including a key leader at Apple Pay.

☆ Bosses hate work from home because 'home' is for women
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

And the old way was clear: The office is for work, and the home is for — well, for whatever unpaid stuff it is that women do while their men are at work. Skeptical that work — real work — could be done at home, bosses quietly penalized the women who opted for flexible schedules by sticking them with boring assignments and denying them promotions. Embracing remote work is a good start, but it comes with risks of its own. Since the pandemic hit, I've heard a few CEOs liken remote work to opening Pandora's box. Women working from home are no longer the aberration — tradition-bound executives are.

☆ An employee reportedly asked to go remote. Her CEO says he outsourced her job to India instead and saved 40% on labor costs.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Grace Mayer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

CEO Johnny Taylor Jr. told WSJ he outsourced an employee's job after she requested it be remote. Hiring someone in India saved the company around 40% in labor costs, he told the Journal. Since the pandemic, some tech companies have hired remote workers overseas, sometimes amid layoffs. Some tech companies have already turned to overseas labor, including in Latin America, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, Insider's Aki Ito reported. The year before, 17% of job postings offered remote work.

☆ Amazon, Meta, and other tech giants are cutting middle management to be more efficient. It's a risky move that could backfire.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Big Tech's latest cost cutting move is "flattening," or removing middle management from the org chart. This is likely to work in the short term, but removing middle management has long-term consequences. The move comes as the Big Tech companies reel from the consequences of overhiring, as the pandemic turned into an unexpected boon to their businesses. While that all sounds good, experts warn removing middle management roles have other consequences that Big Tech will have to deal with. Middle managers set the tone and cultureAdditionally, middle managers have more influence on shaping a company's culture and can affect whether or not employees feel engaged in their jobs, as Insider's Aki Ito reported.

"We think the company should spin off 7-Eleven and that this could help close the valuation discount," Artisan Partners Associate Portfolio Manager Ben Herrick, told Reuters. Investors, including Artisan Partners, ValueAct and a domestic institutional investor contacted by Reuters that is not permitted to discuss its views publicly, are blaming Seven & i's stagnant share price on management's attachment to a conglomerate structure. SPIN-OFF PROPOSALThree months ago, ValueAct proposed a tax free spin-off of 7-Eleven, via a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in roughly one year. One investor said 7-Eleven, the company's crown jewel, will stop shining brightly unless it is spun off. A source said Seven & i president Ryuichi Isaka is one of the board members ValueAct wants to replace.

☆ Gen Z, Millennials Are Now As Sick and Tired of Their Jobs As Boomers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Young workers may not possess the experience or wisdom of their older colleagues. When Gartner asked people what was preventing them from going into the office, Gen Zers were more likely than other generations to cite social anxiety. Pollak, the consultant, told me about a client who complained that their Gen Z employees were "abusing" the company's vacation policy. But these are the very people who can help young workers feel more seen and motivated in their jobs. My suggestions are targeted to shore up engagement among young workers, but they'd actually be good for everyone.

☆ ValueAct questions Seven & i strategy, pushes 7-Eleven spin-off
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A representative for the company was not immediately available for comment and ValueAct declined further comment beyond the letter. Last month Seven & i signaled a "continuation of its status quo conglomerate structure," which confused and disappointed markets, the letter said. Now ValueAct wants answers to nine key questions when the company reports earnings this week. Does the board understand how frustrating the conglomerate structure is to shareholders and has it evaluated the conglomerate discount, the investment firm asked. The spin-off could be completed through a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in roughly a year, ValueAct said earlier.

☆ Japan unveils fresh childcare plan but funding unclear
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Tetsushi Kajimoto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Under the plan, the government will take steps such as expansion of child allowances to be given without income limits. While the government has earmarked 6.1 trillion yen ($45.90 billion) for steps to arrest the declining number of children, a senior ruling party lawmaker was quoted by media as demanding an additional 8 trillion yen to fund the new measures. "A boost to child allowances alone could cost 2-3 trillion yen. "Everyone acknowledges childcare support is important given Japan's need to boost the growth rate. "Opposition parties also have no objection to boost childcare spending," said political analyst Atsuo Ito.

☆ Exclusive: ValueAct seeks to oust four directors of Seven & i
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 24 (Reuters) - ValueAct Capital informed Seven & i Holdings (3382.T) on Friday it would lobby to remove four directors from the Japanese's convenience store operator's 14-member board, citing "a failed corporate strategy." ValueAct, which owns a 4.4% stake of Seven & i, had called on the company's management in January to spin-off of its 7-Eleven convenience store chain. The letter did not state how ValueAct will seek to oust the four directors, whom it did not publicly identify. ValueAct, which is led by Mason Morfit, won a board seat earlier this year at cloud computing company Salesforce (CRM.N). Six new directors joined Seven & i's board last year.

☆ Masatoshi Ito, Who Built Retailer That Took Over 7-Eleven, Dies at 98
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Chieko Tsuneoka | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The company built by Masatoshi Ito, known today as Seven & i Holdings, controls the global 7-Eleven business. TOKYO—Masatoshi Ito’s retail career started in 1946 at a 71-square-foot family shop in Tokyo that sold knitted underwear in the bombed-out Japanese capital. By the time he died at 98 years old on March 10, the company built by Mr. Ito controlled the global 7-Eleven convenience-store business and was one of Japan’s biggest retailers.

Hong Kong/Tokyo CNN —Masatoshi Ito, the Japanese billionaire who turned 7-Eleven convenience stores into a global empire, has died aged 98, closing the chapter on one of Asia’s most storied retail entrepreneurs. A 7-Eleven convenience store in Japan's Kanagawa Prefecture, on January 9, 2023. So, how did 7-Eleven become synonymous with the Japanese convenience store culture as we know it today? He renamed the company Ito Yokado and started running the business like a US supermarket. Ito Yokado was renamed Seven & I Holdings in 2005, and Ito remained its honorary chairman until his death.

☆ Companies Are Laying Off Middle Managers, That's a Huge Mistake
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

But in recent weeks, as companies brace for tougher times ahead, the assault on middle managers has picked up new steam. At Meta, Mark Zuckerberg is eliminating layers of middle management, demoting many supervisors to the ranks of the supervised. Zuckerberg offered a telling explanation for his decision: He doesn't want to have "managers managing managers, managing managers, managing managers, managing the people who are doing the work." In the UKG survey, 42% of middle managers said they were often or always stressed — a higher share than either frontline workers or C-suite executives. The businesses most likely to weather the current economic turmoil, Harter says, are those that unlock the hidden value of middle managers.

Kazuo Ueda, a 71-year-old university professor who has kept a low profile despite strong credentials as a monetary policy expert, ticked some important boxes. While he was not even on the list of dark horse candidates floated by the media, Ueda was well known in global central bank circles. The bank's preferred choices were incumbent deputy governor Amamiya, as well as former deputies Hiroshi Nakaso and Hirohide Yamaguchi, given their deep knowledge on monetary policy. Matsuno said he hoped the BOJ works closely with the government and guides monetary policy flexibly, when asked whether Ueda's appointment could lead to a retreat from Abenomics. While he warned of the rising cost of the BOJ's yield control policy, Ueda has called for the need to keep monetary policy loose to ensure Japan stably achieves the bank's 2% inflation target.

☆ The tech meltdown comes for Gen Z
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The tech industry was teetering, and she wondered whether the future she had banked on would survive. On Handshake, a leading jobs board for college students, entry-level software positions in the tech industry slumped 14% last year. "I'm finding that students are pivoting to organizations that have IT functions but are not in the tech industry," says Laura Garcia, director of career education at Georgia Tech. Given the seismic downturn in tech, some students are rethinking their dreams of working for the Amazons and Googles and Metas of the world. Suddenly, in the eyes of Gen Z, tech seems to be just as ruthless and unreliable of an employer as banking did to millennials who came of age in the Great Recession.

☆ Tech’s meltdown has also erased the dream job for Gen Z.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

While maybe I should dream bigger, keeping expectations low could also be a good thing — people shouldn't dream of labor. And that's a wake up call for many Gen Z workers who once aspired to work in Big Tech. Gen Z says goodbye to dream tech jobs. Several top-ranked engineering schools told my colleague Aki Ito that Big Tech companies have been noticeably absent at career fairs since September. Aki breaks down the crumbling Gen Z dream-job and what that means for the tech industry.

☆ Goldman Sachs partners are pissed
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Matt Turner | Dave Smith | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

On the agenda today:But first: Lara O'Reilly, our senior correspondent covering the advertising industry, looks ahead to the Super Bowl. Insider's Aki Ito breaks down why grandiose job titles like "senior executive vice president" are suddenly all the rage. According to a new study, early-career job titles have changed drastically in the past few years. While it's not clear how widespread this discontent is — Goldman has some 400 partners — some partners are already talking about who might replace CEO David Solomon if it comes to that. Inside the drama at Goldman SachsRead more:Tyler Le/InsiderGoogle's search engine is about to change.

☆ Morningstar explains why it's maintaining its 'buy' rating on Nintendo
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailMorningstar explains why it's maintaining its 'buy' rating on NintendoKazunori Ito of the financial services firm discusses Nintendo's earnings, and says although its console shipments are declining, the Switch still has a solid user base, with the Pokémon software making record sales.

☆ How Gen Z and the Great Resignation created a wave of overinflated job titles
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Aki Ito | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Way back in 1993, the Financial Times ran a column bemoaning the grandiose job titles that were popping up in the US and the UK. Compared with enticements like higher pay and better benefits, tacking an extra "senior" onto somebody's job title is free. Some are mashing together a bunch of old words, resulting in monstrosities like "senior executive vice president" — not to be confused with senior vice presidents and executive vice presidents. Still, despite the downsides of title inflation, I think there are some redeeming qualities to the state of things today. It goes to show how our job titles aren't just a summary of our day-to-day responsibilities or an indicator of our place in the org chart.

☆ Gen Z workers have fueled job title inflation. It was perfectly timed with the Great Resignation.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

I'm a Gen Z worker, and to some extent, I understand why millennial bosses find us daunting (here's Insider's guide to dealing with Gen Z workers, btw). That power fuels a lot of Gen Z stereotypes: doing things our own way, valuing work-life balance, and not having job loyalty. Burton/Getty images; Robyn Phelps/InsiderGen Z + Great Resignation = overinflated job titles. Here's what to know:My brilliant colleague Aki Ito breaks down how some job titles have become overinflated, like "senior executive vice president." Title inflation also appeases Gen Z.

☆ Offices across the US are at least half full for the first time since before the pandemic, new data shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Aaron Mcdade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new study found offices were over half full for the week of January 19-25. The 50.4% average occupancy rate recorded by Kastle is the highest since before the pandemic. Three years after the pandemic drove workers across America to home offices and Zoom meetings, employees are increasingly returning to in-person work settings. Unsurprisingly, the data found offices have varying rates of occupancy throughout the week, as many workers still come into offices less than five days a week. Friday was the least common day for working in offices, with an average of just 34.9%, per Kastle's findings.

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