3 Ways Generative A.I. Can Drive Operational Excellence

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3 Ways Generative A.I. Can Drive Operational Excellence     To achieve the best possible outcomes in business, organizations must know how artificial intelligence can support them. Continued here

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How Venture Capitalists Make Decisions     For decades now, venture capitalists have played a crucial role in the economy by financing high-growth start-ups. While the companies they’ve backed—Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, and more—are constantly in the headlines, very little is known about what VCs actually do and how they create value. To pull the curtain back, Paul Gompers of Harvard Business School, Will Gornall of the Sauder School of Business, Steven N. Kaplan of the Chicago Booth School of Business, and Ilya A. Strebulaev of Stanford Business School conducted what is perhaps the most comprehensive survey of VC firms to date. In this article, they share their findings, offering details on how VCs hunt for deals, assess and winnow down opportunities, add value to portfolio companies, structure agreements with founders, and operate their own firms. These insights into VC practices can be helpful to entrepreneurs trying to raise capital, corporate investment arms that want to emulate VCs’ success, and policy makers who seek to build entrepreneurial ecosystems in their communities. Continued here

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The New Science of Customer Emotions     When a company connects with customers’ emotions, the payoff can be huge. Yet building such connections is often more guesswork than science. To remedy that problem, the authors have created a lexicon of nearly 300 “emotional motivators” and, using big data analytics, have linked them to specific profitable behaviors. They describe how firms can identify and leverage the particular motivators that will maximize their competitive advantage and growth. The process can be divided into three phases. First, companies should inventory their existing market research and customer insight data, looking for qualitative descriptions of what motivates their customers—desires for freedom, security, success, and so on. Further research can add to their understanding of those motivators. Second, companies should analyze their best customers to learn which of the motivators just identified are specific or more important to the high-value group. They should then find the two or three of these key motivators that have a strong association with their brand. This provides a guide to the emotions they need to connect with in order to grow their most valuable customer segment. Third, companies need to make the organization’s commitment to emotional connection a key lever for growth—not just in the marketing department but across every function in the firm. Continued here

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How to Build Trust at Work: Our Favorite Reads     There were likely a lot of different dynamics at play. But one I didn’t consider at the time was the importance of trust. My boss and coworkers didn’t trust me to lead — and to be fair, I’m not sure I even trusted myself. I lacked confidence, cared more about being liked than respected, and was unclear about my values as a leader. Continued here

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Why a Long-Term Strategy is Key for Multifamily Investments     A savvy investor stands to gain even in the roughest market conditions. Continued here

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The Lightship Bootcamp Could Be a Key Opportunity for Your Business     The two-day intensives have resulted in over $100 million in funding for women and founders of color. Continued here

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Forget VCs -- Get to Know Your Local Banker     Black women may receive less venture capital funding, but VC funds aren't necessarily your only -- or even your best -- option. Continued here

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Why Business Owners Need a Plan to Reduce Business Travel Costs in 2023     Travel costs are rising -- but you have the power to fight back. Continued here

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How Paul Rabil Reinvented Pro Lacrosse     Former pro lacrosse MVP Paul Rabil was frustrated by Major League Lacrosse's broken business model, so he started a new league that takes care of players. Continued here

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5 Ways to Make the Most of Outsourced Copywriters     B2B companies can find a better way to create impactful materials by looking beyond their own staff. Continued here

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10 Steps for Setting Up a New Hire Process     Buckle up for a wild ride in onboarding new employees. Continued here

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Are You Ready to Be a Big Company? 6 Questions to Show You the Truth     Many entrepreneurs dream of having an enterprise-size company of thousands, yet most can't get above 10 people. Here's what's missing. Continued here

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How You Can Make the Most of Amazon Prime Day 2023     The two-day shopping event is back on July 11 and 12. For small businesses that sell on Amazon, it's an opportunity to gain new customers and potentially reap long-term benefits -- if they strategize. Continued here

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How Managers Can Dismantle "Benevolent Marginalization"     While there is a growing recognition of the significance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, many firms fail to break down the subtle barriers obstructing progress because they engage in patronizing behavior that the authors call “benevolent marginalization.” Drawing on insights from a decade of research on benevolent discrimination experienced by women and individuals with disabilities in the workplace, the authors propose three key strategies to help discard such protectionism while forging a path toward genuine inclusion: shifting the focus from help to empowerment, engaging allies in non-managerial roles, and creating supportive spaces by handing over responsibilities for shaping their own professional lives to marginalized individuals. Continued here

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6 Science-Backed Ways to Improve Your Well-Being at Work     Employee well-being is an organizational issue, not just an individual one. Many factors impact and influence it, including your workload and flexibility, your manager, and the culture within your team. But while you may not have the ability to change your organization or your boss, there are some simple, science-backed things you can do daily to improve your emotional fitness and well-being. This article covers six simple yet surprisingly powerful emotional fitness practices to help you better manage stress and improve your well-being. Continued here

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What Is Responsible Computing?     For businesses, technology has a variety of interconnected impacts including unintended consequences, data risks, and appropriateness of technological uses, as well as broader environmental concerns. The authors offer a systemic Responsible Computing Framework that integrates environmental challenges including energy consumption and emissions with many other social and governance aspects. It is a practical blueprint that firms can use to make their IT more green, ethical, trustworthy, and sustainable, based on six pillars that leaders need to address for their business to become a responsible computing provider: data centers, infrastructure, code, data, systems, and impact. For each they provide several KPIs that leaders should focus on. Continued here

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The simple ways cities can adapt to heatwaves     Ribbons of blue snake through the bird's eye view of Prague, a cool relief from the intense patchwork of hot red, vivid orange, and bright yellow that dominates the satellite images.The blue marks the Vltava River, offering cool respite to the Czech Republic's capital from the blazing heatwave that hit the city in June 2022, while interspersed green patches symbolise parks, another relief from the hot land surface temperatures, which measured up to 45C (113F) last summer. Continued here

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"Tornado beer" drinking stunts have made Pangzai a global king     Liu Shichao is one of the most beloved Chinese influencers on Twitter. Better known as “Pangzai” or “fat boy,” Liu has amassed a loyal fan base globally with his ridiculous drinking stunts. He cracks a raw egg into a cocktail, picks up burning liquor with his fingers to light up a cigarette, and his signature move is to swirl a beer to create a “tornado” — while chugging the entire bottle in seconds. Fans fondly address him as “king.” Born and raised in the rural Hebei province, Liu has worked in restaurants, factories, and on construction sites since graduating from junior high school. During China’s short-video boom, he became a creator on the TikTok-like video app Kuaishou, hoping to generate additional income by filming viral stunts. Liu accidentally became a sensation overseas, after a video showing him drinking a “tornado beer,” followed by an egg cocktail, went viral on Twitter. He learned to circumvent the Great Firewall and interact with fans via translation software.  Continued here

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Doctor AI Will See You Now     Tanya Lewis: Hi, and welcome to Your Health, Quickly, a Scientific American podcast series!Josh Fischman: On this show, we highlight the latest vital health news, discoveries that affect your body and your mind.   Continued here