While the the United States talks the talk; Canada walks the walk on Latin American business and trade relations. For most nations in the Western Hemisphere, a free market economy, including trade and investment liberalization, is the preferred path to economic and social advancement for their countries. While there are regimes that blatantly reject this course […]
Category: Contributors
Haar to heart: Latin America—M&A Boom
Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are booming in Latin America and expected to continue at full speed. The surge in the urge to merge continues in Latin America. On June 14, 2011, Banco do Brasil, Latin America’s biggest bank by assets, announced that it is considering purchasing lenders in Chile, Colombia and Peru to attract corporate […]
The Flow of Technology Adoption Reverses.
This week I listened to the CEO of a large technology firm I’ve been working with share his views on the future. One small comment he made struck me. If he is right, this could have radical implications for technology-based businesses worldwide. He said the flow of technology adoption is reversing: where once corporations drove […]
Haar to heart: LatAm, Middle East: Expanding Relations
Latin America and the Middle East have an expanding, yet limited partnership. On December 17, 2010, Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian vegetable peddler, set himself on fire when officials in his town prevented him from selling his goods on the streets of Sidi Bouzid without permission. This one tragic act set off a chain reaction of […]
Developing Countries—The New Frontier?
On a recent flight leaving Peru, I peer out of the window, and I think about the famous Nazca Lines, a series of ancient drawings located in southern Peru. Though shaped by indigenous people centuries ago, long before hot air balloon or planes, these drawings can only been seen from the sky. I am quickly […]
Keep It Simple Stupid
When Thad Eidman decided to jump into a start-up, he did so with both eyes open and a “secret” formula in mind. Probe a successful business leader about their business, and you will usually unlock a simple model that guides them day to day and keeps them focused on what is important. Before launching Knoa […]
Social Media Does More Than Support Revolutions
News media and the blogosphere have been filled with the argument that the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt were made possible by Twitter and Facebook. It’s a compelling argument. Why is it that after 30 years of firm-handed rule, Egyptian President Mubarak now, this month, not last month or last year, is facing the prospect […]
President Obama and Steve Jobs talk like innovators.
In his State of the Union speech, Obama spoke of “out-innovating” the competition. But to focus on his agenda of clean energy and education is to miss a subtle insight into Obama’s skill as an innovator. You see, Obama knows a secret. Steve Jobs knows it to, and so do Mohammad Yunus (grandfather of “microcredit”), […]
Faculty Notes: December 2010
Department of Decision Sciences and Information Systems Nancy Borkowski, clinical associate professor and director of health management programs, was awarded the designation of fellow in the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA), an accomplishment that fewer than 1,700 of HFMA’s 35,000 members have achieved. The award took place on December 3, 2010. Colleagues in the department […]
Haar to heart: Health care “reform” a body blow to Florida’s small businesses.
Florida is “the land of small business” with over 425,000 small firms accounting for 99% of the state’s employers. However, most are struggling to stay afloat in an environment where the state’s growth rate is projected to be 1.5% (a percentage point less than the nation) and unemployment 12%. The health care reforms bills—now law—encompass […]