Execution is the chariot of genius.
- William Blake
Friday, July 10, 2009
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Ricci, Disparate Impact, and the Skills Gap
Heather MacDonald on the Ricci case:
The main function of the race industry today is to repackage problems of black underachievement as instances of white racism. For decades, the vast majority of alleged discrimination violations have been manifestations of the black-white performance gap, whether in academic achievement, crime rates, or poverty-producing behaviors like illegitimacy and dropping out of school. The race industry cloaks such problems in the language of rights and racism—pushing the achievement gap offstage, keeping alive the phantom of ubiquitous white bias, and generating jobs in the race industry. Thus, employment and educational standards that no one would otherwise think twice about are suddenly viewed as legally suspicious, without any reason to think them flawed except that blacks do not meet them at equal rates.
The main function of the race industry today is to repackage problems of black underachievement as instances of white racism. For decades, the vast majority of alleged discrimination violations have been manifestations of the black-white performance gap, whether in academic achievement, crime rates, or poverty-producing behaviors like illegitimacy and dropping out of school. The race industry cloaks such problems in the language of rights and racism—pushing the achievement gap offstage, keeping alive the phantom of ubiquitous white bias, and generating jobs in the race industry. Thus, employment and educational standards that no one would otherwise think twice about are suddenly viewed as legally suspicious, without any reason to think them flawed except that blacks do not meet them at equal rates.
Book Review: How to Sell and Market Your Way Out of this Recession
Nicholas Bate, a.k.a. The Man Who Never Sleeps, Blogging Compadre, Consultant, Professor, and Prolific Author, has written another book.
"How to Sell and Market Your Way Out of this Recession and Get Your Business Buzzing like Never Before (even though your customers don't want to know)," has been on my desk, in my briefcase, and in my car for several weeks.
I keep diving into the book for ideas and taking notes, even on sections I've already read. As with all of Nicholas's books, this one is crisp and to the point. [The section on negotiation should be re-read frequently.] An excerpt (I've substituted dollars for pounds):
Before you go into a negotiation and if necessary during the negotiation: do the calculations. Let's keep it simple. You sell for $100. Your cost is $50. So that's $50 profit? Lovely. But now you give 5% discount. Assuming your costs are fixed (we're keeping it simple), you've just given away 10% of your profit. Mmm, something to think about.
Short, sharp, and helpful. Check it out.
"How to Sell and Market Your Way Out of this Recession and Get Your Business Buzzing like Never Before (even though your customers don't want to know)," has been on my desk, in my briefcase, and in my car for several weeks.
I keep diving into the book for ideas and taking notes, even on sections I've already read. As with all of Nicholas's books, this one is crisp and to the point. [The section on negotiation should be re-read frequently.] An excerpt (I've substituted dollars for pounds):
Before you go into a negotiation and if necessary during the negotiation: do the calculations. Let's keep it simple. You sell for $100. Your cost is $50. So that's $50 profit? Lovely. But now you give 5% discount. Assuming your costs are fixed (we're keeping it simple), you've just given away 10% of your profit. Mmm, something to think about.
Short, sharp, and helpful. Check it out.
The ADA Amendments Act's Wild Ride
Employment attorney John Phillips looks at the Pandora's Box that has been opened with the ADA Amendments Act.
Tough Customers: A Tale of United Airlines
Jena McGregor at Business Week looks at customer vigilantes:
Still, this has to be one of the most professionally produced acts of consumer vigilantism I’ve seen. Musician Dave Carroll, fed up by United Airlines’ response to his broken guitar, produced a four minute video about his experience. I’m not sure how much this will damage United’s reputation for baggage handling—most airlines don’t have much of an image in this department—but it certainly can’t help it, either.
Click to her post and watch the 4 minute video by Dave Carroll. It is extremely well-done.
Still, this has to be one of the most professionally produced acts of consumer vigilantism I’ve seen. Musician Dave Carroll, fed up by United Airlines’ response to his broken guitar, produced a four minute video about his experience. I’m not sure how much this will damage United’s reputation for baggage handling—most airlines don’t have much of an image in this department—but it certainly can’t help it, either.
Click to her post and watch the 4 minute video by Dave Carroll. It is extremely well-done.
Neverland's Treasures
Michael Jackson wears tube socks.
You can have them.The King of Pop’s 28-year-old acrylic, rhinestone-encrusted footwear intimates are known in auctionspeak as “signature pieces.” They make up item No. 7576 in this month’s auction of all sorts of things that found their way onto Neverland Ranch before Jackson abandoned the place in 2005. The catalog’s “low estimate”: $600 for the pair.
Read the rest of Amy Wallace in Portfolio. [Note: The article was written before Jackson's death.]
Problem with Comments
Several of you submitted some comments yesterday and, for some reason, they disappeared.
I don't know what happened but they're gone. I apologize and hope that you'll repost.
Over a year ago, I had to start a comment approval process not because the genuine commentary was poor but because spammers were submitting as many as 25 to 75 unrelated comments per post. Most of the spam dealt with selling gold and all of them had nothing to do with the subject of the post.
Once again, I'm very sorry for the inconvenience.
I don't know what happened but they're gone. I apologize and hope that you'll repost.
Over a year ago, I had to start a comment approval process not because the genuine commentary was poor but because spammers were submitting as many as 25 to 75 unrelated comments per post. Most of the spam dealt with selling gold and all of them had nothing to do with the subject of the post.
Once again, I'm very sorry for the inconvenience.
Quote of the Day
The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.
- Chinese proverb
- Chinese proverb
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
Meddlers
You've been working on a project for days. The paper has been circulated to the relevant folks and the research digested and described.
A colleague who has nothing to do with the project and no expertise whatsoever in the subject matter takes a gander over your shoulder, points to a paragraph, and declares, "That'll never work" and gives some ridiculous reason why.
Your irritation evaporates after ten seconds of thought when you realize the unsolicited opinion has more than some merit; it has a huge amount of merit.
What the meddler was able to do, of course, was to approach the proposal with fresh eyes and no agenda. We fall in love with our projects and rush to dismiss their failings. No matter how many genuises we manage to get on-board, a bad idea is still a bad idea. Some very bright people were behind the creation of the Maginot Line, the Titanic, and, for that matter, the Edsel.
Injecting a review by disinterested parties can at least turn up the lights and end the romance.
A colleague who has nothing to do with the project and no expertise whatsoever in the subject matter takes a gander over your shoulder, points to a paragraph, and declares, "That'll never work" and gives some ridiculous reason why.
Your irritation evaporates after ten seconds of thought when you realize the unsolicited opinion has more than some merit; it has a huge amount of merit.
What the meddler was able to do, of course, was to approach the proposal with fresh eyes and no agenda. We fall in love with our projects and rush to dismiss their failings. No matter how many genuises we manage to get on-board, a bad idea is still a bad idea. Some very bright people were behind the creation of the Maginot Line, the Titanic, and, for that matter, the Edsel.
Injecting a review by disinterested parties can at least turn up the lights and end the romance.
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