Research

Finding offshore software development partners

In a world connected by high speed Internet, businesses are increasingly seeking a competitive edge by outsourcing software development offshore. For many companies, the strategy promises dramatically lower labor costs and better access to a vast pool of talent.

Going private: Is it really a path to better performance?

A long line of academic research argues that privately owned companies should be better managed than their publicly owned counterparts. But recent research by Finance Professor Sreedhar Bharath calls this conventional wisdom into question.

First, empowered consumers: How will the Internet disrupt supply chains next?

Do you remember “You’ve Got Mail”? In the 1998 hit movie, the Internet enables romance to flower between Tom Hanks, who played a big box bookstore owner, and Meg Ryan, an independent bookstore owner. Ironically, that same Internet has now clobbered big box bookstores.

Hot in Phoenix: July housing sales up

Most years, the desert heat holds back buyers in the Phoenix real estate market, but not this year. Sales of single family homes were up 20 percent over July of last year, and townhouses rose even more.

Three approaches to valuing your business

Your business is thriving, but to continue to grow, you need capital. Before you enter the market, you need to know what your company is worth.

Feedback essential for employee growth

Everybody needs feedback to learn and grow. Yet how many employees can say they get the feedback necessary to perform well at work and develop their skills for the future? Research indicates that it’s not anywhere near enough.

Brand building: Inquiring minds want to know

You don’t need to be a famous expert to understand the elements that make up your brand — what matters most is your inquisitiveness. It is your willingness to wonder and ask questions that enables you to gain understanding that you can use to build your brand’s value to your customers.

Phoenix real estate market on hold

While August temperatures spiked, the real estate market was cooling down, according to the monthly report from the Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice at the W. P. Carey School of Business.

Change: Getting to there from here

As business environments change with new technologies, new competitors and new consumer preferences, many previously successful businesses falter.

How B Corps help companies do good, do well

What is business success? Profitability, right? But what if you have other aspirations for your business, such as promoting a social cause or helping the environment? Up to now, for-profit companies could not codify those non-financial objectives.