Business – KensView

Bride with No Name

On the first part of the workday
She was looking through all her book
There were Parks and Boyds and Steins and Wongs
There was Sam and Jill and Dawn

The first one she met was a bride with a dress
And her book with no slots
The heat was on, and her mouth was dry
And her mind was full of doubts

But she got through the moment
With that bride with no name
It felt good to be top of her game
At that moment, she couldn’t find out that name
‘Cause without a name it would be a great shame
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la

After two secs in the fitting room
Her skin began to turn red
After three secs in the fitting room
She was looking to cover her head
And the feeling she had of what a fool she’d be
Made her start to think she was dead

But she got through that moment
With that bride with no name
It felt good to be top of her game
At that moment, she couldn’t find out that name
‘Cause without a name it would be a great shame
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la

After mark up, she let the bride go home
‘Cause the client needed to Zelle
There was a phone number and address
There was the name Jackie Hess

So she got through that moment
With that bride with no name
It felt good to be top of her game
At that moment, she couldn’t find out that name
‘Cause without a name it would be a great shame
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la

Business: Lingua franca

With the economy being more globalized than ever and the constant need to address competition through innovation, one important aspect of education has not received enough attention: the study of foreign languages.

There are the obvious advantages of learning a foreign language, such as enhancing the appreciation of other people and cultures, finding employment in businesses and organization with international exposure, and improving travel experience and dating opportunities.

However, as to improving business climate and opportunity, learning a foreign language offers several significant advantages to individuals and businesses. It can:

Increase memory power and lengthen one’s span of attention

Demonstrate perseverance and ability to do challenging work

Enhance decision-making abilities and problem-solving skills

Demonstrate ability to tolerate risk and criticism

Enhance general communication skills

Improve self-confidence

Boost creativity

Suggestion:

To improve their pool of innovative prospective employees, ask employers to add “Two years of college-level foreign language education required” as a required qualification.

Science: Research to Market

As many scientists and engineers who have discovered a promising new technology have found, it is very difficult to bridge the divide between a basic research discovery and a viable product or marketable technology. This gap is often referred to as the “valley of death.” Many companies don’t even try because of the risk to their business model and cost. Only about 8 percent of non-manufacturing companies introduce new products or process innovations per year. Manufacturing companies are slightly better, with 22 percent per year reporting innovations in their products or processes.

Suggestion:

Follow the QB3 model.

QB3, one of four research institutes founded in 2000 by Governor Gray Davis of California, is designed to bridge the chasm between the lab and the marketplace and help convert technological discoveries into marketable products or processes.

Operating as a partnership among the University of California, state government, venture capital, and industry, QB3 promotes structured collaborations among campuses, disciplines, academics researchers, research professionals, and students. It fosters research partnerships by identifying potential opportunities for collaboration and funding support, developing platform technologies, and assisting partners with intellectual property and technology transfer issues.

Rock the Boat

News about the project hit us, groggy,
like a tidal wave, – keeling us over.
He’d flake out again, the son of a gun,
leaving us all floundering,
at a loose end.

Cap, leading light of the team,
assessed the situation,
the cut of her jib posh perhaps,
but always decisive, pragmatic–
she knew the ropes.

“Time to wipe the slate,” she declared,
“Give him a wide berth, chart a new course.
The contract wasn’t all sewn up, anyway,
we need to batten down the hatches,
all hands on deck.”

But before we could react,
the client, a notorious loose cannon,
blew a gasket, threatened lawsuits,
yelling we’d have the devil to pay!

We were taken aback, caught between
the devil and the deep blue sea,
forced to choose between legal battles
and walking the financial plank.

This venture,
meant to finally make ends meet,
was turning into an albatross
around our necks.

The First Mate told us to pipe down,
tried to take the wind out of his sails
with legal jargon and promises of amends.
But the client was not on board,
threatened to lower the boom.

Our only option was to turn the ship around,
face the bitter end,
and hope for leniency.
Thus, we were dead in the water,
watching our dreams sink,
accepting it wouldn’t be plain sailing,
not now, not ever.

“Well,” he sighed,
offering a swig of something potent,
“Down the hatch.
Time to hit the deck,
and get on the right tack, again.”

Someone asked, as the crow flies,
how far back we were.
He just laughed, “Beyond the horizon.
Just start with a clean slate,
and try to keep on an even keel this time.”