Business & Entrepreneurship

A private equity acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover might be the best thing to happen to the companies, according to a professor at the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. “The public-equity firms will clean house,” said Anne Marie Knott, associate professor of strategy. “They will find the areas of poor performance and turn them around.”

WarrenSpurred on by steady increases in staffing and spending within the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. government is budgeting yet another increase in the amount of tax money it spends on federal regulatory activities, according to an annual regulatory spending analysis compiled by the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy at Washington University in St. Louis and the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.

Is she safe to hire?Companies with 500 employees or more can expect to be sued for discrimination at least once a year, and the cost to defend the accusation can cost as much as $15,000, even if the allegation is found to be without merit. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 (CRA-91) held great promise for protecting workers from discrimination in the workplace, but the potential cost of litigation makes some firms wary of hiring minorities. A business professor at Washington University in St. Louis has come up with a plan to circumvent potential lawsuits in a way that benefits both employers and employees.

Hong KongIn the days leading up to China’s taking over Hong Kong on July 1, 1997, the media and political pundits were spouting cautionary tales of how China would ruin Hong Kong’s success as Southeast Asia’s financial center. Were the foretellers of doom correct in their outlook? Not at all, says David Meyer, visiting professor of business at Washington University in St. Louis. In fact, ten years later, both Hong Kong and China have reaped the benefits.

On May 3, the winners of the second annual Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation Competition were announced, with six awards totaling $125,000 presented to four local nonprofits and two students.

Women from Mahabo Village in Madagascar weaving baskets for the Blessing Basket Project.It might seem odd that college students in the middle of the United States could make a difference to a small village in a developing country halfway around the world, but that’s exactly what happened when five students from Washington University in St. Louis went to Madagascar. More…

The recent firing of radio personality Don Imus reveals a new trend in business: bad behavior won’t be tolerated on the job. A business professor at Washington University in St. Louis says firms can head off workplace incivility by preventing those with power from going unchecked. More…

Success isn’t always measured in dollars and cents. So, does a company’s non-financial performance measures reveal anything about the future bottom line? That’s the question a professor at the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis addressed in a recent study. The finding: there’s definitely a link — but only when the competition is stiff. More…

On May 3, the winners of the second annual Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation Competition (SEIC) were announced at the Awards Ceremony on Washington University’s Danforth Campus. Six awards totallyin $125,000 were presented to four local nonprofits and two students. The winning groups are: The Bridge St. Louis, One World Neighborhood Cafe, the Miriam Center, the Nest, MOAR for Life and Cents City.

The Supreme Court’s decision April 30 to raise the bar for patents on products combining elements of pre-existing inventions is a landmark in the battle against so-called “nuisance patents” and just one more sign that the tide is turning against overly restrictive and costly intellectual property right protections, suggests a pair of economists from Washington University in St. Louis.