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How One Agency is Reimagining How Influencer Marketing Drives ResultsΒ Β 

This post was created in partnership with Linqia One influencer agency based out of San Francisco, Linqia, has built a proven framework to help brands scale their influencer strategies and show meaningful results. According to Linqia's CEO Nader Alizadeh, a different approach is required to avoid falling victim to the sea of sponsored content sameness...

The best mobile skateboarding game now has a New York sequel

A screenshot from the video game Skate City: New York.
Image: Snowman

For me, skateboarding has always been about getting into a flow state. Much like playing Tetris, I’m at my best when I’m skating almost subconsciously, not thinking and acting in the moment. It’s not an easy zone to get into, and music has always been my shortcut. So the greatest compliment I can give to Skate City: New York is that I’ve spent the past week fine-tuning the perfect playlist, all so that I can also perfect my runs in the game.

New York is a sequel to the original Skate City; both are available through Apple Arcade, though the first game was eventually ported to consoles as well. It comes from Snowman, the studio behind the Alto series, and the shift to New York is a lot like the move from Alto’s Adventure to Alto’s Odyssey. It’s not an entirely new experience but, rather, one that changes the setting and adds some seemingly small β€” but very impactful β€” tweaks.

What makes the series so well suited to mobile is the way it balances approachability and depth. Skate City is extremely easy to pick up. It’s a side-scrolling game, so you’re always moving left to right, and all of the various tricks and moves are performed either by a swipe, tap, or hold. It all feels...

Read the full story at The Verge.

TikTok’s last stand: Supreme Court hears arguments over potential ban

Photo collage of the TikTok logo over a photograph of the US Capitol building.
Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photo from Getty Images

One last chance before the divest-or-ban law takes effect on January 19th.

TikTok has just over a week before it’s forced to either separate from its Chinese parent company ByteDance or functionally cease operations in the US. An appeals court upheld a divest-or-ban law, but the Supreme Court offers one final chance for the company and its users to make their case. The court is expected to issue a decision quickly after its January 10th oral arguments on whether to at least temporarily block the law.

President Joe Biden signed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act β€” which passed with bipartisan support β€” last year, but it will take effect just one day before he hands power to President-elect Donald Trump, who has made frequent but nebulous promises to avoid a ban. Trump filed a surprise brief urging the Supreme Court to delay enforcement until he could broker a deal β€” though it’s unclear if the Chinese government would approve one.

Russia's elites say they are tired of waiting for the war to end: report

Russia's President Vladimir Putin at a Security Council meeting via videoconference in Moscow on December 28, 2024.
High-ranking Russian officials are frustrated with President Vladimir Putin's war, sources told Meduza.

SERGEI ILYIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

  • Russia's elites are growing frustrated with Putin's efforts to wage war in Ukraine, per Meduza.
  • Sources told the outlet they're also concerned about the long-term impact of Western sanctions.
  • But Russian security officials appear to want Putin to intensify the war, a DC think tank said.

Russia's elites are growing tired of waiting for the war to end and are concerned about the long-term impact of Western sanctions on Russia's economy, according to a report by Meduza.

High-ranking sources told the independent Russian outlet that Russia's "elites" are disappointed that the war with Ukraine didn't end in 2024.

The sources included people close to and in the Russian presidential administration, two State Duma deputies, a senator, and three high-ranking officials in Russian regional governments.

One government source told the outlet that the overall emotions are "disappointment" and "fatigue."

"We were waiting for the war to end, for the fighting to end," they said. "We are tired of even waiting."

Two people close to the presidential administration said that the government doesn't have a clear postwar vision.

Meanwhile, another source said Russian elites, primarily high-ranking security officials, are growing irritated by the lack of manpower and material to wage the war, and believe Putin must launch a mobilization effort to further shift Russian society and economy to a war footing.

Since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has significantly grown its military and war economy. However, the war has come at a considerable cost.

Russian troop losses have risen for six straight months, the UK Ministry of Defence said this week, citing Ukrainian data. It said Russia's costliest day came on December 19, when 2,200 of its troops were killed or wounded.

Russia's economy has also come under strain due to persistent high inflation, slowing economic growth, and Western sanctions.

Even so, the Institute for the Study of War, a DC think tank, said Meduza's report, published Thursday, suggests that high-ranking Russian military and security officials believe Putin should escalate the war rather than seek a diplomatic solution.

In an update on Thursday, the ISW said that Russian security and military officials don't appear ready to abandon the war, despite mounting battlefield losses.

Instead, it said, they are seemingly advocating for Putin to intensify Russia's war effort by calling for additional partial reserve call-ups and a formal decision to transition to a wartime footing.

But, according to the ISW, Putin is against further mobilizing the Russian economy or a partial involuntary reserve call-up because these measures would be extremely unpopular and would worsen the country's labor shortages.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Andersen Consulting, one of the best-known names in the 1990s, is making a comeback

Andersen Consutling logo
The Andersen Consulting brand is making a comeback.

Sion Touhig/Getty Images

  • Andersen Consulting was once one of the top names in professional services.
  • The firm rebranded to Accenture in 2000, and its parent company went bust following the Enron scandal.
  • Now Andersen Consulting is making a comeback, The Financial Times reported.

One of the leading consulting brands of the 1990s, whose parent company was brought down in the Enron scandal, is making a comeback.

Andersen Consulting, which was one of the "Big Eight" consulting firms, will relaunch next month, unnamed sources told The Financial Times.

The firm's comeback has been orchestrated by Andersen, a tax business founded in 2002 by former employees from Arthur Andersen, the once-prestigious accounting firm and the parent company of Andersen Consulting. It acquired rights to the Arthur Andersen name in 2014 and renamed itself Andersen in 2019.

Andersen has mostly focused on tax and legal work but has been steadily building a consulting division under the guidance of George Shaheen, a former CEO of Andersen Consulting in its heyday. Shaheen joined the group as a special advisor in 2022, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In the past six months, the company has added 20 member firms focused on consulting from the US and other countries, several of which have connections to the old Andersen Consulting and Arthur Andersen, the FT reported.

The resurrection of Andersen Consulting marks a major comeback for what was once a leading name in professional services.

"Andersen Consulting was the Coca-Cola of professional services," Andersen's global chairman and CEO Mark Vorsatz told the FT. "If you are over 40 in business, you know Andersen Consulting."

The original Andersen Consulting split from its parent company, Arthur Andersen, in 2000 and rebranded as Accenture.

One year later, the Andersen name was tarnished when Arthur Andersen became embroiled in the Enron scandal. Executives at Enron, one of the largest energy providers in the US, were found to have hidden billions of dollars in debt by manipulating financial models and lying to investors.

David B. Duncan senior Arthur Andersen accountant who oversaw the auditing of Enron's books, leaves the Federal Courthouse with his lawyers April 9, 2002 in Houston, TX. Duncan pleaded guilty to directing the shredding of Enron documents and has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
David B. Duncan was a senior Arthur Andersen accountant who pleaded guilty to directing the shredding of Enron documents, pictured in 2002.

Brett Coomer/Getty Images

Enron filed for bankruptcy, and thousands of employees lost their jobs and retirement savings.

Arthur Andersen, Enron's auditor, was found guilty of obstruction of justice for shredding its client's auditing documents as the government started its investigation.

The fallout led to Arthur Andersen's collapse in 2002, reducing the "Big Five" global accounting firms to four. It is one of the most dramatic corporate collapses in US history β€” one year earlier, the firm had reported roughly $9 billion in global revenue.

The rebooted version of Andersen Consulting would not try to compete with Accenture as an outsourcing services provider, Vorsatz told the FT.

Andersen did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Morgan Stanley welcomed a new class of leaders this week. See all 173 managing director names here.

Morgan Stanley's incoming CEO Ted Pick poses for a portrait in New York City, U.S., December 21, 2023.
Ted Pick, new CEO of Morgan Stanley.

Jeenah Moon / Reuters

  • Morgan Stanley on Wednesday promoted a new class of managing directors to help steer the firm.
  • See all 173 new MD names here.
  • The promotions come as Wall Street prepares for a more active environment for dealmaking.

Morgan Stanley this week welcomed a new class of leaders to help shepherd the bank through what's expected to be a more active dealmaking environment. On Friday, they shared the names of their 173 new managing directors, the bank's highest title outside the C-Suite.

The promotions are an annual rite of passage on Wall Street and follow similar elevations at banks like Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, which each promoted new executives to their top ranks in recent weeks.

Morgan Stanley new MD class is larger than last year's, although short of the multiyear highs hit at Goldman and Citi. Some 46% of the new MDs come from the firm's institutional securities group, 13% from investment management, and 9% from wealth management.

Here's the full list of names of the new MDs. See here for statistics on the makeup of the new class.

Here's the list organized in alphabetical order:

Andrea Alberti

Andrew Arena

Emma Atkins

Mona Benisi

Maria Berezhkova

Alison Bilger

Priya Bindra

Jon LeBoutillier

Nathan Bishop

Peter Boehm

Dan Bray

Katalin Broz

Shinya Bukawa

Edward Bury

Ryuk Byun

James Carroll

Matt Cashia

Kathy Chan

Kendal Cehanowicz

Fabien Charbonnel

Issam Cherif

Florence Hiu In Cheung

Simerjeet Chhatwal

Joseph Chiovitti

Cassandra Choi

Lindsay Connor

Lori Corbett

Stephanie Crombie

John Crowe

Jon Davis

Laura D'Albey

Toussaint Davis

Jamie Day

Daniel DeDora

Daniel Diamond

Sean Diffley

James DiGuglielmo

Danielle Dimitriou

James Donnelly

Charles-Antoine Dozin

Patrick Edwards

Cedar Ekblom

Steve Farr

Kurt Gabriel

Tish Garrett

Jenna Giannelli

Marjorie Goichberg

Jennifer Gonzalez

Fernando Manuel Gonzalez Baquero

Max Gordon-Brown

Anna Grainger

Jonathan Greenberg

Stephen Grambling

Emma Griffin

Dirk Grunert

Inan Gunbay

Pranav Gupta

Yash Gupta

Caroline Halimi

Kyle Hallett

Ryuichiro John Hanawa

Todd Hand

Andrew T. Hill

Phil Humphreys

Jaylene Howard

Sophia Herrmann

Ross Hutcheson

Daniel Iacovitti

Eiji Ieno

Kiran Inamdar

Tomoo Ishimaru

Emiley Jellie

Paul Jodice

Chris Ju

Michele Jones

Patrick Keeley, Jr.

Michael Keene

Andrei Keis

Brian Kelly

Aly Kerr

Hussein Khattab

Christopher Khouri

Nicholas R. Kirschner

Krisztian Kovacs

Sara J.G. Krantz

Jenna Krause

Mithun Kunder

Colm Leahy

Ben L. Lee

Dick Lee

Jason Lees

Benjamin Liberos

Uri Lichtenfeld

Daniel J. Lingeza

Fan Liu

Sarah Lloyd-Johns

Elly Lukenskaite

Mayank Maheshwari

Richard Mancusi

Koren Maranca

Lesley A. Matthews

Helen Mbugua-Kahuki

Mandy McClung

Felipe Medeiros

Lauren Miller

James Montgomerie

Joseph Morgan

Louise Mylott

Paul Nicely

Marianna Nichols

Patrick J. Nolan

Onyekwere Randy Ojukwu

Dina Paek

Monica Pal

Mark K. Parsonson

Liju Paul

Rebecca Peckham

Richard Perrott

Tony Piperno

Jon Pistilli

Laurie Pistilli

Sanjiv Prasad

Anthony Preisano

Jared Richardson

Chris Rigoli

LΓΊlica Rocha

Alison Rooney

Brendan Ross

Daniel Rossi

Samantha L. Schreiber

Neil Schwarz

James Scilacci

Stephen Scott

Matt Sebesten

Federico Sequeda

Sajan Shah

Brian Sanderson

Steven Santoro

Rebecca Shaoul

Eugene Shenkar

Aleksey Shevchenko

Derek Simmons

Snigdha Singh

Sat Sivanathan

Ben Smith

Lucio Solms-Lich

Zachary Solomon

Nick Spiller

Reed Staub

Kirsten Stewart

Alexandra Straton Gleich

Jason Swankoski

Keiko Takeno

Emma Tamblingson

Frank F. Tang

Daniel Tay Zhi Yang

Courtney A. Thompson

Paul B. Tucker

Ciaran Tuohy

Bolivar Valera

Alex J. Visokey

Elizabeth Mazzagetti Waggoner

Robert R. Walton, Jr.

Mae Wang

David White

Patrick Whitehead

Emma Whitehouse

Russell Wilk

Brandon D. Winikates

Erik Woodring

Ken Yamaguchi

Saba Zahid

Mike Zheng

Read the original article on Business Insider

I hired a Gen Z intern, and she 'quiet quit' in a week. I realized the problem was me and my company.

a young intern frustrated at her desk
The author's intern (not pictured) "quiet quit."

Westend61/Getty Images/Westend61

  • I thought Gen Z would love my company because I built a fun, inviting culture.
  • However, my first Gen Z intern wanted to explore departments outside her internship.
  • She "quiet quit" and then left the company four months later because I treated her poorly.

For years, I dreamed of working for a company like Google. After all, who wouldn't want to head into the office on Monday morning and be greeted by sleeping pods, VR summits, or Quidditch matches? The entire place was a millennial wonderland with a never-ending supply of cereal bars and gluten-free baked goods.

The early 2000s was the genesis of open office spaces, open-door policies, and open-mindedness. When I started my own business, I copied and pasted this format and waited for Gen Z to knock down my door, begging to work for me.

But my neon signage, proclaiming a fun and diversified environment with greatΒ company culture,Β only caught the interest of one Gen Z applicant.

Thankfully, she seemed like the perfect fit for our internship. Her values aligned with my company, and her education and experience fit our exact needs. But after multiple Zoom meetings, I felt like I was trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.

She clearly decided to "quiet quit" after a week and didn't stay after her internship. Instead of looking at myself and my own company, I blamed the new hire.

My intern had goals I didn't expect

When I set out to bring in my first intern, I presented my company as a place where everyone belongs and can bring their entire self to the table. Well, I didn't exactly honor that goal. Instead of taking the time to ask my intern questions and find out what her goals were, I saw her as a solution to my needs.

I hated creating social media campaigns. So, when my intern's rΓ©sumΓ© boasted her experience and educational background in digital communication, I leaped at the chance to bring her onto the team and use her skills.

But in one of our first meetings, she told me she wanted to explore different departments and figure out if this industry was right for her.

I panicked. I hoped she'd focus solely on my need for social media, but she was interested in branching out beyond that.

My cool office culture didn't seem to appease her or her curiosity to learn more. She lost interest in the company quickly, and I noticed her "quiet quitting." After four months, she left the company for good.

I quickly learned Gen Z is different in the workplace

As a geriatric millennial, I wasn't raised to see my degree separate from my future career plans. I picked classes that made sense for my aspirational goals and chose internships that aligned with my education and background.

But that's not what Generation Z is about. They're interested in exploring and learning β€” especially during internships. They want a full experience, and that includes trying on different hats to see what fits.

My intern wanted to experience what it was like to live in my shoes, to see the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I wish I could tell you that I adapted and was the best boss ever, but I'd be lying. I lost my intern because I couldn't figure out what to do with her. I ignored her and gave her menial tasks to fill her schedule.

I wish I had done so many things differently

Firstly, I would have broken away from my interview script and gotten to know her. I would have asked her about her five-year plan, what her hobbies were, and how I could help her reach her goals.

As much as I wish I had changed sooner, there's a huge part of me that's so grateful for this failure. It taught me to break a lot of my own biases and think in broader terms of creating a place of belonging.

Even though I wasn't able to retain my first intern, I retained all the lessons she taught me. I will forever be grateful for that.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Ultrawealthy train travelers are paying over $30,000 for one night in a Venice Simplon-Orient-Express grand suite

Inside a wood-walled train suite with white and maroon furnishings, including a seat on the left, a couch on the right, and a bed in the back center.
The six grand suites are the most expensive accommodations aboard the luxurious Venice Simpon-Orient-Express sleeper train.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

  • The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is among the most famous luxury overnight trains in Europe.
  • The train's six grand suites start at about $30,800 and are often the first to be booked.
  • The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express grand suites have private bathrooms and extravagant decor.

Forget yachting in the French Riviera and skiing in Switzerland β€” the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express grand suites sit atop the wealthy traveler's bucket list.

The luxury travel company Belmond operates six trains. Perhaps its most famous is the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, comprised of revamped 100-year-old carriages.

It's also among the most luxurious trains in Europe. The 108-guest moving hotel operates 44 routes in 17 cities, mostly in Europe. Prices start at about $8,850 for a cabin on its one-night journey from Venice, Italy, to Paris.

If you want to travel in the train's top-tier accommodation, you'll have to pay more than three times that price. A journey in a grand suite costs around Β£25,000, or about $30,800, Gary Franklin, Belmond's senior vice president of trains and cruises, told Business Insider.

The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express grand suites are the epitome of European luxury train travel.
A navy blue train with gold trimmings stopped at a platform with mountains in the background
The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express train operates in 17 cities.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Red carpets welcome all guests on their overnight journeys, complete with lavishly decorated vintage carriages, fine-dining restaurants, and jaw-dropping views of passing scenery.

However, only the grand suites offer guests luxurious amenities such as private showers and around-the-clock butler services.

It's worth it to many β€” the accommodations are "definitely a rich and famous-type bucket list item," Julie Durso, a Scott Dunn Private travel manager, told Business Insider in November.
Inside a wood-walled train suite with white and brown furnishings, including a seat on the right, a couch on the left, and a bed in the back center.
The grand suites are the top-tier accommodations on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Over the past few years, Belmond has seen a spike in demand for its trains. Franklin told BI that the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express has become especially popular, with bookings growing 10% from 2023 to 2024.

The train's flashy grand suites have concurrently piqued the interest of wealthy travelers β€” according to Franklin, they're often the first accommodations to be booked. And for good reason.

The train has 54 cabins, six of which are in the highest-end grand suites category.
Inside a wood-walled train suite with white and navy blue furnishings, including a seat on the left, a couch on the right, and a bed in the back center.
The Venice-themed grand suite's navy-blue velvets evoke the train's exterior.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

The accommodations, first introduced in 2018, each have a unique design inspired by a city on the train's routes.

For example, the Venice, Italy-themed suite fuses Italian Baroque and Renaissance designs. Venetian furniture, vintage glass light fixtures, and a marriage of silk and woven fabrics fill the room with a historic Italian ambiance. The headboard combines arches and sharp edges, a nod to the country's Renaissance castles.

Similarly, the Budapest suite features Gothic and Ottoman architectural styles, with ornate marquetry and embroidered silk-patterned furniture. The tall, curved headboard recalls the cathedrals and mosques of the Ottoman Empire.

No matter the decor, all suites include a couch, closet, double bed, dining area, and en-suite bathroom.
Left: a wood door opens to reveal a marble bathroom with white robes hanging on the left. Right: A silver shower head behind a glass door in a bathroom with marble walls
A peek inside the bathroom in one of the grand suites.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Most of the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express accommodations have shared restrooms without access to a shower.

But there's no need to share in the grand suites β€” the private bathrooms all have a rainfall showerhead, a glass-blown sink, and heated marble flooring.

The living room then separates the bathroom from the bedroom.
Inside a wood-walled train suite with white and gold furnishings, including a seat on the left, a couch on the right, and a bed in the back center.
The double bed can be converted into two twin beds.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

The train has three restaurant cars. Guests staying in these high-end accommodations can instead dine in the privacy of their suite and unwind.

Staying in the luxurious moving hotel room also includes welcome caviar, 24-hour butler service, and bottomless Champagne.

It's a good time to be in the luxury travel business.
Inside a wood-walled train suite with a bed below a curvy headboard and a window on the left
Each grand suite is uniquely decorated.

Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Travelers are increasingly spending big for unique, high-end vacations.

To capitalize on this, Belmond added two grand suites to its Scottish train, the Royal Scotsman, in 2024.

The new accommodations were "exceptionally well-received," Franklin said β€” so much so that the company is now building more to debut in 2025.

Read the original article on Business Insider

T-Mobile and Starlink team up to offer satellite texting during LA fires

If you have an iPhone 14 or later, you can send text messages via satellite where cellular service is unavailable. This can be particularly valuable in emergency situations like the Los Angeles wildfires, where cellphone masts have been damaged or destroyed.

T-Mobile and Starlink have now teamed up to offer the same capability to owners of phones without this feature …

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