Global Economy – Croixstone

Fresh Links – June 9th Edition

A curated list of business, career and community links with a focus on positivity.

The pandemic isn’t over – especially in NC + SC.

5 charts that track the U.S. economy amid reopening progress.

U.S. aviation industry could take four years to reach pre-COVID levels.

D eloitte cuts 5,000 jobs.

H ow consulting will likely change because of the pandemic.

T he interesting history of NoDa – Croixstone’s new home.

Fresh Links – Summer Kick-Off

In the spirit of the summer season, we are keeping things lighter and breezier, and besides, we could all use some positive news as our region, country and world continue to navigate COVID-19.

A curated list of business, career and community links with a focus on positivity.

7 bright sides to consider amidst COVID-19.

U.S. home sales in April 2020 rose unexpectedly.

Mortgage demand is rising.

2020 may be the perfect year to buy a new vehicle.

Things that are free (or discounted) during the coronavirus epidemic.

This European island will pay you to visit.

Charlotte gains a swanky new hotel in August.

Make the Downturn Work For You

“The best companies do more than survive a downturn. They position themselves to thrive during the subsequent upturn, guided again by a number of broad objectives.”
– Harvard Business Review (Febuary 2009)

Do you know where the opportunity lies for your company (and/or your career) during this time of great uncertainty? In this blog post, we focus on the opportunities that await those determined to make the downturn work for them.

13 Massive Companies That Started During a Recession

“…if history proves to be any sort of reliable predictor, recessions have actually served as the launchpad for some of the world’s most incredible businesses.” – The Startup (Medium)
Learn more here.

Turn Massive Challenges into Meaningful Change + Opportunities.

Accenture has done a remarkable job of effectively packaging insights from the firm’s experts in a simple and straightforward way to help organizations turn massive complexity into meaningful change.
Learn more here.

Coronavirus Toolkit Links

The COVID-19 outbreak is undoubtedly a global humanitarian challenge. While addressing the humanitarian challenge is a top priority, many business thought leaders are concurrently providing insights and best practices to help business leaders navigate through these uncertain times.

This special blog post is dedicated to spotlighting a curated list of quality resources (many at no cost) to help business leaders in making crucial people and organizational decisions during the ongoing crisis.

First of a Kind Roadmap to the Future Economy

So what can the labor flow of 500 million people on LinkedIn tell us about the structure of the global economy? Quite a bit according to a first of a kind study conducted by researchers at Indiana University and LinkedIn. One example: there are strong ties in the flow of labor between the credit card and airline industries. Learn more here.

German Investment in Charlotte

According to research from the former Charlotte Regional Partnership, there are 194 German-owned firms in the greater Charlotte region; making Germany the most largely represented foreign country in the region. Learn more about Germany’s investment in Charlotte and why so many German firms have chosen to conduct business in our region.

The Gig Economy Goes Global

This past summer, Morgan Stanley published research on the growing global gig economy. The study shared that the USA’s freelance workforce has grown three times faster than the overall workforce. Freelancers today represent about 35% of the total U.S. working population, and Morgan Stanley shared that this number could represent more than 50% of the nation’s workforce by 2027. R ead a high-level overview of the stud y to learn more about the drivers behind today’s gig economy.

Blockchain Simplified

Croixstone‘s CXO Patti Weber recently participated in Skookum‘s largest Tech Talks to date. Josh Miller, Senior Software Engineer at Skookum, provided insight into blockchain technology and the uses beyond Bitcoin and cryptocurrency. The original blockchain was described in a 2008 bitcoin paper by Satashi Nakamoto, just 2 months after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008. What makes blockchain so attractive is that it provides a level of trust that is interwoven in business transactions. People can now make transactions without middlemen which translates to greater control of funds and lower fees.

So, what is a blockchain? A blockchain is a digital encrypted ledger in which transactions are recorded chronologically and publicly. Like the name indicates, a blockchain is a chain of blocks containing information. Each block contains data, the hash (i.e., digital fingerprint that uniquely identifies the block and all the contents), and the hash of the previous block. When a block is created, a copy of the block is distributed on a peer-to-peer (P2P) network. Each member of the P2P network gets a copy of the block, and a consensus is obtained to ensure that the chain has not been tampered with.

The way the blocks are chained together using hashes, along with a “proof of work” mechanism and distribution through a P2P network, makes blockchains secure and trustworthy. The term immutability – its resistance to tampering or other changes – is often used when describing blockchain.

Blockchains eliminate the need for middlemen (e.g., banks) making it more efficient than legacy systems. They exist within communities, and participants that operate within an industry can all operate on the same chain, and therefore, have a copy of the distributed ledger.

Applications of Blockchain

As a result of the tamper-proof and hack-proof nature of blockchain, it is one of the most promising technologies with far-reaching applications. Here are just a few of the industries that are/will be impacted..

For a more detailed explanation of blockchain, see CNET’s recent article titled Blockchain explained: It builds trust when you need it most.

For more information about industries impacted, check out: Banking Is Only The Beginning: 36 Big Industries Blockchain Could Transform

Global Cities 2016

So do you think you know the world’s most powerful “global” cities?

A recently published study by The Brookings Institution and JPMorganChase might surprise you. The study suggests that our idea of a global city has become outdated in a rapidly urbanizing world in the midst of seismic technological change. A handful of financial centers, like New York, London and Tokyo, no longer drive world economy. Instead a “vast and complex” network of cities – some surprisingly small, others mid-sized – powers the international flow of goods, services, people, capital and ideas.

The study identified seven types of global cities comprised of 123 urban areas – including our very own Charlotte (defined by the study as one of sixteen “American Middleweight” global cities).

Learn more here.