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Project management is the planning & organizing of resources to achieve a specific goal. Learn about types and examples to get started. The post What is Project Management? Definition, Types & Examples appeared first on project-management.com. View the full article

This post was written by Alison Green and published on Ask a Manager. A reader writes: I’m a volunteer for an after-school program for high schoolers interested in my profession (similar to, say, a robotics team). I’m a woman in my mid-20s, and one of the kids is a 16-year-old boy we’ll call Marvin. Marvin is a very bright and hardworking kid who excels academically (AP classes, honor society) and works at a fast food place. He is also what some would call a “nerdy outcast” and only has a few acquaintances his own age. He gets along much better with teachers than other students, and I’m no exception. I was exactly like him when I was his age and remembered the deep relationships I had with my teachers, so I’ve steadily become his de facto mentor. We talk about club-related things, but he also vents to me about his troubles and info-dumps about his hobbies and interests (some of which I share). When I arrived home one day, I opened my bag to find a box and a red envelope. Unfortunately, Marvin had left me a Hallmark card with a long-winded confession of feelings for me, and in the box was a ring with a diamond look-alike. The next time I saw him, I pulled him aside out of view from the others, and I gently told him that while I was flattered, as an adult, it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to be his girlfriend, although I’m very grateful to have him as a student. I asked how much he paid for the ring, and he said that he had bought it at a pawn shop for $500 with his own money from his job. I told him that someday, there would be a woman his own age who would appreciate the thought, but that he should return it. I gave him back the ring and the card, and although he was clearly sullen, he gave me a quiet “sorry” and returned to work with the others. A few days passed before the teacher who runs the volunteer group scheduled a meeting with me and Marvin’s parents. His parents had discovered the withdrawn $500 from Marvin’s checking account, and they had found the card and receipt from the pawn shop in his room. After questioning him, he confessed that he had given them to me and that I had rejected him. His parents went to the teacher to ask if he knew about this, and they scheduled the meeting to ask me. I confirmed to them exactly what had happened, and both the parents and teacher were mad that I didn’t tell them. I said that I didn’t tell them because I trusted Marvin to take the rejection with grace since he was more mature than the other students, which I felt he did. I also said that I figured the rejection would be enough of a lesson for him, and that letting anyone else know about it would be needlessly humiliating, especially for a good kid like him. The $500 was confirmed to be his own money, too, so all the financial consequences were his own to deal with without extra judgment needed from others. The teacher and parents seemed to take issue with my response, and after the parents left, the teacher told me that he would have to schedule a separate meeting to discuss my standing as a volunteer. I was completely taken aback by their responses and left speechless by the teacher’s mention of my standing. I never had an issue with the teacher before this. Marvin had admitted to his parents himself that I had rejected him, but the parents and teacher acted like this was something I had encouraged for nefarious reasons. Marvin is just an odd one out in the cruel Mad Max thunderdome that is high school, so anything social is scary. I was just trying to make it easier for him. This will probably turn into one of those embarrassing memories that keeps Marvin up at night in 10 years, so I didn’t want to rub salt on his wound. Did I do something wrong? With the caveat that I don’t work in education and so am answering this as someone outside the field (but who has been licensed to work with teens): yes, I think you should have proactively reported what happened to the teacher who manages you as a volunteer, for your own protection. Teenagers don’t always handle rejection with grace — hell, plenty of adults don’t handle rejection with grace — and as an adult trusted to work with kids, it’s important to make sure stuff like this is documented somewhere in case there’s any question later about what happened. I do appreciate your desire to protect Marvin’s privacy and 100% believe you acted with the best of intentions … but again, adult / kid / rejection — there’s just too much risk for something to get misunderstood or told differently later. That might get more intuitive if you swap the genders and think about whether you’d tell an adult man to keep a student’s advances secret. Keeping it secret might feel respectful to the student, but there’s too much risk to that. (An example of that from your letter: “the parents and teacher acted like this was something I had encouraged for nefarious reasons.”) The $500 is an added complication, because that’s a lot of money (for anyone, but especially for a teenager). You were right to tell him to return the ring, but the price is another factor raising the stakes and pushing the situation past something you should handle on your own. Ideally you would have talked to the teacher who oversees you, shared what happened, explained your desire not to embarrass Marvin any further, and asked about policies or best practices for handling the situation. Not looping in the organization you’re working for is where you went wrong. For what it’s worth, the organization you’re volunteering for is also to blame if they didn’t give you training that covered the sorts of things you should report and not attempt to handle on your own. Outside adults shouldn’t be thrown together with kids without some pretty intensive training about things that need to be reported and the limits of confidentiality, so the organization is also in the wrong for leaving you unprepared and then blaming you when you didn’t get it quite right. View the full article

March 10, 2025 Hey folks, Who's watching the new season of The White Lotus? What if you could stay in paradise, minus the murder mystery subplot? Turns out, you can! Keep reading for the latest news on digital nomad visas and more 😉 Vic Our Favorite Articles 💯Software Engineers Share Their Best Tips For Landing a Coding Job In Tech (Business Insider)Engineers from Google and Microsoft share strategies to stand out in a crowded job market using creativity and experience. Use Brave to ​read this​ (let me know if you need to know how!) How to Build Your Own AI Assistant (HBR)Learn to build your own AI assistant to, for example, automate applications, track leads, and stay organized. ​Check it out.​ Wharton Psychologist Adam Grant: How To Rethink The Work Day - And The Soft Skill Future Leaders Need (WEF)​Watch/listen/read the transcript​ of this super interesting podcast episode with Adam Grant. 43 Countries Offering Digital Nomad Visas in 2025 (Remotive)We rounded up everything you need to know about digital nomad visas—including Thailand's—​right here​. This Week's Sponsor 🙌Too many emails? Declutter your inbox with Meco, your home for reading newsletters. Try it for free Remotive Jobs 💼Is this job for you? 👉 ​Backend Engineer at Clerkie​ (USA) 👉 ​iOS Developer at nooro​ (USA) 👉 ​Senior ERP Solutions Developer at Proxify​ (CET +/- 3 HOURS) 👉 ​Senior Backend Developer at Mimo GmbH​ (EMEA, UK) Free Guides & Tools​Public Job Board​We curate 2,000 remote jobs so you don't have to! ​Find your remote job →​ ​Exclusive Webinar​3 Mistakes to Avoid When Looking For A Remote Startup Job (And What To Do Instead) ​Register for free →​ ​Job Search Tips​Looking for a remote job? Here are our tips to help you work remotely ​Check it out → Join the Remotive newsletter Subscribe to get our latest content by email. Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription. There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again. Email address Subscribe Powered by ConvertKit ​ View the full article

Researchers find AI writing tools like ChatGPT and Claude create specific patterns. These patterns can help you spot and edit AI content. The post AI Writing Fingerprints: How To Spot (& Fix) AI-Generated Content appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Rocket expects the combined company to achieve more than $200 million in run-rate synergies by 2027, it said in a statement. View the full article

Gold-adjusted GDP forecasts. Really!View the full article

HSBC on Monday downgraded U.S. equities, citing uncertainty around tariffs, while turned bullish on European stocks following boost from Germany loosening its fiscal reforms. The brokerage lowered U.S. equities to “neutral” and raised rating on European stocks, excluding UK stocks to “overweight” from “underweight.” The Trump administration’s massive moves on trade and other policies have injected uncertainty, while a proposed $1.2 trillion European fiscal bazooka and the emergence of China as the tech race leader are marking a potential turning point for investor capital away from the United States. The S&P 500 has pulled back about 6.1% from its February 19 record high on worries that the trade war will hurt corporate profit and slow growth. “It is important to stress that we are not turning negative on US equities — but tactically, we see better opportunities elsewhere for now,” said HSBC’s Global Equity Strategist Alastair Pinder said. Morgan Stanley Equity Strategist Michael Wilson believes the S&P 500 could fall another 5% to 5,500 points by mid-year, before ending the year at around 6,500, which is a 12.7% upside from the benchmark index’s last close. “The path is likely to be volatile as the market continues to contemplate these growth risks, which could get worse before they get better,” Morgan Stanley’s Wilson said in a note on Monday. —Kanchana Chakravarty and Medha Singh, Reuters View the full article

Detroit-based fintech platform Rocket Companies (NYSE: RKT) has reached an agreement to acquire the Seattle mortgage services company Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN) in an all-stock transaction valued at $1.75 billion, the companies announced on Monday. Each Redfin share will be exchanged for 0.7926 shares of Rocket’s Class A common stock, with the deal expected to close in mid-2025, pending shareholder and regulatory approvals. Following the announcement, Redfin’s stock soared nearly 70%, reaching $9.91 in premarket trading. This surge came after Rocket Companies agreed to acquire Redfin for $12.50 per share, representing a premium of 63% over Redfin’s recent average price. On the other hand, Rocket’s stock dropped around 13%. Forming a real estate-lending powerhouse The acquisition brings together two major players in real estate and mortgage lending. Redfin, founded in 2004, operates one of the nation’s most visited real estate platforms, with nearly 50 million monthly users and a network of over 2,200 agents. Rocket Companies, known for its mortgage and financial services, views the deal as a step toward streamlining the home-buying process. “Rocket and Redfin share a unified vision of a better way to buy and sell homes,” said Rocket CEO Varun Krishna. “Together, we will enhance the experience by connecting traditionally separate steps of the search and financing process with leading technology.” The acquisition is expected to drive Rocket’s mortgage growth, giving Redfin users direct access to Rocket’s financing products. Rocket anticipates over $200 million in synergies by 2027, including cost savings and new revenue opportunities. View the full article

All of this work is done by our tireless Partnerships Manager, Igor Gorbenko. I spoke to him to extract everything he learned about partnerships. The first time we sponsored podcasts, we spent $14,000 on five podcast campaigns. Like any good…Read more ›View the full article

When U.S. President Donald Trump first suggested buying Greenland in 2019, people thought it was just a joke. No one is laughing now. Trump’s interest in Greenland, restated vigorously soon after he returned to the White House in January, comes as part of an aggressively “America First” foreign policy platform that includes demands for Ukraine to hand over mineral rights in exchange for continued military aid, threats to take control of the Panama Canal, and suggestions that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state. Why Greenland? Increasing international tensions, global warming and the changing world economy have put Greenland at the heart of the debate over global trade and security, and Trump wants to make sure that the U.S. controls this mineral-rich country that guards the Arctic and North Atlantic approaches to North America. Who does Greenland belong to? Greenland is a self-governing territory of Denmark, a long-time U.S. ally that has rejected Trump’s overtures. Denmark has also recognized Greenland’s right to independence at a time of its choosing. Amid concerns about foreign interference and demands that Greenlanders must control their own destiny, the island’s prime minister called an early parliamentary election for Tuesday. The world’s largest island, 80% of which lies above the Arctic Circle, is home to about 56,000 mostly Inuit people who until now have been largely ignored by the rest of the world. Why are other countries interested in Greenland? Climate change is thinning the Arctic ice, promising to create a northwest passage for international trade and reigniting the competition with Russia, China, and other countries over access to the region’s mineral resources. “Let us be clear: we are soon entering the Arctic Century, and its most defining feature will be Greenland’s meteoric rise, sustained prominence and ubiquitous influence,” said Dwayne Menezes, managing director of the Polar Research and Policy Initiative. “Greenland—located on the crossroads between North America, Europe, and Asia, and with enormous resource potential—will only become more strategically important, with all powers great and small seeking to pay court to it. One is quite keen to go a step further and buy it.” The following are some of the factors that are driving U.S. interest in Greenland. Arctic competition Following the Cold War, the Arctic was largely an area of international cooperation. But climate change, the hunt for scarce resources and increasing international tensions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are once again driving competition in the region. Strategic importance Greenland sits off the northeastern coast of Canada, with more than two-thirds of its territory lying within the Arctic Circle. That has made it crucial to the defense of North America since World War II, when the U.S. occupied Greenland to ensure that it didn’t fall into the hands of Nazi Germany and to protect crucial North Atlantic shipping lanes. The U.S. has retained bases in Greenland since the war, and the Pituffik Space Base, formerly Thule Air Force Base, supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance operations for the U.S. and NATO. Greenland also guards part of what is known as the GIUK (Greenland, Iceland, United Kingdom) Gap, where NATO monitors Russian naval movements in the North Atlantic. Natural resources Greenland has large deposits of so-called rare earth minerals that are needed to make everything from computers and smartphones to the batteries, solar and wind technologies that will power the transition away from fossil fuels. The U.S. Geological Survey has also identified potential offshore deposits of oil and natural gas. Greenlanders are keen to develop the resources, but they have enacted strict rules to protect the environment. There are also questions about the feasibility of extracting Greenland’s mineral wealth because of the region’s harsh climate. Climate change Greenland’s retreating ice cap is exposing the country’s mineral wealth and melting sea ice is opening up the once-mythical Northwest Passage through the Arctic. Greenland sits strategically along two potential routes through the Arctic, which would reduce shipping times between the North Atlantic and Pacific and bypass the bottlenecks of the Suez and Panama canals. While the routes aren’t likely to be commercially viable for many years, they are attracting attention. Chinese interest In 2018, China declared itself a “near-Arctic state” in an effort to gain more influence in the region. China has also announced plans to build a “Polar Silk Road” as part of its global Belt and Road Initiative, which has created economic links with countries around the world. Then-U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo rejected China’s move, saying: “Do we want the Arctic Ocean to transform into a new South China Sea, fraught with militarization and competing territorial claims?” A Chinese-backed rare earth mining project in Greenland stalled after the local government banned uranium mining in 2021. Independence The legislation that extended self-government to Greenland in 2009 also recognized the country’s right to independence under international law. Opinion polls show a majority of Greenlanders favor independence, though they differ on exactly when that should occur. The potential for independence raises questions about outside interference in Greenland that could threaten U.S. interests in the country. —Danica Kirka, Associated Press View the full article

Transform your workday with generative AI and discover practical ways to save time. Quick Tech Talk With Steve Yoss CPE Today Go PRO for members-only access to more Stephen Yoss. View the full article

Transform your workday with generative AI and discover practical ways to save time. Quick Tech Talk With Steve Yoss CPE Today Go PRO for members-only access to more Stephen Yoss. View the full article

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today...View the full article

A Position 1 ranking only matters if your result resonates with users and earns clicks. That’s why optimizing your click-through rate (CTR) is just as crucial as climbing the search results. By analyzing your current performance and making strategic improvements, you can turn rankings into real traffic. This article provides actionable tips to boost CTR, attract more clicks, and maximize your SEO efforts. Understanding the role of CTR in SEO CTR is a crucial SEO metric that’s often overlooked. For years, it was considered an indirect factor, but the antitrust trial against Google revealed that CTR is used as a ranking signal. Regardless of its impact on rankings, CTR determines how many users actually reach your site. As Eli Schwartz explains: “Rankings are just the potential; CTR is actualizing that potential.” – Eli Schwartz, “Focus on SEO CTR and not just rankings“ As an SEO professional, what could be more important? All our hard work is fruitless if we fail at the first hurdle, and no one wants a below-par CTR. With this in mind, I’ve outlined key tactics to help improve this critical metric. 1. Identify pages that need CTR optimization The best benchmark for click-through rate performance is your own dataset. Every industry is different, and so is every individual website. While comparing against industry averages can be valuable in some cases, it’s usually more beneficial to determine your own CTR range and “run your own race.” Start with Google Search Console data to check and download search performance metrics, including CTR. I recommend using at least 90 days of data and filtering out pages with very low impressions that might skew your results. From there, find your average CTR and focus on pages that fall below it. You might also revisit your keyword research and review search volume metrics to prioritize pages with the most potential – ensuring you get the maximum impact for the time invested. Pages with an above-average CTR can also be valuable. If they generate traffic despite lower rankings, they could perform even better in higher positions. A little optimization on these could go a long way. 2. Create high-performing title tags and meta descriptions The key to better click-through rates is compelling title tags and meta descriptions. This limited space is your chance to grab attention on a crowded search engine results page. Think of it as the organic equivalent of a search ad – adopting this mindset can help you optimize for CTR effectively. So, how do you write metadata that truly performs? Here are some tips. Use paid search data to improve SEO CTR If you’re running Google Ads, you already have a treasure trove of CTR data at your fingertips. Talk to your PPC team, review your Google Ads account, and analyze which ad copy performs best. Use this CTR data to inform your strategy for writing effective title tags and meta descriptions. Testing and learning are much easier with ad campaigns. Headline and ad copy testing are standard practices, and your colleagues are likely already working on ways to improve Google Ads CTR. Yet, sharing this data with SEO professionals is far less common. Don’t miss out on this goldmine of insights into what your target audience actually responds to. Dig deeper: Top 7 Google Ads and SEO synergies you should act upon Review email and social media campaigns Email marketing is another directly measurable channel, and subject lines are quick and simple to test. Assessing CTR data from email campaigns can provide valuable insight into your target market – what type of language they respond to and what drives them to click. The same applies to social media. Analyzing popular posts can help you better understand your audience and craft more effective title tags and meta descriptions. Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. Business email address Sign me up! Processing... See terms. Match search intent A mismatch between search intent and your key messaging can lead to a low CTR. After all, if users don’t expect your landing page to deliver what they’re looking for, why would they choose to click? Your average CTR could improve significantly by aligning your copy with user intent. Consider whether you’re using transactional or commercial wording appropriately, or if certain areas require a more informative tone. The right approach may vary across different sections of your website, so take the time to understand the intent behind key queries and adjust your language accordingly. Incorporate E-E-A-T in your metadata E-E-A-T (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness) factors may also shape user perception. Since title tags and meta descriptions have limited space, adding language that builds trust in your brand could be the difference between earning a click and losing one. For example, some retailers differentiate their Apple Watch listings by mentioning warranty details to provide trust signals within search results. Others highlight affordability by showcasing deals and payment plans. Can you mention awards, accolades, guarantees, or promises specific to your industry? Even a small trust signal could be a game-changer in capturing more clicks. Harness AI to address CTR gaps If you’re optimizing click-through rate at scale, AI tools can help analyze data to identify behavioral patterns and preferences. This data can be used to create more compelling headlines or even generate different elements automatically. For example, Buddler offers an SEO CTR benchmark report that identifies CTR drops, below-average pages, and high-performing pages that may be worth improving. This can save valuable analysis time, allowing you to focus on tactics that drive better results. Taking a generative approach, the Danish news outlet TV 2 Fyn used AI-generated headlines to increase CTR by 59%. Tap into FOMO and psychological triggers to drive action Improving CTR isn’t just about SEO or using relevant keywords. Psychological triggers can have a powerful effect by tapping into user behaviors and emotions. Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a particularly strong motivator. While it’s more difficult to apply in long-term SEO strategies, limited-time or exclusive offers can be highlighted to boost clicks. For example, pages dedicated to Black Friday or time-sensitive deals should make this urgency clear. Power words can also trigger emotions, encouraging users to take action. However, use them carefully. Empty promises or unsubstantiated claims can backfire, reducing clicks and damaging customer trust. 3. Leverage rich snippets and schema markup Beyond title tags and meta descriptions, structured data provides more opportunities to increase engagement. Certain types of markup can trigger SERP features, making your listing stand out. For example, proper review markup can display star ratings in search results, helping your page attract more clicks. Pricing, return policies, and delivery details can also be shown, increasing visibility and credibility. Implementing these at scale can lead to incremental gains. 4. Optimize URLs for click-worthiness Often overlooked, URLs can send strong signals to potential visitors. Unnecessary parameters or overly complex URLs may deter users who are unfamiliar with your brand. Keeping URLs short, clear, and relevant reinforces trust and transparency. A well-structured URL can be the deciding factor for a user unsure about clicking. With these four SEO tactics in place, you can boost CTR and drive more traffic. But how does CTR interact with rankings? Let’s explore the connection. The interplay between ranking and CTR It’s well-recognized that higher-ranking pages generally attract more clicks. A recent FirstPage study found that on average: Position 1 organic search result receives 39.8% of clicks. Compared to 18.7% for the Position 2 result and 10.2% for Position 3. Since higher-ranked pages typically have better CTRs, looking beyond title tags and meta descriptions to improve page content, user experience, and page speed can help boost rankings – and, in turn, click-through rates. A better page ranks higher, leading to a higher CTR, which then further improves performance. One gain feeds into the other, creating a positive feedback loop. Testing and measuring CTR improvements Once you’ve implemented changes, tracking performance is key to success. Google Search Console allows you to monitor progress and adjust your approach if results aren’t meeting expectations. A/B testing can also be set up using tools like Bigmetrics, allowing you to measure the impact of different changes over time and determine what works best. Key takeaways for CTR success Remember to review your CTR metrics and make improvements alongside other SEO work. Prioritizing CTR optimization will help maximize your impact. Leverage data from other digital marketing channels, psychological triggers, and search intent matching for the best results. Test, learn, refine – and grow your traffic with smarter CTR strategies. View the full article

Party officials reject €500bn infrastructure fund plan and change to debt borrowing rules to fund defence spendingView the full article

Even though Tarana Burke is still correcting some past misconceptions about the #MeToo movement that went mainstream about eight years ago—it’s not dead, for example, and it wasn’t a witch hunt—she’s focused on the future. Specifically, the movement’s founder said organizing has already begun for the 2026 U.S. midterm elections. “I’m really looking forward to what we can do to build on the campaign we started in 2024,” Burke, chief vision officer of Me too. International, said Saturday during a discussion at the Fast Company Grill at SXSW. “I’m really excited about the idea of building a constituency; imagine us voting along the lines of our survivorship.” One goal for the movement’s future, Burke said, is to help people see how sexual and gender-based violence is interwoven with so many other issues, including gun violence, homelessness, prison reform, food deserts, and maternal mortality. “Part of our work is helping people to understand that there’s not an issue that you care about that does not touch on sexual and gender-based violence,” she told the audience. “We need to stop trying to silo these issues; there’s so much work that we can do together.” Working in tandem on social issues may elicit more attention from politicians or leaders who don’t address issues of sexual and gender-based violence, according to Burke. “We need to keep holding people’s feet to the fire.” Solving a solvable issue That said, activists face new challenges. Funding for support work to end sexual and gender-based violence is at an all-time low, Burke said, while local rape crisis centers are at-risk of losing all of their federal funding. Writing a check, of course, is one solution, but the fight to end sexual and gender-based violence will require interventions on various fronts—similar to approaches taken to make America smoke-free. “This is a solvable issue if we want to solve it,” Burke said. There are still problems to be fixed, however, like the framing that a man’s life is being ruined if he’s accused of sexual violence and a frequent premise that the person making the accusation isn’t telling the truth. That’s why it’s important for people to be given the respect and dignity of an investigation, Burke said. “That helps everybody involved,” she added. “If you are the person being accused or you’re the person who has the accusation, everybody involved should be treated with respect and humanity.” A focus on accountability Another misconception is that people who inflict harm on others must be banished, and there’s no pathway back for them. Burke wants to see accountability from the people who have caused harm, rather than for them to disappear for a while and reemerge again as though nothing happened. “What we’re saying is, if you want to be amongst civil society, we need to understand that you won’t cause harm again, that you understand that you caused harm in the first place,” Burke told the audience. “And the biggest problem with a lot of these men who have these accusations and have these things that have actually been proven is that we don’t see any of that.” Without accountability, it’s tempting for voters to excuse past accusations by justifying some of the good work a politician did in the past. And there’s a pertinent example right now that Burke, a New Yorker, weighed in on. New York City currently has a “terrible” mayor in Eric Adams, at least in Burke’s opinion, but she feels “a little angry” that he could be replaced by another “terrible” politician. That’s because Andrew Cuomo, the former governor of New York who stepped down amid numerous sexual harassment accusations, recently announced he’s running for mayor. “I just want us to do better and dream better and think bigger,” Burke said of this political situation. “If we actually want these things to stop, if we want to make an impact on the issue of sexual and gender-based violence, we have to figure out where the line is and hold the line.” A movement of ‘everyday’ people Of course setbacks are inevitable, as Burke acknowledged, though when the pendulum swings back the other way, she said there are tangible signs of the movement’s progress since #MeToo went viral in 2017 that won’t simply disappear. She points to law and policy changes in that time, along with the way people think and talk about sexual violence. “There has been a cultural shift,” said Burke, who coined the “Me Too” phrase nearly two decades ago while working with sexual assault survivors. “This is a movement that has empowered so many survivors, that has helped so many find community, that has been such a catalyst for healing and action, which is what our organization is about.” Still, she said there is more work to be done. And looking to the future, Burke is calling on the public’s help. “Movements are not just about the people with the microphone, the person with the bullhorn in the front,” Burke said. “Movements are built from everyday people.” View the full article

The connectivity chip complements Synaptics new AI-native SR-series MCUs enabling a host of new intelligent use cases, the company says. The post Embedded World: Synaptics targets US$3.2B ultra-low-power IoT chip market with new Wi-Fi/BLE/Thread SoC appeared first on Wi-Fi NOW Global. View the full article

Hedge fund turned family office eclipses rivals with currency and bond wagers on a slowing US economyView the full article

To billionaire Elon Musk and his cost-cutting team at the Department of Government Efficiency, Karen Ortiz may just be one of many faceless bureaucrats. But to some of her colleagues, she is giving a voice to those who feel they can’t speak out. Ortiz is an administrative judge at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — the federal agency in charge of enforcing U.S. workplace anti-discrimination laws that has undergone tumultuous change since President Donald Trump took office. Like millions of other federal employees, Ortiz opened an ominous email on Jan. 28 titled “Fork in the Road” giving them the option to resign from their positions as part of the government’s cost-cutting measures directed by Trump and carried out by DOGE under Musk, an unelected official. Her alarm grew when her supervisor directed administrative judges in her New York district office to pause all their current LGBTQ+ cases and send them to Washington for further review in order to comply with Trump’s executive order declaring that the government would recognize only two “immutable” sexes — male and female. Ortiz decried management’s lack of action in response to the directive, which she said was antithetical to the EEOC’s mission, and called upon some 185 colleagues in an email to “resist” complying with “illegal mandates.” But that email was “mysteriously” deleted, she said. The next day, after yet another frustrating “Fork in the Road” update, Ortiz decided to go big, emailing the EEOC’s acting chair Andrea Lucas directly and copying more than 1,000 colleagues with the subject line, “A Spoon is Better than a Fork.” In it, Ortiz questioned Lucas’s fitness to serve as acting chair, “much less hold a license to practice law.” “I know I take a great personal risk in sending out this message. But, at the end of the day, my actions align with what the EEOC was charged with doing under the law,” Ortiz wrote. “I will not compromise my ethics and my duty to uphold the law. I will not cower to bullying and intimidation.” Ortiz is just one person, but her email represents a larger pushback against the Trump administration’s sweeping changes to federal agencies amid an environment of confusion, anger and chaos. It is also Ortiz’s way of taking a stand against the leadership of a civil rights agency that last month moved to dismiss seven of its own cases representing transgender workers, marking a major departure from its prior interpretation of the law. Right after sending her mass email, Ortiz said she received a few supportive responses from colleagues — and one calling her unprofessional. Within an hour, though, the message disappeared and she lost her ability to send any further emails. But it still made it onto the internet. The email was recirculated on Bluesky and it received more than 10,000 “upvotes” on Reddit after someone posted it with the comment, “Wow I wish I had that courage.” “AN AMERICAN HERO,” one Reddit user deemed Ortiz, a sentiment that was seconded by more than 2,000 upvoters. “Who is this freedom fighter bringing on the fire?” wrote another. The EEOC did not feel the same way. The agency revoked her email privileges for about a week and issued her a written reprimand for “discourteous conduct.” Contacted by The AP, a spokesperson for the EEOC said: “We will refrain from commenting on internal communications and personnel matters. However, we would note that the agency has a long-standing policy prohibiting unauthorized all-employee emails, and all employees were reminded of that policy recently.” A month later, Ortiz has no regrets. “It was not really planned out, it was just from the heart,” the 53-year-old told The Associated Press in an interview, adding that partisan politics have nothing to do with her objections and that the public deserves the EEOC’s protection, including transgender workers. “This is how I feel and I’m not pulling any punches. And I will stand by what I wrote every day of the week, all day on Sunday.” Ortiz said she never intended for her email to go beyond the EEOC, describing it as a “love letter” to her colleagues. But, she added, “I hope that it lights a fire under people.” Ortiz said she has received “a ton” of support privately in the month since sending her email, including a thank-you letter from a California retiree telling her to “keep the faith.” Open support among her EEOC colleagues beyond Reddit and Bluesky, however, has proven more elusive. “I think people are just really scared,” she said. William Resh, a University of Southern California Sol Price School of Public Policy professor who studies how administrative structure and political environments affect civil servants, weighed in on why federal workers may choose to say nothing even if they feel their mission is being undermined. “We can talk pie in the sky, mission orientation and all these other things. But at the end of the day, people have a paycheck to bring home, and food to put on a table and a rent to pay,” Resh said. The more immediate danger, he said, is the threat to one’s livelihood, or inviting a manager’s ire. “And so then that’s where you get this kind of muted response on behalf of federal employees, that you don’t see a lot of people speaking out within these positions because they don’t want to lose their job,” Resh said. “Who would?” Richard LeClear, a U.S. Air Force veteran and EEOC staffer who is retiring early at 64 to avoid serving under the Trump administration, said Ortiz’s email was “spot on,” but added that other colleagues who agreed with her may fear speaking out themselves. “Retaliation is a very real thing,” LeClear said. Ortiz, who has been a federal employee for 14 years and at the EEOC for six, said she isn’t naive about the potential fallout. She has hired attorneys, and maintains that her actions are protected whistleblower activity. As of Friday, she still had a job but she is not a lifetime appointee and is aware that her health care, pension and source of income could all be at risk. Ortiz is nonetheless steadfast: “If they fire me, I’ll find another avenue to do this kind of work, and I’ll be okay. They will have to physically march me out of the office.” Many of Ortiz’s colleagues have children to support and protect, which puts them in a more difficult position than her to speak out, Ortiz acknowledged. She said her legal education and American citizenship also put her in a position to be able to make change. Her parents, who came to the United States from Puerto Rico in the 1950s with limited English skills, ingrained in her the value of standing up for others. Their firsthand experience with the Civil Rights Movement, and her own experience growing up in mostly white spaces in Garden City on Long Island, primed Ortiz to defend herself and others. “It’s in my DNA,” she said. “I will use every shred of privilege that I have to lean into this.” Ortiz received her undergraduate degree at Columbia University, and her law degree at Fordham University. She knew she wanted to become a judge ever since her high school mock trial as a Supreme Court justice. Civil rights has been a throughline in her career, and Ortiz said she was “super excited” when she landed her job at the EEOC. “This is how I wanted to finish up my career,” she said. “We’ll see if that happens.” The Associated Press’ women in the workforce and state government coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. —Claire Savage, Associated Press View the full article

Kendra Scott, founder of her eponymous jewelry brand, still believes business can be a force for good. And she’s got the numbers to back it up. Today, the brand announces that its foundation has donated $70 million in monetary and in-kind contributions over the last fifteen years to a wide range of causes. It’s supported literacy by providing multicultural and bilingual books to low-income elementary schools. It’s set up a women’s leadership institute at the University of Texas, Austin. It has funded more than 40,000 hours of breast cancer research. At a time when the government is cutting funding to education and medical research, pouring money into these causes matters more than ever. Speaking to Student Athletes at the Kendra Scott Center at UT Austin [Photo: Kendra Scott] Scott says she’s only getting started. As the company grows explosively—generating a reported $500 million in revenue last year, a 20% increase from the year before—Scott believes it has the potential to donate even more. And even though many other companies are pulling back on their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, Scott is continuing to prioritize DEI. The brand’s most recent impact report, lists many DEI initiatives including creating an internal “Hispanic Pod” to better connect with Hispanic consumers year-round. “I am not changing anything about my mission, end of story,” she says. “It doesn’t matter who the president is.” Scott’s stance goes against the grain in corporate America. Many companies that once boasted about their social justice and equity initiatives—like Target and McDonald’s—have pulled back from these efforts in response to the new political climate. Scott believes this is a mistake and will drive customers away. And indeed, there are now boycotts planned against both of these companies, and many others, including Amazon, Nestle, and General Mills. “If you’re constantly pivoting who you are as a brand, you will not survive,” says Scott. “You won’t just falter in this political climate; you’re not going to survive in future ones.” [Photo: Kendra Scott] Kendra Scott’s Unusual Philanthropy Model Scott was always interested in how she could build a profitable business that could also do good in the world. She launched the brand in 2002 out of a spare room when she was a young single mother. But even back then, she committed to helping any organization came to her asking for support. “I had no money at the time,” she says. “But I said that I wasn’t going to turn anybody away, even if all I could contribute was a pair of earrings for a silent auction.” Eventually, the brand took off. In 2010, she began opening stores, and that’s when she decided to formalize the charitable giving part of her business. Rather than picking a single cause, Scott wanted to give her customers some say in where money would go. So she developed a unique model where any customer can host a “Kendra Gives Back” event in-store where 20% of proceeds can go to a cause they care about. Last year alone, the company supported 12,600 causes, ranging from the girl scouts to pediatric cancer. [Photo: Kendra Scott] Scott believes this approach allows the brand to become more embedded in the community. “We’re fostering a genuine connection with our customers because we’re meeting them in some of the darkest moments of their life,” she says. “We’re meeting them when their kids are fighting cancer and raising funds for things that could be tragic. We are trying to spread light in dark places.” As the company has grown, Scott has been able to invest in other causes that are important to her. In 2016, when Scott lost a close friend to breast cancer, the foundation began pouring money into breast cancer research and has already donated $2 million to this cause. Scott is also passionate about supporting literacy efforts in under resourced communities. She’s launched a program called Yellow Libraries, where the foundation partners with a literacy non-profit called First Book to provide multicultural and bilingual books to low-income schools that receive federal funding. Now, the government is slashing funding to scientific research and is contemplating eradicating the department of education. Corporate donations are now increasingly important to keeping these causes going. [Photo: Kendra Scott] Social Good Is Good For Business While some business leaders worry that philanthropy might be a distraction from building a profitable company, Scott believes philanthropy has been directly tied to the brand’s growth. “It’s what differentiates our brand from our competitors,” she says. “It’s what keeps customers engaged and loyal.” The company is now scaling quickly, generating half a billion dollars in annual sales. In 2016, the private equity firm Berkshire Partners acquired a minority stake in the business, valuing the company at $1 billion. This allowed it to expand its retail operations. It now has more than 100 standalone stores, while also selling through retailers like Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s. It also sells products through its e-commerce website. The brand has been deliberate about appealing to new generations of customers. It offers a wide range of price points, and many tweens gravitate towards the brand’s more affordable necklaces like the Elisa, which sell at a rate of one a minute. Scott points out that Gen Z is very socially conscious, and are more likely to engage with brands that support a social cause. But the brand also remains popular with older customers, many of whom have been loyal fans for years. “When we closed all our stores during COVID, customers started writing in to ask about the employees in the stores,” Scott recalls. “It was a testament to how these stores were really part of the community and had shown up when customers needed donations.” Scott believes it would be a mistake to change the brand’s approach now, even as the political climate in the country is changing and many other companies are turning their back on social justice initiatives. “Consistency is so important,” Scott says. “When we say we’re going to do something, we do it.” View the full article

Helicopters, lifeboats and firefighting vessels sent to the scene off the coast of HumbersideView the full article

Digits is taking on QuickBooks and Xero, with the world’s first AI-powered Autonomous General Ledger, allowing small business owners and accountants to put their accounting needs almost completely in the hands of AI. Digits announced the service—which went live Monday—at HumanX in Las Vegas, after working on it for the past five years in stealth mode and putting it in the hands of hundreds of companies to test out over the past year. The platform serves as an alternative to other accounting software or platforms, such as QuickBooks or Xero, but stands out as it uses its own proprietary AI technology. Jeff Seibert, the co-founder and CEO of Digits, says that puts the platform ahead of other competing accounting programs, even those that purport to also utilize AI technology. In many cases, he says, those platforms are simply throwing numbers into broad-based LLMs like ChatGPT, and not purpose-built AI tools, like what Digits has built in-house. “We went all the way,” Seibert says. “We went heads-down, and spent the past five years creating the first end-to-end accounting platform for the AI era.” And when comparing Digits to key competitors, Seibert says that “we’re feature-competitive, we can do everything that they can do,” but again, “the difference is that we’ve spent five years training our own models,” allowing for automation for “a vast majority of the work.” So, for accountants or small business owners, using Digits is a matter of connecting the right accounts, and letting the AI take over—it can record and categorize transactions in near-real-time, reconcile accounts, and then create insights and reports. In effect, processes that may take weeks can be winnowed down to minutes. Interestingly, Seibert says that he hopes Digits can help stymie a larger issue in the accounting field: The lack of accountants. Currently, three-quarters of accountants are near retirement age, and the number of prospective accountants (those taking CPA exams) is the lowest in decades. While there’s already a glut of accounting talent, it’s set to get worse. “Nobody in Gen Z wants to be an accountant,” Seibert says. As such, he hopes Digits can prove to be a stop-gap of sorts—not replace human accountants entirely, but allow those accountants to do more with less. Digits has already garnered a good amount of attention from investors, having raised around $100 million in recent years from investors such as Benchmark and SoftBank. And customers seem to be buying in, too, as the group of businesses that spent the past year testing the product are giving it a thumbs-up, according to Seibert. “We already have hundreds of firms that want to access it,” he says. “It’s magical.” View the full article

We’re all looking to improve our organic performance. We want the latest news, tips, and thought leadership to help push our website past the competition. That’s why we’re here! However, the less glamorous side of staying current in SEO is learning from others’ mistakes. This article looks at eight common mistakes you can easily avoid. 1. Treating organic traffic as the end goal It makes sense to use organic traffic as a key metric to measure SEO success. It’s one of the easiest to define. However, it’s not the reason your company employs you. Traffic doesn’t pay the bills. In reality, it costs money when you factor in hosting and tools. Growing organic traffic isn’t necessarily a bad goal, but it needs to be more defined. You could be ranking for keywords that will never convert or attracting visitors who leave immediately. That’s not helping your business grow. Instead of viewing increased organic traffic as proof your SEO efforts are working, treat it as an indicator – one that matters only if the traffic is well-qualified. Ask key stakeholders what they report on each month. If you’re speaking to the board of directors, they care about the company’s financial health. Consider SEO’s impact on revenue as a better measure of success than simply saying, “Organic traffic is increasing.” Dig deeper: Why SEO often fails before it even begins 2. Forgetting about the user Focusing more on traffic volume than the users behind it is a mistake. If you create content only to generate traffic without a plan to meet visitors’ needs once they arrive, you’re wasting your energy. It’s easy to see traffic as the end of an SEO’s responsibility, but that’s not the case. A high-ranking page is only valuable if it attracts and engages the right audience. Whether targeting users at the top or bottom of the funnel, have a clear plan for their next step and craft your copy to guide them there. Too often, I’ve seen SEO strategies that begin and end with “get more users to the site” – with little thought about what happens next. 3. Implementing short-term strategies When developing an SEO strategy, it’s important to consider how far ahead you should plan. A common mistake – one I’ve made myself – is limiting an SEO strategy to just a few months due to uncertainty about the future of SEO. While it’s wise to stay adaptable as new SERP features emerge or a new search engine gains popularity, planning less than a year ahead is likely neither ambitious nor realistic for long-term growth. Algorithm updates can affect progress and require adjustments to your approach. However, if your strategy spans 12 months, your overarching goals will likely remain the same, even if specific tactics need to change. For example, if your SEO strategy is designed to increase revenue through organic search for a new product launch, a Google algorithm update won’t make that goal obsolete. You may need to adjust certain activities, but the strategy itself will remain intact. The risk of short-term planning is that you’re constantly shifting from one project to another, requiring frequent buy-in. This approach can prevent genuine growth, making SEO more reactive than strategic. You’ll also be more susceptible to chasing trends instead of implementing sustainable tactics that drive long-term success. Dig deeper: 5 SEO mistakes sacrificing quantity and quality (and how to fix them) 4. Blaming the algorithms without reason It’s all too easy to blame traffic drops on algorithm updates. We’ve all been in meetings where an SEO confidently tells a stakeholder: “Google makes hundreds of algorithm changes each year, and we don’t always know what’s changed.” While true, this can also become a scapegoat. Instead of investigating the actual cause, it’s convenient to attribute the drop to a Google update – especially when stakeholders have no way to prove otherwise. Before jumping to “algorithm update” as the reason for a traffic drop, rule out other possibilities. Check if the decline is happening across multiple search engines. If it is, an algorithm update is less likely to be the cause. Look for technical issues affecting crawling and indexing. Consider whether shifts in user behavior or industry trends are impacting search demand. And remember: If you blame algorithms for traffic drops without proper investigation, you should also credit them when traffic goes up. That probably won’t sit well with your boss when they ask what impact your SEO efforts have had lately. Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. Business email address Sign me up! Processing... See terms. 5. Basing decisions on flawed data Another major mistake is making other SEO decisions without solid data. Most SEOs understand that data is key to a successful strategy, yet errors in data handling are all too common. For example, poorly designed tests can lead to misleading conclusions. Running a test on meta descriptions to measure their impact on click-through rates is pointless if you don’t verify which descriptions were actually displayed in the SERPs. Similarly, evaluating sitewide performance metrics instead of analyzing specific pages, topics, or templates can obscure important insights. These issues often stem from: Using the wrong metrics. Relying on mislabeled data. Failing to segment data properly. A common error is pulling a Google Search Console report without accounting for variations in traffic by country or device. Averages can smooth out meaningful peaks and troughs, leading to flawed conclusions. Dig deeper: SEO shortcuts gone wrong: How one site tanked – and what you can learn 6. Assuming Google lies This mistake is surprisingly common in the SEO industry – the assumption that “Google lies.” But when you really think about it, that idea doesn’t make much sense. It would require a coordinated effort from every Google representative we hear from to deliberately mislead SEOs. For what purpose, exactly? I don’t believe Google lies about SEO. What would Google employees gain from misleading us about things like whether Googlebot respects robots.txt or if there’s a way to encourage Googlebot to crawl a site? More often than not, what people perceive as “Google lying” is actually a misunderstanding of extremely complex topics. Google Search is powered by intricate algorithms involving machine learning, information retrieval, and technical systems that most of us will never fully grasp. Naturally, some details get lost in communication. Google’s representatives try to simplify, explain, and troubleshoot an incredibly advanced system, which can sometimes lead to confusion. That’s why we should test everything Google tells us – not because they’re trying to deceive us, but because testing helps us better understand how to optimize our sites so Googlebot can find and serve our content effectively. 7. Using the robots.txt to control indexing Since we’re on the topic of helping Googlebot find and serve content, let’s talk about a common mistake – misusing robots.txt. Robots.txt is meant to guide bots on what they can and cannot crawl, not what they can index. A common misconception is that blocking a page in robots.txt prevents it from appearing in search results. That’s not how it works. If a search engine bot has never crawled a page, it won’t see its content and likely won’t rank it well. But that doesn’t mean it won’t index the page at all. If a search engine finds links to the page and the context of those links provides enough information, the page can still appear in relevant search results. If a page was previously crawled and indexed, and then a disallow rule was added to robots.txt, it can still rank based on the last version Google saw. Essentially, you’ve given search engines a snapshot of the page before blocking it, and that’s what they will continue to rank. A related mistake is adding a noindex tag to a page while also blocking it in robots.txt. If the page is blocked, Googlebot can’t crawl it to see the noindex tag – so the page may stay in search results despite your efforts to remove it. Dig deeper: 5 SEO content pitfalls that could be hurting your traffic 8. Using conflicting signals Sending search engines mixed signals can lead to indexing and ranking issues. This happens in several ways: Adding a noindex tag to a page while also canonicalizing it to another page. Linking to the non-canonical version of a page, making it unclear which URL should be indexed. Combining hreflang tags with noindex, preventing localized versions from being properly indexed. Pointing a canonical tag to a page that has a noindex tag, sending contradictory instructions. Learn from others’ mistakes These are just a few common SEO pitfalls, but there are many more. Experienced SEOs have often learned these lessons the hard way – by making mistakes. You don’t have to. By recognizing these issues early, you can avoid them and refine your SEO strategy for better results. Dig deeper: The top 5 strategic SEO mistakes enterprises make (and how to avoid them) View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The Harman Kardon Onyx Studio 8 is currently $129.99 on Woot, a massive drop from its usual $499.95 price tag. According to price trackers, this is its lowest price ever—and if you're a Prime member, you get free shipping (otherwise, it's $6). This deal is set to last for the next 27 days or until it sells out, but note that you can't have it shipped to Alaska, Hawaii, or a PO box address. Harman Kardon Onyx Studio 8 $129.99 at Woot $499.95 Save $369.96 Get Deal Get Deal $129.99 at Woot $499.95 Save $369.96 The asymmetrical shape of this speaker might make it seem wobbly at first glance, but there are rubber feet to keep it stable. One of the standout features of this speaker is its room calibration technology, which automatically adjusts the sound to your space. Whether you’re in a small apartment or an open loft, the speaker fine-tunes its output for the best possible experience. The sound profile of the Onyx Studio 8 is well-balanced, particularly in the midrange, making it great for podcasts and general listening. However, if you love deep, thumping bass, this isn’t the speaker for you. It lacks serious low-end punch, so while bass lines are present, they won’t shake the walls. It also doesn’t have an EQ or sound customization options, so what you hear is what you get. Also, its controls are a bit of a mixed bag—they’re simple but suffer from inconsistent tap recognition, which could easily get frustrating when trying to adjust volume or playback. The Bluetooth multipoint pairing feature of this wireless speaker lets you connect two devices at once, but there’s noticeable latency with video playback (so if you’re planning to use this for movies or YouTube, expect some sync issues). While the Onyx Studio 8 improves in sound quality over its predecessor, the Onyx Studio 6, it drops its water resistance entirely, making it more suited to a safe, dry living room setup. That said, it does come with a one-year manufacturer limited warranty for added peace of mind. Battery life is advertised at eight hours, but real-world use is closer to seven, depending on usage (your mileage may vary). Also, there’s no auto-off function, so if you forget to power it down, you’ll lose battery even when the speaker's idle. View the full article

A one-day strike by workers at 13 German airports, including the Frankfurt and Munich hubs and all the country’s other main destinations, caused the cancelation of most flights on Monday. The 24-hour walkout, which started at midnight on Sunday, involves public-sector employees at the airports as well as ground and security staff. At Frankfurt Airport, 1,054 of the day’s 1,116 scheduled takeoffs and landings had been canceled, German news agency dpa reported, citing airport traffic management. All of Berlin Airport’s regular departures and arrivals were canceled, while Hamburg Airport said no departures would be possible. Cologne/Bonn Airport said there was no regular passenger service and Munich Airport advised travelers to expect a “greatly reduced flight schedule.” The ver.di service workers union’s strike also targeted the Bremen, Hannover, Duesseldorf, Dortmund, Leipzig/Halle, and Stuttgart airports. At the smaller Weeze and Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden airports, only security workers were called out. The German airports’ association, ADV, estimated that more than 3,500 flights in total would be canceled and about 560,000 passengers affected. The union announced the strike last Friday. But at Hamburg Airport, it added a short-notice walkout on Sunday to the strike on Monday, arguing that it must ensure the measure was effective. The so-called “warning strike,” a common tactic in German wage negotiations, relates to two separate pay disputes: negotiations on a new pay and conditions contract for airport security workers, and a wider dispute over pay for employees of federal and municipal governments. The latter already has led to walkouts at Cologne/Bonn, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, and Munich airports. Pay talks in that dispute are due to resume on Friday, while the next round of talks for airport security workers is expected to start on March 26. View the full article