Government, Politics and the Economy Sentate Mystery: Who Killed Small Business Credit-Card Protection? When the amendment offered by Senator Mary Landrieu (D – LA) to get new consumer credit-card protections extended to small businesses was killed last month, the perpetrators left no fingerprints. In fact, no one knows precisely what happened, or why. NYTimes.com The Small Business Owners' Wish List for Obama Small business owners don't ask for much, but an end to the credit crunch, less talk of tax increases, and healthcare reform without coverage mandates do top t... [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy Obama: No Second Stimulus Effort Needed, Yet President Obama expects the US unemployment rate to exceed 10% this year, though he says that a second stimulus package isn’t needed...yet. Bloomberg.com Management and Operations Success as an Introverted Leader Introverts can feel ignored, overlooked, and misunderstood in today's extroverted business climate, but it doesn't have to dead-end your career. Here's advice on how... [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy Entrepreneurs on Obama According to a new survey, entrepreneurs are willing to give the President time to fix the economy, but many have serious questions about the wisdom of his policies. BusinessWeek.com Ownership, Management and Operations 12 Steps to Upgrade Your Business To grow, for your business needs needs to evolve, you need to be able to see where things can be improved and address those areas. Here are a dozen things you can do today to make that happen. SmallBizTrends.com [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy Republicans: Obama's Financial Oversight Plan Would Continue Bailouts Leading Republicans on a House panel considering the Obama administration’s overhaul of financial regulations said the president’s plan would continue taxpayer-funded bailouts. Bloomberg.com Ownership, Management and Operations Make Sure Your New Hires are “Onboard” Once they've finished their HR paperwork, it's time to really bring your new hires “onboard.” They will be more engaged, more productive, and they will want to stay and be committe... [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy The Obama Financial Plan: Let the Games Begin The sides are drawn-up and the combatants are set, ready to do battle over Obama's proposals for the Fed, financial regulation and much more. Poll: Too Much Intervention? BusinessWeek.com Should the Government Back High-Potential Start-Ups? If the answer is 'yes', then venture-backed companies across the country should be eligible for federal innovation grants. NYTi... [Read Full Article]

Government, Politics and the Economy Perhaps California is Not Too Big to Fail With the legislature in gridlock and $24 billion in red ink, California lawmakers have not been able to persuade the Obama Administration to bail out the state, and California isn't alone. BusinessWeek.com Economic Trends: The Death of the Independent Pharmacy With more customers filling their prescriptions online, the small independent pharmacies we grew up with are struggl... [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy Obama to Create New Consumer-Finance Agency According to Treasury Department documents, President Obama will propose an agency to protect consumers of financial products. This new agency would have the power to punish offending firms, set mortgage rules and crack down on deceptive practices. Bloomberg.com Management and Operations Fishy Stock Looking at the example set by Community Supported Agriculture programs, Northeastern fishing groups are selling shares in their enterprises to consumers and paying them back with weekly allotments of local, fresh-caught fish. WSJ.com [Read Full Article]

  Government, Politics and the Economy Securities Industry: Leave Executive Comp to Boards, Not Lawmakers The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association released guidelines for how financial services firms should tie compensation to long-term performance and risk management, saying that executive pay should be decided by company boards, not by legislators or regulators. Workforce.com Fixing the Economy: Is Obama Flubbing the Fix? With the administration backtracking on major regulatory reform, some critics saying that Obama is squandering a rare opportunity. BusinessWeek.com [Read Full Article]