Obama Team to Broaden Bailout While Frank Seeks More Accountability

Government and Economy

Obama Team to Broaden Bailout
President-elect Barack Obama's economic team is broadening the mission of the $700 billion bailout for the financial sector, aiming to unfreeze credit for homeowners, consumers, small businesses and local governments.

Frank Offers New Terms for Release of Bailout Funds
Representative Barney Frank expects the House to act soon to impose conditions on the release of new bailout funds, mandating that at least $50 billion should be used to help avoid foreclosures.

Lawmakers Seek Yet Another H2B Visa Fix
Lawmakers are asking the departments of Labor and Homeland Security to watch out small and seasonal businesses that depend on immigrant workers because the number of H2B visas requested already exceeds the cap set for the second half of the year.

Management and Financial Issues

Reduce Your Risk From a Business Failure
The recession that is causing many small businesses to fail does not need to end the entrepreneur's American dream. There are things small business owners can do to protect themselves and we have three tips to lower the risk.

Advantages of Leasing Equipment

The Wall Street Journal's Kelly Spors answers reader questions about the advantages of leasing equipment for a company, instead of buying or financing.

Technology Issues

Questions to Ask Before Buying an ERP System
When searching for a mid-market enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, there are a number of things you need to know. Here are ten questions to ask when evaluating and interviewing vendors.

Small Firms Discover Telecommuting
With the growth of the virtual work force changing the face of business, a new trend, says Jack Hughes, founder of TopCoder, is that small businesses are increasingly accepting the idea of telecommuting.

Benefits and Labor Issues

New Labor Bills Readied for Obama
Labor-friendly bills already are making their way into Congress in the waning days of the Bush administration, including two pay discrimination bills that President Bush vowed to veto, which will be presented to President-elect Obama.

Ad Industry Pushed to Diversity
After a study found pervasive discrimination against blacks in the ad industry, civil rights attorneys and activists have launched an initiative to use public pressure and litigation to bring about reform.

Sales and Marketing

A Collision of Stunts and Strategy

As the Super Bowl nears, a small apparel company is trying to use the buzz around the big game to drum up attention for itself.

Guerrilla Marketing Basics
Five low-cost marketing techniques to employ this year.