Had a great morning speaking to the Purposeful Intent conference in Toronto about the future of work. So much to discuss given that we really are at a pivotal moment in economic history. ...
Here’s a new one to me: the ‘divorce mortgage’. No its not some crazy, invented term to describe a financing vehicle (my mind went back to ‘plain vanilla swaps’ from the days when derivatives were the buzz), but rather exactly what it sounds like: a...
We all know the how the narrative goes: manufacturing is dead, and those old cities known as industrial centers are as well. It is not a hard case to make it if you take a quick tour of places like Pittsburgh or Detroit in the...
We all say it, and we worry about it too: we are an aging society, and that’s going to have repercussions. In Canada, the median age of the population is now close to 41 while in the U.S. it is still-youthful 37ish but rising (according...
I had barely heard about Campus Coliving and their business model before I saw the sad announcement yesterday that they were closing down the company, a result of not being able to make any money at it. The problem I'd say is that as a...
There are so many facets of the shuttle-bus-to-Silicon-Valley story that fascinate me. The fact that people are willing to commute a fair distance to be able to live in San Francisco while working for tech companies 60 miles away has big implications, and not just...
If Ikea says it’s a trend, it must be a trend. The giant furniture retailer known for its affordable products as well as its make-a-day-of-it-and-eat-the-meatballs approach to shopping, is thinking of changing strategy. Noting that tight budgets mean people do not want to shell out...
I have never been to Portland, Oregon but it sounds like a pretty cool place. As it turns out, it is so cool that lots of people have gone there. Thing is, now that they are there they are not sure what to do with...
It is kind of an urban myth, if you’ll pardon the pun: there is a story afoot that people are leaving the suburbs and moving back to the cities. I’ve written about the trend myself, but honestly perhaps the best evidence that it is true...
Boomers have moved into the cities - but that might not drive city growth forever. ...