Commentary
2018 Was a Bad Year for the News Business
2019 isnt likely to be any better
This article appears in print in the March 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. For the media business, 2018 was not a good year. From established magazine titles like The Weekly Standard and Glamour shutting down or dumping print editions to the depressing and relentless stream of layoffs in the newspaper industry, the…
Paid Sick-Leave Policies Can Be Fraught With Compliance Traps
Employers could face big consequences for missteps
This article appears in print in the February 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Its been more than a year since the effective date of Washington states Paid Sick Leave Act, bringing both legal and practical compliance challenges to employers with Washington-based employees. For most employers, the law added a layer of paid-sick-leave…
Journalism 101: Repeating a False Claim Often Can Be Persuasive, but It Doesn’t Make a Lie the Truth
Saying the same thing over and over again isnt necessarily a sign of diminished capacity
This article appears in print in the February 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for American journalists to fear for their safety on their home turf, we have a problem. Exactly how we got to this point isnt a mystery. Our own president…
The Big Questions for Seattle in 2019: Boeing’s New Plane, Amazon’s Next Move and the Fate of Real Estate?
Its 2019, and its time for a new set of questions.
This article appears in print in the February 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. The dominant question on the local business scene for most of 2018 had to do with a too-cutesy bit of corporate coinage that, in the end, even its own creator didnt believe in. By the time Amazons trolling for…
The 2019 Economic Forecast
Rapid expansion slows, but global, U.S. and regional economies will continue to be strong in 2019
This article appears in print in the January 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. The global economy has been performing pretty well recently with Gross World Product running in the 3 to 3.5 percent range for the past seven years. I believe the world economy will continue growing, but we are starting to…
Supporting the Arts Can Play a Key Role in the Seattle Area’s Economic Health
Arts and culture create jobs and drive spending.
This article appears in print in the January 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. We are at a pivotal moment in King County. The region is experiencing rapid growth, attracting new companies and a diversifying and expanding population. In the midst of this growth, we are grappling with pressing challenges stemming from homelessness,…
Scamazon HQ2: Amazon Process Nothing Short of Extortion
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos didn't need tax breaks from anyone.
This article appears in print in the January 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. In reading the coverage of the Great HQ2 Scam, I was fascinated to learn that Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos apparently became obsessed with all the swag North Americas cities were willing to shower upon Amazon in their…
Paul Allen Was the Very Model of a Modern Billionaire
The late entrepreneur had multiple business ventures in numerous sectors.
This article appears in print in the January 2019 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Paul Allens life made up in breadth and depth of activity what it lacked in longevity. With multiple business ventures in multiple sectors, other ventures in science, medicine and philanthropy, professional sports team ownership, and museums to share his…
Why Do Companies Use Stadiums and Arenas as Billboards?
Seattle will soon find out.
This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. KeyArena will be getting a remodel, a new tenant and a new name. Safeco Fields lead tenant isnt going anywhere (we know, we know, lament the fans) but the building itself was recently renamed T-Mobile Park. (To the relief…
How to Be a Leader without Being Obvious About It
Leslie Helm, Seattle Business magazines former editor, leads quietly and generously.
This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. When I shifted over from Seattle magazine to Seattle Business magazine in 2011, I got really, really lucky. I lucked into a terrific boss. More to the point: I came upon the kind of colleague we all hope for…
Using That Instead of Who Dehumanizes the Workplace
"Words matter. Precise words matter precisely because humans have the ability and the responsibility to raise the bar on how well, how accurately they communicate."
This article appears in print in the November 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Take that! And please stop its widespread abuse. Only you can prevent the further impersonalization of the workplace by overusing the relative pronoun that. How, exactly, did that come to replace who in everyday usage? Im not sure. But…
The Promise and Peril of the Industrial Internet of Things
"The industrial internet of things will increase the vulnerability and potential for havoc."
This article appears in print in the November 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. Oh, howdy! Who am I and what am I doing rummaging around your data collection systems, your machine controls and your computer files? Why, Im the internet of things (IoT). You invited me in, remember? Say, some of the…
A Final Note from Our Outgoing Executive Editor
"I remain a strong believer in Seattle and am thankful I had the privilege of covering its many fascinating leaders and businesses during the past decade a time of extraordinary growth and change."
This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue. Click here for a free subscription. When I joined Seattle Business magazine in February 2009, the economy was ailing, American stocks had lost half their value, and housing prices were in freefall. That year, unemployment more than doubled from the year before. The economy was…