A book review of “Disrupted: Ludicrous Misadventures in the Tech start up bubble” by Dan Lyons. 

Dan Lyons writes a hard truth telling autobiography of his experience at one of the biggest marketing software provider companies in the world. 

Dan was fired from his job and needed a new one quickly and chose to go and work at HubSpot, a tech start-up in Boston. He is the only employee over 50 and immediately feels like he doesn’t fit in, everyone has to be “HubSpotty”. But this is only the start of Dans problems.

One of the key themes is friendships with people in the workplace and how people you thought you were friends with can easily turn and make your life hell. Employees seem to be against him from the start as he seems to offend them in some way or another as they are all very sensitive and he is not very “HubSpotty”. 

Unfortunately, this is what Dan goes through and it effects his whole life. 

Eventually the company go public and Dan resigns. 

In the epilogue after Dan has left what he explains is even more disturbing and he has no idea what is going on. The FBI have to get involved and it is very unsettling for him. 

One of the company’s key mottos is “transparency” and they are anything but…. 

I found the book very insightful and interesting; it opened my eyes as to what working in new start-ups can really be like. It is very well written in a humorous manner and I was interested all the way through. It takes guts to write a book like this, which Dan obviously has. 

All I can say is it would make me think twice about wanting to work for a new tech start-up company. 

#danlyons #reading #startups #companies #disrupted #jeffreysjourney

The UK has a very high level of income inequality in comparison to other developed countries.

You may have thought this might not be the case, as we have benefits and a progressive tax system in place, which means higher earners pay more tax, and these measures would help to reduce income inequality in the UK. But despite these measures we still have high income inequality. 

The UK is home to more than 6% of global billionaires and is the fourth most unequal country in Europe.

Due to corona this income inequality is sure to get worse, as 70% of private firms in the UK have furloughed staff and 30% of firms have sent home over 75% of their workforce. Furloughed staff are currently receiving 80% of their wages, however this varies between companies. 

Virgin for example founded by Richard Branson plans to lay off 1/3 of its workforce.

However our situation is no-where near as bad as the US, or is it?

The UK is now the European country most similar to the USA in terms of income inequalities.

“Donald Trump’s handling of the covid-19 crisis has left the US looking like a third world country and on course for a second great depression” warns top economist Larry Elliot in this week’s Guardian. 

To add to Donald Trumps handling of the situation he was telling US citizens to inject themselves with disinfectant such as Dettol, to kill the virus and stop more people getting infected. 

To add to the inequality further it was reported in today’s (12/5/20) Guardian that “people in low-paid manual jobs face a greater risk of dying from corona virus than high paid workers do. Men in low skilled jobs are four times more likely to die from the virus and women working as carers are twice as more likely to die than those in professional roles” states Caelann Barr and Philllip Inman.  

Will the US and UK recover from the income inequality caused by the corona virus?

#coronavirus #income #inequality #staysafe #jeffreysjourney #thankyoukeyworkers

Its day 29 in lockdown and there have been 17,337 deaths in the UK so far due to covid-19.

No one has been allowed to go out other than for exercise and essential travel for food or medication or to work. The nation is pulling together to get through this awful time.

Who knew 2020 would be the year for a global pandemic?

Key workers such as NHS staff, delivery drivers, supermarket staff and more are risking their lives everyday to go to work keep the UK running as close to normal as it possibly can.

One major concern for key workers especially NHS  staff is the lack of PPE(personal protective equipment). The lack of PPE puts workers more at risk when treating patients and if key workers like nurses or doctors catch the corona virus they can’t work. This puts the NHS at risk even more as numbers of staff could drop due to lack of PPE.

One nurse at Lincolnshire hospital said “it’s not fair- they’ve got families to go home to, its just so sad”. This is due to the lack of PPE as all they had to wear was a mask, an apron and gloves.

The mental and social impacts of corona will be damaging to many. Not being able to sit A-levels and GCSE’s having put years of work in must be devastating.

Universities having graduations and thousands of internships and placements cancelled. Changing all teaching and lectures to online only was a shock for all university students. The first year and last year for so many students came to such an abrupt end no one had time to prepare.

However, its in times like these that everyone comes together to help each other where they can.

One individual, war veteran Tom Moore, has raised an incredible £28 million for the NHS.

Our lives have been temporarily put on pause and no one knows how long it will take to get back to normal.

I want to thank all key workers for everything they are doing, thank you.

Stay safe. Stay home.

Thanks for reading and wishing everyone all the best in these difficult times.

#corona #stayhome #lockdown #covid19

Luxembourg is the richest country in Europe and the first country to make all public transport free. The free public transport will be available on trams, trains and buses and open to tourists, as well as residents. 

Luxembourg’s economy will benefit from free public transport. This is due to increased geographical mobility of Luxembourg’s workforce.

Why has Luxembourg introduced free public transport?

The introduction of free public transport is an important social measure in Luxembourg.

One reason is because it will hit higher tax payers more than others and this is also Luxembourg attempting to tackle income inequality in their country. It will help to reduce poverty and decrease the inequality gap in Luxembourg.

Another reason is to encourage the use of public transport as Luxembourg is known to have frequent traffic jams and 47% of business trips in Luxembourg are made by car.  More than 60% of commuters drive to work in Luxembourg compared to 19% who use public transport.

How will this impact businesses?

Businesses should also benefit from free public transport as skills shortages will be filled due to the increased mobility. Therefore businesses will fill job vacancies at a quicker rate meaning they operate more efficiently and increase their output. Without transport being an obstacle to employment people can work wherever they want leading to a more efficient allocation of labour.

At what cost is this achieved?

The total cost for Luxembourg providing this service is more than 500 million euros. 

Should the UK make public transport free?

Public transport in the UK is reasonably affordable on trams and buses. However, having recently travelled by train in the UK I think it is quite expensive. But there are ways to help reduce the cost of train travel such as a railcard making it more affordable. However, for the UK to introduce public transport tax would need to be increased to fund it.

How successful has free public transport been in Luxembourg?

In Luxembourg more people are now using public transport as its free of charge. Passenger numbers have increased as much as 85% on some routes.

This will benefit Luxembourg as it will reduce their carbon emissions due to less people using cars and is a step in the right direction to becoming more environmentally friendly.

More countries should have a free public transport system, this is the future!

#jeffreysjouney#EIBM#transport#free#public#luxembourg

There is so much coverage all the time in the media surrounding how ethical animal testing really is. Should businesses be allowed to test on animals? 

Animal testing is defined as a scientific experiment or test in which a live animal is forced to undergo something that is likely to cause them pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm. 

An estimated 26 million animals are used every year in the United States for scientific and commercial testing.

Many companies use animal testing as a way for their products to develop and progress, especially in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries.

But is it right for animals to go through testing and be treated this way? Yes, i think it is.

 This is because due to animal testing we can create lifesaving treatments for both humans and animals. There is no other way for effective research to take place and there are strict regulations that prevent the mistreatment of animals in labs. Therefore animals are protected, to an extent, in labs when going through testing. Without pharmaceutical companies such as AstraZeneca who invest time and money into animal testing we would not be where we are today in terms of pain relief and all the medicines that are available.

In 2010 AstraZeneca used 121,823 animals for research purposes the lowest number since 2006 with the highest in 2010 at 408,000 animals.

Would we rather sacrifice animal lives or human lives? Human lives are more important than animals.

However many companies are realising there is a big market now for products which don’t involve animal testing. For example the cosmetics company Iconic London claim to be 100% cruelty free and are very successful as their products have been worn by several of the Kardashians and other celebrities.

On the other hand, very successful cosmetics companies still do test on animals such as Benefit, Clinique, Estee lauder and many more.

What do you think of animal testing in businesses?

Leave your thoughts in the comments.

#animaltesting#rightorwrong#ethics#inhumane#unfair

Why in the 21^st century, on an education based around equality and tolerance, should I face a boardroom environment where my appearance affects the power and effect of my statement. In a world of equality, why should this still be something needed to discuss.

“Everytime I board (business class), it’s like, “oh, are you sitting in the right seat?” I make sure to keep my boarding pass out just in case somebody has a question”.

Imagine feeling this way every time you board a plane, because this is exactly how Bozoma Saint John felt.

Bozoma Saint John is an American Businesswoman and is currently the Chief Marketing officer for Endeavour. Previously she was the Chief Brand officer at Uber.

There is so much wrong with Saint John’s words and it just shows diversity is still not at the point it should be in the 21st century.

Saint John can’t help but feel “she should be seen just for what she does and forget the labels” but she feels “that’s not possible today”.  It’s not just Saint John that feels this way either. Other high profile CEOS who are also viewed as being diverse feel the same. Such as Ajay Banga, CEO of Mastercard, has felt different from other people in the room or business over a hundred times.

I view diversity as something very important and an issue that still needs to be addressed. Diversity should be a priority in businesses around the world so they can grow and become more productive due to a wider range of backgrounds and ideas.

Diversity has increased massively in the last decade with companies striving for it in the workplace. Companies such as Google are trying hard to increase the diversity and inclusion within the company. However, is this enough?

#Jeffreysjourney #plane #diversity #business #culture #change #internationalBusiness #BozomaSaintJohn #AjayBanga

Hello my names Katy and i’m an undergraduate at Oxford Brookes University studying Business and management.

What up fellow bloggers and people of the business world.
My blog is going to be looking at exploring international business and management and other topical problems of our generation.

Thanks for reading

Stay tuned for my next post and keep up to date

#Jeffreysjourney