Tag: 3BL

PITTSBURGH, PA, July 2, 2024 /3BL/ – Wesco International (NYSE:WCC), a leading provider of business-to-business distribution, logistics services and supply chain solutions, has certified as a Great Place to Work® in the U.S.

“We’re particularly proud of this award, because the recognition comes directly from our employees,” says Chris Wolf, Chief Human Resources Officer at Wesco. “We knew we had a great culture here, but we’re honored to make it official with Great Place to Work certification.”

Overall, 73% of Wesco employees reported they believed Wesco is a great place to work, as compared to the 57% average of other U.S. companies. Employees gave Wesco management very high marks for treating employees fairly, regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation. Plus, 95% of employees say Wesco is a physically safe place to work. You can see more of Wesco’s results at their Great Place to Work Company Profile page here: https://www.greatplacetowork.com/certified-company/1421401

At Wesco, our people are our greatest asset. Survey results showed that 90% of employees say they are able to take time off work when necessary, and 84% of employees say they felt welcomed when they joined the company. Explore Wesco’s current job opportunities here: https://www.wesco.com/us/en/our-company/careers.html

Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation. It recently conducted a workplace trust index survey among randomly selected employees from across Wesco’s U.S. operations.

About Wesco

Wesco International (NYSE: WCC) builds, connects, powers and protects the world. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Wesco is a FORTUNE 500® company with more than $22 billion in annual sales and a leading provider of business-to-business distribution, logistics services and supply chain solutions. Wesco offers a best-in-class product and services portfolio of Electrical and Electronic Solutions, Communications and Security Solutions, and Utility and Broadband Solutions. The Company employs approximately 20,000 people, partners with the industry’s premier suppliers, and serves thousands of customers around the world. With millions of products, end-to-end supply chain services, and leading digital capabilities, Wesco provides innovative solutions to meet customer needs across commercial and industrial businesses, contractors, government agencies, educational institutions, telecommunications providers, and utilities. Wesco operates nearly 800 branches, warehouses and sales offices in more than 50 countries, providing a local presence for customers and a global network to serve multi-location businesses and global corporations.

Contact

Jennifer Sniderman 
Vice President, Corporate Communications 
717-579-6603

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, July 1, 2024 /3BL/ – DP World, a global leader in supply chain solutions, announces the appointment of Joel Werner as Chief Operating Officer for its operations in Canada. Werner, a 19-year veteran of DP World, steps into his role following his successful tenure as General Manager of DP World’s terminal at the Port of Vancouver. 

Werner has an extensive background in engineering, operational management and infrastructure delivery, with more than 25 years of experience leading teams and spearheading operational advancements in the sector. He joined DP World in 2005 and has been serving as General Manager of DP World’s Vancouver Terminal (Centerm) since 2022. Under his leadership, the terminal underwent a significant expansion, enhancing DP World’s position as a leading terminal operator in Canada and setting new benchmarks in service quality, sustainability, and operational efficiency.

Moreover, Werner has been instrumental in pioneering sustainability efforts, including a notable hydrogen electric pilot project aimed at reducing carbon emissions at the Port of Vancouver. The pilot is testing the feasibility of transitioning the company’s (RTGs) from diesel to electric, significantly decreasing the port’s shore-based carbon emissions. Werner is also credited with leading the effort to receive LEED v4 Gold certification at DP World’s Container Operations Facility in Vancouver. 

Doug Smith, Chief Executive Officer of DP World in Canada, said: “Joel’s promotion to COO is a testament to his exceptional leadership and deep industry expertise. His innovative approach and commitment to sustainable operations are integral to our growth strategy and will further strengthen our position in the global market.”

Prior to joining DP World, Werner worked in the mining industry, focusing on reliability and mechanical engineering roles. He holds a Master of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from The University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mine-Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s University. Werner also studied Mechanical Engineering at the Royal Military College of Canada, further solidifying his technical and leadership capabilities.

Joel Werner, Chief Operating Officer, DP World in Canada, said: “I am honoured to step into the role of COO for DP World in Canada, especially at a time of significant expansion and strategic development in the region. Throughout my tenure, I’ve watched DP World grow into one of Canada’s leading terminal operators, and I look forward to continuing to drive operational excellence and innovation across our Canadian operations.”

– END –

DP World Americas Media Contact:
Melina Vissat, Head of Communications
M: (+1) 704-605-6159
E: melina.vissat@dpworld.com

About DP World 

Trade is the lifeblood of the global economy, creating opportunities and improving the quality of life for people around the world. DP World exists to make the world’s trade flow better, changing what’s possible for the customers and communities we serve globally. 

With a dedicated, diverse and professional team of more than 111,000 employees from 159 nationalities, spanning 77 countries on six continents, DP World is pushing trade further and faster towards a seamless supply chain that’s fit for the future. 

We’re rapidly transforming and integrating our businesses — Ports and Terminals, Marine Services, Logistics and Technology – and uniting our global infrastructure with local expertise to create stronger, more efficient end-to-end supply chain solutions that can change the way the world trades.

What’s more, we’re reshaping the future by investing in innovation. From intelligent delivery systems to automated warehouse stacking, we’re at the cutting edge of disruptive technology, pushing the sector towards better ways to trade, minimising disruptions from the factory floor to the customer’s door. 

WE MAKE TRADE FLOW
TO CHANGE WHAT’S POSSIBLE FOR EVERYONE.

Originally published on Yahoo! Finance

In early 2000 when insurance company Aflac (AFL) was attempting to increase its brand recognition, which at the time was hovering around 11%, longtime CEO Dan Amos decided to take a risk. He took a bet on an advertising campaign that featured two men on a park bench talking about insurance, featuring a duck quacking, “Aflac.”

Click here to read more on Yahoo! Finance.

In this episode Wafa Jafri, Partner, Energy Deal Advisory, KPMG in the UK, and Charlotte Dorrington, Manager, Transformation and Sustainability Advisory, KPMG in Denmark, and Chair of Leaders 2050, discuss a ’just energy transition’ and explore some of the impacts of energy on women.

Click Here to Listen to Episode 24 of ESG voices

By Virginia Brown

After three years stationed in Guam with the U.S. Navy, Harrison Cochran arrived home. He wasn’t sure what post-military life would look like, but the 24-year-old knew he had a whole career ahead of him.

“I knew I wanted to get into trade work,” Cochran said, “or some type of on-the-job training.”

He considered a welding program, having served as a welder in the Navy. But his father and uncle worked as low-voltage electricians, and they urged him to consider line work.

“They told me that becoming a lineworker was the way to go,” he said.

Then Cochran learned about a lineworker training program at Cape Fear Community College through the Department of Veterans Affairs. It was close to home. Having grown up in Snow Camp, N.C., he was familiar with Wilmington, N.C., where CFCC is located.

Cochran enrolled in the 10-week program, knowing it could set him on a path to a stable career with a competitive starting salary – and at a fraction of the cost of a four-year degree.

“A couple of guys from my high school had gone through the same program,” he said, “and they had all good things to say about it. When I got there, I found that they were right.”

Lineworker careers

Demand for lineworkers is expected to climb by 8.5% by the year 2026, with an estimated 21,500 job openings in 2024 alone, labor statistics show.

Duke Energy hires lineworkers in every stage of their career, from line apprentices to experienced journeymen. Check current openings – or find training for a career in line work – on our website.

Cochran got a job at Duke Energy after graduating from CFCC’s electrical lineworker training program in June 2023. Today, he works on a team of experienced lineworkers, learning how to troubleshoot power outages and make necessary repairs to keep the lights on for customers.

“[Harrison’s] leadership qualities stood out,” said Seth Caison, Cochran’s supervisor at Duke Energy’s Fairfax Operations Center in Greensboro, N.C. “He showed initiative, and presented ideas in ways that would benefit the team, not just himself.”

His journey is hardly an isolated case. In 2023, 41% of Duke Energy’s entry-level apprentice lineworker hires were graduates of the company’s partner community colleges. And many of the line apprentices earn a starting salary of nearly $50,000, plus benefits.

“Much of the existing workforce is approaching retirement, so there’s a critical need for highly skilled workers,” said Isabel Nieto, manager of workforce development at Duke Energy. “We’ve been creative about investing in new talent, relying on our community colleges and other organizations to help ensure there’s a steady pipeline of workers to fill these much-needed roles both at Duke Energy and across the country.”

CFCC’s industry-recognized program is one of more than 20 programs that Duke Energy has invested in across the Carolinas, Florida, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.

“These colleges are closely connected to their communities,” Nieto said. “They broaden our reach to individuals who may have never thought of this career before and help deliver a skilled, diverse pipeline of potential lineworkers.”

Since inception, CFCC has graduated nearly 900 students from the program, partnering with over 15 employers.

“We have great instructors with years of experience,” said Emily Holt, director of Workforce Readiness Programs at CFCC. “Each instructor has 30- to 40-plus years of industry experience.”

In addition to a $200,000 initial startup grant from the Duke Energy Foundation in 2018, Duke Energy continues investments annually through scholarships, smaller grants and marketing. Holt said the company’s name recognition is another leading reason for the program’s success.

“A lot of students feel a pull to work at Duke Energy,” Holt said.

“The company has a really good reputation, and the students come in having heard that it’s a great company to work for. They get excited when they know that Duke is one of our big partners, and it increases the quality of our program.”

CFCC’s lineworker training program also provides students with a commercial driver’s license, or CDL, which allows them to operate utility trucks.

“A lot of schools don’t offer CDL. You have to get it yourself,” Cochran said. “So that was great. It takes the stress off the students by providing that during school.”

In Wilmington, proximity to North Carolina military bases, like Fort Liberty (formerly Fort Bragg) in Fayetteville and Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, is an added bonus for companies that recruit lineworkers.

“Given the focus on safety, teamwork, reliability and responsibility, these roles are very appealing to and a very good fit for former military,” Nieto said. “They have what it takes to be successful.”

Caison agrees. “With [Harrison’s] background as a welder in the Navy, he came in exactly how you would hope every new hire would. He is constantly on top of the work, figuring things out and learning. He has a bright future with the company.”

Cochran thinks so, too. “I’ve been really lucky to find something I enjoy.”

View original content here.

LINCOLN, Neb., July 2, 2024 /3BL/ – The Auto Club Group (ACG) and the Arbor Day Foundation have launched a partnership that will support a variety of tree planting projects throughout the U.S. These projects include large-scale reforestation efforts in National, State, and other public and private forests, as well as community forestry projects in Chicago and Detroit.

The Auto Club Group is AAA’s second largest and fastest-growing AAA club in North America, serving more than 13 million members across 14 states and two U.S. territories. The projects supported through this partnership are focused on planting 50,000 trees across ACG’s footprint and supporting environmental stewardship in the communities they serve. Many of the reforestation projects aim to help restore ecosystems recovering from disasters such as hurricanes, disease, and deforestation. The community-based projects help support urban forestry efforts to address local concerns of poor air quality and urban heat island effect. Trees are a proven and natural solution to these issues by helping sequester carbon, reduce air pollution, and provide shade and cooling to reduce risk of heat-related illness.

“Our mission, first and foremost, is to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees, and it’s truly inspiring when we get to partner with an organization that is supportive of each part of that mission,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Whether we’re working in forests, cities, or our own backyard, planting the right tree at the right time in the places that need it most is paramount to how we go about our work. We are thrilled to partner with ACG to inspire meaningful impact through these projects.”

The Arbor Day Foundation has worked to plant more than 500 million trees in forests and communities around the world. Through a global network of partnerships, the Foundation facilitates projects that empower organizations of all sizes to reach their sustainability goals via measurable, impactful work through trees and forests. The Foundation has set a goal to plant 500 million trees by June 2027 in the forests and communities that need them most.

This partnership emphasizes The Auto Club Group’s commitment to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) values and the vital role of sustainability in our communities.

“ACG is proud to partner with the Arbor Day Foundation, in effort to enhance green spaces, and promote, advocate, and support environmental stewardship,” said Ken Mathies, Vice President, Chief Diversity Officer of DEI and Sustainability for The Auto Club Group. “This collaboration highlights our dedication to creating a healthier, more sustainable future, and ensuring that our strategic initiatives benefit generations to come.”

Additionally, ACG is granting Arbor Day Foundation memberships to 500 of its employees. This gives them access to a variety of tree education resources, stories and updates from forestry projects, and 10 native tree seedlings shipped to their home and determined by the hardiness zone they live in.

To learn more about how you can also become an Arbor Day Foundation member, visit arborday.org/members.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation is the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. Together with our partners, we have helped plant more than 500 million trees in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. Our vision is to lead toward a world where trees are used to solve issues critical to survival. Through our members, partners and programs, the Arbor Day Foundation inspires people across the globe to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. More information is available at arborday.org.

About AAA – The Auto Club Group

The Auto Club Group (ACG) is the second largest AAA club in North America with more than 13 million members across 14 U.S. states and two U.S. territories. ACG and its affiliates provide members with roadside assistance, insurance products, banking and financial services, travel offerings and more. ACG belongs to the national AAA federation with more than 64 million members in the United States and Canada. AAA’s mission is to protect and advance freedom of mobility and improve traffic safety. For more information, get the AAA Mobile app, visit AAA.com, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

ATEC, a global leader in IoT-enabled electric stoves, raises US$3.75M Series A for expansion across Asia and Africa.SEEAA is an impact fund dedicated to investing in start-ups that work towards increasing quality of life and boosting economic development in Asia

RUEIL-MALMAISON, France, July 2, 2024 /3BL/ – Schneider Electric Energy Access Asia (SEEAA), an impact fund managed by Schneider Electric, the leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, along with Spark+ Africa Fund closes US$3.75M Series A in ATEC to support global expansion across Asia & African markets of its market-leading IoT electric stoves. Other institutional investors in the round include DRW, Save the Children Global Ventures, Kibo Investments and iDE.

SEEAA is a €21M investment vehicle managed by Schneider Electric to invest in early-stage clean energy ventures in South and Southeast Asia.

Gilles Vermot Desroches, Senior Vice President Corporate Citizenship Schneider Electric and President of SEEAA, stated that, “We are thrilled to support ATEC in their growth, accelerating social impact for rural and low-income households and reducing carbon emissions. We believe that their ability to combine IoT, ensure data accuracy, and utilize carbon finance will be instrumental in democratizing access to clean cooking.”

ATEC’s proprietary stove produces data-verifiable and auditable carbon credits, which resolves the majority of the current over-crediting issues currently holding back the voluntary and compliance cookstove carbon markets.

“ATEC will expand its partnerships with last-mile distributors and carbon buyers across Asia & Africa,” says ATEC Co-Founder & CEO Ben Jeffreys, “with ATEC’s ultimate goal of being the technology that empowers 800 million women across the Global South to not only play an active role in reducing climate change but turn it into an income.”

Since 2019, ATEC has been leading the sector in technology for decarbonizing cooking and was recognised by UC Berkeley as 1 of 5 globally recommended cookstove carbon projects. As carbon markets move further towards compliance and accountability, technology that can provide 100% auditable data to verify their claims will be key to unlocking markets in Africa & Asia.

“Given greater rates of electrification and improving grid/mini-grid reliability in many African countries, electricity is a clean, modern cooking option for a growing number of consumers,” says Spark+ Investment Directors Peter George & Xavier Pierluca, “With the integration of IoT technology, the upfront and ongoing barriers to electric cooking will significantly decline and we are confident ATEC is well-positioned to be one of the leading companies in this emerging space.”

With this Series A, ATEC will also continue its core investment in R&D – in particular the latest developments in IoT & Web3.0 and bringing these benefits to households in the Global South.

Within the next decade, ATEC plans to generate 10 Gigawatt Hours of decarbonized cooking per day in households across the Global South. This will reduce carbon emissions of up to 10 million tons per year – the equivalent of driving 2.4million petrol cars for one year. In addition to the positive climate impact, the removal of smoke from cooking with wood will have significant health outcomes on women and children.

Related resources:

Impact InvestingSchneider Electric Energy Access Asia

About ATEC

ATEC is a global leader in IoT-enabled electric stoves which connects households to global carbon markets. Founded in Cambodia in 2016, ATEC developed the world’s first PAYG-enabled cookstove product in 2018, followed by the first IoT-enabled smart stove in 2020. ATEC currently distributes its products in 10 countries across Asia and Africa, with the goal of bringing the benefits of electric cooking and carbon markets to all women in the Global South. 
www.atecglobal.io

About Schneider Electric 

Schneider’s purpose is to create Impact by empowering all to make the most of our energy and resources, bridging progress and sustainability for all. At Schneider, we call this Life Is On.

Our mission is to be the trusted partner in Sustainability and Efficiency.

We are a global industrial technology leader bringing world-leading expertise in electrification, automation and digitization to smart industries, resilient infrastructure, future-proof data centers, intelligent buildings, and intuitive homes. Anchored by our deep domain expertise, we provide integrated end-to-end lifecycle AI enabled Industrial IoT solutions with connected products, automation, software and services, delivering digital twins to enable profitable growth for our customers.

We are a people company with an ecosystem of 150,000 colleagues and more than a million partners operating in over 100 countries to ensure proximity to our customers and stakeholders. We embrace diversity and inclusion in everything we do, guided by our meaningful purpose of a sustainable future for all.

www.se.com

With a longstanding commitment to customer affordability, sustainability and social responsibility, Entergy is leading the industry toward a more sustainable and inclusive future. We know the time to invest in our energy infrastructure is now, and we’re uniquely positioned to ensure equitable access to clean, reliable and affordable energy for everyone.

Not only do we serve communities with some of the highest poverty regions in the country – approximately 25% of Entergy’s 3 million residential customers live at or below the poverty line – but our service area includes assets critical to our national economy and energy independence on a global scale. That’s why we are leading the charge, calling on the entire industry to join us in seizing the generational federal funding opportunities created by legislation such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act to invest in not only more resilient energy infrastructure, but also more resilient communities.

Recently, Entergy joined other leaders at the 2024 American Association of Blacks in Energy National Conference to discuss how to move the energy sector forward to a clean and equitable future and share how we have successfully pursued – and are continuing to pursue – generational federal infrastructure funding opportunities to strengthen and modernize our electrical grid while providing vital investments in disadvantaged communities, improve the lives of our customers and power a brighter energy future for all.

Empowering more resilient communities

The clean energy transition presents a momentous opportunity for the energy industry to improve educational, economic and environmental outcomes in our service areas, and Entergy is setting the standard for how utilities can deliver these benefits equitably across our communities by addressing the roots of poverty through all facets of our business.

Our philanthropic and social responsibility efforts create millions of dollars of economic impact for our service areas each year, but our focus goes beyond just philanthropy, employee volunteerism, and helping our customers access financial assistance – we also provide resources and opportunities to make our communities more resilient by helping to lift families out of poverty through education and career opportunities while ensuring all members of our community have a voice in our energy future.

We are leveraging federal funding opportunities to further invest in a workforce that is prepared to support our region’s growth while also reflecting the rich diversity of the communities we serve. We’re committed to supporting educational outcomes in our communities through mutually beneficial partnerships with high schools, community colleges and universities, and industry trade associations on programs ranging from promoting interest in energy and STEM fields to technical training programs that produce graduates aligned with our future staffing needs.

We also partner with several organizations to provide scholarships for minority students pursuing higher education and vocational training, and we’ve revamped our entire approach to supporting historically Black colleges and universities, contributing more than $3.8 million since 2018 for facility and curriculum improvements, technology, scholarships, internship and mentoring programs and initiatives to support generational wealth building.

As we’re helping to build the energy workforce of the future, we’re also prioritizing the success and development of today’s workforce through a robust workforce development program that engages historically marginalized populations in the energy industry through skills-based training, inclusive recruiting efforts, and employee retention and development programs. And we are upskilling fossil fuel workers to help them move into new clean energy jobs and transition their communities to a new, sustainable economic base with dignity.

We manage a spend portfolio of $5-$7 billion, which we use as yet another tool to foster equitable economic development in our service areas. Our supply chain and procurement program includes an emphasis on working with safe, qualified and competitive diverse and local suppliers that goes beyond transactions to coaching and mentorship to help them build relationships and understand how to capitalize on business opportunities to achieve their goals.

Building more resilient, sustainable infrastructure

While working to strengthen the economic foundations of our service areas, we are also fiercely committed to safeguarding customer affordability without compromising reliability or service. We are making strategic investments to modernize the electrical grid and make it more efficient and better able to withstand severe storms. We are proposing a $15 billion long-term plan to help reduce restoration costs and disruption risks from major storms, which could lower Gulf Coast region risk by 55%. By investing in power grid resilience today, we’re strengthening our energy infrastructure to protect against tomorrow’s stronger storms, reducing the cost of power restoration and minimizing outages.

As we spearhead grid resilience efforts in the industry, we also recognize the importance of ensuring our communities have access to clean, sustainable energy. At Entergy, this includes setting ambitious decarbonization targets, including a pledge to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. We are continuing to transition our generation fleet to low- to zero-carbon power to minimize the impact of the high level of anticipated industrial growth in our region and to help our customers meet their own sustainability goals.

Across all efforts, we are fighting for every dollar of federal and state funding available to allow us to accelerate these projects while keeping the cost to customers as low as possible. At the same time, we’re working closely with local stakeholders as we develop projects and application to ensure our projects’ community benefits plans are truly responsive to their needs. For funding opportunities beyond what we’re eligible for as a utility, we’re also partnering on state and regional projects and providing community organizations like HBCUs with letters of support for their applications and helping them navigate the complicated federal funding process.

The entire energy industry has a role to play in modernizing our energy infrastructure, and we have an obligation to ensure we are driving positive change for not only our industry, but for our communities and the entire nation. Entergy remains committed to powering more than just life — we are powering a brighter future for everyone.

Learn more about Entergy’s progress in our latest performance report.

Originally published on GoDaddy LinkedIn

Welcome to the third quarterly issue of the GoDaddy Venture Forward newsletter! Here we share our latest exclusive data, insights and news about small and microbusinesses.

Venture Forward is a GoDaddy research initiative established in 2018 to quantify the growth and impact of online microbusinesses on their local economies, and to provide a unique view into the attitudes, demographics and needs of these entrepreneurs. GoDaddy defines microbusinesses as small businesses with a unique domain, an active website and most often fewer than 10 employees.

If you haven’t already, subscribe to this newsletter to get updates in your LinkedIn feed each quarter!

Alexandra Rosen 
Global Head, Venture Forward

Updated Microbusiness Data Hub

We refreshed the Venture Forward Microbusiness Data Hub through the first quarter of 2024 across Australia, Canada, U.K. and U.S., including updated microbusiness density data, U.S. Microbusiness Activity Index and global ecommerce trends.

Key U.S. insights include:

Beauty and Health/Medical verticals continue to rank in the top three microbusiness segments for ecommerce, a shift since 2022 in terms of both total dollars in online sales and in the number of merchants in those categories.

Many areas across the U.S. are continuing to witness major growth in new online small and microbusinesses.

For example, Palm Beach, Florida grew its active microbusiness count by 28% in the last year which is far above the 3% average for most urban counties nationwide.Similarly, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma grew at a higher percentage rate (52% in the last year) than Palm Beach, Florida but has lower total density.In Q1 2024, Oklahoma county was at the very top of fastest growing counties in the U.S.Southern and Southeastern states dominated the top five fastest-growing counties in the previous 12 months.

Rural areas in the last year (Q1 2023 through Q1 2024) grew almost 7% in the number of active microbusinesses, while suburban and urban areas grew 4% and 3% respectively.

Download the Data

Spring 2024 US National Survey Results: Microbusiness Owners are Using Generative AI (GenAI) to Level the Playing Field

Venture Forward recently completed its sixth consecutive year of surveying U.S. online microbusiness entrepreneurs and found some key insights:

Microbusiness owners who say GenAI will help their small business be more competitive are more likely to have previously outsourced or hired someone to help with similar tasks (visualized in more detail below).Microbusiness owners whose monthly revenue increased in the last six months are more likely to have used GenAI for their business.The more ambitious the microbusiness owner is, the more likely they are using GenAI. Solo entrepreneurs are the most likely.Microbusiness owners using GenAI are diverse, with nearly 1 in 3 Black and Hispanic business owners using GenAI more for their businesses compared to other demographics.Microbusiness entrepreneurs who tried GenAI are more likely to have used it for their business instead of for fun or personal use, and that holds even stronger with Black (33%) and Hispanic (30%) entrepreneurs.Almost 6 out of 10 Gen Z and millennials have used a GenAI tool for business, but less than half have tried it for personal use.

Read more

Recent Events

Exploring Alternative Funding Models for Small Businesses

Despite record new business formation, which is outpacing population growth by 10% according to GoDaddy Venture Forward, access to capital remains a top challenge for microbusinesses. Capital is key to the growth of ventures and consequentially, the greater economy.

At the 2024 Milken Institute Global Conference, Alexandra Rosen, global head of GoDaddy Venture Forward joined a panel tackling the crucial question: “How can we innovate to establish better funding models, given the essential role small businesses play in job creation and economic growth?”

Key takeaways included:

Flexible cash-flow measures are critical to enabling growth.Supporting small businesses is not just smart and kind, but economically essential.

The panel was moderated by Kristen Fanarakis, associate director of the Small Business Policy and Innovation Initiative at Milken Institute, and also included:

Eric Cromwell, founding member of Cromwell Schmisseur LLC.Lauren Grattan, chief community officer at Mission Driven Finance.Sekou Kaalund, executive vice president and head of Branch and Small Business Banking at U.S. Bank.Chris Pilkerton, chief legal and regulatory strategy officer at Accion Opportunity Fund.

Read more and replay the full panel discussion

Data Forward

Data Forward is a data-driven content series that explores microbusiness trends and insights informed by GoDaddy’s Venture Forward research initiative. Here’s a peek at the latest installment:

Life is Better as an Entrepreneur and Survey Respondents Agree, According to GoDaddy Research

Over half of microbusiness owners from the U.S. and U.K. agree that life is better as an entrepreneur, according to GoDaddy Venture Forward research.

Though both U.S. and U.K. respondents agree that life is better as an entrepreneur, that sentiment differs by location and by age, skewing older and more positive in the U.S., than in the U.K.

One thing U.S. and U.K. microbusiness owners agree on is what aspects of their businesses bring them joy, with the top three including:

Creating their own source of income/supporting family.Connecting to customers.Making an impact in their community

Read more

In the News

How Coastal Towns in Britain Have Become Microbusiness Hotspots

The fresh sea air and occasional sun might be the main attraction of Britain’s coastal towns, but they’ve also become a hotspot for entrepreneurship.

Felixstowe, Bournemouth and Sidmouth are among the fastest growing coastal areas for U.K. microbusinesses, which have fewer than 10 employees.

GoDaddy’s Venture Forward report mapped more than 600,000 businesses across Britain to find each area’s ‘microbusiness density’ against each 100 residents.

Read more in This is Money U.K.

BC is the Heart of Canada’s Thriving Online Business Scene, Report Concludes

British Columbia is home to Canada’s highest concentration of micro-businesses, a recent GoDaddy analysis found, surpassing densities found in Ontario, Quebec, and elsewhere.

Nearly 800,000 online-based microbusinesses were included in the analysis, which was conducted by Venture Forward, an international research initiative that studies the economic impacts of these extra-lean companies, as well as the attitudes of the entrepreneurs behind them.

…B.C. boasts 2.8 online micro-businesses per 100 residents, ahead of Ontario with 2.5 and Alberta with 2.1, according to Venture Forward’s data. Yukon and P.E.I. [Prince Edward Island] round out the top five with roughly 1.6 micro-businesses per 100 residents each.

Read more in techcouver Canada

Canberra Trumps Other Cities to Become Australia’s Online Microbusiness Capital

Canberra is Australia’s online microbusiness capital according to recent data by Venture Forward, with the city beating out some of Australia’s largest cities, including Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide, to nab the top spot.

Australia’s capital city even towered over the figures coming in from the cities of London and Westminster in the U.K.

According to the data, Canberra leads the way when it comes to microbusiness density, with approximately 32 online microbusinesses per 100 residents as of December 2023, rounding up from the 31.9 figure in the report.

Read more in SmartCompany Australia

To learn more about GoDaddy’s Venture Forward research initiative, click here.

CHICAGO, July 1, 2024 /3BL/ – Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) today released its annual Corporate Responsibility Report, highlighting the company’s environmental, social and governance programs and performance in 2023. The report underscores the company’s continued commitment to solving for safer communities, safer schools, safer hospitals, safer businesses – safer everywhere.

“As a company, Motorola Solutions has long been committed to operating responsibly, ” said Greg Brown, chairman and CEO of Motorola Solutions. “From building and connecting leading-edge technologies that help advance safety and security, to eclipsing company volunteerism records, we’re united in our pursuit of making a meaningful difference in the communities where we live and work.”

The 2023 Corporate Responsibility Report can be found here and includes the following highlights:

Investing $858 million in research and development, delivering next-generation technologies and expanding our offerings in high-value areas with our portfolio of intellectual property, which stands at approximately 6,560 granted patents with approximately 775 patents pending.
 Advancing specialized artificial intelligence capabilities that heighten decision-making and help increase the focus, accuracy and speed of emergency response, while working alongside communities, policymakers and public safety organizations to help ensure the responsible use of these technologies.
 Receiving recognition as a top workplace, including being named to Disability Equality Index® Best Places to Work; Fast Company Best Workplaces for Innovators; Forbes World’s Best Employers; Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies; and TIME World’s Best Companies.
 Giving back to communities with employees volunteering nearly 100,000 hours, an increase of 30% from 2022 and a company record, in addition to the majority of the Motorola Solutions Foundation’s $10.3 million in strategic grants directly benefiting underserved and underrepresented communities, as well as first responders, students and teachers.
 Growing a more diverse organization, underscored by our newly launched initiative, GO ALL Inclusive, aimed at celebrating and promoting our inclusive core value.
 Providing economic opportunities to small and minority-owned business suppliers and further expanding our inclusive supply chain by adding more than 700 diverse suppliers and helping to create or maintain 3,500 supplier jobs.
 Implementing enhanced data collection and reporting tools to continuously seek out opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and establishing a “Green Team” to promote volunteerism and education to foster a more sustainable organization.

For more information on corporate responsibility at Motorola Solutions, please visit our website.

About Motorola Solutions

Motorola Solutions is solving for safer. We build and connect technologies to help protect people, property and places. Our solutions enable the collaboration between public safety agencies and enterprises that’s critical for a proactive approach to safety and security. Learn more about how we’re solving for safer communities, safer schools, safer hospitals, safer businesses – safer everywhere – at www.motorolasolutions.com.

Media Contact

Matt Schuler
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