Tag: 3BL

Originally published on DICK’S Sporting Goods Sideline Report

From working as a part-time teammate to being the community and experience director at DICK’S House of Sport in Katy, Texas. Former Minor League Baseball player Ruperto Rojas called his journey with DICK’S Sporting Goods an incredible ride.

Rojas was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2017 MLB June Amateur Draft. That same year, he started working as a part-time operations associate at DICK’S Sporting Goods near his home in Lakewood, Colorado.

“My wife told me I had to go out and make a little extra money during the offseason,” Rojas said. “There was a DICK’S right across the street, so I went over and applied.”

He immediately hit it off with Store Manager John Varner. “He became my mentor, and he continues to impact me to this day,” said Rojas.

Rojas worked at DICK’S every offseason. When his playing days ended in 2021, Rojas said Varner encouraged him to stick with it.

“Working with him, you could just see his passion for both his teammates and the athletes,” said Varner.

Rojas discovered he had a real passion for helping athletes chase their dreams, and likened working for DICK’S to playing baseball. “It’s all about the team,” Rojas said.

Within a year and a half, Rojas worked his way up from part-time operations associate to store manager. Then in April 2023, Rojas got the chance to move back to his hometown of Houston. He was offered the role of community and experience director at the DICK’S House of Sport in nearby Katy.

“He leads people the way he would like to be led,” Varner said of Rojas. “He is a true people first leader who has the common purpose at the center of what he does every day.”

As community and experience director, Rojas is responsible for integrating DICK’S House of Sport into the community and overseeing internal and external events. He also works to develop and maintain partnerships in the community.

“This role allowed me to combine my two passions: giving back to the community and sports,” Rojas said.

A few years ago, Rojas said when he thought about what he’d do with his life, retail was never in the picture. “Now?” Rojas said, “I can’t see a future without DICK’S Sporting Goods.”

Do you think you would be a good fit at DSG? Apply here!

Installation further advances company’s multi-provider strategy that collectively 
quadruples its fleetwide bandwidth overall

MIAMI, May 14, 2024 /3BL/ – Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world’s largest cruise company, today announced that 100% of its ships across the global fleet are equipped with Starlink’s high-speed, low-latency global internet connectivity.

The completed installation further enhances Carnival Corporation’s onboard experience for its guests and crew to provide even faster service, greater capacity, and more reliable Wi-Fi on its fleet of 90-plus ships across its portfolio of world-class cruise brands. The roll-out of Starlink is the latest in a series of innovations and investments from Carnival Corporation that have collectively quadrupled its fleetwide bandwidth since 2019 through its industry-leading connectivity strategy.

The upgrade rivals on-land connectivity experiences, enabling guests and crew to stay connected anywhere in the world, including sharing pictures and videos, scrolling on social media, streaming live content, and working remotely. The added bandwidth also boosts each ship’s operational and communications capabilities with more continuous onboard equipment monitoring and real-time connectivity and data sharing between ship and shore teams, along with the enhanced versatility to more quickly roll out new guest services and features, even while at sea.

“Starlink has been a game-changer for the onboard connectivity experience our cruise lines deliver to their guests, and we’ve already seen a surge in guest satisfaction and positive feedback from the super-fast and reliable Wi-Fi service we provide onboard,” said Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corporation. “We see this technology as a win-win-win – it provides our guests with more flexibility to stay as connected as they’d like on vacation, it allows our crew to stay in touch with friends and loved ones, and it enhances our onboard operational systems.”

Carnival Corporation began its fleetwide roll-out of Starlink in December 2022 with Carnival Cruise Line and AIDA Cruises ships, before expanding to the company’s other world-class cruise brands, which include Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises (Australia), Costa Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.

The Starlink expansion further advances the company’s multi-provider strategy to deliver the same reliable, high-speed Wi-Fi service available on land while on board its global fleet of 90+ ships visiting more than 800 ports worldwide. Designed to support a variety of constantly moving vessels that sail all over the world, the company’s system leverages technologies from a diverse range of suppliers and is capable of dynamically routing internet traffic and optimizing network speeds to provide a consistent experience to guests across every brand and itinerary.

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About Carnival Corporation & plc 
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest global cruise company, and among the largest leisure travel companies, with a portfolio of world-class cruise lines – AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises (Australia), P&O Cruises (UK), Princess Cruises, and Seabourn.

Additional information can be found on www.carnivalcorp.com, www.aida.de, www.carnival.com, www.costacruise.com, www.cunard.com, www.hollandamerica.com, www.pocruises.com.au, www.pocruises.com, www.princess.com, and www.seabourn.com.

For information on Carnival Corporation’s industry-leading sustainability initiatives, visit www.carnivalsustainability.com.

Carnival Corporation Media Contacts:

Amber Hastings, Carnival Corporation, amhastings@carnival.com

Lucy Colonnetta Clifton, LDWW, lucy@ldww.co

Ying Ying Yang migrated to Australia from China with qualifications as an electrical engineer, and confronted a challenge that many new migrants do: a language barrier.

“I studied Russian because my hometown was next to Russia,” she says. “I studied Russian until I finished university!”

She decided studying a course in English would help and enrolled in an IT Certificate course at TAFE New South Wales.

“I remember when I started in the Certificate III class, and I had a teacher who looked at me as though she was thinking ‘you even can’t speak English, how are you going to pass the subject?’ But I think I’m thinking, you know, you don’t know whether I can pass it or not, but I know I can pass it, so that’s how I got through, initially,” she says.

Falling into IT

“I had no intention to do IT, it was just by opportunity,” says Ying Ying. “Possibly you don’t have confidence to do things, but as long as you stick to it, you work hard towards it, eventually you can get some good results.”

Ying Ying did get those results. After passing her Certificate III, she started a Certificate IV course that included Cisco Networking Academy curriculum, and she was hooked, going on to get CCNA and CCNP certifications.

“I think the Cisco Networking Academy has got the best courses, especially when you’re just starting in IT, because they don’t just teach for their product,” she says.

“A lot of other vendors have an academy, but they focus on their product, but Cisco Networking Academy is really good for someone who has no IT background because it provides courses at different levels, and they actually give you knowledge which you need to know.”

“All the modules are well-organized, so easy to follow,” she adds, “and also the labs are really good.”

Change of direction

“I always encourage the students to do the fundamental courses, because IT is so big,” she says, suggesting that students can then decide what area of IT work they would like to get involved in.

For Ying Ying, that was teaching.

“My teacher really helped me a lot, and because she thought I was a good student she recommended me to my boss. They said, ‘we want you to join the instructor training.’ I didn’t think I could become a teacher!”

“My teacher changed my life, and I want to do the same for others,” she says.

“Some students really like to talk to me about their worries, and things that have happened in their lives and get advice. I feel that is something meaningful. Sometimes I’m really tired but I walk into the classroom, and I feel just like I had two coffees, and immediately I’m back to the work mode,” she says. “I just feel, just by chance, I found what I’m right at.”

Volunteering with refugees

Ying Ying’s determination to help others has extended to volunteering her time to help with a project with Community Corporate to train refugees with Cisco Networking Academy.

“The learners may have some background knowledge but because of the new environment, they are a bit shy to ask the questions to know where to start,” she says. “When it comes to the new environment, I just use my own experience and to encourage them, to give them some idea, because I’m an immigrant to Australia too.”

“Cisco provides a fabulous English course, English for IT,” adds Ying Ying. “We decided to give the students access to the course. It has a focus on IT terminology. I think that course is really good, and I review it to learn the words in the IT work environment to communicate with others. It is a good course!”

At home in Australia

Thanks to enrolling in that initial IT Certificate course, Ying Ying has found a new career, and is grateful to call Australia home. “I always tell students—especially when we have international students—the thing I really love in Australia is that we have opportunity,” she says.

“You can change your career at any point as long as you want it. My students include taxi drivers, accountants, and dentists. At some stage of their lives they decided to change to IT. I use them as role models to encourage other students. That’s how I started!”

Explore more inspiring Networking Academy Success Stories

Ready to begin your learning or teaching journey? Explore all Networking Academy courses to get started.

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Inflation continues to be a pain point for business owners, and with the likelihood of interest rate cuts still held in the balance, this has only made the economic environment more uncertain for small business owners. In fact, KeyBank’s 2024 Small Business Survey found 37% of small business owners anticipate that inflation will slightly increase their operating costs, and 27% expect a significant increase in operating costs in the next 12 months.

Often the first to feel the effects of inflation and economic volatility, small businesses are grappling with stability and anticipate fluctuating sales/revenue (35%), delayed payments from clients/customers (29%), and high overhead costs (28%) as the top challenges they will face this year. Yet despite concerns, 65% of small business owners feel confident they could fund their operating expenses for one month with their cash reserves, if an unexpected need arose – pointing to the notion that more small businesses have built up emergency funds.

To help navigate today’s economic landscape, banks have become lifelines for business owners who have turned to their financial partners for advice on cash flow and business operations. The top three pieces of advice business owns have received include: Cut costs by reducing discretionary spending (34%); Establish an emergency fund (22%); and Diversify revenue streams by introducing new products or services (20%).

“Banks are at a pivotal moment to provide small business owners with the tools and resources they need to navigate economic volatility and help their business run better,” said Mike Walters, Head of Business Banking at KeyBank. “KeyBank is dedicated to providing small businesses and local communities with resources to help them remain financial resilient for long-term success.”

KeyBank, a top SBA lender1, has provided more than $4.5 billion in small business loans and lines of credit. Most recently, KeyBank received their 11th consecutive “Outstanding” rating from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) on its most recent Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) exam.

Moreover, KeyBank is dedicated to supporting low-to-moderate income (LMI) communities as well as providing community investments to bring access to capital to local businesses. In 2023, KeyBank provided $267.7 million in small business lending to LMI communities and, in 2020 and 2021, processed 69,000 loans through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), providing more than $11.2 billion in critical funding to small and mid-size businesses.

Learn more about KeyBank’s opportunities and programs for your small business by visiting key.com/small-business. KeyBank offers a range of tools, including the KeyBank Small Business Check-In, KeyBank Small Business Financial Review and the Business Cash Flow Calculator.

Methodology

This survey was conducted online by Survey Monkey. 1,983 respondents, ages 18-99, located in the United States, who own or operate a small-to-medium size business with an annual gross revenue of less than $10 million, completed the survey in March 2024. Learn more about KeyBank’s opportunities and programs for your small business by visiting key.com/small-business. KeyBank offers a range of tools, including the KeyBank Small Business Check-In, KeyBank Small Business Financial Review and the Business Cash Flow Calculator.

CFMA #240508-2592778

This material is presented for informational purposes only and should not be construed as individual tax or financial advice. KeyBank does not provide legal advice. All credit products and SBA Loans are subject to approval, terms, conditions, and availability and subject to change. Key.com is a federally registered service mark of KeyCorp. ©2024 KeyCorp

1Source: Statistics released by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) October 2023 for total approved loans through the SBA’s 7(a) lending program during the federal fiscal year ending 10/2023.

We’d like to extend our sincere gratitude to the courageous men and women who have served and continue to serve our country. As a proud Veteran employer, it’s an honor to work alongside our employees who have served, some of whom are recognized in this post representing colleagues throughout GP. Thank you.

Based in Atlanta, Georgia-Pacific and its subsidiaries are among the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of bath tissue, paper towels and napkins, tableware, paper-based packaging, cellulose, specialty fibers, nonwoven fabrics, building products and related chemicals. Our familiar consumer brands include Quilted Northern®, Angel Soft®, Brawny®, Dixie®, enMotion®, Sparkle® and Vanity Fair®. Georgia-Pacific has long been a leading supplier of building products to lumber and building materials dealers and large do-it-yourself warehouse retailers. Its Georgia-Pacific Recycling subsidiary is among the world’s largest traders of paper, metal and plastics. The company operates more than 150 facilities and employs more than 30,000 people directly and creates approximately 89,000 jobs indirectly. For more information, visit: gp.com/about-us . For news, visit: gp.com/news

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Olivia Sloan was pursuing a career in health policy and research when her father was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The devastating news put her work on hold as she returned home to Santa Fe, New Mexico to help care for her dad.

Four years later her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Olivia, whose mother is Navajo and Tohono O’odham, spent most of this time helping her parents navigate their treatment at the CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Cancer Center. She’s grateful that her educational and career background helped her advocate on behalf of her family, but she knows not everyone is able to do this.

It’s fitting that today Olivia is a registered nurse at the cancer center and leads the Native Health Navigator (NHN) program that launched last July with the help of Gilead’s Toward Health Equity Oncology Grant. Through the grant, Gilead partners with organizations that share in its goal of transforming cancer treatment by expanding access and addressing barriers to care.

Depending on a patient’s tribal affiliation and residence, diagnostic work and treatment often requires a referral to an unfamiliar system – something that can be both confusing and intimidating for patients. That’s where the NHN program is helping by connecting breast cancer patients referred from Indian Health Services (IHS) and tribal or urban clinics to care at CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Cancer Center.

“Traversing outside the Native American healthcare system can be daunting,” says Olivia. “The cultural needs that our patients face really stand out, therefore we knew we had to do more to serve Native American patients in a genuine, authentic and culturally sensitive way.”

Shayna Grandbois-Herrera of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa tribe was hired as the program’s first navigator. She provides support every step of the way, from addressing appointment transportation needs and childcare to untangling complicated insurance payment processes. She even connects patients to groceries and nutritious meals.

The emotional and physical stress of those facing breast cancer adds to the care challenges. Having to see new doctors can compound the fear that comes from a cancer diagnosis, but the NHN program provides patients a human bridge to help navigate screenings, diagnostics and treatment.

For Amy, a Native American mother of two, having a navigator has made all the difference. She was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer in January but was juggling so much in her life that she didn’t plan to start treatment. However, being introduced to Shayna through the NHN program changed that. Today Amy attends her multiple medical appointments each week with Shayna there to communicate with providers as needed.

“No one should feel alone when they have a diagnosis,” says Shayna. “Every patient deserves a warm embrace.”

Olivia and Shayna both hope the program will ultimately help reduce these late-stage breast cancer diagnoses in their community. “We know mortality rates are much higher for Native American patients with cancer,” Olivia says. “The program is helping to remove the fear and other barriers so we can bring patients into care earlier.”

Just a few months into this program, the organization is already seeing a difference in patients’ willingness and ability to receive breast cancer care. They often start out wary of the unfamiliar health care system, but through the NHN program they gain a guide from their cultural background who understands their experience and can help change their health outcomes.

“To care for and work with Native American patients, honor individual tribes and their sovereignty, and work with them as true partners in advancing healthcare is a really beautiful vision and goal for our state and our communities,” concludes Olivia.

Originally published by Gilead Sciences

AllianceBernstein is honored to have received the designation of Third Best Company Headquartered in the US by the Hirschel and Kramer Responsible Investment Brand Index 2024. The RIBI 2024 evaluates over 600 asset managers globally on their commitment to sustainable development into their brands. To read more about the RIBI 2024, visit: https://www.ri-brandindex.org/

AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein (AB) is a leading global investment management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional investors, individuals, and private wealth clients in major world markets. We believe corporate responsibility, responsible investing and stewardship are intertwined. To be effective stewards of our clients’ assets, we strive to invest responsibly—assessing, engaging on and integrating material issues, including environmental, social and governance (ESG), and climate change considerations in most of our actively managed strategies. We also believe that strive to hold ourselves as a firm to similar practices that we ask of issues. Our stewardship practices, investment strategy and decision-making are guided by our purpose, mission and values.

Our purpose—pursue insight that unlocks opportunity—inspires our firm to act responsibly. While opportunity means something different to each of our stakeholders; it always means considering the unique goals of each stakeholder. AB’s mission is to help our clients define and achieve their investment goals, explicitly stating what we do to unlock opportunity for our clients. We became a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2011. This began our journey to formalize our commitment to identify responsible ways to unlock opportunities for our clients through integrating material ESG factors throughout most of our actively managed equity and fixed-income client accounts, funds and strategies. AB also engages issuers where it believes the engagement is in the best financial interest of its clients.

Because we are an active manager, our differentiated insights drive our ability to deliver alpha and design innovative investment solutions. ESG and climate issues are important elements in forming insights and in presenting potential risks and opportunities that can have an effect on the performance of the companies and issuers that we invest in and the portfolios that we build.

Our values provide a framework for the behaviors and actions that deliver on our purpose and mission. Values align our actions. Each value emerges from the firm’s collective character—yet is also aspirational.

Invest in One Another means that we have a strong organizational culture where diversity is celebrated and mentorship is critical to our success. When we invest in one another, we empower our employees to reach their potential, so that they can help our clients realize theirs. This enables us to partner with clients to design and deliver improved investment outcomes.Strive for Distinctive Knowledge means that we collaboratively identify creative solutions to clients’ economic, ESG and climate- related investment challenges through our expertise in a wide range of investment disciplines, close collaboration among our investment experts and creative solutions.Speak with Courage and Conviction informs how we engage our AB colleagues and issuers. We seek to learn from other parts of our business to strengthen our own views. And we engage issuers for insight and action by sharing ideas and best practices.Act with Integrity—Always is the bedrock of our relationships and has specific meaning for our business. Unlike many other asset managers, we’re singularly focused on providing asset management and research to our clients. We don’t engage in activities that could be distracting, or create conflicts—such as investment banking, insurance writing, commercial banking or proprietary trading for our own account. We are unconflicted and fully accountable.

As of September 30, 2023, AB had $669B in assets under management, $458B of which were ESG-integrated. Additional information about AB may be found on our website, www.alliancebernstein.com.

Learn more about AB’s approach to responsibility here.

$10M project in the Dominican Republic is part of the company’s nearly $750M investments in North American manufacturingEaton creating 300 skilled manufacturing jobs in Santiago

SANTIAGO, Chile, May 14, 2024 /3BL/ – Intelligent power management company Eaton is opening its new 65,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art assembly plant in Santiago de los Caballeros to meet growing demand for its fuses. Announced in February 2024, the project will increase supplies of Eaton’s Bussmann series fuses, which provide critical safety functionality in electric vehicles (EVs), renewable and energy storage projects, data center as well as other industrial applications.

“The latest expansion of Eaton’s manufacturing capacity in Santiago was completed in record time to meet unprecedented demand for our solutions that are at the center of the world’s energy transformation,” said Rob Griffin, vice president and general manager, Eaton’s Bussmann Division. “Across the globe, we’re helping customers simplify intelligent power management to electrify their operations safely, resiliently and sustainably. The Eaton Santiago facility will assemble and package fuses and fuse accessories that provide vital functionality in these applications.”

Eaton has operated in the Dominican Republic for more than 35 years and is one of the country’s largest manufacturers. The Eaton Santiago facility is the company’s fifth manufacturing site in the Dominican Republic.

The new Eaton facility in Santiago is part of the company’s investment in North American manufacturing. In 2023, Eaton announced nearly $750M in investments to increase manufacturing capacity for electrical assemblies including switchgear, switchboards and circuit breakers; EV charging technology, transformers, voltage regulators and more; as well as underground protective connectors for the electric grid.

Eaton is an intelligent power management company dedicated to protecting the environment and improving the quality of life for people everywhere. We make products for the data center, utility, industrial, commercial, machine building, residential, aerospace and mobility markets. We are guided by our commitment to do business right, to operate sustainably and to help our customers manage power ─ today and well into the future. By capitalizing on the global growth trends of electrification and digitalization, we’re accelerating the planet’s transition to renewable energy sources, helping to solve the world’s most urgent power management challenges, and building a more sustainable society for people today and generations to come.

Eaton was founded in 1911 and has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange for more than a century. We reported revenues of $23.2 billion in 2023 and serve customers in more than 160 countries. For more information, visit Eaton.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

Contact:

Kristin Somers

+1.919.345.3714

Kristincsomers@eaton.com

Regina Parundik

Cobblestone Communications

+1.412.559.1614

Regina@cobblecreative.com

During Women’s History Month in March, employees from around the world along with members of Griffith Foods’ Women Innovating, Solving & Excelling (WISE) belonging community, came together to honor and celebrate the contributions of women. WISE members foster a workplace culture of inclusion and hashtag. Together we will create and sustain a culture that prioritizes inclusivity and focuses our efforts on achieving gender parity at the management level globally.

WISE members and our employees engaged in a wide variety of culture, diversity, and leadership development activities. This included artistic activities designed to inspire inclusion and recognize women who inspire. Professional networking activities included a panel of female food science experts. Team members also hosted an interactive session featuring a guest speaker covering topics including gender sensitivity, equality and building allyship in the workplace.

Thank you for your contributions that enable Griffith Foods to create better together!

At Griffith Foods, our purpose defines who we are, what we do, and why we exist, highlighting what makes us distinct and authentic in the marketplace. We help our partners meet the evolving needs and desires of consumers in ways that respect and sustain the planet. Our care and creativity mean we’ll find the right mix of global reach and local impact to serve the earth and nourish all of us who call it home.

Our Sustainability Platform of People, Planet, and Performance guides how we behave, conduct business, and treat people, ensuring that everything we do leads to responsible growth for our entire ecosystem.

People 
We take care of our employees and the communities in which we do business.

Planet 
We all share one Earth, and we take environmental action to responsibly care for it.

Performance 
We operate ethically and strategically to create a positive impact for our business and for all of those with whom we interact.

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“I think it’s important as an electric company and as partners of the community we’re finding ways to make sure that we’re taking care of our environment,” shared Christine S., senior environmental program manager. We were proud sponsors and participants of the 32nd Annual ACUA Earth Day Festival, where nine of our departments engaged with our community about the importance of environmental conservation and sustainability.

Atlantic City Electric

Atlantic City Electric is a unit of Exelon (Nasdaq: EXC), a Fortune 250 company and the nation’s largest utility company, serving more than 10 million customers. Atlantic City Electric provides safe and reliable energy service to approximately 572,000 customers in southern New Jersey.

 To learn more about Atlantic City Electric, visit The Source, Atlantic City Electric’s online newsroom. Find additional information by visiting atlanticcityelectric.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/AtlanticCityElectric, and on X, formerly known as Twitter, at twitter.com/AcEleCconnect. Atlantic City Electric’s mobile app is available at atlanticcityelectric.com/MobileApp.

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