By Amanda Ponzar My boss says she can visualize me as that kid that tumbles into the chocolate river in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Yes, I have two chocolate drawers (public and private). I’ve been known to attend meetings with chocolate smears on my clothing. I’ve found chocolate... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar The terms “corporate social responsibility” and “CSR” (or CSER to include environment) are constant buzzwords in the nonprofit and corporate worlds. To me, it’s not just “corporate”, it’s everyone. People get so riled up about what corporations should or should not be doing –- when’s the last... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar We live in a virtual world. I read in Bloomberg Businessweek about the U.S. Postal Service's pending demise, that virtual mail boxes that would take the place of real mail boxes -- get all your bills delivered virtually (but what about the 4-foot stuffed giraffe I just... Read more →

By Amanda J. Ponzar What’s been on my mind this week: rewards programs. Let’s see what rewards/membership/loyalty cards are in my purse: Starbucks gold card. Cosi. Hallmark. Panera Bread. Babies R Us/Toys R Us. Family Christian Stores. Regal Cinemas Crown Club. Waterfront café. Giant, Safeway, Harris Teeter, Balducci’s, CVS, Petco,... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar This week’s post is written by my friend Ed Martin as well as Sarah Adolphson on creating innovative business partnerships (especially around global marketing and research) that drive profits for companies and funding for important cause-based initiatives –- yet another example of the hot “Creating Shared Value”... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar I learned this week that mean, attractive people are more successful, or at least, make more money -- according to TIME and the Wall Street Journal. First, I read “Here’s Looking at You. What you see in the mirror may be deciding your paycheck” in the August... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar I recently read this Harvard Business Review blog post “Nine Things Successful People Do Differently.” (It reminds me of Stephen Covey’s book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.) The “9 thing” author suggests: get specific about goals, seize opportunities, monitor progress, be realistic but optimistic, focus... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar 1.) Did you know investing in employees pays off? It can actually quintuple a company’s odds of success. Check out “The Perk Imperative: Rewarding Employees is More than Just Nice…It’s Profitable" to see how Google and others are reaping the rewards. 2.) And when it comes to... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar “Motivation is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals” says Wikipedia. Some people are highly internally motivated –- almost unstoppable. Some not so much. But everyone can take steps to increase motivation and improve performance. A few thoughts: Make a list of everything you want... Read more →

By Amanda Ponzar Picking just one topic today was tough as there’s so much going on in the world (like always). Here are a few recent reads that really got me jazzed: Interesting Health & Science article “Women’s Work. How biological factors impact job performance” (Time magazine, July 25 issue)... Read more →