Business

I love working at 5Star Awards for many reasons, but most of all because we have all in-house capabilities and awesome “toys” to play with. Here are our favorites:

We are likely to see some big changes next year. Our three predictions for vehicles include:

Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel earned the number one spot (for the eighth year) on Forbes’ 15th annual World’s 100 Most Powerful Women list for 2018, followed by the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Theresa May. Christine Lagarde, the International Monetary Fund’s managing director, is third. The highest-ranked American is General Motors Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra (fourth).

With over 235,000 apps available in the App Store and more being developed daily, decisions about what to download can be overwhelming. Here are a few of the experts’ favorites for business:

An NC State alum is turning her passion for sustainability into a viable business. While a student, Emily Neville, had the idea to transform unused clothing into something useful.

Which search topics saw the biggest spike in NC in 2018? According to Google’s “Year In Search” report, it’s a diverse set of topics including some obvious results … and some that may surprise you:

According to a Durham Technical Community College press release, “Durham Public Schools and Durham Technical Community College are collaborating with local businesses to fulfill the need for skilled trade workers in the area. The WayMakers: Durham’s Skilled Trades Pathway is funded through $450,000 in grants from the A.J. Fletcher Foundation. Durham Public Schools will receive $300,000 and Durham Tech will receive $150,000.”

Publix, the largest employee-owned grocery chain in the United States, made its Raleigh debut in Leesville Market Place, a new 62,880-square-foot shopping center.

The Internet Summit is a digital marketing gathering with speakers from Facebook, Twitter, ESPN, etc.

North Carolina is expected to add nearly two million people over the next 11 years. With that population increase comes rapid demography shifts and impacts on infrastructure, business, talent and more.

Like many rapidly growing industries, fintech experienced its initial momentum in the cities most commonly associated with venture capital support, such as San Francisco or New York.

Software firm ImageQuix is being acquired by Alpine SG and moving into a new, centralized headquarters in Raleigh, NC.

Are you a native North Carolinian?

Show extra holiday spirit and give back while you’re giving this season:

To get noticed in today’s world, there must be something special about your brand – whether it is personal or a corporate brand. 

The debate on when to decorate for Christmas continues in 2018. As an avid Christmas holiday decorator, I start planning for the next Christmas decorating project as soon as the last bulb is placed in a container from the current year.

Running a small business is challenging, but following best practices can help you operate successfully. Go the extra mile with these guidelines:

Sometimes we set goals for the future to make an excuse not to act right now. In my vocabulary, someday has become a word I use when I can’t think of a good reason why I can’t do something immediately.

If there still remains a question about whether the fintech industry has made its way to the mainstream, look no further than the recent Money 20/20 conference held in Las Vegas.

The 2019 university and college ranking report by WalletHub placed Duke University as the top university in North Carolina and sixth overall in the nation.

Look around any mid-sized or larger city, and you’ll notice changes in how people get themselves from point A to point B. Ride-hailing, car rental subscriptions, bike shares and motorized scooter shares are prime examples of changes in mobility.

It’s the perfect time of year to evaluate your finances to see how you can improve in 2019. Tips we share with our customers include:

The banking landscape continues to evolve nationally and here in NC. Consolidation has led to the disappearance of many community banks. While national banks have their place, they don’t always meet the needs of small to mid-sized companies.

In a blockbuster $34 billion deal, IBM will acquire Red Hat, a Raleigh-based provider of open-source and enterprise IT solutions. Red Hat employs 12,600 people, with 2,000 being housed at its Raleigh headquarters.

Last month WGU North Carolina celebrated its first anniversary as an affiliate of Western Governors University, a nonprofit online university established in 1997 by 19 governors who wanted to expand access to higher education.

In the past, companies focused on hiring leaders based on charisma, drive and dependability. Now, many organizations are realizing the most important trait for a leader to possess is humility.

E-learning is a top choice for companies training employees. In fact, 50 to 70 percent of costs can be saved by switching from instructor-based learning to e-learning. It has also proven to be more effective for knowledge retention, showing an increase of 25 to 60 percent.

A midday gym session can be the best way to boost your energy levels during the workday. But the thought of redoing your hair or taking that second shower can be daunting.

Why do startups fail? We often get answers like “poor management” or “money ran out.” The real reason startups fail is founders build a product no one wants. Moreover, they find a solution to a problem no one has.

Emotional support animals can bring calm to people who need them – and legal confusion to employers.