The Insider Notebook

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: What remote work debate? They’ve been back at the office for a while.

Many business leaders in small and midsized cities around the U.S. are perplexed that a debate over remote working continues in larger cities, Emma Goldberg writes in the New York Times. “Almost everybody I know is …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: What’s next: 3D printed walls that grow when you water them

A team of designers in Israel has developed a way to use soil in 3D printing to build structures with outer walls that can double as lush vegetation, as this Fast Company article details. “It may sound …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK: Presenting in Spanish

I recently had a coffee meeting with Jorge “Junior” Ibarra, CEO and team leader of Ibarra Realty Group, and Manny Toribio, a commercial specialist with the team. They told me that at the recent Keller …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: How will legislation known as the CHIPS bill help the economy?

About 30% of the world’s semiconductors, or microchips, used to be manufactured in the U.S. Now that figure has fallen to around 12%, as Sen. Maria Cantwell said on NPR’s “Morning Edition” Monday. She was one of …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: Study: Corporate DEI efforts fail to address opportunity gaps among low-wage workers

We’ve all heard about efforts by companies to hire and advance people of color, but this story from the Wall Street Journal suggests those efforts are missing the mark and rarely benefit those who need it most: …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: Fact sheet updates data-gathering progress on climate change risks

Today the Treasury Department’s Financial Stability Oversight Council issued a new fact sheet highlighting some of the regulatory changes that could be ahead for insurance and financial services firms related to identifying and addressing climate-related risks to …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK: Don’t just see Des Moines. Catch Des Moines.

How did Catch Des Moines become Catch Des Moines?


I sat down recently with Greg Edwards, the president and CEO of Catch Des Moines, for a behind-the-scenes look at the work the organization does to …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: High house prices don’t necessarily mean big paychecks for agents

The skyrocketing sale prices of houses has attracted thousands to the real estate selling profession. From January 2020 to January 2022, the number of real estate agents in the U.S. jumped from 1.38 million to …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: Amazon buying One Medical is only its most recent dive into the health care industry

It has become the norm for large tech companies to expand their reach beyond computers and cell phones into new industries, and Amazon’s acquisition of One Medical, a membership-based primary care practice, is its biggest …

DSC 6869

NOTEBOOK – ONE GOOD READ: Iowa’s first dual language road signs unveiled at Meskwaki

On July 13, the Iowa Department of Transportation and the Meskwaki Nation made history after unveiling the state’s first dual language road sign, the Marshalltown Times-Republican reports. Iowa will now join the seven other states that …