A recent study by Nielsen shows that advertisers, big and small, are turning to the Internet to push their brands. Though many respondents said they still plan to use online advertising for direct response, more and more are spending money on digital brand advertising to promote their company, product or service.

I've seen business owners and personal contacts tarnish their reputations with a few words or a few clicks, not fully realizing the power of the digital world we now live in. Every picture you post, every status or page you like, and every update you share is essentially announcing to the world who you are, permanently.

Last Tuesday, I was introduced to a young man who will be working for me this summer as our advertising and promotional coordinator at Just For Laughs. He was introduced as "The New Theo." When your job becomes your name, you've done something right.

Just about everyone I know has designs on or at least daydreams of starting a business, which I think is normal. And yet, while no one ever says, "I want to be a cog in a giant, multinational machine when I grow up," that's usually what happens. I can't give you advice on how to create a successful business, but I can hopefully give you the nudge you need to at least try.

The euphoria of continually going back to the well and finding it full is, in my mind, short-lived and dangerous. No matter what your business, if your dreamy current sales projections are based predominantly -- or entirely -- on what you've produced before, you are in for a rude awakening.

Many businesses face transitions, and sometimes it is hard to embody change. But as with everything else in life, change happens constantly, and when we embrace it we end up realizing that it is likely for the better. Sometimes a good spring cleaning to get rid of the old and make space for the new is just what a company needs.

Data points plotted on a graph and connected in a line tell a great story of how you got to where you are. But in no way can they tell you where you are going. Consumers don't listen to your trend line.

In this day and age of free market orthodoxy, the banks don't like to think of themselves as having any sort of "moral obligations," only obligations to shareholders. But the protection Canadian banks enjoy -- the same protection that has allowed them to prosper internationally -- means that the banks do not operate in a free market environment, and if they want to continue having their cake and eating it too they should accept they have responsibilities towards the Canadians who have little choice but to bank with them.

When Scotch Tape is used as a repair tool (or as a means of presentation or communication), what's really being said is that at best, "Things are beyond the state of repair," or at worst, "Hey, we just don't give a rat's ass any more."

There is a concept, called short-termism, which could devastate finances in the future, and has in the past devastated the millions who rely on their paycheques or pensions in the corporate world.

I am currently interviewing shareholder activists, hedge funds and private equity leaders on changes to public company boards to make them more focuse...

Transformational author, Deepak Chopra was the one who really brought The Law of Detachment to light for many of us. The Law of Detachment would want us to let go of the ultimate outcome once we know that we've taken all the steps necessary (a.k.a. hard work) to make those business dreams come true.

Yahoo's CEO Marissa Mayer feels that without physical interaction in the workplace, employees are missing out on important collaborative experiences and more importantly, the company is missing out on new ideas that spring from the collaborative process. What Mayer is missing with her edict is the fact that bringing people physically together does not solve the communication or ultimately collaboration problem. Collaboration leads to innovation. Without innovation, every company, small and large, from tech to manufacturing, will not survive the next century.

With such a large portion of the Canadian workforce working in smaller enterprises, their contribution to international trade is anything but insignificant. Shipping outside of Canada involves complex logistics along with a lot of other factors for small businesses to consider. If you run a small business and are looking to ship internationally, here are five key considerations.

The unthinkable has happened -- Apple's brand value has dropped for the first time. Meanwhile, equally improbable, BlackBerry is seemingly rising from the ashes. Yet, for their differences in fortune, the fates of both companies have been inextricably linked to the role played by CEO succession.

We surveyed 1,045 business people across Canada in virtually every industry segment. Some 87 per cent said they trust employees to adhere to their IT security rules and practices. In the same survey one in six employees admitted they do not adhere to IT security policies. So why is there such a disconnect between what employees and business owners say is going on and what is really going on, even in the face of losses?