Richard

President Donald Trump was sworn in on Monday as the 47th U.S. president.

Incoming White House officials told reporters that Trump would sign executive orders in his first days in office, and possibly at his rally Monday evening. The orders are expected to address economic issues like inflation and tariffs, reiterating remarks made by the President himself at his inauguration.

“Today I will sign a series of historic executive orders,” Trump stated in his inaugural speech. “With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense. It’s all about common sense.”

^{U.S. President Donald Trump gives his inaugural address. Photo by Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty Images}

The New York Times estimates that Trump has promised to sign close to 100 executive orders in the coming days.

The first economic executive order Trump addressed in his inaugural speech was related to inflation and energy.

Trump claimed that inflation was due to rising energy costs and government overspending. He stated that he would work to “rapidly bring down costs and prices” by signing an executive order declaring a national energy emergency so that the U.S. could produce and export more of its own oil and gas.

Related: Donald Trump’s Meme Coin $TRUMP Surges to $10.7 Billion Ahead of Inauguration

“We will bring prices down, fill our strategic reserves up again, right to the top, and export American energy all over the world,” Trump said.

White House officials told ABC News reporters that the move would create jobs and reduce regulations around the energy industry.

The U.S. was the world’s largest exporter of motor gasoline in 2023, supplying more than 16% of total global exports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

No president has declared a “national energy emergency” before, according to E&E News, though President Jimmy Carter did declare regional energy emergencies, including one in Pennsylvania in 1978.

Related: Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos Get the VIP Treatment at Donald Trump’s Inauguration–With Seats In Front of the President’s Own Cabinet Picks

Trump is also expected to sign an executive order ending the Biden administration’s electric vehicle mandate, which gave more than $1 billion in incentives through tax credits for purchases of electric vehicles.

“We will revoke the electric vehicle mandate, saving our auto industry and keeping my sacred pledge to our great American autoworkers,” Trump said in his inaugural speech, adding, “We will build automobiles in America again at a rate that nobody could have dreamt possible just a few years ago.”

White House officials said that Trump expects to end the electric vehicle mandate through executive order “as soon as possible.”

Related: Elon Musk Makes a Case for Tesla in X Livestream with Donald Trump

Another economic executive order Trump spoke about in his speech was the establishment of the External Revenue Service, to collect tariffs and taxes from foreign countries.

“Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens,” Trump stated.

Trump also said he would establish the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, which is designed to reform government bureaucracy and reduce inefficiencies. He first announced the department in November.

Let’s talk about jobs. Not in the old-school, “What do you do for work?” way, but what a job really is. For decades, a job was described through a title and a list of responsibilities. You get hired, and you’re given a job description; that’s your professional identity. But frankly, that system is breaking down — and quickly.

The structure of work today isn’t designed for how companies function anymore. Now that all these things are changing, static roles or rigid hierarchies will never be able to keep up with changes in technology, business models or customer expectations. This is like trying to run a modern app on a ’90s computer — things crash. The old job description? Dead. What’s replacing it? Modular, project-based systems, where work is completed by pulling together the right people with the right skills for a specific assignment. Let’s break this down.

Related: Why Job Titles Don’t Always Reflect the Value of Employees

Why the traditional job structure doesn’t work anymore

The old work paradigm was designed for predictability. A company brings a bunch of people in to do specific tasks, and those tasks rarely change. An accountant crunched numbers, a marketing manager wrote campaigns, and the IT guy fixed your printer. Everyone stayed in their lane.

But most industries — and I’d argue most innovation — don’t work that way today. Things shift constantly. Today, you may need a cybersecurity expert, tomorrow a cloud architect and next week a data analyst, all on the same project. There are fewer businesses than ever, but job roles haven’t kept pace. The inflexible job description doesn’t match this new reality, and clinging to it is costing companies agility and talent.

You should also consider skills as they develop. Individuals these days do not fit neatly in a box. A great marketer, for instance, may also know how to do data analysis, build no-code tools and even do some graphic design. But if their job description reads only “marketing strategy,” you’re leaving half their potential on the table.

The rise of modular, project-based work

So, what’s taking the place of these well-worn roles? Modular work systems. What does that mean? Rather than hiring people in fixed roles, companies deploy talent on a project basis. You aren’t hiring “an employee.” You are hiring a skillset, a brain or even a team for a defined outcome.

Let’s say you’re an app company that’s just launching a product. Rather than pushing this project through tiers of departments (marketing, development, customer support, etc.), you form an agile, cross-functional team: a UX designer, a software developer, a marketing strategist and a project manager. When the app launches, that team disbands, and those people move on to different projects. The work is done faster, smarter and with less bureaucracy.

This is reminiscent of how many startups and creative agencies already operate. They value speed and expertise more than rigid structures, and it’s a major reason why they’re out-pacing more traditional companies. That’s also why freelance platforms like Upwork or Toptal are booming — companies seek access to a talented pool without the baggage of a full-time hire.

What this means for workers

Let’s get real: Not everyone is enamored with the idea of project-based work. For workers, it’s a transition from the predictability of a defined position to a merit-driven marketplace where your worth is tied to your skills and your capacity for reinvention. Some can work well in these conditions — others, less so.

But here’s another point: Project-based systems allow workers greater freedom. You’re not stuck doing the same things for years because they’re in your job description. You can pivot, acquire new skills and give back in ways that actually interest you. It’s much more dynamic and, to be honest, more in line with how people want to do their jobs now.

The question of job security is also relevant. If companies transition to project-based hiring, does that equate to fewer full-time opportunities? Maybe. However, it also offers opportunities for workers to pursue careers as independent contractors or consultants. In some ways, it’s a return to craftsmanship — you are valued for what you deliver, not for how many years you’ve been melting your face off in a cubicle.

Related: Scouting All-Star Talent For Your Business: A Four-Step Playbook

What businesses need to do differently

For companies, this transformation isn’t simply a matter of replacing job descriptions with project charters. It’s a whole new mindset. Here’s what needs to change:

1. Focus on outcomes, not tasks

Agencies must stop thinking about what an employee does on their daily grind and instead consider what outputs they’re responsible for. There’s no “social media manager,” but hire someone who can “grow brand engagement by 30% in six months.” It’s a small but profound change.

2. Invest in skill development

If work going forward is project-based, employees will have to continuously refresh their skills in order to remain relevant. Businesses that offer continual training and learning opportunities will be more attractive to better talent and will receive more value from their teams.

3. Rethink hiring processes

Traditional hiring processes — résumés, cover letters and multi-round interviews — are too slow for this model. Companies want more efficient assessments of skills, such as portfolio reviews, skills tests or short-term trial projects.

4. Build flexible teams

In a project-based world, you’re not only managing employees; you’re managing networks. Some members of this team may be full-time staff, while others may be freelancers, contractors or even AI tools. In response, companies require systems to efficiently manage these hybrid teams.

5. Embrace technology

Tools such as Slack, Asana and Airtable already aid project-based work, but we have only begun to scratch the surface. AI and automation will trump in this regard and start delegating tasks, tracking progress and even helping match the best talent to the projects.

Challenges ahead

Let’s not make any bones about it; the transition isn’t going to be easy. For companies, transitioning from hierarchies to networks requires rethinking everything from org charts to performance reviews. For employees, that means abandoning the traditional career ladder. Instead of moving via the classic ladder, you’ll be leaping from project to project, developing a portfolio of work that will get you places.

There’s also the risk of burnout. When employees arrayed across projects spin through one logo or event to the next without sharp boundaries, it’s easy to overburden people. Companies will need to embrace work-life balance in the new system, or they’ll lose talent just as quickly as they acquire it.

Why this shift is inevitable

If you’re still doubtful, consider that the tools we use to work have already unbundled how we do the work. Canva, ChatGPT and Notion are some examples of apps that have enabled people to do things that used to take entire teams. A logical next step is for their roles to be unbundled.

It’s also playing out in the gig economy. Platforms such as Uber, DoorDash and TaskRabbit have broken work down into discrete, outcome-based tasks. Although those examples are primarily in service industries, similar principles are beginning to operate in knowledge work. Writing, coding, design and even project management are all breaking down into modular, task-based services.

Related: Master The Flexible Talent Search: Seven Critical Questions To Ask When Building A Competitive On-Demand Workforce

People need to know the days of the static job description are over. Both businesses and workers are moving toward a more flexible, project-based model that better matches the velocity and multiplicity of our fast-changing world. It’s not a perfect system, and there will definitely be growing pains. But for companies that lean into this change — and for workers who adjust — it’s a tremendous opportunity.

We’re moving into a world in which work is less about where you land on an org chart and more about what you can bring to a particular objective. It’s quicker, more dynamic and (fingers crossed) a more fulfilling experience for everyone around. And if you still hold on to the old ways, you’re going to be left behind. It is time to unbundle work and rethink what a job actually is.

Citigroup is cutting certain roles as part of a broader corporate restructuring to eliminate tens of thousands of jobs by 2026.

According to a new report from Bloomberg, Citigroup laid off several managing directors in its Wealth at Work unit this week, which offers services to clients at professional services firms.

The bank also let go of a team that focuses on obtaining data and analyses for its clients.

Related: Citigroup Slashes 20,000 Jobs: Restructuring or Retreat?

Citigroup’s layoffs arrive as the bank tries to reduce expenses. Citigroup’s CEO Jane Fraser stated in January 2024 that the bank plans to eliminate 20,000 jobs by 2026 to save $2.5 billion.

^{Jane Fraser. Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images}

The bank ended 2023 with a workforce of 240,000 people. It cut 7,000 roles within the first quarter of 2024 and ended 2024 with 229,000 employees for a reduction of about 10,000 roles within a year, per Bloomberg.

“We went through a significant simplification of our organization, removing management layers and the regional construct,” Fraser stated in an earnings call on Wednesday. “This has accelerated decision-making and made us a better partner to our clients.”

Related: While Other Bank CEOs Take Pay Cuts, Citigroup’s CEO Jane Fraser Gets a Raise

Citigroup’s chief financial officer Mark Mason said earlier this week that the bank is going to double what it usually sets aside for severance payments this year. Severance costs are usually around $300 million for the bank, he stated but will be $600 million in 2025.

In 2024, severance costs for Citigroup were even higher, close to $700 million.

As I write this, I’m surrounded by destruction and devastation. Here in Agoura Hills, California, we are on the cusp of the evacuation area, as fires have decimated thousands of homes and businesses in the Pacific Palisades and expanded westward through Malibu. Our power is out, and we are working from home off of a generator. My husband and business partner is currently conducting interviews in one corner of the house. I’m elsewhere, checking in with my team members and clients, many of whom have been personally affected by this, the worst fire disaster in the history of southern California.

Meanwhile, as I attend to the more mundane and routine business activities, such as reviewing last year’s annual reports and working with my marketing partners to create new outreach campaigns, I’m filled with immense gratitude for the business I’ve built and my ability to attend to it even amid such extraordinary circumstances. With a raging fire virtually at our doorstep, it’s all very touch and go, but it’s also comforting in a way, to set all the fear and anxiety aside and focus on what I’m best at: locking in and getting my work done.

Our resilience and perseverance in this difficult moment did not arrive by accident. By contrast, we’ve taken steps to ensure that our steadfastness in the face of catastrophe is part and parcel of our corporate culture.

Here are some key strategies for maintaining business continuity in a world where natural disasters are increasingly more commonplace.

Related: 3 Steps to Prepare Your Business for Wildfire Season

1. Understand the deeper needs of your employees in times of crisis

When disaster strikes, your employees may experience diverse physical impacts, and they will also process the event very differently — one person to the next — on a psychological and emotional level. As a boss and a leader, they will look to you to set the tone for persevering through disaster. It’s great that you’ve sent out an email blast with the latest updates and that your evacuation plan is posted in plain view at headquarters, but your job’s not done yet.

Though your first priority is safety, your leadership in this moment also entails looking out for your employees’ mental and spiritual well-being. Do this by holding one-on-one or group “check-in meetings” to discuss the effects of the disaster on your employees and those they care about. Make sure they know how to access available mental health resources. For example, some employers provide Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) that include lower cost or free counseling services. In addition to practical disaster and emergency response materials, be sure to share uplifting and inspirational content with your team that showcases the strength and resilience of your community in action as they respond to the disaster at hand.

What I’m trying to emphasize with my employees at this time is that, above all, nothing matters more than the safety and well-being of our loved ones. And, like every other moment and life event, these times of devastation will not endure forever. Be grateful for all you have. Take a deep breath. We’ll get through it.

Related: I Lost Almost Everything in a Natural Disaster. Here Is How I Recovered.

2. Understand your paths to maximum resilience

The resilience of a business is determined by how quickly it can reestablish baseline operations after being impacted by a disaster. The key to maximizing resilience is to maintain a capacity in excess of what’s required for baseline operations. To put this in simple terms, consider a cloud data storage capacity diversified across several service providers. If your business backs up its files on a multitude of cloud drives, then the failure of one drive won’t hinder your normal operations.

Put even more simply: A business that maintains an emergency fund will prove more financially agile in the face of disaster than a business that lives paycheck to paycheck. Understand what your capacity for maintaining basic services looks like, then invest in resources that will allow you to operate above your baseline.

3. Plan. Plan. Plan.

This doesn’t have to be difficult, and there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. There are free tools available to help you evaluate your business’s risks and plan accordingly. For a comprehensive preparation guide, check out the “Open for Business-EZ toolkit” from the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety. Once you fully understand your risks and the continuity needs of your business, you’ll be better positioned to take further proactive steps such as:

• Investigating appropriate insurance coverage options that suit your business’s unique risk profile and covers the value of assets likely to be damaged or lost in the types of disasters most likely to affect you where you live.
• Cultivating awareness of grants and disaster relief loans for which your business may qualify.
• Understanding the vulnerabilities of the buildings, vehicles or equipment used to operate your business. How might disasters common to your area affect these resources?
• Setting up an emergency fund that can keep your business up and running through tough times.
• Determining whether or not a gasoline-powered generator or another backup power supply is a good investment to make?

Related: 8 Ways Your Business Can Avoid Disaster — and Recover If It Happens

4. Keep your customers in the loop

It’s important to let your customers know when you’ve been affected by a natural disaster or any other event that may cause interruptions to service. Poor communication with customers, leading to unmet expectations, can make a disaster worse than it needs to be. Keep them apprised of how your business was affected and of your ongoing recovery efforts. If you can afford to, go the extra mile: offer special discounts and promotions for customers affected by the disaster. Doing so will keep good feedback coming your way and will burnish your reputation as a responsible corporate citizen.

As we continue to battle through this historic disaster in southern California, my firm, CorpNet, is doing all we can to support the community we serve and are home to. We’ve rallied our employees and clients to join us in making donations to the Red Cross, the California Wildfire Relief Fund and the LA County Fire Department. We’re sharing and promoting these giving opportunities, both as a practical means of responding to the disaster, but also as a means of encouraging our team members and customers to stay mentally healthy during this distressing time by giving of themselves, connecting with and supporting the community in this time of need.

Remember, whether you like it or not, there are those who look to you for leadership and inspiration. The way you run your business — and how you treat the people who help you run it — speaks volumes. Strive to build a business that will set the standard for compassion, preparedness and resilience during challenging times.

More than 20% of 2024 small-business owners were solopreneurs, a recent report says. Carrying all the pressure of a business alone can be stressful. However, the powerful self-development meditations available in the Harmony Hypnosis app can improve your focus, confidence, and more. If you want to cultivate these traits and achieve your goals faster, you may want to try the Harmony Premium Plan while a lifetime subscription is on sale at 50% off.

The highly innovative app offers personalized meditation therapy with self-hypnosis sessions that are designed to help you with transformative self-development just as though you had a live professional hypnotherapist on hand. You’ll have access to dozens of sessions on a wide variety of subjects and new topics are added regularly.

You will find it easier to relax and enjoy more restful sleep. The guided sessions can effectively lower your anxiety and stress levels. Experience a robust feeling of empowerment when you boost your focus and inner strength. As you develop greater control and self-esteem, your confidence will also grow. All of these things can help save you time when reaching for your aspirations.

The app was created by Darren Marks, who has 20+ years of experience and founded Harmony Hypnosis. He is a senior associate at The Royal Society of Medicine and board member of The International Hypnotherapy Association.

With millions of downloads, the app has impressive ratings of 4.8 out of 5 stars from 3,600 reviews on the App Store and 4.9 out of 5 stars from almost 3,200 reviews on Google’s Play Store. One user explains why, saying:

“The Harmony App has been life-changing for me, has helped with relaxation and other specific areas. I love the new additional session each month also. Highly recommend! Thank you so much!”

Get a lifetime subscription to the Harmony Premium Plan today for just $99.99, a 50% discount off the regular $199 subscription price.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

According to Fresh Books, a college degree makes absolutely no difference whatsoever to small-business revenue. That’s good news for those who would prefer to develop new skills online in the comfort of their own home. If you’d like to start a new tech career in 2025, The Ultimate Cybersecurity & IT Career Certification Pathway Training Bundle is an excellent way to start.

This bundle offers preparation courses for certification exams that will add impressive weight to your bio if you plan to offer freelance services or provide you with skills you can use in your own business even if you don’t need the certifications. There are courses for beginners, as well as advanced modules you can add as you become more experienced.

Basic users of computers, the Internet, mobile devices and networks can start with CompTIA IT Fundamentals ITF+ FC0-U61. Or go from beginner to advanced with the Core 1 and 2 CompTIA A+ Certification modules, both of which have impressive ratings of 4.7 out of 5 stars from former students.

Once you’ve mastered those lessons, or if you already have that experience, you can take the CompTIA Network+ Certification N10-007 course, which helps you to develop the skills of a mid-level network technician. These give you the foundation to move up to the cybersecurity courses: CompTIA Security+ Certification SY0-501, CompTIA CySA+ Cybersecurity Analyst CS0-001 and CompTIA PenTest+ PT0-001.

There is one more specific module, the Cisco CCNA 200-301 Exam: Complete Course with Practical Labs. If you are particularly interested in working for Cisco, these lessons focus on the internet, including the Internet of Things (IoT), which will continue to grow into the future.

These courses are provided by Total Seminars. The company provides certification training materials and services to thousands of corporations, schools and government agencies, including the FBI, United Nations, and Department of Defense.

Get The Ultimate Cybersecurity & IT Career Certification Pathway Training Bundle today while its price has dropped to just $24.97.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Although Fundera says 30% of 2024 small-business owners took no salary, that doesn’t necessarily mean filing a tax return is unnecessary. It’s a chore no one likes, but now you can save money and streamline your entire tax filing experience with the expert resources and user-friendly tools found in the 2024 H&R Block Deluxe Plus State Tax Software for Windows and Mac. Best of all, it’s available for only $39.99, down 33% from the regular $59 retail price.

The program is super easy to use. Your W-2, 1098 and 1099 forms, as well as your prior tax returns, can all be quickly downloaded even from Quicken and Turbo Tax. There is step-by-step guidance formatted as Q&A to simplify the entire process. You can save your return at any time to complete later, access over 13,000 articles, tips and FAQ for preparing your taxes.

Assistance is included for income from retirement, home sales, stock options and investments. There is also guidance for how to maximize your mortgage interest and any real estate tax deductions on Schedule A.

This software version helps you get the biggest possible tax refund and you’ll get real-time results about your refund after you file. Plus, free audit support is built in. If you should get audited, H&R Block will provide free audit support from a live representative at no extra cost.

You can e-file five free federal returns using this program and choose one state to file returns with. Additional states are available for $39.95 each and each State e-filed state return is $19.95.

This deal is available to both new and existing users. It received the 2024 Kiplinger Readers’ Choice Tax Software Award, which said:

“Along with in-person assistance from tax professionals at thousands of branch locations, H&R Block offers online tax programs for do-it-yourselfers, too. Survey respondents remarked on its effectiveness and reasonable pricing.”

Get the 2024 H&R Block Deluxe Plus State Tax Software for Windows and Mac now for just $39.99, a 33% price drop from the usual $59 retail price.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

While vision is important to success, execution matters most. Startups can succumb to multiple points of failure — people, products, competition and legal challenges, to name a few. These issues can be interconnected, compounding the difficulty of overcoming them. Ours is a cautionary tale concerning key man risk.

After recently going public, we were building for our next leg of growth. As I waited in traffic driving back from a run, my thoughts wandered to the upcoming annual general meeting (AGM) set for May, the following year.

It had started to drizzle when Elena broke the silence: “KK, is your phone off? Zisis (our COO) is calling me.” I glanced over at her and responded, “No, it should be on, why?” noticing the raindrops landing somewhat heavier.

Peering down at my phone, I noticed it was on, but on silent mode. I could see a flurry of messages, namely, “It’s urgent.” She handed me her phone. Zisis, breathing rather heavily, said “Hey man, sorry this can’t wait. We have a serious problem.”

My heart rate spiked. As adrenaline surged for all the wrong reasons, the skies had turned visibly dark and the rain turned to hail. He continued, “[Our CTO at the time] wants $10 million by pretty much tomorrow or he’ll wipe the code, repos and post all internal conversations online.”

As I processed this, the clanking of the hailstorm intensified. Subconsciously, I calculated that we could pay him, but it would crush us. “20 minutes; I will call you back,” I responded as I drove home, zombified and broken.

Stepping out of the car, I was engulfed by the hailstorm. As I reached my study, more impulsive thoughts flooded my mind. “Do I go extrajudicial here? Do we shame him globally?” Alas, calmer heads were to prevail as the team and I convened over hours, to arrive at a plan B.

Negotiating with a metaphorical gun to our head was a sine qua non. Our solution entailed letting our stakeholders know of the situation and rebuilding the codebase in Europe. We would use the opportunity to refactor code and remove technical debt. Finally, a police report would be filed and referrals denied. No cent would be paid under duress. As we penned our response, we received an unexpected message from the CTO himself. He retracted his threats and requested a call. Had our silence given him pause for thought?

Glancing out the window, I saw a beam of sunlight pierce through the overcast sky.

Although relieved, I remained confused by his actions. The next day, our CTO appeared on the call rather acquiescent. He explained how he was at the end of his tether and just wanted an amenable exit. A fair ask I thought, given how hard he had toiled. What bothered me was the finality of his decision. His threats weren’t just a flash in the pan. The reasons behind them had incubated over the years.

After deeper introspection, here is what I learned.

Related: Identify and Stop Rogue Employees Before They Become a Security Threat

1. Cultivate real relationships

This incident was a casualty of my war. Each time a new product idea was envisioned, it was our CTO and his loyal team that had to bring it to reality. Line by line, they coded away, beholden to deadlines and debugger audits. They quietly suffered hoping that scaling would happen. It didn’t — at least not in their timeline. Over the years, mental exhaustion set in.

Zisis would travel to the satellite office a few times a year. He would spend a few days with the team there and work on business process improvements and problem-solving. The more time we spent together as a team, the more I believed our expectations were aligned. But each year as our CTO would receive Zisis at the airport, he must have wondered why I never took the time to meet him. Did I not value him enough?

The truth is, I did. But I didn’t invest the time in that relationship, prioritizing firefighting elsewhere in the firm.

Cultivating relationships isn’t just a platitude or buzz phrase. Your employees seek vision and connection, not just a salary.

2. Don’t let proximity — or lack thereof — harbor resentment

After the pandemic, going to the office became passé. Sure, remote working might yield some productivity gains according to some studies. Other studies show these gains aren’t necessarily corroborated by employers.

If you’re a startup, having your tech team in a different country is a recipe for disaster. Time zone differentials, delayed communications, lack of human touch and cultural differences are just a few points of failure.

When your key assets share the same premises, problems can be addressed swiftly. In our case, it was a proverbial death by a thousand cuts; the resentment was brewing quietly over many years, but the distance created cognitive dissonance in my mind. I failed to see the problems before it was too late.

Related: 4 Managerial Downsides of Remote Work (and How to Deal With Them)

3. Be careful with your words

Three months prior to the threats, I Skyped Zisis amid a critical code issue impacting our users, “What’s the point of our testing process? Just get rid of [our CTO’s name] next time…”

Call it karmic justice, but this comment was forwarded to him as part of a wider message “forward” in error. I cannot imagine the shock and disappointment he felt upon reading it.

I learned — the hard way — to eliminate histrionics on electronic communication channels. Secondly, I learned not to write anything on any online medium that I wasn’t comfortable seeing printed on the front page of the Financial Times.

4. Always have a plan B

When we received the threat, our headquarters in Cyprus was still being built. We didn’t have any senior technical leads besides our CTO. We never felt the need — a painful miscalculation.

If you can afford it, a part-time hire who monitors your key tech personnel is advised. Today, we pay said hire as a source for audits, codebase backups and interview assistance. This person also steps in in case of emergency — and boy, have we had our fair share since then. The system now, however, is set up so that there is no single point of failure, and it is battle-tested.

Consider plan Bs as insurance. No business runs without it.

Related: Don’t Wait For Disaster to Strike — These 5 Preventive Measures Can Protect Your Business From All Kinds of Risk

5. Invest in soft skills

The relationship may not be linear, but there is an inverse correlation between coding talent and interpersonal skills. The more time spent with code instead of people, the more emotionally detached one grows.

At first, we would hire purely for technical expertise. Now, our hiring process is more holistic. No person in a tech startup has more theoretical power than the CTO. They code your dreams but can obliterate them on a whim.

Invest in emotional stability. Key man risk is not just something you put as an afterthought in the “risks” section of your deck. It is very real. As humans, we are all flawed in various ways. So hope for the best, but upgrade your defenses in case the “bad actor” in all of us rears its ugly head.

Robotics and artificial intelligence: Words typically accompanied by the backdrop of a neon cityscape full of high rises,and never ending streams of cars flying past. From Bladerunner to The Jetsons, a future of technology is often predicated on ideas of sprawling, gritty urbanity, where wired, manufactured components replace biological structures completely.

However, at Greenfield Robotics, the role of cutting edge technology is to support nature, not supplant it.

For decades, the agricultural industry has grappled with critical challenges such as the extensive use of harmful chemicals and the resultant environmental degradation. Phasing out herbicides and pesticides has been a difficult task due to the lack of alternatives that could function with the same efficiency at scale.

But Clint Brauer, the founder of Greenfield Robotics, realized that there was an unexpected answer to the problem. By harnessing AI-powered robotic technology to revolutionize no-till farming methods, he built a team at Greenfield to create technology that promises not only to mitigate environmental impact but also to enhance the sustainability and efficiency of farming operations, all without chemicals.

Greenfield Robotics leverages cutting-edge technology to power autonomous robots that are designed specifically for the agriculture industry. Brauer, who is himself a third-generation farmer, says, “The reason we created these initial robots was to solve a pretty basic problem. Weeds have become resistant to herbicides, and so then you have to use more of those chemicals… There’s no resistance to a blade.”

The fleet was built and developed in Cheney, Kan. to navigate fields independently, equipped with spinning blades to cut through even the hardiest, most stubborn stalks. The robots are able to keep crop damage to less than 1% during the process, which is a much better record than large-scale spray rigs. Machine vision and learning help them identify field boundaries and obstacles in real-time, while a smaller chassis allows them to operate more nimbly than traditional heavy machinery and avoid crushing crop rows.

By implementing Greenfield’s robots-as-a-service methodology, farmers will no longer need to purchase their own sprayers, which can run up to $1 million or more, and they would be able to cut the cost of post-plant herbicides out of their budgets, Brauer says.

A big part of what makes herbicide use so problematic is that long-term adoption of chemicals like glyphosate has resulted in generations of superweeds, which have become resistant and require stronger, more toxic solutions. Further, since glyphosate functions as an enzyme inhibitor, it can also stunt the growth of the very crops it’s meant to help and harm other species that are endemic to local biomes.

In recent years, many farmers have been shifting away from tillage and instead putting regenerative practices in place. Ideas like cover cropping and no tillage farming aren’t new, but they are being rediscovered as effective methods of naturally managing weeds as well as returning nutrition back into the soil—thus “regenerative.” These practices emphasize maintaining soil integrity by keeping it planted and undisturbed, allowing it to build a healthy ecosystem that helps prevent erosion, retain water, and even draw carbon out of the air and back into the earth. The result is land that increases the nutrient density of the crops grown, which also means that when growing season comes, the crops are stronger and more vital, too.

But adopting new practices while maintaining seasonal calendars can be taxing and difficult, sometimes impossible at the speed and scale required. Greenfield Robotics provides an automated solution. Unlike spray rigs, which require human operators and can only be driven safely during daylight hours, Greenfield’s robots run on rechargeable lithium ion batteries that go for five hours at a time for weeding. Since they follow AI-drawn paths based on overhead drone imagery, they can run deep into the night without issue. When there are storms, it can take a week before the ground is solid enough for heavy machinery to be able to go back to work, but soft ground and mud is less of an issue for the lighter robots. All of these factors allow the robots to shave entire days off of an arduous, expensive, and necessary task that must be done multiple times a year.

The implementation of Greenfield’s robots-as-a-service results in a “triple-win” solution for farmers, with positive impact for the climate, consumers, and on the bottom line for farmers.

Greenfield Robotics is not just changing farming practices on individual farms, but is also setting a precedent for the global agricultural sector. By demonstrating the effectiveness and efficiency of robotic weed control, Greenfield Robotics is opening the door to more sustainable farming methods worldwide.

This technology-driven approach is gradually shaping the thinking and practices around regenerative agriculture. Greenfield Robotics has worked live on farm fields for the past three years and continue to expand their reach.

Every year the systems take a big leap forward and Greenfield Robotics aims to refine their systems, increase the capabilities of their robots by developing new tools for farmers, and scale their solutions to meet global demands. Bauer shares more of their R&D, “Whether it is to improve sensors that can analyze plant tissue in real time and identify nutrient deficiencies or adding cover cropping capabilities, the team is always working to develop additional functionality to the fleet.”

Greenfield Robotics stands at the forefront of agricultural innovation, and are receiving support throughout the industry. With the backing of major industry players such as Chipotle, ILS Beef, and MKC agricultural co-op with 11,000 farming customers, Greenfield is leading the way toward a new era where technology and traditional farming work hand in hand.

By helping farms adopt concepts like cover cropping and no-tillage farming, Bauer and Greenfield Robotics are bringing agriculture back to the future. Combining time-tested practices with cutting-edge technology, it’s paving the way for a healthier, more sustainable future. The opportunity to remove toxic herbicides completely from farming and our food is within reach.

If you’d like to be a part of the Greenfield Robotics mission, visit to learn more: https://investgreenfieldrobotics.com/

*Disclaimer: In making an investment decision, investors must rely on their own examination of the issuer and the terms of the offering, including the merits and risks involved. Greenfield Robotics has filed a Form C with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with its offering, a copy of which may be obtained here.*

It seems that new U.S. business owners are getting younger all the time. The typical age has dropped from 38 years old to 34 years old just since 2017. So it should come as no surprise that corporate events are not quite as staid as they have been in the past. If you’d like to make your company events a lot more entertaining, you may want to add an innovative HP Sprocket Photobooth, which allows you to capture and share memories as you’re making them.

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StackSocial prices subject to change.