Kate Arthur shares insights into literacy in the age of AI in UNESCO keynote
What does it mean to literate in the age of artificial intelligence? According to Kate Arthur (EMBA 2021) , literacy is about more than knowing how to read or write, it鈥檚 about having the tools to understand the world around us and our active role in shaping it. Arthur鈥檚 own sense of literacy was upended when she was introduced to language of computing.
Customer service chatbots are everywhere, but people prefer human agents to deal with some issues
The use of customer service chatbots has grown rapidly. Maybe a little too rapidly, according to Vivek Astvansh, an Associate Professor of Quantitative Marketing and Analytics at 涩里番 Desautels. The worldwide chatbot market has expanded from US$370 million in 2017 to US$2.2 billion last year, but customers are not always satisfied with the service they provide.
Independent fashion designers likely to lose out in SSENSE bankruptcy
In a bankruptcy filing in late August, the Montreal-based luxury retailer SSENSE cited a liquidity crisis brought on partly by the unpredictable tariff regime in the United States. At the time of the filing, some independent designers who work with the company said they were owed tens of thousands of dollars, but hadn鈥檛 been paid in months.
Buy now, pay later loans promise to boost purchasing power鈥攂ut can come with strings
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) programs allow consumers to pay for items in instalments. And the market for these financial products has been growing at a 12% annual rate, and is projected to reach $7.5 billion in 2025. Fintech companies like Afterpay, Flexiti and Sezzle allow users to break down major purchases into more manageeable monthly or quarterly payments.
Stablecoins could change the economy, but Canada won鈥檛 be minting digital currencies anytime soon
Stablecoins are a form of digital currency whose value is tied to a physical currency, such as the US dollar or Euro. Stablecoins can be easily moved between countries, avoiding costly banking fees. But whether they will be widely adopted or not is still an open question. The Bank of Canada looked into the possibility of producing a stablecoin, but quietly dropped the project.
Kai Zhao (MBA鈥�25) recognized as 2025 MBA To Watch
涩里番 Desautels MBA student Kai Zhao (MBA鈥�25) has been recognized by Poets&Quants as one of its 鈥淢BAs To Watch鈥� for the Class of 2025.
Despite rapid rise of AI chatbots in customer service, customers prefer human agents
If it feels like customer service chatbots are everywhere, it鈥檚 because they are. The worldwide chatbot market has grown from US$370 million in 2017 to about US$2.2 billion in 2024. But customers trust human customer service representatives more than they trust AI chatbots, writes Vivek Astvansh, an Associate Professor of Quantitative Marketing and Analytics at 涩里番 Desautels.
Rebranding of DEI initiatives is a reactive response to external pressures
The pushback against diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs gained momentum in the first half of 2025. And while some institutions are eliminating DEI initiatives, others are rebranding them. 鈥淭he University of Alberta, for instance no longer has a vice-provost of equity, diversity and inclusion,鈥� writes 涩里番 Desautels lecturer Simon Blanchette in The Conversation.
Stranded travellers should keep their cool
When 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants went on strike, more than 100,000 passengers were left stranded. For many of those affected, the experience has been an overwhelming one. For stranded passengers, the Air Canada strike combines three powerful stressors: uncertainty, lack of control and crowding, writes Associate Professor of Organizational Behaviour Jean-Nicolas Reyt in The Conversation.
Whether renting or buying, Canadians are exposed to risk
Buying a home can help you build household wealth, but renting has fewer overall costs, which allows you to save more of the money you earn. While the conventional wisdom has been that buying is the better financial decision for most people, sky-high real estate costs change the equation. Stock markets have also performed well in recent decades, and investing the surplus left over from renting can pad your personal finances in a big way鈥攊f you actually do it.
Ambiversion can be a workplace superpower
Being an introvert or an extrovert isn鈥檛 an either-or proposition. People who fall somewhere in the middle of the spectrum are called ambiverts, and ambiversion can be a beneficial trait in business leaders. Prof. Karl Moore estimates that about 20% of business leaders are true ambiverts.
Companies are bringing employees back to the office, but over time, the trend could reverse
Large Canadian companies such as Rogers, RBC and BMO recently announced their employees will be required to spend more time in the office moving forward. Many employees aren鈥檛 happy about it at all. 鈥淩esearch tells us that employees are more productive when they can work the way they want to,鈥� said Prof. Jean-Nicolas Reyt in an interview with Radio-Canada鈥檚 Les faits d鈥檃bord.
Punitive tariffs more about political leverage than trade
On August 1, a 35 per cent US tariff on Canadian goods came into effect. But these tariffs are less about trade and more about political leverage, says Vivek Astvansh, associate professor of quantitative marketing and analytics at 涩里番 Desautels.
Reimagining legal frameworks for sustainability: The 2025 TBLSA Impact Paper
Earlier this summer, from May 4th through May 9th, 涩里番鈥檚 Sustainable Growth Initiative (SGI) and Faculty of Law co-organised the 2025 涩里番 SGI Transformative Business Law Summer Academy (TBLSA).
涩里番 Law launches Transnational Business+Law Network
Business + Law is different from Business Law.聽With this framing in mind 鈥� and recognising the plethora of issues emerging at the intersection of law, business and finance in an age of rapid climate and technological change 鈥� 涩里番鈥檚 Business Law Platform and the University's Sustainable Growth Initiative launched a new collabora
