One day soon, don’t be surprised if a job candidate’s parents accompany them to an interview with you. One of the most crucial global consumer trends of this decade has been “deferred adulthood.” And, as these young adolescents continue to rely on their parents in their daily lives, we’re starting to see that relationship overlap into the workplace. We’ll examine what this means for the employer-employee relationship and discuss how it’s likely to play out.

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For decades, futurists and science fiction writers have dreamed of an era of small-scale, on-demand manufacturing that would permit us to move from digital design to finished products in a matter of minutes. Now that dream is becoming a reality. What are the implications? We’ll explain.

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Faced with the open source movement, widespread piracy, and globalization, the software industry is becoming a tougher place to make money. What’s ahead? What’s required to win in this market? What are the implications for software companies and their customers? Let’s take a look.

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Just a few years ago, small town America was rapidly vanishing. At the same time, American technology jobs were being outsourced to places like India. But now, new high-tech jobs are being rapidly created in the rural areas of America’s heartland. What’s driving this job migration? What will it mean for the employers, and what will it mean for small-town residents? We’ll answer these questions and more.

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During and immediately after the gilded age, America lived through its “golden age of philanthropy.” Now, once again, today’s era of conspicuous consumption is accompanied by a new era of serious giving by the moderately wealthy, as well as the very rich. For example, Bill and Melinda Gates have already given away more than $31 billion, and others are trying to emulate them. Where’s that money going? What do we foresee it accomplishing? What are the implications for society? We’ll take a look.

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Thorstein Veblen originally coined the term “conspicuous consumption” to describe efforts people made to communicate favorably who they were by the way they spent their money. You’ve probably read about America’s “gilded age” of the late 19th century, when America’s great estates were built and magnates traveled in private railway cars and ocean-going yachts. Most of us also remember the brief revival of “glitter” during the 1980s, when TV series like Dallas and Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous were popular. But now, we’re starting to see a new era of conspicuous consumption. What will this era be like, what are some of the most coveted luxury goods, and what are the implications? We’ll explain.

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A decade ago, we were on the verge of IPO mania: Soon we’d see every entrepreneur wanting to go public, and every investor wanting to be in on the next IPO. Today, the business elite is swarming to join or invest with private equity firms. Why is this trend so hot? What are the opportunities and risks? Where will it lead? We’ll answer these, and other important questions.

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