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Authentic Sustainability: Building Credibility Beyond Greenwashing

By Sonali Shah   As sustainability becomes a critical component of branding, businesses must avoid greenwashing — making misleading claims about eco-friendly practices. Greenwashing risks not only backlash but also regulatory action, damaging trust and losing customers. For the print and design industries, authenticity in sustainability initiatives is essential to resonate with audiences and create genuine

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Eco-Friendly Design Trends: How Designers Can Lead the Sustainability Movement

By Sonali Shah As environmental concerns continue to be our biggest human challenge to date, designers are increasingly embracing sustainability. From minimalist packaging to AI-driven design solutions, the industry is evolving to meet the demand for more eco-conscious practices. Designers have a unique opportunity to drive change, shaping a future where creativity and sustainability go

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Dear David: Can You Send an Employee Home Early 

Question: If an employee puts in their notice, can we let them go that day instead of keeping them for the full notice period? Answer: Generally, yes, you can let an employee go that same day unless there is a contract or agreement to the contrary. While you aren’t required to retain an employee or

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Describing Color in Nature and Print 

Introduction  In 1821, a Scottish painter named Patrick Syme published a book of color samples called “Werner’s Nomenclature of Colours: Adapted to Zoology, Botany, Chemistry, Minerology, Anatomy, and the Arts.” Syme’s book was based on a classification system devised by the German mineralogist Abraham Gottlob Werner in the late 18th Century, and a book Werner

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Data Suggests Regional Printing Association Members Outperform Non-Members: What Association Benefits Help Their Success?

By Dr. Ralph Williams Jr., Associate Professor of Management, Jones College of Business, Middle Tennessee State University Dr. Greg Nagel, Professor of Finance, Jones College of Business, Middle Tennessee State University Our recent financial benchmarking surveys suggest that regional printing association members produce higher Earnings-before-interest-taxes-depreciation-and-amortization (EBITDA) than national industry averages (see our appendix). Indeed, our

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AI, RPA, and AMRs: My TLA Moment

Introduction  When I was a young Applications Analyst for Linotype on Long Island, I was flabbergasted by the number of three-letter acronyms (TLAs) that had developed around PostScript and prepress. (Pre-press was still hyphenated at the time, which gives you an idea of how long ago this was.) For fun, I created a three-letter acronym

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Dear David: Staying Compliant When a New Hire Quits

Question: A newly hired employee quit after their first day. To keep things simple, can we just pay them as an independent contractor? Answer: No, that approach is not compliant with regulations. The IRS, the U.S. Department of Labor, and state agencies have specific criteria for determining who is an employee and who is an

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Dear David: What to Include in a Job Description

Question: What should we include in a job description? Answer: Accurate and carefully crafted job descriptions are essential for attracting and keeping new employees, setting clear performance expectations, and serving as a critical line of defense in many types of employment litigation.  Effective job descriptions include:  Advice provided by Mineral. This Q&A does not constitute

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Branding Your Firm as a Great Workplace…an EVP is a MUST!

Many printing company leaders say hiring new employees is their toughest challenge. I recently visited a printing company with about 100 employees. Almost everybody in the building was in their late 50s or early 60s. Multiple workers mentioned to me that they were considering retiring. As we were hearing those retirement comments, the firm’s leader

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