#Frontline Learning Management System

[masteroapp]

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[ruiniel]

This storm

I. Even for you

Fandom: Jujutsu Kaisen | Rating: 🔞| Geto Suguru x fem!Reader | Count: 7.8K | Ongoing | Summary: A night after a difficult mission... | On AO3 | Tags & Warnings: my first fic for JJK, fem!reader, Second Person POV, Geto didn't defect AU, But still has it rough, Set four years after Hidden Inventory, Friends with some benefits, It’s complicated, Light angst, Feels, Needy!Geto, Dom energy!Geto, Smut, Vaginal sex, Oral sex (f receiving), Self-indulgent what else, Badly wanted more of this flavor Geto in fic so here I am

The clock startles you, eyes drawn from your reading towards the brief robotic sound. The numbers flicker red against black, heralding midnight. 

With a sigh you close the book and rise, walking to the window instead. The downpour has been ongoing for hours now, and water flows down the glass like tears. 

Cold. The city is cold and dark, a flood of souls and living blood. Neon lights flash in jittery repetition like an irregular pulse, reflected by a veiny system of wet roads: red, blue, red, blue. 

Worry binds your heart, and thoughts roil like wind. Where is he? You had a day off (a luxury rarely afforded in the world you both share) but your friend’s work is out there in the frontlines. Always gone, always alone lately. Sometimes, you land a mission together where you do your part as an auxiliary manager, but those are few and far between. 

You won't call, it’s a given. Any disruptions could lead to injury or worse, and even the thought of him being harmed brings anxiety like a weight forcing your airways shut. He’s your friend, more so the first person who helped guide you when you first reached Tokyo, so patient, laid back and generous with his time. The affinity was instant and mutual, and a couple of years later here you are, sharing a rent. You learned many things about Suguru Geto since then, some wonderful, some worrying—such as his tendency to drive himself into the ground for his vocation. But in the end, he is only human, isn't he? 

Your thoughts are cut by the familiar, metallic click and turn of a key. The door to the apartment opens, and the newcomer eases inside. 

“Suguru…” you turn, watching his tall figure for anything amiss. His movements are sluggish, his gaze unfocused. It’s been one of those missions, then. 

Suguru raises his head at your voice, the blank expression losing to a fickle smile. “Hey.” He’s drenched by the rain: his hair, his uniform, his skin. “How was your day off?” he asks, propping a hand against the wall and kicking off his shoes. 

“It was... it was fine.” 

It must’ve been a difficult exorcism, you think, as he goes and slumps into a kitchen chair. 

You sit across from him, leaning forward with your elbows resting on the table between you. He looks exhausted, his complexion sickly, as though he’s had poison and is living through the worst of it. It’s not the first time you’ve seen it, nor will it be the last. 

The rain patters against the windows, filling the silence. Suguru hangs his head, rubs at his right eye, and carelessly undoes the uniform button at his chest before shrugging the entire thing off and hanging it on the back of the chair. 

“I suppose I shouldn’t ask…” you try, watching him roll up the sleeves of his shirt. You want to know what kind of special grade he dealt with, but you can't get yourself to do it: it’s on his face, the bags under his eyes, the tension in his body. He looks like he’s about to be nauseous. No, talking about it won't help, not now.

Suguru shakes his head. Silently he reaches for a pack of cigarettes and stands. You follow him out on the small balcony, both leaning against the rail. The rain stopped for a reprieve, and the sounds of wheels turning on wet asphalt reach you from the streets below. 

Suguru lights a cigarette, staring ahead. On the first exhale of smoke it looks as though he wants to spit his lungs out. You know how it goes by now: his cursed spirit manipulation technique leaves him with an aftermath few could bear or live with for long, but still, he does it. If there's anything Suguru has, it's strong principles and an immutable conviction as far as his role in this world goes. 

His silence, in any other context, would feel comfortable. But now his jaw is tight, and he’s crossed his arms at his chest as if straining to keep all the curses he’s absorbed from breaking free. 

All you can do is reach out, fingers smoothing his dark hair away from his face; a stunted motion, but one you couldn’t resist. 

Suguru sketches no reaction to your touch at first. He takes another drag of his cigarette and looks over, holding your gaze. Your stomach flips, a meld of relief and care rushing through you and coiling around your ribs like wildflowers. You wonder at this renewed sense of hope as your touch glides down his cheek, wiping away a droplet of gore.  

“It feels as if it’s all too much these days…” you murmur, “even for you.”

Suguru smiles again, once a confident grin—now a heartbreaking display when contrasting with his state. Sometimes, in recent months, you’d see an odd light in his stare, like a spark ready to ignite a sea of flames; but it only lingers for a moment before it dies, and he’s back to the one you know. 

“It is. But… you’re here.” His eyes close as he leans into your palm, nuzzling against it, the brush of his skin like warm silk.

You swallow. Sometimes he makes these small gestures that hide a greater meaning, it’s who he is. You like to think you’re used to it by now. “Suguru, are you all righ—”

“Help me.” His words are a warm, rushed whisper against your hand. You know what it means, you know it helps him on a physical level to recuperate. You’re friends, both very aware of the other in many ways: qualities, needs, and sometimes, sometimes… you oblige each other.

And you did miss him, the anticipation pooling to your core an irrefutable proof. 

Suguru draws back, catlike eyes opening. His lips part as he puts out the unfinished cigarette, a tremble to his fingers. “I need a shower.” 

You can’t but smile and chew on your lip as he passes you, his hand grazing the small of your back. “Wait for me?”

“Where would I go?” you tease, your voice only a little choked. 

Selfish? Yes, you most certainly are. Suguru is kind, and possibly the most courteous person you’ve met among your peers, and he’d do anything for the people he cares about. When you first spoke of what developed from your friendship, you agreed to keep things open, not least because your occupations didn’t allow for much more.

Distance means safety. Distance means less pressure. But, there’s a flip side to everything and deep inside you wonder—would anyone else, apart from Satoru maybe, be able to remain by his side for as long as you both have?

The answer doesn't matter, does it? 

You stare ahead at the city, not slowing for a moment despite the hour. Wetness splashes your face, and faraway thunder signals a renewed pour. Rain falls, slower this time, reluctant little drops that induce a near catatonic state of mind, and you barely feel arms wrapping around your middle from behind.

“Hi again,” you murmur as Suguru buries his face against your neck; the softness of lips on your skin follows. 

“Hi,” he says, hugging you tighter and pressing a kiss to your jaw. His hands feel heavy on your body, one sliding down your thigh while the other reaches up to your ribs, ghosting the side of a breast.

You have to admit, whatever lies you tell yourself, your body will always deny it through the swift, unruly reactions to his closeness. You missed him, and now… now you want him in ways that make your head spin. Base. Primal. 

The hand on your thigh drifts inward and up, up, up. His chest heaves against your back, and his grip on you is tighter when he reaches the warmth between your legs. “May I?” he asks into your skin. 

You nod. You feel his smile against your neck as his hand grips you, massaging the hot center through your nightgown.  

You huff a short breath; he sighs. “You’re so… warm…” he squeezes gently, his long hand arched and slowly moving back and forth between your legs. You grasp his other arm, your knees already useless. 

The rain is cold, his mouth is warm. His hair is loose and still wet from the shower, dripping down your collarbone as he tilts your chin to the side, and presses his lips to yours. 

Suguru tastes good. He’s always tasted better than anyone you recall, deepening the kiss faster than you can react, the hand between your legs drawing your hips against his. 

“… you're so…” his fingers never stopped teasing your slit through your clothes, and he’s hardening against your ass as he speaks, “...delicious,” he says, sucking harshly on your lower lip before melding his mouth to yours. 

You can barely get an intake of breath, and as good as this feels, you're both getting pelted by the rain now.

Not that he cares: one hand holding you by the jaw and the other weakening you, he feels overwhelming, so much so that it hurts a little as you break the kiss. “Suguru, the rain…”

“Yes, you’re right,” he mumbles, still nipping and licking at your lips, “Of course, of course, you’re right…” and with that he all but drags you after him as you are, never releasing you. 

You reach the one room with a double bed—usually yours to sleep in—where he throws you down, following and dragging you under him, pausing for a moment to stare at you. He’s wearing nothing but loose dark pants, and your eyes are drawn to the ragged cross of scars lining his chest. Unable to resist, you trace one with your finger, then rise and kiss along it as he holds the back of your head. 

“You… I’m so… glad you’re here, I’m…” he doesn't continue, instead pushing you down by the shoulders and hastily sliding your nightgown up your thighs with both hands. There’s an urgency to each movement, to each kiss down your sensitive inner thigh, his head dipping lower and lower, his breath hot and eyes half-lidded as he looks up at you briefly while gently pulling aside your panties. 

Your lower body shivers with need, the sight alone throwing you in a daze—he’s good at this, you know he is, and he—

All following thoughts disperse and your mind empties when he runs his tongue along your slit in a slow, hot, languid stripe. 

“Oh god…” he says against your cunt, his hands on your inner thighs keeping them spread as he licks you again.

You clutch at the sheet, your fingers finding purchase in his hair when he sucks on your clit with the softest insistence. His eyes are closed, a furrow to his brow that you’d mistake for concentration if it weren't for the needy sounds slipping from his lips as he takes you slowly, again and again, like he’d been thirsty for this all his days. 

You're at a breaking point, thighs trembling beneath the pressure of his soothing hands, your mouth watering in pleasure at the sight and sensation of his pink tongue circling your clit, and all you can articulate is his name.

“Mm?” He doesn't even look up, still eating you out with maddening compulsion, sucking on your pussy lips before licking between them, up your clit and down to your hole, slipping his hardened tongue inside and urging your hips to move against his mouth. 

“I-I’m going to…” A stutter of muscles, then another, and he won't stop but keeps eating you out like he's in his own dream, urging you on with his eyes closed. 

“Please, come on… for me, will you…? You taste so good, so-so-good, did I ever tell you that? If not I’m… an idiot-your scent-your—...”

You can't hear the rest over the waves of a sudden high, nerves suffused with pleasure and the deepest relief you’ve ever felt. He breathes against your quivering cunt as your fingers lazily card through his hair. When he looks up at you again, his eyes are feverish, his lips aglow with your shine. He crawls up to you like a stalking feline pulling down his pants and reaching for a bedside drawer at the same time. “Where… did you have those…”

“It’s fine,” you urge him back down. “On the pill for a while now.”

He watches you for a moment, then leans in for a slow, open-mouthed kiss. His erection is pressed against your pussy, his forearms on either side of your head, his hands caressing your temples. 

He’s heavy against you but it’s that pleasant heaviness that goes with a craving to be consumed and just as you think this Suguru severs the kiss, rising to his knees. “Off. Take it off,” he says, his voice low and breathy as he slides his pants down his hips.

You don't even get to comply before he’s yanking your garments off himself, unveiling your body with jerked, impatient movements. “Much better…” he says, and for a moment you see it—that light in his eyes, the spark that both scares and thrills. But you’re easily distracted by the sight and sound of him pumping his cock as he stares at you so hungrily, as he drags you by the hip towards him and grabs you by one ankle, resting your leg over his shoulder. 

It strikes you how attractive the sight of him is, and you make sure to capture the memory: the slight crease between his eyebrows and the deepened flush across his cheekbones, his disheveled inky hair, the parted lips as he rubs the wet tip of his thick erection against your slit. The way the muscles in his abdomen tense and soft, barely audible moans leave him with each stroke. “Ready?” he asks but doesn't wait for an answer and you grit your teeth, watching the head of his cock disappear inside your body. “Good girl… just a little more, you can take me…”

“Suguru wait, it’s—” you cry out at the sudden thrust, your back arching off the bed.

He clamps a hand over your mouth, pressing down with his weight as you cry out against his palm. “… all in, it’s fine. I told you, like last time…”  

But last time it wasn't quite like this. Last time was a slow, tender affair full of exploration. This feels like an impending storm and he feels different too, but, at the same time, you find that you enjoy it. You wonder if it shows on your face despite your words.

He sank inside you to the hilt but now doesn't move, locking eyes with you. He’s biting down on his lip and his cock twitches inside your cunt, once, twice, a delicious feeling that makes you involuntarily tilt your hips upward. He’s aware enough to see it in your eyes, in the way your tongue peeks out to lick at the inside of his palm. 

Suguru smiles—there it is, that fox-like grin, a little tired but reminiscent of better, brighter days. Affection melts into the urgent need for him as he removes his hand from your mouth and slinks out of you slowly, torturously slow, until the thick head barely grazes your soaked pussy. 

Your vision sways when the sudden thrust slams right back into you. “God...”

“I know…” he gasps, his fingers digging into your hip bone, his other hand grasping the leg still propped against his shoulder. 

Another thrust leaves you dizzy, the angling of his hips changing as he leans forward, pressing more of his body weight onto you, and then—

He knows rhythm, he’s always had an innate understanding and empathy toward others, down to every level of their being. And now that sense of his must be at work because his pace is a lascivious crescendo, the long drags of his cock inside you harder and faster and just how you like them, his chest rising and falling shaken by his labored breathing. His eyes catch your stare, clouded with pleasure from the incessant, decadent ebb and flow. 

He fucks into you faster, until his skin is sleek with sheen and you're moaning helplessly from this sweet, merciless intrusion. In truth, you never have time, never enough energy to invest in someone else. It just comes with the territory, with the way of life most people would never understand. “Suguru,” you coo, and at the silent question in his eyes you add: “Harder…”

A huff of laughter escapes him and he wastes no time pulling out—you feel the loss immediately, a whimper your protest, but it’s short-lived as he turns you over. “On your knees.” 

You comply, rising to all fours in a breath. A slap to your ass nearly has you tumbling forward on the bed but the firm grasp on your hips won't allow it. He pulls you right back onto his cock, moaning softly as you involuntarily clench and squeeze, telling you how tight you are, how fine and slick you feel, all the while placing warm, shallow kisses along your spine. 

And then the world tilts sideways. You can hear nothing but the slap of his hips, feel nothing but the building rush inside as he pumps into you with vicious strength, pushing into you at a pace that has you quivering and crying out.

“Harder? Is that what you said?...” he asks, but there’s no trace of teasing or humor in his tone as he fucks you deeper, and the more you struggle the more bruising his hold on you becomes. 

You barely avoid biting on your tongue as your body shakes from his pitiless moves until you can’t take it anymore: your arms give way, and you fall over. 

“S-Suguru...” 

He keeps going, ramming you into the bed, sucking on your ear as you lie there and take it and take it and take it. For how long? 

“SUGURU—”

All you feel is the cleaving pleasure of an exquisite orgasm, a coil unwinding where your bodies are joined to spread like heavenly vines through your body. 

He flips you over at the same time, entering you and going completely still; his arms wind around you in a hot embrace. “I love… I love it when you do that…” he whispers against your neck, enjoying the uncontrollable spasming of your cunt around him. 

As you come down he picks up the pace again; your legs cross around his torso, your heels touching the small of his back. 

“That’s right��” you sigh as he groans into your neck, “Use me… use me…” 

“What?... Say that again... please.” His voice is pleading now, in direct opposition to the ruthless treatment from moments before. 

“I want you… to use me, Suguru,” you repeat, and oh how you mean it. He feels even deeper now, raising his head, your lips barely touching as he moves. “Use me! Use me-use me-god-fuck…” because he’s doing just that, moaning against your mouth as your hands come fisted in his hair and you pull. His movement is erratic, rhythm and all failing before successive, incessant, desperate pounding, so deep it hurts and—

His hips stutter once, twice, and he clutches at you fiercely when warmth floods your cunt, hot cum spurting as he keeps you trapped beneath him until you’re full of it. 

You lie there, chest to chest, breathing each other’s air. Your fingers ease the grip on his hair. When he tries to move, your hands press down onto the hard muscle of his ass. “Stay inside me for a while longer?...”

His amber eyes soften; you can feel his heart beating against your chest as though it wants to burst free of its own cage. Suguru doesn’t answer but tilts you both to the side, an arm wound around your middle, the other on the thigh draped over his hip, keeping you entangled. 

You’re spent, all the life force drained from your body, while he looks as though he’s run a marathon without pause: face flushed, muscles gleaming, tense and warm against your softness. His honeyed irises are brighter.

“Did it help?...” you ask, tucking yourself against his chest. The distant roll of thunder returns outside.

“Help?… Oh, yes, absolutely yes, of course. But…” he pauses, like the times he does when mulling over the right words. A trace returns of the Suguru you know most of the time: the gentle, responsible one. He’s usually so selfless and kind, that one would be hard-pressed to believe he’s caused the bruises currently forming on your hips.  

“But?” you ask, barely able to stay awake now; he’s so, so warm, and so close, and your mind can barely process coherent thoughts.

“I…”

You never hear the rest, drifting away, light and content as a leaf wayworn by the wind. Tomorrow… all else can wait until tomorrow.

II >

[dottysdokis]

ykw fuck it. i'm so sick of blaming covid lockdowns for gen z's (especially cishet men's) choice to completely disregard their fellow human beings.

oh boohoo, you missed a year of in-person school. i have a little sympathy for lost experiences like prom and graduation but it only goes so far. my max sympathies lie with the frontline workers who had to go on business as usual.

because guess what? countless disabled and neurodivergent people have fallen through the cracks of the traditional school system all along and missed those experiences without becoming reactionaries.

i was one of them, in a minor sense. an elementary school experience rife with punishment + being taken out of the classroom for having sensory meltdowns. a complete nervous breakdown in sixth grade that resulted in multiple hospitalizations, expulsion from multiple schools due to disruptions and failing grades, and ultimately sitting out the rest of the year at home. a few years thankfully spent at a private school for neurodivergent kids where i learned some masking skills, and as a result was pushed back into the public system for the rest of high school, where i never really assimilated, had to go to summer school one year because i was tardy to gym too much, and barely scraped by enough to graduate with a c average. i was a zombie, academically and socially, just going through the bare minimum motions because that was all i could manage. i went to prom, desperately wanting that Magical Once In A Lifetime High School Memory, but found i knew no one there and the music and space were overwhelming and isolating. i left after an hour.

i'm not telling all of this as a sob story, it sucked and i sometimes mourn the ultimately impossible Normal Life Track i could have had if i just tried harder, if i was wired different, but it was far from a tragedy and i didn't let it polarize me into wanting people cruelly subjugated/denied basic rights. i made it through, when countless disabled folk don't even make it to high school graduation.

the point is that for people like me, that Missed Potential, those Stolen Opportunities have been a constant reality. seeing your peers progress while you are stuck and left behind, having to work twice as hard to try and keep up.

so in light of that, and thanks to my privileged position of having been a college student who didn't need to hold down a job? the pandemic was a relief. suddenly everyone was on pause, not just me. there was leniency given for responsibilities (assignments, rent, etc.) because these were Unprecedented Times and everyone was refiguring how to make things work. it was finally okay for me to go at my own pace and not have a longterm plan.

you can whine all you fucking want about how alienated you were by having to switch to virtual classes, but everyone else was in the same boat as you, you were all alienated together. trust me when i say it feels so much worse to be the odd one out, the loose stitch in the tapestry who just can't fit, who has to watch everyone else make their way while you struggle and have to figure out an alternate, slower way to get by, because there's Something Wrong With You, it can't be the system itself that's flawed, why should it change?

turns out it could, and did for awhile, and a bunch of people had to temporarily experience a microcosm of that loneliness and still can't stop whining about it five years later. after that trauma, they had no choice but to become nazis, obviously!!

[dogicrimsonofficial]

Howler Logs - #18, The Highbridge 💖

<== Previous -- Next ==>

Full Travel Log Catalogue Here!

Sun was slowly rising, painting the skies in oranges and reds. One lone – well, not so lone anymore thanks to the baby bat that had refused to leave Howler’s side since they met – Elezen had taken a long route, finally having reached the Highbridge. They might have figured out how to teleport after a while, without it being too much of a financial burden… but that didn’t mean they didn’t have to spend a day or two on the dusty road with their own two feet. The aetheryte system only took them so far after all. 

Still, the perks of fast travel to even general region couldn’t be overstated at all – and with all of the little things they had managed to do and pick up recently, like taking out smaller hunts or delivering packages, exploring ruins and what have you, they had managed to save up quite a bit. 

Being forced into a diet of solids only once in a while also helped with the savings, but that's neither here nor there. 

Traveling like this was peaceful, in its own way. Beautiful sights, nature itself, watching how the animals and creatures behaved, occasional friendly travellers on the road. A stark contrast to the desolate lands Howler had grown used to. 

But the peace rarely lasted in the life of an adventurer – that was something Howler was learning and fast. The first thing to break the calm was a shout – higher pitch, slightly accented. Male. A Lalafell? 

Second thing Howler registered was another sound, a steady and fast pace of feet running on the stone. Howler turned around just in time to see something big and feathery running up the stairs of the bridge – causing the Elezen to tense up for a moment. 

Their arm extended out with a snap just as the Chocobo ran past them – snatching the green reins from the air with the mechanical arm with ease, heels planted against the stones of the bridge. It was a struggle, and Howler did find themselves being dragged along – but surprisingly, they didn’t lose their balance. Even Pipsqueak attempted to help, clinging to Howler's hood and flapping their wings as frantically as they could. 

Teeth gritting, and with one strong yank downwards, the Chocobo finally slowed and turned – only to try and turn around even more as soon as it realized it couldn’t run forward anymore. That was when Howler pulled even further, forcing the Chocobos head closer to the ground by using both Howler's own weight and gravity to help out. 

Having its beak so much closer to the ground forced the bird to come to a complete stop, dumbfounded how the twist and turn had ended up like this. 

“Are you calm now?” Howler asked, free hand now on top of the bird's neck – trying to force compliance without too much force. 

The chocobo - dusty yellow in color, paler than most others Howler had seen so far but only slightly – blinked in confusion, before sitting down on the bridge itself. Apparently it was done with the mischief. 

Howler let out a sigh, and released the bird as the Lalafell shouted from the other end of the bridge. 

“Hey! Hey you! With the goggles and silver-hair! Bring that bird over here, my legs are about to give out!” 

There was a moment of silence, before the Elezen shrugged, and gently tugged along on the reins. “Come on now big guy.”

Couple minutes later, the story was revealed – the Chocobo had been a new purchase from a runaway Woodwailer. Something about not being able to handle the frontlines any longer, having no desire to be drafted in the efforts… Unfortunately, the Chocobo – Cy – was a feisty thing that liked to fight. 

Hihira hadn’t thought it was this bad. Not until the Chocobo escaped for the third time when the Lalafell had tried to remove the current barding to saddle the poor bird for more merchant-appropriate barding. It was not the Gridanian’s bird anymore and what not. 

“At this point I would be better off chasing that Woodwailer down and demanding my money back!” 

Howler however… took a look at the bird. The dusty yellow feathers, deep brown eyes, knowledge that this bird wanted to fight and clearly knew how to… “:.. I’ll buy him.”

“Pardon?”

“I… My apologies, I spoke before thinking,” Howler lowered their head, but then gave a bit more determined look. The more Howler thought about it, the smarter it sounded. “.. I am in need of a mount. I’ve been on foot for the majority of my time here. I’ve also been doing my fights alone so far - so having back up… I’d appreciate it. It sounds like you’ve been struggling with this bird - granted I do not know the current prices for Chocobos, but I’d wager whatever I pay would save you gil in the long run.”

Hihira stared at the Elezen for a moment, stroking his chin deep in thought. “... Show me how much you got, and we might have a deal.”

Couple bells later, and pockets much lighter – from both gil and some of the spoils from hunts Howler had managed during the travel here – Howler managed to sit down. The bird sat next to them, tilting his head curiously. It was almost like all the mischievous energy to run away for the next fight had disappeared, now that the Chocobo knew there were proper fights to be had. 

“... You really remind me of Silas,” Howler commented after a moment, taking in the sights and calm. They’d have a location to go to after this, but right now they had to let Cy’s legs rest. Too many escape attempts. “Your feathers are almost the same color as his hair. And he really liked to fight.”

Howler let out a small snort, looking back at Cy. “... I’ve never ridden one of your kind before. So try not to throw me off. By all accounts, I should be a natural – dad was apparently quite the Chocobo master in his youth.”

[lol-jackles]

I have a question for clarification. What’s the difference between Executive Producer and Producer? My friend says Executive Producer is just the name to attract investors and none of the responsibilities. What say you?

Producer will manage the entire process from beginning to end: fundraising, networking, securing rights to creative works, commissioning writers, hiring a director, crew, and actors, organizing shooting and production schedules, ensuring compliance with health and safety regulations during production, holding regular meetings with director to discuss progress, ensuring the project is done on time and within the budget.  They supervise the entire project from beginning to post-production.  Co-producers like Jerry Wanek is responsible for set designs so he has to learn new lighting tricks, the latest cameras that are on the market and what shoots best in what scenarios.

The Executive Producer title are given out like candies. Most of the producers, co-producers, associate producers and executive producers are writers.  The unions limits the number of people who can receive writing credit on any one episode.  Keep in mind that TV shows have big writers room, so every writer on the show might contribute at least in small part to every episode.  So they need some sort of credit.  That credit becomes “executive producer.”  

Actors get “executive producer” credit to get profit-sharing deals, they very rarely have any power in the creative process. That said, the title does validates the value of the actor’s presence on the show. So in some cases the EP actors participate in some of the show’s important decisions. The industry has a very strict hierarchies.  Timothy Olyphant of Justified said he took advantage of the executive producer title (he joked that the title of Glorified Cheerleader wasn’t available) because the credit system has a certain hierarchy, so he was able to access the process behind the camera, collaborate with the showrunner, and be in the writers room two months before filming starts. While some actors are perfectly fine being told on as needed basis because they think their acting will come across better by having a more natural reaction, I think Jared is one of those people who has to be in the loop. like how he would read up to 3 SPN scripts ahead.

Now the real dish.  Networks don’t want to set precedent for high ranking actors’ salaries.  Many in the industry think NBC giving in to Friends six actors’ demands was a huge mistake and set a very bad precedent.  CBS was at the frontline to prevent this from happening again.  To compensate the leading actors, the network will give them two paychecks: one for acting, and one as producer.  But technically the network could still say, “well, Jared Padalecki is only getting $300,000 per episode for his acting duties”.

[mariacallous]

Roman Pohorilyi was 22 when he started tracking Russian troop movements near Ukraine’s border. It was the fall of 2021, and he and a childhood friend, Ruslan Mykula, had been sharing news about foreign affairs to an audience of about 200 subscribers on a Telegram channel. It was just a hobby for them. Neither imagined that a year later their country would be in a state of absolute war with Russia, and that their hobby, which they called Deep State, would be tracking every aspect of it.

Although Deep State started as a news channel, it has become most famous for its open access map that charts the shifting front line of Russia’s invasion, and which has become a crucial tool for Ukrainians to keep track of the conflict that once threatened to overrun their country. On some days in late 2022, Deep State’s map received as many as 3 million views. Mykula showed WIRED a screenshot from the website’s dashboard that recorded more than 482 million views between June 2023 and June 2024.

Mykula and Pohorilyi created the map on the first day of the war, after recognizing a demand from their Telegram subscribers for frequent updates about what was happening. Pohorilyi was in the penultimate year of a law degree, and Mykula was working in marketing. But both had been learning open source intelligence skills to help verify videos of military activity that actors on all sides were publishing online.

The basic map itself, which a friend helped to design, is simple but precise. Territories occupied by Russia are shaded in red; those held by Ukraine are shaded in green. Blue marks areas that Ukraine has recently liberated. Known Russian units, airfields, and HQs are marked with small red squares; troop movements with arrows; and railways with black and white lines (Ukrainian positions are not shown). Zooming in, one can see detail down to the level of individual streets, villages, and tree lines. It looks like the board of a computer strategy game.

Over time, Deep State has added more advanced features and quirks to the map. A toolbar in the bottom-left corner offers the option to enable different layers, including weather patterns, fortifications, and gamma radiation levels in case of nuclear disaster. Users can simulate the effect of different weapons, calculating the range and potential damage of everything from self-propelled howitzers and ballistic missiles to Patriot air defense systems and nuclear explosions. A hidden Easter egg summons an animation of Baby Yoda that, when poked, uses the Force to destroy Russian units.

The map soon became too much for Mykula and Pohorilyi to manage alone; they now enlist the help of more than 100 paid employees and volunteers. Their methods have also evolved. They still use open source intelligence to verify new information, but also acquire data directly from frontline military units whom they’ve developed relationships with. In some cases, the authority of a single source whom they’ve learned to trust is enough, though Mykula admits there have been occasional errors. In other cases, when multiple sources contradict one another, they wait until definitive evidence emerges. Propaganda is rife on both sides, and Mykula insists that Deep State will take no part in it. “We want to win,” he says. “Propaganda will not win.”

Mykula and Pohorilyi do, however, oblige when Ukrainian military commanders request delays to map updates that may compromise their activities. They also receive some government funding for an alternate version of the map available only to verified members of the military. The government funding also goes toward other intelligence activities that Ruslan refuses to discuss; most of their funding comes from public donations.

Late in the first year of the war, Mykula and Pohorilyi learned that their map was helping another, unexpected group of users: Russian soldiers. The map’s designer had added a function that would display instructions to surrender if a user tried to access from a Russian IP address. Then, in October 2022, in an interview with a popular Ukrainian blogger, a Russian POW testified that he had used Deep State’s map for this exact purpose.

The success of Deep State’s map has attracted more users to their original Telegram channel, which now has more than 700,000 subscribers. It publishes its own original reports of the war, all available through a free app, which other established Ukrainian media organizations sometimes refer to. But the map remains the most popular product, used by Ukrainians at home and abroad to track the front line that, at the time of writing, creeps further toward their office in Kyiv every day.

Both Mykula and Pohorilyi approach their work with a stern dedication that belies their youth and inexperience. “We don’t want to disappoint our audience because our projects have become critical for Ukrainians,” Mykula says. “If you compare us to other maps, you will see that Ukrainians don’t go to check on them. They come to us.”

[proseditor]

Decoding the Future of Talent Analytics: Where Data Meets Human Potential

Talent analytics is reshaping how organizations approach talent acquisition, development, and management. By harnessing the power of data and AI, businesses can make more informed decisions that drive success in the ever-evolving world of work. But what does the future hold for this transformative field? Let's dive into the emerging trends and innovations that are set to change how companies understand and optimize their human capital.

Trend #1: Data Democratization

Until recently, talent analytics was largely the domain of HR specialists and executives. Now, user-friendly platforms and intuitive dashboards are empowering managers at all levels to leverage data-driven insights for better decision-making. This shift puts actionable analytics in the hands of frontline decision-makers, fostering a data-driven mindset throughout the organization.

Trend #2: From Descriptive to Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics

Talent analytics is no longer just about reporting the past. Advanced algorithms move from simply describing what happened to predicting future outcomes. AI-powered prescriptive analytics go a step further, recommending specific courses of action for improved outcomes. Imagine a platform that forecasts future skills gaps and suggests personalized learning pathways to address them proactively.

Trend #3: Focus on Skills and Agility

The move towards a skills-based economy means talent analytics will pivot away from traditional job titles. Advanced analytics will focus on mapping employee skills, identifying skill adjacencies, and designing talent pipelines that foster agility and resilience. Companies will be able to visualize their workforce capabilities and quickly adapt to changing business needs.

Trend #4: The Ethical Conundrum

As AI algorithms gain prominence in talent analytics, safeguarding against bias becomes critical. Companies must prioritize ethical practices in algorithm design and data usage. Transparent explainability, fairness considerations, and proactive bias mitigation will be paramount to ensure trust in AI-powered talent decisions.

Trend #5: Elevated Employee Experience

Talent analytics will shift from just supporting top-down strategy to creating a more personalized work experience. AI-driven recommendations can tailor career paths, suggest mentors, and match employees with projects that align with their interests and growth aspirations. This empowers employees and bolsters engagement.

Trend #6: Quantifying Collaboration and Innovation

Talent analytics has traditionally looked at individual metrics. Expect advancements in visualizing connections within your workforce. Imagine being able to quantify how certain team compositions drive innovation or how knowledge flows across departments. This supports building high-performance teams and encourages knowledge sharing.

Trend #7: Measuring the Impact of Well-Being

Increasingly, talent analytics will consider factors beyond traditional job performance. It will quantify the link between employee well-being, productivity, innovation, and retention. Expect data-backed initiatives that promote work-life balance, mental health support, and proactive burnout prevention.

Preparing for the Future: Key Considerations

To fully seize these opportunities, organizations need to consider these crucial points:

Data Quality: The foundation of good analytics is high-quality data. Invest in systems and processes that ensure accurate, consistent, and comprehensive data collection.

Skill Development: Upskill your HR team and managers in data interpretation and analytics. This translates data into actionable insights and responsible decision-making.

Transparency and Communication: Build employee trust in talent analytics through proactive communication. Explain decisions, safeguard privacy, and demonstrate how the data benefits everyone—employees and the organization as a whole.

In Conclusion

The future of talent analytics is about much more than just numbers. It's about using data insights to unlock human potential, shape a personalized employee experience, and drive both individual and organizational success. This field holds the key to adaptability and competitiveness in an uncertain future. Companies that embrace the evolving dynamics of talent analytics will be the ones that attract, develop, and retain the talent that sets them apart. Learning Management System (LMS) to facilitate communication, training, and knowledge sharing across your organization. Solutions like LMS offer various applications, including  Talent Development Software, LMS for Colleges, LMS for Schools, LMS for Corporate, and LMS for Business, making it a flexible tool to support your communication and development efforts. We are the best LMS Company In UAE and the top reported LMS Services provider in Saudi Arabia provide the resources to support initiatives throughout these strategic pivots, LMS is your partner for creating a robust, results-driven learning environment.

[toxiclizardwrites]

Ooh! I can also add to this!! I worked at a telecom company for 10 goddamn years before I finally went back to school, got myself in major debt, and escaped the hellhole that is retail.

At the telecom company, I recieved precisely 1 raise the entire time I was there, and I think it was $0.25. I also gained more responsibility because of my experience and ability to learn quickly. I went from handling regular customer accounts to being the other person who handles business and corporate accounts besides the manager simply because I picked it up over time. I was also selected to be trained on an entirely new system (to the frontline retail workers at least) which required a significant investment in onboarding and training by the company, for once again no extra pay. When credit cards were introduced, I had to take fintech and antitrust/fraud training. The longer I stayed, the more skills I gained but the less I was making overall.

Companies are NOT paying people enough and are exploiting their workers by making them take on more and more responsibility.

At least now I work for a company that does not do this, but that reality is very rare.

I wonder if work just.. got harder in the 2000s, comparatively.

[netobjex]

From Healthcare to Fintech: 5 Use Cases of Custom AI Agents

We’ve all heard of AI assistants that help you check the weather or play your favorite song. We're going far beyond that today, though.

Welcome to the era of custom AI agents — digital teammates that think, adapt, and work across industries like healthcare, finance, logistics, and beyond. They aren’t just tools anymore. They’re decision-makers, risk managers, customer liaisons, and compliance experts — tailored for your business environment.

At NetObjex, in partnership with Synergetics, we’re helping organizations build and deploy AI agents that are secure, scalable, and industry-ready. Let’s explore how different sectors are embracing this powerful technology to transform how they operate.

1. Healthcare: Monitoring, Compliance & Patient Support

In an industry where every second counts and regulations are non-negotiable, AI agents can become silent heroes behind the scenes.

Use Case: Regulatory Compliance Monitoring

Healthcare regulations like HIPAA change frequently. AI agents can be deployed to constantly scan internal systems and workflows for compliance issues, send real-time alerts, and even prepare draft reports for audits.

Use Case: Virtual Patient Liaison

Instead of overwhelming your human staff, custom AI agents can answer FAQs, book appointments, send reminders, and even monitor symptoms via integrated wearables — all while complying with data privacy laws.

Why it matters: Reduces admin overload, ensures better patient engagement, and lowers compliance risks.

2. Financial Services: Smarter Risk and Fraud Management

The finance sector runs on speed, trust, and accuracy. Custom AI agents can help institutions stay ahead of fraudsters and manage large data streams more effectively.

Use Case: Trade Execution Assistants

AI agents can monitor stock or crypto markets, flag opportunities, execute trades based on predefined rules, and even notify human managers in real time.

Use Case: Fraud Pattern Detectors

Agents can be programmed to analyze transaction histories, compare behavior patterns, and detect anomalies — before they turn into major breaches.

Why it matters: Agents deliver lightning-fast decisions without compromising regulatory integrity or human oversight.

3. Logistics: Coordination, Tracking & Optimization

When you're dealing with fleets, inventories, and unpredictable supply chains, automation isn't just helpful — it's a survival strategy.

Use Case: Inter-Agent Coordination for Shipments

AI agents assigned to different nodes (warehouse, transportation, delivery) can talk to each other in real time, rerouting packages or flagging delays proactively.

Use Case: Inventory Optimization

Agents can track stock levels, predict demand surges, and automate reordering based on dynamic thresholds.

Why it matters: Prevents delivery delays, lowers holding costs, and enhances customer satisfaction.

4. Enterprise & Internal Ops: Digital HR & Admin Teams

Not all AI needs to be customer-facing. In fact, many businesses are now using agents as internal support systems to boost productivity.

Use Case: Onboarding Agents

Agents can walk new employees through policies, assist with paperwork, and handle common IT or HR queries — all without human intervention.

Use Case: Report Generation & Meeting Summaries

Imagine finishing a call and having your agent instantly summarize it, extract action items, and email them to the team. That’s no longer sci-fi.

Why it matters: Frees up time, reduces burnout, and accelerates decision-making.

5. Cybersecurity: Autonomous Threat Defense

When your business is connected 24/7, cybersecurity agents are your frontline defense — always on, always learning.

Use Case: 24/7 SOC Agents

AI agents can continuously monitor network activity, detect unusual behavior, isolate breaches, and escalate incidents — all in real time.

Use Case: Policy Enforcement

Agents can verify who accesses what data, ensure encryption is active, and monitor compliance with internal protocols.

Why it matters: These AI guards reduce response times and add layers of protection to sensitive environments.

What Makes These Agents “Custom”?

Unlike generic chatbots or rigid automation tools, custom AI agents are:

Trained on your data

Aligned with your workflows

Securely integrated with internal tools and APIs

Capable of working together (multi-agent collaboration)

Thanks to platforms like Synergetics’ AgentWizard and NetObjex’s expertise in cybersecurity, compliance, and system design, these agents can evolve as your business grows.

You’re not buying software — you’re building digital teammates.

Final Thoughts: Agents Are the Future of Work

AI agents aren’t replacing humans. They’re augmenting teams, closing gaps, reducing human error, and opening up time for innovation and strategy.

Whether you're a hospital admin, fintech startup, or global logistics firm — the message is clear:

Industry's future is not merely intelligent; it is agentic.

At NetObjex, we're helping organizations design, secure, and deploy custom AI agents that bring real value. From healthcare compliance to fintech fraud detection, our goal is to put the power of intelligent automation in your hands.

Are you ready to see what AI agents can do for you? One intelligent agent at a time, let's construct the future.

Get in touch with us today

[busingrowth49]

Business Growth Consulting: Fueling Strategic Success and Sustainable Expansion

In today’s hyper-competitive marketplace, standing still is not an option. Companies must evolve, innovate, and continually seek new opportunities to thrive. Business growth consulting has emerged as a critical asset for organizations that want to scale intelligently and sustainably. Whether a company is experiencing stagnant revenues, planning to enter new markets, or simply aiming to strengthen its operations, business growth consulting provides a clear, data-informed roadmap for transformation. At its core, it is about more than just growth—it's about the right kind of growth: scalable, strategic, and built for long-term success.

Understanding Business Growth Consulting

Business growth consulting is a specialized advisory service focused on helping businesses expand their revenue, market presence, operations, and overall impact. It is a collaborative process where consultants work alongside business leaders to identify growth barriers, unlock new opportunities, and implement strategies that drive performance.

Unlike traditional management consulting, which may address a broad range of operational or organizational issues, business growth consulting zeros in on expansion. This could involve product development, digital transformation, sales optimization, marketing alignment, customer retention strategies, mergers and acquisitions, or operational efficiency improvements. Regardless of the path chosen, the goal remains consistent: to help businesses move forward with confidence and measurable results.

Why Businesses Seek Growth Consulting

There are several reasons why a business may turn to growth consulting. Some organizations have hit a plateau and need help breaking through stagnation. Others are in the early stages of scaling and want to avoid common pitfalls. Still others may be preparing for significant transitions—such as launching a new product line, entering a different market segment, or navigating a leadership change.

Growth consulting provides a fresh, external perspective that uncovers blind spots and untapped potential. It brings clarity to complex challenges and offers actionable strategies rooted in data and real-world experience. Importantly, it can shorten the learning curve and accelerate the implementation of change initiatives that lead to meaningful, profitable outcomes.

Key Areas of Focus in Business Growth Consulting

While every engagement is unique, business growth consulting typically centers around a few core areas. Each one plays a vital role in fostering scalable success.

1. Strategic Planning and Vision Alignment

Growth begins with vision. Without a clear and compelling direction, businesses can easily waste time and resources chasing the wrong goals. Consultants help leadership teams define or refine their long-term vision and break it down into actionable, measurable strategies.

This may include identifying ideal customer segments, analyzing market trends, evaluating current offerings, and exploring diversification opportunities. The focus is on aligning all stakeholders—from leadership to frontline employees—behind a unified growth strategy that can be executed with confidence.

2. Operational Efficiency and Scalability

Many businesses experience growing pains when their internal systems and processes can’t keep up with increased demand. Business growth consulting tackles inefficiencies head-on, streamlining operations to improve productivity, reduce waste, and enhance scalability.

This could involve process automation, better supply chain management, improved resource allocation, or technology integration. By optimizing operations, businesses can not only grow faster but also increase their margins and improve customer satisfaction.

3. Sales and Revenue Optimization

Revenue is the lifeblood of any growing company. A major focus of business growth consulting is enhancing sales performance. This includes analyzing sales funnels, improving conversion rates, training teams, and identifying high-value opportunities.

Consultants may help restructure pricing models, align sales and marketing efforts, or introduce new tools and technologies to improve tracking and forecasting. The result is a more agile, data-driven approach to revenue generation.

4. Marketing Strategy and Brand Positioning

In an era of information overload, how a company positions itself in the market can make or break its growth trajectory. Business growth consulting evaluates current marketing strategies and refines them to improve visibility, engagement, and conversion.

This could include brand messaging audits, audience targeting, competitive analysis, and digital marketing improvements. A strong marketing foundation ensures that growth efforts are not only ambitious but also sustainable and well-received in the marketplace.

5. Financial Modeling and Risk Management

Growth is not just about expansion—it’s about smart expansion. Financial modeling plays a crucial role in business growth consulting, helping companies understand how various growth scenarios will impact cash flow, profitability, and investment needs.

Consultants provide guidance on budgeting, capital allocation, and risk mitigation strategies to ensure that growth initiatives are financially viable. This also includes contingency planning and setting key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress along the way.

6. Leadership and Team Development

A business can only grow as fast as its people. Business growth consulting often includes leadership coaching and team development initiatives to build the internal capacity needed for expansion. This might mean redefining organizational roles, improving communication structures, or helping emerging leaders take on more responsibility.

Strong leadership is a catalyst for growth, and consultants help identify and remove cultural or structural obstacles that could be holding a company back.

Benefits of Business Growth Consulting

The benefits of engaging in business growth consulting are far-reaching. First and foremost, it provides a structured framework for expansion—one grounded in data, insight, and real-world experience. Businesses gain clarity about their strengths and weaknesses, along with customized strategies tailored to their specific industry, size, and goals.

Consulting also saves time. Rather than experimenting through trial and error, companies can leverage proven strategies and avoid costly missteps. With outside accountability and expert guidance, they’re better positioned to execute quickly and efficiently.

Another key benefit is confidence. Growth initiatives can be risky and intimidating. Business growth consulting helps remove uncertainty by offering a roadmap that outlines what to do, when to do it, and how to measure success along the way.

Common Challenges Addressed Through Growth Consulting

Every growing business faces hurdles. Some of the most common challenges addressed through business growth consulting include:

Inconsistent revenue or profitability

Unclear strategic direction

Underperforming sales teams

Operational bottlenecks

Marketing inefficiencies

Lack of differentiation in a crowded market

Poor team alignment or leadership breakdowns

Difficulty attracting and retaining top talent

Overreliance on a single product or customer segment

By diagnosing the root causes of these issues, consultants provide targeted solutions that empower companies to overcome obstacles and move forward with renewed energy and direction.

Measuring the Impact of Business Growth Consulting

Success in business growth consulting is measured not just by ideas generated but by results achieved. Key performance indicators (KPIs) play a central role in tracking outcomes. These may include revenue growth, profit margins, customer acquisition and retention rates, operational efficiencies, employee satisfaction, and market share gains.

Consultants work closely with clients to establish these KPIs at the outset and use them as benchmarks throughout the engagement. Continuous evaluation and refinement ensure that strategies remain relevant and adaptive to market dynamics.

Conclusion

Business growth consulting is a powerful lever for organizations seeking to navigate complexity, seize opportunity, and scale with confidence. By offering expert insight, strategic alignment, and executional support, consultants help businesses unlock their full potential in a way that is both ambitious and achievable.

Whether a company is looking to revitalize stagnant revenues, expand into new markets, or simply sharpen its competitive edge, business growth consulting offers a clear path forward. In an economy that rewards agility, foresight, and innovation, this kind of guidance is no longer optional—it’s essential. With the right approach and mindset, businesses can turn their growth goals into tangible, lasting success.

[joevedoesthings]

Why Dynamic Pricing Is the Strategic Advantage Hotels Can’t Ignore

In the hospitality industry, pricing has evolved from a back-office function to a frontline strategy. It’s no longer just about setting rates—it’s about communicating value, building trust, and responding to market shifts in real time. And in 2025, the hotels that are winning aren’t just adjusting prices—they’re using AI-powered dynamic pricing to lead the market.

This article explores how platforms like ZettaRMS are helping hotels transform pricing into a strategic advantage—driving revenue, improving guest satisfaction, and future-proofing operations.

📉 Static Pricing Is Holding Hotels Back

Legacy pricing models—seasonal grids, fixed weekday/weekend rates, manual overrides—were built for a slower world. But today’s hospitality landscape is anything but slow.

Static pricing fails to respond to:

Sudden demand spikes (events, weather, holidays)

Competitor rate changes

Booking pace and pickup trends

Channel mix and guest segmentation

Hotels relying on static pricing risk:

Revenue leakage

Missed opportunities

Inconsistent guest experiences

Operational inefficiencies

🤖 Dynamic Pricing: Powered by Agentic AI

Dynamic pricing for hotels means adjusting rates in real time based on demand signals, competitor behavior, and booking trends. With ZettaRMS, this becomes intelligent, autonomous, and scalable.

ZettaRMS Capabilities:

Real-time rate optimization across OTAs and direct channels

Demand forecasting using travel signals and historical data

Segment-specific pricing (corporate vs leisure, OTA vs direct)

Length-of-stay and pickup-based rate adjustments

Seamless integration with PMS and booking engines

ZettaRMS uses Agentic AI—a system that perceives, reasons, acts, and learns. It doesn’t just react—it anticipates.

📈 Strategic Revenue Management: From Reactive to Predictive

Dynamic pricing enables hotels to:

Capitalize instantly on high-demand windows

Offer smart discounts during lean periods

Avoid last-minute panic drops

Align pricing with upselling and promotional campaigns

With ZettaRMS, revenue teams shift from firefighting to forecasting—making data-driven decisions that drive growth.

🧠 Pricing Builds Guest Trust

In a world of instant comparison, pricing is the first promise a hotel makes to its guest. Before reading reviews or browsing amenities, travelers see the rate—and form expectations.

Erratic or inconsistent pricing creates friction. Guests hesitate. Bookings drop. Trust erodes.

Dynamic pricing ensures:

Rates reflect market conditions

Pricing feels fair and timely

Guests perceive value and transparency

Hotels using ZettaRMS report stronger conversion rates and improved guest loyalty—because pricing becomes a signal of credibility.

🛠️ Operational Efficiency and Strategic Focus

Manual pricing is slow, error-prone, and resource-intensive. ZettaRMS automates rate updates every 15 minutes, freeing up teams to focus on:

Inventory strategy

Channel mix optimization

Forecasting and budgeting

Campaign alignment

Hotels report:

+10% increase in RevPAR

15% reduction in pricing errors

Improved performance across segments and channels

🚀 Final Thought: Pricing Is a Strategic Lever

In 2025, pricing isn’t just a number—it’s a strategy. With tools like ZettaRMS, hotels turn pricing into a competitive advantage—one that adapts, communicates, and converts.

Whether managing a boutique property or scaling across regions, AI-powered dynamic pricing is how hotels win—not just survive.

[masteroapp]

Explore how AI-driven Learning Management Systems (LMS) are revolutionizing sales readiness by providing frontline reps with personalized, real-time training. This blog dives into key LMS features—such as microlearning, mobile-first design, and CRM integration—that empower sales teams to stay agile, informed, and competitive.

[microlearningplatform]

Beyond the Classroom: Why a Microlearning LMS is the Future of Sales Training

Transform Your Sales Team: The Power of MaxLearn's Microlearning LMS

In today's fast-paced business world, traditional, long-form training is no longer enough. This is especially true for sales teams across industries in the USA, where product knowledge, compliance regulations, and market trends change at lightning speed. To stay competitive, companies need a smarter, more agile approach to sales enablement. The answer? A microlearning LMS (Learning Management System).

MaxLearn is at the forefront of this revolution, providing a tailored microlearning platform that empowers sales professionals to learn in the flow of work. By delivering bite-sized, on-demand content, MaxLearn helps your team move from knowledge to revenue faster than ever.

Here’s how a microlearning LMS is revolutionizing sales training across some of America’s most critical industries.

1. Pharmaceutical & Healthcare: Mastering a World of Constant Change

For pharmaceutical and healthcare sales reps, credibility is everything. They must be equipped with accurate, up-to-the-minute information on new drugs, medical devices, and complex regulatory frameworks. The challenge of pharmaceutical sales training is immense, requiring continuous updates on topics like GMP training for the pharmaceutical industry and ethical guidelines.

Traditional classroom sessions struggle to keep pace. MaxLearn's microlearning platform delivers short, targeted modules directly to a pharma sales rep training device, ensuring they have just-in-time access to the latest clinical data, competitive comparisons, and compliance updates. This approach not only boosts sales performance but also ensures adherence to critical regulations, mitigating risk and building trust with healthcare professionals.

2. Oil and Gas: Prioritizing Safety and Expertise

The oil and gas industry is defined by high-risk environments and a rapidly aging workforce. A key challenge is the need for constant safety training and certification in the oil and gas industry. Whether it's training for oil and gas on a remote rig or an office, traditional training can be logistically challenging and expensive.

MaxLearn solves this by providing mobile-friendly oil and gas classes that can be completed in minutes. From oil and gas certification online to real-time safety procedure updates, the platform ensures that every employee has the most current information. This on-demand access is crucial for maintaining safety standards, reducing accidents, and upskilling new hires on modern technologies.

3. Banking & Finance: The New Frontier of Financial Expertise

The financial sector is undergoing a digital transformation, and so is its training. Today’s professionals need to master everything from fintech to financial modeling. A microlearning LMS is perfect for delivering complex topics in digestible chunks.

With MaxLearn, your banking team can receive short, focused lessons on the latest regulations from the American Bankers Association, new investment products, or ethical guidelines. This is ideal for roles that require ongoing education, such as investment banking prep courses and financial analyst training. By breaking down dense material into manageable modules, MaxLearn boosts knowledge retention and helps your team stay ahead of a competitive market.

4. Retail: Enabling Agility for the Frontline

The retail industry operates at a breakneck pace, with high staff turnover and a constant stream of new products and promotions. In this environment, a microlearning LMS is an essential tool for retail sales training. It enables managers to deliver quick, effective retail staff training without disrupting floor operations.

MaxLearn's platform allows you to create and distribute short, engaging videos and quizzes on new product features, sales techniques, and customer service best practices. This just-in-time training ensures that every employee, from the newest hire to the store manager, is prepared to handle any customer interaction. With MaxLearn, you can provide effective retail store staff training that translates directly into a better customer experience and higher sales.

5. Insurance: From Sales Rep to Trusted Advisor

The insurance agent's role is evolving from transactional salesperson to strategic advisor. With increasing pressure from digital-first competitors, agents need to stay sharp on complex policies, liability risks, and a wide array of new product offerings.

MaxLearn's microlearning platform provides the perfect solution for continuous education. It can deliver concise updates on insurance claims adjuster training, new product rollouts, and changes in regulations. This allows agents to quickly and confidently respond to client questions, solidifying their position as a trusted advisor rather than just a product peddler.

6. Mining: Ensuring Safety in a High-Stakes Environment

Safety is the paramount concern in the mining industry. Frequent, consistent training for mining is not just a best practice—it's a requirement. With the need for MSHA certification and ongoing safety reminders, a microlearning platform is an invaluable asset.

MaxLearn delivers bite-sized modules on critical safety procedures, equipment checks, and mining safety certification. This approach ensures that information is regularly reinforced, helping to combat the "forgetting curve" and build a culture of safety. It's the most effective way to keep your team up-to-date on MSHA part 46 and other vital standards without disrupting operations or risking worker safety.

By targeting the unique training pain points of each of these industries, MaxLearn provides a powerful, scalable solution that drives sales performance, ensures compliance, and future-proofs your workforce. It's not just training; it’s a strategic advantage.

[empcloudx]

What Is Workforce Management and Why Does It Matter?

Have you ever wondered how organizations keep everything running smoothly while getting the most out of their teams? It all comes down to strategically aligning people, time, and tasks for optimal results. This approach involves placing the right individuals in the right roles at precisely the right moments, fully prepared to deliver their best. It goes beyond just managing schedules and staffing, it’s about boosting productivity, cutting operational expenses, and enhancing employee satisfaction through dynamic, data-informed methods.

The Basics of Managing a Workforce

Workforce management refers to the processes, tools, and strategies used to plan, monitor, and optimize employee performance and resource allocation. It includes tasks such as:

Forecasting labour needs

Scheduling staff shifts

Monitoring attendance and compliance

Managing productivity

Handling time-off requests and payroll integration

Whether you're running a retail store, managing a remote tech team, or overseeing hospital staff, it helps strike the right balance between business demands and the capabilities of your people.

What Makes Effective Team Management Essential?

As the workplace evolves, staying organized and responsive isn’t a choice, it’s a competitive edge. Here’s what makes it so important:

Boosts Efficiency

With real-time data and automated tools, you avoid overstaffing or last-minute shortages. Each team member knows exactly where to be and at what time.

Reduces Costs

Better shift planning means fewer overtime hours and less reliance on temporary labour. You optimize resource use without compromising service quality.

Improves Employee Satisfaction

Fair scheduling, streamlined communication, and transparent policies reduce burnout and improve morale—key drivers of retention.

Enhances Customer Experience

Happy, well-prepared employees provide better service. It ensures frontline teams are prepared and empowered to perform at their best.

Essential Elements of a Strong Workforce Strategy

To build a successful workforce strategy, consider these essential components:

Demand Forecasting

Estimate staffing needs by analyzing past trends, seasonal shifts, and projected sales.

Smart Scheduling

Use automated tools to assign shifts based on availability, skill level, and labour laws, while accounting for employee preferences.

Time and Attendance Tracking

Monitor employee hours in real time with digital time clocks, mobile check-ins, or biometric systems.

Performance Analytics

Track KPIs such as sales per employee, time-on-task, or attendance issues to guide coaching and decision-making.

Compliance and Regulation

Ensure schedules and labour practices comply with local laws, union agreements, and internal policies.

Smart Practices to Improve Workforce Operations

Implementing a solid strategy takes more than systems. Follow these steps for real results:

Start with Clear Goals

Define what success looks like, fewer absences? Better productivity? Improved customer satisfaction?

Choose the Right Technology

Look for tools that integrate easily with your existing systems and offer mobile access, automation, and analytics.

Train Managers and Staff

Make sure all team members know how the system works and why it matters to them. Change management is key.

Monitor and Adjust Continuously

Use analytics to refine your approach. What delivered results last quarter may fall short next month.

Prioritize Flexibility

Especially in hybrid or shift-based environments, flexible scheduling builds trust and reduces attrition.

Modern Approaches to Workforce Coordination

From remote work to freelance talent, today’s evolving work landscape demands stronger workforce coordination. Today’s systems are not just about efficiency but agility, allowing businesses to scale, adapt, and compete in real time.

By harnessing AI and machine learning, modern workforce platforms improve demand forecasting and schedule optimization. Managers are no longer buried in spreadsheets, they’re making strategic decisions guided by live data.

Companies that embrace these tools aren't just managing, they're leading.

You can also watch: EmpCloud: One Platform for All Your Workforce Needs!

Final Takeaway: Use Smart Planning to Drive Growth

Strong workforce management is no longer optional. It serves as the cornerstone for a business that’s productive, engaged, and ready to grow. When done right, it transforms how your organization functions, from chaotic to coordinated, from reactive to proactive.

Whether you're a growing startup or an enterprise with thousands of employees, the time to refine your workforce strategy is now. And with modern tools and a thoughtful approach, it's more achievable than ever.

FAQs: Common Questions About Workforce Management

What industries benefit most from workforce management?

Retail, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, and call centers benefit greatly, but any business with people and schedules can see improvements.

What’s the difference between workforce management and HR?

HR is responsible for recruiting, onboarding, and managing employee relationships. Workforce management is about operational efficiency-scheduling, attendance, productivity, and compliance.

Is workforce management software worth it?

Yes. It saves time, improves accuracy, and gives actionable insights, especially for growing or complex teams.

[crucialconversations]

Building a Productive Workplace through Communication, Habits, and Clarity

Successful organizations are based on more than talent and strategy—they are powered by the way people communicate, get their work done, and build reliable behaviors that produce results. Teams can possess the appropriate talent and vision, but without the capacity to have open conversations, manage priorities, and create strong habits, performance can suffer.

To overcome these issues, businesses are now opting for a combination of behavior development tools like crucial conversations training, GTD coaching, and systematic communication skills training for staff. On top of this come the findings from behavior science, like in the book The Power of Habit, and it is understandable how workplace transformation can be more about people and habits rather than processes and policies.

This article explores how these methods contribute to personal effectiveness, team collaboration, and organizational agility.

What Is Crucial Conversations Training?

Understanding what is crucial conversations training begins with recognizing the nature of workplace conflict. Many of the most important moments at work are emotionally charged—discussing missed deadlines, giving feedback, addressing underperformance, or debating direction. Often, these conversations are avoided or handled poorly, resulting in strained relationships, ambiguity, or unresolved issues.

Crucial conversations training is intended to make people more skillful and confident at handling such moments. It aims to make participants capable of:

1. Identifying when a conversation is becoming crucial—where stakes are high, opinions diverge, and emotions are high

2. Remaining calm and present under pressure

3. Being honest without inviting defensiveness

4. Building respect and common ground

5. Achieving agreements that serve team or organizational purposes

This development applies to employees at all levels within an organization, from frontline managers to senior executives. When teams learn to have tough conversations up front and build constructively, they avoid misunderstandings, deepen their teamwork, and make quicker, better-informed decisions.

The key to crucial conversations is not about controlling results, but about establishing the environment in which people hear, are understood, and are held accountable. It is a core communication skill that builds trust and performance within the organization. 

GTD Coaching: Creating Clarity in a Chaotic World

Workplace overload is no longer the rule—it's usually the default. Workers have to balance multiple projects, endless emails, back-to-back meetings, and changing priorities. In this kind of setting, productivity is not simply about working harder; it's about working smarter.

Here's where GTD coaching—Getting Things Done—comes in as a useful tool for clarity of life and work.

GTD is a productivity system created to assist individuals in organizing their tasks, ideas, and responsibilities in an organized and stress-free manner. GTD coaching entails taking people through a five-step process:

1. Capture all that needs to be dealt with—email, tasks, thoughts, reminders

2. Identify what each is and if action is required

3. Break down tasks into project, priority, or context

4. Review regularly to keep your system current and on track

5. Do the right task at the right time, with the right intensity

Through externalizing lists of tasks to be done and emptying the mind, GTD allows professionals to direct their attention instead of merely responding to the most recent urgency. Coaching on GTD assists individuals in fitting the system into their working style so that it is simpler to sustain over the long term.

The result is not only efficiency but peace of mind—having a feeling of everything being in control and that key work isn't falling through the cracks.

When paired with essential conversation skills, GTD provides a one-two punch: individuals can both prioritize their tasks and discuss them simply when collaboration or renegotiation is required.

Communication Skills Training for Employees

While leadership might be given communication training, team members and front-line employees also require effective interpersonal skills to work. Communication skills training for employees is aimed at enabling people to communicate effectively, listen actively, and work together respectfully in their day-to-day interactions.

The training generally involves:

1. Verbal and non-verbal communication fundamentals

2. Active listening

3. Giving and receiving feedback

4. Resolving conflict constructively

5. Rapport building and trust

6. Cross-functional or cross-cultural communication

When staff are armed with these skills, misunderstandings in the workplace diminish, collaboration increases, and levels of engagement grow. Staff are more likely to feel empowered to voice their opinion, make suggestions, and address problems independently.

Effective communication isn't merely about speaking effectively—it's about making intentions align with impact. Organisations lower resistance by investing in communication skills on every level and create a more transparent, productive organisational culture.

Additionally, combining communication training with GTD systems causes employees not only to speak more clearly about priorities—but to deal with them as well. This sets up a loop of clarity, accountability, and shared ownership. 

Read More - Building Strong Leaders Through Dialogue, Discipline, and Influence

The Power of Habit: Why Behavior Change Matters

A great deal of what we do on the job is habitual. How we read email, how we react to obstacles, how we ready ourselves for meetings—all are influenced by habits that function largely below the radar of awareness. To alter performance, organizations must first know and affect behavior.

The Power Of Habit Book, authored by Charles Duhigg, explores the science behind why habits exist and how they can be changed. It introduces the “habit loop,” consisting of three components:

1. Cue – the trigger for a behavior

2. Routine – the behavior itself

3. Reward – the benefit that reinforces the habit

The book explains that by recognizing and reprogramming such loops, one can alter personal habits as well as organizations can revolutionize cultural norms.

Take a team, for instance, which consistently shies away from tough feedback. It is trapped in a loop: discomfort (cue), silence (routine), and short-term harmony (reward). By substituting the routine with constructive conversation, backed by rewards such as enhanced trust, an improved long-term outcome results.

When married with critical conversations training, the habit model sets communication deep within daily habits, not only as something one has learned, but as something one now practices. And so, too, with GTD coaching, where routines establish productive responses to work overload.

The word is out: true change does not come from knowing what to do—it comes from doing it over and over again, until it is second nature.

Integrating the Tools: A Holistic Approach to Performance

What distinguishes high-performance organizations isn't the existence of one training program—it's the intentional combination of tools and habits that support one another. This is how these four components complement each other:

1. Crucial conversations training helps employees be able to handle touchy topics early on and effectively.

2. GTD coaching gives the framework to handle work, decrease pressure, and enhance execution.

3. Employee communication skills training builds daily behaviors that create clarity and collaboration.

4. The Power of Habit book confirms why small, persistent changes have the potential to produce big change.

All three, collectively, create a culture of responsibility, communication, and concentration. When these practices are followed consistently by teams, meetings get done better, decisions get made quicker, and individuals get more involved in their work.

Conclusion

Organizational growth comes from being able to communicate clearly, prioritize effectively, and act consistently. Through knowledge of what is crucial conversations training, using systems of GTD coaching, spending money on communication skills training for staff, and adopting the principles of The Power of Habit book, teams and leaders can develop a work culture where clarity, collaboration, and habits produce significant outcomes.

This's not about solving issues—it's about building the environment where individuals can perform their best, collaboratively. Read More - Mastering Habits and the Getting Things Done Method

[cybersecurityict]

SMS Firewall Market Fueling the Next Wave of Messaging Security for Telcos Worldwide

The SMS Firewall Market Size was valued at USD 2.7 Billion in 2023. It is expected to grow to USD 5.9 Billion by 2032 and grow at a CAGR of 9.2% over the forecast period of 2024-2032.

SMS Firewall Market is gaining traction as mobile operators and enterprises combat growing threats like SMS fraud, grey routing, and spam. With rising mobile penetration, SMS continues to be a critical channel for business communication and authentication, making firewall solutions a frontline defense for network security and revenue assurance.

U.S. Drives Early Adoption with Carrier-Grade Security Prioritization

SMS Firewall Market continues to evolve rapidly as telecom operators, particularly across the U.S. and Europe, adopt more advanced filtering mechanisms and AI-powered monitoring to ensure secure, clean messaging traffic. Regulatory compliance, rising A2P messaging demand, and operator concerns about subscriber trust are pushing innovation and investment in SMS firewall technologies.

Get Sample Copy of This Report: https://www.snsinsider.com/sample-request/3535 

Market Keyplayers:

AdaptiveMobile SecurityBICSCellusysComvivaInfobip Ltd.MobileumMonty MobileProofpointSinchTATA CommunicationsTwilioNexmoCloudMarkFortinetSymantecOpenMarketViberAmdocsZenviaMessageBird

Market Analysis

The SMS Firewall Market is being driven by the surge in A2P (Application-to-Person) messaging, which is increasingly used for alerts, OTPs, promotions, and customer service. However, this growth also exposes networks to SMS phishing, smishing, and revenue leakages due to grey routes. Telecom operators, especially in the U.S., are aggressively deploying firewalls to detect and block suspicious traffic in real time. In Europe, data privacy regulations like GDPR further strengthen the need for robust SMS security solutions that ensure message integrity and compliance.

Market Trends

Rise in demand for next-gen firewalls integrated with machine learning

Increasing telecom operator partnerships with cybersecurity vendors

Rapid migration from legacy systems to cloud-native SMS firewall platforms

Growing deployment of AI for anomaly detection and traffic profiling

Compliance-driven innovations to meet regional regulations (e.g., GDPR, FCC)

Expansion of multi-layered firewall solutions for holistic message screening

Market Scope

The scope of the SMS Firewall Market is expanding as operators and enterprises shift focus from basic filtering to proactive threat intelligence. Market participants are prioritizing comprehensive monitoring and dynamic rule sets.

Real-time traffic filtering and fraud prevention

Grey route blocking and revenue protection

AI-enhanced behavioral analytics

A2P message authentication and routing control

Regulatory compliance support

Multi-channel threat management integrations

Forecast Outlook

The SMS Firewall Market is expected to witness continued growth, fueled by escalating mobile transactions, regulatory scrutiny, and the need to preserve revenue streams. Future-ready firewalls with AI, analytics, and real-time threat detection capabilities will be critical as the messaging landscape becomes more complex. In both developed and emerging regions, operators will seek cost-effective, scalable, and compliant solutions that safeguard subscriber experience and brand reputation.

Access Complete Report: https://www.snsinsider.com/reports/sms-firewall-market-3535 

Market Opportunities

AI-Driven Firewalls: Significant opportunity in adopting machine learning algorithms for smart filtering and traffic prediction.

Enterprise Messaging Security: Rising demand from banks, e-commerce, and healthcare sectors for secure A2P delivery.

Managed Security Services: Growth in outsourced SMS firewall management as telcos seek efficiency and expertise.

Regional Customization: Tailored firewall capabilities to meet country-specific regulations and traffic behaviors.

5G & IoT Messaging: Expansion of SMS in connected devices opens new frontiers for firewall innovation.

Conclusion

As SMS remains a trusted channel for real-time communication, securing it has become non-negotiable. The SMS Firewall Market stands as a critical pillar in defending telecom infrastructure, ensuring message authenticity, and protecting user trust. From Silicon Valley to Berlin, operators and enterprises alike are investing in intelligent firewall solutions that go beyond blocking threats—they enable smarter, safer messaging ecosystems. The market is not just growing—it’s becoming essential to the future of mobile communication.

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