You’ve heard the old saying “if it looks like a bank, swims like a bank, and quacks like a bank, then it probably is a bank.” Or something like that. Whatever the saying was, it isn’t true anymore.

Fantasy football’s runaway popularity – and the massive gambling activity it attracts – are borne from the endless combinations and possibilities it offers. After all, there is no such thing as fantasy boxing or tennis. Two competitors meet, one is victorious and the result hinges on individual performance. A football team, on the other hand, is an interconnected web of capabilities, flaws and potential. It’s a puzzle. At Highpoint, we think about that puzzle in the corporate context all the time and seek inspiration wherever we can find it.

Earlier this month, I spent some time hiking in the Canadian Rockies with my wife, and reflected on my last eight years at HPA and how much the business has changed over that time.

When I started at HPA in early 2009, we were in the throes of a major market correction and business slowdown that many had not experienced in our lifetimes. Today the concerns we most often hear from clients are how to best position themselves in a rapidly changing world.

Once again, much of the talk leading up to this year’s Super Bowl was about the ads and the record billions spent dazzling TV’s biggest audience of the year. Despite our advice from last year, ad revenues spiked a new high, exceeding last year’s $15.5 billion, with each 30-second spot costing $5 million or an astounding $166,667 per second.

When Disney starts bailing on the Boomers, is it the end of the ride for the generation that used to set the trend for just about everything?

Ditching “The Twilight Zone” for a new “Guardians of the Galaxy” theme on its popular Tower of Terror ride, Disney might not be the first to throw Boomers aside in pursuit of younger, hipper Millennials.

Instead of highlighting an individual project in this month’s Case Study, we want to revisit the concept of Interim Flex Capacity, a category of work that continues to be in strong demand from our client base. A meaningful percentage of HighPoint’s business has come from clients asking for additional “arms & legs” on a short-term, immediate need basis.

Much has been made lately of the emergence of subscription services in the marketplace. From Netflix to Birchbox to Trunk Club, these services have become ubiquitous. Some argue that this is just a passing fad, but with Unilever’s recent $1 billion acquisition of Dollar Shave Club, it’s clear this subscription economy is here to stay.

A few weeks ago, HighPoint had the pleasure of hosting an event in Boston with Mark Feldman, Founder and Managing Director of Cause Consulting. Mark is a nationally recognized leader in helping companies across all industries and sizes integrate corporate social responsibility (CSR) into their business strategies.

Even if you don’t have a high school senior applying to college, you have at least a passing interest in what’s going on with college admissions. After all, today’s students are tomorrow’s workforce.

Talking about the weather never gets old, even in corporate boardrooms.

Take the Polar Vortex. For many companies last winter, it was the go-to excuse for poor performance. Makes sense if you are cancelling thousands of flights or selling motorcycles, but selling products online? Debatable.