Simone Baribeau

Simone Baribeau is a freelance writer based in Miami, Florida. She has written for Bloomberg News, the Financial Times and the business sections of the Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor. Email her at simonebaribeau@gmail.com.

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01.23.13 | 8:00 am

Pivoting From Auctioneers To Online Sellers–eBay Takes On Amazon

No longer is eBay just an outlet for attic collectibles or Sarah Palin’s gubernatorial jet. The auction site is transforming into a full-service ecommerce goliath.

Tech

Hey Nokia, Time For Another Pivot?

Nokia has been a market leader in everything from rubber to consumer electronics to mobile phones. Will competition from Apple and Google force it to pivot again?

Work Life

5 Ways The Obama Campaign Was Run Like A Lean Startup

How Barack Obama became the pivoter-in-chief to win the 2012 election.

Tech

The Pinterest Pivot

When women shunned shopping app Tote, CEO Ben Silbermann put a pin in it, and created social media’s fastest growing website.

10.17.12 | 1:29 pm

What Is The Pivot? We Asked Intel, Zappos, Instagram, Pandora, Box…

The final video of Fast Company’s “Pivot” series examines how almost 20 companies, including Intel, Instagram, and Zappos, view the strategic shifts that led to their success.

Tech

Intel Wants You To Fall In Love With Tech (Again)

As part of a “radical change” in focus from technology to design, the “computer inside” is coming up with new ways to augment reality.

09.24.12 | 9:01 am

Dylan Smith Reveals The Strategic Shift That Made Box A Cloud Storage Hit

When companies said they’d be willing to pay “a hundred times as much” for a more business-focused product, file-sharing service Box pivoted to oblige.

Tech

Ship First And Ask Questions Later: How Fondu Made Its Mobile App More Tasty

After discovering that gourmands don’t want algorithm-generated restaurant recommendations, CEO Gauri Manglik created a Twitter for food instead.

Tech

How Pandora Soothed The Savage Beast

Before Pandora conquered streaming radio, it was the algorithm powering in-store music kiosks. Here’s how Savage Beast Technologies outlived the record store.

Tech

Reclaiming Coupons And The Company Vision

After investors “sure path” to success in the daily deals industry failed, CityPockets CEO Cheryl Yeoh reinvented her company as a Pinterest for the thrifty.

Tech

How Tony Hsieh Pivoted Zappos Into A $1.2 Billion Amazon Acquisition

Zappos.com flipped a switch and ditched 25% of its revenue. The resulting growth led Amazon.com to buy the once-struggling company for over $1 billion.

Tech

How Kevin Systrom Chucked His Check-in App, Launched Instagram, And Landed Serious Facebook Cash

Because, as the saying goes: If you can’t beat ’em, build something they’ll buy for $1 billion.

Tech

Pivoting From A White Label YouTube To A Multi-Million-Dollar Exit

When customers snubbed Vitrue CEO Reggie Bradford’s “white label YouTube,” he found a better way to engage them with corporate ad campaigns.

Tech

When Growing The Business Means Firing Your Customers

CloudLock CEO Gil Zimmermann saw that his employees had stopped eating their own dogfood, so he scrapped the business model and pivoted to an even better one. Here’s how.

Tech

LiveOps Goes Social

Consumer complaints are no longer relegated to call centers. Facebook and Twitter have brought them online. And with LiveOps, customer service agents are following.

Tech

The Pivot That Changed The World

Ben Rattray’s Change.org has been credited with everything from convincing a bank to drop its ATM fees to influencing the South African government to crack down on “corrective” rape. First, the company had to overcome failure.

Tech

Apple And Facebook Stole Fast Society’s Mojo, Here’s How It Rallied

When his group texting business was overrun by bigger players, Matthew Rosenberg adapted and built a new app–here’s a sneak peek.

Tech

Signpost Connects Businesses With Customers When The Daily Deal Is Done

The lovechild of Groupon and Foursquare was never meant to be. So Stuart Wall found another way to help small businesses advertise.

Impact

This new mixed-income housing complex comes with its own farm

Impact

This giant wind turbine blade can be recycled

Impact

Ikea’s 8 principles for circular design show how to build a business based on reuse

News

Judge in Epic Games lawsuit rules that Apple can’t make developers use Apple’s payment system

News

‘War against capitalism’: Biden’s vaccine mandate gets predictable response from GOP governors

News

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Simone Baribeau

Pivoting From Auctioneers To Online Sellers–eBay Takes On Amazon

No longer is eBay just an outlet for attic collectibles or Sarah Palin’s gubernatorial jet. The auction site is transforming into a full-service ecommerce goliath.

Hey Nokia, Time For Another Pivot?

Nokia has been a market leader in everything from rubber to consumer electronics to mobile phones. Will competition from Apple and Google force it to pivot again?

5 Ways The Obama Campaign Was Run Like A Lean Startup

How Barack Obama became the pivoter-in-chief to win the 2012 election.

The Pinterest Pivot

When women shunned shopping app Tote, CEO Ben Silbermann put a pin in it, and created social media’s fastest growing website.

What Is The Pivot? We Asked Intel, Zappos, Instagram, Pandora, Box…

The final video of Fast Company’s “Pivot” series examines how almost 20 companies, including Intel, Instagram, and Zappos, view the strategic shifts that led to their success.

Intel Wants You To Fall In Love With Tech (Again)

As part of a “radical change” in focus from technology to design, the “computer inside” is coming up with new ways to augment reality.

Dylan Smith Reveals The Strategic Shift That Made Box A Cloud Storage Hit

When companies said they’d be willing to pay “a hundred times as much” for a more business-focused product, file-sharing service Box pivoted to oblige.

Ship First And Ask Questions Later: How Fondu Made Its Mobile App More Tasty

After discovering that gourmands don’t want algorithm-generated restaurant recommendations, CEO Gauri Manglik created a Twitter for food instead.

How Pandora Soothed The Savage Beast

Before Pandora conquered streaming radio, it was the algorithm powering in-store music kiosks. Here’s how Savage Beast Technologies outlived the record store.

Reclaiming Coupons And The Company Vision

After investors “sure path” to success in the daily deals industry failed, CityPockets CEO Cheryl Yeoh reinvented her company as a Pinterest for the thrifty.

How Tony Hsieh Pivoted Zappos Into A $1.2 Billion Amazon Acquisition

Zappos.com flipped a switch and ditched 25% of its revenue. The resulting growth led Amazon.com to buy the once-struggling company for over $1 billion.

How Kevin Systrom Chucked His Check-in App, Launched Instagram, And Landed Serious Facebook Cash

Because, as the saying goes: If you can’t beat ’em, build something they’ll buy for $1 billion.

Pivoting From A White Label YouTube To A Multi-Million-Dollar Exit

When customers snubbed Vitrue CEO Reggie Bradford’s “white label YouTube,” he found a better way to engage them with corporate ad campaigns.

When Growing The Business Means Firing Your Customers

CloudLock CEO Gil Zimmermann saw that his employees had stopped eating their own dogfood, so he scrapped the business model and pivoted to an even better one. Here’s how.

LiveOps Goes Social

Consumer complaints are no longer relegated to call centers. Facebook and Twitter have brought them online. And with LiveOps, customer service agents are following.

The Pivot That Changed The World

Ben Rattray’s Change.org has been credited with everything from convincing a bank to drop its ATM fees to influencing the South African government to crack down on “corrective” rape. First, the company had to overcome failure.

Apple And Facebook Stole Fast Society’s Mojo, Here’s How It Rallied

When his group texting business was overrun by bigger players, Matthew Rosenberg adapted and built a new app–here’s a sneak peek.

Signpost Connects Businesses With Customers When The Daily Deal Is Done

The lovechild of Groupon and Foursquare was never meant to be. So Stuart Wall found another way to help small businesses advertise.

Impact

This new mixed-income housing complex comes with its own farm

This giant wind turbine blade can be recycled

Ikea’s 8 principles for circular design show how to build a business based on reuse

News

Judge in Epic Games lawsuit rules that Apple can’t make developers use Apple’s payment system

‘War against capitalism’: Biden’s vaccine mandate gets predictable response from GOP governors

Did you live through 9/11? Tell future generations about it with an AI-powered interactive video

Co.Design

This nightclub traps dancers’ body heat to warm and cool the building

5 critical ways to protect cities from disastrous flooding

How fashion resale site Depop tapped into the minds of Gen Z

Work Life

Why my cofounder and I went to therapy together

It’s not the ‘Great Resignation’ but the ‘Great Reprioritization’

If you work remotely, you need to find a good mentor