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Kfir Gavrieli: A True Example of Corporate Leadership During a Global Pandemic

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corporate leadership

The Coronavirus Pandemic has undoubtedly uncovered many of the ills faced by our less-than-perfect society, but it has also uncovered the greatness and generosity of the human spirit. While our front-line health workers continue to battle this treacherous disease that has taken the world by storm, there are also heroes working behind the scenes, doing whatever they can to support these front-line workers.

Servant leadership example are Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and Mother Theresa

Even in the business-as-usual corporate world, unlikely heroes have emerged. One such hero is Kfir Gavrieli, CEO of the fashion shoewear brand Tieks, who recently devised an initiative to step up and support front-line workers by engaging not only his company’s staff and manufacturing facility, but also Tieks’ fans and supporters, in a highly successful campaign to provide much-needed PPE to essential health-care workers.

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Gavrieli has always been a community-minded business leader, long known for his philanthropic work to empower women as the largest donor to date on the Kiva micro-lending platform, which provides micro-loans to women entrepreneurs around the world.  Most recently, after hearing from a friend in Los Angeles about the critical shortages of PPE local county hospitals faced, he set his sights on innovative ways to contribute to mitigating the crisis.

“As soon as I learned of this coming shortage, I knew we had a responsibility to reorient our business to get masks into the hands of those who need them most,” stated the passionate Israeli native. “Our nurses, doctors, EMTs and other medical professionals are on the front lines of this pandemic. We must do everything we can to protect them: for their own health and for everyone’s health, so that we have adequate healthcare staff as this crisis grows.”

Gavrieli immediately sprang into action, quickly purchasing a fleet of sewing machines and training his staff to make masks for health workers. Tieks, a popular footwear brand known for its innovative ballet flats that fold up neatly enough to fit inside a purse or handbag, suddenly found itself producing thousands of cloth masks that include pockets for filters. 

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These masks provide essential backup for hospitals and health workers, as they may be used to prolong the life of the critical N95 masks that have been in short supply in health centers.  When worn together with the N95 masks, the cloth masks extend the life of the N95’s, providing increased protection for essential workers who depend on them.  The cloth masks also provide protection for general hospital and health workers less likely to be exposed to the virus directly, which means that those critical and scarce N95 masks may be reserved to protect those who are directly on the front lines.

The beauty of Gavrieli’s leadership lies not only in his ability to mobilize his own workers, but also in his brilliant and innovative idea to mobilize the company’s vast fan and consumer base, thereby increasing the people-power behind the incentive by the thousands, and multiplying the production of masks by hundreds of thousands.

“We tried sewing masks,” he explained in a recent interview on The Briefing. “We were making a few hundred a day. And then it hit us that if we could somehow engage our community, our fans and our customers, to sew masks with us, we could really scale up the impact we were having.”

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The company, whose fan base and supporters are largely professional women who enjoy the comfort and style of the Tieks flats, launched a social media initiative called Operation #SewTogether. This ingenious campaign motivated thousands of supporters to come together and produce hundreds of thousands of masks, providing easy instructions, and motivation in the form of gift cards for the popular Tieks ballet flats.  For every with 25 masks donated, fans would receive $50 gift cards, and $100 gift cards for every 50 masks donated. This proved to be a win-win situation that allowed thousands of women to purchase the coveted flats at a discount, while building a powerful community to support essential health workers.

“We launched Operation #SewTogether and the response has just been phenomenal,” Gavrieli noted.  “We managed to overnight erect a factory with thousands of workers, something we couldn’t have done at our own headquarters.” 

The initiative has now produced over a million masks masks that have been sewn and distributed among hospitals in the Los Angeles County area, as well as other hard-hit areas in the country, such as Louisiana, New York, Washington, and other cities facing dangerously high infection rates. 

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“People wanted to help. We, as a brand, wanted to help. This was the best idea for how we could really do something together.”

Inspired by the success of the Operation #SewTogether campaign, Gavrieli decided to push his company’s philanthropy a step further to provide more direct rewards for essential health-care workers and those working on the front lines to fight the pandemic. In recent weeks, Tieks launched an additional campaign initiative offering direct rewards to health workers. The Tieks For Heroes campaign provides the gift of a $100 gift card toward a pair of the coveted Tieks flats to nurses, doctors, other health workers, and other essential workers who are on the front lines of the fight against Covid-19.

Although Gavrieli has long been recognized for his generous contributions to platforms such as Kiva and other charities, this particular campaign, with its innovative use of social media and wide-scale public engagement, became extra-special, because it unified supporters all over the country and built a beautiful community of donors.

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In his frank and forthright conversation on The Briefing, the emotion and excitement in Gavrieli’s voice was evident as he stated simply, “This really has been for me, as the CEO of the company, perhaps the most rewarding campaign we’ve ever done.” For more on Kfir Gavrieli visit:

Abhishek Sharma is a well versed content writer and loves to write on different niche category domains with the motive of increasing the client's business and high engagement on the articles

World

More Trouble For Microsoft, OpenAI: Eight US Newspaper Publishers File Lawsuit For Copyright Infringement

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More Trouble For Microsoft, OpenAI: Eight US Newspaper Publishers File Lawsuit For Copyright Infringement

Trouble for Microsoft and OpenAI over copyright infringement is not coming to an end, as they face several lawsuits for violating copyrights.

On Tuesday, eight US newspaper publishers sued Microsoft for illegally reusing articles in AI products.

The 98-page long lawsuit further accused the tech companies of attributing erroneous information to the publishers.

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The eight newspapers that have filed the lawsuits include the New York Daily News and the Chicago Tribune.

They allege that OpenAI’s ChatGPT used their copyrighted articles to perfect its language models without permission.

The lawsuit was filed in a New York federal court on Tuesday. The publishers claim that OpenAI’s large language models, GPT-2 and GPT-3, were perfected using datasets containing text from their newspapers.

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The language models are designed to produce text based on human inputs and reproduce copies of the publishers’ works. Microsoft has been indicted for using newspapers for its Bing search index but seldom provided links to the original articles. Four months ago, The New York Times also filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, accusing the tech giant of using data from its past content. It also asked for consent for usage, criticizing the use of full article excerpts in chatbot responses.

The latest lawsuit filed by the eight news outlets also demanded consent and fair value for using their content to perfect the AI language models. The lawsuit alleged that the AI tools literally regurgitate their content without directing users to the content source.

The lawsuit filings stated, “This lawsuit arises from defendants purloining millions of the publishers’ copyrighted articles without permission and without payment to fuel the commercialization of their generative artificial intelligence products, including ChatGPT and (Microsoft’s) Copilot.”

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The eight newspapers that instituted the lawsuits are as follows:

  • The New York Daily News and The Chicago Tribune, both owned by Alden Global Capital
  • The Orlando Sentinel
  • The Sun Sentinel
  • The San Jose Mercury News
  • The Denver Post
  • The Orange County Register
  • The St. Paul Pioneer Press

OpenAI’s Response

OpenAI did not directly respond to the accusations but stated that it takes great care to support the news and media outlets. It also stated it is in continuous partnerships and conversations with various news outlets around the world to explore new opportunities, discuss problems, and seek out solutions.

Microsoft also stated that OpenAI has entered into fruitful partnerships with a number of publishers, which includes The Financial Times, The Associated Press, Spanish conglomerate Prisa Media, and Germany’s Axel Springer.

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Alan Patricof Net Worth 2024: How Much is the American Investor Worth?

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Alan Patricof Net Worth 2024: How Much is the American Investor Worth?

Who is Alan Patricof?

Alan Patricof is a prominent figure in the American investment landscape, renowned for his contributions to venture capital. With a career spanning over four decades, Patricof has been instrumental in shaping the growth of numerous global companies, including America Online, Apple Computer, and Audible. His legacy extends beyond business, with involvement in community organizations and government initiatives.

Alan Patricof Career

Alan Patricof’s career in venture capital began in the industry’s early days. He founded Patricof & Co. Ventures Inc., a precursor to Apax Partners, one of the world’s leading private equity firms. Later, he established Greycroft Partners, focusing on early and expansion-stage investments in digital media. Throughout his career, Patricof’s vision and leadership have played a pivotal role in advancing the venture capital field.

Alan Patricof’s Net Worth

As of May 3, 2024, Alan Patricof’s estimated net worth stands at over $1 million. His wealth is derived from various investments, including holdings in Boston Properties Inc. and successful ventures in digital media. Despite humble beginnings, Patricof’s entrepreneurial spirit and strategic acumen have propelled him to financial success.

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Alan Patricof Age

Born in 1934, Alan Patricof is currently in his late eighties. Despite his advanced age, he remains active in the business world, leveraging his wealth of experience to mentor emerging entrepreneurs and drive innovation.

Alan Patricof Family: Wife and Children

Alan Patricof has been married to his wife Susan for over 48 years. Together, they have three children and seven grandchildren. Family holds great importance to Patricof, and he credits his upbringing and heritage for shaping his values and work ethic.

Alan Patricof Height and Weight

While specific details about Alan Patricof’s height and weight are not readily available, his stature in the investment community is undeniable. Patricof’s impact transcends physical measurements, as he continues to leave a lasting legacy in venture capital and philanthropy.

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Also Read: Mike Markkula Net Worth 2024: How Much is the Former CEO of Apple Worth?

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Net Worth

Stephen M. Ross Net Worth 2024: How Much is the Chairperson of The Related Companies Worth?

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Stephen M. Ross Net Worth 2024: How Much is the Chairperson of The Related Companies Worth?

Who is Stephen M. Ross?

Stephen M. Ross, the Chairperson of The Related Companies, is a distinguished figure in the real estate sector, renowned for his significant contributions and profound impact. Born on May 10th, 1940, in Detroit, Michigan, Ross embarked on his journey into real estate at a young age, demonstrating remarkable diligence and entrepreneurial spirit. Despite initially pursuing a career as a tax attorney, Ross soon discovered his genuine passion for real estate investment, laying the foundation for his illustrious career.

Stephen M. Ross Career

Ross’s career trajectory is marked by pioneering ventures and transformative projects. In 1972, he founded The Related Companies, which initially focused on subsidized low and moderate-income apartments. Over the years, Ross transitioned to higher-profile projects, including the iconic Hudson Yards development, valued at over $7 billion. His visionary approach and strategic partnerships have cemented his reputation as a prominent figure within the real estate industry.

Stephen M. Ross Net Worth

As of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth, Stephen M. Ross’s net worth stands at an impressive $10 billion, solidifying his status as one of the wealthiest individuals globally. Ross’s wealth accumulation is attributed to his unparalleled success as a real estate mogul, with an estimated annual income of nearly $700 million derived from royalties on his diverse property holdings. His continued involvement in the real estate sector, with ongoing projects in New Jersey and Florida, further contributes to his substantial net worth.

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Stephen M. Ross Age

Currently, Stephen M. Ross is 83 years old, born on May 10th, 1940. Despite his age, Ross remains actively engaged in his professional pursuits, demonstrating resilience and dedication to his craft.

Stephen M. Ross Family: Wife and Children

Ross’s personal life is characterized by familial bonds and enduring relationships. He is happily married to Kara Ross and is the proud father of four children. Ross’s commitment to family values underscores his holistic approach to life and business.

Stephen M. Ross Height and Weight

Physically, Stephen M. Ross stands at a height of 6 feet 2 inches (1.88m) and maintains a healthy body weight of around 72 kg. Despite his busy schedule, Ross prioritizes his health and well-being, engaging in activities such as volleyball and tennis.

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Also Read: Dave Ramsey Net Worth 2024: How Much is American Radio Personality Worth?

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