BizTimes Milwaukee

The Great Recession forced many companies to cut back on expenses, and one of the first line items on the spread sheet to be redlined was corporate branding and marketing.

Children's Hospital of Wisconsin and the Medical College of Wisconsin in Wauwatosa recently made news when a team of geneticists sequenced the partial DNA of a young boy suffering from a rare stomach disease, in the hopes that the sequencing would lead to a diagnosis.

As foreign investors pour money into China, the Chinese government is moving to open foreign investment to its nationals.

The mergers and acquisitions market has continued to pick up steam since mid-2010, and many analysts predict that 2011 and 2012 will have robust levels of activity. While many of the headlines in the M&A marketplace are dominated by multi-billion dollar deals, the small to middle markets are seeing robust activity this year. Signs indicate that the activity will continue for some time.

PS Capital Partners LLC, a Milwaukee-based private investment firm, recently completed a recapitalization of Hartland-based JTS Direct LLC, a printer of advertising inserts used in shared mail and newspaper inserts.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held recently to celebrate the start of construction of a 4-story, 30,000-square-foot "green" commercial building on a vacant lot at 538 S. 2nd St., northeast of 2nd Street and Bruce Street, in the city of Milwaukee's Walker's Point neighborhood.

When new tax laws are passed, they often create new tax planning opportunities. Such is the case with the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 ("2010 Tax Relief Act") that was signed into law late last year.

Colleen McIntyre started her blog, "Flee Fly Flown," after working for a large marketing firm in what she calls a "cubical farm." The blog has grown into a love of creating in general, which McIntyre expresses through sewing and "up-cycling" old things into new products such as blankets, totes and pillows.

Visitors to Summerfest this year can take advantage of the Summerfest Fundraising Program that allows them to select a local nonprofit organization to receive a portion of the proceeds from their ticket purchase.

In his book, "The Business Tree: Growth Strategies and Tactics for Surviving and Thriving," author Hank Moore outlines an original business model that uses his own trademarked approach to growing and strengthening businesses. As a corporate strategist, Moore spent the last three decades guiding CEOs, boards of directors and executive teams through this proven model.