During the recession, risk management seemed a lot more like crisis management than a forward-looking, enterprise-wide approach to handling risks in a way that promoted sustainable growth. But today, smart companies align their risk management tactics with their strategic plans, which is helping them achieve their most important business priorities. 

In cyberattacks against multimillion-dollar companies, computer criminals break in and steal personal information from millions of customers. Though there will be big losses and maybe a high-profile resignation, the reality is, these retail giants will live to sell another day. But the stories that won’t make the front pages involve the most frequent targets, whose survival isn’t guaranteed: small businesses.

In February, Attorney General Kamala Harris released a guide to help the state’s small- to mid-sized businesses protect against and respond to threats of malware, data breaches and other cyber risks. Key recommendations include:

You may have heard about the “internet slowdown” that happened in September. While the term “slowdown” isn’t accurate because the internet was running at full speed, prominent sites like Netflix, Vimeo and Etsy displayed a symbolic loading symbol to protest recent actions by the Federal Communications Commission to eliminate network neutrality.

In May we reported on efforts by Assemblyman Richard Pan, who represents the 9th district covering parts of Sacramento and San Joaquin counties, to curb outsourcing of government projects to the private sector (“Relationship Troubles,” by Russell Nichols, May 2014). Assembly Bill 906, which required all personal service contracts to be approved by the Legislature, went into effect last January. At the time of our story, Pan had proposed an additional package of bills: AB 1574, 1575 and 1578.

Here’s a look at how the bills have progressed:

I own a design firm, and we regularly employ freelance designers and photographers. Some work for us sporadically and others work for us on a regular basis. What are my responsibilities regarding liability and workers’ compensation?

It’s easy to put off worrying about gen Z, the up-and-coming youngsters, and instead focus resources on the generations that are most active and influential in today’s economy. But doing so is a mistake.

At the crush pad of a custom-built winery, the 6-foot-4 winemaker in tie-dye socks shuts off the forklift, realizing he missed a call.

“I didn’t hear my phone ring,” says Layne Montgomery, 55, general manager and founding partner of m2 Vintners Inc. in Acampo.

“It’s harvest,” jests one of his volunteers. “Who has time for a phone?”

Matt Yancey has been selected as the new CEO of the Davis Chamber of Commerce after serving more than seven years as the director of business and economic development at the Sacramento Metro Chamber. So how do you grow a city that’s been historically anti-growth?

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has spent much of the past decade looking to enact rate regulations on the health insurance industry, first as an Assemblymember and now as the state’s top insurance regulator. We sat down with him recently to talk about Proposition 45, a November ballot measure he supports that would give him the power to reject health insurance rate hikes.

Rick Schubert is settling in to the part of bee season that didn’t exist when he opened Bee Happy Apiary with 300 hives in 1977. It’s mid-September, and at headquarters, tucked in the dusty hills off a private road in Vacaville, the faint humming of honey bees serves as background buzz to the voices of men.

From the unmarred concrete sidewalk along Riverine Way, above Richards Boulevard in the city’s River District, you can take a slow 360-turn and view the past, present and future of housing development in Sacramento. You’ll likely be standing alone, since the street is only one bone of an incomplete skeleton that will eventually support the mixed-use urban infill taking shape around it.

Let me take a wild guess: You feel like you don’t get enough sleep. Too much to do, you’re stressed out and you think getting eight hours of sleep is about as realistic as keeping current on Oprah’s Book Club. Or maybe you’re annoyed that your body needs too much sleep? Think of all the workouts you could get in, books you could read and emails you could return with a few extra hours in each day. Wouldn’t we all love to train our bodies to require less sleep?

Nationwide, captives are growing fast. In 2012, 18 new U.S. group captives were formed, the highest level since 2007. But buying into a captive puts both rewards and risks into the hands of business owners.

Nicole Castles teaches UC Davis Children’s Hospital in Sacramento. Castles is the sole instructor for all school-aged children in the pediatrics ward, as well as school-age patients in other wings of the hospital. In a given week she’ll schedule bedside sessions with as many as 30 students.

California’s Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB32) requires the state’s major industry sectors to return California’s emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. To pay for AB32’s associated Cap-and-Trade Program, the cost of gasoline and diesel fuels will increase approximately 12 cents per gallon beginning Jan. 1, 2015.