0% found this document useful (0 votes)
252 views

Newsweek USA

The document discusses ways to save the Social Security program in the United States. It argues that expanding, rather than cutting, Social Security is an affordable and necessary approach. The program faces challenges from an aging population but saving it is important to ensure retirement security for millions of Americans. Modest adjustments, such as raising the retirement age or payroll tax, could help strengthen the program for future generations.

Uploaded by

hcova
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0% found this document useful (0 votes)
252 views

Newsweek USA

The document discusses ways to save the Social Security program in the United States. It argues that expanding, rather than cutting, Social Security is an affordable and necessary approach. The program faces challenges from an aging population but saving it is important to ensure retirement security for millions of Americans. Modest adjustments, such as raising the retirement age or payroll tax, could help strengthen the program for future generations.

Uploaded by

hcova
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 52

How to Save Social Security

HAVE YOU
BEEN BREACHED
YET? HOW
CYBER CRIMINALS
OUTWIT ALL
EFFORTS TO STOP
Warning!
THEM
Data Bre
Airline
technology
that opens
the world of
e-commerce
shipping.
Every online shopping site is looking for reliable
solutions for fast delivery of their products.

Airlines and their supply-chain partners own the


assets to meet the growing demand for speed in
delivery by e-commerce retailers worldwide.

Connecting this demand with an airline’s supply


of capacity can bring a nice revenue increase
via air cargo.

SmartKargo provides the technology and know-how


to help airlines and their partners connect from the
desktop to the doorstep.

Learn more
Contact us at [email protected] or scan the
QR Code below to read a case study.

Enabling e-commerce. Delivered.


JA N u A Ry 2 7 , 2 0 2 3 _ VO L . 1 8 0 _ N O. 0 3

FEATURES

16
A Pandemic of
Cyberattacks
Domestic hackers, armed with
high-tech tools and flush with
funds, are ruining people’s
reputations and businesses. The
cyber police are outmatched.
by DAVID H. FREEMAN

26
America’s
Greatest
Workplaces
for Diversity
Newsweek and market
data research firm Plant-A
Insights teamed up to find
the 1,000 companies that
most respect and value
different kinds of people.

TAKES ALL KINDS Many companies


talk about being diverse and
inclusive. But which of them back up
that talk with their actual practices?

COVER Photo-illustration by
Newsweek; Source Images by PM
GE T T y

Images/Getty; Aleksei Lagunov/Getty

GO TO Newsweek.com F O R MORE HEADLINES 1


JA N uA r Y 2 7 , 2 0 2 3 _ VO L . 1 8 0 _ N O. 0 3

D E PA RT M E N T S
▾ In Focus ▾ Periscope ▾ Culture

06 Gilroy, California 10 Why We Should 44 Uncharted


Off Balance Expand–Not Cut– Global Coffee
Social Security Shops
08 New York City Saving the
48 Parting Shot
Hold on Tight Program Is
Natasha Lyonne
Affordable and
El Paso, Texas
Necessary
Controlled Visit
Guilin, China
Underground
Galaxy

T YSON S & COMPANY


NEWSWEEK (ISSN0028-9604) is published weekly except one week in January, February,
March, April, May, June, July, and November due to combined issues. Newsweek is
published by Newsweek Magazine LLC, 1 World Trade Center, Floor 72, New York, NY
GATHERING PLACES 10007. Periodical postage is paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices.
“Coffee shops offer more POSTMASTER: Send change of address to Newsweek, 1 World Trade Center, Floor
72, New York, NY 10007. For Article Reprints, Permissions, Licensing, Back/Bulk
than just a ‘cup of joe.’” Issues Newsweek.com/licensing Brian Kolb [email protected]

GLOBAL EDITOR-IN-CHIEF _ Nancy Cooper Deputy Planning Editor _ Remi Odejimi Soo Kim, Kaitlin Lewis, Sophie Lloyd, Nick Mordowanec, Tom Norton,
Deputy Editor Culture _ Jon Jackson Ewan Palmer, Adam Piore, Darragh Roche, Meghan Roos, Winston
DEPUTY EDITOR _ Diane Harris Deputy Night Editor _ Scott McDonald Ross, Roberto Saviano, Roxy Simons, Aila Slisco, Andrew Stanton,
VICE PRESIDENT, BRAND CREATIVE _ Michael Goesele Deputy Weekend Editor _ Anna Commander Zoe Strozewski, Jessica Thomson, Maria Volpe, Robyn White
Politics Editor _ Will Veale
VICE PRESIDENT, DIGITAL _ Laura Davis
Asia Editor at Large _ Danish Manzoor VIDEO
MANAGING EDITOR _ Melissa Jewsbury Associate Trends Editor _ Rebecca Flood
SEO Editor, Life _ Rebecca Nicholson Director, Video _ Jessica Durham
OPINION EDITOR _ Josh Hammer
Deputy Editor, My Turn _ Katie Russell Deputy Directors, Video _ Jon Jenkins-Lowe (U.K.),
SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR _ Fred Guterl Associate Editors, My Turn _ Monica Greep, Carine Harb Maghen Reynolds (U.S.)
Motion Graphics Producer _ Eleanor Shere
GLOBAL PUBLISHING EDITOR _ Chris Roberts Editor at Large _ Naveed Jamali
Contributing Editor _ John Feng Senior Video News Editor _ Nandini Krishnamoorthy
Senior Video Producers, News _ Olivia Cataldo, Alexis Sogl
EDITORIAL Contributing Editors, Opinion _ Lee Habeeb, Shaun King
Publishing Editors _ Adrian Croft, Ed Cummins, Yannick Senior Video Producers, Lifestyle &Entertainment
Demousiter, Bruce Janicke, Emma Lee-Sang, _ Alyssa Hodenfield, Luke Smith
Managing Editors _ James Etherington Smith (U.K.),
Anthony Murray, Jason Nuckolls, Dom Passantino, Video Assignment Editor _ Tiffany Latta
Kyle McGovern (U.S.)
Video Producers _ Mickey Hutchings, Julius Kumi-Darfour,
Executive Editor, Engagement and Innovation _ Alex Hudson Edward Pearcey, Anthony Phillips, Manasa Rao,
Rose Lee, Liz Macro, Jevh Maravilla, Renae Whissel
Director, Podcasts and Radio _ Jesse Edwards Dave Siminoff, Grayson Thomas, Sam Wilson
Producer, Podcasts and Radio _ Maura Currie
SOCIAL MEDIA
Senior Editor, Autos _ Eileen Falkenburg-Hull C R E AT I V E
Enterprise Editor _ Ritu Sehgal
Head of Social Media _ Mark Muir
Editor, National Security & Foreign Policy _ Bruno Battistoli Director of Photography _ Lauren Joseph
Deputy Head of Social Media _ Grace MacRae
Newsletter and Editions Editor _ Emeri Montgomery Art Director _ Carrie Bremner
Social Media Coordinator _ Devin Robertson
Newsletter Producer _ Pronita Naidu Contributing Art Director _ Michael Bessire
Social Media Associates _ Shea Donovan, Jack Haley
Senior Editorial Operations Manager _ Connie Sideras Photo Editor _ Adrian Callaghan, Kristen McNicholas
Editorial Operations Manager _ Leea Jackson Digital Imaging Specialist _ Katy Lyness
PUBLISHED BY
Senior News Editor _ Alfred Joyner
Deputy Publishing Editor _ Paul Rhodes CORRESPONDENTS Newsweek Magazine LLC
Senior Editors _ Peter Carbonara, Shane Croucher,
Chief Royal Correspondent _ Jack Royston Chief Executive Officer _ Dev Pragad
Meredith Wolf Schizer, H. Alan Scott
Global Chief Commercial & Growth Officer _ Kevin Gentzel
Senior Editor, Data Projects _ Rob Minto Congressional Correspondent _ Alex J. Rouhandeh
Chief Strategy Officer _ Dayan Candappa
Senior Editor, Fact Check _ Yevgeny Kuklychev Diplomatic Correspondent _ David Brennan
Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer _ Alvaro Palacios
Senior Editor, Life & Trends _ Marc Vargas Russia & Ukraine Correspondent _ Michael Wasiura
Global General Counsel _ Rosie Mckimmie
Senior Editor, My Turn _ Jenny Haward White House Correspondent _ Dan Bush
Chief Technology Officer _ Michael Lukac
Senior Editor, Politics _ Jenni Fink
Chief Information Officer _ Sujay Nelson
Senior Editor, Science _ Hannah Eaglesham SENIOR WRITERS
Chief of Staff _ Ryan Kinney
Senior Editor, SEO _ Shanique Joseph SVP Finance / General Manager EMEA _ Amit Shah
Audience Editor _ Emily Kaiser, Ben Kelly Jack Beresford, Jamie Burton, Brendan Cole, Molli Mitchell, SVP, Human Resources _ Leiann Kaytmaz
Autos Editor _ Jake Lingeman Tom O’Connor, Khaleda Rahman, Nick Reynolds, Anna Skinner, SVP, Product _ Luciano Costa
Entertainment Editor _ Molly Mulshine Ryan Smith Global Head of Programmatic and Partnerships _ Jeremy Makin
News Editor _ Rod Ardehali, Matthew Cannon Vice President, Strategy _ Nalin Kaul
Live Blogs Editor _ Alex Backus WRITERS Associate Director, Strategy _ Adam Silvers
Night Editor _ Margaret Weaver Director of Rankings _ Josh Smith
Weekend Editor _ John Fitzpatrick, Jason Lemon Anders Anglesey, Giulia Carbonaro, Adrian Carrasquillo, James Senior Manager, Strategic Partnerships _ Patricia A. Hartendorp
Deputy Editors, Opinion _ Jason Fields, Philip Jeffery, Crawford-Smith, David H. Freedman, Steve Friess, Katherine Fung, Senior Sales Director _ Chantal Mamboury
Ramsen Shamon, Batya Ungar-Sargon Aristos Georgiou, Alice Gibbs, Lauren Giella, Meghan Gunn, Leonie Head of Subscription Operations _ Samantha Rhodes
Deputy Editor Life & Trends _ Charlotte Nisbet Helm, Matthew Impelli, Gerrard Kaonga, Fatma Khaled, Thomas Kika, Newsstand Manager _ Kim Sermon

2 NE WSWEEK .COM
★★★★★
“Journalism I don’t see elsewhere until later, if at all.”
NEWSWEEK .COM/ TRY

SAVE 79% F R O M $1.90 P E R W E E K


Rewind

The Archives
“China is slowing more rapidly than we thought and isn’t as smart
2016 as we believed,” wrote Newsweek of the impact of the country’s
economic slowdown. “The stunning drop in global commodity prices has been
driven not only by the marked slowdown in China’s overall growth but also in
the composition of that growth. The massive build-out over the past decade of
both infrastructure and residential real estate is no longer the catalyst for
China’s economy.” This year China’s GDP is forecast to grow by 4.4 percent, the
slowest year in four decades, throttled by restrictive COVID policies.

1976

“The newest frontier in cancer


research is the environment
itself,” Newsweek said, with many
experts regarding it “as a far more
significant source of cancer than
aberrant cellular mutation.” a
2022 report says environmental
pollution caused 10 percent of
all cancer cases in Europe.

198 1

“A swarm of negotiators move


towards the climax of a complex
deal to free the 52 American
hostages by returning Iran’s
n E WSWE EK arCHIVE (3)

frozen assets,” Newsweek


wrote. Last month, the u.S. and
russia conducted a prisoner
exchange, trading russian
arms dealer Viktor Bout for
WnBa star Brittney Griner.

4 NE WSWEEK .COM J a n u a r y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
H E L P I N G YO U N AV I G AT E A R A P I D LY C H A N G I N G W O R L D

▾ ▾ ▾ ▾
Award-winning Download issues National and global Expert analysis beyond
journalists and and read offline coverage on the the headlines on a
photographers on any device issues that matter wide range of topics

★★★★★
“Newsweek offers a clear combination
of news, culture and thought-provoking ideas
that challenge the smart and inquisitive.”

EASY WAYS SCAN THE QR CODE TO THE RIGHT, COMPLETE AND


TO SUBSCRIBE RETURN THIS FORM OR GO TO Newsweek.com/Try

Deliver to:
1 Year for
$
99
NAME

BEST A DDRE S S

OFFER!
( $ 1 .9 0 P E R W E E K )
CI T Y R EG IO N/ STATE
79% SAVINGS
Z I P CODE CO U NTRY

□ Visa □ Mastercard □ Amex


RETURN TO:

Newsweek C A RD N O.
Subscriptions
Department E X P. CCV CO D E

1 WORLD TRADE CENTER,


N A M E ON C A RD
FLOOR 72
NEW YORK, NY 10007
S I GN AT URE

To receive an email confirmation and for digital access, please provide your email address:
* Percentage savings calculated as a saving
on our cover price, as found on the cover of
EM A I L
Newsweek. The weekly price is an indication
of what you will pay per issue, we will charge
you the full price for the term you select. □ Payment enclosed (checks made payable to Newsweek)
In Focus
THE NEWS IN PICTURES

6 NE WSWEEK .COM
G I LR OY, C A L I FO R N I A

Off Balance
a flooded house in northern California on January 9 after a series of atmospheric
rivers hit the area. The state’s latest wild weather swings have gone from
extreme drought to extreme flooding with fierce storms, swollen rivers and
flash mudslides. The pounding downpour over the last two weeks has killed at
least 17 people, put millions in danger and caused hundreds of thousands of
power outages. a new study published in Science Advances says California may
bear the brunt of “megafloods” and experience a severe storm once every 30 to
50 years. Climate change has made those storms twice as likely as they were a
century ago. The wet pattern is expected to continue until at least mid-month.

▸ JOSH EDELSON
aFP/G E T T y

J a n u a r y 2 7, 2 0 2 3 NE WSWEEK .COM 7
In Focus

NEW YORK CITY EL PASO, TEXAS GUILIN, CHINA

Hold on Tight Controlled Visit Underground Galaxy


Koltin Hevalow is thrown during President Joe Biden walks along a Tourists visit Yinziyan cave in Lipu
the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) U.S.-Mexico border fence on January county on January 10. The cave
Unleash the Beast event at Madison 8, his first visit since taking office, runs through 12 hills and rises 15
Square Garden on January 7. One amid Republican criticism of an floors high inside, where hundreds
of the world’s biggest rodeo historic surge in illegal immigration of stalactite pillars of various
events, it features the world’s top last year—more than 2.38 million lengths and shapes form spectacular
30 professional riders competing through September. Recently, Biden scenery that resembles the Milky
against the toughest bucking bulls announced the U.S. will allow 30,000 Way. Silver ore inside gives the cave
in each eight-second ride. Hevalow, migrants from four countries to its alias—“Silver Cave”—and has
19, of Missouri ranks 24th. The PBR enter monthly. On this trip, Biden inspired a local proverb: “Anyone
will celebrate its 30th anniversary encountered no migrants and did who has been to the Silver Cave
during the 2023 season. not visit the Border Patrol station. will never be short of money.”

▸ JAMIE SQUIRE ▸ J I M WAT S O N ▸ STR


CLOCK WI SE FROM BOT TOM LE F T: GE T T Y; AFP/GE T T Y (2 )

NE WSWEEK .COM
9
Periscope N E W S , O P I N I O N + A N A LY S I S
P E R S O NA L F I NA N C E

Why We Should
Expand–Not
Cut–Social Security
Social Security is a big piece of most Americans’ retirement. The program, however, is running out of
money and conservative politicians, including those in the new Republican-majority House of Repre-
sentatives, want to cut it. In this essay, adapted from his new book retirement reboot: commonsense
financial strategies for getting back on track (Agate Publishing, January), veteran financial jour-
nalist Mark Miller argues that fixing and beefing up Social Security is affordable, practical and necessary.

With a narroW and highly fractious repub- a devastating decline in their standard of living.
lican minority now in control, it is a safe bet The best remedy is to expand Social Security ben-
the House of Representatives will be the site of loud efits, not cut them.
debates over government spending in the coming The most important measure of financial read-
months. As part of the fighting over things like rais- iness to retire is your ability to replace working
ing the debt limit, expect to hear renewed talk about income after you retire, in other words, your ability
reforming Social Security. to maintain your standard of living. Financial plan-
The GOP has made clear that what they mean ners say most people will need to replace at least 70
by reform is cutting benefits. They’ll argue that we percent of their wage income in retirement.
cannot afford Social Security and that the program Anyone who has not been able to save much for
is going bankrupt. Both arguments are false. Social retirement will depend solely on Social Security,
Security does face a long-expected short- which typically replaces only about 40
fall in the years ahead but closing the gap percent of pre-retirement income. Fed-
is a manageable task. And we need to do eral Reserve data indicate the median bal-
by
more than simply close the program’s ance in a retirement account in 2019 for
GE T T Y

funding gap. Millions of Americans are MARK a working household nearing retirement
MILLER
approaching retirement confronting (age 55-64) was just $144,000, an amount

Photograph by C. J. BURTON NE WSWEEK .COM 11


Periscope BOOKS

that will not last very long in retire- products have worked well for higher-

Q A
ment. And far too many have not been income households, but they have
able to save anything at all. failed to serve the needs of middle-
In my book Retirement Reboot, and lower-income Americans. It’s &
Commonsense Financial Strategies time for the pendulum to swing back
for Getting Back on Track, I write to social insurance. We need a new
about several strategies that can help, American era of social insurance.
even for people getting close to retire- There is good reason to worry
ment. But I also argue that we have
the power as a society to make retire-
about the American retirement sys-
tem today. In fact, it’s not a system at Mark Miller
BY PETER CARBONARA
ment more secure by strengthening all, but a patchwork of programs and
and expanding our two most critical products. Health care out-of-pocket
social insurance programs for retire- costs have eroded seniors’ standard Q _ How is your book different
ment: Social Security and Medicare. of living. We have failed to protect from other retirement books?
seniors against the ruinous potential A _ Many retirement books focus
The Meaning of risk of a long-term care need. on the reader who least needs
‘Social Insurance’ Over the past four decades, the help, people who have substantial
The phrase has fallen into public dis- rise of a tax-deferred saving system retirement savings and investment
use although it is still used by policy has accrued wealth for the affluent portfolios who are looking for an
experts. These programs are social but it has not come close to closing additional edge. Having covered
because they bring us together as a the gap left by the decline of tra- retirement for 15 years I saw that
society, with the federal government ditional pensions. there’s a very substantial number
serving as plan sponsor. We call them Many of the changes to the of households getting close to re-
insurance because that is what they retirement system included in the tirement that are just not financially
are: Social Security and Medicare pro- just signed-into-law Secure Act prepared. They haven’t saved much
tect us from certain risks in exchange 2.0 will help only the wealthiest or anything and will be relying only
for our insurance contributions via retirement savers, who need the on Social Security for income.
the payroll tax. Everyone who contrib- help least, although some changes
utes is protected. Together, we pool promise to expand access to savings What advice would you
our risks and our responsibilities. plans for middle- and low-income give those folks?
But over the past three decades, households and provide incentives I would start by trying to make
we’ve moved away from this collective for them to save. a plan. There are do-it-yourself
approach and toward market-driven Now is the time for social insur- ways to do it or you can hire a
products and services offered to ance to do more. The COVID-19 planner. You look at your expect-
individuals by corporations, often pandemic has accelerated an already- ed expenses and on what you
wrapped up in tax incentives. Those wide income gap between the have project from your retirement
products shift the risk to individuals. and have-not households, a problem income and to see if there’s a gap.
Need retirement income? Save in a that persists in retirement. What’s A successful retirement is one
401(k) or IRA. Worried about the high more, Gen Xers and millennials are where you can maintain your stan-
cost of health care in retirement? You likely to fare even worse than boom- dard of living. If you’ve got noth-
need a Health Savings Account. Is the ers and today’s seniors when they ing coming but Social Security,
potentially ruinous cost of long-term reach retirement: the result of esca- you’re going to be receiving only
care a concern? Maybe a long-term lating higher education costs and 40 to maybe 50 percent of your
care insurance policy is what you staggering student debt burdens; pre-retirement income. The gen-
need. Even Medicare, a federal pro- wage stagnation; soaring housing eral rule of thumb among planners
gram, is rapidly morphing into a suite costs and the decline of traditional is you need 70 to 80 percent.
of “plans’’ offered by private compa- defined benefit pensions.
nies in insurance “marketplaces.” Meanwhile, Social Security is on Will retirees be able to de-
Some of these market-driven track to replace less pre-retirement pend on Social Security and

12 NE WSWEEK .COM J a n u a r y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
Medicare in the future? receiving health insurance from a late to start saving and invest-
It’s been drilled into people’s heads a current job. The key here is that ing for retirement can do. Is
that “Social Security is in trouble, you must be actively employed, there any good news for them?
it’s not going to be there for me, not receiving insurance from a There have been two really positive
you’ve got to focus on saving.” I former employer. If you wait longer developments in recent years. The
think you need to do both if at all than Medicare’s required enroll- first is that it’s become easier
possible. I do believe Social Security ment age, you’ll be paying hefty and more affordable to access
is going to be there for people. late enrollment penalties on your financial planning help. This was
The more I studied retirement, premiums when you do sign up. really just the province of wealth-
the more I understood that Social There are two ways to be on ier households but there’s been
Security and Medicare are far Medicare: One is the traditional a democratization of advice over
and away the most important Medicare program, the fee for the past decade. Some of that is
retirement benefits. Maybe a service program, and the other due to technology. You see the
third of households getting close is called Medicare Advantage, advent of so-called robo-advisory
to retirement have substantial which is the commercially offered, services you can use online that
portfolios. For everybody else, the managed care alternative. I’m a can help people make plans. But it
most important source of retire- fan of the traditional program. is also possible to hire a fee-only
ment income is going to be Social The transition from employer Registered Investment Advisor on
Security. And as we age, unfor- insurance to Medicare is one of an hourly basis who can analyze
tunately, we have health issues the more complicated challenges your situation and write a plan.
so getting Medicare enrollment people face when they There’s also some very nifty and
right is really important, too. retire and that’s one inexpensive tools out there people
of the reasons I have a can use to optimize Social Security.
Can you give any general long chapter about it. The other very positive thing
advice about getting start- is that the cost of retirement
ed with those programs? You write a lot about investing has come down dramat-
Let’s talk about Social Security. The what people who are ically with the explosive growth
rule of thumb there is delaying of passive low-cost mutual funds.
your claim generally is better. The You keep more of the money that
longer you wait, you are going to you invest and less of it goes to
be receiving a higher amount of the investment company. This
monthly income. It is a dramatic can be really important in helping
swing between the earliest time you to save over time. It’s also
you can claim, 62, and age 70, easier to put your saving and
which is the latest you should wait. investing on autopilot. You can
Of course, this is a highly person- do that either through some of
al decision. For someone in ill health these robo-advisory services or
and does not expect great longevi- by using target date funds where
ty, or who absolutely needs the in- you say I intend to retire on this
FROM TOP: AG ATE PU BLI SHIN G; SUSAN VA RICK

come, go ahead and file. For most of date and the balance between
us, the big challenge will be gener- equities and fixed income invest-
ating enough income to meet living ments is automatically adjusted
expenses after we’ve retired while for you as approach retirement.
delaying our Social Security claim.
What’s the most common
How about Medicare? retirement mistake?
There is a timing issue there, too, If there is a most common mistake,
because age 65 is the age you it is failing to make a plan. With-
must file for Medicare if you are not out a plan, you’re flying blind.

NE WSWEEK .COM 13
Periscope PERSONAL FINANCE

income for today’s younger workers available tools for addressing income to see interruptions in their working
than it will for boomers and Gen inequality and the staggering gap lives to provide care for children or
Xers. That is due, mainly, to the last in racial wealth, which carries over disabled family members, which
major reforms to the program, which into retirement. cuts further into their available
were enacted in 1983. Those changes Social Security is especially vital resources in retirement.
have reduced benefits by around for women, who tend to outlive men
19 percent, in large part due to the but also earn less income, generating Filling the Gap
increase in the age when you qualify lower levels of retirement assets. It is Progressives have offered a Social
to receive 100 percent of the benefit also critical for people of color and Security reform agenda that features
you’ve earned over the course of your others who have faced disadvantages two components. The first priority
working life. Before the reforms, that in the workplace. These are groups is to address the program’s long-
age was 65, but for everyone born that are less likely to have jobs with term financial shortfall; the second
in 1960 and later, it is 67. Every year retirement benefits and they have is to expand the program so that
increase equates roughly to a 6.5 per- lower earnings that leave them less benefits replace a much higher per-
cent cut in benefits. able to save. And they are more likely centage of pre-retirement income
T h e C e n te r fo r Re t i r e m e n t than they do today.
Research at Boston College calculates The program’s funding gap—if left
that an average worker who retires at unaddressed—could have disastrous
age 65 would have seen 41 percent of consequences: an across-the-board
her pre-retirement income replaced “We have witnessed the benefit cut of roughly 20 percent
had she claimed benefits in 1995. The rise of a tax-deferred for all workers and retirees, current
same person claiming benefits in saving system that has and future. The number of retir-
2034 will receive just 29 percent. accrued wealth for the ees living in poverty would jump
Expanding Social Security offers
affluent but not come by about 40 percent, with the most

close to closing the gap


the best route to improving the finan- dramatic cuts hitting Gen Xers and
cial well-being of the elderly in Amer- older millennials.
ica. Nothing else comes close. A more left by the decline of Here’s how the program works:
robust program is also one of our best traditional pensions.” Social Security has two trust funds
that finance retirement and disability
benefits. Tax revenues go into them
and benefits are paid out of them.
Together the two funds had $2.85
trillion in built-up funds in 2021, but
these reserve funds will shrink in
the years ahead as the baby boomer
retirement wave accelerates.

FROM LE F T: MA RK WIL SON /G E T T Y; DRE W A NG ERE R /G E T T Y


Absent reforms, the program’s
combined trust fund accounts are
projected to be empty in 2035. At that
point, funds coming in each year will
be sufficient to pay only about 80 per-
cent of the obligations to retirees and
disabled workers. One key cause is the
falling ratio of workers paying into

FINDING THE MONEY Senator Bernie


Sanders wants to raise payroll taxes
on people who make $250,000 or
more to keep Social Security solvent.

J A N u A R Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
the system compared with the num- basis by Congress.
ber of beneficiaries. Another cause is Their Senate colleague Mitt Rom-
rising income inequality. Social Secu- ney has been pushing a bill called the
rity collects Federal Insurance Con- “Trust Act,” which would establish
tributions Act (FICA) contributions congressional “rescue committees”
only up to a certain level of wages to consider cuts to Social Security
($160,200 in 2023), and a growing and Medicare. The committees’ rec-
share of wages have effectively been ommendations would then be fast-
pushed outside the taxable FICA base. tracked for approval, without ability
Numerous workable plans have to amend, in the House and Senate.
been proposed to fully fund Social That’s no more than a mechanism
Security with tax increases and HIDING THE BALL Senator Mitt Romney has a plan for pushing benefit cut legislation
tweaks to the system—without to cut federal retirement benefits without without the fingerprints of any indi-
cutting benefits. individual legislators having to take responsibility. vidual lawmakers.
Averting trust fund exhaustion is We need to advocate for changes in
important, but expansion of benefits these programs so that they can serve
offers the best route to addressing contributions for people with us better. Now is the time to push for a
income inequality and racial and incomes over $400,000. That would more positive social insurance future,
gender gaps in retirement security. extend solvency only until 2040. A and getting it done will require sus-
We need to boost the amount of proposal by Senator Bernie Sanders tained pressure from voters.
pre-retirement income that Social would start that tier at $250,000. Politicians like to hide the ball.
Security replaces, especially for lower- More progressive Democratic None of them will express open oppo-
and middle-income households who reform and expansion plans would sition to the program. Instead, you’ll
rely on the program most. Some extend solvency by 75 years. Those hear something like “I love Social
progressive advocates have called for proposals would also add new taxes Security, but it’s going bankrupt,
expansion of benefits to raise these for high earners, but gradually phase and we have to do something about
replacement rates substantially. in higher payroll tax rates for all it.” That’s a politician who wants to
The pushback against these propos- workers. Currently, the rate is 12.4 cut your benefits.
als comes from centrist and conserva- percent, split between employers and If we want to change the debate
tive critics, who argue that spending employees; progressives have called about social insurance, the argument
more on Social Security is unafford- for gradually boosting those rates to should not be about the expense of
able and will drive up our already- 7.4 percent each by 2042. these programs. It should be about
high level of federal debt and deficit. While public opinion has long values, about the kind of future
Social Security spending today, how- reflected overwhelming bipartisan we want for ourselves and gen-
ever, accounts for just 5 percent of U.S. opposition to cuts in Social Security erations to come.
gross domestic product and that will benefits, reductions likely will be on The market-based systems that we
rise to just 6 percent by 2100. That the table once again this year in the have developed over the past four
increase would be less than we spent GOP-controlled House. decades afford protections mainly
on pandemic relief or on increased The Republican Study Commit- to the affluent. Social insurance is
military spending after 9/11. And the tee, a group of House conservatives, different. We all participate and we
current benefit is very modest by any has developed a plan to push the are all covered. That was the vision of
standard: the average monthly benefit eligibility age for full Social Security Social Security’s founders. And their
in 2023 will be just $1,827. and Medicare benefits to 70. During vision remains as relevant today as it
the midterms, Republican Senators was on August 14, 1935—the day that
How to Pay for It Ron Johnson and Rick Scott both President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
As a candidate, Joe Biden called suggested Social Security and Medi- signed Social Security into law.
for restoring trust fund solvency care should be eliminated as federal
and expanding benefits modestly entitlement programs and instead ▸ Mark Miller is a financial journal-
by adding a new tier of payroll tax should be approved on a regular ist and author. Twitter @RetireRevised

NE WSWEEK .COM 15
TECHNOLOGY

n the morning of Jan- by having private photos and other information


uary 11, the Federal Avi- published online. More than two-thirds of small
ation Administration businesses have been victimized by hackers at
halted all airline take- least once. Some experts believe that just about
offs in the U.S. because every large organization and government agency
of a glitch in a software has been breached—that’s how enormous and
system critical to flight constant cyberattacks have become. Last year, 22
safety. “There is no evi- billion personal and business records were ex-
dence of a cyberattack at this point,” said the White posed in hacks on U.S. companies, according to
House press secretary. But would officials know it a study by security consultancy Flashpoint—and
if it were? And would they disclose it to the public? that doesn’t include breaches that were unidenti-
Those are fair questions, given that in 2015 it fied or unreported, which may well represent the
took the FAA two months to disclose that hackers majority of hacks.
had planted malware in one of its computer net- As bad as it’s been, it’s getting worse. According
works. The federal government keeps tight wraps on to security firms that track attacks, the number of
what it knows about threats to American businesses breaches, which had been growing by 15 percent a
and individuals. year, jumped by 38 percent in 2022.
If hackers did indeed attack the FAA, it would be There are many reasons why hackers seem to have
business as usual in the world of cybersecurity. On the upper hand. For one, they’ve become institution-
the same day, according to research firm Cybersecu- alized, with backers such as Russia, China and other
rity Ventures, hackers posted more than 120,000 re- nations providing shelter and funding to massive
cords stolen from the San Francisco Bay Area transit ranks of hackers in their countries. The targets are
system’s police department, took down the websites also growing more numerous, as billions of people
of eight major Danish banks, includ-
ing the central bank, and broke into
military and government agencies in
several Southeast Asian and Europe-
an countries. They also hijacked the
cloud-computing platforms of Micro- “PEOPLE ASK IF WE’RE WINNING
soft and Salesforce, making off with THE WAR AGAINST HACKERS,
millions of dollars worth of untrace- BUT IT’S LIKE ASKING IF WE’RE WINNING
able cryptocurrency. THE WAR AGAINST FINGERNAILS.
That’s just on January 11. Every day THEY JUST KEEP GROWING.
of the year, hackers unleash a stream
of major attacks against government
agencies, companies and individu-
als. Last year, they took down emergency services, hook up tens of billions of new gadgets to the inter-
threatened regional power grids, disrupted pa- net, each providing an entry point to computer net-
tient care at major hospitals, brought trains to a works. And powerful new hacker tricks and tools—
halt, took over radio stations to sow panic among some of them powered by artificial intelligence—are
listeners with a fake crisis, set off air-raid alerts springing up almost daily on the black market.
and attacked U.S. nuclear scientists. So far this year, As a result, hackers now have the ability to flood
hackers broke into the communications firm Slack computers everywhere with an endless stream of
and stole email addresses of more than 200 million potent attacks. “We’re talking about trillions of
Twitter users. events,” says Mark Ostrowski, who heads engineer-
More than 70 million Americans are hit by ing for major computer security vendor Check
cybercrimes every year, according to computer Point Software Technologies.
security research firm Purplesec, often leaving Most people are vaguely aware that comput-
people defrauded, spied on or publicly humiliated er crime is rife but have no idea how severe the

18 NE WSWEEK .COM J A N U A R Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
problem has become and how quickly it’s expand-
MOVING TARGETS
ing. Many attacks are kept under wraps, keeping
Clockwise from top: Suffolk
County, New York’s traffic agency
the problems out of sight. Even CEOs of major
and Massachusetts’ ferries were companies sometimes lack a clear idea what their
hacked within the last two years; industries are facing. Last year, the newly created
Troy Hunt; and Mark Ostrowski. U.S. Office of the National Cyber Director held a
forum to brief CEOs on some classified intelligence
on cyber threats. The CEOs’ reaction: “Complete
shock,” says principal deputy national cyber direc-
tor Kemba Walden.
The U.S. government, with all its cyber warfare
prowess, has failed to protect its own citizens and
businesses, for whom the prospect of relief is no-
where in sight. “It’s a cyber pandemic,” Ostrowski
says, “and it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

Deadly Threats
It wasn’t supposed to be lIke thIs. two decades
ago, experts wrote off hacking as temporary grow-
ing pains of the nascent internet. Security profes-
sionals were slowly but surely getting hacking un-
der control with improved tools and practices. “The
CLOCK WI SE FROM TOP : STE VE PFOST/G E T T Y; SCOT T E I SE N/GE T T Y; COURTE SY OF TROY HUNT; COURTE SY OF CHECK POINT

vast majority of hackers do not have the necessary


skills and knowledge” to do much damage, said a
2004 report from the U.S. Institute of Peace, a fed-
eral bipartisan think tank, and “the ones who do,
generally do not seek to wreak havoc.”
Where have these assurances left us today? “We
have a saying in the industry,” says Marc Rivero, a
senior security researcher with cybersecurity soft-
ware firm Kaspersky Labs. “Ninety-five percent of
organizations have been breached, and the other
five percent just don’t know they were breached.”
The bottom line, agree most experts, is that no com-
puter, or any device or machine with a computer
chip, can today be considered fully safe.
Security professionals, forever playing catch-up,
seem helpless to get the problem under control.
“The criminals are two steps ahead of us,” says David
Maimon, director of the Evidence-based Cybersecu-
rity Research Group at Georgia State University as
well as a researcher with the Hebrew University in
Jerusalem. “If they want in, they’ll be in.”
The event that most epitomizes the degree to
which hackers can run the table was the 2020
attack on SolarWinds, a software firm. Hackers
breached the company’s computer networks and
planted malware—software that does bad things—
in its software products. When clients downloaded

NE WSWEEK .COM 19
SolarWind’s product updates, they got the malware,
too. “When the software is released, all the comput-
ers that use it are immediately compromised,” says
Kaspersky’s Rivero.
The SolarWinds attack gave hackers access to
the computers of so many companies and even
government agencies that the hack is considered
by many experts to be the most damaging ever. (Of
course, there may be other damaging attacks that
were never made public.) Security experts worry
that infiltrating software companies as a way to get
at their clients is a new strategy that will spawn
copycat crimes. “That’s going to be a key target for
criminals in 2023, for sure,” says Rivero.
FROM TOP: KE NN E TH K . L AM/ THE BALTIMORE SUN/GE T T Y; LOG AN CYRUS /AFP/GE T T Y; IROZ G AIZK A /AFP/GE T T Y

The SolarWinds incident is generally attributed


to hackers supported by Russian intelligence agen-
cies. Russia has become a bustling center of hacker-
dom, in part because the Russian government uses
hacking extensively for purposes of warfare. That
has been the case in its Ukraine invasion, as well as
for spying on and otherwise harming the U.S. and
other countries it considers hostile. China and
North Korea, too, and to a lesser extent Iran, are
known to have extensive state-supported hacking
capabilities for disrupting enemies, as does the U.S.
In some cases these countries are working with
sophisticated cyber criminals as well as cultivating
their own hacker armies. Russia has been especial-
ly tolerant of its thriving ranks of cyber criminals,
as long as they focus on targets in other countries.
“I don’t think there’s evidence of Putin directing
criminals to commit ransomware attacks, but there
hasn’t been much interest there in handing over
criminals who do,” says Troy Hunt, a security con-
sultant who founded the prominent personal-da-
ta-breach-tracking website “Have I Been Pwned?” .
These developments are raising the concerns
about potential attacks on power grids, air traffic
control systems and food supply chains, among
other targets, potentially with severe consequences.
“Targets include nuclear power plants, medical de-
vices, autonomous vehicles and industrial control SYSTEM FAILURES
systems,” says Mordechai Guri, who heads research Top to bottom:
and development at Ben Gurion University’s Cyber The public works
Security Research Center in Israel. “In extreme cas- department is down in
Baltimore; cars await
es, they could cause deaths. You can imagine the
gas in Charlotte, North
effect of a cyberattack on autonomous vehicles.” Carolina, in 2021; and a
Guri is referring to the self-driving cars that are hospital in Dax, France,
already being tested in several cities and states in after an attack last year.

20 NE WSWEEK .COM J A N U A R Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
TECHNOLOGY

the U.S. and elsewhere. Many medical devices, from


and leaving them unable to track callers’ locations.
pacemakers to powerful MRI machines, have some
A long list of attacks with potentially deadly con-
form of network connectivity, as do some traffic
sequences have taken place in the past two years.
lights, elevators and many other devices and ma-
Air-raid sirens went off in Israel last year when
hackers breached the nation’s public-defense sys-
chines that could in theory be commandeered to
deadly effect. Hacker-inflicted disruptions to the
tem. A month later hackers took over Ukrainian
energy grid could kill thousands if they happened
radio stations to falsely report that President Volo-
during periods of extreme cold or heat.
dymyr Zelenskyy was mortally stricken. In 2021
Computer hacks have already begun to prove
hackers took over computers at a water-treatment
deadly. In 2020, hackers shut down computer sys-
facility in Florida and contaminated the water
tems at Düsseldorf University Hospital in Germany,
supply, a life-threatening attack that was barely dis-
disrupting emergency care, among other functions.
covered in time to prevent disaster. A few months
In the ensuing chaos a critically ill patient died be-
later hackers forced the shutdown of the largest oil
fore the hospital could arrange for a transfer. Many
pipeline in the U.S. for a week until the pipeline op-
other institutions have had close calls after being
erator paid the hackers $4.4 million to back off. Last
hit by hackers, including Toronto’s Hospital for Sick
year more than 100 attacks were launched against
various elements of the U.S. power grid.
Children, Canada’s largest pediatric hospital, which
last year lost its ability to access medical tests and im-
It’s no coincidence the attacks are getting more
numerous and scarier. In addition to gaining sup-
aging or use its phones in a hacker attack. When Long
port from Russia and other hostile nations, hack-
Island’s Suffolk County government offices were hit,
the automated 911 system went down, forcing emer-
ers worldwide are becoming better organized and
gency personnel to take information down by hand,
equipped, often functioning more like an intercon-
nected global industry than scattered
bands of criminals. “There is now
an elaborate, deep and sophisticated
hacking supply chain,” notes Georgia
State’s Maimon. “Some write malware,
“NINETY-FIVE PERCENT OF some distribute it, some use it, some
ORGANIZATIONS HAVE BEEN BREACHED, sell the results.”
AND THE OTHER FIVE PERCENT Most of the transactions happen
JUST DON’T KNOW over the Darknet, the portion of the
THEY WERE BREACHED.” internet that is encrypted to hide its
websites from search engines and
anyone without the right passwords.
Hacking groups with names like Fan-
cy Bear, Conti and Killnet advertise on the Darknet
to sell their ill-gotten data and access, recruit other
hackers, buy tools and inside information, and sell
their services as cyber mercenaries. “Some hack-
ers will buy affiliation with a group for $50,000
or more, plus a cut of the revenues,” says Maimon.
Transactions typically happen via Bitcoin, which
makes them difficult to trace.
Business analytics firm Thoughtlab reports that
the number of breaches has been increasing at
an annual rate of 15 percent, but new data from
Check Point indicates the growth rate jumped to
38 percent in 2022. About 200 ransomware attacks
are reported each month in the U.S. on average,

NE WSWEEK .COM 21
TECHNOLOGY

according to data from Secureworks, which sells of wireless or wired connection to the rest of the
computer security tools. Among the more prom- world. Only someone standing next to these ma-

MUSCHI/BLOOMBERG/GET TY; ADRIAN BRETSCHER/GET TY; CAROLYN PRUDEN RICHARDSON


inent victims of ransomware hacks reported in chines could have access to them.
December alone: the California Department of Guri and colleagues, in a paper published in De-
Finance; the Little Rock, Arkansas, school system; cember in Cornell University’s ArXiv, demonstrat-
the British Guardian newspaper; and hospitals in ed how hackers could use electromagnetic waves
Maryland, Texas and Florida. Many more such at- not unlike radio signals to alter the programming
tacks likely go unreported because victims choose of air-gapped machines. The technique is highly
not to go public. complex, and requires physical access at some ear-
lier point—presumably on the part of a bribed or
A Plague of Cybercrime blackmailed insider—to implant malware simply
While the specter of attacks that can kill by briefly inserting a USB thumb drive, for exam-
people and disrupt society may make more ordi- ple. But those requirements aren’t beyond the ca-
nary, financially oriented cybercrime seem tame pabilities of hostile governments. And as experts at
in comparison, the sheer size of the problem is Kaspersky Labs have noted, hackers might be able
becoming an economic nightmare that’s starting to direct tiny drones close enough to a target ma-
to affect lives of people around the world. chine to help set up an attack.
Hackers, for instance, are becoming adept at in- To be sure, security experts are continually com-
tercepting corporate email and changing invoices ing up with new tools and techniques for detecting
so that money is sent to their own accounts. “Those and stopping cyberattacks. But these advances nev-
attacks are a fast-growing threat,”
says Mike McLellan, Secureworks
director of intelligence. “It’s cost-
ing companies billions.”
And while attacks on com-
panies are the most potentially “EVEN SOPHISTICATED PEOPLE
lucrative, hackers are also all too GET TRIPPED UP ALL THE TIME.
happy to pick our individual pock- I KNOW PEOPLE WITH
ets, one by one, usually by tricking DOCTORATES IN CRIMINAL FRAUD
us into giving them the passwords WHO GET TAKEN IN.”
to our bank, credit card and oth-
er financial accounts. Their rou-
tines are growing increasingly
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: STEPHEN MORTON/BLOOMBERG/GET TY; CHRISTINNE

ingenious and convincing, notes Adam Wandt, vice er stop hackers for long. “People ask if we’re win-
chair for technology at John Jay College of Criminal ning the war against hackers, but it’s like asking
Justice. Wandt describes how a friend of his was if we’re winning the war against fingernails,” says
fooled by a piece of malware into calling a phony security expert Hunt. “You can cut them back, but
customer support number for the financial service they just keep growing.”
he uses; the ensuing “help” drained his life savings. Hackers have easy access to software tools with
“Even sophisticated people get tripped up all the names like Doppelpaymer, CobaltStrike and Ninja
time by these schemes,” says Wandt. “I know people that can automatically sniff out weaknesses in com-
with doctorates in criminal fraud who get taken in.” puter systems and sneak in to plant “back doors” that
In the past, computer security experts at least let the hackers do their dirty work without being de-
didn’t have to worry about hackers getting into tected. When security experts foil these tools, hackers
some of the world’s most potentially dangerous immediately come up with new types of attack. “No
equipment, including nuclear power plants and matter how much innovation we see on the security
missile systems. That’s because these systems, side, the hackers are always racing to figure out ways
along with computers critical to national defense, to compromise it,” says John Jay College’s Wandt.
are usually “air-gapped”—that is, they lack any sort “We keep seeing new, outside-the-box attacks that

22 NE WSWEEK .COM
catch us by surprise. Today there isn’t a single piece
of security software that hackers can’t get around.”
Georgia State’s Maimon warns that while cyber
criminals are getting better at their tricks, com-
puter users aren’t getting better at seeing through
them. Maimon ran a study in which a group of
users were trained on how to avoid falling for
phishing schemes, and then two weeks later he
sent them all a phony email note with a suspect
link that could have easily led to malware. A quarter
of the people in the study clicked on it. Meanwhile,
hackers only need to wring a click from one person
to infiltrate an organization of thousands.
Part of the problem, says Maimon, is that there
is a serious shortage of highly skilled people on the
security side. Cybersecurity Ventures reports that
the number of unfilled computer security positions
rose from one million in 2013 to 3.5 million in 2021,
and is expected to stay high through 2025. That
leaves badly understaffed security groups facing off
against millions of hackers around the world, many
of whom are no less than brilliant. One reason for
the imbalance is pay. “The good guys can’t make as
much as the bad guys,” says Maimon.
Machine learning, a form of artificial intelligence
(AI), is starting to lend a hand to the security side,
notes Check Point’s Ostrowski. “It’s our only hope for
keeping up with the trillions of attacks we see,” he says.
There’s just one problem, he adds: Hackers are
turning to machine learning tools, too. “We’re al-
ready seeing an AI arms race in computer security,” he
says. Check Point recently demonstrated how hack-
ers might already be enlisting “ChatGPT,” a popular,
publicly accessible AI system that can understand
plain-English requests in order to come up with ev-
erything from slick-sounding essays to fully function-
ing software code. Check Point’s researchers showed
the program can also create multiple types of new
hacking attacks such as malware and phishing emails.
The U.S. government is trying to step up its game in
foiling hackers by, among other things, creating the
Office of the National Cyber Director in the White
CHASING THE BADDIES House in 2021. So far, the office’s main activity has
Clockwise from top: been holding the executive forums, such as one re-
Security experts hunt cently aimed at the electric vehicle industry. Principal
malware; Secureworks
deputy director Walden wouldn’t provide details of
President and CEO Wendy
Thomas; computer
the threats, exactly how the agency will help bolster
equipment at Kasperky defenses against them, or how much money will be
Labs; and David Maimon. spent on the effort. But she noted the agency would

NE WSWEEK .COM 23
TECHNOLOGY

be issuing a public report soon, and is planning to to wireless networks. As more and more everyday
develop a safe-computing information campaign. devices from door locks to cars to cameras become
“We want to provide that education piece for every- internet-connected, they can be weaponized to track,
one from preschoolers to grandmothers,” she says. rob or cause physical damage. “We all have an aver-
age of seven devices hooked up to the Internet, and
Follow the Money it’s more all the time,” says Maimon. Home security
Hackers Have an enormous incentive to keep at cameras, smart watches, car information systems—
it: Stolen information is valuable. That’s why Aus- all have suffered prominent hacks, and far more
tralia has suffered two major hacking attacks since hacks of these devices have likely been left undiscov-
September, one involving the theft of the drivers-li- ered or unreported.
cense-related personal data of half the nation’s driv- As the number of connected devices grows, so will
ers, the other lifting the health records of 40 percent the number of hacks, and the types of information
of the population. “That means hackers know about that can be stolen. One new vulnerability that came
HACKER HEAVEN
millions of people’s drug and alcohol dependence, to light in December was the discovery by a research-
Clockwise from top:
abortions and sexually-transmitted diseases, among Medibank of Australia
er that Google Home smart speakers can be taken
other highly personal information,” says Hunt. was attacked in over by hackers not only to listen into conversations,
The hackers didn’t do it out of sheer maliciousness. November; hacking but also to gain remote access to smart door locks
They did it because they can make an enormous for- group Fancy Bear’s and other home devices that are networked with the
logo on a laptop; and
tune selling it—to other criminals, for example, who speakers. “If it’s online, it’s vulnerable,” says Maiamon.
President Biden and
can use the personal information to pull off identity Vice President Harris
More interconnected gadgets generates more
theft, blackmail and other crimes. Or they can threat- meet in 2021 with data that needs to be stored remotely in the cloud—
en to publish it as part of a ransomware play. “The ba- members of Congress. vast forests of computer servers operated by
sic idea is to get the data first, and then figure out later
what it might be worth,” says Secureworks’ McLellan.
Although the value of stolen data depends on
a number of factors, Secureworks has tracked
the going prices on the Darknet for some of the
data stolen in recent months around the world: a
bundle of 2,000 U.S. tax returns goes for $3,000;
a batch of credit card data goes for $20 to $100
per card; 487 million WhatsApp phone numbers
fetches $16,500; and passwords to the computer
systems of a major U.S. corporation go for $2,000.
McLellan adds that if stolen information includes
proprietary technical details on a high-tech prod-
uct, then Russia, China and other less-scrupulous
national governments are likely to be eager buy-
ers—if they didn’t sponsor the hack in the first place.
Pretty much anything that’s kept on a computer
can be up for grabs to the right buyer. In December
two men in New York were arrested on charges of
conspiring with Russian hackers to break into the
taxi dispatch system at Kennedy Airport, allowing
them to sell front-of-the-line access to taxi drivers for
$10 a pop. They collected as much as $10,000 before
they were nabbed.
Meanwhile, the range of hackable targets is rap-
idly expanding daily, especially thanks to the grow-
ing number of devices that are getting hooked up

24 NE WSWEEK .COM J A N U A R Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
The public is not up in arms over the high risk of
hacking because most people aren’t aware of how
large those risks have become and how little can be
done to reduce them. Experts and the government
can continue to plug the new security holes that hack-
ers will continue to find, as they have for decades, and
to try to track hackers down and bring them to justice.
In most cases, this is a lost cause. For one thing, it is
difficult to trace attacks back through a vast global
forest of internet connections. And Russian, Chinese
and millions of other hackers are well protected from
international law enforcement. “It’s the nature of the
internet that the attackers can be anywhere,” says
Hunt. “The chances of recourse are none.”
And the government and experts can and will
keep telling people to have better passwords that
they never share, to be more careful about what
they click on in email notes, and to use extra sign-
in precautions such as those that require facial or
fingerprint recognition or send a verification note
to your phone or a special “authenticator” app.
But most people don’t want the inconvenience of
these precautions. When companies or government
agencies try to force people to take them, people
FROM TOP: BRENDON THORNE/BLOOMBERG/GETTY; SEAN GALLUP/GETTY; DOUG MILLS/THE NEW YORK TIMES/GETTY

“THERE IS NOW AN ELABORATE, DEEP AND SOPHISTICATED


HACKING SUPPLY CHAIN. SOME WRITE MALWARE,
SOME DISTRIBUTE IT, SOME USE IT, SOME SELL THE RESULTS.”

Amazon, Google, Microsoft and other tech giants. often find ways around them. “You end up with
While those companies provide access to advanced ‘shadow IT,’ like when people use Gmail instead of
security tools that can protect that data, the soft- company email to avoid the inconvenience of the
ware developers who make use of the cloud don’t extra protections,” says Ostrowski.
always properly deploy them, leaving enormous The route to full computer security may in the
stores of aggregated data less than fully protected end be less about plugging holes in our defenses,
and ripe for hackers. “Thanks to the cloud, it’s never and more about unplugging. But if that’s the case,
been easier to quickly build applications and screw then the picture isn’t likely to improve any time
them up so they’re not safe,” says Hunt. soon. How many of us are really ready to swear
In the end, contends Hunt, the only safe piece of off the online world and smart devices? Not many,
data today is data that isn’t kept on any computer, according to analytics firm Statista, which reports
anywhere. “We need to start minimizing our digital that the number of devices connected to the Inter-
footprints,” he says. “Every time you sign up for a net, currently at just under 15 billion, is expected
service, they want your phone number and birth- to double over the next eight years. The future is
date. We have to stop giving away that information.” looking more and more chaotic and dangerous.

NE WSWEEK .COM 25
MA X K EG FIRE/GE T T Y (2 ); VID I STUDIO/GE T T Y; FL A SHPOP/GE T T Y ( 5) ; C ARLOS DAVID/GE T T Y; LUMINOL A /GE T T Y; KL AUS VEDFELT/GE T T Y; GE T T Y
AmericA’s

GREATEST
WORKPLACES
for

2023

NE WSWEEK .COM 27
ost companies these days talk a good game about
diversity. It is common to hear employers emphasizing
their efforts to recruit and promote people of different
ages, races, genders, sexuality and abilities. And that makes sense, not only
because diversity is important particularly to younger job applicants, but
also because it is well-documented that workplaces filled with people with
different worldviews are more creative, more innovative and generally
make better decisions. Employing a wide variety of people who feel com-
fortable and respected isn’t a desirable perk, it is simply good business.
With the word “diversity” attracting so much lip service from compa-
nies, however, it can be tough for job applicants, customers and potential
business partners to tell who is serious about supporting a diverse work-
force and who is not. To that end, Newsweek and market data research firm
Plant-A Insights are proud to introduce “America’s Greatest Workplaces
For Diversity 2023” our scored list of the 1,000 companies that employees
say really respect and value different kinds of people.
We based our scoring on our review of publicly available data, interviews
with HR professionals and an anonymous online survey of a diverse pool
of employees at companies with 1,000 or more employees in the U.S. Re-
spondents were asked questions about corporate culture, working environ-
ment and other subjects at both their own companies and others they were
familiar with. The survey yielded more than 350,000 company reviews.
The top-scoring companies on our list are themselves a diverse list
spanning different kinds of businesses, including St. Jude’s Children’s
Research Hospital, Kellogg Company, Key Bank, Dutch Bros. Coffee and
Hawaiian Airlines among others.
Whether you are a job applicant, a consumer or someone who does busi-
ness with one of these companies, we hope you’ll find this listing of com-
panies that mean what they say when they talk about diversity informative
and useful. ▸ Nancy Cooper, Global Editor in Chief

1-800-FLOWERS.COM ★★★★
1888 Mills ★★★★
1st Franklin Financial ★★★★
M E T H O D O L O GY 20/20 Communications ★★★★
22nd Century ★★★★
THE METHODOLOGY FOR AMERICA’S GREATEST gathered which was then used to weigh 3D Systems ★★★★★
Workplaces for Diversity 2023 is based responses from diverse target groups. 3M ★★★★
on a three-part evaluation. The first Finally, through an extensive review 3Pillar ★★★★
part was a pre-study survey that asked and evaluation phase, desk research
4imprint ★★★★
HR professionals to identify current and was completed to validate facts about
54th Street Grill ★★★★
future employee satisfaction drivers. employers and legal disputes (within
The second phase was the main em- the past 24 months). Media monitor- A&A ★★★★
ployee survey which asked for either a ing was conducted and a research jury A&E Networks ★★★★★
direct recommendation for a company validated the results. The Desk Research A.J.M. Packaging ★★★★
they work for or an indirect recommen- was kindly supported by PrivCo, the
a.k.a. BRANDS ★★★★
dation for companies they’ve known as most powerful search engine for private
AAA Cooper Transportation ★★★★
an employer. The independent study company data, and Onclusive, the
collected over 350,000 company reviews. leading media monitoring partner with AAA Miami Valley ★★★★★
During this survey, personal data was its world-class sentiment technology. AAA Mid-Atlantic ★★★★

▸VIEW T H E L I S T O N L I N E AT Newsweek.com/agwd-2023 *The Desk Research was kindly supported by PrivCo, the most powerful
Adventist Health ★★★★ AWP ★★★★
Advocate Aurora Health ★★★★ B. Braun ★★★★
Aerotek ★★★★★ B. Fernandez Holding ★★★★
Aetna ★★★★★ B.L. Harbert ★★★★
Aflac ★★★★★ Bachman’s ★★★★
Airbnb ★★★★★ Backcountry ★★★★
Alaska Air ★★★★ Badcock ★★★★
Alcoa ★★★★ Bags ★★★★
Aldridge Group ★★★★★ Bailey Nurseries ★★★★
Allegiant ★★★★★ Bain & Company ★★★★★
Ally ★★★★★ Baker Hughes ★★★★
Alorica ★★★★ Ball ★★★★★
AM General ★★★★ Ball Aerospace & Technologies ★★★★★
Amarr Garage Doors ★★★★ Ball Arena ★★★★★
Ambercare ★★★★ Bancorp ★★★★
Ambulatory Services / ★★★★ Bandwidth ★★★★
U.S. Renal Care Banfield ★★★★★
AMC Networks ★★★★ Bank of America ★★★★★
AMC Theatres ★★★★ Bank OZK ★★★★★
Amentum ★★★★ BankUnited ★★★★
Ameren ★★★★ Banner Health ★★★★
American & Efird ★★★★★ Baptist Health ★★★★
American Achievement ★★★★ Baptist Health Care ★★★★
American Airlines ★★★★ Bard ★★★★
American Express ★★★★★ BASF ★★★★
America’s Car-Mart ★★★★★ Baxter ★★★★★
AmerisourceBergen ★★★★ BAYADA Home Healthcare ★★★★
Amgen ★★★★★ BayCare ★★★★
Amway ★★★★★ Bayer ★★★★★
Analog Devices ★★★★★ Beacon ★★★★
Anthem ★★★★ Beaumont ★★★★
Aon ★★★★ Belk ★★★★
AAA Travel ★★★★ Apache ★★★★★ Benchmark ★★★★
AAON ★★★★ Apexon ★★★★★ Berkley Insurance ★★★★★
AAR Corp. ★★★★ Apple Health Care ★★★★ Berkshire Hathaway ★★★★
AB Staffing Solutions ★★★★ Applied Materials ★★★★★ Best Buy ★★★★
Abbott ★★★★ Arizona State University ★★★★ Big 5 Sporting Goods ★★★★
Abbott Plastics ★★★★ Asana ★★★★ Big Y Foods ★★★★★
AbbVie ★★★★★ Asbury Automotive ★★★★★ Biogen ★★★★★
ABC Fine Wines & Spirits ★★★★ Ascend ★★★★ BJC HealthCare ★★★★★
Abercrombie & Fitch ★★★★ Aspen Dental ★★★★ BJ’s Restaurants ★★★★
Abuelo’s ★★★★ AstraZeneca ★★★★ Black & Veatch ★★★★
Accenture ★★★★★ At Home ★★★★ BlackRock ★★★★★
Ace Hardware ★★★★ AT&T ★★★★ Blue Apron ★★★★★
K L AU S VE DFE LT/GE T T Y

Adams and Associates ★★★★ ATALIAN Global Services ★★★★ Blue Bird ★★★★
Adapt Health ★★★★ Atlantic Health ★★★★ Bmo Harris ★★★★★
Adobe ★★★★★ Aurora Health Care ★★★★ BMW Management ★★★★★
ADT ★★★★ Auto-Owners Insurance ★★★★ BNY Mellon ★★★★
Advantage Solutions ★★★★★ AutoZone ★★★★ Boar’s Head ★★★★

search engine for private company data and Onclusive, the leading media monitoring partner with its world-class sentiment technology. NE WSWEEK .COM 29
CCNI ★★★★★ Cornerstone ★★★★★
Centene ★★★★★ Corning ★★★★★
CGS ★★★★★ Costco ★★★★
CHA Consulting ★★★★ Covenant Health ★★★★
Bob’s Discount Furniture ★★★★ Charles River ★★★★★ Cox Communications ★★★★
Boeing ★★★★ Charter Communications ★★★★ CoxHealth ★★★★★
Booz Allen ★★★★★ Chase Staffing ★★★★ CPSI ★★★★★
Boscov’s ★★★★ Checkers Drive-in ★★★★ Cracker Barrel ★★★★
Bose ★★★★ Chesterton ★★★★★ Credit Karma ★★★★★
Boston Scientific ★★★★★ Chevron ★★★★ Crocs ★★★★
Boston University ★★★★★ Chevron Phillips ★★★★★ CTCA ★★★★
Boyd ★★★★ Chemical Company Cummins ★★★★★
Boyd Gaming ★★★★★ Chewy ★★★★ CVS Health ★★★★
BP ★★★★ Children’s Hospital and ★★★★ D&H Distributing ★★★★
Health System
Bristol-Myers Squibb ★★★★ D&W Fine Pack ★★★★
Children’s Mercy ★★★★★
Broadcom ★★★★ D.A. Davidson ★★★★
Children’s National Hospital ★★★★★
Brookshire’s ★★★★ D.R. Horton ★★★★
Chili’s ★★★★
BSW Health ★★★★ D’Addario ★★★★
CHOA ★★★★
Bubba Gump ★★★★ Daifuku ★★★★
CIGNA ★★★★★
Buckeye / Georgia-Pacific ★★★★ Daktronics ★★★★
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital ★★★★★
Buckle ★★★★★ Dana ★★★★
Cintas ★★★★
Build-A-Bear ★★★★ Dana-Farber ★★★★
Circle K ★★★★
Burlington Coat Factory ★★★★ Darden ★★★★
Cisco ★★★★★
C Spire ★★★★ Darigold ★★★★★
CIT Group ★★★★★
C&D Technologies ★★★★ Dave & Busters ★★★★
Citi ★★★★
C&K Market ★★★★ Dean Health Plan ★★★★
Citi Trends ★★★★
C&K Trucking ★★★★ Del Monte Foods ★★★★★
Citizens ★★★★★
C&S ★★★★★ Dell Technologies ★★★★★
City National Bank ★★★★★
C&W Services ★★★★ Deloitte ★★★★★
C.C. Clark ★★★★ CNA Financial ★★★★ Delta ★★★★★
C.C.M. Corporation ★★★★ Cobb Theatres / CMX Cinemas ★★★★ Delta Dental ★★★★
C.H. Guenther & Son ★★★★ Coca-Cola ★★★★ Denny’s ★★★★
C.H. Robinson ★★★★ Cognizant ★★★★★ Denso ★★★★
C.H.I. Overhead Doors ★★★★ Coldwell Banker ★★★★ Dental Care Alliance ★★★★
C.R. England ★★★★ Colgate-Palmolive ★★★★★ DEPT ★★★★
C2 ★★★★★ Collins Aerospace ★★★★★ DFA ★★★★
Cabot ★★★★★ Comcast ★★★★★ Diagnostic Clinic Medical Group ★★★★
Cabot Microelectronics ★★★★ Comerica ★★★★★ Dick’s Sporting Goods ★★★★
CACI ★★★★★ Commerce Bank ★★★★ Dignity Health ★★★★
Caesars Entertainment ★★★★ Compass ★★★★★ Discord ★★★★
CAI ★★★★★ Compass Group ★★★★ Discount Drug Mart ★★★★
Campbell ★★★★ Comtech ★★★★★ Discover ★★★★★
Camping World ★★★★ Conagra Brands ★★★★ DLL Financial Services ★★★★
Capital BlueCross ★★★★ Conair ★★★★ DocuSign ★★★★
Capital One ★★★★ Concentra ★★★★ Dole ★★★★★
Cardinal Health ★★★★★ Concentrix ★★★★★ Dominion Energy ★★★★★
Cargill ★★★★★ Conduent ★★★★ Domino’s ★★★★★
CarMax ★★★★ ConocoPhillips ★★★★★ DoorDash ★★★★
Carnival Corporation ★★★★★ Construction Partners ★★★★ Dow ★★★★★

▸VIEW T H E L I S T O N L I N E AT Newsweek.com/agwd-2023 J A n U A r Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
Entergy ★★★★★
Enterprise Holdings ★★★★
Epic Games ★★★★
Epic Health ★★★★★
Ergon ★★★★★
Erickson Senior Living ★★★★
Erie Insurance ★★★★★
Estee Lauder ★★★★★
Estes Express Lines ★★★★
Etsy ★★★★★
Exelon ★★★★★
Expedia ★★★★
Express Employment ★★★★
Professionals
Exxon ★★★★
EY ★★★★★
F.H. Paschen ★★★★
F.N.B. ★★★★
F.W. Webb ★★★★
F+W ★★★★
F5 ★★★★
Fabcon ★★★★
Fabick CAT ★★★★
Fabsouth ★★★★
Factory Connection ★★★★
Factory Motor Parts ★★★★
Faegre Baker Daniels ★★★★★
Fagen ★★★★
Fairfax Nursing Center ★★★★
Fairfield Residential ★★★★
Fairview ★★★★
Family Practice Center ★★★★
Fanatics ★★★★
Farmers Insurance ★★★★
Federated Hermes ★★★★★
Draexlmaier ★★★★ Eastman ★★★★
FedEx ★★★★
DraftKings ★★★★★ Eaton ★★★★★
FHI 360 ★★★★
DTE Energy ★★★★★ eBay ★★★★
Fidelity ★★★★★
Duke Energy ★★★★ Ecolab ★★★★
Fidelity National Financial ★★★★
Duke University ★★★★★ Eddie Bauer ★★★★★
Fifth Third ★★★★★
Dutch Bros. Coffee ★★★★★ Edelman Financial Engines ★★★★★
Finance of America Mortgage ★★★★★
E*HealthLine ★★★★ Edward Jones ★★★★★
FIS Global ★★★★★
E-J Electric ★★★★
E*TRADE ★★★★ Five Below ★★★★
Electronic Arts ★★★★★
E. & J. Gallo Winery ★★★★★ Five Guys ★★★★
Elevance Health
K L AU S VE DFE LT/GE T T Y

★★★★★
E.A. Renfroe ★★★★ Florida Blue ★★★★
Emory ★★★★★
E.L. Hollingsworth ★★★★ Florida Cancer Specialists ★★★★★
Engineered Floors ★★★★
EAB ★★★★ Florida Medical Clinic ★★★★
Engineering Research ★★★★
Eagle Bulk ★★★★ & Consulting FM Global ★★★★★
Earth Fare ★★★★★ Enovis ★★★★★ FND ★★★★★

NE WSWEEK .COM 31
Focus Brands ★★★★ GrubHub ★★★★ HealthAlliance Hospital ★★★★
Focus Services ★★★★ H&R Block ★★★★★ Healthgrades ★★★★
Food Lion ★★★★ H.B. Fuller ★★★★ HealthONE ★★★★★
Footlocker ★★★★ H.J. Russell ★★★★ HealthPartners ★★★★
Forbes ★★★★ H.T. Hackney ★★★★ HealthPro Heritage ★★★★
Ford ★★★★ H.W. Kaufman ★★★★★ H-E-B ★★★★
Forever 21 ★★★★ Haas ★★★★ Henry Ford Health ★★★★★
Fractal ★★★★★ Haggar ★★★★ Hershey Entertainment ★★★★★
Frito-Lay ★★★★ Halliburton ★★★★ & Resorts
Froedtert ★★★★★ Hallmark ★★★★ Hertz ★★★★
Frontier ★★★★ Hampton Affiliates ★★★★ Hickory Springs ★★★★
Manufacturing Company
G&J Pepsi-Cola Bottlers ★★★★ HanesBrands ★★★★
Highmark ★★★★★
G&W Laboratories ★★★★ Hannaford ★★★★
G2 Secure Staff ★★★★ Hard Rock Cafe ★★★★ Highmark Health ★★★★
G4S ★★★★ Harley-Davidson ★★★★★ Hilton Grand Vacations ★★★★★
Gabe ★★★★ Harmony Cares ★★★★ Hilton Worldwide ★★★★
Gables ★★★★ Harris Teeter ★★★★ Hoffman Construction ★★★★
Galls ★★★★ Harvard University ★★★★ Holcim Building Envelope ★★★★
Gallup ★★★★ Hawaiian Airlines ★★★★★ Hollister ★★★★★
GameStop ★★★★ HCSC ★★★★ HOM Furniture ★★★★
Gaming Labs International ★★★★ HD Supply ★★★★ Home Base ★★★★★
Garda ★★★★ Health Catalyst ★★★★ Home City Ice ★★★★
Gates ★★★★ Health Concepts ★★★★ Home Point Capital ★★★★
Gateway Group One ★★★★ Health Fitness ★★★★ HoMedics ★★★★
GBMC ★★★★★ Health Net ★★★★ Honda ★★★★
GE Gas Power ★★★★ Health Systems Management ★★★★ Honda Aircraft ★★★★
GE Healthcare ★★★★
GEICO ★★★★
Genentech ★★★★
Generac ★★★★
General Dynamics ★★★★★
General Mills ★★★★
Georgia-Pacific ★★★★
Giant Eagle ★★★★
G-III ★★★★
GM ★★★★
Godiva ★★★★
GoHealth ★★★★★
Goldman Sachs ★★★★
Good Neighbor Pharmacy ★★★★
Good Times Restaurants ★★★★
Goodman ★★★★
Goodwill ★★★★
Goodwin Procter ★★★★
Goulds Pumps ★★★★
GovCIO ★★★★
Grace ★★★★★
Gracenote ★★★★
Graco ★★★★

32 NE WSWEEK .COM
Honeywell ★★★★★ J. Crew ★★★★
Honeywell Aerospace ★★★★ J. Fletcher Creamer ★★★★
HonorHealth ★★★★ J.B. Hunt ★★★★★
Hot Topic ★★★★ Jabil ★★★★
HP ★★★★ Jack in the Box ★★★★ L&L Products ★★★★
HPE ★★★★★ Jackson Healthcare ★★★★ L&W Supply ★★★★
HRI Properties ★★★★ Jacobs ★★★★ L.B. Foster ★★★★
HSN ★★★★ JB Poindexter ★★★★ L3 Harris ★★★★★
Hub Group ★★★★★ JCPenney ★★★★ Labcorp ★★★★
Hub International ★★★★ JetBlue ★★★★★ Land O’Lakes ★★★★
Hulu ★★★★ JOANN ★★★★ Landmark Industries ★★★★
Humana ★★★★★ Jockey ★★★★★ LBRDA ★★★★
Huntington Coach ★★★★ John Hancock ★★★★★ LDI ★★★★
HVMG ★★★★ Johns Hopkins Medicine ★★★★ Leidos ★★★★★
Hyatt ★★★★★ Johns Hopkins University ★★★★★ Levi’s ★★★★
Hy-Vee ★★★★ Johnson & Johnson ★★★★★ Liberty Healthcare ★★★★
IBEX ★★★★ Johnson Controls ★★★★ Liberty Mutual ★★★★
IBM ★★★★★ Jordan’s Furniture ★★★★ Lilly ★★★★★
IBT Group ★★★★ JPMorgan Chase ★★★★★ LinkedIn ★★★★
IBX ★★★★★ J-W Power Company ★★★★ Live Nation ★★★★★
ICC Industries ★★★★ K S Management ★★★★ Lockheed Martin ★★★★★
Icertis ★★★★ K&L Gates ★★★★ Lockton ★★★★
ICF ★★★★★ Kadant ★★★★ Lodging Hospitality ★★★★★
IDEXX ★★★★ Kaiser Aluminum ★★★★ Management
Illinois Tool Works ★★★★★ Kalahari Resorts ★★★★ Loew’s ★★★★
Illumina ★★★★★ Kalitta Air ★★★★★ Los Angeles Angels ★★★★
Imperial Dade ★★★★ Kay & Associates ★★★★ Lowe’s ★★★★
Indeed ★★★★★ Kearney ★★★★★ LSI ★★★★
InfoCision ★★★★ Keller Williams ★★★★ Lyft ★★★★★
Informatica ★★★★★ Capital Properties M&K Truck Centers ★★★★
Ingles Markets ★★★★ Keller Williams Realty ★★★★★ M&T Bank ★★★★
Inova ★★★★★ Kellogg ★★★★★ M*Modal ★★★★
Insurance Office of America ★★★★ Kelly Services ★★★★ MA Labs ★★★★
Intel ★★★★★ Keurig Dr. Pepper ★★★★ MacDonald-Miller ★★★★
Intermountain HealthCare ★★★★ KeyBank ★★★★★ Facility Solutions, Inc.
Intuit ★★★★★ Kimberly-Clark ★★★★★ MACOM ★★★★★
Iowa Select Farms ★★★★ KinderCare ★★★★ Macy’s ★★★★
IRI ★★★★★ Kirkland’s ★★★★★ Madewell ★★★★★
ISG ★★★★★ Knoebels ★★★★ Manpower ★★★★
IT Coalition ★★★★★ Koch ★★★★★ Manufacturers ★★★★
iTech ★★★★ Koch Industries ★★★★★ Industrial Group
iTechArt ★★★★★ Kodak ★★★★ Marathon Petroleum ★★★★★
ITG Brands ★★★★★ Kohler ★★★★ Market Basket ★★★★
ITG Communications ★★★★ Kohl’s ★★★★ Marriott ★★★★★
K L au S VED FE LT/GE T T y

iTransition ★★★★★ Koons ★★★★ Mars ★★★★


Itron ★★★★ KPMG ★★★★★ Marsh & McLennan ★★★★★
ITS ConGlobal ★★★★★ Kraft Heinz ★★★★ Martin Guitars ★★★★
ITT ★★★★★ Kronos ★★★★ Mass General Brigham ★★★★★
ITT Aerospace ★★★★★ Kwik Trip ★★★★ MassMutual ★★★★

J a n u a r y 2 7, 2 0 2 3 ▸VIEW T H E L I S T O N L I N E AT Newsweek.com/agwd-2023
Montefiore ★★★★ Orlando Health ★★★★★
Morgan & Morgan ★★★★ Pace Analytical ★★★★
Morgan Stanley ★★★★ Pacific Bells ★★★★
Mortenson ★★★★ Pacific Life ★★★★
Mastercard ★★★★
Motel 6 ★★★★ Pandora Media ★★★★★
Maximus ★★★★ Panera Bread
Motorola ★★★★ ★★★★
Mayo Clinic ★★★★ Papa John’s
MSI Surfaces ★★★★ ★★★★
McAfee ★★★★ Paramount
MTC ★★★★ ★★★★
McCormick ★★★★★ Mutual of Omaha ★★★★★ Parker ★★★★
McKesson ★★★★★ N3 / Accenture ★★★★ Patagonia ★★★★★
McKinsey ★★★★★ NANA ★★★★ Paychex ★★★★★
Medallia ★★★★★ NAPCO ★★★★ Paycom ★★★★
MediaCom ★★★★★ Nashville Wire ★★★★ PayPal ★★★★★
Medical Services of America ★★★★ National Amusements ★★★★ Peabody ★★★★★
Medical Solutions ★★★★ National Beverage ★★★★ PeaceHealth ★★★★
Medline ★★★★ Nationwide ★★★★ Pella ★★★★★
MedStar Health ★★★★★ Nationwide Children’s ★★★★★ Penguin Random House ★★★★★
Med-Systems ★★★★ NBA ★★★★★ Pepsi ★★★★
Medtronic ★★★★★ NCR ★★★★ Petco ★★★★
Memorial Health ★★★★ Neiman Marcus ★★★★ PetSmart ★★★★
Memorial Sloan-Kettering ★★★★★ Nestle ★★★★★ Pfizer ★★★★★
Cancer Center
Netflix ★★★★★ PG&E ★★★★
Mercedes Benz ★★★★
New American Funding ★★★★ Piedmont ★★★★
Merck ★★★★
New Balance ★★★★ Pier 1 Imports ★★★★★
Mercy ★★★★
New York Life ★★★★★ Pilgrim’s Pride ★★★★
Mercy Health ★★★★
NFI ★★★★ Pitt Ohio ★★★★
Meta ★★★★★ Planet Fitness ★★★★
Niagara Bottling ★★★★
MetaBank ★★★★★ Planet Hollywood ★★★★
Nielsen ★★★★★
Methodist Health System ★★★★ Planned Parenthood ★★★★★
Nike ★★★★★
Methodist Le Bonheur ★★★★ Polar Beverages ★★★★
Nobel Learning / ★★★★
MetLife ★★★★★ Spring Education Postmates ★★★★
MGM Resorts ★★★★ Noodles & Company ★★★★ PPD ★★★★
Miami Valley Hospital ★★★★ Northrop Grumman ★★★★ PPG ★★★★
Michael & Son ★★★★ Northside Hospital ★★★★ PPL ★★★★
Michael Baker ★★★★★ Northwest Community Hospital ★★★★ Prairie Farms ★★★★★
Michelin ★★★★★ Northwestern Mutual ★★★★★ Pratt Industries ★★★★
Micro Focus ★★★★ Nucor ★★★★★ Presbyterian ★★★★★
Microchip ★★★★★ NVIDIA ★★★★★ Principal ★★★★★
Micron Technology ★★★★★ NYU Langone ★★★★★ Procore Technologies ★★★★
Microsemi ★★★★★ Ochsner ★★★★ Progressive ★★★★★
MicroStrategy ★★★★ OhioHealth ★★★★ Prudential ★★★★★
Minnesota Twins ★★★★★ Oil States ★★★★ Public Consulting Group ★★★★
MLB ★★★★ Oklahoma Heart Hospital ★★★★ Publix ★★★★★
MobilityWorks ★★★★ Old Chicago ★★★★★ Q2 ★★★★★
MOD Pizza ★★★★ Oliver’s Market ★★★★ QAD ★★★★
Moderna ★★★★★ O’Melveny ★★★★★ QIAGEN ★★★★★
Molina Healthcare ★★★★★ Oracle ★★★★★ QinetiQ ★★★★★
Molson Coors ★★★★★ Oracle Cerner ★★★★ QK Holdings ★★★★
Mondelez ★★★★ O’Reilly Auto Parts ★★★★ Q’MAX Solutions ★★★★

▸VIEW T H E L I S T O n L I n E aT Newsweek.com/agwd-2023 J a n u a r y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
Quad ★★★★
Qualcomm ★★★★★
Quantix ★★★★★
Quest Diagnostics ★★★★
QuikTrip ★★★★
QVC ★★★★
R. J. Corman ★★★★
R.H. Sheppard ★★★★
R.R. Donnelley ★★★★
R/GA ★★★★★
Radian ★★★★★
RadioShack ★★★★★
Radius GS ★★★★
Raising Cane’s ★★★★
Raley’s ★★★★
Ralph Lauren ★★★★
Randstad ★★★★
Raymond James ★★★★★
Raytheon Intelligence & Space ★★★★★
Raytheon Technologies ★★★★★
RE/MAX ★★★★
Readerlink ★★★★
Recreational Equipment ★★★★★
Red Hat ★★★★★
Reddit ★★★★★
REeBroker ★★★★
Regeneron ★★★★★
S.C. Johnson ★★★★ Sea Island ★★★★
Regions Hospital ★★★★
Rent-A-Center ★★★★★ Sa Recycling ★★★★ Sears Hometown Stores ★★★★
Republic Services ★★★★★ Saber Healthcare ★★★★ Shake Shack ★★★★
Rice University ★★★★★ Sabert ★★★★ Sharp HealthCare ★★★★
Rivian ★★★★ Sabre ★★★★ Shaw Industries Group ★★★★
RMS Merchandising ★★★★ Saddle Creek Logistics ★★★★ Sheetz ★★★★
Road & Rail Services ★★★★ Safe Harbor ★★★★★ Shell ★★★★★
Road Runner Sports ★★★★ Safeco ★★★★★ Shriners Children’s ★★★★★
Robert Half ★★★★★ Safelite ★★★★ Siemens ★★★★
Rocket Companies ★★★★ SAIC ★★★★ Sitel ★★★★
Rockwell Automation ★★★★★ Saint Luke’s ★★★★★ Six Flags ★★★★
Ross ★★★★ Salesforce ★★★★★ Snap-On ★★★★
Royal Caribbean ★★★★ Sally Beauty ★★★★★ SoFi ★★★★
Ruby Tuesday ★★★★ SAP ★★★★★ Soft Surroundings ★★★★★
GIN ANJAR HUTOM O BAN GU N/GE T T Y

rue21 ★★★★ SAS ★★★★★ SoftwareONE ★★★★★


Rush Enterprises ★★★★ Scantron ★★★★ Sony ★★★★★
RWJBarnabas Health ★★★★★ Scentsy ★★★★★ Southeastern Grocers ★★★★
S&B Engineers and Constructors ★★★★ Scheels ★★★★ Southern Company ★★★★
S&C Electric Company ★★★★ Schneider ★★★★ Southwest Airlines ★★★★★
S&ME ★★★★ Scholastic ★★★★ Spectrum ★★★★
S&P ★★★★★ Scripps ★★★★★ Spectrum Brands ★★★★
S&S Activewear ★★★★★ SDI International ★★★★★ SPI ★★★★

NE WSWEEK .COM 35
Spirit ★★★★ Texas A&M ★★★★ Torrid ★★★★★
Sprint ★★★★ Texas Health Resources ★★★★ Toyo Tires ★★★★
Squarespace ★★★★★ Texas Instruments ★★★★ Tractor Supply ★★★★
SSM Health ★★★★ Texas Oncology ★★★★ TRADEBE ★★★★
St. Elizabeth’s Hospital ★★★★ Texas Roadhouse ★★★★ Trader Joe’s ★★★★
St. Joseph Medical Center ★★★★ Thales ★★★★★ Traditions Health ★★★★★
St. Jude Children’s ★★★★★ Tharaldson Hospitality ★★★★★ Transport America ★★★★
Research Hospital The Andersons ★★★★ Trinity Health ★★★★
Stanley Black & Decker ★★★★ The Hartford ★★★★★ Truist ★★★★
Starbucks ★★★★ The Home Depot ★★★★★ TTEC ★★★★★
StarKist ★★★★ Thermo Fisher ★★★★★ Tuesday Morning ★★★★
Starr Companies ★★★★ TIAA ★★★★ Tufts Health Plans ★★★★
StarTek ★★★★ TIBCO ★★★★★ Turner ★★★★★
State Auto / Liberty Mutual ★★★★ Tiffany’s ★★★★★ Tyler Technologies ★★★★
Stater Bros ★★★★ Tilly’s ★★★★ Tyonek ★★★★★
STG Logistics ★★★★ TJX ★★★★ Tyson Foods ★★★★
Stryker ★★★★★ TMC HealthCare ★★★★ U.S. Engineering ★★★★
Sunoco ★★★★ T-Mobile ★★★★ U.S. Foods ★★★★
Sweetgreen ★★★★ TopGolf ★★★★ UC Davis Health ★★★★
Sweetwater ★★★★
SYKES ★★★★
Synchrony ★★★★★
Syniti ★★★★★
Sysco ★★★★★
T. Rowe Price ★★★★
Tableau ★★★★
Taboola ★★★★
Tabula Rasa HealthCare ★★★★★
Tacala ★★★★
Taco Cabana ★★★★
Taco Mac ★★★★
Takeda ★★★★★
Tampa General Hospital ★★★★
Tarantino Properties ★★★★
Target ★★★★
Tarter ★★★★
TaskUs ★★★★★
TD ★★★★★
TDIndustries ★★★★
Teach For America ★★★★
Team Car Care ★★★★
TEC Equipment ★★★★
Tech Data ★★★★★
Tech USA ★★★★
Technica ★★★★
Technimark ★★★★
TechTarget ★★★★★
TELUS ★★★★★
Tesco ★★★★

36 NE WSWEEK .COM
UcF ★★★★ UPS ★★★★
UCSF Benioff ★★★★★ Upstate Niagara ★★★★
Children’s Hospital
Urban Outfitters ★★★★
UIC Government Services / ★★★★
The Bowhead Family of Companies US Electrical Services ★★★★
Weber ★★★★★
UKG ★★★★★ US Foods ★★★★
WebMD ★★★★
Ulta ★★★★★ US Tech Solutions ★★★★★
Wegmans ★★★★
UMass Medical School ★★★★ USA Mortgage ★★★★
Welch’s ★★★★
UMM Health ★★★★★ USAA ★★★★★
USANA Wellmark ★★★★★
UNC REX Healthcare ★★★★★ ★★★★
USC Wells Enterprises ★★★★
Under Armour ★★★★ ★★★★
UT Medical Center WellSpan Health ★★★★★
United Airlines ★★★★ ★★★★
Vacasa WellStar Health System ★★★★
UnitedHealth Group ★★★★★ ★★★★
Vaco Werner Enterprises ★★★★
University of Dayton ★★★★ ★★★★
University of Hawaii ★★★★ Valley Bank ★★★★ Whirlpool ★★★★
University of Maryland ★★★★ Vanderbilt University ★★★★ White Cap ★★★★★
FL A SHPOP/GE T T Y

University of Maryland ★★★★ Vanguard Logistics ★★★★ Whole Foods ★★★★


Medical System Vans ★★★★★ Williams-Sonoma ★★★★★
University of South Florida ★★★★ Vericast ★★★★ Workday ★★★★★
UPMC CCP ★★★★★ Verizon ★★★★★ WTW ★★★★★
Veterans United Home Loans ★★★★ Wyndham ★★★★
Veterinary Practice Partners ★★★★ Wynn ★★★★
Victoria’s Secret ★★★★ Xanitos ★★★★
Virgin America / Alaska Airlines ★★★★ Xceedance ★★★★★
Visa ★★★★ Xcel Energy ★★★★
Vivage ★★★★ Xcerra ★★★★
Vmware ★★★★★ Xencom ★★★★
VOANS ★★★★ Yamaha ★★★★
Voya ★★★★ Yanfeng ★★★★
W. W. Wood Products ★★★★ YASH Technologies ★★★★
W.L. Gore & Associates ★★★★★ Yates Construction ★★★★
Wabtec ★★★★ YMCA ★★★★
Wacom ★★★★ York Risk Services / Sedwick ★★★★
WakeMed ★★★★ Yum! Brands ★★★★
Walgreens Boots Alliance ★★★★ Zachry Group ★★★★
Walker & Dunlop ★★★★ Zaxby’s Franchising ★★★★
Walser ★★★★★ Zayo ★★★★
Warby Parker ★★★★★ Zebra Technologies ★★★★★
Waste Management ★★★★★ Zillow ★★★★
Wayfair ★★★★ Zoom ★★★★★
Webcor ★★★★ Zumiez ★★★★

PLANT-A INSIGHTS GROUP ▸ is a research, analytics and technology firm that


produces independent, unbiased company rankings and recognition across a wide
variety of industries, categories and sectors through extensive market research
and analytics. All research projects are independently administered and performed
by the highest standards of neutral and transparent research methods.

▸VIEW T H E L I S T O N L I N E AT Newsweek.com/agwd-2023
Content from
The International Investor

Canada - A global nation backed by a resilient economy


C
anada ranks 13th in the world and 3rd in summit in Bali, Justin Trudeau declared,
the G7 in terms of FDI inflow, according “Canada’s message is clear: we have the
to the government organisation Invest in values that make us a solid, reliable partner.
Canada. In 2021, despite the global pandemic, We have the raw materials and trade access,
Canada’s FDI inflow soared 50% above the and we have a skilled, educated, ambitious
annual average for the decade to reach CAD and diverse workforce like no other… High tech,
74.8B – the highest recorded since 2007. Such Quantum, and AI are Canadian strengths.
resiliency testified to Canada’s long-standing, Canada is not only the most educated country
strong fiscal position and was behind the in the OECD, but our strong world-leading
government’s announcement of CAD 11.3B immigration policies are attracting highly skilled
in new fiscal spending for FY23 and FY24 talent in competitive industries.” Trudeau’s
in its latest Fall Economic Statement, which words echo his earlier message to global
also proposed refundable tax credits for clean investors about the “win-win propositions
technologies. Canada offers what KPMG calls that will support Canadian innovation” at the
a “playground for cleantech,” with the global Long-term Investor Summit in Toronto, and
accounting firm identifying the industry as one he also spoke on the importance of “giving
of the country’s three supply chains, alongside [businesses] access to the global marketplace.”
advanced manufacturing, and agribusiness, Canadian businesses enjoy free trade
set to benefit the most post-Covid-19. access to over 51 countries and 1.5B
Meanwhile, Canada has made it easier consumers – representing 60% of the world’s
for people already on temporary visas to output of goods and services – and the country’s
Justin Trudeau
become permanent residents, cementing 9,000 km border with the USA offers investors
Prime minister of Canada
the country’s top position as the world’s preferential access to nearly 500M consumers.
most attractive country for entrepreneurs, all businesses in the country, according to Regionwide, speaking on the newly announced
according to the OECD’s Indicators of Talent the Business Development Bank of Canada Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity
Attractiveness. According to the World Bank’s (BDC), and benefit from the lowest taxation at the ninth Summit of the Americas, Trudeau
latest Doing Business report, Canada is the level for new business investment in the G7 stated, “we believe that this Partnership
easiest place to start a business in the G20. – which is also significantly lower than in the responds to hemispheric priorities, and that it will
SMEs power Canada’s economy, numbering USA – according to Global Affairs Canada. provide us with more tools to tackle inequality
over a million and accounting for 99.8% of Speaking at the 2022 Business 20 (B20) and grow the economy and the middle class.”

High Tide
Riding the tidal wave of Canada’s cannabis success
C
onsidered the gateway to the USA, Canada’s journey, which saw the acquisition of the Netherlands-
prime location allows investors easy access based Grasscity in 2018 and its entrance into the
to a global network of trade deals spanning UK market with the acquisition of BlessedCBD – a
51 countries. Canada ranked 23rd for ease of leading online retailer of CBD products – raising its
doing business according to the World Bank’s e-commerce revenue by about CAD 50M between
2020 annual report and provides international October 2020-2021. “We’re now looking to expand
investors with a stable, highly dependable, low-tax into Germany and the USA – where we have offices in
business climate to springboard their global access. Las Vegas and Denver. Provided that the legalisation
In October 2018, Canada became the first G7 process in Germany goes smoothly, we anticipate
country to legalise cannabis for recreational use and cannabis retail sales to begin in 2024,” says Grover.
now has the first-mover advantage to become a Ultimately, what raises High Tide above its
world leader in cannabis exports. Canada’s cannabis competitors is its exceptional loyalty program
industry contributed CAD 43B to its national GDP – the ‘Cabana Club’, which currently stands at
between 2018-2021, according to Deloitte, serving as a Raj Grover over 900,000 members representing 15% of
major impetus for the EU’s biggest market for cannabis Canada’s cannabis users outside of Quebec.
CEO
– Germany, to pursue their own legalization plan. Internationally, High Tide’s unique ecosystem
Founded in 2009, High Tide is Canada’s largest largest non-franchised brick-and-mortar cannabis includes the two most popular consumption
non-franchised retailer of recreational cannabis, with retailer. High Tide registered CAD 8.7M in revenue accessory e-commerce platforms in the world as
almost 150 store locations across Ontario, Manitoba, in 2017, and today that number has soared to measured by 2022 site traffic from SEMRush data.
Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Colombia. High over CAD 400M. With a three-year growth rate of High Tide has been instrumental in raising the
Tide is listed on the NASDAQ, the TSX Venture 1,971%, High Tide ranked 21st in The Globe and profile of Canada’s cannabis industry, bringing its
Exchange and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and Mail’s 2022 ranking of Canada’s Top Growing international CBD brand and cannabinoid wellness
is on a mission to expand its Canadian portfolio to Companies and presents a golden investment company NuLeaf Naturals into the Canadian market,
250 stores with an eye toward entering the German opportunity. “I haven’t sold any of my shares in the and Grover is keen to do more. “Canada continues to
cannabis retail market in 2024, should the German company since it went public in 2018. The industry present new and exciting business opportunities for
government be successful in its legalisation efforts. is still in its infancy, and I am confident that we are foreign investors, and we want to be a part of that. It’s
Raj Grover, High Tide’s President and CEO, going to continue to grow from here,” says Grover. a hugely underrated investment destination,” he says.
spearheaded the company’s growth from a single High Tide’s exponential organic growth was
shop selling consumption accessories into Canada’s complimented by an immensely successful M&A
Content from
The International Investor

TFI International
Revitalising a transportation legacy 70 years in the making
Fuelled by red-hot demand, high private sector employment, and rising corporate
profitability, Canada’s economy-wide output expanded for seven consecutive
months following April this year and has risen 4.0% since August 2021, according
to Statistics Canada. Bolstered by the country’s standout performance on the
world stage, Canadian businesses have taken the opportunity to increase
their capital expenditure, with Deloitte projecting a 10.2% increase in business
investment spending on structures, machinery, and equipment by the end of 2022.

C
anada’s trucking industry forms the generating a 69% year-over-year increase
backbone of its economy and plays an in adjusted operating income and a 73%
essential role in unlocking the country’s increase in free cash flow for 2022. In Q3 2022
wealth of natural resources and leveraging its alone, TFI’s operating earnings increased
USD 2.6B daily trade in goods and services by 28% across its Canadian packaging
with the USA – as part of the world’s most division – a figure unheard of amongst the
comprehensive trading relationship. In 2018, likes of UPS and FedEx – whilst its net
the industry generated an annual revenue of income increased by 86% to CAD 254.2M,
CAD 39.55B from 66.5M shipments, according compared to CAD 131.6M in Q3 2021.
to Statista, and supported a record-high For Bédard, TFI’s success is as much a
total goods trade of USD 1.2T. The industry result of its business line diversity as the
employs around 1.5% of Canada’s total company’s philosophy. “We want to do more
population, with more than 300,000 truck with less – that’s our drive. Our working goals
drivers working across 88,000 for-hire carriers. are defined by the question: what measures
Founded in 1957, TFI International is can we put in place today to exponentially
a leading publicly traded North American benefit our customers, shareholders, and
transportation and logistics company and the environment tomorrow?” Ultimately, TFI
the largest Canadian for-hire carrier by does far more than increase its customers’
revenue, serving customers in the USA and revenue per mile or overall cost efficiency.
Canada with its package & courier, less- “We’re here to provide solutions, not to
than-truckload (LTL), truckload and logistics price-match our competitors,” says Bédard.
operations. TFI has an extensive network of TFI is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange
550 facilities and a vast e-commerce network Alain Bédard (TSX) and, as of 2020, the New York Stock
spanning more than 80 North American cities. Chairman & CEO Exchange (NYSE), and the company’s
TFI’s CEO & Chairman, Alain Bédard, recent track record speaks for itself. Over
joined the company in 1996 armed with a ever-changing landscape, TFI acquired the the past 25 years, TFI’s stock increased by
strategic plan to restore its reputation, expand USA-based last-mile carrier Dynamex in 2011 a staggering 42,300% – from approximately
its geographical network, and diversify its and the USA-based truckload company CFI in USD 0.25 in 1996 to USD 108 as at the end
operating activities. Within just five years, 2016, increasing its active presence in the USA. of November 2022. Aligning with TFI as a
Bédard had overseen a massive expansion from Most notably, TFI’s largest acquisition customer, shareholder, or investor is a win-
Quebec up to British Columbia – rescuing TFI came last year when the company acquired win scenario, and the company is keen to
from near bankruptcy – and today the company UPS Freight – now TForce Freight, one of share its success. To this end, in Q3 2022,
is worth CAD 10B. According to Bédard, TFI’s North America’s largest LTL carriers – for TFI’s Board of Directors approved a CAD 0.35
sensational growth story is mainly the result USD 800M. The acquisition positioned TFI dividend for Q4 2022, an increase of 30%.
of a bold M&A strategy. “TFI has become amongst the USA’s top LTL carriers and Proudly based in Canada, Bédard is open
an M&A growth machine, and we have no embodies Bédard’s emphasis on investment about how influential his country’s business-
intention of changing that. We’re certainly capital as the path to scale-up success. friendly environment has been in TFI’s
not afraid of profitable growth,” he says. “In the next 5 years, you’ll see more of the journey. “Canada’s rules and regulations are
TFI launched its new strategy with the same that you’ve seen over the last 25; firmly pro-business. Transparency and trust
acquisitions of Papineau International and we will continue growing,” says Bédard. comprise the overriding sentiment here,” he
Transport JCG –between 1998-2000. But it By favourably increasing its exposure to says. As a country built through immigration
was not until 2002 that the company began large industrial end markets, TFI is already and open to diversification, Canada is the
investing heavily – up to USD 2-400M annually reaping the rewards of its strategic M&A ideal partner for international investors.
– in M&A, with its first strategic acquisition activity. The company demonstrated an
coming in 2004, followed by a further 111 since unmatched resiliency to the industrywide
2008. Looking to match shifting demand in an challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,
Content from
The International Investor

Portland Holdings
Enabling Canadian Technologies Globally
In November 2022, the rating agency Moody’s affirmed Canada’s AAA credit
rating – the highest quality with minimum risk – due to the country’s “high
economic strength and very strong institutions and governance framework”.
These ratings provide “a high degree of resilience to shocks” in the economy –
an enviable achievement given the past years of global uncertainty. Other key
drivers behind Canada’s world-beating rating are the high debt affordability
and fiscal policy effectiveness, which have been the basis for the country’s
post-COVID-19 recovery. Canada is the third-largest economy in the AAA
credit rating category, after the United States and Germany, and its economy
continues to grow, clocking up 4.5% real gross domestic product growth last year.

C
anada’s robust economy supports, and of countries in the world have committed.
is supported by, a thriving financial The collaboration will combine CNL’s 75-year
sector. As the Bank of Canada has noted, expertise in clean energy, health sciences
the industry remained resilient throughout the and environmental responsibility, and
COVID-19 pandemic. The asset management related intellectual properties, with Portland
segment alone saw its assets grow from Holdings’ commercial capabilities as one
CAD 2.3 trillion in 2008 to CAD 7.1 trillion of Canada’s most successful collaborative
in 2021, with a 12.6% growth in 2021 alone. efforts. CNL hosts circa 600 scientists and
For three and a half decades, Portland 1600 engineers, and has a long track record
Holdings has been one of the leading in feasibility studies, design, and building
entities in the sector, building a global of nuclear facilities as well as nuclear
portfolio, which it has now positioned to take waste management. Portland Holdings
to new heights with investments in clean aims to internationalize safe nuclear power
energy and healthcare. In September 2022, generation technologies; Lee-Chin argues
Portland Holdings’ subsidiary AIC Global that many countries have set zero-carbon
Holdings Inc. signed a memorandum of targets, without the means to deliver them.
understanding (MOU) with Canadian Nuclear SMRs will be particularly vital in expanding
Laboratories (CNL), one of the world’s green power generation in countries with no
leading nuclear science and technology history of nuclear technology. The units have
organisations. The MOU focuses on finding 300MW or less of capacity, and are built in
long-term solutions for the decarbonisation a factory and then transported to where they
of economies around the world, and the use Mr. Michael Lee-Chin are needed; as they are modular, several
of radiopharmaceuticals to combat cancer. can be combined to generate more power.
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
CNL is a world leader in developing peaceful “We can help countries and industries
and innovative applications from nuclear to humankind, and with newly improved across the spectrum of nuclear technologies
technology. Portland Holdings is a diversified, nuclear plants and related technologies, we and opportunities,” says Lee-Chin. The MOU
privately held investment company, with roots are confident that net-zero carbon goals can between Portland Holdings and CNL also
in asset management. Its founder, Chairman be achieved. Portland Holdings’ objective focuses on precision oncology, most notably
and CEO, Michael Lee-Chin, considered one is to work with governments around the Targeted Radionuclide Therapies (TRT). Lee-
of Canada’s most successful businessmen, world to assist them in achieving their Chin believes TRT will replace chemotherapy
is confident that this MOU will pave the way goals of making the world a greener and and external beam radiotherapy, which
to establish Canadian nuclear expertise healthier place for generations to come.” cause significant side effects to the patient’s
worldwide, to drive the energy transition As Lee-Chin notes, political discussions body. TRT, by contrast, targets cancer cells
and decarbonization of the global economy. on energy focus on three pressing factors: specifically, destroying them without damaging
“A national nuclear laboratory collaborating the need for decarbonisation; increasing the surrounding healthy cells. Lee-Chin
with a private company in order to promote electrification, driving energy demand; and notes that global cancer rates are expected
and explore nuclear power solutions presents the need for secure energy. He argues that to rise in the coming years, particularly as
many unique possibilities,” says Lee-Chin. nuclear power, and specifically Small Modular the baby boomer generation ages. Portland
“Portland Holdings and CNL are aligned in the Reactors (SMRs) are the key to address these Holdings aims to support the technologies
development of clean energy and collectively needs. While solar and wind are valuable that will address this rise, extend lives and
want to provide the best solutions to countries sustainable energy sources, nuclear can improve the quality of life for cancer patients.
and industries. We believe that nuclear is one provide the necessary baseload to achieve the In December 2022, Portland Holdings
of the most reliable clean energies available zero-carbon goals, to which the vast majority also signed an MOU with Ultra Safe Nuclear
Content from
The International Investor

and Australia. Our unicorn companies


operate in a range of sectors, including asset
management, telecommunications, banking,
insurance and TRT. The fact that we also
specialise and operate in different sectors
makes us even more powerful as a company.”
Portland Holdings has benefitted from a
strong and effective management team and
the leadership of Lee-Chin, who defines his
approach as that of a businessman and an
investor. His investment framework is based
on lifelong observations of the world’s most
successful business people. Over the years,
he has distilled his observations down to
create teachable lessons – the three step
formula to success, the five laws of wealth
creation, and the ten characteristics of wealth
creating businesses, to name a few. Lee-
Chin’s ten characteristics of wealth creating
businesses include such tenets as being
run by owner-operators who have skin in the
game; having long-term goals; and a board
focus on growth. Lee-Chin notes that the
best investors must thoroughly understand
the businesses they own. Recognizing
that he is not an authority in the nuclear or
Michael Lee-Chin and Joseph McBrearty, President & CEO of CNL, sign an MOU for collaboration focused on clean energy initiatives
oncology sectors, Lee-Chin hired a Chief
Corporation (USNC), a US-based global boom. By the mid-nineties, under Lee-Chin’s Scientific Officer and a Chief Medical
leader in nuclear technologies, bringing stewardship, AIC had become Canada’s Officer – not common positions in investment
safe, clean and reliable nuclear energy largest privately-held mutual fund company. companies – to guide Portland Holdings’
to global power and industrial markets. The acquisition of AIC epitomizes Lee- interests in these specialized sectors.
USNC’s main technology is its proprietary Chin’s emphasis on the “three P’s” – predicting, Portland Holdings’ guiding principles
micro modular reactor MMR®. Portland planning, and persevering. He says every and overarching philosophy make its focus
Holdings and USNC are aiming to bring businessperson needs to predict what they on clean energy and healthcare laser-like.
USNC’s technological solutions to the want to accomplish, plan around that prediction, “When you walk through the main gate
Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and and persevere until success is achieved. of the Portland Holdings head office, the
the Caribbean regions initially, with the It has proven to be an effective formula – first thing you see is our corporate mantra
ultimate goal of contributing to their efforts to since AIC’s inception from 1987 to 1999, ‘prosperitas cum caritate’, meaning ‘prosperity
achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. the business grew its asset base from CAD with care’,” says Lee-Chin. “At Portland
In January of this year, Dr. Steven 800,000 to around CAD 15 billion, managing Holdings, we follow the philosophy of Doing
Bushby, a veteran nuclear executive, money for more than one million Canadians. Well, by Doing Good. We want to provide
was hired to strengthen the technical “By adhering to a disciplined investment excellence to our investors and partners, in
team and provide Portland Holdings with framework and principles, we made Portland order to accomplish our goals of a cleaner
leadership and guidance relating to the Holdings a success,” says Lee-Chin. and healthier world for generations to come.”
Canadian and global nuclear ecosystems. “Implementing these principles allowed us to This motto might well be applied to
The CNL and USNC collaborations will surpass over a billion dollar valuation, which Portland Holdings’ homeland as well. Canada
enable new opportunities, for institutional and is known as a unicorn for private companies. combines great prosperity with excellent
retail investors, in strong growth industries To be associated with a unicorn company is public institutions and infrastructures,
that have been relatively untapped until now. a rarity, not only as an investor but also as making it a model for economic and social
Lee-Chin sees oncology as a “boom within a businessman. And we are associated with development initiatives globally – as well
a boom” – part of a wider rapidly-growing more than one – in fact, we are associated with as an attractive investment destination.
demand for healthcare. Back in 1987, Lee- seven “billion dollar” companies, four unicorns “Canada as a country is in perpetual growth,
Chin identified another “boom within a boom” in the private sector and three publicly while preserving stability,” says Lee-Chin.
in the mutual fund industry, after purchasing traded billion dollar businesses, which we “Canada has one of the largest land masses
Advantage Investment Counsel (AIC) for helped build to over billion dollar valuations in the world, and natural resources are a
CAD 200,000. Lee-Chin identified early the through active management. They operate major driver to invest. The law is fair towards
value in holding the mutual fund companies in different geographies, including Canada, people and business, treating them equally.
themselves within the financial services Central America, the Caribbean, Germany The system is transparent and doesn’t create
blockades. Canadians are friendly and it
is a bilingual country where English and
French are official languages. Establishing
a partnership with Canadian companies
provides safety and reassurance to investors
globally. Governmental institutions are well
organized and easy to work with. It is not
perfect but it is one of the least imperfect
systems that you can find in the world.”

The 10 Characteristics of Wealth


The 3 Step Formula to Success The 5 Laws of Wealth Creation Creating Businesses
Content from
The International Investor

Silvercorp Metals & New Pacific Metals


A growth-oriented philosophy for tomorrow’s silver mining industry
Canada is the 9th largest economy in the world by GDP according to
the World Bank, and ranks as the world’s 8th wealthiest country, with a
total private wealth of US $6.2T. Largely shielded from the geopolitical
fallout of Russia’s war with Ukraine, Canada posted a standout economic
growth rate of 3.3% in Q2 2022, and Deloitte expects the country to see a
16.8% increase in its imports of services this year. Canada is an attractive
destination for international investors and offers preferential market access
through 14 trade agreements with 49 countries – a total of 1.5B consumers
and a combined GDP of US $60T – and 117 border crossings with the USA.

C
anada’s mining industry played a of profitable mining operations, Silvercorp’s
vital role in advancing exploration mines still have 15 years of mine life
discoveries, and the development of remaining based on defined mineral reserves.
mineral resources worldwide, thanks to its While Silvercorp is maintaining its stable
resource focused Toronto Stock Exchange, and profitable operations, it will continue to
well respected securities and financing identify, acquire, and invest in value-creating
regulations for mineral resource sectors, projects across multiple jurisdictions across
experienced geological, engineering, and legal the globe to secure further success for
professionals, as well as natural resource investors. Not only would such expansion
focused financial institutions. Canada is home increase production, but it is also fundamental
to almost half of the world’s publicly listed to Dr. Feng’s strategy of minimising the
mining and mineral exploration companies company’s risk exposure to geopolitical
(S&P Market Intelligence, 2021). According volatility, in order to leverage the company’s
to Natural Resource Canada (2022), a total low-risk strategy and financial strength.
of 1,348 Canadian mining and exploration Previously in 2020, Silvercorp identified
companies had a total market valuation of struggling Canada-based Guyana Goldfields
CAD 273.4 B in 2020, and there are 730 and assessed the potential to remodel
companies with mining assets located in its proposed mine into a higher-grade
97 foreign countries, worth CAD 188.2 B. underground operation. Silvercorp offered US
Silvercorp Metals, listed on Toronto Stock $160M to buy the company and despite being
Exchange, is one of these Canadian mining eventually outbid, it realised a total profit of
companies operating abroad, it is also one US $20M on its investment. Today, Silvercorp
of the most profitable, producing silver, gold, Dr. Rui Feng targets projects that have the potential for
lead, and zinc from multiple mines in China. Chairman & CEO more than a US $50M annual free cash flow
Silvercorp is China’s largest primary silver and defined resources that it can develop with
producer, generating US $1.62 B in revenue National Sciences and Engineering Council reasonable capital expenditures and timelines.
from its operations at an average gross of Canada. Prior to founding Silvercorp, Additionally, Silvercorp is generating
margin of 51% over the past 10 years and Dr. Feng was integral in the discovery and organic growth through extensive exploration
has an undemanding market capitalisation of development of Jinshan Gold’s CSH Gold at its producing mines. From 2020 to 2021,
US $510M. Positioned as a major supplier of Mine, located in China. The CSH Mine is now the company completed 629,000 m of drilling
silver for the expanding green energy sector, one of China’s largest open-pit gold mines. at its mines, which supported an increase in
Silvercorp is a key player in the mining industry’s As one of the most successful Canadian the FY23 production guidance by 17%, 9%,
low-carbon, ESG-conscious transformation. mining entrepreneurs, Dr. Feng oversaw 24%, and 109% in silver, lead, zinc, and gold,
Silvercorp was founded in 2003 by Rui Silvercorp’s operational launch in China respectively. Furthermore, Silvercorp is heavily
Feng, Ph.D., Chairman & CEO, who arrived between 2003-2006 with only US 10M in capital, investing in research and innovation to improve
in Canada in 1988 with US $100 and a raised from Canada. The company has since the efficiency and effectiveness of its technical
willingness to take calculated risks to realise produced more than 85 million ounces (Moz) of programs, as evident by the implementation
the substantial opportunities he foresaw silver and 1 billion pounds of lead & zinc, and of 3D modelling digital insights at its mines.
in mining exploration, using the Canadian also returned US $175M to its shareholders Additional recent acquisitions, such as the
public market to finance and develop oversea since its inception through share buybacks Kuanping Project – acquired at a competitive
mining assets. Dr. Feng obtained his Ph.D and dividends. Thanks to its profitable mining price of US $13.5M – are set to boost both
in Geological Sciences from the University operations, Silvercorp’s last financing was in economic growth and future production levels.
of Saskatchewan, Canada in 1992 before 2010 and has since accumulated over US 200M Silvercorp is publicly traded on the Toronto
receiving a Post-Doctoral fellowship from the cash and remains debt free. After 16 years Stock Exchange (TSX) and the New York Stock
Content from
The International Investor

Exchange (NYSE) and today, Silvercorp’s stock


is fundamentally undervalued. Silvercorp’s key
competitive advantage is having its mining
base in China, a free market for metal and a
manufacturing hub for major companies such
as Apple, Tesla, BASF, and General Motors
– representing major markets for metals.
Being a serial mining entrepreneur, Dr.
Feng ventured into Bolivia in 2017 with
Silvercorp incubating a new company, New
Pacific Metals, to minimize the perceived risk.
Silvercorp financed and led New Pacific’s
exploration efforts in Bolivia and in just four
years, three world-class silver-gold deposits
were discovered and drill tested by New
Pacific. Following this incredible progress
New Pacific’s market valuation grew 3,900%
from US 25M in 2017 to US $1B by 2021. New
Pacific has a pipeline of projects including, the
permitting stage, Silver Sand Silver Project, a
resource definition stage, Carangas Silver-Gold
Project, and a new discovery at the Silverstrike
Silver-Gold Project. The flagship Silver Sand
Project is Bolivia’s most momentous silver or gold mineralization over broad intercepts. integrating ESG management into operations
discovery in the last 30 years with over 200 The discovery of a 200-metre-thick near- and reducing the company’s carbon footprint
million ounces of silver resources that are surface oxidized gold zone at Silverstrike in by wholly operating in China – eliminating
amenable to open pit mining operations, it is 2022 marks another important milestone for the need to constantly ship equipment and
also one of the most significant new global New Pacific, following the discovery of Silver product across the Pacific Ocean. Externally,
primary silver discoveries in the last decade. Sand and Carangas. The discoveries illustrate Silvercorp’s high levels of silver production
Benefiting from the first mover advantage, the company’s ability to create shareholder make it a natural leader and contributor to
New Pacific acquired the Carangas and value through careful project identification, economic decarbonisation and electrification.
Silverstrike projects in 2020 and two new smart acquisition and well-planned drilling. Silvercorp’s focus on carbon peaking
and carbon neutrality stems from a genuine
desire to build a harmonious environment for
its mining communities. In FY22, Silvercorp
contributed approximately US $3.7M to social
programs, local infrastructure, environmental
protection, and a clean water access project.
However, the company also acknowledges
the need to remove other underlying barriers
to ESG-driven mining. To this end, Silvercorp
has invested in transforming its water supply
and reducing its wastage, with 74% of its total
supply now coming from reused mine water,
saving 2,280,224m3 of water in FY22 alone.
Subsequently, Silvercorp’s Ying Mining District
operation received the Chinese ‘National
Green Mine’ certification at the end of FY22.
Silvercorp also stands out for its occupational
health and safety systems, with 100% of
operations ISO 45001 certified and zero
work-related fatalities. The company involves
all employees in its sustainability mission
through an extensive educational program,
and in FY22, Silvercorp employees completed
1,118 hours of environmental training.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Silvercorp is
a proudly Canadian business and recognises
discoveries were made since 2021. Situated Along with driving new growth, Dr. Feng is the lucrative investment opportunities in the
along the same metallogenic belt as committed to improving New Pacific Metal’s country’s mining industry. Canada’s focus on
Argentina, Chile, and Peru, Bolivia is only ESG profile in line with Silvercorp’s. Silvercorp education and regulation of the mining sector and
famous for its vast silver resources due to boasts nearly two decades of uninterrupted broader financial industry not only constitutes
limited exploration activities for other metals. ESG activity and won the ‘2022 ESG Award’ a launchpad for many future leaders but also
The Carangas discovery highlights the great at the China Finance Summit for the continual creates the ideal environment for international
potential within Bolivia for finding additional improvement of its ESG management systems. organisations looking to get involved.
gold and copper deposits underneath the “At Silvercorp, we consider sustainability
near-surface silver deposits. In Carangas, a to be one of our fundamental responsibilities.
vast gold deposit was discovered below the We operate safely and responsibly to protect
near-surface silver deposit, and 55,000 m over the ecological environment in a collaborative
121 drill holes have been completed since approach with local communities.” Internally,
June 2021, each hole intersected silver and this means constantly optimising and
Culture

Tasting Journey
Blacklist Coffee Roasters
SUBIACO, AUSTRALIA

The Cellar Door Concept


Store in Subiaco opened in
2019, introducing coffee to
locals in a new light. On the
menu are the traditional
espresso drinks, as well
as a coffee-tasting (from
a wine glass!) experience
that takes tastebuds on a
journey across the globe.
(See #10 on
following spread)

44 NE WSWEEK .COM J A N U A R Y 2 7, 2 0 2 3
Solving Crimes on the Road
Natasha Lyonne sees through the lies in Poker Face. ▸ P.48

UNCHARTED

Just Beans
Coffee shops offer more than just “a cup of joe.” They’re gathering places where friends, family and
colleagues meet to pass time, relax, take in the scenery and get work done and are commonly referred to
as a “third place,” our home away from home. The shops on this list are extraordinary. They meld original
atmosphere with coffee offerings and a hit of something special—whether it’s courses and workshops
for customers, a step back in time or a unique treat. —EilEEn FalkEnbErg-Hull and nicolE WakElin
FROM LE F T: BL ACKLI ST COFFEE ROA STER S; GE T T Y; TOP R IG HT: AMY SUSSMAN/GE T T Y

NE WSWEEK .COM 45
Culture

04

Historic Hotspot
Majestic Café
PORTO, PORTUGAL
Majestic Café bills itself as “one of the
most beautiful cafes in the world,”
and that’s not overstating it. Setting
foot in the space is like setting your
03
watch back 125 years. Though it’s
Quaint and Cozy more of a restaurant than a traditional
Samuel’s Coffee House coffee shop, the cafe offers coffee
NEW GLASGOW, PRINCE and tea service for breakfast and a
EDWARD ISLAND traditional afternoon tea service.
Most of Prince Edward
Island can be described
as quaint, and Samuel’s 3
is no exception. This 1

0 1: MICHAE L WE SSE L /ROCHAM BO; 0 2: C ATACIÓN PÚBLIC A ; 03 : R ACH EL PE TER S /SAMUEL’S COFFEE HOUSE ; 04: GE T T Y; 05: ALE SSANDRO ALBERT/GE T T Y
location of the shop, 4 5
open seasonally (there
are two others on the
island open year-round)
wins points for its
offerings and location—
near the Green Gables
Heritage Place and
scenic Cavendish Beach.
01

Local Love
Rochambo Coffee
& Tea House
MILWAUKEE 05
This quirky coffee
Secret Clockwork
shop on the east side 2
shows off a riot of
Caffè Mulassano
TURIN, ITALY
colors outside and has
a rustic interior perfect This tiny coffee shop is big on
for a chat with friends. personality. Wood paneling, mirrored
Rochambo prioritizes walls and brass accents deliver old-world
sustainability with locally elegance and create a welcoming space
sourced beans and has for enjoying a drink along with a pastry
an extensive menu of or two. Notice the one-handed clock
coffees and teas. Try on the wall. It’s not broken. Instead, it’s
the Irish Coffee with activated at the press of a secret button
02
fresh hand-whipped to determine who in your party pays the
cream or Tullamore Dew
Coffee 101 bill. Before you leave, be sure to have a
Irish Whiskey on a cold Catación Pública cup of bicerin—a traditional Turin drink
Wisconsin winter day. BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA of layered espresso, chocolate and milk.
Catación Pública doesn’t just sell
coffee, they teach all about it: the
brick-faced building welcomes
customers, and the deeper into the
space you go, the more intense the
tutorial. Workshops to learn proper
techniques, sensory experiences
and certification courses push
this shop to the forefront of
South American coffee culture.

46 NE WSWEEK .COM
08

Cultural Intersection
Tmol Shilshom
06 JERUSALEM

Japan in Europe Culture, coffee, bookshop and slam


poetry venue converge at Tmol
Café Sofa
Shilshom. Located inside an old
PRAGUE
stone building deep in the heart of
An inviting interior with huge glass
Jerusalem, the coffee shop is the
windows letting in abundant natural
type of place you’ll want to spend
light, shelves upon shelves of books
winter nights as much as you’ll want
and warm wood accents welcome
to be there on spring afternoons.
guests to order from a diverse menu
focused on Japanese desserts. Be sure
6 to try the Mount Everest ice-cube latte.
It’s made by pouring warm milk over
frozen espresso cubes that instantly
0 6: R AD OVAN SÚĽOVE C /C A FE SOFA ; 0 7 : CHOOCHART CHOOCHA IKUPT/GE T T Y; 08: NICK BRUNDLE/GE T T Y; 09: THE NOTE COFFEE ; 11: T YSON S & COMPANY

melt to create a refreshing iced latte.

11

8 11

Coffee Everything
The Roastery by
Nozy Coffee
9
TOKYO
It’s not just the coffee
that’s a specialty here. The
coffee house sells its single
origin coffees alongside
coffee-infused soft serve
and fried doughnuts made
with croissant dough.
10 The modern, moody
atmosphere of the shop
Tasting Journey is not unlike something
Blacklist Coffee you’d find in Seattle.
Roasters
SUBIACO, AUSTRALIA
(See previous spread)

7
10
07 09

Book Your Space Heart in Hanoi


The Grind Coffee Company The Note Coffee
JOHANNESBURG HANOI, VIETNAM
Light and airy surrounds, complete with There’s no shortage of coffee shops
a boardroom you can reserve, welcome in Hanoi, but this one is not to be
customers to try everything from coffees, missed. It’s not just the coffee, but the
teas and smoothies to a full lunch or hundreds of handwritten notes that
dinner. Take your cuppa outside to soak adorn most every surface. Feel free to
in the South African sunshine. For a add your own. While you’re there, make
special treat, order your coffee in one sure to try a cup of egg coffee, which
of Grind’s signature waffle cones. is more delicious than it sounds.

NE WSWEEK .COM 47
Culture

PA RT I N G S H OT

Natasha Lyonne
For Natasha LyoNNe, humor is esseNtiaL For aNy detective mystery. What excited you most about
“I do love that sense of television where it’s a very light touch. It’s a little the idea of Poker Face?
bit, hey, come hang out again, you know?” She teamed up with Knives Out It’s the appeal of Rian [Johnson] and
creator Rian Johnson to make Poker Face (Peacock, January 26). Lyonne plays I. We really enjoy each other and felt
Charlie Cale, who has the gift to decipher when people are lying, as she encoun- like [Poker Face was] an opportunity
ters crimes from quirky characters. “While she does have this undeniable gift, to creatively get old together if it hits.
she’s definitely not a superhero or a magician.” Still, Charlie isn’t your typical
detective. She’s “much closer to Jeff Bridges in Big Lebowski. She’s the dude. How do you approach
She’s really got this attitude of how did this crime fall into my apartment? I’m playing Charlie?
just sort of hanging out.” But the most important thing is to connect with the Essentially I’m basically just being
character, and that’s where the humor comes in. “In a detective show, it’s almost Philip Marlowe [a fictional detective
a way of saying that despite the impossible circumstances, [you] know that your created by Raymond Chandler]. Part
rock in this series still has their wits about them and almost suspending disbe- of what feels so radical is that we
lief that they’ll be able to get out of the twisted [case] they find themselves in.” haven’t seen a woman do it. We’ve
seen Dennis Franz be Sipowicz
[on NYPD Blue], and we’ve seen
Peter Falk be Columbo. It’s like, let’s
not change anything, I’ll just be

“While she
Sipowicz and Philip Marlowe too.

does have this Your character can tell when


undeniable gift, people are lying. Would you like
she’s definitely to have that trait in real life?

not a superhero I mean, I wouldn’t hate to have

or a magician.” it. Rian has that great line, people


lying is like birds chirping, you
know it’s everywhere. The trick
is to figure out why someone is
lying, and I think that that’s really
what I love so much about Charlie.

Why do you think humor is so


key to a good mystery show?
Is there anything more tortuous
than watching something so
serious? It’s brutal. Jokes are
the great joy of life. It really does
CORE Y N ICKOL S /G E T T Y

come up, I think in life it’s a very


human instinct, to be totally
up against the wall and in that
moment say the weirdest thing
in the world. —H. Alan Scott

48 ▸ Visit Newsweek.com for the full interview


Tomorrow’s smart The US government is investing
infrastructure for trillions of dollars in capital programs.
a connected world
won't be built using
disconnected legacy
systems.

Build a better tomorrow with Aurigo Masterworks Cloud


BUILD FASTER I BUILD SMARTER I BUILD STRONGER

Aurigo Masterworks, the leading capital planning and construction project


management software, empowers America to build smarter for tomorrow. BUILD A BETTER
Easy to use and configure, it’s the power at your fingertips that helps you plan, TOMORROW
build and maintain your community’s infrastructure and facilities.

You might also like