Dear Round-Up Readers,

Lots happening this week, so let’s get to it! If you are in the US, please get out to vote for the midterm elections, so many important issues are on the line, particularly for women. And also for the environment, expect news on climate negotiations with COP27 starting this week in Egypt. Likely you've already heard about Elon Musk buying Twitter, read this thoughtful article from The Guardian about how social media is shaping everything from the tunes you hum, and the books you read, to the arguments you have.

Thrilling week on hertelier with FIVE fabulous stories––be sure not to miss them!

Business, Women, and Random Trends: 

• Gender representation on S&P 500 Boards Reaches New Milestone We still have a ways to go before equality, but progress is good! Women now represent 32% of all S&P 500 directors — the most ever. That's up from 30% last year, and an 86% increase over the past decade, when the makeup of women on boards was just 17%, a new study from Spencer Stuart, a leadership consulting firm, finds. Read more in Axios. 

• The Power of Work Friends Do you have a work BFF? New Gallup data shows that having a best friend at work is strongly linked to business outcomes, including improvements in profitability, safety, inventory control, and employee retention. And, since the start of the pandemic, having a BFF at work has an even greater impact on important outcomes — like workers’ likelihood to recommend their workplace, intent to leave, and overall satisfaction. Read more in HBR!

• The Benefits of Swearing! You f*ing read that right, a new study shows foul language can boost group bonding, raise pain tolerance and increase physical strength. Read more in the FT or on HuffPostUK if you hit a paywall.

Travel & Hospitality news:

• Working for the Weekend: 3 Charts Showing the New Face of Business Travel Great graphics from Skift on bleisure.

• Picnic Presentation, QR Codes, and Easy Eats: How Hotel Room Service Has Evolved A really interesting look in Costar at room service post-pandemic and what hotels are doing now to compete with food delivery service and other new challenges.

• ‘China’s hottest woman’: the driving force behind crunchy chili sensation Lao Gan Ma Slightly off-topic, but I am obsessed with this crunchy chili sauce, so I loved reading about the woman who built the business in The Guardian.

On hertelier this week:

Big welcome to our new subscribers! The story in Forbes, How Women Are Changing The Hotel Industry, keeps bringing new readers! Super excited to have you here. It's been "tech week," so let's beam ourselves in!

• Dorothy Dowling: Advice from a Legendary Leader The former CMO of Best Western, Dorothy Dowling, chats with us after being recognized by GBTA WINiT with a "Lifetime Achievement Award." She offers career advice that you don't want to miss!

• Abby Murtagh is the First Woman to Lead Operations at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs Bringing a fresh perspective to the legendary 104-year-old resort, Abby Murtagh will take the helm in January.

• If the Shoe Fits... Lots of chatter on LinkedIn about this week's "Unpack it with Nancy"––where columnist Nancy Mendelson bares her "sole" on the topic of sneakers for work. Are you all-in on the sneakers-for-work trend? If you are a sneaker (trainer) wearer, reply to this email with your favorite brands. Follow up story is in the works!

• ‘Anti-Perks’ that Turn Workers Off and 5 Things They Actually Want Instead Anti-perks are benefits that sound awesome but actually aren't...here are five things that really matter to employees.

• Claiming Her Turf: Kayla Kipp, the First Woman to Earn a CTEM (Certified Turf Equipment Manager) Keeping golf courses in top condition is done by maintaining the machines which enable perfect turf. We meet Kayla, the woman keeping everything running smoothly at the 5-star Nemacolin resort, who shares her lessons from working in a male-dominated area of the biz!

Listen UP: podcasts to download now!

• Tom Daley on How to Fail with Elizabeth Day. “Failure isn’t starting from scratch it’s starting from experience” was just one of the nuggets I loved from this interview of the wise-beyond-his-years (he's only 28!) Olympic gold medalist diver.

• More Abby Murtagh! Abby was interviewed by Lan Elliott of DEI Advisors about her career, taking risks, and leading diversity as a hotel GM. It's a great interview and really lends insight into how Abby has navigated her career. DEI Advisors has a great YouTube channel, with lots of interesting hotel executives to learn from.

• Brigid Delaney on how the Stoics taught her Not to Worry This struck a chord with me as I've heard of stoicism but never really dug into it. Listen to this podcast if you are also a newbie interested to learn how ancient philosophies can be applied today.

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Have a great week!  

Em