Here’s news to help you run your business better, including trends affecting health costs, why you might hire someone to hack into your company and PR lessons from the queen.

1. Health Check shows what’s ailing West Michigan — Grand Valley State University recently released their 2020 Health Check report. See how trends from obesity to telehealth are affecting regional health care costs.
2. Should you hire someone to hack into your company? Many CEOs find that it’s worth it to have an outside party identify cybersecurity weaknesses and correct them before a malicious hacker finds and exploits them. Read more about this proactive move.
3. PR lessons from the queen — Resolving the “Megxit” situation quickly was just one of three smart crisis communication moves Queen Elizabeth made in response to Harry and Meghan’s stepping down from their royal roles. Read about the others here.

4. Marijuana and the workplace — Changing weed laws makes it hard for businesses to keep up. See more about the state of marijuana laws across the nation, including here in Michigan, and what employers can and can’t do.
5. The four horsemen of the optimist — In More for Less, Andrew McAfee writes the surprising story of how we’ve learned to prosper using fewer resources. His data shows that it takes a lot fewer materials and energy to produce a dollar of GDP today than it did 50 years ago. Learn more about the four reasons McAfee’s hopeful for the future and what’s next.

Thank you to our Friday Five sources: MiBiz, Inc., Forbes, SHRM and strategy+business.

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