Q: My company is in the middle of discussions with an important client, and I have been given authority to negotiate on behalf of my firm. The problem is, the client is not accepting my authority and keeps going to my boss, and she doesn't always stop him. How do I rein him in?

--Troy, 32, account management and sales executive

A: You have to ...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The deadly wildfires that roared through Sonoma and Napa counties last week, destroying thousands of homes, might also scorch the Bay Area's already brutal housing market for months or years to come, experts warned Friday.

An estimated 2,800 homes have been destroyed in the wind-whipped infernos in Santa Rosa alone, and a ...Read more

LOS GATOS, Calif. -- Netflix sees its subscribers as hungry, and they're still eating up what the internet video-streaming kingpin is serving up.

On Monday, Netflix said "strong appetite" for its original content continued to drive the company's results during the third quarter of the year, which included Netflix adding 5.3 million new ...Read more

The Weinstein Co., beset by sexual harassment and assault allegations against ousted co-founder Harvey Weinstein, announced Monday that it is in negotiations to sell part or all of itself to Colony Capital.

The company -- known for producing films such as "Silver Linings Playbook," "Django Unchained" and "The Iron Lady," as well as the reality ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO -- Firing hundreds of workers all at once is rare, at least in the auto industry. But Tesla Inc. does things differently.

Word leaked out Friday that the electric car, battery and solar roof company had bulk-fired several hundred employees.

The Mercury News, which broke that story, said Tesla made clear that workers were ...Read more

SEATTLE -- Nordstrom family members have suspended their effort to put together a buyout offer for the Seattle-based retailer, citing "the difficulty of obtaining debt financing in the current retail environment prior to the conclusion of the approaching holiday season."

Led by Bruce Nordstrom, the group disclosed in June its plan to take the ...Read more

CHICAGO -- Beam Suntory's Cruzan Rum distillery in St. Croix is back in operation after being battered by Hurricane Maria, according to a Beam Suntory news release Monday.

The distillery was shut down for about three weeks while the company made repairs after the hurricane, a process that required airlifting in 35 workers "with necessary ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- It's been a great season for horror, with Blumhouse's "Happy Death Day" becoming the latest such film to top the domestic box office in its opening weekend.

The $5 million movie, a bloody riff on the classic "Groundhog Day" concept, brought in an estimated $26.5 million in the U.S. and Canada, according to figures from ...Read more

OTTAWA, Ontario –– U.S. NAFTA negotiators are proposing to essentially do away with the independent tribunals that oversee the trading and investment relationship, either by eliminating them or substantially scaling back their roles, people familiar with negotiations said.

The U.S. has proposed changes for two types of independent dispute ...Read more

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Tesla fired hundreds of workers this past week, including engineers, managers and factory workers, even as the company struggles to expand its manufacturing and product line.

The dismissals come at a crucial point for the company, which is pushing to increase vehicle production fivefold and reach a broader market with its ...Read more

It's easy to imagine that illegal insider trading is mostly a game played by slick bad guys or aggressive traders who sometimes cross the line.

The story that federal prosecutors tell in the recent indictment of former Life Time Fitness Vice President Shane Fleming and eight others is a lot different. What's striking is the very ordinariness of...Read more

Consumers who are caught in a financial squeeze might one day be able to skip the payday loan store and turn to banks and credit unions for lower-cost, quick-fix loans.

That's one possibility being raised by consumer advocates who want to see an end to gruesome, triple-digit rates that are charged to vulnerable consumers who take out payday ...Read more

Despite department store woes, national retailers have started to seek seasonal help -- and at levels close to those seen last year, according to some estimates.

Many of the seasonal jobs are focused on stocking additional inventory, customer service, and helping in shipping and distribution centers, an area that is growing as online holiday ...Read more

ATLANTA -- The Internal Revenue Service has suspended its $7.25 million contract with Atlanta-based Equifax, the agency announced Friday.

The decision came a day after the company was forced to shut down one of its customer service websites, a page that had been manipulated by hackers who had apparently placed malicious software on the site.

...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- The Weinstein Co. board of directors and executive ranks erupted into turmoil Friday over the future of the company co-founded by disgraced movie producer Harvey Weinstein.

Bob Weinstein, brother of Harvey Weinstein, said the mini-studio they founded in 2005 is not shutting down or for sale despite sexual harassment and assault ...Read more