In an in-depth look at Massimo F. d'Amore's attempt to reinvigorate PepsiCo's North American beverage business, marketing editor Burt Helm asks if the CEO of PepsiCo Americas Beverages has taken on too much at one time. For one thing, rather than cherry-picking his makeovers since his ascension 16 months ago, d'Amore is overhauling major franchises such as Pepsi, Gatorade, Tropicana and Mountain Dew all at the same time. "He has put himself at the center of brand management -- hiring and firing ad agencies, helping conceive TV commercials, and even editing them," Helm writes. "His hands-on style has alienated …

About 15 years ago, I wrote a profile about August "Augie" Turak, a successful sales executive who had a proclivity for soaking in wisdom from anyone with anything perceptive to share, from his mentor, IBM's legendary Lou Mobley, to a New York cab driver. Since then, he has drawn much wisdom from regular treks to Mepkin Abbey, a Trappist monastery in Moncks Corner, S.C. And along the way, Turak has found that the monastery's business model can be universally applied with impressive results. Forbes has adapted a white paper Turak wrote about his experiences with …

There's not much left of Polaroid besides its brand name, Peter Lattman and Jeffrey McCracken report. The company employed 21,000 workers at its peak in 1978; last year, 70 people were on its payroll. But Polaroid generated about $400 million in revenue, nonetheless, with its name slapped on low-cost Chinese TVs and DVD players. Figures like that attracted two "vulture" investors to a St. Paul, Minn., courtroom Thursday, where they battled for three hours for the corporate remnants. "After 28 bids and counterbids -- in the third round of bidding in just the last three weeks -- Lynn Tilton …

Despite suffering from all the woes that other businesses are experiencing, in addition to a drop-off in DVD sales as Internet downloads increase, the movie business is making tons of money. Box-office receipts are going bonkers, film critic Tom Long reports. "Movies are recession-proof because they are "still a comparatively inexpensive event," says Brandon Gray, chief analyst for boxofficemojo.com. But that doesn't guarantee a Hollywood ending for the industry. DVD sales dropped more than 5% in 2008 and are continuing to fall. Other foreboding shifts include Internet piracy (such as the early release of the forthcoming "X-Men Origins: …

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide is suing Hilton Hotels in federal court in New York, accusing two of its top executives of stealing trade secrets to speed its entry into the "lifestyle" market, Deena Beasley reports. Starwood claims Ross Klein, head of luxury and lifestyle brands, and Amar Lalvani, head of development for the segment, stole "truckloads of documents" -- more than 100,000 electronic files -- before and after they left Starwood for Hilton. Both executives had been closely involved in Starwood's W Hotels brand. Starwood seeks monetary damages and a court order that would stop Hilton's new …

Well, it's not your normal recall, but EB Brands must send instructions on how to inflate the balls properly so that they won't explode to anyone who requests said document, and replace them if they do. Three million have been sold; 47 reportedly have burst. What next? A group of gym rats complaining that Chuck Norris' Total Gym overdevelops the right pectorals?

The movie doesn't open until May 8, but Barry Janoff reports that Trekkies are already jabbering online about marketing tie-ins that include ESPN, NBA basketball on TNT, Burger King, Esurance, Kellogg, Intel and a plethora of products ranging from toys, apparel and jewelry to a retro SKU of colognes.