September 2026

Cover Story

Engagement in Our Business Community: Honoring Our 2026 Women of Achievement

“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.” —Coretta Scott King Ours is a great community, widely known as a welcoming and collaborative environment. A hint to the source of that … [More]

Features

The AI Problem Valley Business Leaders Don’t Know They Have

For those leading an Arizona-based business today, chances are very high their employees are already using AI. They’re using it to draft emails, summarize meetings, analyze data, create presentations, write code, review résumés and solve countless … [More]

AZ Blue: 8 Decades of Advancing Health and Strengthening Arizona Communities

For more than 85 years, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona (AZ Blue) has been woven into the fabric of the state, quietly, consistently and intentionally supporting the health of individuals, families and employers across all 15 counties. What began … [More]

Economic Security Is the New Language of Trade. Arizona Should Learn It

When American and Mexican negotiators closed their third round of USMCA review talks in Mexico City in late July, the agenda read the way these agendas always read. Steel and aluminum. Automobiles. Agriculture. Labor. Electronic payments. And one … [More]

The Workplace Safety Bubble That Backfires

Psychological safety has become corporations’ ultimate magic cure-all. Teams underperforming? Build psychological safety. People not speaking up? More psychological safety. Ask ChatGPT for help with any team problem? You guessed it — psychological … [More]

Roundtable

Supporting Neurodivergent Employees Who Won’t Tell You They’re Struggling

As knowledge and awareness of neurodivergence improves, professional spaces begin to develop strategies to accommodate those whose brains work at a … [More]

Economy

Smart Steps to Position a Business for Mergers & Acquisitions

Mergers and acquisitions activity remains strong across industries. Many M&A opportunities stem from a combination of strategic repositioning and … [More]

Nonprofit

By The Numbers

Are RTO Mandates Really about Collaboration and Productivity?

Workers have heard the pitch: Return to office to get that hard-to-define special feeling of vibrant communication and collaboration that post-COVID … [More]

From the Top

Inga Rose: Scaling a Science-First Startup in Oncology

The pace of innovation in oncology has never been faster. Researchers are developing new diagnostics, identifying novel biomarkers and advancing precision medicine at an unprecedented rate. But even … [More]

Legal

5 Employment Actions Phoenix Employers Should Take Before Growing

Greater Phoenix ranked third nationally in percentage job growth during the first quarter of 2026, adding 15,500 nonfarm jobs even as national headwinds slowed hiring elsewhere. Corporate relocations … [More]

Startups

How the Tempe Diablos Turned Civic Pride into Lasting Impact: From the Ballpark to the Heart of Tempe

For more than half a century, the Tempe Diablos have demonstrated how civic pride, when paired with committed volunteer leadership, can evolve into lasting community impact. What began in the late … [More]

Healthcare

Scaling Down to Scale Up: The Business Case for Boutique Senior Living

In Arizona’s senior housing market, scale has long been treated as a measure of success. Larger facilities, higher unit counts and operational efficiency have defined growth for decades. Now, that model is being challenged as smaller, boutique-style … [More]

Technology

Webinars Could Be a Business’s Growth Lever, but Its Workflow Is Holding It Back

Webinars have re-emerged as one of the most effective formats in B2B marketing. As buyers increasingly seek educational content they can consume on their own schedule, webinars have evolved beyond one-time presentations into long-term business … [More]

Semi Insights

Echoes of the Boom: Arizona’s Fab Explosion Brings Suppliers in Tow

Arizona’s semiconductor boom has long been measured by its biggest numbers. Billions in investment. New fabrication plants. Thousands of jobs. TSMC’s latest expansion pushes those numbers to another level, but some of the clearest signs of its impact … [More]

Arizona’s Semiconductor Story Adds a Korean Chapter

Arizona’s international semiconductor work has focused largely on Taiwan and Japan. TSMC put the state’s connection to Taiwan at the center of its industry growth, and agreements signed earlier this year brought Arizona, Taiwan and Japan together … [More]

CRE

AI in Arizona Commercial Real Estate

Artificial intelligence is no longer a futuristic concept for commercial real estate. Across the industry, AI is moving from pilot programs and conference-room demonstrations into everyday workflows — helping brokers research properties, investors … [More]

Why Some Arizona Businesses Are Choosing Ownership Over Leasing

While headlines continue to focus on office vacancies and an uncertain commercial real estate market, another story is quietly unfolding across Arizona. Many small and midsize businesses are choosing to purchase commercial property rather than renew … [More]

Briefs

Is the ‘Big Stay’ Finally Coming to an End? What Arizona Employers Should Know

After several years of uncertainty, today's workforce may finally be regaining the confidence to make career moves. New Robert Half research finds that 46% of U.S. professionals plan to look for a new job during the second half of 2026 — up from … [More]

Employees Are Exploring AI Tools on Their Own

from U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Half of all workers at small businesses already use AI at work — and the vast majority are using it to get more done, not to automate themselves out of a job. That is the central finding of the inaugural … [More]

Phoenix’s Growth in Advanced Manufacturing Attracts New Tech Center

Mazak, a leader in the design and manufacture of productive machine tool solutions, selected Phoenix for its newest Technical Center because Arizona has emerged as one of the nation’s fastest-growing advanced manufacturing regions. With hundreds of … [More]

Networking Now – Warm Connection or Cold Transaction?

A growing majority of Americans say networking feels more like a thinly veiled transaction rather than relationship‑building — and a recent survey by Express Employment Professionals and The Harris Poll shows just how pervasive that discomfort has … [More]