Chief Executive (U.S.) articles from October 2004

Chief Executive (U.S.) archives from October 2004

The new economy. Really.(Editor's Note)(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... The term "new economy" usually produces snorts of derision these days. But I believe that is wrong-headed. Part of the problem is confusion over what the new economy really is. When the savants began talking about it in the 1990s, I could...

Who should be No. 20?(Feedback)
October 1, 2004... It's official. Chief Executive invites your nomination for the 2005 CEO of the Year. It will be the 20th year we've sponsored this award process. And it would not be immodest to say that the highly distinguished list of winners thus far...

Darts & roses.(CEO Watch)
October 1, 2004... DART... * MICHAEL EISNER of Disney. You got the stepping down part right, but why wait two years? Your legacy is beyond repair. Face it, you're no Mary Poppins. ROSE... * DAVE DORMAN of AT & T for launching Voice Over Internet...

What matters for diversity.(Management)
October 1, 2004... A SURVEY of 5,500 American workers by the National Urban League found that the U.S. work force is quite willing to accept more diversity on the job and faults top management for paying only lip service to the issue. Less than a third felt top...

Darts & roses.(CEO Watch)
October 1, 2004... ROSE... * LEE SCOTT of Wal-Mart. It was remarkably candid to acknowledge you haven't handled the barrage of criticism very well. Bravo. Or whatever they say in Bentonville. DART... * CARLY FIORINA of Hewlett-Packard. When a CEO...

Post-sarbox, directors' pay rises.(Compensation)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... THE TIGHTENED RULES on corporate governance have proved a boon not just to the auditors and attorneys who advise companies on compliance matters but also to the directors charged with overseeing them. A recent survey by the consulting firm...

Sign of times? Turnover slows.(Careers)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2004... THE HOT SEAT in the corner office seems to be cooling down. For the second month in a row, the number of CEO departures dropped by more than 10 percent in August, as forced ousters are growing fewer, according to the outplacement firm...

The mood is a bit blue.(CEO Confidence Index)
October 1, 2004... CEOS ARE FEELING less confident as they head toward the finish of a charged presidential election race amid lackluster job growth reports, falling sales, still-sky-high oil prices and continued terrorist alerts. The benchmark CEO Confidence...

The role of CEOs in innovation: we must challenge organizations to think and act differently.(Chief Concern)(Chief Executive Officers)
October 1, 2004... Of the 10 most valuable information technology providers in the world today, only one is a company not born and based in the United States: the German software developer SAP. By this measure, the climate for generating economic value from...

RFID is no monster: the new technology represents a genuine revolution.(Thought Leader)(Radio frequency identification)
October 1, 2004... You've read the dire projections and heard the hue and cry. Radio frequency identification technology, or RFID, is too expensive and complicated. It's causing suppliers to buckle under the pressure of deadlines imposed by major retail chains....

Do you have the disciplines to grow? How growth companies do it.(Thought Leader)
October 1, 2004... All companies are capable of achieving double-digit growth. Economic conditions are an important but relatively small factor. Competition matters, but it can be outfought and outflanked. Customers are demanding and fickle, yet they can be...

No easy cure: what the U.S. health care system needs are entirely new forms of competition, says Michael Porter.(Public Policy)(Interview)
October 1, 2004... Rising health care costs are a major concern for chief executives. Michael E. Porter, a professor at the Harvard Business School and a leading expert on competitive strategy, argues that the heart of the problem is a flawed health care system....

Preaching JetBlue: how David Neeleman is spreading the gospel of service at the fast-growing airline.(Airlines)
October 1, 2004... Spend a day with David Neeleman, and you're more likely to feel you're on a campaign swing than a corporate soiree. On a trip to Puerto Rico to launch service out of Aguadilla, a city near the island's west coast, the JetBlue CEO steps off the...

The Depot goes digital: how CEO Bob Nardelli is managing a $2 billion technology transformation.(Chief Executive Officer)(Cover Story)
October 1, 2004... When Bob Nardelli arrived as chief executive of The Home Depot in December 2000, the by-now infamous story is that he asked how to send an email to the managers of each store across the country. "There is no way," he was told. The stores simply...

Perfect storm: the fate of U.S. manufacturing lies in the hands of CEOs like Delphi's J.T. Battenberg.(Manufacturing)(Chief Executive Officers)
October 1, 2004... J.T. Battenberg, chief executive of Delphi, laid it right on the line in a recent speech to his peers at an automotive industry conference in Traverse City, Mich. "There's a 'perfect storm' facing the automotive world," Battenberg said....

Getting the global view: Nestle, led by Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, climbs to the #1 spot in this year's Best Companies for Leaders.(Best 20 Companies for Leaders)
October 1, 2004... How can a food and beverage company that wants to sell 8,500 brands in 86 countries become all things to all customers yet maintain its focus and keep its identity intact? Nestle CEO Peter Brabeck-Letmathe says it all hinges on the talent that...

Land of tech and honey: Israel is a quiet leader in many tech fields, and is exporting much of its innovation.(Global: Middle East)
October 1, 2004... In Tel Aviv, Israel's hippest city, you won't see the usual signs of technological sophistication--the giant skyscrapers, digital billboards and neon lights of New York or the sleek buildings and sprawling campuses of Silicon Valley. For all...

Finding the secret sauce for success: the recipe, says FedEx's Fred Smith, is equal parts savvy and intuition.(Roundtable)(FedEx Corporation)
October 1, 2004... Chief executives are fascinated by the intellectual challenge of building a business. They know they have different tools such as technological innovation, leadership and customer focus. But in the final analysis, there is no one cookie-cutter...

The art of gift giving: it's time to give a gift to another person who has everything. You could leave it to an assistant or personal shopper, of course, and take your chances. Or, you can read our foolproof guide and find the perfect gift with a personal touch.(Special Advertising Section)(Buyers Guide)
October 1, 2004... FOR THE SPORTS FANATIC IN YOUR LIFE Let's start with the obvious: golf. Although golf may be the #1 sport of corporate executives, it can be tricky when it comes to giving gifts. Golf preferences tend to be very personal, especially when...

The top 10 cars for CEOs: Chief Executive and Edmunds.com choose the best wheels for work and play.(Executive Life)(Chief Executive Officers)(Product/Service Evaluation)
October 1, 2004... For the second year in a row, we are pleased to present Chief Executive's Top 10 Cars for CEOs, in cooperation with Edmunds.com, the automotive data and ratings service. We've made some changes this year, most notably a delineation between...

City for sale: name your price; Canon Dubuque, IBM Terre Haute. Why not?(Flip Side)
October 1, 2004... In recent years, advertisers have developed a multitude of unconventional techniques for reaching hard-to-reach consumers. Sports stadiums routinely carry a corporate handle (First Wachovia Center, 3M Park, and let's not forget Wrigley Field);...

On the issues: CEOs for Bush.(Editorial)(Chief Executive Officer)(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... FOR TWO MONTHS, Chief Executive has been asking our readers how you perceive the issues facing your businesses and the country. First, we asked through our email polling what you think the top challenges are. Then we asked whether President...

Let's get real about jobs.(job creation)(Brief Article)(Editorial)
October 1, 2004... ALRIGHT, WE'VE HAD ENOUGH. If you pay attention to the political debate, you'd think that presidential candidates and governors create jobs while CEOs destroy them. The myth that "politicians create jobs" is getting repeated so often that it...