CMA Management articles from April 2003

CMA Management archives from April 2003

Valuable reform.(international financial reporting standards)(Editorial)
April 1, 2003... It appears that the accounting scandals of 2002 have made a lasting impact on the corporate world. International financial reporting standards (IFRS) are an attempt to make financial reports add up the same way in any market, and according to...

Start & Run series. (Leading the Pack).(Start & Run a Consulting Business Start & Run a Retail Business)(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... Starting a business is a complex and risky endeavour, which is probably why Self-Counsel Press continues to do well with its Start & Run series of books. Its newest releases are the 6th edition of Start & Run a Consulting Business, and the...

The 50 best series, 2003 edition. (Leading the Pack).(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... This series of four books tries to give its readership an upper hand in the ever-changing markets by recommending companies worth investing in. The 50 Best Stocks for Canadians, by Lori Bamber and Gene Walden, features both Canadian and...

The trusted leader. (Leading the Pack).(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... Who do you trust after the various corporate scandals in the past year? Business Leaders are beginning to recognize trust as a discipline that must be managed in the workplace along with strategy and operations. If employees suspect that...

Income trusts the power in surprise Canadian IPO boost. (News and Views).(intial public offerings)
April 1, 2003... Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) reached record levels in 2002 according to an annual market survey produced by Price water house Coopers. The survey shows that a total of 69 IPOs (excluding structured products) were successfully brought to...

CRM for the SME. (High Tech).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Microsoft Business Solutions recently announced the North American launch of Microsoft Business Solutions Customer Relationship Management (Microsoft CRM). This new product supports and automates the CRM strategies of mid-market organizations,...

Legal action. (Rants and Raves).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Vanessa Magness's article, "How green pays," (February 2003) is very interesting and a useful addition to current readings on a subject that is bound to become of increasing interest to a large number of companies as they spend more to cope...

Canadian venture capitalists' confidence up. (News and Views).
April 1, 2003... Investors have a renewed sense of optimism with nearly half (47%) of Canadian venture capitalists (VCs) anticipating an improvement in the economic climate in the upcoming months, signalling a return to early 2002 levels after a low of 29% in...

New Software. (News and Views).
April 1, 2003... Visit www.managementmag.com for more information on the following software packages: * Deltek Systems, Inc.'s new Deltek Vision Web-based business automation solution * Vadim Software and UplinkLMT's integration of financial data with...

Public sector bargaining challenges. (News and Views).(Canadian outlook for public and private sectors)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Labour negotiations are set to be more arduous in the public sector than the private sector this year, according to The Conference Board of Canada's Industrial Relations Outlook 2003. "The public and private sectors are heading in opposite...

The way that you use it: full circle feedback can build better organizations with the right approach. (Human Resources).(360-degree evaluation)
April 1, 2003... Performance reviews take on many different guises. One of the more popular manifestations is the 360-degree evaluation. Organizations across Canada have adopted it as a way to better the performance of key employees. No one approach to its use...

Improved aviation management: new research and learning tools are boosting the aviation management profile. (Management Trends).
April 1, 2003... The City of Montreal is working hard to garner recognition as an aviation education capital, feeding off the growth of the aeronautics, aerospace and aviation industries in its vicinity. In July 2001, the first international Aviation Management...

Clear trails: strategy mapping may be the key to improving organizational performance. (Business Strategies).
April 1, 2003... Many companies struggle with the task of executing their key strategies. In fact, strategy execution (or lack thereof) has been referred to as the single biggest obstacle to success. Far too many well-formulated strategies are wasted by...

The buffer zone: finding a happy medium between supply and demand in inventory management.
April 1, 2003... Anyone who has been involved in inventory management knows what it is like to worry about stock levels. Finding the right balance (not too much, not too little) is critical, and yet often seemingly unattainable. Most of the problems seen in...

Good shipping news: warehouse management systems promise improved control and efficiency.
April 1, 2003... No technology is a perfect solution to any problem. Human ingenuity is an important part of any business, but the right technology can help a business substantially. For instance, a good warehouse management system (WMS) gives a company better...

The productivity push: it's lagging in Quebec and MEQ wants to turn that around by targeting Quebec manufacturing SMEs to improve productivity through training.(Manufacturiers et exportateurs du Quebec launch new training programme)
April 1, 2003... Manufacturers in the province of Quebec have a tough challenge. Their productivity lags far behind companies in Ontario and the U.S., and the gap keeps getting bigger. Determined to turn this situation around by reinforcing the skills of...

Budgeting -- an unnecessary evil, part two: how the BBRT envisions a world without traditional budgeting.(Beyond Budgeting Roundtable's findings on budgeting)
April 1, 2003... The budget is the bane of corporate America. It never should have existed...Making a budget is an exercise in minimalization. You're always trying to get the lowest out of people, because everyone is negotiating to get a lower number.--Jack...

Brand building after the merge: forging a new identity after a merger or acquisition is critical to maintaining a strong client base. Management looks at a few examples of how some companies are doing it right.(Aliant Telecom)
April 1, 2003... It was a merger of equals: four provincial telephone companies -- NBTel, MTT, IslandTel and NewTel -- came together in March 1999 to form a company called Aliant Telecom. Today, more than four years after the merger, the telcos are about to...

New frontiers: Moyez Somani, CMA, leads the finance team at FCC, growing a strong agricultural financial services company to support a changing industry. .(Farm Credit Canada plays important role in Canada's agricultural industry)
April 1, 2003... The agricultural industry is constantly evolving and becoming more complex, encompassing many different sectors--from hogs to cash crops, agribusiness processing to input operations such as fertilizer plants. Some sectors are booming, while...

Research rollbacks: tax dollars go straight back to development with the intelligent use of the government's SR&ED program. .(details of the Scientific Research and Experimental Development policy )
April 1, 2003... Although finding seed money for new research and development has become increasingly difficult in Canada, companies with a firm footing in the R&D world have various ways of keeping enough money in their own coffers to see their ideas flourish....

Building the black box: how understanding your business can improve your IT investment. (Information Technology).(relational database system accomodates provincial changes in property tax and assessment rules)
April 1, 2003... It's rare that a company can find an off-the-shelf computer solution that fits its needs perfectly. Systems have to be adapted for specific needs and challenges that different industries throw in the way of developers. Like all implementations,...

Learning from NAFTA: countries negotiating the FTAA look for better trade dispute mechanisms. (Government Issues).(Free Trade Area of the Americas)
April 1, 2003... The European Union trade association model is something that is finding a footing in America. NAFTA was the first step towards freer trade on this side of the Atlantic. The next step is meant to be the creation of a Free Trade Area of the...

Mining blue gold: water supply is becoming a destabilizing concern around the world, which makes raising capital to finance water management projects critical. (Global View).
April 1, 2003... The second Montreal International Finance Conference (MIFC) attracted over 150 financial, banking, government, institutional, trade union and private sector delegates from three continents to discuss raising capital for the water sector -- a...