Financial Director articles from October 2007

Financial Director archives from October 2007

boards fail to grasp IT risks.(Information Technology)
October 25, 2007... Byline: Neil Hodge boards fail to grasp IT Risks IT risks may be moving up the business agenda, but understanding and managing those risks is another matter While technology-related risks may figure higher on the agenda of UK...

Crack down.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Robert Bruce crack down Compliance processes and risk management are undermining the independence of internal audits There is a severe danger that internal auditors, those most innocuous of souls, are about to be...

Where now.(International Accounting Standards Board )
October 25, 2007... Byline: Peter Williams where now? We're on the road to global accounting standards, but nobody seems happy with the direction they're taking While accounting standards converge across the globe, standard setters, users and...

Act makes it easier to prosecute.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Neil Hodge act makes it easier to prosecute Business will now be held criminally liable and face an unlimited fine in the event of a death in the workplace Lawyers are advising organisations to take immediate steps to put...

Companies to review articles.(Articles of Incorporation)
October 25, 2007... Byline: Neil Hodge companies to review articles Amendments to the Companies Regulations 2007 could spell the end of the AGM. But will anyone miss it? Companies and advisers need to urgently review their Articles of Association to...

crunch time for the economy.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Charlotte Moore crunch time for the economy No one is quite sure what the implications of the sub-prime crisis on the wider economy will be. But a slump in consumer confidence and less readily available credit should put FDs on...

Smash 'n' grab.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Dennis Turner Smash 'n' grab Curtailing government borrowing doesn't, it seems, extend to borrowing ideas from the opposition If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the new Chancellor Alistair Darling paid...

personal trainers for FDs.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Sarah Perrin personal trainers for FDs Executive training programmes are helping FDs to look at broader business issues, leading to improved skills and performance, writes Sarah Perrin Chris Stooke joined the Catlin Group,...

Double vision.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae Double vision As CFO of Asda, Judith McKenna's focus must be trained firmly on the UK retail sector. But with Wal-Mart as her sole shareholder, she faces other demands, too words David Rae portraits nick...

Keep track of green objectives.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Rachael Singh keep track of green objectives A systematic evaluation of a company's environmental performance will have long-term economic benefits Cynics would say that the reason companies become sustainable or...

Outsourcing environmental auditing function.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Rachael Singh Outsourcing environmental auditing function There are occasions when it could be more cost effective to outsource an environmental audit to a consultant, who has more experience and expertise in that field....

A switch in time.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Charlotte Moore A switch in time A sharp, unexpected rise in the cost of borrowing has forced FDs to consider interest rate swaps to limit their exposure to interest rate risk and protect planned debt financing, writes...

Deceptive calm masks forex market threat.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Kern Deceptive calm masks forex market threat Massive financial upheavals have subsided, but there are concerns over 2008 prospects. The credit markets are still not functioning normally. The apparent tranquillity may...

Easy credit masks struggling companies.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae Easy credit masks struggling companies The recent liquidity crisis in the financial markets has the potential to force a significant increase in corporate restructuring and insolvencies because the ease of raising...

FTSE-100 reveals evaluations shortcomings.(Brief article)
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae FTSE-100 reveals evaluations shortcomings Research into the disclosures of FTSE-100 companies reveals that just 41 companies have had an external evaluation of the board in any of the previous three years and just...

roadtosuc cess.(success)
October 25, 2007... Byline: Anthony Harrington roadtosuc cess Some spectacular, high-profile failures have given the private finance initiative a bad press. But with high risks come large rewards for those that get it right words Anthony Harrington...

Act now.(Brief article)
October 25, 2007... Byline: Neil Hodge Act now Commercial law firm Bond Pearce says that in preparation for the Act a business should: n Obtain and consider all health and safety guidance applicable to their business; n Consider industry...

Left behind.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae left behind Frantic consolidation in the software sector means there are few companies left for Microsoft to buy Consolidation in the software sector is not new. But the type of frenzied activity experienced...

the nitty gritty of growth.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae the nitty gritty of growth Companies need to recognise the growth potential in their organisation as well as the marketplace to uncover new business opportunities, writes David Rae That companies must grow to...

darling premier steals the show.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae darling premier steals the show Crisis? What crisis? Despite market turbulence, M&A activity seems to be back, with Carlsberg and Heineken launching a [pounds sterling]7bn bid for Scottish & Newcastle, and...

beware the good times.
October 25, 2007... Byline: Andrew Sawers beware the good times A teacher was reading the story of Chicken Little to her class. "a[bar]And Chicken Little went up to the farmer and said, 'The sky is falling! The sky is falling!'" she read. The teacher...

hotproperty.
October 25, 2007... Byline: David Rae One of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton's traits was to personally fly over US towns where he was planning on opening a store to look for the most ideal location. Once he'd recognised a plot situated by a busy intersection, or...