Management Today articles from April 2012

Management Today archives from April 2012

Editorial: Turning Up the Volume
April 1, 2012... Confession time. On the extroversion detector scale in the questionnaire that accompanies our Quiet feature, I was almost off the scale. (You're not surprised.) When I was seven, at Parents' Evening, my teacher Mrs Tungmore remarked sourly:...

Contributors.
April 1, 2012... John Morrish MT contributor Morrish spoke to many self-proclaimed introverts for his feature and found them increasingly vocal: 'It was almost: 'Say it loud, I'm an introvert and I'm proud,'' he says. Says Morrish: 'I think I'm a shy...

The MT Diary
April 1, 2012... Frittering time in Rochdale; Goldman exposed; Vince's pious wish-list; Sarkozy swerves. Spam spam spam spam, spaaam, wonderful spam. I haven't thought about spam since I tried to explain to a rather solemn Norwegian (a tautology?) why a group...

You Live and You Learn: Julian Metcalfe, Co-Founder of Pret a Manger and Itsu
April 1, 2012... I love food and Pret A Manger was born because of that. Eating in London was very grim in 1986. There were lots of Italian sandwich bars. Italian food is amazing, but it was like the worst Italian chefs came here. Sinclair Beecham...

Ten ways to ... Negotiate a pay rise.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... 1. Know what makes you valuable 2. Show commitment: take on extra responsibility 3. Look back at your initial job description 4. Research the company's pay structure .. 5.... and look at what other firms are paying 6. Have a specific number in...

Workplace Rights: A new mindset.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... The issue of mental ill health in the workplace is being swept under the carpet, according to research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). Just four in 10 employees said they would feel confident disclosing a...

Words-worth: Money.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Some people worship money and maybe that's how it should be, given the word's origins. It came into English from French in the 14th century. The French, in turn, got it from the Latin moneta. Moneta was a title of the goddess Juno and meant...

Suffering from ... Facebook Addiction Disorder?(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Have you noticed your staff standing up to greet you in a perfunctory, sudden and overly polite way when you walk past? Don't think this means they know who's top dog and are showing their respect. All aerobic exercises performed in front of...

Career Masterclass: Hone Your Intuition
April 1, 2012... Give it a chance. Intuition isn't inferior to rational analysis, it's complementary, and most CEOs use it to guide their decisions. Become an expert. Experience makes intuition more reliable. Know your job inside out and it'll be easier...

What's the big idea?: Synergy.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Imagine a merger between two great old-time jazz bands - say, Count Basie and Duke Ellington. What would have happened? Well, you'd have a fair amount of redundancy (one too many bass players), some unwanted competition for key slots (piano...

'Driving Gets You Ahead': Alastair Dryburgh
April 1, 2012... 'Driving' is a popular descriptor of management activity: a powerful word implying determination, decisiveness and dynamism. Think 'driving change' and 'driving customers'. The problem is that it is also freighted with many other meanings,...

Slogan Doctor: B&Q: let's do it together.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... For many people, the mere thought of DIY provokes dread. Part of the problem is the fear of things going wrong. B&Q boldly confronted that in its 2011 TV campaign, created by McCann Erickson, which introduced the new slogan. It showed...

How to: This Month's most-read advice on MT's website.(Management Today)
April 1, 2012... Ten Top Tips: Make money from Facebook Entrepreneurship: How to negotiate abroad Marketing: Smart ways to beat the competition Ten Top Tips: Make your digital start-up viable Innovation: Eco-friendly office on a budget ...

Remember This.(quotation of Adam Smith)(Quotation)
April 1, 2012... 'All money is a matter of belief' Adam Smith said it. -------------------- Did you find this article useful? Why not subscribe to the magazine? Please call 08451 55 73 55 for more information or visit www.haysubs.com

Decisions: Will Wynne, Arena Flowers - Co-Founder of the Online Flower Retailer
April 1, 2012... MY BEST... is best summarised by a line from one of my favourite films, Zombieland. It's about a guy who has a list of rules to survive when zombies have taken over. One of them is 'don't be a hero'. When I first started my business, I sat...

Stat of the Month: Tobacco smuggling.(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Pounds 2.2bn... lost duty on illegal cigarettes The illegal tobacco trade is giving the Government a headache. Cigarette smuggling costs the Exchequer pounds 2.2bn a year in lost revenues There has been some success in clamping down - more...

Company Vitae: G4S
April 1, 2012... G4S is one of the biggest firms in an increasingly high-profile business these days - security. And it all grew out of four blokes on bicycles Formative years The company remembered by Brits of a certain age (in its Group 4 Securicor...

Crash Course in ... Performance-Related Pay
April 1, 2012... All this talk about bankers' bonuses has got you thinking about your own salary structure, and your junior team is complaining that only the higher-ups get pay incentives and nobody has any idea what they're given for. Time to have a closer look...

MT Learning Curve: Managing Work Experience Schemes
April 1, 2012... - What is it? Whether in the housing or the jobs market, we all need to take a step on the first rung of the ladder. That is what work experience is for. But that first encounter with a boss and the world of work can have a lasting impact,...

A Mentor Is Hard to Find
April 1, 2012... Only a lucky few know someone who can really help them succeed in business; low interest rates transfer wealth to those who need it most; the wisdom of crowds is overrated. Does mentoring really work? I have never really had such a formal...

The Power of Sharing
April 1, 2012... Social media has rebalanced the relationship between consumers and business, with the public in the driving seat as never before. Are you a Twitter or a Facebook person? This was the question posted by a friend recently. The query provoked a...

Books: A new cultural revolution.(Organizations Don't Tweet, People Do: A Manager's Guide to the Social Web)(Book review)
April 1, 2012... Social media isn't just a way to fritter away time, it is vital to organisations' future. Rory Cellan-Jones agrees, but asks why not join in rather than just read about it? Organisations Don't Tweet, People Do: A manager's guide to the...

Books: Why the business of sport makes winners of us all.(The Spirit of the Game: How Sport Made the Modern World)(Book review)
April 1, 2012... The commercialisation of events like the Olympics doesn't mean they have sold their soul. Christopher Satterthwaite enjoys an account of the global rise of games. The Spirit of the Game: How sport made the modern world Mihir Bose ...

Books: A panoramic vision of the marketplace.(The Wide Lens: A New Strategy for Innovation)(Book review)
April 1, 2012... The devil may be in the detail, but successful innovators keep their eye on the big picture, too. Charlie Dawson buys in. The Wide Lens: A new strategy for innovation Ron Adner Penguin Portfolio, pounds 14.99 I approached Ron Adner's...

Books: Three of a kind - Girls on top.(I'd Rather Be in Charge)(The Equality Illusion)(Where Have All the Senior Women Gone?)(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2012... I'd Rather Be in Charge Charlotte Beers Vanguard Press, pounds 17.99 Formerly head of two multinational advertising companies and ex-US undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, Beers knows a thing or two about...

The MT Interview: Judith McKenna
April 1, 2012... The chief operating officer of Asda learnt her trade at the feet of retail god Allan Leighton. Her down-to-earth approach, with an emphasis on value, has helped the supermarket to outperform its closest rivals, Tesco and Sainsbury's, to the...

Slow Finance
April 1, 2012... Almost everyone agrees that business as usual is no longer an option for capitalism. In his important new book, Slow Finance, fund manager Gervaise Williams offers a vision of an alternative, based on longer-term, local investment. But can it...

Managing Costs the True Value of Energy Insight
April 1, 2012... A new service from British Gas, Business Energy Insight, helps companies make significant savings by pinpointing where they are wasting energy and helping them implement cost-cutting measures. The economic climate is forcing all of us to take...

Taking the Lid off CEO Pay
April 1, 2012... Those who claim bosses' salaries are out of control miss the point: their rampant inflation is part of the ideology of shareholder value The real question is, how did we allow this to happen and what if anything can be done to bring their...

Quiet (Please)
April 1, 2012... Business has always been seen as the preserve of the big personality. However, in her new book, Quiet, Susan Cain says it's time more thoughtful and reserved types got their due. And, given the likes of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett are classic...

Welcome to the Success Factory
April 1, 2012... Contrary to popular mythology, entrepreneurs don't have to be visionaries, and winners can be manufactured, argues Eric Ries, the author of The Lean Startup. In magazines and newspapers, in blockbuster movies and on countless blogs, we hear...

Britain's Most Admired Companies: How Can We Fix the Crisis in Capitalism?
April 1, 2012... Our distinguished panel looks at what we can do to put ourselves on the path to growth, through overhauling business values, improving training, better regulation and even a return to an industrial policy. Matthew Gwyther Many people feel the...

MT Travel: Globetrotter
April 1, 2012... Sam Simister, head of fruit at Innocent Drinks, spends a lot of her time in Central America tasting the finest bananas, pineapples and limes. - Where do you travel? I'm accountable for everything that goes in our smoothies and juices, so...

MT Travel: Motor Mouth
April 1, 2012... The Seat Exeo is so anonymous, it would be the ideal car for someone fleeing the police, says Sathnam Sanghera. I have been going around for some time now arguing that there is no such thing any more as a bad car. Skodas are desirable, most...

Chartered Management Institute: In My Opinion
April 1, 2012... Dr Martin Read, a CMI Companion and non-executive director, argues that a CEO's commitment makes all the difference to management development. I need no convincing of the benefits of management and leadership development. Throughout my...

What's your problem?(getting negative comments from a new look)(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Q: I've recently grown a beard and I keep getting negative comments from my colleagues. I work for a firm of auditors so we need to look smart, but I thought face furniture was back in fashion. I'm up for promotion - should I shave it off? A:...

What's Your Problem?
April 1, 2012... Q: I'm a new father and returned to work three weeks after my son was born. He's now four months old and because he's teething, I'm only getting three or four hours' sleep a night. I feel dreadful and anxious because I'm not able to do my...

What's Your Problem?
April 1, 2012... Q: My husband was made redundant just after Christmas and is yet to find a job. We were very good friends with his boss and her husband but since this happened, my husband has been too hurt to see them. The ban has been extended to me but I'm...

What's your problem?(food stolen at workplace)(Brief article)
April 1, 2012... Q: There's a kitchen on my floor at work. Someone stole my Marks & Spencer's ready meal and this isn't the first time, as I've also had my homemade sandwiches nicked. I've stuck a note on the fridge door but no one has owned up. How do I...

First-Class Coach
April 1, 2012... Q: Recently I've been given more responsibilities - work previously done by someone who retired and has not been replaced. But, although I then had a positive appraisal, I haven't had a pay increase since joining the company. However, I know...

People: The Sharp End - Going Behind the Scenes
April 1, 2012... Dave Waller takes on the role of set builder for an avant-garde play staged in a tunnel. The Sharp End is packing me off to theatre land to sample life as a set builder, assembling the pieces of Broken Loops, a 'ground-breaking site-specific...