Management Today articles from January 2009

Management Today archives from January 2009

Editorial: A tough time to spot winners.(Editorial)
January 1, 2009... Compiling the MT Top 100 Entrepreneurs list this year has proved unusually tricky. The tumultuous events of the past few months and the extreme volatility of markets mean that establishing who is doing well and then ranking them is tough....

In my Opinion.
January 1, 2009... Liz Jackson, chief executive of Great Guns and a Chartered Management Institute Companion, challenges leaders to show the right attitude and belief during the downturn. I celebrated 10 years in business this year - 10 years since I started...

The MT Diary.(Management Today)
January 1, 2009... With banks focused on building up reserves, is all the action with hedge funds and PE? We are still in the middle of the financial crisis. But it is not too early to think about the shape of the financial sector that may emerge when we get...

Don't you believe it ... Stick to your budget.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... When times are tough, surely it's just common sense to make sure your company or division keeps within its budget? Not necessarily Sometimes sticking religiously to the budget can seriously damage your business... Missed opportunities....

Dave's eco-nomics: Tidy up your marketing.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... GREEN ALERT What's the first rule for companies in a downturn? Shout louder. But with the environment suffering as much as the economy, businesses need to consider how. According to Postcomm, direct mail and promotions material accounts...

Earning curve: Poetry.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Ted Hughes' estate, value (at his death in 1998): pounds 1.4m Seamus Heaney, Nobel Prize for Literature ('95): pounds 900k Columbia University, sale of Allen Ginsberg's archive ('94): pounds 600k Winner, Griffin Poetry Prize...

Ten ways to ... Reinvent yourself.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... 1. Take responsibility for where you are now 2. Think: what do I want to be? 3. Work out what's stopping you 4. Enjoy the process 5. Buy some new threads 6. Do something you always said you wouldn't 7. Chat to people you normally...

Workplace rights: Banishing the sickie.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Sick leave is estimated to cost the economy more than pounds 100bn a year and 172 million lost working days. The Government's latest plan is to scrap the paper sick notes that doctors have used since 1948 to sign people off work, and replace...

Your Route to the top: Handle tricky people.
January 1, 2009... Get to the heart. Whether it's a colleague, client or boss, it's better to try to understand tricky people than to avoid them. Work out how they see things and then find a way to work comfortably with them. Control the control feak. If...

History lessons: Look under the bonnet.(John DeLorean)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... American John De Lorean launched his car company in 1979, with pounds 84m of British taxpayers' money. The government said it would create 2,500 jobs at a new Belfast factory, rolling out the DMC-12, the stainless-steel, gull-winged sports car...

Why business is like ... football transfers.
January 1, 2009... Last summer, before the football season started, Tottenham Hotspur was engaged in a game of brinkmanship with Manchester United over the sale of Dimitar Berbatov. Spurs had accepted the fact that its most valuable asset wanted to make his dream...

Do it right: Dealing with protests.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Be prepared. The whistles and drums come out for countless causes these days, from animals to the environment. Be conscious of any activities that may provoke. Hear them out. Trying to extend your sewage plant into a village is bound to...

Slogan Doctor: Slimming World - 'Because you're amazing'.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... At this time of year, thoughts turn to getting into shape after the Christmas excess. Slimming World is a weight-loss organisation that runs more than 5,500 classes in the UK every week. Its slogan, new for 2009 (the 40th anniversary of the...

How does he manage? Casino director - James Curwen, Paddington Casino.(Interview)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... - When did you become a manager? I became a pit boss at the Ritz Club in 1994. At 15, I'd seen a dealer in a film, and I started phoning casinos to learn how to become a croupier. I started in Kensington at 18. Everyone in this industry...

Are you suffering from: Emotional contagion.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... We now know that people can smell fear, so it comes as no surprise to learn that emotions - both good and bad - are as contagious as the cold virus. For years, researchers have been trying to understand what creates herd mentality, and at last...

Words-worth: Recession.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... For a while, 'recession' was the word that dared not speak its name. Such is its mystical power that it was thought that merely saying the R-word out loud would bring a sharp decline in economic activity Strictly, it means an economic decline...

Remember This.(John D. Rockefeller and Arsene Wenger)(Quotation)
January 1, 2009... 'Prosperity has always returned, and will again' - John D Rockefeller said it 'If you do not believe you can do it, then you have no chance at all' - Arsene Wenger said it. -------------------- Did you find this article useful?...

Stat of the month: Payback time - Dollars 1,000bn.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Value of outstanding European corporate debt to be repaid by end 2009. That's about five times the total paid back last year. The figure, comprising dollars 800bn of debt from financial companies and dollars 200bn from non-financial firms,...

How he made his pile: Bernard Arnault - Luxury wares.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Who is he? France's richest man, and head of luxury goods giant LVMH. He's worth dollars 25.5bn. Mon dieu. How did he make his millions? He started at his family's construction firm, went to the US and came back with a plan: building a...

If I had to start again ..
January 1, 2009... My one regret is that I never went to university. I often think it would have been good to have had that experience. But it just means you have to work that little bit harder. My father worked in the prison service, so I spent the first 17...

Crash Course in ... customer loyalty.
January 1, 2009... Christmas is over, but the bleak economic midwinter isn't. Just as you're wondering where your sales will come from in the next few months, some bright spark mentions that it's time to cash in on customer loyalty. But where do you start? ...

MT Masterclass: Outgreening.(Management Today)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... What is it? 'Something's gotta change', as the Stranglers used to sing. Temperatures are soaring, sea-levels are rising and deserts are expanding. We have to shatter the greenhouse that surrounds the planet That means chucking less carbon...

Decisions: Eric H Baker, Viagogo - Founder and CEO of the online ticket exchange.(chief executive officer)
January 1, 2009... MY BEST... As an entrepreneur, it's very important to really believe in what you're doing. I started my first company in the US in 2000. It was called StubHub and was a secondary ticketing company. I believed that there was a huge...

Behind the spin: Aer Lingus.
January 1, 2009... THE DILEMMA Ireland's flagship airline is under attack from its no-frills home rival Ryanair. Last month, Ryanair, which owns 29.8% of Aer Lingus, launched its second hostile bid for the carrier in two years. CEO Dermot Mannion described...

Fairer face of capitalism.
January 1, 2009... Despite the credit crunch, wealthy individuals with a social conscience still want to give. But how long will this philanthropy last? Who could imagine that on a cold, wet Thursday evening in the middle of a banking crisis, 250 people would...

Books: How do top achievers do it?(Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else)(Book review)
January 1, 2009... Two authors try to pin down the approach most likely to bring success. Hours of practice and persistence are key. It's an intriguing subject, says Luke Johnson. Talent is Overrated: What really separates world-class performers from...

Books: Can tips and tricks fix relationships?(The Mind Gym: Relationships)(Book review)
January 1, 2009... The Mind Gym offers a helping hand in personal interactions, but Mark Vernon finds the optimism a little relentless. The Mind Gym: Relationships Sphere pounds 12.99 The Mind Gym has a strong brand for a good reason. The idea that...

Books: Three of a kind - Develop your negotiating skills.(business literature)(Brief article)(Recommended readings)
January 1, 2009... The Truth About Negotiations Leigh L Thompson Prentice Hall pounds 10.99 Tork & Grunt's Guide to Effective Negotiations Bob Harvey Marshall Cavendish pounds 9.99 Brilliant Negotiations Nic Peeling Prentice Hall pounds 9.99 ...

Books: Investment - for the brave.(The Long and the Short of It: Finance and Investment for Normally Intelligent People Who are Not in the Industry)(Book review)
January 1, 2009... John Kay's guide for the inexperienced portfolio-builder offers useful insights, but the handholding isn't always there when needed Keith Jones weighs its value. The Long and the Short of It: Finance and investment for normally intelligent...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Downturn dynamos.
January 1, 2009... This year's ranking of Britain's Top 100 wealth-creators shows the harsh economic climate testing the mettle of small businesses as never before. But our pick of the entrepreneurs are up to the challenge, reports Philip Beresford. ...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: The League Table.(Table)
January 1, 2009... Rank Name Age Company Activity Wealth (pounds m) 1 Mike Lynch ...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Premier League.
January 1, 2009... From search software to smoothies, fitness to forecourt retailing, designer fashion to diamonds, this year's top 10 all have can-do spirit a-plenty. 1. MIKE LYNCH - AUTONOMY Profits at Cambridge-based software house Autonomy soared 80%...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Recession Resisters.
January 1, 2009... When the going gets tough, the tough get going. Here's our pick of the entrepreneurs most likely to do well as the economic climate worsens =21. EDWINA DUNN & CLIVE HUMBY - DUNNHUMBY Most people have never heard of Edwina Dunn, but if...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Wealth of Diversity.
January 1, 2009... Our ranking shows strength in variety. From chemists to care homes, baking to paper-making, multicultural entrepreneurs are on the case 25. FAROUQ & HAROON SHEIKH - CARETECH CareTech is riding high. Profits at the Potters Bar-based...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Regional Analysis.
January 1, 2009... Despite City woes, the South East stays in the lead. Industrial heartlands do well and the South West is on the up, but Wales sorely needs a Dragon LONDON AND THE SOUTH EAST For sheer force of numbers, the South East can't be beat,...

Britain's top 100 Entrepreneurs 2009: Enterprise Nation.(Table)
January 1, 2009... The number of entrepreneurs from each region, and their average position in the Top 100 league table SCOTLAND 9 Entrepreneurs 51st Average position NORTH WEST 14 Entrepreneurs 48th Average position NORTH EAST 4...

The MT Interview: Adair Turner.(Interview)
January 1, 2009... Brainy and articulate, he's a public figure who easily bridges the gap between Whitehall and the corporate world - he was a reforming CBI boss and won respect for his 2005 pensions report. Now, he faces an epic challenge as chair of City...

Corporate apocalypse.
January 1, 2009... Since the 1980s, dealmakers earned fees pushing firms into dodgy takeovers and spurious share buybacks. Self-interested managers abandoned long-term goals to collect rewards as share prices rose. Now that the bomb has gone off, business leaders...

All about the Benjamindollars.(investments of rap singers)
January 1, 2009... Rap artists may look like blinged-up fantasists high on attitude, but some - like 50 Cent - are masters of marketing, squeezing mega-fortunes out of carefully crafted personal brands. Dave Waller goes backstage. Rock 'n' roll was all about...

Watch Your Cash.(cash management)
January 1, 2009... Business priorities have shifted from expansion to entrenchment, so start asking some tough questions about your company's everyday earnings and outgoings. Andrew Saunders and Alastair Dryburgh stiffen your resolve with 11 money-management tips...

Stewards of our economic destiny.(Discussion)
January 1, 2009... With issues of corporate ownership now a priority, MT gathered nine business practitioners and thinkers for a Round Table discussion. How can companies be put on a sounder footing? Mark Goyder: Do you agree that the success of a company...

What's your problem?
January 1, 2009... Q: I work in an environment where, to over-simplify, the technical and human sides of things are carried out by males and females respectively. A while ago, I had an established relationship with one of these males. Unfortunately, I had a...

What's your problem?(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Q: The heating in our office block is always broken and I've spent the past week sitting at my desk in my coat, hat and gloves trying to keep warm. Some days I can even see my breath. My manager says it can't be fixed as it's an old system, but...

What's your problem?(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Q: I handed in my notice three weeks ago to leave my position as HR director in a large corporation to work for an HR consultancy start-up of two people. I'm on gardening leave and due to start my new position in a fortnight. Instead of looking...

First-class coach.
January 1, 2009... Q: I work as a manager in the NHS. I feel passionate about its value but I'm losing heart. Each month brings new ill-conceived initiatives, new targets and more administrative pressure, taking us away from caring for patients. We have big cuts...

Motor Mouth.(Product/service evaluation)
January 1, 2009... Mercedes' revamped ML 280 CDI Sport aims at 'authority and strength' but, says Sathnam Sanghera, it's ugly and anachronous. I was surprised to learn, via one of BBC News' hourly reports on the world's imminent economic demise, that one in...

Table talk: Where Simon Nixon eats..(The Seafood Restaurant)(Restaurant review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... I keep going back to Rick Stein's in Padstow, Cornwall. I'm developing a villa hotel nearby, so head down once every few weeks to meet architects, project managers and planners. I always try to do business in the best possible environment, so...

The Sharp End: Underarm assignment.(product development of deodorants)
January 1, 2009... Unilever's deodorant researchers put Rhymer Rigby's armpit-sniffing skills to use. Never let it be said that the Sharp End doesn't do its homework Arranging to spend the day sniffing armpits with Unilever's Deodorant Discovery Team, I was...