Management Today articles from October 2007

Management Today archives from October 2007

Editorial: CSR poses awkward questions.
October 1, 2007... MT has gone big on responsibility in this issue: how do you do the right thing and become a 'good' company? Over the past two years this question has veered in one direction. When we last looked at the subject of CSR in depth, climate...

Contributors.
October 1, 2007... CRAIG SAMS Nebraska-born Sams reviews Raj Patel's Stuffed and Starved, about the battle for the world's food system. It's vital reading, he says. He should know. When not busy running Green & Black's Organic Chocolate or chairing the Soil...

Chartered Management Institute: In my opinion.(management)
October 1, 2007... Chartered Management Institute Companion Graham Love explains why solving important problems is the key to creating value from innovation. Global competition is getting tougher. To survive, managers are told that their organisations must...

The MT Diary.(Management Today commentary)
October 1, 2007... Quite an eyeful at Heathrow; Booker a business-free zone; banking's non-cuddly side. Nigel Rudd is one of the most successful British businessmen of the past 20 years. After a career at Williams, he chaired Pilkingtons and Boots. He is...

Ten Ways to... Win client trust.(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... 1. Remember: they're human too 2. Ask what they want from you 3. Tell them what you want 4. Be open and honest 5. Give them the bad news too 6. Meet them.. 7...more than once a year 8. Answer their questions 9. Avoid fobbing them...

It'll Never Fly: Halloween.(tradition expenses)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... The festival we now call All Hallows' Eve existed in obscurity for centuries, celebrated by pagans, the Celts, and the odd witch and wizard. But Irish believers fleeing the Potato Famine took it to the US, where the Americans got their teeth...

Dave's Eco-nomics: Printer circuit.(re-manufacturing cartridges)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... GREEN ALERT - News just in: when you throw stuff away it doesn't disappear. But what difference does the odd printer cartridge make? Well ACTION PLAN - Don't recycle! It's better to re-manufacture existing cartridges than to waste energy...

Earning curve: The Royal Family.
October 1, 2007... Prince Charles' Duchy Originals products, sales ('06): pounds 53m The Queen, income from the Privy Purse, p.a: pounds 8m People Weekly, 'Goodbye Diana' issue ('97): pounds 1.5m Duchess of York, Weight Watchers promotion, p.a: pounds 500k...

Workplace rights: myspace or yours?(social networking websites)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Bebo are the latest internet craze, boasting millions of active members Inevitably, the phenomenon is creating issues in the workplace. Several employees of directory enquiries...

History lessons: Get to the facts.(cholera outbreak in London)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... As the number of dead mounted in the cholera outbreak of 1854 in Soho, London, people happily drank from the water supply, wrongly convinced that the disease was spread through the air. But one man brought statistical evidence to the...

Your Route to the top: Take that decision.(The Mind Gym: Give Me Time)
October 1, 2007... Get started. Ask yourself whether you can resolve a problem there and then. If so, do it. If not, follow Einstein's approach: 'Make it as simple as possible, but no simpler.' Define the problem. In one sentence, write down what you...

Why business is like... Calum Best.(British fashion model)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Calum Best may not have the legendary footie skills of his father George, but, off the pitch, there is no question that he is a champion in his own right when it comes to scoring. From Rebecca Loos, Jodie Marsh and Sarah Harding to Abi...

Do it right: Work with the community.(doing charity)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... It's more than writing a cheque. Any company can give money. You really make a difference by giving time, expertise and energy. You have an experienced, talented workforce - donate their skills, not just pounds. But keep writing those...

Slogan Doctor: The MET - 'Working together for a safer London'.(Metropolitan Police)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... It is said that the first act of Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair on arriving in the job in February 2005 was to change the force's motto from 'Working for a safer London' to 'Working together for a safer London'. The new...

How does she manage? - Head of Wigs, Claudia Stolze - Royal Opera House.(Interview)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... - When did you become a manager? Working in wigs and make-up seemed a good way to combine my artistic streak and my background in amateur dramatics. I did an apprenticeship, including two years at my local theatre in Gelsenkirchen,...

Remember this.
October 1, 2007... 'A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds' - Francis Bacon said it 'Being second is to be the first of the ones who lose' - Ayrton Senna said it

Are you suffering from: Intermittent Explosive Disorder.(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Every office has one: the door-slamming hot-head whose secretary is always in tears. One minute he's all smiles, and the next he's pointing his BlackBerry directly at your head. Intermittent Explosive Disorder is often diagnosed when the...

Words-worth: Stakeholder.(definition and origin)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Gone are the days when a manager could safely assume that a 'stakeholder' was a minor character in a Dracula movie. These days, it means someone who may not own a company but has an interest in its fortunes and so has to be taken into...

Stat of the month: Organic takeoff - Pounds 2bn.(product sales)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... UK retail sales of organic products, '06. That's up 20% on the previous year. Organic products are clearly big business. Today, middle-class parents feeding their kids on non-organic risk being ostracised. Organic went mainstream in 1983,...

How he made his Pile: Sir Anthony Bamford, retired owner-manager.(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Who is he? The 'B' in JCB, the most famous initials in British construction. The 62-year-old stepped down as company MD in 2005. He heads a clan worth c. pounds 1.3bn. How did he make his millions? The company and the boy appeared on the...

If I had to start again... John Clare.(former chief executive officer of Diversified Systems Group Inc.)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Would I love to have been a professional footballer earning a bucket-load of money? Maybe. But when I look back, I don't see any missed opportunities. Life has dealt me a good hand. I never had a plan - things have simply come along and...

Crash course in... effective induction.(management of newly hired employees)
October 1, 2007... An alarming proportion of recruits to your organisation are leaving within the first six months. One of them told his manager on quitting that he felt he 'hadn't fitted in from day one'. It's time to take a look at how you induct new...

MT Masterclass: Performance-Related Pay (PRP).(Management Today)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... What is it? If only we could get what we paid for. This is the management dream that lies behind PRP. Why not reward performance according to individuals' direct output? This should provide a clear incentive for staff to work harder and...

Decisions: Co-founder and one of MT's '35 Women Under 35'.(DNA Clinic co-founder Nichola Lawton)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... MY BEST... We thought the industry wasn't dealing properly with these life-changing tests, so we set up DNA Clinics. I didn't want to create a faceless company. I'd worked in clinics before where, on the NHS, you got counselling if you...

Behind the spin.(British Airports Authority's operations)
October 1, 2007... THE DILEMMA BAA's recent rough ride would bring out night-sweats in the toughest of board directors. To recap: the 'world's leading airport company', owner of Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and four other British airports, has been under...

Lift-off of the super-rich.(rich people and their wealth)
October 1, 2007... The rise of an unfeasibly wealthy over-class could have a negative impact on the functioning of capitalism if a sense of unfairness takes hold. George W Bush once addressed a group of wealthy Republican donors as 'the haves and the...

Books: The world's eating disorder.(Stuffed and Starved: Markets, Power and the Hidden Battle for the World's Food System)(Book review)
October 1, 2007... This riveting book explains how corporate control of government food policy in the West dishes up a double helping of calamity. Craig Sams offers his own cure. In 1944, Charles Wilson, president of General Motors, told Congress that if the...

Books: Three of a kind - Practical advice for Ethical Execs.(Change the World 9 to 5; Working Ethically; The Guardian Guide to Volunteering)(Brief article)(Book review)
October 1, 2007... CHANGE THE WORLD 9 TO 5, Steve Henry, Short Books pounds 8.99 Don't be misled by the bright colours and jolly inserts: this book has a serious message and a host of practical, small ways for you to make a difference. It will make you laugh,...

Books: Office politics is a game you must play.(Power at Work: The Art of Making Things Happen)(Book review)
October 1, 2007... After reading this short book packed with unflinching advice on gaining power, Stefan Stern needed a bit of a sit-down. - Power at Work - The art of making things happen, Jo Owen, Prentice Hall Business pounds 10.99 Oh God, I just hate...

Books: When bankers used to look after their clients.(The Accidental Investment Banker)(Book review)
October 1, 2007... The author proved to be one of the last of the breed who enjoyed weighty influence in the boardroom. John McLaren relishes his tale of survival. - The Accidental Investment Banker, Jonathan A Knee, Wiley pounds 9.99 Among...

Ethical evangelists.(corporate social responsibility)
October 1, 2007... With the stark realities of global warming ever more evident, the public is fixated on finding sustainable ways of living and consuming. The anxiety is being picked up by leaders keen to be seen to be Doing the Right Thing, their saintly...

The MT interview: Julia Cleverdon.(Business In The Community chief executive)(Interview)
October 1, 2007... As head these 15 years of Business In The Community, a lobbying body that cajoles big business into social engagement, she wields her incorrigible charm and relentless focus to tap the influence of the mighty - up to and including Prince...

The new new philanthropists.(corporate social responsibility)
October 1, 2007... Bye bye, Gordon Gekko. In the CSR era, some of the super-rich are giving away vast fortunes - but with strings. This generous new breed apply the sophisticated financial skills that made their fortune to invest in and control their own...

The Car Industry: Who will clean up?(car technology and the environment)
October 1, 2007... Despite all the thought and R&D being pumped into hybrid engines and alternative fuels, the smelly old internal combustion engine will dominate motor transport for years to come. And even as manufacturers struggle to meet demanding rules on...

IT switches on to green at last.(information technology)
October 1, 2007... As business devours ever more energy, innovative ways of raising power efficiency usher in a new era in environment-friendly information processing. Data-hosting centres, clever utilisation and kit refurbishment can cut your carbon...

Motor Mouth.(Mitsubishi iCar)(Product/service evaluation)
October 1, 2007... Mitsubishi's iCar isn't pretty, exactly, but proves that being good isn't synonymous with being ugly. Sathnam Sanghera reports. Since this month's MT is focusing on CSR, I thought I'd review the Caterham 7 sports car - on the grounds that...

Table talk: Where Peter Cruddas eats ..(Currency Management Consultants founder)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... I'm always on planes and in hotels, so I frequently eat on the hoof. In fact, I tend not to eat out on business nowadays. I've been there and done that. I'm working less on the frontline of the firm, so I have a team of people to handle...

What's your problem?(civil careers)
October 1, 2007... Q: I've spent most of my twenties in the army, working my way up to NCO. Now I've decided to leave. But I'm daunted about re-entering civvy life, not least because I'm worried about the type of work that's open to me I'm not interested in...

What's your problem?(office politics)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Q: How do I avoid office politics? My boss is constantly criticising the performance and work-style of senior members of the company and I am reluctant to add my agreement. (I don't agree anyway, and think he is just showing his own...

What's your problem?(careers in education)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Q: I'm a headmaster, close to retiring. My grandson is about to start his university course and has expressed a strong interest in becoming a teacher. This should be great. But having been a teacher for the past four decades, I cannot bring...

First-class coach.(consultancy services)
October 1, 2007... Q: I'm a senior manager in a fairly large business that hasn't been doing too well recently. Various top-down ideas have been tried but nothing seems to work. My CEO wants to bring in the consultants but I'd like him to try my ideas before he...

MT MBA & Business education guide 2007: What's wrong with business education.(Management Today; Master of Business Administration)
October 1, 2007... Management development is overrun by charlatans peddling jargon. As an antidote, colleges must offer a mix of practical relevance and rigour, says Chris Bones principal of Henley Management College. Two years ago, I chose to move out of...

The Sharp End: Blackcurrant harvester.(berries)
October 1, 2007... On a Perthshire soft-fruit farm, Rhymer Rigby tastes the last of the summer juice. To Perthshire to pick blackcurrants for Ribena. Naturally, The Sharp End is trying to trim its carbon footprint (beachsweeping in Rio and toy painting in...