Lloyds settlement latest example of the shadow regulatory state September 28, 2014 The announced settlement between the American and British authorities and Lloyds Banking Group, in which the bank will pay almost $370m to US and UK authorities, is the latest major fallout from claims that multiple international banks profited by manipulating the London Interbank Offer Rate (Libor), a key financial benchmark embedded in contracts around the [...]
Ukip party conference 2014: Three reasons Ukip might have the best brand in politics September 26, 2014 After Ed Miliband’s much-maligned slip-ups, this weekend it’s Nigel Farage’s turn to show the world he’s a man of the people, at the Ukip party conference. Farage may be mocked by some – but during his tenure as its leader, he has transformed it from a party on the margins of the political system [...]
Phones 4u: When a brand dies, let the tweets flow September 26, 2014 When a brand pops its clogs, what should happen to its social media presence? This month’s collapse of mobile retailer Phones 4u shows one thing for sure – brand owners should not simply give up on their profiles. When a company dies, its potential in the afterlife does not. Every Twitter account has [...]
How to use your personal brand to get a job September 26, 2014 A job interview is about standing out – in a good way. You want to show yourself off, talk what you have achieved, what you can do and what makes you different from the rest. An authentic and likeable personal brand can be an asset in many ways in your professional life. It is memorable, [...]
Labour must stop playing politics with Europe – and come up with a real EU vision September 25, 2014 Under Ed Miliband, Europe has somewhat fallen by the wayside as a priority policy issue for Labour, just as it has rapidly escalated in importance for the Conservatives. What some would call the Tories’ unhealthy fixation with the EU has led to a Labour approach that often disproportionately focuses on the politics of the debate, [...]
Listen to Peter Thiel: Politicians must embrace the fact there’s no money left September 25, 2014 MORE must cost less. In his new book Zero to One, entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel observes that the dream of globalisation – expanding the affluent consumption habits of the western middle class to more and more of the world – demands we also commit to radical technological innovation in order to reduce that lifestyle’s [...]
Why the housing crisis is fast becoming a threat to London’s businesses September 25, 2014 LONDON is a magnet for talent – there is little doubting that. But it is also a city with an underlying weakness that should be recognised as a danger to the capital’s competitiveness. That Achilles’ heel is London’s chronic housing shortage, an issue that is all too rarely framed in terms of business and competitiveness. [...]
As BlackRock sells Tesco shares, has the grocer been permanently damaged by recent events? September 25, 2014 James McGregor, director of Retail Remedy, says Yes. Tesco’s admission this week that it had overstated its declining profits by £250m was one hell of a story. But the accounting cock-up and subsequent dumping of Tesco shares by BlackRock are really only footnotes in the protracted obituary of this once all-conquering retailer. The hegemonic Tesco [...]
Why Sir Richard Broadbent could be next to checkout at Tesco after £250m profit overstatement debacle September 24, 2014 Things are always unnoticed until they’re noticed.” Those seven Rumsfeld-esque words could seal Sir Richard Broadbent’s fate as Tesco chairman. Responding to questions about the accounting debacle at Britain’s biggest retailer, Broadbent offered a painful reminder of how quickly events can spiral out of the control of even the grandest of grandees. The [...]
Britain’s Mittelstand: Stop overlooking the squeezed middle of UK business September 24, 2014 PARTY conference season is in full swing, with politicians honing their soundbites for the coming general election. Many will have heard of “the squeezed middle”, used to refer to the middle classes who have been caught by the rising cost of living and stagnant wage growth. But the term could apply equally to the business [...]