Lessons from lockdown: Advertising’s future is distributed July 6, 2020 Sometimes an earthquake’s aftershocks are so severe, the main quake is re-designated a foreshock. From a commercial standpoint, we look ahead to lockdown’s aftershocks with apprehension, but look ahead we must. As the dust settles, business leaders are surveying a new landscape and asking, what’s changed? Speaking for my own business, the recent crisis is [...]
Rolling up our sleeves for education: Addressing the most important challenge of the 21st century July 6, 2020 Around the world, 1.5bn children were forced out of their classrooms overnight by Covid-19. School closures required families and schools to readjust to new learning environments. And while some families made a seamless transition from school to homeschool, a disproportionate number of children from underserved communities faced another hurdle to receiving a basic education. Simple [...]
Act now to save free trade July 6, 2020 Free trade is a cornerstone of the global economy. It has lifted billions out of poverty and enabled the highest living standards than at any point in human history. It is therefore worrying — although not surprising given the impact of coronavirus on economic activity — that we have seen a stark drop in global [...]
Russia remains dangerous, but don’t confuse it for a superpower July 6, 2020 It is one of those news stories where the incident perfectly fits the larger political risk profile. During the past week, the New York Times reported that a Russian military intelligence unit paid bounties to Taliban-linked militants in 2019 to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan. One imagines the reasoning for this was to decisively derail [...]
For the sake of our economy and our culture, we need to save London’s theatres July 3, 2020 Tomorrow, large parts of London’s economy will start to reopen. Pubs and restaurants will fling wide their doors, hotels will begin to welcome guests, and museums and art galleries will once more be open for business. But not all of London will be switching back into gear. Live performances are still banned, placing immense pressure [...]
Commuting in the post-Covid world July 3, 2020 It’s a cliche to say that the Covid-19 pandemic has changed everything — we need to get over this and embrace “the new normal”. But change needs more than an embrace: it needs to be understood and thought-through, not rushed into headlong because everyone else is doing it. And nowhere is such consideration more necessary [...]
DEBATE: Is it time to get back to the office? July 3, 2020 Is it time to get back to the office? Rod Flavell, chief executive of FDM Group, says YES. The lockdown measures were a necessary step in tackling the virus, but it’s time to get our economy moving again. Millions of workers have now been at home for several months, and while web conferencing has served [...]
Pride in a pandemic: Putting intersectionality top of the agenda July 3, 2020 The most vulnerable and marginalised members of society have faced the worst consequences of this global health crisis. Coronavirus has highlighted the many ways in which issues related to gender and sexual identity, race, and socioeconomic circumstances all intersect. Equality is becoming one of the defining narratives of this pandemic. People are waking up to [...]
Equality is a business imperative, so let’s close the ethnicity pay gap July 3, 2020 I am often asked how business leaders decide who is the best candidate for a team or an organisation. Of course, there’s no one reason or answer. It’s about understanding the relevance of skills you need and the context of the role you are hiring for. You might be looking to create energy and pace [...]
HSBC and Standard Chartered have put profits before principles and betrayed Hong Kong July 3, 2020 Increasingly, companies are being asked to take a moral stand on the great issues of the day. From clothing retailers to tea bag brands, every company is being asked where their values lie. While many organisations proudly broadcast their internationalist and liberal values in the west, some are willing to undermine those principles as soon [...]