What we know about the new Cold War May 18, 2020 The American astronomer, Carl Sagan, put it well: ‘Where we have strong emotions, we’re liable to fool ourselves.’ To deal with this very debilitating—if very human—impediment, before making any definitive political risk statements, I try to blow the emotional cobwebs away by playing an invaluable game called ‘What We Know.’ ‘What We Know’ is an [...]
Kindness at the heart of City’s mental health efforts May 18, 2020 Even amid the anxiety and sad stories that have engulfed many of our daily lives, rays of light – acts of kindness that have made the news and that we have ourselves experienced first-hand – have still managed to cut through. It’s no surprise that the links between kindness and mental wellbeing are well-established in [...]
HS2: New controllers needed on the nation’s biggest train set May 17, 2020 Only last month, Boris Johnson gave HS2 the official green light. But, despite HS2 Ltd being headed up by at least 47 staff paid more than the PM, the project is already coming off the rails. Today’s report from the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) highlights that HS2 has gone “badly off course” and costs are [...]
Office Politics: What does the workplace of the future look like? May 17, 2020 There are plenty of people – including Barclays boss Jes Staley – who believe that big offices may be a thing of the past, now we’ve all got over our work-from-home hang-ups. But while the shift from the workplace to the home has been clear to see, less obvious is what the broader and longer-term [...]
The office is changing – and that means a shift in the real estate market, too May 15, 2020 When businesses emerge from lockdown, many will seek ways to reduce their operating costs to maintain margins in a post-COVID-19 world, when revenue generation is likely to be appreciably more challenging. Real estate often represents the second largest operating cost of most businesses, after staff salaries. It’s regrettably very likely, then, that headcount and office [...]
Video-by-default and a silver surfer generation: Predicting a post-pandemic tech world May 15, 2020 Everybody is in the business of prediction these days. The path of the pandemic, and its impact on health services. The shape of the impending recession, the stock market or the oil price. Unemployment figures or the size of the national debt. As a venture investor, I can’t predict the future better than anyone else. [...]
Forget FOMO: Businesses need to fight Brits’ FOGO May 14, 2020 “Remember pubs?” my friends and I joke over Zoom. We’ve all dreamt about ‘getting back to normal’ after COVID-19; bars, screen-free meetups, a cup of tea somewhere other than our living rooms. But as lockdown lifts, the reality of this freedom – this closeness to others – can feel frightening. The University of Cambridge actually [...]
Is learning the new battle armour in the fight for equality post-pandemic? May 14, 2020 In the current climate, it has become abundantly clear that there is a need to address the conversation around women and equality, at home and at work. As part of my day-to-day running of all-female members club AllBright, we’ve worked hard to create spaces – physical and digital – which help all women better connect [...]
Scrapping the furlough scheme would have been a disaster May 13, 2020 Businesses can breathe a little easier today. Fears that the Chancellor would cut back on the furlough scheme that is subsidising wages for a million businesses were put to rest as he confirmed that it would run into the Autumn. After days of mixed messages, Rishi Sunak’s reassurances that the withdrawal of support would not [...]
The unions stand on the precipice May 13, 2020 Len McCluskey, the leader of the trade union Unite, probably did as much as anybody to ensure Boris Johnson’s massive electoral victory last December. A fervent supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, his grip on the Labour Party machine compelled Labour to fight the election with its most unpopular and inept leader in history. McCluskey is up [...]