How to unlock creativity as a driver of success April 6, 2015 Most business people are clear that creativity is an essential driver of success. Companies like Apple, Google, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Virgin, Tesla, and Uber set the standard that others aspire to achieve. Regular surveys of business leaders rate creativity as the most important characteristic their organisation needs to show. There’s very little disagreement: creativity is [...]
Why hiring chief executives externally is better for struggling businesses April 2, 2015 It's an age-old argument: when a leader steps down, do you promote from within or bring in fresh blood? Each brings their own benefits – one has a fresh view on business and new ways of working, while the other already has a deep understanding of a company's strengths and weaknesses. Now we might have [...]
Think smarter: Check out these terribly clever timepieces April 2, 2015 It’s not just a certain company based in Cupertino that’s innovating in the watch world… The launch of the Apple Watch the other week highlighted the growing need for a women’s watch that does more than just tell the time. With adverts in US Vogue – 12 pages at an estimated $2.2m no less – [...]
Time to get smart: Traditional watchmakers are striking back against the Apple Watch April 2, 2015 With the Apple Watch set to shake up the watch market, Switzerland’s established brands are rushing to release their own takes on wearable tech. Last month’s Baselworld watch fair saw a slew of these, including this model from Breitling. Rather than text messages and activity tracking, the B55 enables you to perform adjustments – timezones, [...]
How Veronique Laury plans to create the Apple of DIY – Bottom Line March 31, 2015 If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”. Kingfisher’s new chief executive Veronique Laury dusted off her dictionary of quotations yesterday, picking this one from Henry Ford to make the tenuous link that just as Ford gave middle-class Americans a car, the DIY chain will give consumers “what they [...]
City Moves for 01 April 2015 | Who’s switching jobs March 31, 2015 Investec Jane Warren has been appointed head of digital in the UK in Investec’s wealth management and investment services business. She started her career in financial services in 1987, and joined the Investec Group (then Carr Sheppards Crosthwaite) in 1994. Warren has subsequently served as head of CSC’s third party administration business, and head of [...]
Tidal: Jay Z, Kanye West and co herald “new world” of music streaming March 30, 2015 The course of music history has been changed forever. At least that's what we were told at the official launch of Jay Z's newly-acquired music streaming service which aims to put artists back in control of how their music sounds and sells. At a New York press conference a self-serious and triumphant gathering of some [...]
April Fools’ Day 2015: From Krispy Kreme’s crisp doughnuts to Tetley’s biscuit-flavoured tea, here are some of the best first of April pranks March 29, 2015 The first of April is upon us and it will soon be time for companies to spring little surprises and pranks on us, the unsuspecting public. As if… As a service to our readers, we at The Capitalist have put together some of the best – or worst, depending on your perspective – pranks corporations [...]
Apple chief executive Tim Cook plans to give most of his money to charity March 28, 2015 Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, says he wants to donate most of his personal fortune to charity before he dies. He told Fortune Magazine he plans to give away huge sums to philantropic causes, but only after he has provided for the college education of his 10-year-old nephew. A private university education in the [...]
Italy’s Super Tuscans are now considered investment grade wines March 27, 2015 Italian winemaking dates back to the Etruscans and later the Oenotrians whose name derives from the Greek word for wine (oinos). Today, Italy boasts over 2,000 grape varieties, a wealth of regions, soil types, micro-climates and wine cultures. For centuries Italy’s wines were as divided as the country. Winemaking in Italy fell into the doldrums [...]