APRIL | 2013 — Kiplinger’s Latest Economic Outlooks GDP — 1.75% growth in ’13, a bit softer than last year Unemployment — Heading to about 7.5% by the end of ’13 Interest rates — Little or no increase in short-term rates in ’13 Inflation — Slightly higher this year, 2.3% Business spending — About a 4% gain in ’13, half of ’12’s pace […]
Economic forecasts Read More »
Strategic Planning Where have we been? Where are we now? Where are we going? How are we going to get there? What resources are required to get there? These 5 simple questions, and this format (in general) have more than stood the test of time. Management teams should review and answer these items regularly…
Classical competitiveness Read More »
Melville on Method Herman Melville said: “There are some enterprises in which careful disorderliness is the only true method.” This contrasts sharply with Descartes who meant by method: “… certain and simple rules, such that, if man observes them accurately, he will never assume what is false as true.” Good management requires both at different times—or
Melville on method Read More »
CLARITY, PERSONALITY, SIMPLICITY, WARMTH. Author William Zinsser, in his 1976 book On Writing Well, identified these as the four indispensable qualities of great writing. Why indispensable? Because the best writing is an expression of the writer’s humanity. These qualities allow that humanity to shine through. As a writer, I find Zinsser’s argument persuasive.
M&A integration food for thought 1) Where are we going? Start a conversation with your leadership team about how the new organization will create value in the future. The place you’re going doesn’t exist yet. You get to invent it. 2) How can we get there? How will the new organization operate? How will it satisfy customers?
Three big questions Read More »
A new working paper (abstract; PDF) by Tanja Artiga Gonzalez, Markus Schmid, and David Yermack looks for the telltale signs of corporate fraud. The paper is called “Smokescreen: How Managers Behave When They Have Something To Hide”: We study financial reporting and corporate governance in 216 U.S. companies accused of price fixing by antitrust authorities.
The telltale signs of corporate fraud Read More »