In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up

Martin Mitchel of CTGContributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group.

India reported unexpectedly strong third quarter GDP growth. Kraft published its formal offer for Cadbury. U.S. cable company Comcast is entering into a joint venture with NBC Universal. These are but a few highlights of important market events that we’ve gathered to help you start the week well informed.

Economic Backdrop

  • India reported unexpectedly strong third quarter GDP growth of 7.9%.
  • The U.S. monthly employment report showed that only 11,000 jobs were lost last month, far less than the expected job losses of 125,000. The unemployment rate fell from 10.2% to 10%.
  • According to the latest ‘beige book’ survey from the12 regional Federal Reserve banks, economic conditions in the U.S. have generally improved ‘modestly’ since their last report on October 21st.

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Work-Life Balance in the Legal Profession: A Necessity Even in a Down Economy

By Jennifer Gonzales-Frisbie, Esq. (New York City)iStock_000008227662XSmall

Over the last year, in large law firms across the country, associates have lived in fear of losing their jobs, accepting and even seeking out longer hours at the office in the hope that if they can accumulate enough billable hours, their jobs will be spared. Unfortunately, such a practice is leading to growing dissatisfaction for all involved. Associates are worn out and resentful of their current predicament. Clients are becoming fed up with large legal bills which reflect the work of several attorneys billing a significant number of hours in order to produce a single piece of work product. Law firm partners are struggling to maintain and bring in business since clients are going in increasing numbers to smaller firms where the same legal work can be done for a lot less.

In this time of high unemployment and economic hardship, should we consider work-life balance a luxury, available only when economic times are good, and just be thankful we have jobs at all?

Although the answer from many quarters seems to be “yes”, others believe that sacrificing work-life balance is not the best strategy to surviving a tough economy. Lisa Gates, life balance coach and author of “Are You Ditching Work-Life Balance Because You’re Afraid of Losing Your Job?” explains that balancing work and personal life in a down economy is important, not just for your well-being outside of work, but to ensure you remain mentally and physically prepared to successfully carry out workplace goals and make sound decisions in your career.

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Voice Of Experience: Carla Harris, Managing Director of the Strategic Client Group and the Head of the Emerging Managers Platform, Morgan Stanley

Image courtesy Essence.com.

By Pamela Weinsaft (New York City)

Carla Harris is legendary on Wall Street for her tenacity, her ability, and her talent in business. She was ranked as one of Fortune Magazine’s 50 Most Powerful Black Executives in Corporate America for 2005 and has previously been recognized by Fortune as well as by Ebony, Essence and the Harvard University Black Men’s Forum for her leadership in the corporate sphere.

But Ms. Harris’ talents reach beyond the walls of Morgan Stanley, where she serves as the Managing Director of the Strategic Client Group and the head of the Emerging Managers Platform. A quick search of Amazon.com will reveal that she is also a published author—her book Expect to Win: Proven Strategies for Success from a Wall Street Vet has made her a popular interview subject and coveted speaker—as well as a recording artist who has sold out Carnegie Hall. Her albums “Carla’s First Christmas” and “Joy is Waiting” are filled with music to uplift the spirit.

Indeed, Ms. Harris combines the joy within her with her extensive business experience to help those striving to succeed. She is conscious of the burden of being an advisor. Her book Expect to Win is filled with, in her words, “everything I wish I’d known walking into my career, things that might have made my career markedly different. Not that I haven’t had a great career but boy, would it have been even better!”

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Inspiration at the Annual Women in the City Awards 2009

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wic-27nov09-532By Jane Lucken (London)

The fall-out of the financial events in 2009 has moved the argument for diversity beyond the HR department and firmly into the boardroom. So the 350 women who attended this year’s Third Annual Women in the City Awards lunch in London on Friday had plenty to debate, from diversity’s role in the reduction of risk to how companies can retain and develop female talent.

The opulent surroundings of the Plaisterers Hall provided a contrasting but welcome backdrop to shared experiences of pay cuts, zero bonuses and canceled Christmas parties. But the overall mood was of celebration and recognition of tangible examples of how individuals can make a difference in professional organisations.

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The Great Divide: Study Reveals a Growing Disconnect Between Employers and Employees

By Cheryl Santa MariaiStock_000004353264XSmall (Toronto)

The unstable workforce hasn’t seriously influenced employees’ career expectations, according to a recent report. Spherion’s 2009 Emerging Workforce Study reveals that employers need to do more to retain human capital during a downturn or they run the risk losing staff in droves once the economy heals.

An overwhelming degree of employee dissatisfaction has been growing steadily for the past twelve years, largely due to lack of communication between management and general staff. Of the 2,519 participants in the study, only 24 percent of respondents report being “very satisfied” with the career development offered by their employer and only 27 percent are satisfied with overall compensation.

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Are Executive MBAs Worth it?

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By GiGi DeVault (Munich)iStock_000009074834XSmall

Build a better Executive MBA (EMBA) program, and they will come. But who benefits most—university coffers or women executives with newly minted EMBAs? EMBA programs now offer women’s support networks, clubs, and mentoring. Some even offer symposiums on work/life balance. Della Bradshaw from the Financial Times described an EMBA as the “Gucci handbag of the business school world.” Glitter and attract, they must—competition is keen. But have universities really just constructed better mousetraps for snapping up tuition?

The challenges women and men face in business are not identical, and the value they place on their MBA degrees reflect this difference. According to the 2005 MBA Alumni Perspective Survey of 2,209 graduates, including EMBAs, men are more likely than women to rate successful MBA program outcomes in terms of their increased knowledge base and their ability to score an international assignment. Women tend to look at whether they are more respected or gain more recognition at work, and if they experienced an increase in self-confidence.

After graduation, like a professional baseball player returning from spring training, an EMBA may still play the same position and, if things are going well, still be on the same team. But now they are expected to play better.

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Attracting and Retaining Women at Boston Consulting Group

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By Liz O’Donnell (Boston)iStock_000006712763XSmall

Something is working. The number of women at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has doubled over the last five years and now three women sit on the firm’s 13 member Executive Committee, up from none in about the same time frame. Women represent 33 percent of the firm’s approximate 4,300 consultants. These numbers are inching towards the kind of critical mass a company needs to realize the benefits of gender diversity.

How is Boston Consulting Group, a business built on the grueling model of consulting and billable hours, able to not just attract and retain, but also promote women? How does it make the Fortune magazine list of “100 Best Companies to Work For” and the Working Mother magazine “Best Company for Working Mothers” lists?

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Voice of Experience: Vanna Krantz, Chief Financial Officer for the Media Division of Thomson Reuters

VannaKrantzWhiteVert[1] by Pamela Weinsaft (New York City)

Vanna Krantz grew up on Ottawa, Canada. As a child of Indian parents “who would prefer their children to become doctors, lawyers or accountants,” Krantz said she was “probably brainwashed at very young age that college was extremely important and a formal education was an absolutely necessity.”

Armed with a dual degree in accounting and mathematics from the highly regarded University of Waterloo, Krantz intended to become a chartered accountant. But, she laughed, “Did I know what it meant to be an accountant? Absolutely not. But I knew it was a professional standing and there was value to that.”

Now the Chief Financial Officer for the Media Division of Thomson Reuters, and the moderator of the recent FWA Event, Krantz has settled into her best role yet. “Thomson Reuters is a good fit for me because the Finance organization is highly valued (obviously something important to me), with tremendous talent/leaders. But it is also an organization where people skills matter quite a bit.”

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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up

Contributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group.Martin Mitchel of CTG

The U.K. revised initial figures for the third quarter from a gross domestic product fall of 0.4% to a fall of 0.3%. Cadbury may receive an offer from Hershey. China issued its first 50 year government bond. These are but a few highlights of important market events that we’ve gathered to help you start the week well informed.

Economic Backdrop

Mergers and Acquisitions

  • Speculation is rife that Cadbury is about to receive a ‘white knight’ offer from Hershey, possibly in conjunction with Italy’s Ferrero. The charitable trust that controls Hershey has informed the Pennsylvania’s Attorney General that it is considering its options in relation to the UK confectioner. Cadbury is already facing a hostile offer from Kraft, and there is a possibility that Nestle may also make an offer.

Financial Institutions

  • Sir David Walker published his proposals for corporate governance of U.K. financial services companies. The proposals include the requirements to disclose bands of numbers of employees receiving bonuses of greater than £1m, and a requirement to vet new non-executive directors.
  • Lloyds Banking Group’s fundraising plans were approved by more than 99% of their shareholders. The plans will see capital increase by £22.5bn through the combination of a rights issue and a debt swap, allowing the group to break free from the U.K. government’s asset protection scheme.
  • Royal Bank of Scotland signed the formal agreement to enter the U.K. government’s asset protection scheme, paving the way for £240bn of toxic assets to be insured.
  • The Bank of England revealed that it had acted as ‘lender of the last resort’ and lent money to both Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS at the peak of the financial crisis. The loans peaked at a massive £61.6bn (£36.6bn to RBS and £25.4bn to HBOS) and have since been repaid.
  • German bank WestLB has secured a €4bn bailout from the German government. Berlin will inject an initial €3bn, and then a further €1bn later if required.
  • German bank Commerzbank is being sued by a further 21 investment bankers for €16.7m of unpaid bonuses. The bank is already facing a claim from more than 80 bankers relating to €33m of unpaid bonuses.
  • Spain’s BBVA is set to exercise an option to acquire a further 5% in China Citic Bank for €1.1bn. BBVA’s stake will rise to 15%, comfortably below the 20% limit for investments by single foreign groups in Chinese banks.
  • The Middle East’s largest private equity house Abraaj Capital has raised its capital by almost a third as it prepares for a new round of investments. Abraaj’s parent entity has raised $375m from existing shareholders in a rights issue.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

iStock_000004795159XSmall[1]It’s that time again – the time of year where people in the United States get together with family and friends to feast on turkey and all the trimmings and talk of all things for which they are grateful.  We want you to know that we are grateful to you members of The Glass Hammer for sticking with us as we continue to grow and to our sponsors for making it all possible. 

For those of you in the U.S., have a great Thanksgiving! And for those readers around the globe, have a very happy Thursday. (Hang in there – only one more day until the weekend!)

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