Yearly Archives: 2007
Dreams are no basis for a sound corporate strategy
An effective business strategy is not separable from execution and is not based on visions and dreams, but on a match between capabilities and activities.
Arguments for private equity are not always convincing
Private equity promoters propose layer upon layer of debt, leveraged by non-recourse finance. But the same finance theory also tells us that you do not increase the value of an investment portfolio by increasing gearing.
Watching share prices will not make you happy
The paradox is that if you do not have complete control over your emotions, you can have too much information for your own good.
The true cost of Britain’s failed pensions
For the next 50 years, there will be a large legacy of pension commitments, made and received in good faith but identified with companies whose current owners have no commercial interest in fulfilling the responsibilities their predecessors assumed.
London’s congestion charge has taken a wrong turn
Congestion charging can have a substantial effect on behaviour, but busy commercial centres tend to derive their advantages from the clustering of business activities, which cannot function without large-scale transport of people and goods.
Apple vs Apple (and other fruitless disputes)
The right general principle is that brand names and trade marks should be protected, not where there is a producer interest in doing so, but where there is a consumer detriment from failing to do so.
Why poker can beat investment management hands down
If the measure of skill is how often good performance repeats itself, poker is a more skilful activity than investment management.
Why data, soft or hard, cannot replace eyes and ears
In all areas of human endeavour, there are hard data and soft data. The happiness of a society or the progress of a civilisation, are multi-dimensional: components are determined by subjective consensus, not objective measurement.
Why the winner’s curse could hit complex finance
In financial markets, the more complex the instrument, and the more uncertain the outlook, the greater the likely range of views of common value. More often, trading puts assets in the hands of those who think the assets are more valuable than they really are.
Fallen companies rarely make it back to the top
Competitive advantage is bound up with a company’s history and needs to be matched to market opportunity. When it is lost or the market evolves, the consequences are generally fatal.
