A financial disservice
If the government wants people to save more it will have to look beyond first year economics. Full information and homogenous products are no antidote to imperfect human nature
Profits without honour
The bullish 1990's market lead companies like Enron and WorldCom to strive for unrealistic earnings growth - eventually by any means necessary. Their stories show that shareholder value should be an end, and not the aim of good businesses.
God save the CEO
Queen Elizabeth II inherited her job as the "CEO" of Britain's most famous family firm. History shows us that those born into power can be just as effective as those who are chosen.
Stiffening the auditors’ backbones (written with Bryan Carsberg)
The debacle of Enron has shaken core assumptions about auditors and auditing . A new accounting standards body needs to be appointed to maintain the integrity of corporate reporting.
A vital item is missing
John Mayo's account of his troubled tenure at Marconi should serve as a warning to managers. Success in business is achieved by supplying goods and services effectively; not by seeking to boost share prices.
On John Kay’s Bookshelf – Archive page
Books that John has reviewed in the past...
How to manage blame
Managers are unavoidably charged to balance the benefit of innovation with the risks of new processes, and to do this well. But the disastrous effects of asbestos manufacture and BSE indicate that markets and regulation are not helping.
Premium mortgage advice
Some aspects of financial advice may not need to be tailored.
Buyers must master art of the particular
If stock-picking fails to beat the index, why should picking companies? It won’t, unless mergers carefully match the firms involved.
Mechanics of the market
Efficient markets make money for market participants, but not for market makers. That is something the enthusiastic promoters of B2B exchanges have yet to understand.