Shareholder Activism - 25 February 2009

In these turbulent times, business leaders can expect higher levels of activity and interaction from shareholders. Indeed, at a recent Criticaleye breakfast for non-executive directors, the issue of shareholder activism was high on the agenda, namely what boards should be doing to communicate with shareholders, reassure them of the validity of management decisions and prevent the type of knee-jerk, reactionary behaviour which could have negative implications for the company... (read more)

Public Sector CEOs - 19th February 2009

Mary Jo Jacobi, Non-Executive Director and Trustee for several international not-for-profit organisations and Associate for Criticaleye adds to this, "This environment cries out for strong leadership in which the public can be confident. The current turmoil demands creative public sector management to continue delivering services and meeting expectations." (read more)

M&A Opportunities - 11 February 2009

Abbas Hussain, President, International Emerging Markets for GlaxoSmithKline explains "as part of our emerging market growth strategy, we're looking for inorganic growth opportunities to significantly enhance our scale, portfolio and footprint. In the current crisis, considerable opportunities exist for cash-rich companies to leverage their balance sheet and pick up assets that are fundamentally good businesses but struggling. However, due diligence is key. You should be absolutely clear that the acquired business will do better in your hands than with its current management." (read more)

Changing role of the Chairman and Board - 4 February 2009

Sir John Egan, Chairman of Severn Trent plc and newly appointed Associate for Criticaleye, believes that over diversification could be the reason that many Boards, especially in the banking sector, failed to anticipate the risks that their companies were taking. He explains: "You can't diversify to the point where Boards and Chairmen can't assess and understand the major risks flowing through the organisation. Chairmen need to make common sense decisions based on thier understanding of the operational risks and an ability to handle them properly." (read more)