Bitcoin and the United States of Europe: “Grey swan” events of 2018 predicted by Nomura bank December 18, 2017 Beloved by WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell and many others in the business world, swans in various hues are employed as metaphors for forecasting the future. A black swan event is completely unpredictable and totally out of the blue. But a grey swan, on the other hand, is more foreseeable. And Japanese bank Nomura has [...]
Definitely no regrets: Karmarama’s Jon Wilkins talks the highs and lows of a year under Accenture November 14, 2017 When Accenture acquired Karmarama nearly a year ago, it was big news: management consultancy tanks were parked on AdLand’s lawn. A year on, and advertising has had it rough. From WPP to Publicis groupe, the big ad networks have battled disappointing revenues, the finger of blame pointed in all directions – from Brexit to Google. [...]
Apple share price climbs to a new record high as it smashes expectations November 2, 2017 Apple has edged tantalisingly close to a $1 trillion valuation today as the technology giant’s quarterly earnings blew away expectations, pushing its share price to a new high in after-hours trading. In the fourth quarter, Apple’s revenue rose 12 per cent to $52.6bn (£40.3bn) while the company’s net income increased to $10.7bn, or $2.07 per [...]
The $64 trillion question October 25, 2017 How much longer the stock market rally can continue has become the $64 trillion question. For a growing number of market observers, there’s a simple answer: not much longer at all. Markets, they argue, have becoming increasingly detached from economic fundamentals, particularly in Britain. It’s thirty years since Black Monday and while few would suggest [...]
Ranked: The world’s best performing chief executives of 2017 as Inditex’s Pablo Isla and WPP’s Martin Sorrell take the top spots | City A.M. October 24, 2017 The boss of Zara’s parent firm Inditex, Pablo Isla, has been named the best-performing chief executive in the world for 2017, by the Harvard Business Review. The Spanish businessman, who ranked third last year, took the top spot for the first time, over WPP’s Sir Martin Sorrell. Since becoming chief executive in 2005, Isla has [...]
UK businesses have slashed their cyber security budgets by a third October 18, 2017 Businesses in the UK have cut the amount of cash they are spending on cyber security despite the growing threat of attacks. Budgets for security are a third of what they were this time last year, down to £3.9m on average, compared to £6.2m according to research from PwC. The cost of attacks has fallen, [...]
Time to treat Google and Facebook as the media giants they really are October 17, 2017 The boss of WPP, Sir Martin Sorrell, has views on a wide range of topics, from the global economy, to Brexit, to the advertising world. One of his views is that Facebook and Google are media companies, and should be seen as such. And in this, he is absolutely right. Read more: Dow Jones newswire [...]
Bell Pottinger faces client exodus: Top firms seek to distance themselves from disgraced PR firm | City A.M. September 5, 2017 Bell Pottinger is facing an exodus of clients as companies seek to distance themselves from the disgraced PR firm. The iconic company, which was kicked out of the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) on Monday, is now scrambling to regroup. City A.M. understands Bell Pottinger wants to name a new boss this week, following [...]
Two-thirds of FTSE 350 board members lack cyber hack training August 21, 2017 The majority of board members at Britain’s biggest public companies have received no training in how to handle a cyber attack despite it rapidly rising up the business agenda, according to a new survey. Some 68 per cent of board members in the FTSE 350 said they have not been trained in responding to a [...]
Firms could be shocked at financial fallout from Petya and Wannacry cyber attacks, warns Lloyd’s of London June 28, 2017 Firms could be shocked at the cost of cyber attacks, such as yesterday’s Petya ransomware hack, with one of the City’s oldest financial institutions warning the reputational fallout is “what kills modern businesses”. Lloyd’s of London said today businesses need to prepare themselves for “slow burn” costs that follow cyber attacks such as reputational damage, [...]