Lady Barbara Judge: More education is needed for trustees to fix pension black holes November 21, 2016 Pension black holes have a history of weighing heavily on big corporations as amply illustrated by former retail darling BHS. The retailer may have disappeared from the high street but its unwieldy £570m pension deficit has yet to be resolved. While the public glare over the BHS fiasco focused on the dealings of Sir Phillip [...]
Vinyl countdown: Sainsbury’s has launched its own record label to take advantage of the record revival November 1, 2017 Have we just reached peak hipster? Sainsbury’s has launched its own record label in an effort to capitalise more on the vinyl revival. The supermarket said it will launch two compilation albums on its new Own Label imprint, which will be released via Universal and Warner Music on Friday. The first of the two albums, [...]
SSE’s merger with Npower gets the provisional green light from UK competition watchdog August 30, 2018 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has given provisional clearance to the proposed merger between energy firm Npower and the retail arm of SSE. A further inquiry by the CMA was set up in April after initial concerns were raised as to whether the merger might impact the prices of standard variable tariffs (SVTs), the most [...]
Seven investment charts that caught our eye in June July 6, 2017 Schroders Investment Communications team highlights charts they found interesting this month. Mid-year markets Schroders' team of economists put together a handy summary of how various asset classes and markets have performed as we reach the middle of the year. Looking at broad asset classes, equities have been the best to be invested in, while commodities [...]
Cordant Group’s Phillip Ullmann talks to Harriet Green about looking after 52,000 workers and turning teal February 1, 2016 When I met Phillip Ullmann, head of Cordant Group and employer of over 52,000 people, he had just lost his job title. It wasn’t that someone had taken it from him – rather that he’s shed it. “Job titles are nonsense. What does it mean to be an executive chair, chief executive, managing director? Titles [...]
Lord David Blunkett says Heathrow expansion must deliver on closing the skills gap October 31, 2016 Legal challenges, what legal challenges? Heathrow has announced the names of 13 members of its new skills taskforce, led by Lord David Blunkett, which meets for the first time today. And Blunkett has said that Heathrow must deliver a long-term skills legacy for the nation, warning that a coordinated skills strategy on infrastructure was necessary to learn [...]
City Moves for 24 October 2016 | Who’s switching jobs October 24, 2016 Good Energy Group Aim-quoted renewable energy company Good Energy Group has appointed Neil Pidgeon as its investor relations manager. Neil brings 30 years of City stockbroking and investment banking experience to the management team of the vertically integrated green energy supplier, whose mission is to tackle climate change, and help the UK achieve energy security. He [...]
Theresa May has scorned calls for parliamentary vote on Brexit, despite a prominent Leave backer accusing her of “tyranny” October 10, 2016 Theresa May has ruled out a fresh parliamentary vote on the terms of Brexit, even as a Leave-backing MP compares Downing Street's approach to “EU tyranny”. Yesterday a cross-party band of MPs demanded that parliament be granted approval of the final nature of the UK's departure from the EU, and in particular any future participation [...]
Pete’s Dragon film review: a sweet-hearted Disney film that trades on nostalgia for the films of your childhood August 11, 2016 After the wildly successful Jungle Book remake comes Pete’s Dragon, itself a reboot of a little known Disney film from 1977, a strange, dated musical featuring a dragon who was half live-action and half animation, but mostly invisible. It wasn’t well reviewed, but a reheated Turkey is often easier to stomach than a remade classic. [...]
The House of Lords lauds diversity with a new power list of the top 100 business leaders from ethnic minority backgrounds April 27, 2016 If there's one thing the City is in dire need of, it's diversity. That's why a Westminster peers have grouped together to bring us a power list of the top 100 business leaders from ethnic minority groups. The top 100 most influential BAME (black, asian and minority ethnic) people in business were lauded in the house of [...]