How Google is breaking the rules of corporate branding to get its Alphabet to pay off August 11, 2015 Google’s creation of its Alphabet parent is a future-looking, ambitious strategy that few others would have the boldness to do. But it’s bold for a reason: creating new challenges for Alphabet to make it a real success. What Google is doing breaks the normal rules of corporate branding. Read more: Three things you should know [...]
Google’s transition to Alphabet can help teach startups their corporate governance ABCs August 11, 2015 If it isn’t code for job losses, the announcement of a company restructure is normally reserved for the back of the business pages. When Larry Page posted a blog outlining the creation of Alphabet, an umbrella holding company to look over Google’s sprawling empire of businesses, however, it set newsrooms and investors alight. [...]
Why Network Rail’s £2m fine won’t improve London Bridge commuters’ train travel or reduce delays and disruption August 11, 2015 Yesterday the Office of Rail and Road published the results of its investigation to the major disruption at London Bridge in January of this year. In a damning report, it found Network Rail breached the terms of its licence and issued it with a fine of £2m. A positive move by a tough [...]
Are old-school financial services running scared of peer-to-peer? Or do they just not understand it? August 11, 2015 I was heartened recently to read the chief executive of Bibby Financial Services – what I would call an old-school financial services company – warning of a ‘bubble’ in peer-to-peer lending. As the co-founder and chief executive of one of Europe’s largest peer-to-peer lenders, I knew this warning meant one of two things; either the [...]
London mayoral elections: Tackling air quality is a priority, but we must go beyond the nanny-state approach in addressing pollution August 11, 2015 At their hustings last week the six Labour mayoral hopefuls called on Londoners to change their behaviour to tackle the scourge of air pollution. Dame Tessa Jowell wanted Londoners to give up driving in in their cars. She would pedestrianise the centre of London and only allow electric vehicles to come into London. David [...]
What George Osborne needs to do to get Britain’s productivity engine started again August 11, 2015 Productivity is the engine of economic growth. For a quarter of a century prior to the financial crash, Britain’s productivity engine ran smoothly as output per worker increased at an average rate of more than two per cent a year. But in 2008 the engine stalled. In the last seven years there has been no [...]
British people want a technology revolution in the NHS – we need to make sure they get what they’re asking for August 10, 2015 The NHS looks after a population of over 64 million across the UK, dealing with more than a million patients every 36 hours. The service it offers has to remain first-rate despite severe cost cutting, placing immense pressure on those responsible for maintaining standards. There is no doubt that technology can play a significant [...]
West Ham’s Olympic Stadium bargain is another example of the public sector’s poor planning hitting the taxpayer August 7, 2015 If it wasn’t so costly, it would almost be funny. One, a prototypical English big man up front with a tendency to not be nearly as good in the air as he should be. The second, a £700m gleaming structure in the heart of the new jewel of East London, Queen Elizabeth Park. [...]
Traditional banking needs to act fast to survive Google’s predictive power August 6, 2015 The options we have for our everyday bank accounts are increasing. Virgin Money, Tesco Bank and the Post Office have recently entered the personal current account market, and prospective entrants include Atom, Starling, Civilised Bank and OakNorth. But could the biggest competition to our traditional banks be hiding in plain sight? There are various factors [...]
UK housing crisis: How deregulated “slums” can solve the shortage of homes and high prices for renters August 6, 2015 A blog recently posted on the ASI website seems to have driven some angry reaction. “Britain needs more slums” proclaimed Theo Clifford, the winner of our 18-21 category of our Young Writer on Liberty Competition. While the ASI has a policy of publishing a whole range of opinions (views expressed on the blog are those [...]