All Blog Posts Tagged 'Business' (9)

Back in September 2012, I kicked off a series of articles examining capitalism, in an attempt to understand the limitations inherent within the current economic framework, and to explore what might be needed to promote a genuinely sustainable economy, including the risks and opportunities for business, and how business leaders may contribute. This is an important topic - as it provides the context for what we can really achieve with our business models and how sustainable they will…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIckOlzieo4

I spent a night at the opera recently, when we went to see Rusalka, by Dvorak.  In brief Rusalka develops the fairy story of a mermaid, who longs to leave her underwater kingdom.  She falls in love with a handsome prince but must pay the price of losing her voice.  Of course the opera ends in tragedy.   Sounds innocent enough?  Well, Daily Telegraph readers were outraged due to…

There is a school of thought that says that creativity is enhanced by having all the resources you need.  There is an equal and opposite view that suggests that limitations can be the spur to creativity.  It is to this view that I want to turn.  Starting with the gypsy jazz musician Django Reinhardt:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gV6AB3WsNcM

Tony Iommi accidentally 'copied' Django's loss after an accident in a sheet…

I was recently asked by BBC Radio 4 's You and Yours about how social networking can produce results, bearing in mind that this artform also doubles as a 'favourite waste of time' for some people.  I was drawn towards two examples, one hugely successful, the other a comedy of errors which ended in glorious failure.  My story today concerns the positive example of how we created an online social movement to sell out a concert for the reclusive rock star Bill Nelson, leader of 70's pop art…

Excellent video from Henley Business School, with leading UK music, media and content industry executives discussing Henley's new MBA for The Music Industry and challenges See http://goo.gl/dXtXQ

Henley is launching the world's first music industry focused MBA (one of…

In the fifth and final part of our 'Sustainable Business: As If people Matter' series, Michael Townsend looks at the skills challenge - and how we might close the gap as we move towards a sustainable and low-carbon economy.

Given what we already know about climate change, diminishing…

In the fourth part of our 'As If People Matter' series, we take the investor's perspective, as they too try and make sense of a changing world.

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It has taken four long, arduous years for the US stock market to recover its value after…

In the third piece in our five-part series 'As If People Matter', Michael Townsend discusses the qualities that business leaders must show, if they are to shine in a changing world.

"A new generation of CEOs will emerge."

Ray Anderson

Founder & Former Chairman, Interface Inc.

Who would want to be a business leader in these volatile times? The debate about boardroom pay and excess rages, the global economy is so volatile it…

Sports Direct Arena?

I must admit to rather choking on my toast this morning as I saw the news of St James’ Park, home of Newcastle United FC, being renamed as the Sports Direct Arena. Commercial branding of stadia has become a recurring trend in recent years (e.g. The Emirates for Arsenal, Etihad for Man City and the Reebok for Bolton), however there has been a presumption that certain names were off limits. It was inconceivable that proud stadia such as Anfield, Old Trafford…