Management Blog

Is the Recession Over?

The National Institute of Economic and Social Research, a leading economic think-tank, has suggested that UK GDP bottomed out in March and started to rise again in April and May, for the first time in a year. The publication Management Today explains if it’s right, that would mean a return to growth even earlier than Alistair Darling predicted – a forecast, you may recall, that was greeted with derision at the time by most economists. This tallies with some of the other positive numbers that have started to emerge from the manufacturing sector and the property market this week. But is this really a recovery, or just a brief rally before another slump?

 

The NIESR suggested a couple of months ago that output had stopped falling, and according to its latest figures, the ‘trough of the depression’ came in March. The economy then grew 0.2% in April, apparently, and another 0.1% in May. With news this week that manufacturing and industrial output is also starting to creep up again, and the Council of Mortgage Lenders adding to the green shoots bonanza this morning by reporting that the number of new mortgages jumped by 16% in April (albeit to historically low levels), we’re seeing more and more indications that at the very least, the worst of the recession may be behind us.

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New Government Department for Business, Innovation & Skills

The Government has today created a new Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whose key role will be to build Britain's capabilities to compete in the global economy and shape skills policy. The Department will be created by merging BERR and DIUS. 

 The new single department is said to 'combine BERR's strengths in shaping the enterprise environment, analysing the strengths and needs of the various parts of British industry, building strategies for industrial strength and expertise in better regulation with DIUS's expertise in maintaining world class universities, expanding access to higher education, investing in the UK's science base and shaping skills policy and innovation through bodies such as the Technology Strategy Board. It also puts the UK's Further Education system and universities closer to the heart of governm ent thinking about building now for the upturn.'

The new department is 'the institutional realisation of the approach to promoting UK competitiveness and productivity as set out in the New Industries, New Jobs paper of April 2009, produced jointly by BERR and DIUS.'

The new department will:

• Advocate the needs of business across government, especially of UK small businesses

• Promote an enterprise environment that is good for business and good for consumers;

• Design tailored policies for sectors of the UK economy that represent key future strengths and where government policy can add to the dynamics of the market;

• Assess the changing skills needs of the UK economy, especially the intermediate and high skills vital in a global economy and design policies to meets them through public and privately funded life long training;

• Invest in the development of a higher education system committed to widening participation, equipping people with the skills and knowledge to compete in a global economy and securing and enhancing Britain's existing world class research base;

• Continue to invest in the UK's world class science base and develop strategies for commercialising more of that science;

• Continue to invest in skills through the Further Education system to help people through the downturn and to prepare Britain for the future;

• Deliver on the government's ambitious objectives to expand the number of apprenticeships;

• Encourage innovation in the UK;

• Defend a sound regulatory environment that encourages enterprise and skills;

• Collaborate with the RDAs in building economic growth in the English regions;

• Work with the EU in shaping European regulation and European policies that affect the openness of the single market and the competitiveness of European and British companies

• Continue to work to expand UK exports and encourage inward investment to the UK.

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Our MP's Can Learn from Oliver Cromwell

It is interesting that figures were released last week the fact that the number of students choosing to take History as a subject at GCSE and 'A' level are falling. However there are always important lessons to be learnt from history even in the 21st century. Here's an excellent example with Olver Cromwell's speech to Parliament just before it's dissolution in 1653. How prophetic the words are and relevant to the expenses scandal in which our MP's are now embroiled .

Oliver Cromwell's Speech on the Dissolution of the Long Parliament Given to the House of Commons 20 April 1653

"It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which you have dishonoured by your contempt of all virtue, and defiled by your practice of very vice; ye are a factious crew, and enemies to all good government;

Ye are a pack of mercenary wretches, and would like Esau sell your country for a mess of pottage, and like Judas betray your God for a few pieces of money.

Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess?

Ye have no more religion than my horse; Gold is your God; which of you have not barter'd your conscience for bribes?

Is there a man amongst you that has the least care for the good of the Commonwealth?

Ye sordid prostitutes have you not defil'd this sacred place, and turn'd the Lord's temple into a den of Thieves, by your immoral principles and wicked practices?

Ye are grown intolerably odious to the whole nation;

You Were deputed here by the people to get grievances redress'd, are yourselves gone!

So! Take away that shining bauble there, and lock up the doors. In the name of God, go!"

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Recession bites harder as report finds net employment outlook at record low

The jobs market will continue to shrink in the next three months as the number of employers planning to make redundancies continues to exceed the number of employers planning to hire according to the CIPD/KPMG Labour Market Outlook, a survey of more than 500 employers.  The key indicator in the quarterly report covers net employment intentions*, and this quarter the figure has fallen to another record low of -19, down ten points compared with the winter quarter.

In a sign that the recession is hitting all sectors of the economy, the net employment intentions figure is now negative for all three main sectors of the economy for the first time.  Although the private sector is most pessimistic, with a net employment intention figure of -30; the public sector is now also recording a net figure of -3 due to a rise in the number of redundancies in local government in particular.  The figure for the voluntary sector is -12.

However there are some positives to note with some data  showing signs that the freefall in economic activity may be coming to an end and an expectation that private sector net employment intentions will start to improve in the near future

Government orders budget cuts of £180 million in Universities

Universities will be forced to cut jobs and hold back pay to meet budget cuts of £180 million for 2010-11 announced by the government.

The cuts were revealed yesterday in a letter to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) from John Denham, the universities and skills secretary.

The Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills (DIUS) is making the cuts as part of the government’s £5 billion public-spending efficiency drive set out in the budget. The department must save £400 million, but Denham wrote: “I am confident that we can find efficiency savings while protecting the quality of teaching and research.”

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Degrees Available for Leadership and Management Programmes

Through its partnerships with Staffordshire and Birmingham City Universities, Call of the Wild is able to offer fully accredited programmes of study at undergraduate and post graduate levels and to meet professional CPD requirements. These accredited programmes, which are supplied as an added service on a client organization’s bespoke academy, are all accomplished by distance learning thus bringing the academic standards and educational expertise of the Universities into the heart of the individual learner’s workplace.

Programmes range from Foundation Degrees in Leadership & Management to Retail Management and also Customer Service. Visit our website for more info

Remington Team Event Case Study

Focus: Team event to support a new product launch

Objectives: Call of the Wild were given the challenge to create an event that brought the launch team from Remington together in an environment that would inspire,challenge and allow them to celebrate the launch of a major new hair care product into the UK marketplace. From the outset the client stressed the need for an event location and programme that really provided the wow factor-Call of the Wild responded to the challenge by listening very carefully to the exact requirements of the Remington event team and then added value by facilitating a discussion which further explored and refined those requirements.

Delegate Number: 50

Venue: Call of the Wild found the perfect venue within an hours drive of the Remington headquarters in Staines, this 4 star country hotel with grounds provided a truly spectacular backdrop to the event and greatly added to the success of the product launch.

Date: September 2008

Visit our websitefor more information on this and other issues such as leadership, team building and developemnt and management training..

Swansea University MBA - Case Study

Focus: The behaviours of effective leadership

Objectives: to identify and develop the leadership capability of a cohort of senior managers

Delegate Number: 15-20 per group

Venue: Our Development Centre Brecon Beacons

Date: October 2008

Background

Call of the Wild’s relationship with Swansea University Business School has always been interesting one, so when we were given the task of developing a leadership programme for a group of senior managers which really challenged them to become the best leaders they could be, we set to the task right away.

We realised from an early stage that in order to engage this group we would need to create a solution which utilised our most senior facilitation team. with this in mind we created a programme that drew on the skills of our most experienced business coaches, expertise from the world of professional sport and a leadership master class from an associate who has managed and led a successful Everest expedition.

The Objectives

The primary objective was for each delegate to be able to recognise, and develop appropriate leadership behaviours and transfer these to the workplace. We achieved this by providing each delegate with the opportunity to increase their self awarness by the use of real. For more information visit our website.

Credit Suisse Corporate Event Case Study

Focus: A fun team corporate event to motivate and reward delegates from the Audit department of this Swiss Bank.

Objectives: To create an experience that would allow delegates to work and play together.

Delegate Number: 60

Venue: Our Development Centre Brecon Beacons | High class country Hotel

Date: July 2008

Background

Credit Suisse can call upon a long tradition and many years of experience in the banking business. It provides companies, institutional clients and high-net-worth private clients worldwide, as well as retail clients in Switzerland, with advisory services, comprehensive solutions, and innovative products. Credit Suisse is active in over 50 countries and employs more than 48,500 people from approximately 100 different nations.

Call of the Wild were asked to create a corporate event based in and around the spectacular scenery of the  Brecon Beacons National Park. Call of the Wild in consultation with the organisational team developed a two centre event designed to allow delegates to experience this wonderful part of the world, whilst enjoying the grand country house lifestyle.

The Objectives

From start to finish the event needed to live up to the expectations of a very demanding audience!

This was no simple task-from creating the right mix of activities sourcing the venues choosing the food and providing the entertainment the event needed to stress the value the organisation placed on the individuals. For more information visit our website

Barclays Bank Graduate Development Programme Case Study

Focus: Development of leadership skills for finance academy graduates

Objectives: to identify and develop key leadership behaviours and to transfer these to the workplace

Delegate Number: 15-20 per group

Venue: Our Development Centre Brecon Beacons | Barclays Head Office, Canary Wharf

Date: September 2008

Background

As a direct result of the success of other development inputs within Barclays, Call of the Wild were asked to design and deliver a leadership programme for the graduates from Barclays Finance Academy. The Objectives The primary objective was for each delegate to be able to recognise, and develop appropriateleadership behaviours and transfer these to the workplace. The Programme The programme was designed to take delegates outside of their normal comfort zones in a challenging, yet safe environment. Several developmental inputs are utilised

For more information on this programme visit our website