Page 5 - Vantage Point

Cash grants ease pressure, encourage ideas

Necessity can be the mother of invention, but without financial and business development support, many impoverished entrepreneurs can't get past the start-up phase of establishing a unique business. Researcher Laura Doering showed in a recent study that low-income entrepreneurs in Panama were just as likely as wealthier people to start early-stage businesses selling new products. But they had lower rates of sustaining those businesses into long-term profitability. When Doering interviewed low-income entrepreneurs, she found that their urgency to quickly turn a profit so they could support themselves, as well as the longer time required for their often equally poor customers to adopt the new product, contributed to the low long-term success rate. Her paper suggests the entrepreneurs can be helped over the start-up hurdle through the creation of business incubation centres in which they can develop and refine their novel business ideas. Cash grants for the most promising ideas, rather th

E-commerce and tech start-ups to dominate hiring during Apr-Sept

E-commerce and tech start-ups, the biggest contributors to net addition of jobs, will see a 23.6 per cent growth in jobs between April and September 2016

CFOs, analysts want revaluation of all intangibles every year

A collective blind spot for business decision makers and policy makers has been allowed to develop, highlights the Brand Finance Global Intangible Finance Tracker report, an annual study of 57,000 companies across 160 jurisdictions. At issue is a failure to regularly appraise intangibles. Even more critically, internally generated intangibles are (as per current accounting standards) generally not recognised at all. In Brand Finance's view, a commitment to undertake an annual revaluation of all company assets, including tangible assets, acquired intangibles and intangibles generated internally, would be a boon for boards, accountants, investors and analysts. Over 50 per cent of the surveyed equity analysts and chief financial officers (CFOs) felt brands were becoming increasingly important in risk management and lending decisions and over 70 per cent felt brands were becoming increasingly important in mergers and acquisitions activity. Sixty-eight per cent of the analysts and 58 per ce

Mobile health solutions can cut costs through therapy adherence

The findings of the survey by research firm research2guidance also shed light on the relationship between insurers and mHealth

Hybrid strategy works best when high-tech companies go global

The study challenges the traditional view that companies can go global by adhering to one competitive strategy alone

Product innovation linked to consumer status enhancement

Companies may give a bigger incentive to invest in developing socially responsible products if it means those who buy them can stand a little taller than those who don't, says new research. Consumers do not only listen to their own conscience when deciding on buying environment- friendly cars or sweat shop-free clothing - they also consider how those choices will make them stack up against others, says the study from the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. Previous research says that more socially responsible products are more valuable. In contrast, this study uses a theoretical model to show that value, and the incentive to spend money on developing those products, is dynamic. Researchers David Soberman, a professor of marketing at the Rotman School, and Prof. Ganesh Iyer of the University of California found that companies have the greatest incentive to develop a more socially responsible product when the vast majority of potential users are already category users.

Brands take a hit from consumers if mobile expectations aren't met

Alternatively, 76 per cent report that a good mobile experience has an influence on their loyalty to a brand

Mindfulness a must-have for executives in a VUCA world

The report, titled "CFOs and the C-suite - leadership fit for the 21st century", challenges the assumption that traditional leadership training is sufficient to prepare the C-suite today

Breakthroughs need expertise, not just cross-collaboration

Previous research has measured innovation by looking at how frequently a patent is cited in subsequent patent registrations

Managers undermining role of luck in success or failure of a business

Managers and stakeholders are seriously underestimating the role luck plays in the success, or failure, of a business, according to a new study into luck. Despite their best efforts, individuals and organisations can find it difficult to predict the consequences of their initiatives, according to Chengwei Liu, associate professor of strategy and behavioural science at Warwick Business School. While people appreciate the role of bad luck in failures, they do not necessarily do the same when it comes to explaining success. Liu added that we have the conceptual tools to help better understand the role of luck in organisational life. In the paper titled Good Night, and Good Luck: Perspectives on Luck in Management Scholarship, Liu and Mark de Rond from Cambridge Judge Business School argue that bestselling books on management and case studies in business school education focusing on the top performers and how to move from "good to great" are taking the wrong approach.

Leadership growth with social responsibility has positive results

When organisations include social responsibility programmes within their leadership development efforts, it delivers results, according to a global study by the Hay Group division of people and organisational advisory firm Korn Ferry. The survey, which includes data from more than 7,500 business and HR leaders in 107 countries, found that across all leadership levels, an average of only 36 per cent of employees are "highly engaged". The survey also found that leveraging a social responsibility agenda to develop leaders can help reverse this trend. The vast majority (87 per cent) of respondents say that linking an organisation's social responsibility efforts to leadership development has a positive impact on overall engagement and performance. Unfortunately, only 59 per cent of respondents say their organisations actually do link the two. A separate Korn Ferry study shows the top factor that improves people's feelings about their job is working for a company whose culture aligns with th

Technology sector slowing in past 3 years in creating wealth

The white paper suggests that the tech sector is slowing in its creation of millionaires or HNWIs

Companies not opting for aggressive pay increases

The results of the survey that analysed data across 700 companies reflect a pragmatic approach adopted by corporate India towards pay increases