You know your company is in trouble when the chief marketing officer gets more press than the CEO. And it’s in really, really deep trouble when the CMO is seen distancing herself from the company’s strategic blunders. That’s what we saw over the weekend in the New York Times piece on Anne Finucane, “chief image […]
I was catching up on holiday reading and came across this excellent New York Times piece on Ernest Shackleton written by Harvard Business School professor Nancy Koehn. Shackleton’s ambitious journey to reach the South Pole ended in failure but became a triumph of leadership, courage and determination as he brought his entire crew safely home […]
As reported today, the US Securities and Exchange Commission has introduced guidance for financial firms related to reporting of their European debt exposure. The SEC issued its recommendations to address the inconsistent approach firms have used to disclose their risk to sovereign and private borrowers: “In response to our comments on their disclosure documents, registrants […]
Years after its collapse, Refco continues to make news. Yesterday, an appeals court overturned the conviction of an attorney, Joseph P. Collins, who had been the chief outside counsel for the futures brokerage and was found guilty of aiding the company’s scheme to hide millions in debt and mask its true financial condition. When the […]
As 2011 disappears in the rear-view mirror, here’s my list of noteworthy risk-takers over the past year. These are the people and institutions that took risks intelligently and won. The list of risk-bumblers – those who mishandled critical situations – is certainly longer (UBS, Olympus, Yahoo, MF Global, I could go on) but their woes […]
For every troubled company that’s trying to restructure and eyeing a trip through bankruptcy to get a fresh start, Kodak is a case study on what not to do. For several days now, media headlines have reported on Kodak’s plans to file for bankruptcy protection, with no comment from the company. It’s the wrong strategy. […]
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday sued Life Partners (NASDAQ: LPHI), a major dealer in the secondary market for life insurance policies. Life Partners and other financial firms have been at the forefront of the “life settlements” industry, which purchases life insurance policies from individuals, usually seniors, for a lump-sum and collects the […]
The folks at The Wall Street Journal and its parent News Corporation must be heaving a sigh of relief after the UK’s newspaper-circulation auditor found “no clear evidence” of noncompliance in an unusual deal that inflated the subscription figures for The Wall Street Journal Europe. The statement by the Audit Bureau of Circulation is remarkable […]
Embattled investment bank Jefferies reported stronger-than-expected earnings and a slimmed-down balance sheet, confounding critics and sending the firm’s shares on a surge. The news marks a victory for the firm’s management and vindicates its strategy of aggressive communication during a crisis, as the firm sought to dispel rumors about its trading exposure and liquidity. Of […]
New York’s Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday (12/20) that private parties can pursue claims under the Martin Act – New York’s anti-fraud statute that was used by Eliot Spitzer nearly a decade ago to bring Wall Street to heel. News reports were brief, but the ruling is sure to arouse concern at the large banks, […]