Business and Economics

By Marina Schlotzhauer Gone are the good old days where the major risks for businesses were costs running out of control or the threat of imminent local competition. Globalization has introduced a whole new array of challenges that vary from foreign financial economic ripples to cyber security and beyond. Just in time production and the outsourcing of unskilled labour seems very good from a microeconomics level; However, when applied at a global scale, it increases the chances of sudden demand...

By Oliver Ward Apple´s announcement this week for a 1,300 acre solar farm strengthened Apple´s commitment to becoming a 100 per cent renewable energy company. Not only will it provide the power for Apples new campus and shelter them from the ever increasing costs of brown energy, but it represents the astute and progressive success Tim Cook has earned as the CEO of the worlds best known phone and tablet manufacturer. On this day in 1779 another world famous Cook...

By Steve Taggart  A revolutionary new technology platform, available online and as an app, is set to shake up the recruitment industry while also turning savvy consumers into a network of part-time recruiters. GigPlug has already amassed over 2000 consumers acting as part-time recruiters and a talent pool of 450,000 potential job-seekers. The platform uses a newly developed algorithm that matches your social contacts with a database of new jobs. Upon matching the professional experience of a contact with the...

By Jack Peat, Editor of The London Economic When I was a teenager my friends and I were masters of the man sandwich. It's a simple concept; rather than creating unnecessary washing up use complex carbohydrates as a tool to demolish a meal in a sandwich/ mop up/ top up attack that is a proverbial middle finger to table manners. Everything in a sandwich; jobs a good 'un. What we didn't realise is that we were participating in a very...

By Grace Regan, co–founder and editor–in–chief of Clippet It’s no secret by now that traditional media has got an age problem. Ask a room full of twenty–somethings where they get their news and you’d be lucky if more than one answered: ‘I go to the website every morning.’ It’s a safe bet that the vast majority of them would cite social media as their main source of information. I don’t need to speculate, the facts speak for themselves. A recent...

By Peter Munro & Nigel Andrade Success can have two common bedfellows – hubris and apathy. Hubris - that everything unfolded solely on account of our individual enterprise and unique capability. Apathy - that nothing will really ever change for the worse. How did Australia find itself with one of the highest GDP per capita amongst OECD nations produced by an economy that has not seen a significant r recession in decades? One of the initial drivers of Australia’s prosperity...

By David Morin I am often asked why I continue to busk when I have access to so many opportunities to play in venues and I understand why people are perplexed. Most people may think it's a low-brow form of entertainment, and in all honesty they are partially correct, but mostly I think, incorrect. I quit my job in 2010 to play music full-time. If it wasn’t for the cold hard streets, I wouldn’t have the fans, the amazing team,...

By Jack Peat, Editor of The London Economic Last night I attended a small theatre production in Chiswick based on the life of Marie Curie. I won't bore you with the details, but Curie’s first husband Pierre was a played by a typically refined character  who sported a mustard yellow jacket, waistcoat and chinos in true Ted Baker fashion. In fact, his bearded face and flat cap would look downright ordinary in certain London boroughs, I remember thinking, if not for...

By Helen Taylor, Head of HR at Instant Asking for a raise may fall outside your usual comfort zone but if you don’t ask it’s likely you won’t get what you think you are worth. Here are some tips on getting the raise that you feel you deserve. How often should you expect a raise? Let’s face it, we live in tough economic times at the moment. In the past it used to be the norm to expect a raise...