Ireland's government wants to impose losses on some senior bondholders in Irish lenders to reduce the burden on taxpayers from a prolonged banking crisis, a senior minister said on Sunday.
Dublin wants to impose losses on banks' senior unsecured bonds not covered by a state guarantee, which currently amount to over 16 billion euros, as part of a new deal with the European Union, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
"A sustainable and comprehensive solution for Irish banking that involves recapitalisation but also involves an element of burden-sharing ... That is certainly the outcome that the government is looking for," Simon Coveney, minister for agriculture, told state broadcaster RTE.
Under an EU-IMF bailout agreed late last year Ireland can impose losses on banks' junior debt, but the ECB is opposed to treating senior bondholders, which are ranked on a par with depositors, in the same fashion for fear of a contagion risk.
Ireland's new government, elected in February, has said the state cannot afford the current EU-IMF bailout deal and European finance ministers will decide on what sort of concessions they can offer Dublin in coming weeks.
They are awaiting the results of fresh stress tests on Ireland's banks, expected to show a capital hole of around 25 billion euros, on March 31 before deciding on any new deal.
Coveney said investors are already pricing in the possibility of a restructuring of senior bank debt given that it is trading at a discount in the secondary market.
"Markets are already ahead of us on this one. There is an acceptance that there is a possibility if not a likelihood that bondholders in Irish banks may have to share some of the pain," he said.
Analysts widely expect the government to impose losses on senior bondholders in nationalised lenders Anglo Irish Bank ANGIB.UL and Irish Nationwide IRNBS.UL because they have sold their deposits and are being wound down.
Hitting any unsecured unguaranteed senior bonds in Bank of Ireland (BKIR.I) and Allied Irish Banks (AIB) (ALBK.I), which amount to over 11 billion euros, would be more controversial.
Rumours that AIB was planning to miss a coupon payment on a bond, denied by the bank, helped send the yield on two-year Irish sovereign paper soaring to euro-era highs as investors feared a sovereign restructuring was in the works.
Source: Reuters, by Carmel Crimmins
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Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Are private banks in Asia hyping up their hiring?
Private banks in Asia are growing fond of saying they are hiring in the hundreds but talent shortages in Singapore and Hong Kong could thwart their ambitions.
Take Julius Baer. Chief executive Boris Collardi told Singapore’s Business Times recently that it intends to double its banker headcount in Asia from the current 130. The Swiss firm has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong and Jakarta.
Private banking headhunters don’t doubt his desire to achieve this target and say Julius Baer enjoys a strong reputation as an employer, but they think expansion in the current job market will be tough.
No easy ride
“The 130 extra people it wants don’t really exist in Asia. As a quality Swiss private bank, Julius Baer is only really after senior RMs and there aren't many of them looking to leave other firms,” says a headhunter, who asked not to be named.
Julius Baer does have a record of heady hiring – it has grown from from zero to 500 people (including private bankers) since 2006. “But in 2006/07 it was aggressive and would pay over the odds. It was able to grow the business quickly but now I think it has to face reality, just like everyone else.”
The firm is not alone in having grand plans in Asia. Last year JP Morgan, UBS and Standard Chartered all publically announced three-figure headcount growth targets for their private banks.
“Banks are talking themselves up but in reality the appetite for hiring is not that aggressive. It’s good publicity and creates confidence in your employer brand but there’s no way they can meet these numbers. It’s more aspirational than real,” says the headhunter.
Not so fast
That’s not to say that firms aren’t adding RMs – there is plenty of money to be made from Asia’s growing pool of high-net-worth clients, if you can only lure the right RMs to service them. But hiring rates are slower than the banks’ announcements might lead you to believe.
“It’s very challenging to attract experienced private bankers in both Hong and Singapore, given that almost every bank is looking for senior bankers. They in particular tend to be more settled and less inclined to jump ship so lightly,” says Jack Bennett, director, Lion Rock International.
The anonymous recruiter adds: “Clients need a good reason to move their money to new bank and won’t blindly follow their RM. So in turn, it’s tough for employers to convince a banker to move.”
Another headhunter, who asked not to be named, agrees there is a skill shortage. “Banks are not in the mood for risk taking, so they don’t want priority bankers. As for candidates, without a push, nobody goes. Those bankers who are looking are usually dissatisfied with their bank and/or with their bonus.”
Source: efinancial careers by Simon Mortlock
Take Julius Baer. Chief executive Boris Collardi told Singapore’s Business Times recently that it intends to double its banker headcount in Asia from the current 130. The Swiss firm has offices in Singapore, Hong Kong and Jakarta.
Private banking headhunters don’t doubt his desire to achieve this target and say Julius Baer enjoys a strong reputation as an employer, but they think expansion in the current job market will be tough.
No easy ride
“The 130 extra people it wants don’t really exist in Asia. As a quality Swiss private bank, Julius Baer is only really after senior RMs and there aren't many of them looking to leave other firms,” says a headhunter, who asked not to be named.
Julius Baer does have a record of heady hiring – it has grown from from zero to 500 people (including private bankers) since 2006. “But in 2006/07 it was aggressive and would pay over the odds. It was able to grow the business quickly but now I think it has to face reality, just like everyone else.”
The firm is not alone in having grand plans in Asia. Last year JP Morgan, UBS and Standard Chartered all publically announced three-figure headcount growth targets for their private banks.
“Banks are talking themselves up but in reality the appetite for hiring is not that aggressive. It’s good publicity and creates confidence in your employer brand but there’s no way they can meet these numbers. It’s more aspirational than real,” says the headhunter.
Not so fast
That’s not to say that firms aren’t adding RMs – there is plenty of money to be made from Asia’s growing pool of high-net-worth clients, if you can only lure the right RMs to service them. But hiring rates are slower than the banks’ announcements might lead you to believe.
“It’s very challenging to attract experienced private bankers in both Hong and Singapore, given that almost every bank is looking for senior bankers. They in particular tend to be more settled and less inclined to jump ship so lightly,” says Jack Bennett, director, Lion Rock International.
The anonymous recruiter adds: “Clients need a good reason to move their money to new bank and won’t blindly follow their RM. So in turn, it’s tough for employers to convince a banker to move.”
Another headhunter, who asked not to be named, agrees there is a skill shortage. “Banks are not in the mood for risk taking, so they don’t want priority bankers. As for candidates, without a push, nobody goes. Those bankers who are looking are usually dissatisfied with their bank and/or with their bonus.”
Source: efinancial careers by Simon Mortlock
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Adjusted U.S. figures paint a rosier jobs picture
Job growth may be stronger than it appears.
Another healthy drop in unemployment claims reported last week is the latest clue that job gains might be more robust than the Labor Department's monthly reports show.
Some economists say jobless claims and other recent data show that employers likely added 200,000 to 300,000 jobs a month this year, rather than the 128,000 average reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The reason for the possible disparity: The government tends to underestimate both job gains in a recovery and job losses in a recession, the economists say. That helps explain why the nation's unemployment rate has fallen more sharply than the modest payroll increases suggest. The jobless rate was 8.9% last month, down from 9.8% in November.
"The data suggest there's been more improvement already in the employment numbers," says Jim O'Sullivan, chief economist of MF Global.
WHERE THE JOBS ARE: State by state
Jobless claims for the week ending March 5 fell to 385,000 from 401,000 and are down from an average 450,000 in the second half of 2010. History suggests a drop of 50,000 or more means 100,000 or more additional jobs, O'Sullivan says.
Because monthly job gains, excluding temporary Census workers, averaged 103,000 in 2010's second half, average growth in January and February should have topped 200,000, he says.
Other markers of a healthier job market:
•Payroll taxes withheld by the U.S. Treasury are up 7% vs. a year ago.
•The Institute for Supply Management's reports on manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors show surging employment the past two months.
•BLS' survey of households, used to calculate the unemployment rate, has reported average monthly job increases of 379,000 since November.
That survey is considered volatile because it canvasses only 60,000 homes, but it and other data point to job increases exceeding 200,000 in January and possibly more than 300,000 in February based on historical models, O'Sullivan says.
BLS' survey of 400,000 establishments — from which it estimates job growth — is more comprehensive, but doesn't track start-ups and failures. The computer model it uses to estimate firms' births and deaths undercounts start-ups in a recovery and closures in a recession, says Dean Maki, chief U.S. economist of Barclays Capital.
Some proof is found in BLS' annual revisions to its job totals based on actual payroll data. It said there were 902,000 more job losses from April 2008 to March 2009, in the depths of the downturn, than it originally estimated.
BLS economist Nathan Clausen agrees much of that error was tied to a flood of uncounted failed companies. But, he says, the model is generally accurate in upturns and slumps.
Source: USA Today, by Paul Davidson
Another healthy drop in unemployment claims reported last week is the latest clue that job gains might be more robust than the Labor Department's monthly reports show.
Some economists say jobless claims and other recent data show that employers likely added 200,000 to 300,000 jobs a month this year, rather than the 128,000 average reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The reason for the possible disparity: The government tends to underestimate both job gains in a recovery and job losses in a recession, the economists say. That helps explain why the nation's unemployment rate has fallen more sharply than the modest payroll increases suggest. The jobless rate was 8.9% last month, down from 9.8% in November.
"The data suggest there's been more improvement already in the employment numbers," says Jim O'Sullivan, chief economist of MF Global.
WHERE THE JOBS ARE: State by state
Jobless claims for the week ending March 5 fell to 385,000 from 401,000 and are down from an average 450,000 in the second half of 2010. History suggests a drop of 50,000 or more means 100,000 or more additional jobs, O'Sullivan says.
Because monthly job gains, excluding temporary Census workers, averaged 103,000 in 2010's second half, average growth in January and February should have topped 200,000, he says.
Other markers of a healthier job market:
•Payroll taxes withheld by the U.S. Treasury are up 7% vs. a year ago.
•The Institute for Supply Management's reports on manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors show surging employment the past two months.
•BLS' survey of households, used to calculate the unemployment rate, has reported average monthly job increases of 379,000 since November.
That survey is considered volatile because it canvasses only 60,000 homes, but it and other data point to job increases exceeding 200,000 in January and possibly more than 300,000 in February based on historical models, O'Sullivan says.
BLS' survey of 400,000 establishments — from which it estimates job growth — is more comprehensive, but doesn't track start-ups and failures. The computer model it uses to estimate firms' births and deaths undercounts start-ups in a recovery and closures in a recession, says Dean Maki, chief U.S. economist of Barclays Capital.
Some proof is found in BLS' annual revisions to its job totals based on actual payroll data. It said there were 902,000 more job losses from April 2008 to March 2009, in the depths of the downturn, than it originally estimated.
BLS economist Nathan Clausen agrees much of that error was tied to a flood of uncounted failed companies. But, he says, the model is generally accurate in upturns and slumps.
Source: USA Today, by Paul Davidson
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Credit Suisse is hiring 500 and SCB is paying stunning salaries in Singapore: Is Changi a boom town for banking jobs?
The hottest place in back-office employment in Singapore banks these days? Changi Business Park, the CBD’s cheaper, less glamorous cousin.
Just last week, Credit Suisse announced plans for a new office in Changi, on the eastern part of the island. That new office, operational in mid-2013, will house about 4,000 staff, made up of back-office and centre-for-excellence staff, according to the Straits Times. The bank will be hiring at least 500 more staff by then.
Other banks which already run their operations from Changi Business Park include Standard Chartered, Citibank and DBS.
Singapore’s Docklands
The trend for back-office jobs moving into Changi mirrors that of London’s Docklands almost 20 years ago. Back then, a number of banks also shifted their UK operations out of the City, points out Kyle Blockley, director of KS Consulting.
But is there an employment bonanza for back-office candidates seeking new opportunities in Changi? Blockley doesn’t think so. “So far this year, there has been no major increase in operations positions into Changi, although there is no doubt that this will happen (with Credit Suisse’s announcement). ”There’s certainly not as much demand as last year. Most clients did a lot of hiring in 2010 and so this is a year of consolidation and replacing attritional headcount.”
Matthew Ng, consultant, banking and financial services, Ambition, says demand for such roles continues to be consistent. But he adds: “We have certainly seen an increase in this demand over the past six weeks with bonus levels having been announced and in most cases, paid out.
“Given the size of Singapore and the fact that many operations functions are now hubbed out of Changi, candidates can’t discount roles based on location alone. Job scope, culture and career progression opportunities are usually the prevailing factors for candidates when they are considering a move.”
So which support functions are likely to see continued hiring in Changi this year? Roles in product control, operations and IT will drive hiring, says Blockley.
Show me the money
With so many banks concentrated in Changi, which one has the best back-office compensation to attract talent? One recruiter, who declined to be named, says: “Probably Standard Chartered, they are the ones that pay the most.”
SCB typically pays about five to 10 per cent more than its competitors. Next best paying is Credit Suisse, followed by Citibank, then DBS, says our source.
By Shree Ann Mathavan
Just last week, Credit Suisse announced plans for a new office in Changi, on the eastern part of the island. That new office, operational in mid-2013, will house about 4,000 staff, made up of back-office and centre-for-excellence staff, according to the Straits Times. The bank will be hiring at least 500 more staff by then.
Other banks which already run their operations from Changi Business Park include Standard Chartered, Citibank and DBS.
Singapore’s Docklands
The trend for back-office jobs moving into Changi mirrors that of London’s Docklands almost 20 years ago. Back then, a number of banks also shifted their UK operations out of the City, points out Kyle Blockley, director of KS Consulting.
But is there an employment bonanza for back-office candidates seeking new opportunities in Changi? Blockley doesn’t think so. “So far this year, there has been no major increase in operations positions into Changi, although there is no doubt that this will happen (with Credit Suisse’s announcement). ”There’s certainly not as much demand as last year. Most clients did a lot of hiring in 2010 and so this is a year of consolidation and replacing attritional headcount.”
Matthew Ng, consultant, banking and financial services, Ambition, says demand for such roles continues to be consistent. But he adds: “We have certainly seen an increase in this demand over the past six weeks with bonus levels having been announced and in most cases, paid out.
“Given the size of Singapore and the fact that many operations functions are now hubbed out of Changi, candidates can’t discount roles based on location alone. Job scope, culture and career progression opportunities are usually the prevailing factors for candidates when they are considering a move.”
So which support functions are likely to see continued hiring in Changi this year? Roles in product control, operations and IT will drive hiring, says Blockley.
Show me the money
With so many banks concentrated in Changi, which one has the best back-office compensation to attract talent? One recruiter, who declined to be named, says: “Probably Standard Chartered, they are the ones that pay the most.”
SCB typically pays about five to 10 per cent more than its competitors. Next best paying is Credit Suisse, followed by Citibank, then DBS, says our source.
By Shree Ann Mathavan
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Job Creation 'Must Be At Heart' Of Budget for the UK
What should the Chancellor do in this week's Budget to boost employment? Mark Cahill, managing director of recruiter Manpower UK, gives his view.
With the latest official figures last week showing unemployment at a 17-year high, with over 2.5 million people out of work, creating jobs must be at the heart of the Chancellor's speech when he stands up in Parliament on Wednesday.
As a society, we should be alarmed by the high numbers of 16-24 year olds who can't get their feet on the first rung of the work ladder. Youth unemployment now stands at a staggering one in five and looks set to carry on rising.
But, you'd be wrong in thinking its all doom and gloom in the jobs market.
There are half a million vacancies out there and whilst the outlook for jobs in the public sector is particularly gloomy, at Manpower (NYSE: MAN - news) every week we are placing hundreds of people in jobs around the country.
I can report that there are some surprising sectors where there has a noticeable pickup in recruitment.
Take the banking sector. After two years of huge job losses throughout the industry, we are seeing demand returning from the very sector which some blame for getting us into a recession in the first place.
It's not just in the finance sector that we are seeing a pickup.
Consider Jaguar Land Rover's factory in Halewood on Merseyside. Production has picked up and we've easily been able to fill 1500 semi-skilled jobs without any difficulty.
However, when the same firm needed 80 specialised technicians, there simply wasn't the skilled workforce available in that part of the country. This is what I would call a talent mismatch.
Here, George Osborne can make a difference. Businesses are ready to invest in new jobs and rebuild our economy but they need the support of government.
Boosting skills and training must be high up the agenda on Wednesday. The government needs to support people to find jobs outside the areas they live in and encourage businesses to take on young people - be that through apprenticeships or other schemes.
Of course, the Government will not be able to tackle the problem of unemployment by itself. We all need to play our part.
The world of work is rapidly evolving with technological changes and employees cannot expect a job for life. Furthermore, we all need to think about more flexible ways of working.
The next few years will be difficult ones in the jobs market, but I'm confident that if the right decisions are taken we can get more people back into work and offer our young people greater hope for the future.
Source: Sky News
With the latest official figures last week showing unemployment at a 17-year high, with over 2.5 million people out of work, creating jobs must be at the heart of the Chancellor's speech when he stands up in Parliament on Wednesday.
As a society, we should be alarmed by the high numbers of 16-24 year olds who can't get their feet on the first rung of the work ladder. Youth unemployment now stands at a staggering one in five and looks set to carry on rising.
But, you'd be wrong in thinking its all doom and gloom in the jobs market.
There are half a million vacancies out there and whilst the outlook for jobs in the public sector is particularly gloomy, at Manpower (NYSE: MAN - news) every week we are placing hundreds of people in jobs around the country.
I can report that there are some surprising sectors where there has a noticeable pickup in recruitment.
Take the banking sector. After two years of huge job losses throughout the industry, we are seeing demand returning from the very sector which some blame for getting us into a recession in the first place.
It's not just in the finance sector that we are seeing a pickup.
Consider Jaguar Land Rover's factory in Halewood on Merseyside. Production has picked up and we've easily been able to fill 1500 semi-skilled jobs without any difficulty.
However, when the same firm needed 80 specialised technicians, there simply wasn't the skilled workforce available in that part of the country. This is what I would call a talent mismatch.
Here, George Osborne can make a difference. Businesses are ready to invest in new jobs and rebuild our economy but they need the support of government.
Boosting skills and training must be high up the agenda on Wednesday. The government needs to support people to find jobs outside the areas they live in and encourage businesses to take on young people - be that through apprenticeships or other schemes.
Of course, the Government will not be able to tackle the problem of unemployment by itself. We all need to play our part.
The world of work is rapidly evolving with technological changes and employees cannot expect a job for life. Furthermore, we all need to think about more flexible ways of working.
The next few years will be difficult ones in the jobs market, but I'm confident that if the right decisions are taken we can get more people back into work and offer our young people greater hope for the future.
Source: Sky News
Friday, March 18, 2011
Further fall in Scottish jobless figures
The number of people unemployed in Scotland fell in the three months to the end of January, according to the latest official figures.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the number of jobless dropped by 16,000 to 218,000.
In contrast, UK unemployment rose by 27,000 and now stands at 2.53 million.
The number of adults out of work and claiming benefit in Scotland in February fell by 2,100 to 137,600 - the first monthly fall since September.
The Scottish unemployment rate now stands at 8.1%, just above the UK average unemployment rate of 8.0%.
Employment in Scotland increased by 8,000 in the three months to the end of January, the figures showed.
Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore welcomed the figures but warned against complacency.
The Lib Dem minister added: "There are still too many Scots out of work, and the government is determined to help.
"At next week's Budget, we will set out further details of the government's plans for returning the country to sustainable growth with a balanced economy."
Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond said: "Today's figures present further signs that Scotland's economy is strengthening and show the Scottish government's robust actions to support jobs, skills and training are delivering real results.
"For four consecutive monthly labour market statistics releases Scotland has been the only UK nation with rising employment and falling unemployment; and Scotland has a higher employment rate and lower economic inactivity rate than the UK.
'Grim reading'
However the Labour party put a different interpretation on the latest figures and claimed they had in fact gone up.
Shadow finance secretary Andy Kerr said: "These figures make grim reading. They show that the recent trend of falling unemployment in Scotland is going into reverse."
He added: "Unemployment is a personal tragedy for those who experience it and we desperately need to promote growth in the economy. In particular, no society can afford to bear the social or economic cost of long-term youth unemployment."
Conservative finance spokesman Derek Brownlee MSP welcomed the fall in unemployment but said the rate was still too high.
"Politicians at all levels need to do all we can to help create new jobs," he said.
Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) chief executive Lucy McTernan said the figures masked the extent of the economic crisis for those on short-term and part-time contracts.
Public sector
She said: "The drop in the numbers of unemployed is obviously welcome, but the truth is that there are still far too many people out of work in Scotland - or living in fear of losing their jobs.
"Even with today's figures, the number of unemployed Scots is still more than double what it was three years ago."
Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) general secretary Grahame Smith said: "The headline statistics do not reflect the true state of the labour market.
"The rise in employment is accounted for by increasing numbers of people working in part-time, not full-time, jobs.
"Youth unemployment continues to rise and long-term unemployment among all age groups is unacceptably high."
Meanwhile, figures published by the Scottish government showed the number of people working in the public sector in Scotland had fallen by 18,000 in the past year.
The figures showed that almost one in four people in Scotland worked for the public sector.
Most of the fall in staff numbers was in organisations which are under the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament.
The number of people working for the part-nationalised banks in Scotland rose by 1,700.
Source: Check4jobs
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the number of jobless dropped by 16,000 to 218,000.
In contrast, UK unemployment rose by 27,000 and now stands at 2.53 million.
The number of adults out of work and claiming benefit in Scotland in February fell by 2,100 to 137,600 - the first monthly fall since September.
The Scottish unemployment rate now stands at 8.1%, just above the UK average unemployment rate of 8.0%.
Employment in Scotland increased by 8,000 in the three months to the end of January, the figures showed.
Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore welcomed the figures but warned against complacency.
The Lib Dem minister added: "There are still too many Scots out of work, and the government is determined to help.
"At next week's Budget, we will set out further details of the government's plans for returning the country to sustainable growth with a balanced economy."
Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond said: "Today's figures present further signs that Scotland's economy is strengthening and show the Scottish government's robust actions to support jobs, skills and training are delivering real results.
"For four consecutive monthly labour market statistics releases Scotland has been the only UK nation with rising employment and falling unemployment; and Scotland has a higher employment rate and lower economic inactivity rate than the UK.
'Grim reading'
However the Labour party put a different interpretation on the latest figures and claimed they had in fact gone up.
Shadow finance secretary Andy Kerr said: "These figures make grim reading. They show that the recent trend of falling unemployment in Scotland is going into reverse."
He added: "Unemployment is a personal tragedy for those who experience it and we desperately need to promote growth in the economy. In particular, no society can afford to bear the social or economic cost of long-term youth unemployment."
Conservative finance spokesman Derek Brownlee MSP welcomed the fall in unemployment but said the rate was still too high.
"Politicians at all levels need to do all we can to help create new jobs," he said.
Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) chief executive Lucy McTernan said the figures masked the extent of the economic crisis for those on short-term and part-time contracts.
Public sector
She said: "The drop in the numbers of unemployed is obviously welcome, but the truth is that there are still far too many people out of work in Scotland - or living in fear of losing their jobs.
"Even with today's figures, the number of unemployed Scots is still more than double what it was three years ago."
Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) general secretary Grahame Smith said: "The headline statistics do not reflect the true state of the labour market.
"The rise in employment is accounted for by increasing numbers of people working in part-time, not full-time, jobs.
"Youth unemployment continues to rise and long-term unemployment among all age groups is unacceptably high."
Meanwhile, figures published by the Scottish government showed the number of people working in the public sector in Scotland had fallen by 18,000 in the past year.
The figures showed that almost one in four people in Scotland worked for the public sector.
Most of the fall in staff numbers was in organisations which are under the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament.
The number of people working for the part-nationalised banks in Scotland rose by 1,700.
Source: Check4jobs
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Youngsters aged between 16 and 24 account for around 40 percent of all unemployed in Britain
Teenager Marcus Howells blames his lack of qualifications for his frustrating failure to find a job.
Kicking an advertising stand outside a job centre after another fruitless visit, the 19-year-old says his lack of GCSEs is the main problem for his lack of success.
"I got a few but not really any good (ones) because I got kicked out of school," said Howells, one of more than 13,000 youngsters in Birmingham who do not have a job.
Once a dynamo for manufacturing, Birmingham is now home to some of the country's worst pockets of unemployment, with the overall jobless rate running at almost 13 percent -- well above the national rate of nearly 8 percent.
What Howells is going through is similar to the experience of a million other youths who, regardless of their education, are struggling to find work in an economy weakened by the financial crisis.
One out of five Britons aged between 16 and 24 were out of work in October to December, according to official data.
The effects of this could haunt them for years as research shows that spells of joblessness make it more likely they will be out of work again and earn less later in life.
The frustration, exacerbated by benefit cuts which take effect next month, could fuel social unrest, similar to last year's violent protests by students over higher university fees.
It is a problem many Western governments fear. Forty percent of young Spaniards are out of work and the average rate in developed countries is more than 18 percent.
Over the next decade, another 400 million young people will join the global labour force, posing a daunting challenge to governments, the head of the International Monetary Fund said last month.
"We face the prospect of a 'lost generation' of young people, destined to suffer their whole lives from worse unemployment and social conditions," said Dominique Strauss-Kahn, adding that high unemployment and rising prices could fuel conflict.
"As tensions within countries increase, we could see rising social and political instability within nations -- even war."
LOST GENERATION
Youngsters aged between 16 and 24 account for around 40 percent of all unemployed in Britain.
The reasons for such a high level lie not only in the recent recession -- the worst since World War Two -- but also in the policies that, after a decade of improvement, led to a rise in youth joblessness several years before the recession set in.
Article from Reuters 15th March 2011
Kicking an advertising stand outside a job centre after another fruitless visit, the 19-year-old says his lack of GCSEs is the main problem for his lack of success.
"I got a few but not really any good (ones) because I got kicked out of school," said Howells, one of more than 13,000 youngsters in Birmingham who do not have a job.
Once a dynamo for manufacturing, Birmingham is now home to some of the country's worst pockets of unemployment, with the overall jobless rate running at almost 13 percent -- well above the national rate of nearly 8 percent.
What Howells is going through is similar to the experience of a million other youths who, regardless of their education, are struggling to find work in an economy weakened by the financial crisis.
One out of five Britons aged between 16 and 24 were out of work in October to December, according to official data.
The effects of this could haunt them for years as research shows that spells of joblessness make it more likely they will be out of work again and earn less later in life.
The frustration, exacerbated by benefit cuts which take effect next month, could fuel social unrest, similar to last year's violent protests by students over higher university fees.
It is a problem many Western governments fear. Forty percent of young Spaniards are out of work and the average rate in developed countries is more than 18 percent.
Over the next decade, another 400 million young people will join the global labour force, posing a daunting challenge to governments, the head of the International Monetary Fund said last month.
"We face the prospect of a 'lost generation' of young people, destined to suffer their whole lives from worse unemployment and social conditions," said Dominique Strauss-Kahn, adding that high unemployment and rising prices could fuel conflict.
"As tensions within countries increase, we could see rising social and political instability within nations -- even war."
LOST GENERATION
Youngsters aged between 16 and 24 account for around 40 percent of all unemployed in Britain.
The reasons for such a high level lie not only in the recent recession -- the worst since World War Two -- but also in the policies that, after a decade of improvement, led to a rise in youth joblessness several years before the recession set in.
Article from Reuters 15th March 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Spanish Banks Begin Search for Investors to Plug 21 Billion Capital hole
Spanish banks that together need as much as 15.2 billion euros ($21 billion) to meet minimum capital levels now must persuade investors that their battered balance sheets offer the potential return to match the risk.
Twelve lenders, including eight savings banks and the Spanish units of Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) and Barclays Plc (BARC), are among the lenders that fell short of government-set capital requirements, the Bank of Spain said yesterday. The institutions whose levels are furthest from the required minimums include Bankia, which needs 5.8 billion euros, Novacaixagalicia, which requires 2.6 billion euros, CatalunyaCaixa and Unnim.
Yesterday’s announcement sets in motion a timetable that gives lenders as long as a year to raise funds or risk being taken over by a government bailout fund. Investors may be skeptical that the Bank of Spain’s estimates of how much capital the banks need fully reflect losses hidden on balance sheets, putting the onus on them find investors quickly, said Inigo Lecubarri, a fund manager at Abaco Financials Fund in London.
“At this stage, I don’t think anyone will be really convinced by anything,” said Lecubarri, who helps manage about $200 million at Abaco. “People will only be convinced when someone credible comes and puts some money on the table to invest.”
Rating Cut
Spain’s credit rating was cut yesterday to Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service, which said lenders may need as much as 50 billion euros to meet the new rules. The Bank of Spain said its estimate of 15.2 billion euros may end up lower as some savings banks opt for stock listings that will reduce the amount of capital they need under Spain’s new rules imposed last month.
“In our baseline we see potential losses of 80 billion euros-plus, in an extreme scenario it could be twice as much,” Nouriel Roubini, founder of Roubini Global Economics, told Maryam Nemazee on Bloomberg Television’s “Countdown” in London today. “The fiscal costs of backstopping the financial system are going to be larger than the government is suggesting.”
The Bank of Spain previously estimated the overall capital shortfall wouldn’t exceed 20 billion euros, or 2 percent of gross domestic product. The government, fighting to rein in the euro region’s third-largest budget deficit, wants most of that to be raised privately even as central bank Governor Miguel Angel Fernandez Ordonez said Feb. 21 that some lenders will ask the state-rescue fund FROB for help.
‘Underwhelming’
“This is underwhelming and certainly will be criticized: we calculate 40 billion to 50 billion euros,” said Arturo de Frias, head of banks research at Evolution Securities. “The difference is that the Bank of Spain calculates the deficit as of today whilst we add future impairment losses.”
The lenders have until September to meet new core capital requirements of 8 percent for listed lenders or 10 percent for banks without shareholders that also depend on wholesale financing. They can seek an extension until 2012 if they commit to listing shares.
The capital analysis carried out by the Bank of Spain shows that the banking system as a whole is “solvent,” Francisco Gonzalez, chairman of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA (BBVA), Spain’s second-biggest bank, told shareholders in a speech today in Bilbao, Spain. “It’s vital to complete the process of restructuring the savings banks with rigor and speed,” he said.
Contagion Struggle
Spain is trying to stem contagion as investors raise bets that Portugal will need a bailout and Greece and Ireland lobby to renegotiate rescue deals. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s government is seeking to show that lenders can weather a fourth year of economic slump and a jobless rate of 20 percent, as bond yields on peripheral euro-area nations surge.
While Spain’s public-debt burden is lower than that of France or Germany, the gap between Spanish and German borrowing costs is 15 times as wide as it was in the first decade of monetary union. The government needs to rein in the budget deficit and restore the economy to growth as private debt built up during a decade-long housing boom slows the recovery.
The government approved the new capital requirements on Feb. 18 and said lenders that fail to meet them risk partial nationalization via the purchase of ordinary shares by the FROB. That facility, which can take on as much as 90 billion euros of debt, has already committed about 11 billion euros through the purchase of preferred shares.
Clarity Call
“My opinion is that capital needs are not the main issue,” said Luis de Guindos, a former deputy finance minister in the government of Jose Maria Aznar and a professor at IE business school in Madrid. “I think the best way to convince investors is to have full clarity and transparency on real- estate exposure of the savings banks.”
Spain’s two biggest savings banks, La Caixa and Bankia have already announced plans to become listed lenders. Bankia’s capital shortfall of 5.8 billion euros will fall to 1.8 billion euros as it lists shares and qualifies for the lower capital threshold. Mare Nostrum, which needs 637 million euros in capital, and Banca Civica, which needs 847 million euros, have also said they will sell shares.
Banks’ Reactions
Some lenders published statements in response to the Bank of Spain’s announcement. Unnim, a grouping of savings banks that needs 568 million euros to bridge its 3.3 percentage-point capital gap, said in a statement it would consider “different alternatives,” including taking money from the FROB.
Novacaixagalicia, whose core capital ratio is 5.2 percent compared with the 10 percent it needs, didn’t have any immediate comment, a spokesman said in a phone interview. Banca Civica said in a statement senior executives had met with 32 potential investors in meetings in New York and London in recent weeks.
Core capital as defined under Spain’s new banking law includes reserves, preference shares owned by the FROB rescue fund, and bonds that are mandatorily convertible into shares by 2014.
To contact the reporters on this story: Charles Penty in Madrid at cpenty@bloomberg.net; Emma Ross-Thomas in Madrid at erossthomas@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Stirling at cstirling1@bloomberg.net; Frank Connelly at fconnelly@bloomberg.net
Article from Bloomberg 11th March 2011
Twelve lenders, including eight savings banks and the Spanish units of Deutsche Bank AG (DBK) and Barclays Plc (BARC), are among the lenders that fell short of government-set capital requirements, the Bank of Spain said yesterday. The institutions whose levels are furthest from the required minimums include Bankia, which needs 5.8 billion euros, Novacaixagalicia, which requires 2.6 billion euros, CatalunyaCaixa and Unnim.
Yesterday’s announcement sets in motion a timetable that gives lenders as long as a year to raise funds or risk being taken over by a government bailout fund. Investors may be skeptical that the Bank of Spain’s estimates of how much capital the banks need fully reflect losses hidden on balance sheets, putting the onus on them find investors quickly, said Inigo Lecubarri, a fund manager at Abaco Financials Fund in London.
“At this stage, I don’t think anyone will be really convinced by anything,” said Lecubarri, who helps manage about $200 million at Abaco. “People will only be convinced when someone credible comes and puts some money on the table to invest.”
Rating Cut
Spain’s credit rating was cut yesterday to Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service, which said lenders may need as much as 50 billion euros to meet the new rules. The Bank of Spain said its estimate of 15.2 billion euros may end up lower as some savings banks opt for stock listings that will reduce the amount of capital they need under Spain’s new rules imposed last month.
“In our baseline we see potential losses of 80 billion euros-plus, in an extreme scenario it could be twice as much,” Nouriel Roubini, founder of Roubini Global Economics, told Maryam Nemazee on Bloomberg Television’s “Countdown” in London today. “The fiscal costs of backstopping the financial system are going to be larger than the government is suggesting.”
The Bank of Spain previously estimated the overall capital shortfall wouldn’t exceed 20 billion euros, or 2 percent of gross domestic product. The government, fighting to rein in the euro region’s third-largest budget deficit, wants most of that to be raised privately even as central bank Governor Miguel Angel Fernandez Ordonez said Feb. 21 that some lenders will ask the state-rescue fund FROB for help.
‘Underwhelming’
“This is underwhelming and certainly will be criticized: we calculate 40 billion to 50 billion euros,” said Arturo de Frias, head of banks research at Evolution Securities. “The difference is that the Bank of Spain calculates the deficit as of today whilst we add future impairment losses.”
The lenders have until September to meet new core capital requirements of 8 percent for listed lenders or 10 percent for banks without shareholders that also depend on wholesale financing. They can seek an extension until 2012 if they commit to listing shares.
The capital analysis carried out by the Bank of Spain shows that the banking system as a whole is “solvent,” Francisco Gonzalez, chairman of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA (BBVA), Spain’s second-biggest bank, told shareholders in a speech today in Bilbao, Spain. “It’s vital to complete the process of restructuring the savings banks with rigor and speed,” he said.
Contagion Struggle
Spain is trying to stem contagion as investors raise bets that Portugal will need a bailout and Greece and Ireland lobby to renegotiate rescue deals. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s government is seeking to show that lenders can weather a fourth year of economic slump and a jobless rate of 20 percent, as bond yields on peripheral euro-area nations surge.
While Spain’s public-debt burden is lower than that of France or Germany, the gap between Spanish and German borrowing costs is 15 times as wide as it was in the first decade of monetary union. The government needs to rein in the budget deficit and restore the economy to growth as private debt built up during a decade-long housing boom slows the recovery.
The government approved the new capital requirements on Feb. 18 and said lenders that fail to meet them risk partial nationalization via the purchase of ordinary shares by the FROB. That facility, which can take on as much as 90 billion euros of debt, has already committed about 11 billion euros through the purchase of preferred shares.
Clarity Call
“My opinion is that capital needs are not the main issue,” said Luis de Guindos, a former deputy finance minister in the government of Jose Maria Aznar and a professor at IE business school in Madrid. “I think the best way to convince investors is to have full clarity and transparency on real- estate exposure of the savings banks.”
Spain’s two biggest savings banks, La Caixa and Bankia have already announced plans to become listed lenders. Bankia’s capital shortfall of 5.8 billion euros will fall to 1.8 billion euros as it lists shares and qualifies for the lower capital threshold. Mare Nostrum, which needs 637 million euros in capital, and Banca Civica, which needs 847 million euros, have also said they will sell shares.
Banks’ Reactions
Some lenders published statements in response to the Bank of Spain’s announcement. Unnim, a grouping of savings banks that needs 568 million euros to bridge its 3.3 percentage-point capital gap, said in a statement it would consider “different alternatives,” including taking money from the FROB.
Novacaixagalicia, whose core capital ratio is 5.2 percent compared with the 10 percent it needs, didn’t have any immediate comment, a spokesman said in a phone interview. Banca Civica said in a statement senior executives had met with 32 potential investors in meetings in New York and London in recent weeks.
Core capital as defined under Spain’s new banking law includes reserves, preference shares owned by the FROB rescue fund, and bonds that are mandatorily convertible into shares by 2014.
To contact the reporters on this story: Charles Penty in Madrid at cpenty@bloomberg.net; Emma Ross-Thomas in Madrid at erossthomas@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Stirling at cstirling1@bloomberg.net; Frank Connelly at fconnelly@bloomberg.net
Article from Bloomberg 11th March 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Unemployment Fell in 24 US States
Unemployment Fell in 24 U.S. States, Payrolls Rose in 35While the 8.9 percent unemployment rate in February is the lowest in 22 months, American workers have been slow to make up lost ground. Photographer: Jim R. Bounds/BloombergUnemployment declined in 24 U.S. states in January and payrolls increased in 35, showing a strengthening labor market at the start of the year.Joblessness decreased the most in Nevada, followed by Indiana, Michigan and South Carolina, figures from the Labor Department showed today in Washington. The states with the biggest gains in payrolls were Texas and Michigan.The report is consistent with Feb. 4 figures showing U.S. unemployment in January fell to 9 percent as employers added 63,000 workers. The improvement continued into February when the jobless rate dropped to 8.9 percent and payrolls increased by 192,000, underscoring Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s testimony to Congress that there are "grounds for optimism" in the labor market.Broad-based job gains have "staying power, power for lifting confidence and sustaining a view that will flow through to consumer spending," said Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse in New York.Nevada’s jobless rate fell to 14.2 percent from 14.9 percent the previous month, today’s figures showed. Unemployment in Indiana dropped to 9.1 percent in January from 9.5 percent. Joblessness fell to 10.7 percent in Michigan and 10.5 percent in South Carolina.Even with the decline, the jobless rate in Nevada was the highest in the country, followed by California at 12.4 percent and Florida at 11.9 percent, today’s report showed.Unemployment in Colorado rose to 9.1 percent, the highest for that state since record-keeping began in 1976.Texas Job LeaderTexas led states with the biggest payroll gains as employers added 44,100 workers. Michigan was second with an increase of 39,700. Payrolls in Ohio rose 31,900 and employment increased 24,500 in Illinois.The national employment report showed payrolls rose by 63,000 in January, less than half the 152,000 gain a month earlier. Weather may have played a role in depressing job creation during the month.Winter storms spread from the Midwest and the South to New England, covering 71 percent of the country with snow on Jan. 12, according to the National Climatic Data Center. Last month, the average temperature was 30 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 1.1 degrees Celsius), the coolest January since 1994 when the temperature averaged 28 degrees Fahrenheit."We do see some grounds for optimism about the job market over the next few quarters, including notable declines in the unemployment rate in December and January, a drop in new claims for unemployment insurance, and an improvement in firms’ hiring plans," Bernanke told Congress March 1.Federal ReserveCentral bank policy makers will likely keep interest rates near zero and maintain plans to buy $600 billion in Treasury securities by June to boost the pace of recovery until they see signs of sustained job creation.Employment prospects for Americans are mixed. Lowe’s Cos., the second-biggest U.S. home-improvement retailer, is among companies trying to use its workforce more efficiently. The Mooresville, North Carolina-based chain said Jan. 25 it plans to cut 1,700 middle-management jobs and add 8,000 to 10,000 weekend sales positions to improve staffing during its busiest hours.At the same time, the two largest U.S. automakers are expanding as sales pick up. Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford plans to hire more than 7,000 workers in the next two years. Larger rival General Motors Co. (GM), based in Detroit, will add a third shift and about 750 jobs to its assembly plant in Flint, Michigan.State and local employment data are derived independently from the national statistics, which are typically released on the first Friday of every month. The state figures are subject to larger sampling errors because they come from smaller surveys, making the national figures more reliable, according to the government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Kowalski in Washington at akowalski13@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.netInformation from Bloomberg March 10th 2011
Information from Bloomberg 10th March 2011
Information from Bloomberg 10th March 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Women Lead Differently than Men
Susan T. Spencer is the only woman who was GM of an NFL team and an entrepreneur who successfully navigated the male-dominated world of meat processing. She is also the the author of “ Briefcase Essentials: Discover Your 12 Natural Talents for Achieving Success in a Male-Dominated Workplace”. The opinions expressed are her own.
As today is International Women’s Day, there’s no better time than now to look at the role of women in business and why their different leadership style can help improve the business world.
During the five years I spent as vice president, legal counsel, and acting general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles Football Team I had a unique opportunity to observe first-hand the vastly different ways that men and women lead. In this machismo world, I learned that women are sometimes better equipped to accomplish the same business goals as men.
One of the first changes I made as acting GM, in an effort to drastically cut costs, was to replace the existing jumbo jet—which transported the players, coaches, other Eagles personnel, press, and friends of friends to away games—with a smaller jet which could only accommodate team personnel.
Saving money was a new concept to the players, who assumed that sports teams had unlimited budgets when it came to spending money on them, and grumbled unhappily as they climbed aboard the replacement jet for the first time.After a few hours into the flight, the plane began to descend and the players were looking around wondering why. I thought it was best if I spared management the negative details of the new travel plans—which included a fuel stop in North Dakota on our way to California. My marching orders were to trim a million dollars off the budget and by downsizing our cross country travel, I was half way there.
While the plane was refueling the players waited in the small airport lounge but not before each player glared at me as they deplaned. Upon leaving the lounge to re-board the plane, their grumbling grew even louder and the expression on the faces of the players and coaches left no doubt that I was “public enemy number one.”
I understood my decision would be unpopular and considered how a man would handle this situation. From my observation of other GM’s, it goes something like this—“stop whining—man up, suck it up and shut up.”
My female approach was completely different. I recognized that in order for this change to work, there had to be a quid pro quo. As I left the plane, I didn’t join the team in the lounge but stayed nearby, waiting to pull a rabbit out of my hat. Carts filled with large cartons of Baskin-Robbins ice cream, containers oozing hot fudge, and bowls full of bananas, whipped cream, sprinkles, nuts and more were wheeled up to the plane’s steps. When everyone returned to the plane and saw the sweet extravaganza before them, they started hooting and applauding loudly. Giant scoops of ice cream and toppings were shoveled into large plastic bowls, handed to the players and carried onboard. Fifteen minutes later, the plane took off… and everyone was smiling and licking their lips.
If I had told any of the coaches or players that I was going to trade their jumbo jet for a jumbo ice cream sundae, they would have laughed in my face. Nonetheless, by coming up with a novel idea to make the change easier to swallow, I was able to lead effectively and not alienate the people I had to work with.
Being Resourceful
Yes, a spoonful of sugar does help the medicine go down, and yes, the way to a man’s heart is often through his stomach—old sayings familiar to everyone. While women take those sayings seriously, they also improvise by coming up with original and sometimes unconventional ideas to approach problematic situations differently. As leaders, they plan ahead by putting themselves in the shoes of others so that they can execute a strategy that addresses the reaction that is sure to come. I knew the players and coaches would not be thrilled with the new travel accommodations so I devised a response that would divert their attention and let them know I was aware of their discomfort.
Being Empathetic
Women are able, in part, to be more creative because they tend to be more empathetic. Psychologist and Cambridge University Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, who has studied the female brain and wrote a book on his findings, concludes that “the female brain is predominantly hard-wired for empathy.” And hundreds of studies indicate that women are more empathetic than men. Former BBC Producer turned CEO and author Margaret Heffernan connects the dots in her book How She Does It: How Women Entrepreneurs Are Changing the Rules of Business and finds that empathy and vision go hand in hand. Women’s empathy enables them to look at business issues through a wide angle lens verses men who tend to have tunnel vision.
As a leader of another company, I followed the old principle of not having a buddy-buddy relationship with my employees. In most cases it served me well except for the following one. As the CEO of Suzannah Farms, a ham processing company, I had to tell my employees that I could not fix this broken company that I purchased and operated for several years and that I was truly sorry but the plant would be closed in 60 days.
My plan was to tell the story in a calm, clear and unemotional way. But when I stood in front of the workers and looked into the eyes of the men and women I worked with every day, tears filled my eyes and the tears continued to fall until my speech was finished. I feared that an angry crowd of workers would mock me, but as I dried my eyes and tried to gain some composure, one of my workers shouted out, “You’re not so tough!” and the rest of the employees applauded and laughed warmly in appreciation.
It’s a rare moment when most bosses or figures of authority show this side of themselves, but if it’s sincere, it’s a moment that will be appreciated forever by everyone who witnesses it. Because I communicated openly and honestly with my employees, every worker stayed on and saw the company through until closing day, saving me from even greater losses. Empathy is an awesome skill when it is used carefully and wisely in business situations.
Being Inclusive
Women naturally are more “people persons” than men because they are comfortable relating one-on-one with people at all levels of an organization. We make it a point to be inclusive and know the names and faces of people we are working with. Businessmen, however, tend to act impersonally and do not interact at all levels; they are exclusive. For women the term “inclusive” carries with it an implicit acknowledgement that people come first. By being inclusive with every business contact—whether customer, supplier, or employee—it allows us to be straightforward with them, and thus more efficient, about business problems when they arise.
Women’s success in business proves that “manning-up” is no longer the sole definition of leadership. The definition of leadership should be expanded to also include the unique skills that women bring to the table
Article on Reuters 08 March 2011
As today is International Women’s Day, there’s no better time than now to look at the role of women in business and why their different leadership style can help improve the business world.
During the five years I spent as vice president, legal counsel, and acting general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles Football Team I had a unique opportunity to observe first-hand the vastly different ways that men and women lead. In this machismo world, I learned that women are sometimes better equipped to accomplish the same business goals as men.
One of the first changes I made as acting GM, in an effort to drastically cut costs, was to replace the existing jumbo jet—which transported the players, coaches, other Eagles personnel, press, and friends of friends to away games—with a smaller jet which could only accommodate team personnel.
Saving money was a new concept to the players, who assumed that sports teams had unlimited budgets when it came to spending money on them, and grumbled unhappily as they climbed aboard the replacement jet for the first time.After a few hours into the flight, the plane began to descend and the players were looking around wondering why. I thought it was best if I spared management the negative details of the new travel plans—which included a fuel stop in North Dakota on our way to California. My marching orders were to trim a million dollars off the budget and by downsizing our cross country travel, I was half way there.
While the plane was refueling the players waited in the small airport lounge but not before each player glared at me as they deplaned. Upon leaving the lounge to re-board the plane, their grumbling grew even louder and the expression on the faces of the players and coaches left no doubt that I was “public enemy number one.”
I understood my decision would be unpopular and considered how a man would handle this situation. From my observation of other GM’s, it goes something like this—“stop whining—man up, suck it up and shut up.”
My female approach was completely different. I recognized that in order for this change to work, there had to be a quid pro quo. As I left the plane, I didn’t join the team in the lounge but stayed nearby, waiting to pull a rabbit out of my hat. Carts filled with large cartons of Baskin-Robbins ice cream, containers oozing hot fudge, and bowls full of bananas, whipped cream, sprinkles, nuts and more were wheeled up to the plane’s steps. When everyone returned to the plane and saw the sweet extravaganza before them, they started hooting and applauding loudly. Giant scoops of ice cream and toppings were shoveled into large plastic bowls, handed to the players and carried onboard. Fifteen minutes later, the plane took off… and everyone was smiling and licking their lips.
If I had told any of the coaches or players that I was going to trade their jumbo jet for a jumbo ice cream sundae, they would have laughed in my face. Nonetheless, by coming up with a novel idea to make the change easier to swallow, I was able to lead effectively and not alienate the people I had to work with.
Being Resourceful
Yes, a spoonful of sugar does help the medicine go down, and yes, the way to a man’s heart is often through his stomach—old sayings familiar to everyone. While women take those sayings seriously, they also improvise by coming up with original and sometimes unconventional ideas to approach problematic situations differently. As leaders, they plan ahead by putting themselves in the shoes of others so that they can execute a strategy that addresses the reaction that is sure to come. I knew the players and coaches would not be thrilled with the new travel accommodations so I devised a response that would divert their attention and let them know I was aware of their discomfort.
Being Empathetic
Women are able, in part, to be more creative because they tend to be more empathetic. Psychologist and Cambridge University Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, who has studied the female brain and wrote a book on his findings, concludes that “the female brain is predominantly hard-wired for empathy.” And hundreds of studies indicate that women are more empathetic than men. Former BBC Producer turned CEO and author Margaret Heffernan connects the dots in her book How She Does It: How Women Entrepreneurs Are Changing the Rules of Business and finds that empathy and vision go hand in hand. Women’s empathy enables them to look at business issues through a wide angle lens verses men who tend to have tunnel vision.
As a leader of another company, I followed the old principle of not having a buddy-buddy relationship with my employees. In most cases it served me well except for the following one. As the CEO of Suzannah Farms, a ham processing company, I had to tell my employees that I could not fix this broken company that I purchased and operated for several years and that I was truly sorry but the plant would be closed in 60 days.
My plan was to tell the story in a calm, clear and unemotional way. But when I stood in front of the workers and looked into the eyes of the men and women I worked with every day, tears filled my eyes and the tears continued to fall until my speech was finished. I feared that an angry crowd of workers would mock me, but as I dried my eyes and tried to gain some composure, one of my workers shouted out, “You’re not so tough!” and the rest of the employees applauded and laughed warmly in appreciation.
It’s a rare moment when most bosses or figures of authority show this side of themselves, but if it’s sincere, it’s a moment that will be appreciated forever by everyone who witnesses it. Because I communicated openly and honestly with my employees, every worker stayed on and saw the company through until closing day, saving me from even greater losses. Empathy is an awesome skill when it is used carefully and wisely in business situations.
Being Inclusive
Women naturally are more “people persons” than men because they are comfortable relating one-on-one with people at all levels of an organization. We make it a point to be inclusive and know the names and faces of people we are working with. Businessmen, however, tend to act impersonally and do not interact at all levels; they are exclusive. For women the term “inclusive” carries with it an implicit acknowledgement that people come first. By being inclusive with every business contact—whether customer, supplier, or employee—it allows us to be straightforward with them, and thus more efficient, about business problems when they arise.
Women’s success in business proves that “manning-up” is no longer the sole definition of leadership. The definition of leadership should be expanded to also include the unique skills that women bring to the table
Article on Reuters 08 March 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Employment rebounds from winter gloom
U.S. employers hired workers at the fastest pace in nine months in February and the jobless rate slipped to a nearly two-year low of 8.9 percent, showing the economy is finally kicking into a higher gear.
Nonfarm payrolls increased 192,000, the Labor Department said on Friday, partly bouncing back from a weather-depressed January as private employers hired 222,000 workers, the most since April. The gains were broadly in line with expectations.
Jobs rose almost across the board, from factories to construction to most service industries. The loss of 30,000 jobs at cash-strapped state and local governments was an exception.
"It's belated evidence the expansion is finally beginning to make a dent in the jobs problem that the country has," said Patrick O'Keefe, head of Economic Research at J.H. Cohn in Roseland, New Jersey. "It's encouraging but it also highlights how far we have to go to regain our footing."
Until February, the government's employment gauge had largely underperformed other labor market indicators that showed an acceleration in the pace of job creation.
While Federal Reserve officials, who next meet on March 15, will likely welcome the sturdy report, they will probably still regard the pace of job creation as too slow to warrant a change to the U.S. central bank's ultra-easy monetary policies.
The unemployment rate, which stood at 9 percent in January, has dropped 0.9 of a percentage point over the past three months.
The latest drop, which confounded economists' forecasts for a rise to 9.1 percent, came even as some discouraged workers resumed the job hunt.
There are growing signs U.S. employers are getting ready to start hiring more aggressively.
Purdue University in Indiana has seen a 30 percent jump in the number of companies coming to its campus to interview undergraduates over the past year, said Tim Luzader, director of the Purdue Center for Career Opportunities.
Even so, caution prevails. More Purdue students have full-time job offers in hand this year "but we haven't seen hiring activity spike in the same way we've seen recruitment activity increase," Luzader says.
UPBEAT TENOR
Despite the relative strength of Friday's report, some investors were disappointed as they had anticipated an even bigger hiring gain. That dismay, along with a spike in oil prices due to intensifying clashes in Libya, helped push down U.S. stocks, which gave up the previous day's hefty gains.
Prices for U.S. government debt recouped some of Thursday's losses, while the dollar fell to a four-month low against a basket of currencies.
Contributing to the upbeat tenor of the report, the department said 58,000 more jobs were created in December and January than previously estimated.
Unless the shock from the Middle East worsens, an important caveat, an underlying acceleration in payroll growth is on the way," said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Though the economy has grown for six straight quarters and continues to show signs of gathering momentum, only a fraction of the more than 8 million jobs lost during the recession have been recovered.
Fed officials are closely watching the labor market and the unemployment rate could well determine the timing of their first interest rate hike. The central bank has held overnight lending rates near zero since December 2008.
Economists believe the Fed will want to see payroll gains in excess of 200,000 for at least six to nine months and a significant decline in unemployment before starting to withdraw its massive monetary support from the economy.
Many Fed officials think the jobless rate could be pushed to the 5-6 percent range without generating inflationary wage gains. The employment report showed average hourly earnings rose just one cent last month and were up a relatively slim 1.7 percent over the past year.
With ample slack still in the labor market, analysts expect the Fed to complete its $600 billion government bond-buying program, which is aimed at helping spur stronger growth. The program is due to wrap up in June.
"If we start to add enough jobs, sufficient to lower the unemployment rate, I think the Fed will feel a little more comfortable in easing off the throttle," said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody's Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
"But right now, the economy is still fragile. There are a number of potholes that we can hit and the Fed is not going to want to act on exiting any time soon."
Source Reuters by Lucia Mutikani
Nonfarm payrolls increased 192,000, the Labor Department said on Friday, partly bouncing back from a weather-depressed January as private employers hired 222,000 workers, the most since April. The gains were broadly in line with expectations.
Jobs rose almost across the board, from factories to construction to most service industries. The loss of 30,000 jobs at cash-strapped state and local governments was an exception.
"It's belated evidence the expansion is finally beginning to make a dent in the jobs problem that the country has," said Patrick O'Keefe, head of Economic Research at J.H. Cohn in Roseland, New Jersey. "It's encouraging but it also highlights how far we have to go to regain our footing."
Until February, the government's employment gauge had largely underperformed other labor market indicators that showed an acceleration in the pace of job creation.
While Federal Reserve officials, who next meet on March 15, will likely welcome the sturdy report, they will probably still regard the pace of job creation as too slow to warrant a change to the U.S. central bank's ultra-easy monetary policies.
The unemployment rate, which stood at 9 percent in January, has dropped 0.9 of a percentage point over the past three months.
The latest drop, which confounded economists' forecasts for a rise to 9.1 percent, came even as some discouraged workers resumed the job hunt.
There are growing signs U.S. employers are getting ready to start hiring more aggressively.
Purdue University in Indiana has seen a 30 percent jump in the number of companies coming to its campus to interview undergraduates over the past year, said Tim Luzader, director of the Purdue Center for Career Opportunities.
Even so, caution prevails. More Purdue students have full-time job offers in hand this year "but we haven't seen hiring activity spike in the same way we've seen recruitment activity increase," Luzader says.
UPBEAT TENOR
Despite the relative strength of Friday's report, some investors were disappointed as they had anticipated an even bigger hiring gain. That dismay, along with a spike in oil prices due to intensifying clashes in Libya, helped push down U.S. stocks, which gave up the previous day's hefty gains.
Prices for U.S. government debt recouped some of Thursday's losses, while the dollar fell to a four-month low against a basket of currencies.
Contributing to the upbeat tenor of the report, the department said 58,000 more jobs were created in December and January than previously estimated.
Unless the shock from the Middle East worsens, an important caveat, an underlying acceleration in payroll growth is on the way," said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Though the economy has grown for six straight quarters and continues to show signs of gathering momentum, only a fraction of the more than 8 million jobs lost during the recession have been recovered.
Fed officials are closely watching the labor market and the unemployment rate could well determine the timing of their first interest rate hike. The central bank has held overnight lending rates near zero since December 2008.
Economists believe the Fed will want to see payroll gains in excess of 200,000 for at least six to nine months and a significant decline in unemployment before starting to withdraw its massive monetary support from the economy.
Many Fed officials think the jobless rate could be pushed to the 5-6 percent range without generating inflationary wage gains. The employment report showed average hourly earnings rose just one cent last month and were up a relatively slim 1.7 percent over the past year.
With ample slack still in the labor market, analysts expect the Fed to complete its $600 billion government bond-buying program, which is aimed at helping spur stronger growth. The program is due to wrap up in June.
"If we start to add enough jobs, sufficient to lower the unemployment rate, I think the Fed will feel a little more comfortable in easing off the throttle," said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody's Analytics in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
"But right now, the economy is still fragile. There are a number of potholes that we can hit and the Fed is not going to want to act on exiting any time soon."
Source Reuters by Lucia Mutikani
Friday, March 4, 2011
Why Scotland, Ireland...and Bournemouth are increasingly desirable locations for financial technologists
With more financial services firms 'nearshoring' IT functions, the prospect of a move to Ireland, Scotland or even Bournemouth for technologists seems like an increasingly attractive option.
Fidelity Investments has just unveiled plans to create 100 tech jobs in its Dublin and Galway offices – entry to management level positions for Java, .Net and database developers – and it's by no means alone in basing these roles outside of London.
Citi has been eagerly building its technology team in Belfast and Dublin, while Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan have been adding to their IT headcount in Glasgow. And the latter bank's Bournemouth operations now employ more than 4,000 people.
The obvious motivation for this is cost-reduction, with both labour and office space cheaper in these locations. But it's surely not great news for technologists with aspirations to stay in the comparatively high-paying roles in the City?
"When you factor in the total cost ownership, things like testing and correction of errors, it's actually nearly as cheap for banks to carry out IT functions in Europe as it is to offshore it to Asia," says Martyn Hart, chairman of the National Outsourcing Association.
"There are locations in the UK and Ireland with a highly skilled workforce and relatively high unemployment. A lot of these technology functions would have been offshored anyway, as banks look to cut costs, so you could argue the net job cost to the City is minimal."
And with increasing job opportunities in these locations, it's arguable that working there should no longer be considered such a career cul-de-sac. But do these firms rely on local talent, or are they sufficiently attractive to people outside of the regions?
"The jobs being carried out here are relatively high level, but they're not front office IT roles, quantitative development roles or other niche skills that pay so well in the City," says one hiring manager at a bank in Belfast. "If a company hires 100 people, 10 of these will be for senior architects, which could feasibly come from London, but the other 90 could be for junior or graduate hires from the local market."
A project manager in Dublin can expect a maximum of €70-80k, suggest recruiters, while very experienced developers (10+ years) can earn £60-70k in Belfast.
"Historically, these firms have struggled to persuade people from the City to move to these locations," says Justin Willis, London director of IT in finance recruiters Bright Purple. "This is changing but usually there's a personal connection – a Scot moving back home, for instance. It's no longer such a huge step because of the range of options now available. In Scotland, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Barclays Wealth all have tech functions, for instance."
It's not just banks that are building their teams in this area, technology vendors are also realising the cost benefits. Murex carries development work out of Dublin, Fidessa is planning another 90 hires this year in Belfast and First Derivatives continues to recruit aggressively for its Belfast and Newry offices.
Similarly, Vertex Group is building its team in the Glasgow financial services district as is Odyssey Financial Technologies.
"We're likely to match our 2010 headcount increases this year, and are still finding it challenging to recruit top quality C# and Java developers as well as business analysts and project managers," says Fearghal McGovern, business development manager at First Derivatives.
Source efinancialcareers.ie By Paul Clarke
Fidelity Investments has just unveiled plans to create 100 tech jobs in its Dublin and Galway offices – entry to management level positions for Java, .Net and database developers – and it's by no means alone in basing these roles outside of London.
Citi has been eagerly building its technology team in Belfast and Dublin, while Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan have been adding to their IT headcount in Glasgow. And the latter bank's Bournemouth operations now employ more than 4,000 people.
The obvious motivation for this is cost-reduction, with both labour and office space cheaper in these locations. But it's surely not great news for technologists with aspirations to stay in the comparatively high-paying roles in the City?
"When you factor in the total cost ownership, things like testing and correction of errors, it's actually nearly as cheap for banks to carry out IT functions in Europe as it is to offshore it to Asia," says Martyn Hart, chairman of the National Outsourcing Association.
"There are locations in the UK and Ireland with a highly skilled workforce and relatively high unemployment. A lot of these technology functions would have been offshored anyway, as banks look to cut costs, so you could argue the net job cost to the City is minimal."
And with increasing job opportunities in these locations, it's arguable that working there should no longer be considered such a career cul-de-sac. But do these firms rely on local talent, or are they sufficiently attractive to people outside of the regions?
"The jobs being carried out here are relatively high level, but they're not front office IT roles, quantitative development roles or other niche skills that pay so well in the City," says one hiring manager at a bank in Belfast. "If a company hires 100 people, 10 of these will be for senior architects, which could feasibly come from London, but the other 90 could be for junior or graduate hires from the local market."
A project manager in Dublin can expect a maximum of €70-80k, suggest recruiters, while very experienced developers (10+ years) can earn £60-70k in Belfast.
"Historically, these firms have struggled to persuade people from the City to move to these locations," says Justin Willis, London director of IT in finance recruiters Bright Purple. "This is changing but usually there's a personal connection – a Scot moving back home, for instance. It's no longer such a huge step because of the range of options now available. In Scotland, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Barclays Wealth all have tech functions, for instance."
It's not just banks that are building their teams in this area, technology vendors are also realising the cost benefits. Murex carries development work out of Dublin, Fidessa is planning another 90 hires this year in Belfast and First Derivatives continues to recruit aggressively for its Belfast and Newry offices.
Similarly, Vertex Group is building its team in the Glasgow financial services district as is Odyssey Financial Technologies.
"We're likely to match our 2010 headcount increases this year, and are still finding it challenging to recruit top quality C# and Java developers as well as business analysts and project managers," says Fearghal McGovern, business development manager at First Derivatives.
Source efinancialcareers.ie By Paul Clarke
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Job market shows further improvement
The number of people placed in permanent jobs in Britain rose in February at its fastest pace since July 2007 while salaries rose at the fastest pace in almost two years, a survey showed on Wednesday.
The REC/KPMG index of permanent placements by recruitment agencies rose to 63.2 last month from 60.5 in January - the seventh month running that it has been above the 50 level that separates growth from contraction.
The index of temporary staff placements slipped back however to 57.9 from 59.0.
Average salaries for permanent staff rose for a fourth consecutive month, the survey showed, with the index rising to 54.1 from 53.0 in January. The salary index for temporary staff was little changed at 50.3.
"The UK job market is continuing to improve," said Kevin Green, chief executive of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation. "High-end sectors such as IT are showing particularly strong growth and we are also seeing significant increases in demand for administrative and back-office support."
But the labour market recovery could be stifled by cutbacks in public sector jobs expected after this year's election to tackle the government's ballooning budget deficit, said Bernard Brown, KPMG's head of business services.
"The impact of the inevitable public-sector recession on the jobs market has yet to be felt and will be played out over the next six to 12 months," he added.
Source Reuters: Reporting by Christina Fincher
The REC/KPMG index of permanent placements by recruitment agencies rose to 63.2 last month from 60.5 in January - the seventh month running that it has been above the 50 level that separates growth from contraction.
The index of temporary staff placements slipped back however to 57.9 from 59.0.
Average salaries for permanent staff rose for a fourth consecutive month, the survey showed, with the index rising to 54.1 from 53.0 in January. The salary index for temporary staff was little changed at 50.3.
"The UK job market is continuing to improve," said Kevin Green, chief executive of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation. "High-end sectors such as IT are showing particularly strong growth and we are also seeing significant increases in demand for administrative and back-office support."
But the labour market recovery could be stifled by cutbacks in public sector jobs expected after this year's election to tackle the government's ballooning budget deficit, said Bernard Brown, KPMG's head of business services.
"The impact of the inevitable public-sector recession on the jobs market has yet to be felt and will be played out over the next six to 12 months," he added.
Source Reuters: Reporting by Christina Fincher
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