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Really? Caveat emptor

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Most if not all the corporate world is run by money managers anymore hoping for the most coming in and the least going out. I suspect if they were allowed to most would stop offering a service or product and just send each one of us a bill each month for some amount we're required to pay. Then only need accountants to add it all up and no factories/offices/etc.
 
Sort of related, regarding costs... I attended a lecture on building restoration and architecture. Public buildings years ago were really distinctive matybe even ornate; current buildings seem almost austere. I asked what changed since that time. She said in most cases, the workers started receiving a living wage, suggesting their time, skill, had been near the bottom of expences. She cited the "budget" for the Paris Notre Dame cathedral listed the stone and feed fpr the horses way above the wages of the stone masons.
 
Trevor Triumph said:
Sort of related, regarding costs... I attended a lecture on building restoration and architecture. Public buildings years ago were really distinctive matybe even ornate; current buildings seem almost austere. I asked what changed since that time. She said in most cases, the workers started receiving a living wage, suggesting their time, skill, had been near the bottom of expences. She cited the "budget" for the Paris Notre Dame cathedral listed the stone and feed fpr the horses way above the wages of the stone masons.
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Interesting. Thanks for sharing.
 
... run by money managers anymore hoping for the most coming in and the least going out.

Sounds like a certain big USA airplane company which has been experiencing bad results and lives lost, from cost cutting.
:whistle:
 
Popeye said:
Interesting. Thanks for sharing.
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Interesting indeed and also worth noting that the public outcry over any overrun for virtually any building that adds and flourishes to make it beautiful could be heard from the moon. A friend oversaw the building of a new church and it is all the more beautiful for a small percentage (I think 4%) added to making it beautiful. It would be a very utilitarian building otherwise.
 
NutmegCT said:
... run by money managers anymore hoping for the most coming in and the least going out.

Sounds like a certain big USA airplane company which has been experiencing bad results and lives lost, from cost cutting.
:whistle:
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And, stranding two astronauts :sneaky:
 
NutmegCT said:
... run by money managers anymore hoping for the most coming in and the least going out.

Sounds like a certain big USA airplane company which has been experiencing bad results and lives lost, from cost cutting.
:whistle:
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I tried to find the article I read recently that pointed to Boeing as an example of the persistant myth that you can just drop in a 'halo' CEO and everything will be grand. Prior to the new CEO Boeing was vertically and horizontally integrated. He determined that outsourcing all but core activities was the route to go. It wasn't. The author of the article made the point that the more complex your product is, the more critical it is to recruit leadership from within as they will more fully understand the complexity and the processes of the system.

Over years of observation the new parachuted CEO typically either finishes crashing an already precarious company or guts it for his and his crony's benefit (see money managers above). It does work occasionally but, like re-structuring - which works about 4% of the time - not often.
 
Senior level management in many large organizations move around from company to company every few years, so long term vision is no longer in many cases something that they have. See if you can cut costs over the short term, reward yourself and your senior team with stock and bonus cash and hope to be gone before it catches up. Yes, I'm a bit cynical after near 45 years in corporate America and watching how it has changed.
 
mikephillips said:
Senior level management in many large organizations move around from company to company every few years, so long term vision is no longer in many cases something that they have. See if you can cut costs over the short term, reward yourself and your senior team with stock and bonus cash and hope to be gone before it catches up. Yes, I'm a bit cynical after near 45 years in corporate America and watching how it has changed.
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The Johnson and Johnson credo is a great example of how business could be run: > Our Credo <

"We believe our first responsibility is to the patients, doctors and nurses, to mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services. ...
"We are responsible to our employees ...
"We are responsible to the communities in which we live and work ...
"Our final responsibility is to our stockholders. ... When we operate according to these principles, the stockholders should realize a fair return."
 
That J&J credo should be demanded by stockholders of every public company in the USA.

In contrast ...

www.bbc.com

Boeing boss's $33m pay package approved

Boeing shareholders approved a $33m pay package for outgoing boss Dave Calhoun.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 
NutmegCT said:
That J&J credo should be demanded by stockholders of every public company in the USA.

In contrast ...

www.bbc.com

Boeing boss's $33m pay package approved

Boeing shareholders approved a $33m pay package for outgoing boss Dave Calhoun.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
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Unfortunately "the stockholders" are often private equity firms which force the company to self-destruct in the name of short term gain for themselves, then they do a profit-taking sell off and let the company crash and burn in their rearview mirror while they seek a new target. I really like that J & J credo (and wonder if it is still in force since J&J themselves have been subject to buyouts and takeovers), Red Lobster is a pretty solid recent example of this.
 
When I was studying and writing for a Masters program in counseling, I had to access the web sites for various pharmaceutical companies. I was mildly concerned that big letters, numbers (font) and colors, drew attention to the current stock quote. Then, in less attention grabbing font and colors, was ther mission statement regarding providing beneficial medication. Made me wonder...
 
YakkoWarner said:
Unfortunately "the stockholders" are often private equity firms which force the company to self-destruct in the name of short term gain for themselves, then they do a profit-taking sell off and let the company crash and burn in their rearview mirror while they seek a new target. I really like that J & J credo (and wonder if it is still in force since J&J themselves have been subject to buyouts and takeovers), Red Lobster is a pretty solid recent example of this.
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Yes, they're more interested in what the numbers will be next quarter than what will be the impact a year, 5 years and longer from now. they'll move in grab the cash and move out and if the target fails later, not their problem. And I've read that equity firms are getting aggressive in the housing industry. Supposed to be upwards of 1200 homes this year have been or are being built in this area for rental by corporate entities. And I get stuff all the time, "sell us you house and rent it back" claiming how much cheaper it will be for me as they will "cover" all tax, repair/upgrade and other costs. Leaving aside the fact my place is paid off, they're in it for money not you or I. We had an elderly fellow early this year sold his to an investment firm with the promise he could stay as long as he wanted. Seems in the tiny fine print as long as he wanted was defined as no more than 60 days so at the end they marched in and tossed him out to do basic remodel/cleanup and put it in the rental market for well over a grand a month.
 
Here in the UK we have equity release companies, that will buy your house off you or give you any amount up to the value of the equity you have in the property if you have not fully purchased it,
Adverts all over the TV.
then you are allowed to live in the house and enjoy the money anyway you choose, when you catch the final flight out of here the house becomes theres, But in the small print it is only a lone and interest is added on monthly.
So if you release half the equity in the hope of leaving the other half to your kids, there may be nothing left for them if you live long enough.
 
Mezy - sounds like a what we have in the USA, called a "reverse mortgage". A lender (usually a bank) gives you a chunk of money based on the value of your house. You use that money as you want - home improvement, travel, cases of Glen Fiddich, whatever. As long as you live in the house, you don't have to pay anything back. But the amount of the reverse mortgage, plus accumulated interest, is now a debt to be paid by the next owner.
 
NutmegCT said:
Mezy - sounds like a what we have in the USA, called a "reverse mortgage". A lender (usually a bank) gives you a chunk of money based on the value of your house. You use that money as you want - home improvement, travel, cases of Glen Fiddich, whatever. As long as you live in the house, you don't have to pay anything back. But the amount of the reverse mortgage, plus accumulated interest, is now a debt to be paid by the next owner.
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And..... if you end up in a hospital or nursing facility and you are not occupying the house they can take it.
 
Celebrities telling us how great something is? hmmm - could that possibly be the celebrities (or whoever ...) doing that for a "fee"?

pepcereal.jpg


Had your Pep cereal today?
 
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