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Corporate Brand Management: Marken als Anker strategischer Führung von Unternehmen
by Franz-Rudolf Esch Torsten Tomczak Joachim Kernstock Tobias LangnerDie Autoren zeigen, wie Unternehmen ein wirksames und wertschöpfendes Corporate Brand Management als marktorientiertes Führungskonzept etablieren können. Im Mittelpunkt steht dabei die Entwicklung, Gestaltung und Umsetzung der Beziehung zwischen der Unternehmensmarke und ihren Kunden, Mitarbeitern, Shareholdern, Stakeholdern sowie den Produkt- und Familienmarken. Das Führungskonzept wird anhand zahlreicher Praxisbeispiele illustriert. Die 2. Auflage wurde aktualisiert und ergänzt.
Corporate Brand Management: Marken als Anker strategischer Führung von Unternehmen (Journal Of Brand Management: Advanced Collections)
by Franz-Rudolf Esch Torsten Tomczak Joachim Kernstock Tobias Langner Jörn RedlerMit diesem Buch bauen Sie ein effektives Corporate Brand Management auf Sie möchten Ihre Unternehmensmarke effektiver einsetzen? Dieses Buch über das Corporate Brand Management hilft Ihnen dabei. Es zeigt Ihnen, wie Sie Ihre Markenführung wirksam verbessern können. Die Autoren haben einen strukturierten Leitfaden geschaffen, mit dem Sie Schritt für Schritt – von der Entwicklung bis zur Umsetzung – ein Führungskonzept für das Markenmanagement aufbauen. Dabei helfen Ihnen zahlreiche Praxisbeispiele, die die theoretischen Ausführungen immer wieder auflockern. Die 4. Auflage wurde erweitert und überarbeitet In der 4. Auflage dieses Buches haben die Herausgeber noch weitere Aspekte des Corporate Brand Managements aufgenommen. Vor allem aktuelle Fragestellungen zu Digitalisierung, Markenkommunikation und -kooperation spielen eine Rolle. Das Werk richtet sich vor allem an Manager und Experten aus der Werbeforschung.
Corporate Brand Management: Marken als Anker strategischer Führung von Unternehmen (Journal Of Brand Management: Advanced Collections)
by Franz-Rudolf Esch Torsten Tomczak Joachim Kernstock Tobias Langner Jörn RedlerDie Autoren zeigen, wie Unternehmen ein wirksames und wertschöpfendes Corporate Brand Management als marktorientiertes Führungskonzept etablieren können. Im Mittelpunkt steht dabei die Entwicklung, Gestaltung und Umsetzung der Beziehung zwischen der Unternehmensmarke und ihren Kunden, Mitarbeitern, Shareholdern, Stakeholdern sowie den Produkt- und Familienmarken. Das Führungskonzept wird anhand zahlreicher Praxisbeispiele illustriert. Die 2. Auflage wurde aktualisiert und ergänzt.
Corporate Brand Management international tätiger Unternehmen: Verhaltenswissenschaftliche Analyse interner und externer Zielgruppeneffekte unter Berücksichtigung landeskultureller Aspekte (Handel und Internationales Marketing Retailing and International Marketing)
by Judith GierschBasierend auf einem theoretisch hergeleiteten, integrierten Modell untersucht Judith Giersch anhand von zwei internationalen empirischen Studien diejenigen Effekte eines Corporate Brand Managements, die direkt bei Kunden und Mitarbeitern wirksam werden und damit indirekt den Unternehmenswert beeinflussen. Ausgezeichnet mit dem 1. Preis des Markenverbandes 2008.
Corporate Brand Personality: Re-focus Your Organization's Culture to Build Trust, Respect and Authenticity
by Lesley EverettCorporate Brand Personality addresses the increasing need for organizations to refocus and realign their corporate culture in order to compete in a business world that demands trust, respect and strong values. Moving beyond simply how products are marketed and perceived, it shows the reader how to lead and engage people at every level within the organization to ensure consistent engagement with brand values. Including practical models to show how corporate culture and values can be managed and improved, Corporate Brand Personality also provides real examples and case studies from the Marriott Hotel Group and Water Wellbeing Group among others that show how people's behaviours can deeply affect brand reputation through all areas of the business. Incorporating a complete strategy from start to finish, this book will help the reader build visible leadership, project an authentic brand image and reinforce their company's values.
Corporate Branding: Areas, arenas and approaches
by T C Melewar S F AlwiA strong corporate image has power in a competitive marketplace. Its influence on reputational value and customer decision-making is only now beginning to be understood. Interest in corporate branding is exploding as marketing academics and professionals begin to realize how it can boost business performance in measurable ways. For example, it promotes customer patronage without expensive advertising and raises profitability by enabling companies to leverage their brand image when buying from particular sources. Yet there are few empirical studies available to clarify its basic tenets and fewer still that help us understand corporate branding in different parts of the world. Existing books focus mainly on conceptual ideas and real-life examples. Corporate Branding: Areas, arenas and approaches is a unique take on corporate branding that provides a global overview through rigorous research of different geographical areas across industries. An international range of leading scholars contribute their coverage across three clear themes: Area: geographical areas across the globe including the UK, USA, Europe and Asia;Arena: a variety of commercial and not-for-profit sectors, both B2B and B2C;Approach: methodological approaches to brand research design, including qualitative, quantitative, case studies, interpretivistic and social narrative. These three themes enable the reader to consider corporate branding from more perspectives and in more ways than any other corporate branding book. The result is an understanding of this strategically important, growing subject that cannot be found anywhere else. This book is an essential read for any branding student or interested professional.
Corporate Branding: Areas, arenas and approaches
by T C Melewar S F AlwiA strong corporate image has power in a competitive marketplace. Its influence on reputational value and customer decision-making is only now beginning to be understood. Interest in corporate branding is exploding as marketing academics and professionals begin to realize how it can boost business performance in measurable ways. For example, it promotes customer patronage without expensive advertising and raises profitability by enabling companies to leverage their brand image when buying from particular sources. Yet there are few empirical studies available to clarify its basic tenets and fewer still that help us understand corporate branding in different parts of the world. Existing books focus mainly on conceptual ideas and real-life examples. Corporate Branding: Areas, arenas and approaches is a unique take on corporate branding that provides a global overview through rigorous research of different geographical areas across industries. An international range of leading scholars contribute their coverage across three clear themes: Area: geographical areas across the globe including the UK, USA, Europe and Asia;Arena: a variety of commercial and not-for-profit sectors, both B2B and B2C;Approach: methodological approaches to brand research design, including qualitative, quantitative, case studies, interpretivistic and social narrative. These three themes enable the reader to consider corporate branding from more perspectives and in more ways than any other corporate branding book. The result is an understanding of this strategically important, growing subject that cannot be found anywhere else. This book is an essential read for any branding student or interested professional.
Corporate Branding im Spannungsfeld von Unternehmens- und Marketingkommunikation: Grundlagen, Fallstudien und empirische Erkenntnisse in Commodity-Branchen
by Werner Süss Ansgar Zerfaß Lisa DühringDie Autoren diskutieren die konzeptionellen Grundlagen des Kommunikations- und Markenmanagements in Commodity-Branchen, analysieren mehrere Fallstudien und stellen die Ergebnisse einer deutschlandweiten Studie bei Marketing- und Kommunikationsmanagern vor.
Corporate Branding in Logistics and Transportation: Recent Developments and Emerging Issues (Routledge Studies in Marketing)
by Rahman, Nor Aida Abdul T. C. Melewar Pantea Foroudi Suraksha GuptaThe academic and scholarly interest in the subject of branding in both the consumer and industrial markets has grown substantially in the dynamic post-pandemic environment. The growth in research outputs by a handful of business scholars explains the impact of brand in an industrial business-to-business setting at the cognitive level only and has not considered its impact specifically on logistics and transportation despite the value it can offer. Considering these gaps in the periphery of our existing knowledge, this book explores corporate brand management within the logistics and transportation sector, from the perspective of image, reputation, and identity.This edited collection offers a blend of comprehensive and extensive high quality research from global, highly reputed contributors. It covers issues related to the establishment of brands, relevant niches such as service performance and social support, aviation and maritime industries, media relations, crisis branding, and innovation. Exploring a wide range of sectors within logistics and transport, the book illustrates the many dimensions of corporate branding and theories, future trends and developments, as well as proposing a model for future research.Containing a balance of theory and practice with effective case studies, Corporate Branding in Logistics and Transportation will appeal to marketing academics and upper-level graduates in particular. It will also be a valuable resource for those studying or researching logistics, supply chain management, and transport studies.
Corporate Branding in Logistics and Transportation: Recent Developments and Emerging Issues (Routledge Studies in Marketing)
The academic and scholarly interest in the subject of branding in both the consumer and industrial markets has grown substantially in the dynamic post-pandemic environment. The growth in research outputs by a handful of business scholars explains the impact of brand in an industrial business-to-business setting at the cognitive level only and has not considered its impact specifically on logistics and transportation despite the value it can offer. Considering these gaps in the periphery of our existing knowledge, this book explores corporate brand management within the logistics and transportation sector, from the perspective of image, reputation, and identity.This edited collection offers a blend of comprehensive and extensive high quality research from global, highly reputed contributors. It covers issues related to the establishment of brands, relevant niches such as service performance and social support, aviation and maritime industries, media relations, crisis branding, and innovation. Exploring a wide range of sectors within logistics and transport, the book illustrates the many dimensions of corporate branding and theories, future trends and developments, as well as proposing a model for future research.Containing a balance of theory and practice with effective case studies, Corporate Branding in Logistics and Transportation will appeal to marketing academics and upper-level graduates in particular. It will also be a valuable resource for those studying or researching logistics, supply chain management, and transport studies.
Corporate Branding von Gründungsunternehmen: Der erfolgreiche Aufbau der Unternehmensmarke (Entrepreneurship)
by Verena RodeVerena Rode zeigt Wirkungszusammenhänge auf und identifiziert wichtige potenzielle Problemfelder bei der Umsetzung von Corporate Culture, Corporate Behavior, Corporate Design und Corporate Communication.
Corporate Business Responsibility (The Library of Corporate Responsibilities)
by Justin O’BrienThe 2008/9 crisis in global commercial debt markets exposed glaring deficiencies in corporate and regulatory operational and strategic risk management systems. This collection provides an overview of how narrow conceptions of responsibility in corporate law, organizational practice and regulatory dynamics facilitated the crisis. The first section revisits the debates about the role of the corporation prompted by the publication of The Modern Corporation and Private Property (1932). The second section explores why the conception of enlightened shareholder interest gained and retained potency despite demonstrable failure. The third section explores how the interaction between the foundational assumptions of corporate law and the (questionable) efficacy of shareholder control framed regulatory responses to the growth of financial capitalism. The fourth section examines ways in which excess can be restrained by the interaction between hard law, softer governance arrangements such as principles and, crucially, norms.
Corporate Business Responsibility (The Library of Corporate Responsibilities)
by Justin O'BrienThe 2008/9 crisis in global commercial debt markets exposed glaring deficiencies in corporate and regulatory operational and strategic risk management systems. This collection provides an overview of how narrow conceptions of responsibility in corporate law, organizational practice and regulatory dynamics facilitated the crisis. The first section revisits the debates about the role of the corporation prompted by the publication of The Modern Corporation and Private Property (1932). The second section explores why the conception of enlightened shareholder interest gained and retained potency despite demonstrable failure. The third section explores how the interaction between the foundational assumptions of corporate law and the (questionable) efficacy of shareholder control framed regulatory responses to the growth of financial capitalism. The fourth section examines ways in which excess can be restrained by the interaction between hard law, softer governance arrangements such as principles and, crucially, norms.
Corporate Cancel Culture and Brand Boycotts: The Dark Side of Social Media for Brands
by Angeline Close ScheinbaumThis topical book examines and tests the complexities of unintended consequences of social media that often impact brands and companies from both an economic and a reputational lens. This book introduces the term “corporate cancel culture,” highlighting the growing trend among customers to leverage social media to communicate their grievances with companies. This book reports challenges of social media platforms to brands and companies. The challenges addressed entail including social media trolls, the power of influencers, the dark web, cancel culture in sports due to political constraints, social media influencer livestreams, and misinformation. Written by a team of experts from North America, Europe, South America, and Asia, this book showcases real‑world expertise in marketing, branding, consumer psychology, economics, and communication. This book also considers solutions for brands and companies who need to address the dark side of social media by offering insights on fostering accountability among brands and business leaders and providing a roadmap to mitigate consumer resistance.Corporate Cancel Culture and Brand Boycotts: The Dark Side of Social Media for Brands is a must read for students of psychology, marketing, public relations, management, and social media. It will also be of interest to users of social media – both consumers and business/organizations. It is especially valuable for marketing/advertising professionals, social media professionals/influencers, and business executives. It is designed to be read alongside The Dark Side of Social Media: A Consumer Psychology Perspective.
Corporate Cancel Culture and Brand Boycotts: The Dark Side of Social Media for Brands
by Angeline Close ScheinbaumThis topical book examines and tests the complexities of unintended consequences of social media that often impact brands and companies from both an economic and a reputational lens. This book introduces the term “corporate cancel culture,” highlighting the growing trend among customers to leverage social media to communicate their grievances with companies. This book reports challenges of social media platforms to brands and companies. The challenges addressed entail including social media trolls, the power of influencers, the dark web, cancel culture in sports due to political constraints, social media influencer livestreams, and misinformation. Written by a team of experts from North America, Europe, South America, and Asia, this book showcases real‑world expertise in marketing, branding, consumer psychology, economics, and communication. This book also considers solutions for brands and companies who need to address the dark side of social media by offering insights on fostering accountability among brands and business leaders and providing a roadmap to mitigate consumer resistance.Corporate Cancel Culture and Brand Boycotts: The Dark Side of Social Media for Brands is a must read for students of psychology, marketing, public relations, management, and social media. It will also be of interest to users of social media – both consumers and business/organizations. It is especially valuable for marketing/advertising professionals, social media professionals/influencers, and business executives. It is designed to be read alongside The Dark Side of Social Media: A Consumer Psychology Perspective.
Corporate Capital Structure in Europe: The Role of Country, Industry and Firm Size (Routledge Studies in the Economics of Business and Industry)
by Julia Koralun-Bereźnicka Magdalena Gostkowska-Drzewicka Ewa MajerowskaThis book offers a comprehensive examination of the factors affecting corporate capital structures across 12 European Union countries, focusing on the influence of country-specific, industry-specific and firm-size-related determinants.It provides a comprehensive review of various interpretations of the capital structure concept and offers a detailed characterisation of commonly employed metrics. Furthermore, it offers an overview of capital structure theories and attempts to classify the factors that shape the financial leverage of enterprises within the framework of these theories. Additionally, it draws readers’ attention to contemporary factors potentially affecting corporate financing decisions, such as Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations or technological advances and innovations in finance. It combines theoretical insights with empirical research to explore the direct and indirect impacts of these factors on companies’ financing patterns.Targeting a broad readership including students, Ph.D. candidates, researchers, academics and financial practitioners, the book offers a rich understanding of capital structure optimisation and its significance for enhancing company value. Through its coverage of various capital structure theories, determinants and the role of external and internal factors in capital structure decisions, the book is an essential resource for those interested in the complex nature of these influences within the European landscape.With the exception of Chapter 2, no part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Chapter 2 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license. Any third party material in this book is not included in the OA Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. Please direct any permissions enquiries to the original rightsholder.
Corporate Capital Structure in Europe: The Role of Country, Industry and Firm Size (Routledge Studies in the Economics of Business and Industry)
by Julia Koralun-Bereźnicka Magdalena Gostkowska-Drzewicka Ewa MajerowskaThis book offers a comprehensive examination of the factors affecting corporate capital structures across 12 European Union countries, focusing on the influence of country-specific, industry-specific and firm-size-related determinants.It provides a comprehensive review of various interpretations of the capital structure concept and offers a detailed characterisation of commonly employed metrics. Furthermore, it offers an overview of capital structure theories and attempts to classify the factors that shape the financial leverage of enterprises within the framework of these theories. Additionally, it draws readers’ attention to contemporary factors potentially affecting corporate financing decisions, such as Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations or technological advances and innovations in finance. It combines theoretical insights with empirical research to explore the direct and indirect impacts of these factors on companies’ financing patterns.Targeting a broad readership including students, Ph.D. candidates, researchers, academics and financial practitioners, the book offers a rich understanding of capital structure optimisation and its significance for enhancing company value. Through its coverage of various capital structure theories, determinants and the role of external and internal factors in capital structure decisions, the book is an essential resource for those interested in the complex nature of these influences within the European landscape.With the exception of Chapter 2, no part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Chapter 2 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license. Any third party material in this book is not included in the OA Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. Please direct any permissions enquiries to the original rightsholder.
Corporate Capital Structures in the United States (National Bureau of Economic Research Project Report)
by Benjamin M. FriedmanThe research reported in this volume represents the second stage of a wide-ranging National Bureau of Economic Research effort to investigate "The Changing Role of Debt and Equity in Financing U.S. Capital Formation." The first group of studies sponsored under this project, which have been published individually and summarized in a 1982 volume bearing the same title (Friedman 1982), addressed several key issues relevant to corporate sector behavior along with such other aspects of the evolving financial underpinnings of U.S. capital formation as household saving incentives, international capital flows, and government debt management. In the project's second series of studies, presented at the National Bureau of Economic Research conference in January 1983 and published here for the first time along with commentaries from that conference, the central focus is the financial side of capital formation undertaken by the U.S. corporate business sector. At the same time, because corporations' securities must be held, a parallel focus is on the behavior of the markets that price these claims.
Corporate Capitalism and Political Philosophy
by Suman GuptaCorporate capitalism is usually examined from a sociological or economic viewpoint, and this book breaks new ground in providing a thorough account of the mechanisms which define it from a philosophical perspective, revealing how these processes determine the way we live today.*BR**BR*Marxist and other left-oriented political philosophies had ideological roots that were based, sometimes incongruously, on particular economic and sociological readings of the capitalist process. Political philosophies associated with conservatism and neoliberalism have either been assimilated within capitalist discourses, or they have been designed to justify corporate capitalist processes. *BR**BR*This book re-examines these issues with an unusually dispassionate approach, providing a systematic view of contemporary corporate capitalism in all its complexity, without expecting the reader to have a specialist knowledge of sociology or economics. It clarifies the scope of political philosophy by reflecting on its own methodology and practice, and offers a controversial conclusion that within contemporary corporate capitalist modes of organisation there is actually no space left for political philosophy at all, as corporate capitalism systematically denies all political agents an ability to exercise their political will.
Corporate Capitalism and the Integral State: General Electric and a Century of American Power (Marx, Engels, and Marxisms)
by Stephen MaherThis book advances an original conception of the relationship between state and corporate power in the United States. Using what he terms an Institutional Marxist framework, Maher argues that, far from passively responding to interest group pressures, the state has been a key agent in politically mobilizing business, and has played an active role in the organization of lobbying groups. Such business associations do not merely express the pre-existing interests of their corporate members, but are also mechanisms through which the state organizes the political power of the capitalist class. They form part of what the author refers to as an integral state—a wider network of state power which traverses and interpenetrates the state bureaucracy, the legislature, the industrial policy apparatus, and corporate governance. Based on extensive archival research, this book tracks the role of the General Electric Company as a pillar of the integral state in the United States from the finance capital period (1880 to 1930), through the managerial period (1930-1979), to the restructuring leading up to the age of neoliberalism (1979-present).
Corporate Capitalism's Use of Openness: Profit for Free? (Dynamics of Virtual Work)
by Arwid Lund Mariano ZukerfeldThis book tackles the concept of openness (as in open source software, open access and free culture), from a critical political economy perspective to consider its encroachment by capitalist corporations, but also how it advances radical alternatives to cognitive capitalism. Drawing on four case studies, Corporate Capitalism’s Use of Openness will add to discussion on open source software, open access content platforms, open access publishing, and open university courses. These otherwise disparate cases share two fundamental features: informational capitalist corporations base their successful business models on unpaid productive activities, play, attention, knowledge and labour, and do so crucially by resorting to ideological uses of concepts such as “openness”, “communities” and “sharing”. The authors present potential solutions and alternative regulations to counter these exploitative and alienating business models, and to foster digital knowledge commons, ranging from co-ops and commons-based peer production to state agencies' platforms. Their research and findings will appeal to students, academics and activists around the world in fields such as sociology, economy, media and communication, library and information science, political sciences and technology studies.
Corporate Capitslism in Japan (Classics in the History and Development of Economics)
by H. OkumuraIn characterising the Japanese way of business, Professor Okumura has made one of the most significant contributions to the study of economics. Following his study of the conversion of prewar zaibatsu to postwar groups of enterprises, he worked on the roll of comprehensive trading companies in these groups, the main banking system and the permanent employment system. However, he is very critical of this way of business, whereas those influenced by him are enthusiastic in its appreciation. This is the first English translation of his work.
Corporate Carbon and Climate Accounting
by Stefan Schaltegger Dimitar Zvezdov Igor Alvarez Etxeberria Maria Csutora Edeltraud GüntherThis volume is devoted to management accounting approaches for analyzing business benefits and costs of climate change. It discusses future directions on carbon accounting, performance measurement and reporting as well as links between climate accounting and business processes, product and service development, supply chain innovation, economic successes and stakeholder relations.Companies are increasingly called on to contribute to combatting climate change and also face the challenges presented by climate-change related costs, risks and benefits. Risks can result from unpredictable weather conditions and government regulations, such as the EU emission trading system and new building codes. Climate change also offers numerous opportunities, such as energy efficiency innovations and carbon neutral products and production.Good management requires that carbon emissions are tracked and climate-related costs, risks and benefits are identified, measured and assessed. As such, research addressing corporate accounting frameworks and tools is of increasing importance when it comes to managing these carbon and climate-related issues.
Corporate Catalyst: A Chronicle of the (Mis)Management of Canadian Business from a Veteran Insider
by Tony GriffithsAn inside look at the real business world In Corporate Catalyst, Tony Griffiths gives readers a ringside seat on the many boardroom and corporate battles that he both fought and witnessed through the nearly six decades of his productive and colorful career. Among other stories, Griffiths replays his two stints as the CEO of Canada's darling of the telecom industry, Mitel Corporation. The first was in the late 1980s, a time when he helped staunch the flow of red ink and returned the company to profitability. The second was in the early 1990s, when he steered the company through its majority ownership by British Telecom and then its sale to Schroder Ventures. As Griffiths relates it, he had to learn how to deal with the bureaucratic style of the former and the power-hungry moves of the latter. Corporate Catalyst includes the author's blow-by-blow account of what went on inside Confederation Life in the 1980s and early 1990s—a story that should have prevented the failure of the likes of Lehman Brothers in the recent Great Recession. Griffiths, who had his hands full at the time with challenges at Mitel, also sat on Confed's board. He tried to warn Confederation Life's executives and his fellow board members of the financial dangers the company was facing. No one but a few other board members would listen-and even they did not do so consistently. The fall of Confed Life became one of the largest failures of a major finance company in corporate history. Griffiths takes the reader on a dramatic tour of the trickery, betrayal, and politicking that the world of business seems to attract. He introduces readers to the biggest and boldest names in Canadian business, including Jake Moore of Brascan, Robert Campeau of Campeau Corporation, Terry Mathews of Mitel, Ted Rogers of Rogers Communications, Conrad Black of Hollinger, Adam Zimmerman of Noranda, Pat Burns of Confederation Life, and Christopher Ondaatje of The Ondaatje Corporation. In the book's many cautionary tales, Griffiths warns against mixing the roles of governance and management and shows the marked tendency of executives to take up residence far from reality when times get tough. "We don't listen. We don't plan. We don't act," he wrote in frustration to the board and management of Confederation Life after months of trying to get someone to address the financial mess they were in. Full of hard-won wisdom, Corporate Catalyst is a must-read for anyone working in business or interested in what the business world is really like.
Corporate Catalyst: A Chronicle of the (Mis)Management of Canadian Business from a Veteran Insider
by Tony GriffithsAn inside look at the real business world In Corporate Catalyst, Tony Griffiths gives readers a ringside seat on the many boardroom and corporate battles that he both fought and witnessed through the nearly six decades of his productive and colorful career. Among other stories, Griffiths replays his two stints as the CEO of Canada's darling of the telecom industry, Mitel Corporation. The first was in the late 1980s, a time when he helped staunch the flow of red ink and returned the company to profitability. The second was in the early 1990s, when he steered the company through its majority ownership by British Telecom and then its sale to Schroder Ventures. As Griffiths relates it, he had to learn how to deal with the bureaucratic style of the former and the power-hungry moves of the latter. Corporate Catalyst includes the author's blow-by-blow account of what went on inside Confederation Life in the 1980s and early 1990s—a story that should have prevented the failure of the likes of Lehman Brothers in the recent Great Recession. Griffiths, who had his hands full at the time with challenges at Mitel, also sat on Confed's board. He tried to warn Confederation Life's executives and his fellow board members of the financial dangers the company was facing. No one but a few other board members would listen-and even they did not do so consistently. The fall of Confed Life became one of the largest failures of a major finance company in corporate history. Griffiths takes the reader on a dramatic tour of the trickery, betrayal, and politicking that the world of business seems to attract. He introduces readers to the biggest and boldest names in Canadian business, including Jake Moore of Brascan, Robert Campeau of Campeau Corporation, Terry Mathews of Mitel, Ted Rogers of Rogers Communications, Conrad Black of Hollinger, Adam Zimmerman of Noranda, Pat Burns of Confederation Life, and Christopher Ondaatje of The Ondaatje Corporation. In the book's many cautionary tales, Griffiths warns against mixing the roles of governance and management and shows the marked tendency of executives to take up residence far from reality when times get tough. "We don't listen. We don't plan. We don't act," he wrote in frustration to the board and management of Confederation Life after months of trying to get someone to address the financial mess they were in. Full of hard-won wisdom, Corporate Catalyst is a must-read for anyone working in business or interested in what the business world is really like.