Tighter U.S. and European sanctions to contain Moscow's Ukrainian land grab will be tough to pull off. But if fully deployed, they could be very painful toRussia's already weakening economy. For all the headlines, the sanctions invoked so far against Moscow for invading Crimea amount to little more than a slap on the wrist.
Updated 6 Years ago

Japan will speed up deployment of government cash in coming months as a surprise drop in consumer spending in February triggered concern the nation’s long-awaited inflation is now damaging purchasing power. Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters that data showing a slump in household expenditure two months before the first sales-tax increase since 1997 was a problem, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration will pour 40 percent of outlays for the next fiscal year into the April-June quarter. He’d already pledged to fast-track stimulus spending.
Updated 6 Years ago

My professional theory is as basic as treating people as you wish to be treated. Lead through example (e.g., be on time and “present” for meetings; talk only when you have something of substance to say -- not every thought that you have is superior because you are in charge -- encourage others to express their ideas). Ensure that everyone fully understands his/her job and has the knowledge/training, tools, and encouragement to do that job. Stay out of the way (i.e., do not micromanage and demotivate workers by making them feel powerless) and cross-train by offering plenty of opportunities to learn new skills or hone existing ones. Show people that you genuinely see and value their contributions by abundantly and publicly praising, recognizing and rewarding those who produce quality work reliably and who exhibit a ‘can do’ attitude. Assess traits that are holding people back and help them to see how to improve.
Updated 6 Years ago

Fifty-two days into his tenure as Microsoft’s (MSFT) chief executive officer, Satya Nadella presided over his first public speech atop the company. He wisely decided against attempting to match his predecessor’s distinctive stage presence, but he was charming in his own way—making jokes about ordinal numbers, predicting the imminent future of ubiquitous computing, and promising the “magic coming-together of the cloud and mobile.” All of this prefaced the announcement of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps for the iPad, which had been conspicuously absent throughout the Steve Ballmer years.
Updated 6 Years ago

Facing a desperate, knife-brandishing customer, Kwon Seon Joo knew the value of staying cool under pressure more than two decades before being picked to become the first woman to head a South Korean bank. In 1992, the now 57-year-old chief executive officer of the country’s fourth-largest lender by assets, Industrial Bank of Korea, was deputy manager of trade finance at a branch in an upscale district of Seoul. Kwon said she agreed to meet a customer presenting forged shipping documents who was demanding a loan because he risked financial ruin after exporting artificial flowers that had been rejected by the recipient. When she refused, he lifted his trouser leg to reveal something tucked in his sock: a knife.
Updated 6 Years ago

Microsoft Corp's new Chief Executive Officer, Satya Nadella, finally unveiled Office for Apple Inc's iPad in a polished debut that set him apart from his energetic predecessor while signaling his plans to make mobile apps the top priority at the world's largest software company. At a news conference Thursday, executives demonstrated a new "touch-first" version of Office crafted for the iPad, available for download as a free app, though a subscription is needed to let users create or edit documents rather than just read them.
Updated 6 Years ago

The search area of the missing Malaysia Airlines jet has shifted northeast of where a multinational team of investigators had been looking for debris because of a "new credible lead," Australian authorities said Friday morning local time. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said it shifted the search roughly 680 miles to the northeast after getting a lead premised on updated advice from the international investigative team in Malaysia.
Updated 6 Years ago

The Obama administration is blocking certain U.S. exports to Russia, including some used in its oil and gas industry, expanding the response to the annexation of Crimea. The State Department said today it halted licensing for exports of defense items and services on March 24. The Commerce Department posted a notice on its website saying it had also suspending licensing, effective March 1.
Updated 6 Years ago

The Nigerian Stock Exchange has said that it will focus on efforts aimed at increasing global visibility for the nation’s capital market.
Updated 6 Years ago

The crisis in Ukraine has highlighted the fragility of the European Union's energy security. Currently, the 28-country group imports around 30 perent of its gas from Russia – a level that has added urgency to the search for alternative sources of energy. José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, sought to reinforce the importance of Europe's energy independence earlier this month.
Updated 6 Years ago