A'Ohlin Commercial Insights

GDP, nominal

measures what a country or region is paid for what it produces and exports
- includes the effects of inflation/deflation

GDP, real

measures a country or region’s productive capacity
- excludes the effects of inflation/deflation

Employed

people aged 15 and over who, during the reference week:

• worked for one hour or more for pay, profit, commission or payment in kind, in a job or business or on a farm (comprising employees, employers and own account workers); or
• worked for one hour or more without pay in a family business or on a farm (i.e. contributing family workers); or
• were employees who had a job but were not at work and were:
• away from work for less than four weeks up to the end of the reference week; or
• away from work for more than four weeks up to the end of the reference week and received pay for some or all of the four week period to the end of the reference week; or
• away from work as a standard work or shift arrangement; or
• on strike or locked out; or
• on workers' compensation and expected to be returning to their job; or
• were employers or own account workers, who had a job, business or farm, but were not at work

Unemployed 

•  people aged 15 and over who were not employed during the reference week, and:
• had actively looked for full-time or part-time work at any time in the four weeks up to the end of the reference week and were available for work in the reference week; or
• were waiting to start a new job within four weeks from the end of the reference week and could have started in the reference week if the job had been available then.

NB:    based on whether those interviewed “want” and are “available” to work, not their actual “capacity” to work

Labour force  

•   for any group, persons who were employed or unemployed, as defined
•    excludes people who do not want to work; these people are regarded as “economically inactive” and are not included in unemployment or employment figures

Unemployment rate 

percentage of people in the labour force who were not employed and were actively looking and available for work (or waiting to start a job within four weeks, that was unavailable until that time)

NB:    based on whether those interviewed “want” and are “available” to work, not their actual “capacity” to work

Underemployment rate    captures those who are currently employed, but are willing and able to work more hours

NB:    based on whether those interviewed “willing” (i.e. “want”) and are “able” (i.e. “available”) to work, not their actual “capacity” to work

The perceived advantage of non-executive directors is their independence and objectivity – their ability to act in the best interests of the company is not compromised. Other ways in which non-executive directors add value include:

• Bringing an independent and fresh perspective to decision-making;
• Demonstrating relevant competency, experience and ethical behaviour;
• Challenging, questioning and monitoring the CEO and senior management;
• Supporting and mentoring the CEO.

It should be noted that having a majority of non-executive directors is no guarantee against corporate failure. Also, there are studies which question whether the presence of independent directors really improves company performance and board effectiveness.

6 reasons why companies hire consultants

Staff augmentation – Companies often have short to medium-term staffing needs (in the case of government work, this can extend for several years) due to a variety of factors (eg. recent downsizings, sudden expansion). Consultants in this situation “plug a hole” for the company by filling the role of full-time employees. Whilst expensive, consultants are flexible, adaptable, good communicators and can hit the ground running with minimal set up time - it is a common practice for many firms.

Fresh perspective - Companies often need a fresh set of eyes – you’d be amazed at the amount of value consultants can add based on the most mundane observations and insights. Critics contend that this is an example of consultants selling “glorified common sense”, but for front-line client employees, it can be easy to fall into daily routines without a critical eye towards measurement, analysis, and improvement.

Consultants have also been trained to question the status quo and look for more effective ways that support the bigger picture, aka “organisational alignment”. Consultants have had exposure to best or innovative practices, and they understand – and perhaps even helped design - the corporate strategy, values, mission, vision, customer priorities, and financial goals; they understand the importance and intricacies of organisational alignment, eg. alignment of your employer brand (staff values and profile) and consumer brand (customer values and profile). It is worth repeating, rather than just accepting that “this is how it’s always been done”, consultants are trained to question the status quo and look for more effective alternatives that are aligned to the bigger picture.

External force for change aka “political cover”. It can be hard for companies to do what’s right particularly when it comes to job layoffs, salary and benefit changes/reduction, major operational and strategic shifts. Hiring consultants can be a way to reach the desired conclusions with sufficient political cover in case certain parties are unhappy (eg. a displeased Board or disgruntled employees).

Best or innovative practices across industries and functions – consultants have the rare privilege of:
Serving multiple clients in the same industry or region (eg. National Australia Bank, First National Bank, ANZ Bank)
Serving multiple clients facing similar issues across different industries or regions (eg. becoming an Asia-Pacific company rather than Australian company exporting Asia)

This enables us to recognise common attributes of effective solutions, applying lessons learned in applicable situations. This knowledge is partially institutionalised at each consulting firm (in the form of white papers, databases, post-project reviews, etc); however, much of the information exists in the collective heads of the consultants.

Analytical horsepower - A corollary to staff augmentation, companies may need help solving issues and executing strategies where their skillsets and knowledge are insufficient. Consultants can be of great value given their training and capabilities.

Training and skillset augmentation - I’d argue that every consulting project – particularly ones with heavy client interaction – incorporates client training as a major ingredient. The best recommendations are worthless if clients cannot implement and maintain suggested changes. Thus, a large part of what consultants do is manage change and educate client employees on the necessary knowledge, skills, and mindsets.

based on an article in “Management Consulted”

Director Competencies – role related

• Knowledge of a director’s responsibilities – includes an understanding of the role as well as the legal, ethical, fiduciary and financial responsibilities;
• Strategic expertise – the ability to review the strategy through constructive questioning and suggestion and contribute to the effective decision making of the board;
• Accounting and finance – the ability to read and comprehend the company’s accounts, financial material presented to the board, financial reporting requirements and some understanding of corporate finance;
• Legal – the board’s responsibility involves overseeing compliance with numerous laws as well as understanding the individual director’s legal duties and responsibilities;
• Risk management – experience in managing areas of major risk to the organisation;
• Managing people and achieving change – experience in current management thinking on employment branding, engagement, strategic vision and stakeholder communication; experience in executive remuneration and compensation;
• Industry knowledge – experience in similar organisations or industries

Director Competencies – personal

• Integrity – fulfilling a director’s duties and responsibilities, acting ethically, appropriate independence, putting the organisation’s interests before personal interests;
• Collaborative yet curious and courageous – a director must be able to function as an effective team member but also must have the curiosity to ask questions and the courage to persist in robust discussion with management and fellow board members where necessary;
• Emotional intelligence – as well as self-awareness and self-management, a director needs to demonstrate empathy manifested though strong interpersonal skills. A director must work well in a group, listen well, be tactful yet able to communicate a cogent and candid viewpoint;
• Commercial judgment and instinct – a director needs to demonstrate good business instinct and acumen and be able to assimilate and synthesise complex information;
• An active contributor with genuine interest in the organisation and its business