Economy, Strategy & Finance Data Reactions

Apple supplier Foxconn’s initiative to produce high-end iPhones in India opens new doors for Apple to use India as an export hub, including to the U.S., and also gives Apple better access to one of the world’s fastest-growing economies—and mobile phone markets. Indian consumers have felt very optimistic economically, and technology is a popular category for spending disposable income, as data from the Conference Board Global Consumer Confidence Index shows.

This Q&A with Ralph Ward discusses the job of the corporate director from his perspective as a business media and corporate governance executive. He gives his views on such topics as who owns tone at the top and directors’ ideal characteristics.

What is needed is a radically new governance model aligned with the high-performance requirements of the current hyper-competitive business environment.

How does one of India's largest conglomerates, operating around the world, take care of citizens in its immediate community? The Aditya Birla Group has developed a model village in the neighborhood surrounding its Ultra Tech Cement Works Plant in Kotputli, providing vital facilities and infrastructure to residents, including education for women and children, a medical clinic, a farming program, and clean, fresh water.

Over the past few years, many of the world’s top companies have reduced or eliminated the option to work from home. Bank of America, IBM and Aetna all made news over their decision to change course.

Whatever the explanations for the short-termism thesis, the conclusion to be drawn from its lack of evidentiary basis is that quarterly capitalism is not the pervasive culprit that the “true believers” would have you believe.

With labor markets tightening and labor costs rapidly rising in Central and Eastern Europe, the advantage of lower labor costs compared to the rest of the continent will further shrink over time and could mean that businesses will shift operations elsewhere.