Winning Cities

[8 January 2007 - WBUR - On Point] In the sweep of history, great cities come and go from their golden heights. Vienna, Florence, Athens -- all once crown jewels, now storied and fine but second tier, maybe third. In the 21st century, a new pack of contenders are jostling for the "hot city" crown. New York and London are still very much in the race but Paris is dropping back and Shanghai and the boom cities of India are pushing up. In a global economy, board meetings and banks and the most fabulous boardwalks can be anywhere the action is. Exploding cities are competing to be both sizzling and sustainable. This hour On Point: we'll go to Shanghai, London and urban America to look at winning cities in a new century. More

Survey says CEOs concerned with future growth

[7 December 2006 - People's Daily Online - China] A survey of Chinese CEOs regard sustained and steady growth and expansion opportunities are their top challenges, showing their preoccupations are in line with international trends, according to a recent survey. The results of the survey, conducted by The Conference Board, an international survey organization, are similar to those from other countries. Finding qualified managerial talent and acquiring or developing the right talent is the second and third major challenges for CEOs in China. "The thinking of China's top executives is closely aligned with their global counterparts," said Rainer Schultheis, programme director for The Conference Board's Asia-Pacific CFO Council. "Achieving growth in revenue and profit are still the major concerns." ... The study says CEOs in China are more focused on short-term concerns than global CEOs. Short-term concerns, such as "consistent execution" of strategy by top management and excellence in execution ranked fifth and seventh among Chinese CEOs' challenges. In the global ranking, these two were not included in the top 10. Stimulating innovation, creativity, and enabling entrepreneurship were. More