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Andrew Mernin is the Digital Journalist for nebusiness »
Matthew Rippon is an IP lawyer for BHP Law »
Ross Smith, Head of Policy and Research at the North-East Chamber of Commerce »
Julian Christopher from Footprint Public Relations, on media and marketing »
Norma Foster from the North East Regional Portal writes about e-business »
Accessibilty Champion Steve Wilkinson on the importance of inclusion »
Mark Lisgo is a Northeasterner who works for law firm Eversheds in Abu Dhabi, UAE »
Paul Williamson from Deloitte »June 2008 Archives
Beware the online backup trap!
Posted by Jonathan Wheatley on June 2, 2008 11:50 AM
It would seem that each week there is a new offering of a tape free online back solution offering to help you sleep safe in the knowledge that your data is available and secure. I would like to warn the North East Business community of some potential pitfalls to watch out for.
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Preparing to travel overseas
Posted by Andrea Wilkinson on June 3, 2008 11:50 AM
Before I set off on my journey to Rwanda on Sunday, I am working against the clock to get everything in place for my trip. It has been a varied couple of weeks including everything from booking hotels for the interview process to preparing a recruitment ad for Rwandan TV!
The reason I am travelling out to Rwanda is to prepare for our Big Lottery Fund supported training project that kicks off next year. I am working out there in advance of this to basically find the right people for the training posts available and also to meet some of the fair trade businesses we will be supporting.
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The drinks industry isn't to blame for society's ills
Posted by Jez Davison on June 5, 2008 6:15 PM
EVERY year we hear stories about the evils of alcohol, particularly its effect on young people. And, every time, the drinks industry is expected to shoulder the blame.
As Children’s Secretary Ed Balls revealed new plans that could see parents prosecuted if their kids drink in public, critics waded in to denounce retailers for encouraging binge drinking by selling cheap alcohol and advertising their products.
Why not just ban alcohol altogether and put the drinks industry - already wounded by soaring fuel costs and alcohol duties - out of its misery?
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World Environment Day
Posted by Ian Brown on June 5, 2008 11:04 PM
How did you spend world environment day?
Well unfortunately I did not attend the fun things that I would have liked to have attended today and in a twist of fate my Peugot 307 turn from 99,999 to 100,000 miles. A moment that leaves me blushing!
The defence is robust and is focused around me being an essential user, living well off the beatan track. I have though this week been on a bus, in a taxi and on three trains....most journeys though fall to the car! Meanwhile what did my 7 year old daughter attend on my behalf in Wooler?
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Last-minute checklists for Rwanda
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Posted by Andrea Wilkinson on June 6, 2008 11:48 AM
Only two days to go now before my trip and it’s been one busy week. Aside from focusing on what I need for my journey and beyond, I’ve also had my hat on as a member of the Shared Interest environment team, which meant helping mark Thursday 5th June with staff at our Newcastle headquarters as well as Costa Rica and Kenya offices.
Other than that, my head is jam-packed full of checklists and the countdown is a bit like a military operation.
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I have made it to Rwanda
Posted by Andrea Wilkinson on June 9, 2008 11:45 AM
After three flights, 21 hours of travel, a mix up with tickets and a close call when I got on the wrong plane in Nairobi I have made it to Rwanda…the country of a thousand hills (and a million mosquitoes!).
All started off well as I left Newcastle for my long journey out to Africa, bags packed, tickets and passport in hand and ready to go! The first flight to Amsterdam went smoothly, my Kenyan airways flight to Nairobi was a little shaky, but it wasn’t until I arrived on African soil that things started getting interesting!
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Inside the Rock
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Posted by Andrew Hebden on June 9, 2008 4:49 PM
The fate of Northern Rock may still hang in the balance, but the lack of any firm outcome to the crisis has not prevented former employee Brian Walters from writing what I assume is the first book on the subject ("The Fall of Northern Rock", published by Harriman House).
He promises to deliver “an insider’s story� on the bank’s demise, although it quickly transpires he was not even inside Northern Rock House as the crisis unfolded, but instead working in the bank's commercial division in a Leeds branch office.
Unsurprisingly, aside from one or two quirky anecdotes, the account from a Rock employee of less than three years casts little fresh light on the subject and the most telling conclusion is that the bulk of the staff had no idea how bleak the situation was.
Because he was physically remote from Newcastle you don't even get a feeling for the atmophere inside the corridors of power. More authoritative and enlightening accounts will undoubtedly follow.
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Fat cats' fury
Posted by Jez Davison on June 9, 2008 6:17 PM
WHY is it that this country is so quick to criticise people for being successful?
The news that five directors at banking giant HSBC are set to share a £120m windfall during the next three years has been met with incredulity by the business world.
How can this be so, the critics cried, when the UK’s largest bank announced write-downs of around £8.7bn only three months ago?
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Back to business
Posted by Katie Pringle on June 9, 2008 7:10 PM
What with all the sunny weather we've finally been experiencing (one week into June!) myself and the business partner have been struggling to keep up our work ethic of late. We come in from our 'other jobs' and somehow the allure of a night in front of the computer, answering emails and preparing invoices just doesn't compete with a nice cold white wine spritzer out on the patio (yes it's retro and possibly unfashionable but it is tres refreshing!).
I don't think it's possible to breathe down your own neck, but as my own boss I really need to take myself into a quiet room and ask me why I've let my performance slip over the last few weeks. And yes I know it's only been sunny for like two days but maybe I'm using the weather as an excuse for my general laziness towards our little fledgling business of recent weeks.
The thing is though although I love the time away, the freedom of not feeling like I always have to be doing something, it does come at a price.
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Cold Showers and Lukewarm Eggs
Posted by Andrea Wilkinson on June 10, 2008 9:55 AM
It was a late one last night – well by Rwanda standards anyway, I wouldn’t call 10.30pm late at home but then I am also still recovering from that eventful journey and we were working right up until my head hit the pillow on today’s Open Day.
At least I got a cold shower this morning (the water was off completely last time I’d checked), always a bonus when you’ve got a full day of interviews ahead in a busy hotel in Kigali!
I’m just writing this speedily before I touch base with the Shared Interest office back home. It is company policy to let your nominated ‘travel buddy’ know what you’re up to – and it’s usually a good point to let off steam and hear a familiar voice.
Right, got to dash or I’ll miss my staple breakfast of lukewarm omelette, omelette and er...more omelette (more on that later!) For now I’ve got over 40 people to present to at the open day in advance of interviewing for the Shared Interest Foundation post and time is against me. Wish me luck!
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Changing Lives with $2
Posted by Andrea Wilkinson on June 10, 2008 11:57 AM
Time for a break and Joan (who is our ‘on the ground’ contact from COFTA) and I discuss the progress of the day.
There are interesting topics up for discussion like how the life expectancy in Rwanda is only 40 years old and how the project will work with more women than men (the country’s population is made up of 60% women following the genocide.)
Some of the groups that we are working with currently live on only $1 per day and, through this project, we aim to increase this three-fold. To you and me, this doesn’t sound like much, but it is enough to change many producers’ lives here....it will enable them to send their children to school, afford health care and plan for the future.
Through this project we aim to change lives, working from the grassroots up and building capacity that will last for generations to come.
Joan and I keep focused on the outcome of this project – that we will train and recruit 15 trainers who together will develop a training course. We will recruit a project coordinator and will eventually train 50 handicraft organisations over the next three years.
By the end of our meeting, my head is buzzing with excitement - this project could really change peoples’ lives - not just for the next few months but for years to come.
With that in mind, on with the afternoon session!
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Why cash is king in any economic environment
Posted by Jez Davison on June 10, 2008 6:18 PM
THE City is screaming blue murder.
Chaos reigns in financial markets. Confidence among the business community is shot to bits. And chiefs at the Bank of England and the European Central Bank have warned us that the worst storm may be yet to come.
It’s enough to make business owners question their sanity and head for the hills. But is the above an accurate assessment of the markets or an overreaction to hyperbolic media coverage?
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