Bond Business Review 131

Bond Business Review

SA B NEW LOOK NEW

ISSUE 131

Bond University Business Students’ Association

Bond Business Review 131

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INSIDE...

5

Australian Entrepreneurs

Shoes of Prey

10

Australian Businesswoman of the Year

11

Samantha Wills

12

Advice for Students

Faculty of Business Updates

4

President’s Address

5

Internship of the Semester

6

Today I learned...

11 quirky facts about business

8

Palaver Photographs

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Bond Business Review 131

Why Students Should Invest

14

Customer Relationship Management

16

10

Message from the Editor

Editor

Welcome to the 131 Edition of the BBR. On behalf of the BSA, I welcome all new Bondies to the Business Faculty and remind you that we are here to help! As for all the existing students, I hope you enjoy this newly revamped issue.

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17

Latest Innovative Product

18

Women in Invesment Banking

19

Happily Ever After

International Affairs

20

Haiti and Cyclone Sandy

21

Death of Portugal?

22

Digital Convergence

I would firstly like to thank everyone who has submitted articles for this issue because without your contributions the BBR would not exist. As you will see, there are such a diverse range of articles emphasising just how important ‘Business’ is to our great big world. If at any time you think of an interesting article, do not hesitate to email me at brigette.foot@student.bond.edu.au and I will keep it very safe until the next issue’s release.

Keep your eyes open for the upcoming release of our first Careers Guide in Week 9. This is going to contain everything you need to know about work experience, internships, externships and grad programs. It will also include experiences from both current students and alumni. If you have completed work experience or an internship through the Faculty, we would love to hear about your experiences and to share them in the Careers Guide.

I hope your mid-sem study and exams are going well and wish you all the best for any remaining exams and assignments due throughout the semester.

Sending lots of love your way,

Brigette xoxo Bond Business Review 131

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President’s Address What’s Happening & What’s News

Although it is already week 6, I would like to wish a warm welcome to semester 131 to all bondies and good luck to all those preparing for mid sems.

It has been a rollercoaster of a semester for everybody so far, with many highs and lows. My thoughts still go out to those affected by the floods as many were still rebuilding after those floods in 2011. From a student’s perspective, the excitement of campus closure slowly faded when students realised they had to make up for those cancelled classes.

131 is an exciting semester for the BSA. We are still fresh in our positions with much enthusiasm, after being elected in late November. Our first big task was Palaver, which did not disappoint with regard to the huge amount of preparation for the event.

Overall we felt that Palaver was a success. When coming into office we felt it was necessary to bring Palaver back on campus. Because it is such a traditional event at Bond we felt it was best to mend ties with the university from last Palaver and bring it back to our beloved Don’s.

However one condition was that we were only allowed to provide

mid strength drinks, hence we felt it necessary to ensure students received their $40 of value in the decorations and entertainment.

A huge congratulations and thank you to our Social Director, James Nichols, for ensuring that Palaver ran as smoothly as it did and provided so much enjoyment to students.

Despite contrary belief, Palaver is not the only thing that the BSA does. Keeping on the social side of things, James is putting together a social event for Sunday of week 8, directly after mid semester exams.

This is going to be an afternoon Sunday Session to provide some relaxation after enduring mid semester exams.

In addition to the BBR our Publications Director, Brigette Foot, is working on a Careers Guide. This is aimed to be a comprehensive guide to give students an insight into internships, externships and grad positions. Brigette will be aiming to publish this guide later on in the semester.

On the competitions front, our Competitions Director, Mark Foster, is collaborating the student participation in the Global Management Challenge and has secured

the Australian Final to be held at Bond for the second time in a row. On top of this, Mark will be implementing the inaugural Interview Competition, where students will be in an interview scenario, applying for a job. This is to give students some firsthand experience in the interviewing process, before they are thrown into the real thing.

Our Promotions Director, Mitchell Willocks, has almost completed the new BSA website, which is aimed to be students’ primary means of finding out about the BSA services.

You will be able to see it shortly at www.bondbsa.com.au.

External Relations Director, Brent Loeskow, is putting together a new networking event to replace Battle of the Big Guns this semester. This event will involve students networking with people from the industry over drinks and canapés and then listen to a presentation from the firms afterwards.

All in all 131 is going to be a damn exciting semester. To keep up to date on everything we are doing, drop a like on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/BondBSA. All the best,

Matthew Boyce

What's coming up?

- Sunday Sesh (Week 8) - Careers Guide (Week 9 or 10) - Masterclass (networking event) - Careers Fair (Week 10) - Global Management Challenge - Interview Competition (TBA) - Revision Seminars (Week 13) - Grudge Week Page 4

Bond Business Review 131

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK to keep up to date with all things business. www.facebook.com/BondBSA.

New Website coming soon www.bondbsa.com.au

Or pop into our office between Monday and Thursday 10am-2pm.

Intern s the S hip of emes ter

d n a l s I ream

d y a D

Fancy an internship combined with a vacation?

Imagine waking every day to this incredible view. Imagine being able to take a dip in the calm tropical reef on your breaks, weekends and after work. I think we can all agree that there is nothing quite better than the relaxing and atmosphere of an island.

How has the overall experience been so far? The internship has been very rewarding so far. I have learnt heaps in the past 6 weeks that I have been here and I have even been lucky enough to travel to the other nearby islands on my days off.

Daydream Island is just one of the many islands which make up the popular Whitsundays in Queensland. We currently have two very lucky students on this internship and one of these students, Lauren Raven, kindly agreed to give us an insight into her amazing experience so far.

What advice would you give to interested students? I would definitely recommend this experience. It’s great because it’s only 16 weeks and you get so much experience in so many different areas. It’s fast paced and you are continually learning.

What areas of work have you experienced so far? Food and Beverage, Front Office, Housekeeping, Night Audit, Finance/ Purchasing, Guest Services and even experienced working as an Assistant Manager.

I have even been lucky enough to travel to the other nearby islands on my days off.

The Daydream Island Resort and Spa internship is available to two Hotel, Resort and Tourism Management students every semester.

You can collect an application form from the Faculty of Business.

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TODAY I LEARNED...

Research has proved that the most productive day of the week is Tuesday.

The name ‘pepsi’ was derived from the digestive enzyme ‘pepsin’.

LEGO, was formed from the words “Leg Godt” meaning “play well.” It wasn’t until later that it was realized LEGO means “to put together” in Latin.

A university study in 1907 found that yellow is the easiest colour to spot with the visible eye. This is why the founder of the Yellow Cab Company, John Hertz, picked cabs to be yellow.

The launch of Google’s animated Pac-Man doodle on their home page in 2010, led to almost five million wasted hours of employee time and cost the economy around $120 million dollars. It’s estimated that Google had around 505 million unique users on the day the Pac-Man Google Doodle went live. The doodle, which marked the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man’s release, was Google’s first interactive logo.

During tough economic times, American Airlines eliminated one olive from each salad served in first class and they saved $40,000.

Three years after FedEx was formed and had raised $90 million, the company was nearing bankruptcy due to rising fuel costs and was unable to attain any capital from investors. The CEO then flew to Las Vegas and used the company's final $5000 to win an additional $32,000 on Black Jack. Today the company is worth $30 billion.

The publishing of Fifty Shades of Grey saved the economy of a small town called Maine. Maine used to be a very large printing community, producing up to 240 tons of newsprint daily. However, publishing companies began outsourcing to other cheaper countries and unfortunately many publishing plants in Maine closed with 400 workers becoming unemployed. Fortunately, one of the printing companies in Maine secured the printing contract of Fifty Shades of Grey and ended up printing 3000 tonnes of paper, creating hundreds of jobs and enhancing economic activity.

Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream was originally going to be a Bagel company. However, Ben and Jerry soon realised how expensive the equipment for making bagels was and decided to take a $5 university course on ice cream making instead.

Ben and Jerry also just opened a store in Cavill Mall last Friday - go check it out!

The founder of McDonald’s has a Bachelor degree in Hamburgerology. If you’re interested you can attend Hamburger University in Illinois. Today, more than 5,000 students attend each year.

Young consumers have fuelled the energy drink market (guilty!), fostering its growth to become a multi-billion dollar industry. Datamonitor has predicted this industry will grow 9% over the next 3 years, Page 6 Bond Business Review while the food and131beverage industry will only increase by 3%.

{ } “If plan A doesn’t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters - 204 if you’re in Japan.”

-Claire Cook

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PalaverWinter Page Page8 8 Bond BondBusiness BusinessReview Review131 131

Wonderland Bond Business Review 131

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From Google employees to online shoe entrepreneurs

Shoes of Prey

S

hoes of Prey is an innovative online business which offers a virtual shoe designer for women to design their own shoes. These shoes are then hand made and delivered directly to your door (no matter where you live in the world). As a shoe addict myself, I have spent many many hours procrastinating over study and designing hundreds of heels instead.

Shoes of Prey formed in 2009 by three individuals who actually met at Law School early in the 2000’s. Michael Fox, and friend Mike Knapp were once Google employees and decided to use their technological expertise to develop a unique online shopping experience for shoe lovers. While Michael’s wife, Jodie, assisted with the practicality and shoe design options for the site.

There are so many colours, fabrics, patterns and styles available; ranging from flats and sandals to ankle boots and stilettos.The only downfall is that they average around $300 per pair. However, considering the shoes are hand made and a one-off pair designed by you, it’s the special novelty experience which makes it well worth the cost in the end. Besides, there’s nothing better than someone complimenting your shoes and replying with ‘I designed them myself’.

Shoes of Prey have many celebrity customers including The Dutchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, who recently designed and purchased a ‘jubilee-themed’ pair to wear throughout the celebrations.

Ms Fox believes customers have spent more than 20 million minutes designing tens of

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Bond Business Review 131

DESI

millions of shoes.

YOUR GN O Shoes of Prey SHOE WN now have twelve CO S TO NQUE employees in Aus- TH E WO R RLD tralia and an additional nine in their partner offices in Japan, the Netherlands and Russia.

They have become leaders in online retail shopping, social marketing and customer service, and recently raised $3 million from both Australian and US heavy weight investors.

They have also partnered with a Sydney David Jones store where there is a designated area to physically design your shoes and try them on - again providing a unique shopping experience on a totally different level.

As the popularity of this exclusive shopping experience rapidly surges, I think it’s safe to say Shoes of Prey is very well ‘heeled’ for the future.

By Brigette Foot

Carolyn Creswell

Businesswoman of the year

M

s Creswell was recently named the 2012 Telstra Australian Businesswoman of the Year for her now $50 million dollar muesli enterprise (Carmin’s Fine Foods) which is the number one selling muesli brand on Australian supermarket shelves.

From humble beginnings, Ms Creswell first purchased half of a home-made muesli business as an 18 year old university student in 1992. Two years later she became the sole owner and managing director. 20 years later and she now offers over 22 muesli, porridge and muesli bar products in 32 countries.

Not only is she a very successful businesswoman, but she is also a very committed and loving mother of four. Although her journey has not always been smooth sailing, Ms Creswell is proof that anyone with motivation and tolerance can build a multi-million dollar company whilst maintaining a genuine work-life balance.

Ms Creswell is strongly focused on producing quality products using whole foods sourced from Australian farmers. This

passion for healthy food has seen her company’s brand and reputation become one that customers all around the world trust to be natural, healthy, and delicious. And delicious it is!

Ms Creswell was also the previous winner Ernst & Young’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2007 and a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

However, it is not just her delicious products and eno mous profits which have earned her this prestigious title. Carmin’s Fine Foods has an innovative business model and a very unique office culture.

As Carman’s celebrates their 20th anniversary this year, Carolyn has said ‘I’m amazed at the achievements the team has accomplished. I still get a rush when I spot our products in trolleys at the supermarket.’

“Sometimes the smallest things, can make the biggest difference”

Now employing over 130 staff, Carolyn provides each of them with flexible working hours and encourages parents to take time out of the office to attend their kids sports days and special assemblies. The office even has a kids’ room complete with a single bed, TV and computer for when employees’ children are ill or on school holidays.

Each day they all eat lunch around the boardroom and complete a daily quiz on current media issues. On Friday’s, Carolyn shouts everyone lunch and staff who have less than ten emails to action in their inbox can leave mid afternoon, every fortnight.

If you have not tried her products, I suggest you buy some on your next visit to the shops!

They make the yummiest, nutritious study snacks and her muesli is perfect for your morning breakfast. It’s even more delicious with berries and yoghurt!

BY BRIGETTE FOOT

Ms Creswell explained in a recent interview, ‘Sometimes the smallest things, like providing a kids’ room, creating habits like eating lunch together or taking five minutes out of our day to do the quiz, can make the biggest difference’. It’s no surprise she has high staff satisfaction and low staff turnovers.

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SamanthaWills The young Australian jewellery designer conquering the international fashion world.

S

By Mary Langley

amantha Wills, an international jewellery designing entrepreneur, is the epitome of great success and her story continues to inspire young women allowing them to believe that anything is possible through perseverance, hard work and a lot of creativity.

Her love of creating just about anything quickly turned into a success.

After starting a stall at the Bondi Markets at the age of 20, she was then given the opportunity to showcase her beautiful jewels at Australia’s Fashion Week. She purchased a spot on a wall in a showroom – about the size of a door –for $500. At first she was sceptical as that was a whole week’s income at the markets. But by the end of Fashion Week she had $17000 worth of orders and the very next day she quit her job.

a beautifully hand crafted wood box, which is much more decadent than the boxes that most jewellery comes inWills believes that every step should reflect on the brand and what it tries to achieve. She differentiates herself from competitors, such as Diva and Colette, because each of her pieces are of higher quality and have been on their own individual journey, inspired by New York sunsets, Mexican oceans and the every day encounters of life.

During the recession when many other retailers where struggling,

by accident. A hard worker, she often travels to and from her Sydney home to her other home in LA to attend her business commitments such as speaking with buyers at US chain Nordstrom, collaborating with other designers like Kelly Smith from ‘Birdy and Me’ for the creation of her new home wares and stationery products, and being the ambassador for American Express Australia’s ‘Realise Your Potential’ campaigns.

“focus on what you are good at and surround yourself with people who are good at what they do”

Wills quickly learned the ins and outs of business from the design stage, to finding suppliers, and then actually constructing the jewellery and getting them sold. But her passion for her business allowed her to see past the 24- hour days of hovering over the dining table with her friends and see the bigger picture. That bigger picture consisted of her creations emblazoned in magazines and on the big screen with the likes of Beyoncé, Miranda Kerr, Katy Perry, Eva Mendes, Kate Hudson and Jennifer Lopez. Even the Sexy and the City girls have been sporting her jewellery, which inevitably saw Wills being recognised as ‘Australia’s biggest export since Vegemite’.

Her products are trend setting because of meticulous designs and her her production and packaging are key points of difference from her competitors. From the quality of her products, to price, to the SW signature packaging –which is

she remained pessimistic and ensured her business kept a foot in the door with entry market level pieces beginning from $55. Wills understood that when people have less money, accessories are something they can update their whole look with at a cheaper price as opposed to buying an entire new outfit. She were careful not to price herself out of the market and not price too cheaply to downgrade the image of the brand. She also heavily focused on the concept that accessories are a luxury, not a necessity.

‘New York Times’ have hailed her as a breakout star, but despite all the success, Wills knows that it didn’t just happen

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Wills knows her continuing success within the Australian, US, New Zealand and Japanese market is all thanks to her belief in her brand and for everyone to ‘focus on what you are good at and surround yourself with people who are good at what they do’.

Wills believes that timing is crucial and that your goal shouldn’t be to rush, but instead to take the time to build your brand- be patient and persistent, research and understand your market and position yourself within the market before introducing your brand.

Where is the brand now and where will it be in the near future? Worth in excess of over $1.5M Samantha Wills plans to expand her brand and to one-day produce small leather goods like clutches, apparel and to also build flagship stores in Australia and the US. It is no doubt that this savvy businesswoman will keep growing and expanding her success and name, further enhancing her stance as a major influence in the world of fashion and the creator of a product not just for the A-list celebrity, but also for every woman.

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A student’s guide to

INVESTING Why every student should invest

BY HELENA MICHAEL

Investing

in the share market to many students can seem far too daunting. However, financial experts have reiterated that the earlier you start, the better off you will be.

Particularly for the share market, where more often than not, “time, not timing, is the friend of the investor”.

WHY INVEST? Investing your money is imperative to achieving your financial goals in the future. This could mean buying your dream car, a house, paying off a loan or travelling the world. Unless you already have the funds to do all of these things, it’s important you consider how much you’re going to need.

HOW TO INVEST? This is where you need to look at your current financial position and analyse how much risk you are willing to take.

When looking at your financial position you need to take into account money that is coming in and out in the present and future including: food, rent, tax, insurance, school fees etc. How much risk you are willing to take will

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Bond Business Review 131

INVESTMENT STRATEGY Diversify! Diversify! Diversify! As the classic saying goes “don’t put all your eggs in one basket”. The share market moves in cycles, so by investing your money in a variety of sectors will allow you to spread your risk.

This means that if one of your shares is performing poorly, this could be balanced by another share that is doing well.

MAIN INVESTMENT AREAS In Australia we have four different investment areas, which one you invest in will depend on what your personal objectives are. These areas are cash (i.e. banks, building societies), fixed interest (i.e. bonds), property and shares. For a student, investing in the share market is highly recommended because as a long-term investment it can provide strong returns. It is recommended that when buying shares, they should be held for at least 3-7 years to make the most of your investment.

SO WHERE DO YOU START AND HOW MUCH DO YOU NEED?

Knowledge is power, so it’s best to do

your research before you decide to jump onto the bandwagon. If you’re looking at investing in shares then the ASX’s website is extremely informative with detailed tutorials on getting started in the share market. With as little as $1000 you can begin investing in the share market, however, if you want to build a share portfolio you might need a bit more.

Another important thing to note when investing in the share market is that you’re going to need a broker. There are two types, full service advice broker and a discount broker. A full service advice broker can charge around $100 per trade and will provide advice on what you should invest in given your needs and objectives. A discount broker however, may only cost around $35 per trade but will purely buy or sell a share on your behalf. Depending on how much research you have done, a full service broker might be your best option if it’s your first time investing in the share market.

Happy investing!

DIVERSIFY! DIVERSIFY! DIVERSIFY!

depend on what phase of your life you are in. If you are young, you can afford to take more risk than an older person because you can hold your investment for a longer period of time.

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M R C

Before, it was a business strategy for big companies; nowadays it is the “everyday reality” for entrepreneurs.

For everybody

By Rafael Fernandes

T

o become successful, entrepreneurs should find balance among a set of important aspects, such as the market niche in which they should operate and the advertising of their product/service.

However, what gives entrepreneurs a huge competitive advantage, before large size companies, is the relationship they build with their clients. How many times have you returned to a company not just because of the great service/product they offer but also because of their differentiated customer service? This is one of the greatest triumphs small businesses have: the capacity to look after their clients’ interests and provide them a service that is well above average, if not a 100% satisfactory.

A recent research has shown that companies’ annual losses caused by poor customer service can reach an astonishing US$400 billion. Results like this provide us with a clear view on the importance of developing a business strategy for dealing with Customer Relationship Management. CRM, as it is known, was considered an expensive investment tool in the past. However, nowadays it is perceived as an extremely important tool for entrepreneurs to understand who their clients are, what their relationship with the business is, and how to keep them happy. Clients are key to the success of any business, but how is it possible to keep information from each one of your current clients? And what about the clients you’ve had only once? Furthermore, there is also the issue of finding, prospecting and persuading new clients. CRM is the answer to all these questions.

For better understanding what CRM is, the post-graduation lecturer, Miguel Sauan, from ESPM university (superior school of publicity and marketing) in Brazil, exemplifies as follows:“When I go to the shop next door from my place, the owner approaches me and says that my daughter’s favourite dessert has just arrived. Intuitively, he is applying a very efficient CRM because he has information on my family’s preferences.

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Bond Business Review 131

Therefore, he controls what he has available to offer me and he possibly also knows the amount I usually buy from him”. This is a simple, but effective example of the importance of CRM and what it can provide us with. This business strategy has as its’ main targets and a strong understanding of current and potential clients’ needs & desires. Thus, companies can achieve both customer’s loyalty and good outcomes more easily. In summary, we can say that it is a must to store all data from every single client. It can them be transformed into figures and forecasts for the future wellbeing of the business.

What should we know about our clients?  Data and Behavioural Information  Contact Information  Management of orders, offers, and sales flow  Scripts for services & sales pitch  Prices & Quotations  Plan for dealing with issues & complains  Consolidation for sales’ and opportunities’ analysis Putting all that information together, marketing & sales teams acquire a wider vision of their clientele and thus can analyse what are the best business opportunities, as well as the services that the company could possibly create to strengthen this relationship. This also keeps you much more organised and saves you money because you do not have to spend time or resources on individuals who ultimately will not become loyal customers. Finally, the CRM system can manage the day-to-day administrative tasks for you, allowing you and your sales team to spend more time on sales strategies to generate a competitive advantage.

The Solution to Getting Better Sleep The Gear 4 Sleep clock is a new innovative gadget being launched into the market. This clock uses an iPhone app and a dock to sense your sleeping and breathing patterns through a radio wave Doppler radar.

Although there are already apps and products on the market which claim they can achieve the same outcome – waking us up when we’re lightly sleeping (as opposed to being in a deep sleep) – this product differentiates itself from competitors because you do not have to wear anything on your wrist while you sleep. The app also stores all your sleeping patterns and can give you advice on how to sleep better.

It also allows you to view when you exactly fell asleep, how long you were in a deep sleep for and how many times you woke up throughout the night.

The Price - $399

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Women in Investment Banking

By Brent Loeskow

L

ast year Nicole Sorbara was appointed Head of the new Corporate Services Group at Macquarie Group Limited, which comprises of the Human Resources, Business Services and Business Improvement and Strategy divisions.

Nicole works three to four days a week and has a family. She is proof that it is possible for females to break into the investment banking industry and still maintain a work-life balance.

Listening to Nicole give a presentation about her life at Macquarie has changed the way that I view the investment banking industry.

at Macquarie and how she believes that women can have the best of both worlds.

Women still only represent a minority in the big investment banks. Of the 220 bankers on executive committees in the US’s 20 largest investment banks, only 17 are women, however, the momentum is building. Women are in-

Another Macquarie employee, Joanne Spillane, (Division Director, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations, Central Executive Group) also believes that the stereotype associated with women in investment banking is wrong. Joanne also currently works part-time at Macquarie and has had the opportunity throughout her career to take time off to raise a family and also to travel. Joanne believes that women in business can have rich and fulfilling home lives if they choose, whilst still achieving a fulfilling career.

“Of the 220 bankers on executive committees in the US’s 20 largest investment banks, only 17 are women.”

The lack of work-life balance is a stereotype about investment banking that keeps many women from considering investment banking as a career. What most women do not realize is that the investment banks are rapidly changing their position on the importance of a work-life balance.

Firms, like Macquarie are now making it possible for women to achieve a fulfilling career in investment banking whilst still having a family.

But, it’s not all fun and games. Nicole has stressed that whilst at work she works both hard and efficient and that there have been times in her career where she has needed to step up and work the long hours, but it is not always like that. Nicole emphasized how much she has enjoyed her career

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creasingly becoming present in executive roles.

With modern technology, women are able to work even whilst not at work.

Nicole stated, “I find that whilst I am waiting to pick my children up from school, or waiting to catch the train home from work I can reply to all my emails on my phone, this is my concept of efficiency”.

Bond Business Review 131

The common thread of both Nicole and Joanne’s stories is that women can achieve what they want in business whilst maintaining a work-life balance if they choose to work efficiently rather than working long hours. Macquarie is just one of the firms emphasizing that they would prefer there employees to just get their job done, and do their job well so they can go home, rather than their employees wait around work until the early hours of the morning simply because it is expected.

The women mentioned in this article are living examples of women who have successfully achieved fulfilling careers whilst also raising families.

Women can, and increasingly are, doing this as well as continuing to define the stereotype of women in investment banking.

Happily Ever After

By Karin Hanna

We all love a good fairy tale and a happy ending, don’t we? But what lessons have we learned from them and are they the only lessons or are there more?

Just recently I was discussing Cinderella with my daughter and realised the most important lesson of all was one I had failed to recognise until that moment..You all know how it goes …

O

Her happy ending was an enduring story that touched our hearts and taught us girls that being good was all about enduring whatever was set before us without complaint, that often animals can be your BFF, That we need to look good, be virtuous and wait for the day Prince Charming will come and rescue us, that nothing is more important than true love, that sometimes bad things happen to good people and that lets face it Fairy Godmothers are cool!

nce upon a time, there was a beautiful young girl named Cinderella, she lived alone with her father after her mother had died. He was a devoted father and loved his only daughter dearly, lavishing care, tenderness and kindness upon her. He did everything to make life luxurious and comfortable for Cinderella but still felt she was missing something. Anxious for his daughter to have a mother figure he married a woman of good standing who was widowed with 2 daughters of her own. They lived happily together until her father died….

Blah Blah Blah…

So what was the most important lesson I failed to see until now! I’m glad you asked…It is that Cinderella’s Dad was naive and believed in the best but didn’t plan for the long-term welfare and protection of his dependant Cinderella, even though he loved and cherished her!

We know the next part the step mother is evil and turns Cinderella into a servant in her own home, she endures like all good princesses do, she never complains but continues to do her best and work hard.Until of course she is rescued from a life of Blah, Blah, Blah by Prince Charming who is captivated by her beauty at the ball.. and now leads a life of Bling, Bling, Bling and lives Happily Ever After.

When he died all his wealth was left to his then wife Lady Tremaine, she controlled it and Cinderella was left at her mercy. Cinderella never ever should have been left at the mercy of her stepmother, it was financially irresponsible for her father to have not taken steps to plan his estate and protect his assets so that his beloved daughter was taken care of.

This man was a gentleman of good standing, he had a chateau, and he had wealth. Cinderella was born into a wealthy family, but by failing to put a financial plan in place to protect Cinderella he albeit unknowingly put her future in jeopardy.

Everyone with a dependant needs a

current will and a plan in place for their future and security should something happen to them. It is a responsibility we all have yet a lot of us especially us ladies are still avoiding knowing exactly what plans are made for our money and financial futures.

Money is not the be all and end all but it is up there in importance if we want to live Happily Ever After. If you enjoyed this and would like to learn more and know what you need to have in place for financial freedom we have released a Happily Ever After- 3 Video Series for women and its free to download, listen to and share. It’s part of the launch of my new business www.financiallyfabulous.com Who am I? My name is Karin Hanna and I am the SHEO of Financially Fabulous , which is a financial planning business exclusively for women. I am also a Bondie, on the home stretch of completing my MBA and now a qualified financial planner. Our mission is to empower and educate women about money and to ensure that every woman has a financial plan in place so she can be in control of her own Happily Ever After and not need rescuing! We would love your support, feedback and any questions you may have, as we say at FinFab no damsels in distress on our watch!

If anyone would like to reach me you can contact me at: Karin@karinhanna.com

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Hurricane Sandy The struggling aftermath for Haiti

BY HELENA MICHAEL

W

hile the world watched in dismay as Hurricane Sandy tore through the Northeast of America, an even greater trail of destruction caused by Sandy went largely unnoticed in Haiti. As if the 2010 earthquake was not enough, Haiti now faces new challenges to recover their economy.

Despite the fact that Hurricane Sandy was considered a category one hurricane as it passed through the poverty-stricken Haiti, the aftermath of this has put the Caribbean nation in a state of emergency. With over twenty inches of rain in twenty-four hours and strong winds, the already suffering nation has been hit with, as the Prime Minister stated, a “disaster of major proportions”.

It has been estimated that around 70% of the country’s crops like maize, plantains and bananas have been destroyed. Haiti officials are extremely concerned with this because these crops are relied upon by the locals for a staple diet and as a result will now have to rely on imported food. One of the effected crops, coffee, was considered to the “bank account of the peasants” and has been destroyed by Sandy with the damage being “incalculable”. With around two million people in Haiti at risk of hunger, experts have predicted that the poor country is headed for a food emergency because of the expensive cost of importing food.

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The United Nation’s World Food Program has described that “approximately half of the population lives with less than $1 a day and three quarters have less than $2 per day, this increase has led to an overall loss of purchasing power for the majority of Haitians”. With the cost of imports set to rise, Haiti officials are concerned that this may trigger violent food protests like in 2008 and cause political instability. As a result, the United Nation’s World Food Program has applied for $20 million dollars to help those affected, but this will not be enough to cover the widespread damage caused.

The damage does not end there for the poorest country in the western hemisphere with the hurricane causing around 600 million dollars worth of damage to infrastructure and destroying 30 water supply systems. Sandy has taken food, shelter and water away from a massive population of the Caribbean nation, which was already in a vulnerable state before the devastating hurricane hit.

Before the devastating storm hit on October 24, Haiti was already facing serious economic challenges. With many Haitians being stripped of just about everything, the nation will likely face a state of food emergency. In light of this, the long-term damage is catastrophic and widespread and one can only hope that the citizens of Haiti will see the light at the end of the tunnel sometime soon.

In the past year the three major international ratings agencies have downgraded Portugal’s credit worthiness to junk status. Interest rates on the country’s bonds has climbed to the highest point since the European single currency was introduced. It appears that Portugal’s economy is locked in a death spiral.

After Portugal asked for the international financial rescue last April; the economy went into a nosedive which it has not been able to recover from. Investors stopped lending money and companies’ loan applications are being rejected due to increasingly cautious banks. Whilst this has been occurring, The government has shot up electricity tax from 6% to 23%, slashed welfare benefits and either scrapped or postponed all major public works projects. Bruno Proenca, the executive editor of business daily Diario Economico, says the current national shortage of vital cash is dooming viable companies.

The odd situation in the Portuguese economy is that companies are closing down that have customers, orders and a stable business, all because they are taking too long to get paid. The government is demanding tax payments that the companies can simply not afford. The state, for its part, is one of the worst payers of all. The government owes public hospitals, for example, more than €2 billion, making it hard for them to pay suppliers. And last year local authorities owed more than €900 million just to construction companies and were taking more than 7 months to settle their bills.

Portugal’s Job protection laws are making the situation all the more difficult. Companies have become burdened with workers they can neither afford to keep nor lay off due to the costly compensation payouts and legal procedures required. Joao Lopes has noted that these laws are

a big reason why the productive levels are so low in Portugal and foreign investors are reluctant to step in with fresh cash.

The government in January has finally agreed, after months of negotiations, to reform the law.

This is in response to unemployment in Portugal climbing to its highest point in history at 13.6%.

The new laws are attempting to make it easier to hire and fire staff and therefore reduce labor costs and make Portuguese exports cheaper.

Lopes has commented that these changes “are ten years too late” and that “it will take years for these changes to show up on company balance sheets”. All of this is adding to the deadly spiral Portugal I caught in.

The Portuguese people now seem to be giving up on their country. Portugal has seen tens of thousands of people emigrate away from their country. A wave of emigration not witnessed since an exodus of blue-collar workers to France in the 1960s. The real issue for Portugal is that this time around it is the college educated talent which are emigrating.

It appears that the key difference from Greece is that markets have not given up completely on Portugal. Portugal’s ten-year borrowing rate in the market stands at 12%, which is still very high, but way below the 30% Greek equivalent.

Portugal plans to use this year’s bailout to get this rate back below 7%. Minister Miguel Relvas has stated “All the sacrifices the Portuguese are making today will prove worthwhile in the future”. Portugal’s debt levels are expected to peak at 106% in 2013.

The Death of Portugal?

Firms with less than 50 workers make up more than 99% of Portuguese businesses. The problem is that they are collapsing at an alarming rate. The Association of Bankruptcy Owners in Portugal logged more than 10 000 company insolvencies last year, up more than 60% from the previous year.

Portugal has so far witnessed none of the violent demonstrations seen in Greece, though police said three Lisbon tax offices have been vandalized recently.

By Brent Loeskow Bond Business Review 131 Page 21

Digital Convergence C

onvergence is a word that manages to describe techno logical, industrial, cultural, and social changes, depending on who’s speaking and what they think they are talking about. In the world of media convergence, every important story gets told, every brand gets sold, and every consumer gets courted across multiple media platforms. - Jenkins, H. (2006).

diffuse the Digital Convergence? Will the future of Digital Convergence be limited to Media and Internet or will it go beyond MIT? Digital Convergence has shrunk socio-physical distances (which are great to have so there is a common space for communication and virtual ground) but will M&A end up shrinking the economy?

2006 was dominated by the innovation of Digital Convergence and M&A ac-

between American SBC and AT&T, Verizon and MCI, and also NTL and Virgin Mobile. Large Internet companies including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft’s MSN also marched into the telecom business bylaunching new services offering free calls over the Internet. eBay bought Skype (the largest video call service provider); Cisco (the world’s largest network-equipment firm) bought

Digital convergence brings togethScientific-Atlanta(which makes teleer technologies, devices, protocols, vision set-top boxes); and Nokia and standards, and companies. Every new “Convergence is Siemens work-equipment divisions. innovation in Digital the world, like; However, the most interesting anCDs, DVDs, laptops, mp3 players, happening every day in nouncement of all was Apples launch interactive TVs, smartphones and tabthe Digital World. Every of their iPhone. This was an example lets are examples of enablng a converof new market dynamics where comsecond someone is gence of computing, communications puter industry leaders were enterand entertainment for the consumer. ing the mobile phone industries and In the last decade, Digital Convergence has been shaped through Mergers and Acquisitions (M &A). Media is merging with Information Technology with companies like Google, Amazon, Apple and Microsoft being involved in a number of M&A activities. Such M&A activities are classified within the “ M e d i a - i n t e r n e t - Te c h n o l o g y ” (“MIT”) scheme. Disruptive innovations have prompted these companies to use M&A as a vehicle to expand their product portfolios and position themselves to better to cater for the converging MIT universe.

Was the idea of Digital Convergence created as an urge of M&A in the MIT sector?

Or did the high M &A activities in MIT

uploading videos, music, movies, and content on the web. ” tivities. Market experts were sceptical at the beginning due to unstable consumer demands and immature technology.

Diffusion of Digital Convergence was in its first stages and innovators were really excited about the idea of bringing together different communication and media services; fixed and mobile telephony, broadband Internet access and television. Though conversion was not merit the hype, but experts in the telecom industry thought it to be worth pursuing. Many companies were investing in Next Generation networks and convergence deals. A few large M&A were

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coming together in convergence. The whole vision was to provide freedom to consumers because it was possible to combine communication and entertainment on the same network. Fortunately for Telecom Companies like Verizon, AT&T and BT, the marriage of telecom with Internet was very enthusiastic and exciting because the Internet was much cheaper and easier to move data, which ultimately meant more revenue.

The ‘Journey to Diffusion of Digital Convergence’ hardly took 6 years to establish the reality of bringing various communications and media on the same device and network…but it doesn’t stop there! Today Digital convergence is changing every day.

As David Armano referred to in his HBR Blog, for a glimpse into how socialisation will further integrate with “real life,” we can look at what Coca Cola experimented with all the way back in 2010. Coke created an amusement park where participants could “swipe” their RFID-equipped wristbands at kiosks, which posted to their Facebook account what they were doing and where. Also, as part of a marketing campaign, Domino’s Pizza posted feedback— unfiltered feedback — on a large billboard in Times Square, bringing together real opinions from real people pulled from a digital source and displayed in the real world. These types of “trans-media” experiences are likely to define “social” in the year to come.

Digital Capitalism through convergence is giving consumers the opportunity to bring different ideas, cultures and technologies together. Consumers are re-inventing the stories, music, and movies and creating new contents.

Back in 2006, critics were worried with the enthusiasm of companies like Google, Amazon, and Apple, becausethey thought consumers were not ready for the Digital Convergence, but today consumers are creating Digital Convergence. They are creating it, diffusing it and extending it by adding new possibilities and opportunities.

As Henry Jenkins defines convergence, ‘it is cultural and social; it is driven by the idea of sharing content’. Convgence is happening every day in the Digital World. Every second, someone is up-

loading videos, music, movies, and content on the web. Digital Convergence is happening everywhere and it is the consumer who is developing the vision to integrate other components.

Digital Convergence has been mantra for the last decade and companies have enabled the convergence through investing in M & A activities.

Convergence has already diffused to the broader community and it is still diffusing. But at this point, where consumers and audience are creating convergence, market convergence will still continue but it is no longer limited to M&A activities.

Written by Preeti Sharma

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Your BSA wishes you all the best for the rest of the Trimester xx

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