Thoughts for owner-led businesses
Short articles on management, technology and the European business landscape, written for owners and leaders of small and medium-sized companies.
Quiet leaders: lessons from the Mittelstand
Many of the world's leading niche manufacturers are medium-sized family firms in small German towns. Their habits travel well.
Read more →ArticleGood management is a technology too
Before buying new software, it is worth looking at something cheaper that research links strongly to productivity: everyday management practice.
Read more →ArticleThe quiet handover
Across Europe, hundreds of thousands of owner-led firms will change hands in the next few years. The good ones deserve a plan, not a closing-down sale.
Read more →ArticleAI literacy, without the fear
Europe's AI rules ask companies to help their people understand the tools they use. That is less a burden than a good habit.
Read more →ArticleAI and the environment: which way will the balance tip?
AI uses a great deal of electricity, water and materials. It can also save energy across the whole economy. Whether it ends up greener depends on choices we make now.
Read more →ArticleGetting paid on time
Late payment quietly drains Europe's smaller firms. The rules are tightening, but the best protection is still good housekeeping.
Read more →ArticleSustainability questions, simple answers
Europe has narrowed its reporting rules to the largest companies. Smaller suppliers will still be asked questions, and there is now a sensible way to answer them.
Read more →ArticleExperience is an asset
Europe's workforce is getting older. Companies that value experience, by choice and not by pressure, will keep knowledge that others lose.
Read more →ArticleShould we fear AI?
Films show machines turning on their makers. Scientists see real risks, but mostly different ones, and most of them can be managed if we act sensibly now.
Read more →Our articles give general information and our own views. Figures are taken from the sources listed with each article and were checked on the date of publication.
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