The annual wireless industry trade show, CTIA, had some interesting trends this year. Putting aside the fact that Las Vegas feels like a ghost town, cab lines are uncharacteristically short, and my personal frustration that I find myself agreeing with an arch-conservative economist Arthur Laffer’s editorial in today’s WSJ on how Obama’s estate tax policy […]
Here’s an idea for you. Put out a message via Twitter, Facebook, My Space, LinkedIn, Plaxo, or the ACG Essential Network asking for savvy finance professionals who perhaps have been laid off in this most recent recession and would be more than happy to join “The Workout Corps.” This organization of very talented folks would […]
Pam Hendrickson, chief operating officer of The Riverside Co., this morning testified at a Congressional Small Business subcommittee hearing titled “Expanding Equity Investment in Small Business.” What follows are her prepared remarks: Chairman Altmire, Ranking Member Fallin, and member of the subcommittee: Good morning. My name is Pam Hendrickson and I am the Chief Operating […]
I grew up in suburban Detroit. My dad was a barber. Most of his customers were auto workers. I knew from an early age that we are all economically intertwined. When Detroit churned out lots of cars, the auto workers were flush and they got their hair cut regularly. When Detroit was booming, it meant […]
Yesterday, I caught myself chain-drinking Diet Cokes again. With about ten ounces left in my Double Big Gulp, I’d start waltzing over to the 7-11 on Lytton. By the time I got through the door, it’d be time to reload. Maybe it was the caffeine, but back in the office after my third trip – […]
Every time there’s an economic downturn, the spotlight shines on the super-rich and their out-of-touch lifestyles. The iconic moment of the 1991/1992 recession was President George H.W. Bush looking bewildered at the supermarket checkout line during the 1992 “It’s the Economy, Stupid” presidential campaign. In 2001/2002 it was Tyco’s CEO Dennis Koszlowski spending $1 million […]
As we look back at the dreadful deal environment of 2008, we wonder what’s in store in 2009 and beyond? What did we learn, if anything, from our battle scars? When will we return to the good old carefree days of private equity? Actually, my hope is never! What we saw in the so-called “golden […]
The big freeze in the financial world has led to a big squeeze for legions of CEO’s trying to work their way through the current economic correction. This vise-like grip stems from the numbers: boards and private equity investors with majority stakes want growing businesses, but in today’s environment, CEO’s are confronted by contracting revenues […]
When I was a kid, I was obsessed with the newly invented personal computer. In 1982, I used my paper route and Bar Mitzvah money to purchase an Apple II+ PC (my parents did subsidize the purchase somewhat, I confess). I was mesmerized by the magic of the personal computer and all its possibilities: games, […]
About one year ago I attended a great session in San Francisco, with VC firm limited partners, The Carlyle Group’s Bob Grady and fund managers from Hamilton Lane and SFERS. At the time I was impressed with the rationale behind a deliberate slowdown in new VC fund investments, yet every fund manager assured that the […]