Insights

When attending a job interview, it is essential to dress well, show up on time, demonstrate good humour and likability, and create a memorable experience for the person you are sitting down with. These simple concepts are well understood throughout the world of job-seekers – but often ignored by HR managers and/or hiring managers themselves.

A recent Grant Thornton survey of over 300 senior executives found that 89% believe the CFO of the future will require much stronger data analytics skills – and fully 75% plan to upgrade their personal data analytics skills in the coming year.

For a country with global ambitions, China has many of the key attributes needed to achieve its aspirations. But the essential lesson holds across world affairs just as surely as it applies to business, or to life in general.

In July 2018, the trade war between the United States and China went live. The war of words which saw threats, posturing, and “nudges” to impose tariffs on goods traded between the United States and China became a reality.

In Part 1 of this article, we examined the importance of speed, flexibility, and successful adaptation in the current business climate.

Our own Grant Thornton International Business Report conducts worldwide surveys that poll business leaders across the world markets, and fully 54% of respondents reported feeling a sense of economic optimism in Q2 2018 – far higher numbers than in previous years.

Since its inception, the digital realm has been an economic “wild west.” Laws and regulations written in the “brick and mortar” world often do not apply or are, for all practical purposes, unenforceable in the digital counterpart.

In the natural world, the big winners are not always the strongest or fastest, but rather the ones that are best at adapting to changes in their environment. The business world follows similar rules – and its current environment is changing more rapidly than at any time in history, thanks to the digital revolution.

Do you tailor your donor communications by age group? Grant Thornton’s Global Not for Profit Leader, Carol Rudge, explains why you should

Vibrant cities attract people to live, work or invest in them. So what should you be focusing on if you're a city planner? How can you help your city function smartly and create sustainable growth for all?

Effective cash management is a critical success factor for any business. To fund growth, invest in new infrastructure or mitigate short term downturns, having strong visibility and control of day-to-day cash is a must.

Artificial intelligence is a concept that remains much discussed but poorly understood. There are popular speakers who preach its potential, predicting that we will soon live in an automated world where human work is no longer necessary.

Global businesses today use a wide variety of tools in their communications strategy to stay connected – intranets, emails, mobile phones, Skype, texts and instant messaging among them. Revolutionary as they may be for transforming how business is conducted globally, they still provide no substitute for sending a trusted, capable employee on an overseas assignment to solve a problem or lead an initiative in person.

Thailand may soon join several countries in taxing digital services and products that are provided by foreign e-commerce operators. In July 2018, the Thai Cabinet approved of a draft law that, if enacted, will see Thailand imposing value added tax (“VAT”) on foreign operators that provide services and content through the internet or electronic media to Thai consumers.

For the average large Thai organisation included in the study, just $0.7 million was lost through the direct result of attacks. Indirect effects accounted for $6.7 million of the lost money, while induced losses accounted for the remaining $5.3 million.

Executive recruitment used to be a much simpler industry in terms of entry as well as sustainable performance. Before networks like LinkedIn and dedicated job-searching websites, businesses had little choice but to connect with executive candidates via a third party.