Insights

Employee engagement is often confused with employee satisfaction, but there is a fundamental difference between the two ideas. A team member may be content with the easy rhythm of the status quo, but only an engaged employee will take the initiative to improve efficiency and performance wherever possible.

TFRS 16 largely retains the definition of a lease in TAS 17 but changes the guidance on how to apply it. This refinement was necessary, as the removal of ‘off-balance sheet’ operating leases created a greater need for distinguishing between a lease and a service contract.

January 2019 marked the one-year anniversary of the inception of the US - China trade war. What started with the US increasing import tariffs on Chinese solar panels and washing machines, later spiralled into retaliatory and counter-retaliatory tariff measures between the two countries. Throughout much of 2018, the global business community looked on with apprehension as the two largest economies escalated their trade dispute, which, at its peak, tallied 360 billion USD in combined tariffs. At the close of 2018, the world breathed a sigh of relief when the US and China called for a temporary truce and agreed to resume trade negotiations.

The Labor Protection Act (No.7) has been officially published in the Royal Gazette on 5 April 2019, and will be in effect on 5 May 2019. The essentials of the amendments are set out in this article.

On 26 March 2019, the Cabinet approved draft Royal Decrees revoking all tax benefits granted by the Thai Revenue Department (“TRD”) to the following Board of Investment (“BoI”) regimes: 1. Regional Operating Headquarter (ROH); 2. International Headquarter (IHQ); and 3. International Trading Center (“ITC”)

Too often considered to be a medium-to-low priority, corporate culture affects everything about an organisation – from the way its over-arching goals, to its internal behaviour, to the types of interactions it creates with its customers. Moreover, corporate culture issues are primarily leadership issues, because the way senior management thinks and acts will always affect the mindset at other levels of the organisation.

Today’s technology companies can learn something from Khevenhüller. They may not fear foreign conquerors, but they do face attack from malicious actors that are set on stealing their IP or the personal data they hold. They must identify the assets that are most important, consider the most likely lines of attack, and tailor a defensive strategy accordingly.

If the numbers don’t seem to add up, or the receipts aren’t where they are supposed to be, many clients will have a logical explanation ready. But how much should they be taken at their word? And how should auditors handle situations where client representatives insist that a particular inconsistency is nothing to worry about? A healthy sense of scepticism is an essential asset for every responsible auditor, allowing them to shield their work against all sorts of corporate maneuvering. This approach indeed preserves much of the value of an independent audit.

Market Mapping provides a thorough, intelligence-based overview of talent availability in your industry, including potential candidates who are not actively searching for new positions. The database is not limited to skill-based metrics, but rather also takes into account the personality types of relevant candidates, and how well they are likely to fit in with your own company’s culture.

In our Grant Thornton's global Women in Business campaign, Kamonwan Wipulakorn CEO of One Origin, a subsidiary of one of Thailand’s largest real estate developers Origin Property Pcl, explains Thailand’s progressive workplace culture.

A company may ‘feel’ more complete when it has its own accounting, admin, HR, and marketing departments – and indeed, many (mostly larger) businesses do well under this format. But for most SMEs, these sizable sections of the company add no value to the product or to the consumer experience. On the contrary: They divert time, effort and attention away from the activities that generate actual profit for the business. There is a reason, after all, why businesses keep going back to the old saying: ‘Do what you do best, and outsource the rest.’

January 2019 marked the one-year anniversary of the inception of the US - China trade war. What started with the US increasing import tariffs on Chinese solar panels and washing machines, later spiralled into retaliatory and counter-retaliatory tariff measures between the two countries. Throughout much of 2018, the global business community looked on with apprehension as the two largest economies escalated their trade dispute, which, at its peak, tallied 360 billion USD in combined tariffs. At the close of 2018, the world breathed a sigh of relief when the US and China called for a temporary truce and agreed to resume trade negotiations.

The global economic cycle has peaked and businesses face a more downbeat outlook in 2019. With risks increasing, how can businesses continue to achieve growth and thrive in the year ahead? Among the 5,000 mid-market business leaders Grant Thornton interviewed as part of the IBR’s global economic outlook, global optimism sits at net 39%, a fall of 15 percentage points (pp) from net 54% in Q2 2018. This is the weakest optimism score seen since Q4 2016.

Welcome to our Champions for action homepage as part of our 2019 Women in business campaign. Our champions for action are global business figures leading the charge for gender diversity. Each Champion has shared a variety of challenges, success stories, advice and practical solutions for addressing gender parity at the senior management level.

Our 2019 Women in business report: building a blueprint for action shows that progress is being made towards gender parity at the senior management level. The last 12 months have seen increases in both the proportion of senior roles held by women and the proportion of businesses with at least one woman in senior management.

In 2019, our Women in business campaign will focus on the real world and seeking solutions to leadership diversity. What is holding back women in leadership? How can we put in place a blueprint for action? This year marks a shift in our reporting on gender diversity in senior management. Our 2019 Women in business report: building a blueprint for action explores how to find out how momentum is building and how we can all drive change.