The Making Of A Good Manager

January 6, 2012

Nineteen years ago, I returned from my family’s winter holiday, unlocked a small, empty, rented office, and started my own tax and financial planning firm. I knew what it would take for my business to succeed. I would have to become the best financial adviser I could be. I would also have to attract enough clients, and the right sort of clients, to support a growing company, as well as …

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Beware Mutual Funds Using Hedge Fund Strategies

January 6, 2012

With hundreds of mutual funds that use hedge fund strategies being rushed to market, there are bound to be some real dogs. After a decade of low stock market returns and high volatility, investors are clamoring for products that seek to profit regardless of the market environment. Mutual fund companies are doing their best to fill the void with products that employ hedge fund strategies. The $2 trillion private hedge …

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Performance Reviews That Work

January 6, 2012

I can’t think of any ritual in American business that is more widely despised than the annual performance review. Employees fear and loathe reviews that are vague or inconsistent, (How can one manager love you for showing initiative, while another lambastes you for failing to seek direction?) or that are used in some opaque way to determine compensation, or that, worst of all, are coupled with a rule that says …

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Duly Noted

January 6, 2012

Employer-provided cell phones nontaxable, IRS says. Employees who make personal use of employer-provided cell phones do not owe income tax on the cost of the phones or the service, as long as the phones are provided primarily for “noncompensatory” reasons, the IRS announced. Noncompensatory reasons include an employer’s need to reach employees after hours for emergencies, making employees available to customers at all times, and making it easier for employees …

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A Third Chicago Airport Goes Nowhere, Slowly

January 6, 2012

They’re talking about a third airport for Chicago. Of course, they’ve been talking about it since the 1960s, so don’t book your flight yet.

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