It is increasingly clear that the Irish economy is undergoing the sharpest and most sudden downturn it has ever experienced. The need to slow the spread of the coronavirus has meant tens of thousands of businesses closing their doors. A Kantar poll taken in recent days shows consumers are not optimistic about a quick recovery.
International experience of the aftermath of disasters shows that well-intentioned government emergency measures are often the biggest obstacle to recovery.
It was almost five o'clock last Friday evening. The employees were gathering to take part in a team happy hour. My coaching client, a manager of a unit for a multinational company, had painstakingly organised it. He arranged for everyone's beverage of choice to be on hand.
Before Hollywood borrowed the phrase for a movie about ballet, the term 'black swan' referred to an unexpected, unprecedented event of significant magnitude. It was popularised by a book of the same name by risk specialist Nassim Taleb.
Estimates of the economic and exchequer cost of the coronavirus outbreak are beginning to take shape. But they still look somewhat unrealistic and may well be revised further downward in the coming weeks. Only a couple of weeks ago, bizarrely optimistic forecasts were being produced which talked about minor drops in the performance of the...
Retailers are seeking significant support from the Government in paying commercial rent ahead of Wednesday, when hundreds of millions of euro are due to be paid for quarter two.
As nations throughout the world struggle to limit the spread of Covid-19, they are subjecting their citizens and economies to restrictions that would have been inconceivable only a few weeks ago.
