'Boards can work!.' (role of corporate boards in replacing ineffective management)
Governance has measurably improved, and the focus now should be on a process that will provide directors with more leverage on ineffective management. In the recent past fund managers, and pension fund managers in particular, have been increasingly outspoken in their criticism of poorly performing corporations. IBM, Sears, Eastman...

The Trustees' Dilemma.
For employees, making the right investment decision is critical to their future security. But employers who sponsor 401(k)s and other retirement plans are limited in what they can do to help. Current federal law prohibits retirement plan sponsors from giving workers investment advice, although they can provide educational materials....

Pension fund (affected by markets).
Difficult financial markets had an effect on the Anglican Church of Canada's pension fund, which includes nearly all clergy and lay employees across Canada among its members. Reporting to Council of General Synod at its regular fall meeting last November, the pension committee said the market value...

Enron's legacy.
Could more regulation have prevented the collapse of Enron Corporation, the huge energy and online trading company that last month became the largest company in history to declare bankruptcy? That is the question the Senate will pursue in Governmental Affairs Committee hearings that start January 24. The unexpected and...

Threats to Stock-based Benefits.
Popular with both employers and employees, stock-based benefits are now offered by nearly 56 percent of all U.S. employers, according to the Washington-based American Benefits Council, an employee benefits industry group. And somewhere between seven and 10 million employees participate. But unless the Bush Administration makes some...

Clergy well-being a priority.
This is the second in a series of articles examining the five priorities for the church identified last year by General Synod. The enormous changes in Canadian society over the past several decades have put clergy under more physical and mental stress than ever and the church...

Piecing together a foreign puzzle: sending a top manager abroad has its drawbacks. Even getting a driver's license can quickly become a chore in a foreign country. Managers should consider the range of benefits provided to expatriates to assure the productivity, security and happiness of the employee and his or her family once in the new land, this writer points out.
With the outsourcing of services and manufacturing jobs overseas, it is common for international firms to have a call center in India, a manufacturing plant in China and a claims and orders processor in Ireland. Reflecting this demand to compete in a global market, multinational corporations are...

Swis Re CEO faces rebuilding job. (CEO Profile).
It's probably not the best time to head up a big reinsurance operation. Insurers will probably pay about $50 billion for the Sept. 11 attacks. They face major claims on directors & officers as well as errors & omissions coverages that stem from the breakdown of corporate...

Unpaid clergy seek study: bishops may discuss disparities.
Aboriginal Anglican clergy want the house of bishops to discuss why about 90 per cent of them are unpaid, compared to about 13 per cent of all active clergy. "I'm proposing it to them. We need to have an honest discussion about how ministry is supported in...

CoGS approves rules of worship.
Council of General Synod voted to adopt guidelines for Anglican and Lutheran clergy serving in one another's parishes and for common worship. Canon Alyson Barnett-Cowan, staff support for the Joint Anglican-Lutheran Commission, said that at the group's first meeting in Halifax in February, "we found that all...