Tag Archives: Michael Parker

THE BUSINESS PITCH MORE ETHICAL THAN THE POLITICAL?

The Observer today had this headline to an article on its Comment page, “When government propaganda is disguised as fact.” It argued that propaganda is a damaging and divisive tool, referencing the currrent ‘health tourism’ dispute.

Last week an official government report announced that the NHS is spending up to £2bn on foreign visitor and short-term migrants with Jeremy Hunt saying we couldn’t afford “an international heath service” with fewer than 50% of ‘chargeable’ foreign nationals. Continue reading →

HOW TO PITCH AN IDEA, GRAYSON PERRY STYLE

One of the communication highlights of last week was the Reith Lecture by Grayson Perry. While he is known for his genius as an artist and his talents as a communicator, the august Lecture is different, potentially outside his comfort zone. Not so. From the Sunday Times:

” His lecture, Democracy has Bad Taste, was a deft, humorous and scholarly taking-apart of the art-world elite who determine ” good taste”. It more than filled the Reithian aspiration to educate and inform and entertain. One reviewer defied anyone to listen “and not be be entertained or illuminated or provoked” Continue reading →

CAMERON, MASTER OF GESTURE POLITICS

The dictionary definition for gesture politics reads: “Any action by a person or organisation done for political reason and intended to attract public attention but having little real effect”. A recent example was the high profile use of Home Office Vans telling illegal immigrants to GO HOME!

David Cameron is no more guilty of gesture politics than the rest of them- Milliband, Clegg, Osborne, Balls-it’s a staple of political life.

Where he is the master is in his powerful, practised use of gesture when speaking. Continue reading →

PITCHING TO ALAN SUGAR. CAUSTIC JIBES ‘PUT OFF’ ASPIRING TYCOONS.

The Apprentice and Dragon’s Den never were about pitching and a recent YouGov poll, reported in the Sunday Times today puts their ‘value’ to business practice in doubt.

It suggests 88% of small-business leaders believe contestants’ behaviour on The Apprentice puts off aspiring entrepreneurs.

“The programme’s producers seem to be deliberately portraying young entrepreneurs as greedy, self-regarding and frankly a bit dim-witted” Continue reading →

IF ANGELA MERKEL REARRANGES THE CHAIRS, SHOULDN’T YOU?

With the German election approaching newspapers are full of articles trying to get to the secret of the success of the world’s most powerful woman and what makes her tick.

We were given an interesting insight into what this could be in the Observer:

“It has been she – the first to admit she dislikes conflict – who has stood up and literally rearranged the chairs at a conference in a last-ditch and arguably maternal intervention to forge better communication.” Continue reading →