Growth
With two weeks to go until Labour’s annual conference, the fiscal cracks on show are looking more like subsidence. The party wants to talk growth: private investment, green jobs and productivity, but is doing so with a chancellor, Rachel Reeves, who is stiffly defined by fiscal caution,
AI
Welcome to the AI Roundup The UK government’s internal trial of Microsoft 365 Copilot failed to deliver the expected productivity gains. Despite Copilot’s ability to generate meeting notes and email drafts, the pilot found no measurable improvements in efficiency. Micro1 raised $35 million
Growth
Europe is falling behind. The US thrives on bold ambition. China scales with relentless momentum. But Europe's many committees and caution culture sap its capacity to adapt, innovate and lead. Without reframing its mindset to one that embraces experimentation, rapid learning and unified
AI
Good morning I recently coached an exec team who wanted more updates on how companies are responding to AI challenges. Here's the latest: The White House is finalising a “Winning the AI Race” plan to push US AI overseas and block federal funding in states with restrictive AI laws. It leans
Geopolitics
“Please miss, can we leave school early today? It’s election day.” “I beg your pardon, Jimmy? Oh, yes voting, of course. Off you go, but don’t forget your plimsolls and make sure your mother is at the gate to collect you.” Pokemon cards and ballot slips don’t mix. Giving the vote to
Leadership
Every time financial pressure rises, ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) is binned. It is the twitchiest of government policies and company strategies. It comes in and out of fashion faster than a MasterChef TV host. The UK just scrapped its green investment taxonomy and pulled
Growth
In the FT today, Charlie Nunn, CEO of Lloyds Banking Group, argues that despite recent UK GDP contractions and warnings from the OBR about diminished economic resilience, the country is poised for growth if can avoid a decade of drift. He highlights rising business confidence, backed by
Downtime
What's your favourite Whatsapp group? Over Covid and lockdown, many people found comfort in Whatsapp groups. It was a way to deal with isolation or the ridiculous situation we found ourselves in. Or perhaps it was to find comfort in what were extremely frightening times. I've managed to
Geopolitics
I was at an event last night led by some of the people behind the UK government's Strategic Defence Review. If you haven't read it yet, I urge you to do so. If you’re a CEO, you’re no longer outside the blast radius. You're in it. The review redefines what war - and therefore operational
Downtime
Morning Folks, I hope you're in a good place this morning. I have a favour to ask. Two in fact - so I won't beat about the bush. Firstly, I'm growing the newsletter readership and I need your help. Would you mind recommending the Executive Summary to a few people? Two minutes. I'd really
AI
The Executive Summary's latest pulse survey researched 150 global enterprise CEOs on their relationship with technology. Most studies focus on CIOs, but with the rise of AI, CEOs are pushing harder to drive the tech agenda themselves. Two Stats That Matter [more to be revealed]: * 68% of
Geopolitics
For those of you who never make it to page 19 of the newspaper, the Labour government launched its industrial strategy this week. This represents a long-overdue reset as a ten-year plan to focus government support on eight high-growth, high-productivity sectors: advanced manufacturing,
