how do you measure ethical performance?

Influx Insights — 2008-01-05T23:43:03Z

It's now a given that most multinationals are paying at least some attention to their ethical performance.

With the environment becoming such a big issue, the area of corporate responsibility is going to be under the microscope even more than in the past.

The problem is that there's very little performance measurement and comparative auditing between companies.

There are surveys and polls, but it's hard to find anything else that challenges and compares company standards.

It was therefore interesting to be send a press release from Covalence in Switzerland, who have been measuring and ranking companies on the their ethical performance for the past 3 years.

The company tracks performance by examining a variety of sources including the companies themselves, news media and non-profit organizations.

Covalence has just released its performance data for 2007 and there are some interesting findings.

The company provides three rankings.

1. Best Ethical Quote Score (positive minus negative news)

2. Best Ethical Progress

3. Best Reported Performance (How the company presents itself)

It's interesting and something of a challenge for US companies to see the foreigners, Unilever, Toyota and HSBC leading the way, with HP, Alcoa and Starbucks trailing in their wake.

On a cynical note, the US companies do a rather good job at talking up their own performance with Wal-Mart and Coca-Cola emerging as the leaders in that category.

Covalence also found that in 07, the environmental impact of production, eco product innovation and anti-corruption policy were the leading areas of ethical responsibility.

In addition to the annual report, Covalence provides real-time tracking of ethical peformance.

Useful if you manage an ethical funds or work in the CSR or PR department.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, audits and quality standards are going to emerge as an important issue for the environment and corporate ethics this and its good to see someone attempting to provide some comparative data.

Posted by Ed Cotton

what is the modern uber-luxury lifestyle?

Influx Insights — 2007-09-14T10:18:17Z

With the fantastic amounts of money flowing into the personal accounts of New York's young investment bankers, it has to go somewhere.

One place it's increasingly being invested is in property, but there's a new take on modern luxury and one of the most interesting examples is 40 Bond. This is a collaboration between the "godfather of the boutique hotel", Ian Schrager and Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron. The concept is to combine the look and ameneties and feel of a modern luxury hotel into a residence.

Architecturally, it's a re-interpretation of the classic Soho loft.

Schrager explains all in this film.

Posted by Ed Cotton

influx interview- dr. peter maskus-inventor of acabion- the world's fastest road vehicle

Influx Insights — 2007-06-06T19:55:48Z

Autocar, the British car magazine, described the Acabion (the Swiss super motorbike), in the following terms - “Faster than a Veyron and crazier than a fondue.”

If you are fortunate enough to have just sold your Web company, or work in hedge funds, have a thrill for speed and $2 million lying around, the Acabion could be just the ticket.

It’s the fastest road worthy vehicle ever made; capable of 342 mph and economical-70 mpg at 60 mph.

Influx tracked down Dr. Peter Maskus, the creator of the Acabion and fired some questions at him.

1. Can you briefly tell us the history of the Acabion?

From the very youth, I was strongly influenced by scientific background of my parents – by chemistry thanks to my mother and by math and physics thanks to my father. After spending two decades in car industry, Porsche and Mercedes included, I am - more than ever - truly convinced that building any kind of vehicle is much more matter of "sound and solid" physics and well understood bionics than of anything else. Additionally, I was already born with a dream to build a car by myself one day, I suppose. ;-) I told to my astonished parents "that I will have a car brand on my own once" - when I was 5 years old. It took a while. I started with drawings in 1985, while I still studied, and continued designing while I wrote my doctor thesis in mechanical engineering. 1990 I started working at Porsche Stuttgart and for some years I enjoyed sports cars and super sports cars a lot. Then I began riding motorbikes and flying airplanes and got thrilled by the superior dynamics of these both types of mobility. Additionally, I learned to know Japanese lean production methods of Toyota production system and began building personal contacts to scientists of bionics and evolutionary strategy, such as Nobel Prize winner Prof. Manfred Eigen. Out of these influences I commenced writing books about bionics and radical innovations. All these things melted into one single, tempting "dreamable dream": A new category of bionic, congenial vehicles of such a superb design and such outstanding dynamics and efficiency, that they will have the potential to open a new chapter of mobility.

2. What's the inspiration behind it?

The inspiration is Lenka Mikova, an outstanding engineer and my business partner since 2001. She is a miracle if it comes to building up a long-term strategy and a team of the right people around our vision. Our shared inspiration is to break boundaries and to create an "absolutely best option" for the next generation of individual, global mobility: Road streamliners. If carriages were the generation 1 and cars are the generation 2, then the road streamliners should be the generation 3 – due to their characteristics and performance as well as to their beauty and fascination, literally nothing will stop them in the long run. ;-)

3. Where is it built and manufactured?

It is a global project taking the best out of many places. Aeronautic technologies comes from several international airplane manufacturers, motorbike parts from Japan, dragster engine and several other key parts from the USA, racing engineers expertise from England, dragster boost control from Australia, tires from France, frame, hydraulic system, electric drive, instrumentation and tailor made carbon / leather interior from Switzerland, design influences from Italy. Our home base for research, administration plus all assembly is the D4 Business Center Lucerne, it’s a tremendously progressive and attractive place for challenging innovations.

Below- a video of Acabion in low speed action in Lucerne.

4. Why are so few going to be made?

There are two answers:

Answer 1) The Acabion is very, very rare for several reasons. A: We see the Acabion as true and fine Arts. It really is. It is sculptural arts and most the time we work with it, we see it as a sculpture. And that excludes any kind of a mass production. B: For the innovations and progress sake, we love to assure that everything is carefully created, options and innovations included. Not just to expose the money spent in the first place. Just as one of many examples: The sound system of the Acabion consists of 26 high-end custom handmade lightweight neodym speakers in totally innovative bionic "Acabion TM Sound Systems" cases. The sound quality outranges anything that was ever heard in any vehicle. E.g. it beats the Bugatti Veyron's Burmester system as clearly as the Acabion itself outranges the Veyron's acceleration, speed and certainly its efficiency. Little hint: The Acabion is symmetric, inside and out, and you bet we will make the best accoustic use out of that. Just the GTBO sound system has a value of 190 000 Euro. Talking about really exorbitant sound quality, placing a high-end sound system in an asymmetric car (like all of them are now) is a nonsolvable task. Top acoustic engineers will agree.

Answer 2) We want to generate a second brand inspired by the Acabion GTBO vehicles – with pure electric drive, produced in much higher number and for much lower price. Those vehicles will still represent a high value brand, but not the top exquisite trendsetting art of the Acabion GTBO. The electric versions will be so efficient that they can solely operate on solar or geothermic energy, stored in the Acabion high tech rechargeable batteries. This is the only way to ensure mobility for generations to come. (There is time and space for 200 Million future human generations on this fine planet. Sadly, too many people do not even think about two of them). We have to change that. Therefore earnings from the GTBO's will be invested into the second brand, for a long-term "clean and fast" mobility's sake.

5. Where do you do your testing? - performance, roadworthiness, etc?

Testing is done on huge Airports like the one north of Berlin that was used before by Russian military for jets. For lower speeds we use Samedan Airport close to St. Moritz, Switzerland. Roadworthiness is certified for each vehicle individually by the TUV Rheinlad in Cologne, Germany that is our partner for a decade now. Each certification from there is valid not only in Europe but also compliable with the customer's regional certification requests.

6. Will you be racing it at Goodwood's Festival of Speed?

We will be around in Goodwood, but not for racing. Just for showing it and for being among all those nice people at that terrific place. We will be driving it though, but slow: It is an aeronautic inspired project following strict aeronautic safety guidelines, so we keep any risk as low as possible. There is anyhow as little need to prove that an Acabion GTBO can run really fast as there is need to prove that a bullet can fly ;-) I mean it. This thing is fast. And we just say one thing: We will prove it. But not according to someone saying: "Now run", but according to our systematic and strict schedules. Additionally: Since I spent all my life for the Acabion, and Lenka joined in years ago with all her passion and all her life, too, the one and only GTBO that is existing now has a value of meanwhile something way above 30 Million Euro. (direct and indirect costs.)Hence I hope one can understand why we are so careful about it. It is in the interest of the entire following project. We will not endanger its roots.

7. Will you take the "racing" version?

The version that exists now is the predecessor of both ones, the very small number of customer vehicles plus the hand full of racing version.

8. Any plans to bring it to the US?

There is even a dream of having the US versions assembled in the USA long term. South of Austin TX. in the Canyon lake area.

influx ideas 07- branding switzerland

Influx Insights — 2007-05-08T01:09:50Z

We are pleased to announce that we have added Christian Simm to our list of speakers for the Influx Ideas 07 conference on October 19th in San Francisco.

Christian Simm is the executive director of swissnex, a unit that fosters cooperation and partnerships between Switzerland and Western North America in science and technology, education and entrepreneurship, and art and innovation.

Swissnex has been instrumental in helping to shift the brand image of Switzerland, from chocolate and watches to innovation and science.

Other speakers confirmed for the event include:

Beck Saeger- CMO-Charles Schwab
Johah Bloom- Editor, Advertising Age
Reuben Steiger- Founder, Millions of Us
Chas Edwards- Chief Revenue Officer, Federated Media
Scott Wyatt-Partner, NBBJ
Kent Nichols- Ask a Ninja
Sarah Rich-Editor, Worldchanging.com

More information on the event and registation can be found here.

Influx Insights Tag Feed: switzerland

how do you measure ethical performance?

what is the modern uber-luxury lifestyle?

influx interview- dr. peter maskus-inventor of acabion- the world's fastest road vehicle

influx ideas 07- branding switzerland