Special Reports

INNOVATION is a difficult-to-define and frequently illusive factor hotly pursued by most businesses.

LET'S start with the bad news, delicately described as "improvement opportunities" by the collators of the Best Employer survey.

IT'S a good thing Perth consultancy Modal fared well in the Best Employer Awards, considering the small business makes its money from advising other companies on how to improve their practices.

WHILE rebranding can be difficult when the high costs and long hours associated with doing so are considered, the companies found on this year's list of 'WA's most underperforming brand' may want to examine their options in this regard.

THE Brand Agency has cemented itself among the state's leading creatives after two of its key clients filled first and second positions in the 'WA's best brand' category in this year's branding survey.

RESULTS of this year's branding survey highlight the difficulty associated with maintaining a positive brand for a person or company.

ARGUABLY the fastest growing segment for the advertising and marketing industries is online branding, as its adoption by business gathers momentum and it becomes more of a key area of branding focus and budgeting.

WITNESSING the plethora of electronic products being sent to his local tip inspired the founder of a Western Australian IT recycling firm to try and make a difference.

A NEW global deal on climate change is due to be inked this year, and one of the sticking points is how poor countries will be funded to reduce their emissions.

A WESTERN Australian not-for-profit organisation has proved the old saying that one man's trash is another man's treasure, by recycling waste materials from mine sites and donating the proceeds to charity.

Rapid changes in the uptake of technology are presenting waste issues for our disposable society.

STATE government disincentives to the disposal of waste in landfill have met with an unfavourable response from local governments, which say they were not consulted in the policy's development and that they will not benefit from its introduction.

THE peak body representing regional councils has called on the state government to clarify its long-term strategic vision for waste management.

AS the Kevin07 campaign swept Labor into power almost two years ago, Australia's economy was riding high on a commodities and property boom underpinned by cheap debt.

FOR many wine drinkers, the word chianti conjures up images of red and white checked tablecloths, men (and often women) with an abundance of chest hair, and those squat, cane-wrapped bottles of brick-red wine more suited to stripping paint than accompanyi

Perth Airport CEO Favourite holiday destination? Hat Head, a small coastal town in northern NSW.

WITH the global downturn having affected virtually all businesses regardless of sector, size or structure, service-oriented industries reliant on a buoyant marketplace have renewed their focus on key priorities and services to ensure survival.

A CITY-BASED accountant will soon swap his calculator for a steering wheel and launch a four-wheel drive assault on an unsuspecting outback.

REGARDLESS of the sector you're in or the position you hold in the corporate world, high-end fashion is coming back to the office as the downturn signals a return to smart suits and crisp shirts to project commitment and ensure job security.

GET back to basics, have the right people and advisers around you, and make sure everyone involved shares the values that have made your business a success.

Favourite holiday destination? Paris.

THOSE famous last words, It seemed like a good idea at the time aren't what you'd expect from a man who spends most of his time in the boardrooms of the state's mining companies.

Down south the dogs are howling. It must be truffle time. Russell Quinn reports on an emerging niche industry.

I RECKON New Zealand sauvignon blanc might have shot itself in the foot.

THE Swan Valley Tourism Council has scrapped plans for a levy on bus and coach operators during the Spring in the Valley festival after opposition to the move.

IT requires plenty of upfront capital, has high ongoing costs and, if it fails, the owner is almost certain to be forced into exile in a bid to escape out-of-pocket members.

IN 1975, Swedish-born Hakan Friberg opened his Perth fitness equipment store one month after Laurie Potter opened his Hay Street health club.

The name Laurie Potter still casts a shadow over the fitness industry, more than two decades after the chain of health clubs collapsed.

ON October 16 1997, the selling techniques of the fitness industry received unprecedented attention.

WENDY Duncan is a name few Western Australians would be able to place, yet ask political observers who's who in the state's parliamentary jungle and her name comes up time and time again.

THERE is an interesting collection of businesspeople who wield influence in government due to their roles as board members of major corporatised agencies.

WITH the drums of the global financial crisis still pounding their deep-toned warnings, the shrill sounds of peripheral issues appear to have been drowned out.