McKinsey Consultant Involved in Billionaire's Insider Trading Scheme

In a rare inside look into the rarefied world of hedge fund dealings, a federal jury in Manhattan has found billionaire investor Raj Rajaratnam guilty of fraud and conspiracy. A juicy and far-reaching detail in the case: Former McKinsey director Anil Kumar (picture) and two other McKinsey consultants helped the Galleon Group founder with stock tips based on insider information. How can such dirty deals by consultants be prevented?

Fukushima: Breaking Through the Rules

When a Japanese worker at the Fukushima nuclear plant ran into a guard who stuck to the rules and refused to improvise, it revealed a lack of flexibility Japan urgently needs to get out of its crisis. Unfortunately Japan is not alone. All too often, companies get attached to rigid plans and cannot adapt to new facts on the ground. 

The Power of Words

"Words are, of course," Rudyard Kipling once wrote, "the most powerful drug used by mankind." The video in this article shows that words can make the difference between a good business and a great business, between mediocre and transcendent leadership, between making small change and making real money. Communication is the best investment; but most of us use language poorly or not at all.

Richard Branson Becomes Stewardess

After losing a bet, Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson will have to don a red stewardess uniform and walk down the aisle to offer passengers drinks and food. The British entrepreneur's one-off action should become standard best practice for top managers. 

Can Google Build Better Bosses?

Bosses have a huge influence on people's performance and job satisfaction (meaning whether they stay or leave), so Google has embarked on a bold initiative: to build better managers. "Project Oxygen" applies what Google does best (organizing information) to the unpredictable world of the human element.

Does Facebook Boost or Cost Results?

Some studies say Facebook use reduces workers' productivity (by 1.5%). Others say, on the contrary, a little surfing on social networks can reduce stress and sharpen the mind, and banning them would cost business (up to $8 billion). Who is right? And what is your experience, good or bad?

Breaking Up By SMS: Cowardly or OK?

The definitive guide for appropriate vs. inappropriate behavior in German-speaking Europe has officially ruled that relationships can be ended via SMS. But now its president has come under attack and several board members resigned in protest. Who is right? And what constitutes acceptable communication online?

Social Networks: Constructive or Callous?

Is the Internet helping to disgrace scoundrels, expose scandals, and bring down dictators? Or is it a place of fake intimacy in which innocent people get cyber-mobbed, shamed, and attacked? Probably both. Facebook, Twitter or YouTube are two-faced technologies: fighting cruelty, causing cruelty. Which face will prevail?

Should Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg Resign?

Scandal in Germany: In an unprecedented step, the University of Bayreuth has revoked the doctorate of Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, accusing him of plagiarizing most of his dissertation. Should the popular German defense minister, at under 40 a rising political star in the conservative coalition, tough it out? Or should he take the consequences and resign? 

Wael Ghonim, Google Executive and Revolutionary: A New Type of Leader?

One of the unlikely heroes of Egypt's revolution is Wael Ghonim, Google's head of marketing for the Middle East and North Africa, who sparked the protests through Facebook and Twitter. Is Ghonim a new type of 21st-century leader?