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Israel’s cleantech future

22 November 2009
2 Comments
Categories: Business, Israel

Bob Ackerman has been around Silicon Valley’s entrepreneur scene for many years. For Bob, Cleantech is the “latest shiny object”, wrapped in a bubble which is about to go pop.

The bubble is being led by overstated expectations and magnified by inexperienced people selling into a fantasy of hope.  That is not a good combination and it is not grounded.  That’s why I don’t believe in investing in clean technology even though there are real opportunities in the space.

Maybe, but not in Israel. Why?

Last week, Israel hosted Watec, the 5th international water and renewable techs exhibition. The Israeli Export Institute estimated that over hundred countries sent delegations to the conference.

It is difficult to estimate the number of deals which resulted from the three days of hectic activity. Formal trade agreements were announced with Wisconsin, California and Australia – to name but three. With my own eyes, I saw one start-up watch, as investors from Japan, Europe and America fought for positions.

Israeli entrepreneurs have consistently proven that Cleantech can deliver on its promises. The country is ranked first in the world in recycling water for agriculture. The Ashkelon desalination seawater reverse osmosis plant is probably the largest in the world. Jerusalem based companies are setting international standards in solar power.

A bubble collapses when commercial promises are not followed with deliverables. Israeli companies have so far managed to convert business plans into dollars. Time for Mr Ackerman to pay (another?) visit to the Holy Land.

How to murder a business – and plead innocent

18 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

I have just read a fun article, describing 10 “best” ways to murder your own business.

But just like any crime scene, future assassins learn from the mistakes of others. They plot their own acts of doom, hoping that they will cover all their paths and never be caught.

Interestingly enough, many businesses close down due to the mistakes from top management, and not because of market conditions. Yes, that applies to Enron and to your local speciality restaurant.

A few weeks ago, I encountered one such act of attempted murder.

The setting was a small office in central Tel Aviv. The business had established itself over approximately 5 years, but was stagnant. The CEO, an experienced man of commerce, argued that he wanted to grow though increased export sales. Fair enough.

  • I then proposed a series of possible action items, all of which were rejected, because he would be too busy to attend to them. I argued that after some initial explanations, the new tasks would be my responsibility. NO! He could not let that happen.
  • I suggested that he should let me bring in extra sales. NO! it would take too long.
  • I offered to secure a loan at good conditions, thus allowing him to recruit more resources and free up his time. Silence! Not even a “no”.

As you can imagine, the conversations did not lead into a long-term business relationship.

The CEO did not get it. He is a man who has founded and built up a small successful business. He will be an essential part of its future achievements. However, for the moment, his strategy is only satisfying his own need for importance rather than the revenue stream of his pride and joy.

He has created a silent and blunt murder weapon that he is in close danger of applying. But from his perspective, he is innocent of any wrong doing.

Israeli economy records consecutive quarter of growth

17 November 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel

Israel is continuing with its strong emergence from the recession.

For the second quarter running, GDP grew (2.2% annualised). Private consumption – often a euphemism for the standard of living – shot up by nearly 7%.

Encouragingly, the key components driving the improvement are exports (5%) and investments in fixed assets. If much has been written about Israel and its propensity to innovation, here is further proof of that concept.

I still offer words of caution. Unemployment has yet to see a serious change, keeping back many sectors of society. And the Bank of Israel continues to face a difficult juggling act between inflation, exchange rates and the rate of interest.

What makes for leadership? Israel & cleantech

15 November 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel

CNBC television recently featured Israeli cleantech. A global leader in the fields of desalination, non-fossil cars, desalination, solar energy and more.

The question is how does a country of 7.5million people learn to provide electricity for most of California, a top 10 global economy?

A previous CNBC story pointed to many structural aspects within Israel, which has enabled the country to be one of the first to emerge from the global recession. But to be a leader! That implies a reservoir of talent, gushing out in to a new arenas.

Academics have often sought to identify what makes a good leader. A classic pitch from the Harvard Business Review recalls that “leadership is about coping with change.”

Dr Robert Brooks is one of my favourite writers on the themes of self-esteem and resilience. In his latest article, He recalls new work at MIT, which is now emphasising graduates who will also becomes leaders. And I quote:

Bernard Gordon, a 1948 graduate of MIT whose $20 million gift helped to launch this new program, is acutely aware of the need to nurture people skills…….. “Most new companies fail despite assembling a group of smart engineers because no one is comfortable shouldering the responsibilities of leadership”.

Gordon’s observations about the skills required of engineers parallel those posited by Goleman under the labels of emotional and social intelligence as do the following list of abilities that the leadership program at MIT is addressing:

  • Ability to assess risk and take initiative.
  • Willingness to make decisions in the face of uncertainty
  • Urgency and the will to deliver objectives on time in the face of constraints or obstacles.
  • Resourcefulness and flexibility.
  • Trust and loyalty in a team setting.
  • Relating to others.

Many of these six characteristics can be found in typical Israeli. No; empathy and interpersonal skills are not acceptable traits in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv. But it is a country that has learnt to deal with risk and uncertainty, facing the challenge of resource and geopolitical constraints. And the way to accomplish these things is through teamwork.

This coming week sees Israel’s premier exhibition for the year; Watec. Thousands of delegates will arrive from overseas to learn for themselves how the Holy Land is leading the world in water conservation and similar techs. 

Just imagine how far further Israel could be if she alos excelled at interpersonal skills.

The “choked” Palestinian economy

12 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel, Palestinians

“Israel is stifling the Palestinian economy by implementing a closure regime, and blocking it from developing export markets.”

This often-repeated rhetoric of Palestinian leaders was explained yet again by the former Palestinian minister of national economy, Bassem Khoury, speaking openly in Jerusalem this week.

To sum up the argument: Israel’s restrictive military procedures in the West Bank and around Gaza hinder freedom of movement. Until that issue is dealt with, there can be no true economic progress.

As an Israeli, I can say, and read the whole sentence: Khoury is correct  but only in a very limited context of political spin.

Look even the Israeli government knows that roadblocks etc do not help Palestinian society. Minister Silvan Shalom reopened the Jalama crossing this week, north of Jenin. He described how:

The opening of the Jalama crossing, like other actions we are promoting, contributes not only to creating trust and understanding, but [is an] important engine of growth. Opening the crossing to vehicles will enable the movement of dozens of cars and trucks between Israel and the city of Jenin every day. Opening the crossing will promote the Palestinian economy by bringing in Israeli Arabs as consumers to Palestinian cities.

But from here on, Khoury’s argument is not just shallow, but false to the point of dangerous. Why?

  1. The World Bank has confirmed that until the violence of the Intifada commenced,  the Palestinian economy was one of the world’s strongest between 1968 and 1999. As the violence has decreased, stats show that growth is edging back towards previous levels. No violence means no restrictions of movement. Simple and undisputable.
  2. Even Khoury acknowledges that the current fiscal crisis is due to “a 55% drop in the foreign aid as compared to 2008”. According to the World Bank reports, most of the unfulfilled promises historically come form members of the Arab League.
  3. And if Khoury wants greater cooperation, how about letting Israelis trade openly with Palestinians. It is an accepted fact that in most of the territories, Israeli products are banned, while Palestinian agricultural products are found in Israeli stores.

When the global recession took hold in September 2008, the Israeli commercial community as a whole took the view: “Let’s find a way to get out of it, and not wait for others to help us”. There is a message there for the country’s neighbours.

Israeli interest rate dilemma

11 November 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel

As Israel emerges from its recession, more problems seem to lurk round every page of economic data.

The latest set of stats show consumers have returned to the shops in droves. Compared this time last year, October 2009 saw a 25%+ rise in the number of TVs and washing machines purchased. Ditto for cars etc, etc, etc.

Put that info together with rosy GDP predictions for 2010 and new incoming tourism,  things are looking pretty. More room for an upward move on interest rates?

And yet, maybe investors know better. The sharp increases in the stock exchange have come to a halt. Local exporters are deeply unhappy at the shekel’s strengthening against the dollar. Unemployment moved up sharply in September. 

Above all, the budget deficit has hit a record high of 39.8b shekels over the past 12 months – a sad high to report. This will fuel fears of future inflation.

Each of these factors pull in different directions on the Bank of Israel’s decision regarding the level of the rate of interest; keep it stable for now or continue to drag it upwards.

Exiting from a recession brings its own conundrums. Most other countries, who are behind in the economic cycle, should beware.

Leadership communication woes: Vatican or Israel

10 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

Speak to your customers. Engage your constituency. Sales manager or politician, everybody is trying to reach as many people as quickly as possible. And seemingly, we all know how to do it better than the other; just by quoting the magic phrase “social networking”.

Yup – get yourself a blog and a twitter account and the world will love you.

Even the Vatican is at it. Six weeks ago, Pope Benedictus XVI began to urge priests to exploit 2010 World Communication Day in order to promote awareness of the pastoral ministry. And if you click the link here, you will find a series of announcements encouraging the Catholic Church to use, use, use digital media for the greater good.

So if this is “powerful media”, even significant enough for the Financial Times to pick up on the comment, what about other countries? In Israel, Bibi Netanyahu has a deserved reputation has a good communicator. I have seen him speak several times, and he knows how to control an audience from the opening sentence.

And yet, look how poorly his government has delivered on two key issues. Internally, a new tax was announced on water consumption. The aim was to raise money for new investment in the sector and discourage over usage. The bills have started to come, showing more than a doubling in costs.

Uproar! The public reaction has produced a massive rethink on the grounds of…well, apparently the first rains have been so good that maybe Israel does not need such a tax after all! How’s that for a convincing message to the man in the street?

Or take the debate on the Goldstone report at the UN. Israel had months to prepare for this international PR disaster. The bottom line is that Israel had to enter Gaza, because it was under daily attack – over 10,000 rockets and missiles had been launched from Gaza in under a decade.

No comparable situation in the world? Did Israel dare point out that Saudi Arabia regularly attacks Yemen, killing innocents – this happened again in the past few days. What about the suspected atrocities in Sri Lanka? Or….. and the list goes on. Silence from Jerusalem, meaning the world has nothing to respond to.

The point is that when it comes to effective communications and leadership, the Holy Land may have a lot to learn from the Holy See. Fingers crossed that somebody gets the message?

 

Encouraging Palestinian suffering – a boycott

9 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel, Palestinians

In September 2000, Yasser Arafat launched the Intifada. An  immediate result of the security concerns was that Israel ceased to employ 125,000 Palestinians from the territories. 125,000 employees  – well paid compared to similar positions in Gaza and in Hebron – lost their wage packet almost instantly.

9 years later, supporters of human rights are asking British customers not to buy Israeli agricultural products. They intend that such a boycott will bolster the livelihood of Palestinians.

Just as the Intifada saw a sharp drop in Palestinian GDP, which is only just showing signs of a full recovery, so too will a boycott of Israel have an equally devastating effect. How so?

Simple – every day, tens of thousands of Palestinians work on Israeli farms. As increasingly supported by Israeli civil law, their conditions are improving annually. Just as with a decade ago, these are comparatively high salaries. Unemployment in the Palestinian territories is still over 20%. They are unlikely to find alternative jobs.

To take the argument one step further, most of Israel’s agricultural exports herald from peripheral areas, where wages are already comparatively low. So a boycott is going to effect Palestinians, along with Bedouin, Jew, Arab and Christian, all re-entering together the poverty trap.

For some, no work is often leads to the path of extremism, a horrible and useless experience for all sides.

With some irony, it is the British themselves who will also suffer from any such boycott. Aside from being deprived of excellent produce, they will create unemployment for their own folk.

Israel is Britain’s largest trading partner in the Middle East – excluding Saudi Arabia with its sales of oil and purchases of armaments. Imagine how many homeland-based British livelihoods a boycott would threaten! Billions of pounds of trade dumped into the sea, only to be trawled away by hungry competitors.

The hypocrisy of the boycott argument is further exposed by its own advocates. They do not call for an imports on Saudi oil not a ban on the use of cheap toys from China, despite the oppressive regimes. And they disseminate their information by e-mail, when their computers are run on Intel tech created in Israel.

Even the spin lacks credibility. For example, such people claim that Israel syphons off water from Palestinian towns, when the opposite is true.

When a political call for action is based in disinformation and will only wound those it is supposedly trying to help, then others must consider the true motivation of hate behind such a movement.

Fitch confirms Israel had “fared better” than most

8 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

Israel’s financial community received a major compliment last Friday. The Fitch ratings agency confirmed that Israel had survived the global economic crisis significantly stronger than many of its economic competitors.

The current outlook remains stable, although a warning was sounded, regarding the high public sector debt ratio. By 2008, it had fallen to 78%, but had started to rise ominously in 2009.

Israel’s credit rating remained unchanged, impressive when you consider that 44 countries have been down graded in recent months.

Fitch’s announcement confirms similar finding from Moody’s and from S&P.

The importance of such announcements should not be diminished. They enable Israel to raise money effectively on international financial markets. In parallel, the decisions of overseas investors can turn on such ratings.

Israel’s growing position in the global economy

5 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

This week has seen continuing further international notification of Israel’s improving economic climate. CNBC’s coverage of the country’s innovative skills has been supported by other news.

Let’s start with Israel’s application to join the OECD. It appears that the 4 year process is drawing to a close. In January 2010, the organisation’s Secretary-General, Angel Gurria, will pay an official visit to Jerusalem, with the final papers expected to be completed by April.

This week, showed how Israel is about to become an exporter of energy, an amazing turn around with positive political and economic repercussions. Talks have commenced to supply gas to Cyprus.

Eric Dutram, an observer of funds and portfolios, summed up what is happening by referrring to the “TICK”  drive. Israel is part of a new group of countries, including Taiwan, Chile and Korea, where “many investors might be better suited tilting their international exposure”.

These economies may be small, but they all pack an economic punch. All four are ranked between 25-50 on the Human Development Index,  and all have above world average GDP per capita (PPP).

Why Israel specifically?

Israel is seeking to become a solar power leader in the region, which could lessen dependence on the actions of occasionally hostile neighbors. Israel has one of the highest rates of solar water heater usage, with almost 90% of the population heating their water this way (PDF). Israel also has “Silicon Wadi” or their version of Silicon Valley, which has become a high tech hub in the Middle East attracting companies such as IBM, Google, and Intel. Silicon Wadi has been described as the second most important center of innovation in the world, and with good reason. It has produced impressive technological feats such as Intel’s Centrino chip and the programing code PHP. Israel also has a very well educated workforce that are trained in technical skills, with a high level of engineers at 135 per 10,000 employees (well above America’s 70 per 10,000).

4 comments on the Palestinian economy

3 November 2009
3 Comments
Categories: Business, Israel, Jerusalem, Palestinians

As Palestinians head towards elections in January 2010, few external commentators will be looking at their financial leadership. So let me chip in with some opening thoughts.

1) Israeli military restrictions are often held up as the sole or main cause of poor Palestinian living standards. In parallel, reports from the World Bank for the past 5 years have consistently chastised the Palestinian Authority (PA) for its excessive levels of public spending.

 This is a euphemism for employing too many people, particularly in the security services. 60% of the PA budget is devoted to paying salaries, including Hamas officials in Gaza. When will the government have the courage to reduce this patronage?

2) Another issue often ignored is the non-delivery on promises of donations, made by members of the Arab League, or its non-accountability in the books. This was brought to light again by Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the secretary-general of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). With 57 members, it is the second largest inter-governmental body after the UN.

In an interview with Al-Jazeera, Ihsanoglu berates Israel and observes how the Goldstone Commission was a pre-planned tactic. But he effectively admits that much of the money raised on behalf of Gaza cannot be accounted for.  He mentions $100m. He clarifies that the Palestinians received $37m, of which $21m came from Norway. Where is the missing US$56m?

3) Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper eloquently explained why increased supervision of Palestinian accounting is needed by the international community.

The Government is sending British police and intelligence officers to the West Bank to try to stop a wave of brutal torture by Palestinian security forces, funded by UK taxpayers.

Their mission is to set up and train a new ‘internal affairs’ department with sweeping powers to investigate abuse and bring torturers to justice.

The department is being paid for by Britain, with an initial planning budget of £100,000 – a sum set to soar as it becomes established.

Yesterday a senior official from the semi-autonomous Palestinian Authority (PA), which runs the West Bank and its security agencies, admitted for the first time that torture, beatings and extra-judicial killings have been rife for the past two years, with hundreds of torture allegations and at least four murders in custody, the most recent in August.

And as noted by the World Bank, about 25% of the PA expenditure is supported by external donations, particularly from Western countries. They are effectively paying for the salaries of these people.

4) Despite the abuse of budgetary control, the World Bank notes that since 2008, as violence has reduced, so economic activity has risen. Just visit new shopping centres in key Palestinian cities like Ramallah and Jenin for proof.

However, a note of warning. This is the Middle East, where logic is often a poor way to analyse the geopolitical dynamics. Just before the outbreak of the Intifada in the year 2000, Palestinians were enjoying their best economic boom ever. Back then, the realities of the peace process ensured how that prosperity would not continue.

Nine years later on, will the Palestinian leadership, through their rioting on the Temple Mount and actions from Gaza, allow the same thing to happen?

Innovation and recession exit – Israel’s model

2 November 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

At the back-end of the recession, innovation has become one of those buzz words.

A classic example is General Electric, which in May 2009 announced that over the next six years it would spend $3 billion to create at least 100 health-care innovations that would substantially lower costs, increase access, and improve quality.

In Israel, I am associated with the annual Techshoret Conference (March 2010), where innovation will be the key theme for communicators.

In the world of social media, there are plenty of tweeters on innovation. Similarly, LinkedIn groups have seen a plethora of discussions on the subject.

A new book expounded on the importance of innovation in the current economic situation. Entitled “Start Up Nation – The story of Israel’s economic miracle” (Senor and Singer), the authors relate how Israel is one of the first countries to break from the global recession.

I have previously written about Israel’s increasing economic performance. This book gives that ability a philosophical background. As Dan Senor stated in an interview with CNBC, survivability  has fed into innovation. Israeli physche looked at the economic downturn and said “we will get through this, quickly. Let’s move on.”

Senor and Singer ask how can Israel, surrounded by a geopolitical mess, continue to generate relatively high growth. They detail 8 factors.

Of the 8, I will single out two of them, which are often ignored, missed or considered political hotcakes for many in the OECD; First, immigration, which Israel openly encourages. There is hardly a sucessful hightech company today without a section of Russian scientists, who arrived in the 1990s. How would Le Pen in France or the BNP in the UK take to that concept?

And secondly, the military. All Israelis know that serving in the army need not just be 3 years away from home, but your first rung in an academic / technical career. In contrast, British newspapers often report how troops returning from Iraq and elsewhere struggle to return to society.

As the world moves out of recession, it will be interesting to analyse which companies have invested in innovation and which have not, and then asking who is doing better.

Why Israel’s economy is doing well

1 November 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel

Look for articles on the web about Israel’s economy, and you will find little to choose from. As Britain wallows in recession and the rest of Europe is gleeful at a few meagre micro points of growth, Israel is plodding along nicely.

For five consecutive years, Israel recorded excellent export led growth – about 5% annually – and this achieved despite wars in Gaza and in Lebanon. Israel has been one of the first countries to emerge from the global recession.  I am involved in preparing two courses for manages of new businesses.

There are several reasons for this continuous success. Israel has had some very able macro managers. Bibi Netanyahu was considered a successful Finance Minister, even by his local political opponents. And the current governor of the Bank of Israel, Stanley Fisher, has a brilliant track record in international banking.

On another level, Israel’s industrial growth has been in the right place at the right time.  Amdocs, Teva, Nice and others are world leaders in the various branches of high tech.  Several Jerusalem-based companies are driving the revolution in solar technology. And significant gas reserves have been discovered off the coast, which will lead to a major improvement in the country’s balance of payments.

On a third level, demographic factors are providing the economy with a potent consumption boom.  Elah Alkalay describes this as a “feel good factor”.  Comparing Israel’s position to OECD averages, she writes: –

The fact that Israel has more children, fewer single-parent families, more women with university degrees, and more woman apparently in joining the workforce (assuming that it is possible infer this from these data), it presumably contributes to Israel economic soundness and the domestic growth engine.

Problems? As with the previous 61 years, the geopolitical outlook remains uncertain. The shekel is too strong for the country’s exporters. A sickening “politically correct” economic boycott is finding a home in parts of Northern Europe.

For all that, what remains clear, Israel’s current economic position is stable and solid growth can be predicted for the medium term.

Bad decisions – why do clever people get it wrong?

30 October 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business

Politicians, people of commerce, top academics – all wrapped in years of training, bolstered by even more years of experience, and surrounded by experts – and more often than not they simply get it wrong.

British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, cut the reserve army training budget, at a time when the British military is fully stretched. The decision was revoked after 2 weeks. How many banks tried to expand through acquisition, just as others were warning of the impending credit crunch? The world is still waiting for an explanation why there were no tsunnami warning stations in the Indian Ocean, while they existed elsewhere. And who will forget the impresarios who refused to book the Beatles in the early 1960s, because groups with 3 guitarists and a drummer were considered passe?

It would seem that everyone of us could add another story to the list, by merely recounting what we have heard in a meeting today. But have you ever asked yourself why – why does it happen so often, by different people, many of them just bright and decent individuals?

The Harvard Business Review gives us a peep at some of the reasons.

  • Organisations often place too much power with individuals, who do not confer with others.
  • In parallel, few people allow themselves to be part of a system, which analyses how decisions are made.

The article lists 3 types of approaches to this mayhem.

  1. Identify and prioritise decisions
  2. Assess the resources needed to carry out each decision
  3. Management intervention: No, not a contradiction – but a professional phrase of writing “make sure that the task is carried out properly, and on time”. Amazing how many people forget to check that small thing!

The internet is full of silly stories of awful supervisors at work. We can laugh at silly ways to get around moronic bosses, who are often decent and home loving.

Much of this is all to do with employing elementary communication skills. Yet , if we are to be honest, many of us fail regularly here. We do not seem able to learn nor do we institute a system of checks and balances.

Obvious? Probably, but we just don’t do it.

Water technology: Israeli and Palestinian experiences

28 October 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel, Palestinians

Israel can be proud of her contributions to modern water technology.

The WATEC 09 exhibition, which takes place in 2 weeks time in tel Aviv, is one of the most important show-events on the global circuit. Local companies like IDE lead in desalinisation tech. I am working with company that extracts commercial quantities of water from the atmosphere.

And the flattering list of accolades is not something that emerged overnight. Israel was a pioneer of drip irrigation through Netafim and others.

The results for the local economy have been enormous. Israel’s Water Commission released a 37 page pdf report in April 2009.  Per capite cubic meter consumption has continued to drop this decade – approx 150 for 2008. 40 years ago, the figure was over 500.

And despite 5 years of constant below-average rainfalls, the country has been able to honour its agreements with its neighbours. Jordan still receives water under the peace treaty. The Palestinians, who negotiated their needs via Article 40 of Annex III to the Oslo Accords, are now receiving far beyond what was agreed 15 years ago.

To give a specific example, the Water Commission noted that “it was agreed to transfer to the Gaza Strip an additional 5 MCM/yr from Israel’s national system (at a price equal to the cost of desalinated water plus transport). The supply pipeline for this purpose was laid by Israel up to the border with the Gaza Strip.”

In fact, the Palestinian attitude towards increasing poor water resources in the region can be described as disappointing.

Yes, the Palestinian economy weaknesses do not allow the government to invest in infrastructure as it would wish. There again, there does not allow it to relinquish its responsibilities. As anecdotal evidence, I live near southern Ramallah. And last summer, the region suffered unduly from mosquitos due to untreated sewage and wasted water.

Given this background, a recent report by Amnesty International (AI) is not just disappointing. AI has declared that Israel is deliberately misusing water resources to the extent that the Palestinians are left with minimal reserves. Yet for many, this is a misleading accusation, pouring oil on a region already burning with violent distrust. 

It is not clear why an organisation, gleaming with its success in supporting the rights of political prisoners, has entered into the arena of ecology. Nor is it obvious how AI can substantiate its claims, when it deliberately did not ask the Israelis authorities for supporting documentation.

From Israel’s point of view, the Palestinians have violated their commitments under the water agreement from Oslo:  Eg over 250 wells drilled without the authorization of the Joint Water Commission (JWC). Further, despite their obligations to establish sewage plants and having obtained foreign funding for the purpose, only one plant (El Bireh) has been built in 15 years.

The JWC has approved 82 new wells. Lt.-Col. Amnon Cohen, head of Israel’s civil administration’s infrastructures department, observed that: –

43 are in Areas A and B, which are under PA control and they do not need us involved. Out of the remaining 39, in Area C and under Israeli security control, 21 have been approved and 11 have not even been submitted for approval.” (In addition, over 55 other wells have been approved for upgrading).

The Oslo Accords clearly state that Israel has an obligation to bring water up to the entrance to the main cities and surrounding areas. The amounts have been increased over the years.  The Accords also ensure that responsibility for final distribution is in the hands of the local Palestinian authorities.

So, if the average citizen does not receive the water, than why is Amnesty blaming Israel and its technology? The accusation is similar to the financial aid that Palestinian people are supposed to receive but can never be traced. Everything has disappeared down the same dark, dark plug hole.

Find the hole and those guarding it, and you will start to understand who is perverting the casue of peace in the Middle East. Now there’s a project for Amnesty International.

Israel to revise economic forecasts upwards

25 October 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

Haim Shani, the new Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Finance, is a very lucky man. He comes in to the job, as the worst of the global recession is safely in the past. The country faces no immediate elections which tend to destabilise the economy. A budget for 18 months has been secured.

Best of all, Shani replaces Yoram Ariav, who leaves behind a well-run ship.  So, what is there to look forward to?

Shani is a successful CEO of one of Israel’ leading hightech giants, NICE. He is set to release new growth predictions for the year 2010, which will be revised upwards towards the 3% mark. The previous forecast was about half of that. This means a significant shrinking in the expected public deficit, and so to an easier monetary regime.

As a side note, amny ministers will try to claw back the cuts in the budgets as tax collection has started to rise again.

It will be interesting to see how the Bank of Israel reacts to the positive trends. Its main concern is future inflation. The annual target is 2.0%, although the current rate is close to 3.5%.

Stanley Fisher, the  bank’s governor, is known to be encouraging other international financiers to follow his lead, as he has already raised interest rates.  More of the same is expected. It is a question of how much and when.

Being motivated in that final hour

24 October 2009
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Categories: Business

We all know the feeling. That last hour of work is often the worst. How to stay motivated and get rid of a few last chores, when you know that in 60 minutes or less you are out of there?

Many of us are familiar with the final and extended toilet break “tactic”, which helps to knock off some extra seconds. But it does not feed in to increased benefit or sense of achievement.

Some here are 4 simple tips that I recently picked up from a health magazine.

  1. Simply sit up. Poor posture can limit the supply of oxygen to the brain, and thus plays on the increased feeling of lethargy.
  2. Prepare yourself a strong, solid drink of herbal tea – not coffee. Try Ginseng, which contains chemicals that release energy reserves. Or Ginger is known as a fast acting mental stimulant.
  3. As a treat, help yourself to a strong-smelling peppermint. A Cornell University study shows that the scent can improve short-term concentration by up to 15%.
  4. And finally, get yourself some extra daylight. Stand by a window. Even better, go for a two minute walkabout outside.

Simple words. Your output should improve, and you will leave work happier.

Israel should listen to UK’s bank supremo

22 October 2009
1 Comment
Categories: Business, Israel

Before the global downturn, it was a popular gripe in Israel to bitch about the profits of Israel’s banks. Generous bonuses were not a problem, as the private banking sector in particular “willingly” agreed to pay high charges for services rendered.

As the figures for 2Q09 showed, after a downturn for 9 months, normal progress is being resumed. The bankers of Tel Aviv are having fun again.

Outrageous? Far be it for me to recall that Israel has one of the greatest discrepancies in the OECD between the highest and lowest income earners. That is until I read what Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, who stated in Scotland on Tuesday. “Never in the field of financial endeavour has so much money been owed by so few to so many”.

King noted that the worldwide damage caused by the international bankers has resulted in 2.5 million lost jobs in the UK alone. And as in Israel, the bonuses are creeping back in.

True, Israel’s banking system has not been a party to many of the fiascos exposed by the credit crunch. The rules have been tightened since the 1990s. Yet, the recommendations of King still demand serious reflection in an economy where a small handful of financial institutions are dominant.  

King has called for serious reform. And while it is possible to argue that safety nets in Israel are higher, King’s comments about the lack of competition are very comparable. As noted above, Israeli banks play around with high commission fees, despite theoretical supervision from the Bank of Israel.

On Wednesday, the Dail Mail newspaper issued an update on their campaign for fairer bank charges. It appears that UK banks could be forced to repay up to US$35 million to customers, following unfair overdraft charges since 2001. Now there is campaign for some enterprising Israelis to take up.

Small businesses in Israel (2)

19 October 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

Previously, I wrote about how the small business sector in any country is surprisingly large, yet receives precious little support from central government.

The sad truth is that most new businesses fail within the first 12 months of operation. Reasons can vary; poor management, lack of resources, fuzzy vision and more.

In the opposite corner, much can be done to ensure that a new enterprise will succeed. Yes, checklists can be readily provided, but many of the points can be wrapped up in a key phrase. President Obama popularised the saying “Yes we can”, but he was only stealing other more well-known ideas.

Here’s what I mean. Shrinks, life trainers and others all tell us to seize an opportunity. How often do we hear that when a door slams shut, we have to find the other one that has just opened. Management guru, Luke Johnson, recently observed that “optimism is the elixir that makes everything possible.”

It is often this dynamism and motivation which drives new enterprises forward. When that is mixed in with good business culture – as well as a bit of luck and prayer – that results can be explosively positive.

The are plenty of examples of what I am describing. I am one of the moderators of the Jerusalem Business Networking Forum, where many members tell of the struggles to find the determination to move past the first dodgy months.   

In the next posting, I will examine what is required to mix in with that high motivation level.

Learning to innovate through motivation

15 October 2009
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Categories: Business, Israel

How can you get your company to change – to innovate? What will motivate employees?

Sam Palmisano, chairman and chief executive of IBM, recently posed a similar set of questions.

If employees want more control over decision-making, then they have to accept greater levels of responsibility, accountability and ownership of the consequences of their decisions. Management has to provide the tools, the mechanisms, the funding … and the individual has to make use of them.

Stefan Stern’s analysis of IBM, GE and others turning themselves upside down in order to innovate is clearly becoming a new fad in many sectors and countries. Yesterday, I spoke to one leading UK based consultant ,who described his discussion with two large government ministries that are embarking on similar programmes. The politicians are demanding that they find a new way to provide better services for the public.

Here in Israel, I have previously referred to QMarkets, whose software is designed for allow corporates to engage their employees. In turn, they are offered channels to promote their own ideas on behalf of the company culture. Net result – increased revenues, motivation flows, smiles on the faces of all concerned.

The same subject came up in my conversation with Paula Stern, CEO of WritePoint, a leading supplier of technical writing services to the Israeli hightech industry. More and more, the writer is expected to find efficient and simpler ways to communicate the same messages. Their industry is being forced to change.

The exit from the global recession is reiterating a very old lesson to many companies from all over the world. If you stay still, you will soon be overtaken. Quite often, the way forward lies in the strength of existing human resources. Learn to find a way to harness that strength.

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