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Here are five choice articles from the business press to start off your workweek. I'm pointing you to articles about a look back at Silicon Valley in the last downturn, funding pensions, running lean (but not enough), marketing when this is over, and Jack Welch on shareholder value.

From the Economist: Six years in the Valley
"Our correspondent in Silicon Valley looks back before moving on to a new beat."

Wally's Comment: The Economist's Silicon Valley correspondent arrived in the midst of the last downturn. Startups had vaporized. The Big Idea of Web 2.0 was a year away. This is a story about getting from then to now, with some insight on what might be ahead in this downturn.

From Workforce Management: Downturn Dilemma
"Companies with pension plans are looking at billions in additional contributions; employers that offer 401(k)s are looking at thousands of retirement-age employees who cannot be managed out of the workforce."

Wally's Comment: Pensions are the forgotten stepchild of the downturn. Many funds depended on investment revenue to meet obligations. Now that investment revenue is approaching zero for many funds, they have to meet obligations with cash, which they don't have a lot of either. And, oh yes, there's that matter of the benefit demand increasing.

From Industry Week: Industry's New Look
"A few years ago, I interviewed the President of a large machine business about how he viewed global markets and competition and how his business was responding to them. I've not forgotten his prescience: 'we can't shed our conventional thinking fast enough to embrace the new ideas that will rule our markets in a few years, even months.'"

Wally's Comment: I maintain that a downturn is the universe reminding you to do what you should have been doing all along. Consultant Nicholas Hayes reviews what progress we've made at running lean, and how far we still have to go.

From HBS Working Knowledge: Marketing After the Recession
"Congratulations. Your business is surviving the recession. You made the necessary adjustments, weeded out under-performing distributors, shed unprofitable or unreliable customers, deleted poor-selling products from your portfolio, and concentrated your marketing dollars on media and channels that you could prove delivered a strong return on investment. You may have downsized, voluntarily or involuntarily, since the recession began; but at least you're still in business. Now, you are waiting for the recovery, the chance to again have some fun and make some money. Here are my seven top recommendations for marketers looking to plan ahead."

Wally's Comment: Yes, like spring after winter, recovery comes after downturn. What then? John Quelch offers some ideas about what marketing will be like.

From the Welch Way: On Shareholder Value
"Earlier this week, the Financial Times ran a front-page story with the headline, “Welch Denounces Corporate Obsessions.” The article, which generated widespread reaction in the media and on blogs, asserted that in an interview with the FT, Jack Welch had described the business emphasis on shareholder value as “misplaced.” “On the face of it, shareholder value is the dumbest idea in the world,” Welch was quoted as saying."

Wally's Comment: Back in 1981, shortly after becoming GE's youngest-ever CEO, Jack Welch gave a speech to analysts where he shared two concepts that would guide him during his tenure. One was the idea that GE businesses should be either number one or two in their industry. The other was that shareholder value was a good measure of corporate performance.

To be fair here, Welch never said that shareholder value should be the only measure of corporate performance. And the FT quote was in the context of denouncing "corporate obsessions." Even so, it's fun to read his the FT piece and Welch's attempt to finesse the issue. And the FT piece and Welch's response will give you some good food for thought about how corporate performance ought to be measured.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.