Market conditions

By Edward Haigh.

Tony Soprano, lead protagonist of the critically acclaimed HBO TV series, was a hardened criminal and brutal murderer. I liked him. I doubt I was alone.

I liked him because he was a family man who would come home from a day of hardened criminality and brutal murdering and try to do the best for his family. And then sit down in front of the TV with a bowl of ice-cream. I liked him because he was vulnerable. 

In fact that vulnerability was sufficiently acute that it led him to the psychiatrist’s couch, confirming in the process both that America’s psychological problems extended to all corners of society, and that Americans really, really, like talking about themselves. 

By Zoë Stumpf.

The Italian consulting market, after years of high expectations counterbalanced by poor performance, finally achieved a little bit of growth in 2015. True, only 1% growth, but any growth at all in a market that has experienced years of negative or low growth has got to be seen as a good thing.