Going head to head

With the financial system under unimaginable stress and recession stalking businesses up and down the country, firms are inevitably looking at their cost base. After first-class travel has been axed, entertainment downgraded from restaurants to pubs and the stationery budget frozen, more difficult long-term decisions must be taken. There are ways that corporate advisers can support their clients through this uncomfortable process. Warren Buffett's (Forbe's wealthiest man, first half of 2008) view is that "a really good manager does not wake up in the morning and say 'This is the day I'm go...