I read Iqbal Wahhab's article ("Beyond the prison gates, February) with excitement and commend him on his commitment and follow through of this worthy crusade. But it did raise questions in my mind about a different kind of prisoner. It appears to me that there are plenty of people already outside the prison gates who are routinely treated as though they were criminals.
I refer to people with sub-prime or horrendous credit ratings. Where is the rehabilitation for these non-offenders? It would appear that we are judged and punished by no court or judge. In fact, we are automatically sentenced to a life of complete failure for the horrendous crime of "mismanaging your finances".
I read with interest the article about Sam Smith ("Director of the month", February). Has the pendulum swung too far? It now seems that for a company to succeed in our highly competitive marketplace it needs at least one manic individual driving the company forward at whatever personal cost he or she is willing to pay.
We seem to be competing, at some level, on who has the most driven leader. This is not sustainable. Perhaps we should start celebrating the industry leaders who have managed prolonged and sustainable service while keeping themselves and their employees content and in good health.
I was interested to read about the experiences of Simon Lawrence and Chris Quigley ("Show us the money", December). It shows that relationship building with a bank based on shared insight into an up-to-date business plan helps build trust and understanding.
All too often the business plan is seen as a one-off document for securing finance rather than a means of ongoing management direction and enquiry.
A growing feature of the 21st century workplace ("Betting on the future", January) is the number of people looking to balance working commitments with measuring success in non-financial ways. Our workplaces will change considerably, offering greater flexibility and opportunities to those who want a more personal and fulfilling experience.
I read your article ("Road to Recovery", February) with interest but would question some of the assumptions made.
Like many businesses, we have had to switch our business model to embrace online technologies. But I do not share your enthusiasm for promoting jobs through social networking. This is because to be effective it requires an audience to read your message, and the only way to achieve this is via lots of content, which is expensive to create or obtain.
I hope that small companies will strengthen the economy through recruiting while saving thousands of pounds by embracing new methods.
Boardroom life is too inflexible for everyone ("Glass ceilings? Give us all a break", January).
Many men would love to work part-time or have a better work- life balance, but it is still seen in a less positive light than being "committed" to an organisation full time. Let's have more flexibility for all and embrace getting the best out of people.
