经济学人88:雅芳把老板给炒了

 　　Business Avon boots out its boss Andrea's adieu

　　商业 雅芳把老板给炒了 钟彬娴，再见！

　　An ugly mess at a beauty firm

　　化妆品公司的丑陋乱局

　　"YOU have got to go home tonight, Friday evening, and you have got to fire yourself," a management coach once told Andrea Jung, the boss of Avon, an American beauty firm.

　　美国化妆品公司雅芳的一位经理曾对老板钟彬娴女士（Andrea Jung）说道："你今晚必须回家，周五晚上，而且你必须辞职。"

　　The idea was for her to come back to work the following Monday as if starting her job anew.

　　该想法是为了让她能在下周一犹如重新开始工作一样重返办公室上班。

　　Alas¹, this brilliant tip was not enough.

　　唉，这个聪明绝顶的小建议并不能起到明显作用。

　　As Avon's share price has wilted² like mascara under a sunlamp, Ms Jung is being pushed out for real.

　　当雅芳公司股价像日光灯下的睫毛膏一样萎缩时，钟彬娴女士确实被推到风口浪尖。

　　On December 13th the firm announced that she will be replaced as chief executive.

　　12月13日，公司宣布钟彬娴将只担任首席执行官一职。

　　The makeover will be gradual.

　　该变动将会是平缓的。

　　Ms Jung, who has run Avon since 1999, will stay on as chairman and help the board find a new boss.

　　钟彬娴自1999年来执掌雅芳，她将留着主席的位置上并帮助董事会找到新的主席。

　　It will be a tough job for anyone.

　　这对任何人来说都是棘手的。

　　Avon is the world's biggest direct-seller: an army of cheery salesfolk hawk³ its products door-to-door.

　　雅芳是世界上最大的直销公司：雅芳有一支热情洋溢的销售大军，挨家挨户的推销产品。

　　The 125-year-old New York-based company has an annual revenue of over $10 billion and operations in more than 100 countries.

　　总部坐落在纽约的雅芳已经有125年的历史，年收入超过100亿美元，

　　But it has stumbled badly of late.

　　经营范围超过100个国家。

　　Its share price has fallen by 45% this year (see chart).

　　但是最近雅芳发展严重受阻，其股价今年已经下跌了45%。（见图表）

　　Ms Jung had a glossy⁴ start at Avon, presiding over six consecutive⁵ years of double-digit growth.

　　钟彬娴女士在雅芳上任伊始非常顺利，代领雅芳连续六年创下增长率为两位数的记录。

　　Yet she failed to use these fat years to invest in the business.

　　但是她并没有利用公司繁荣发展的这几年对业务进行投资。

　　By 2005 the firm was looking blemished⁶. Sales declined in major markets.

　　到2005年，公司发展出现问题，主要市场的销量下滑，公司股价下跌。

　　The share price dropped. Ms Jung laid off 25% of senior staff and cut costs everywhere except for advertising⁷ and distribution.

　　钟彬娴解雇了25%的高级职员，并且全面消减除广告和配送方面的成本。

　　Avon never really recovered.

　　雅芳从未真正恢复。

　　In March 2009 Ms Jung launched the biggest hiring drive in the company's history and nearly doubled the marketing⁸ budget.

　　2009年3月，钟彬娴开始公司成立以来最大的招聘活动并且将营销预算将近翻了一番。

　　She saw in the global economic crisis a chance to overtake Avon's rivals. It didn't work.

　　她在全球金融危机中看到打败竞争对手的商机，但是却失败了。

　　Moreover, the company has spent more than $150m on an internal investigation⁹ of alleged¹⁰ corruption¹¹ among sales representatives in China and Latin America.Several have been dismissed.

　　而且，公司耗资1.5亿美元对中国和拉美的销售代表中所谓的贪污行为进行调查，一些销售代表被解雇。

　　America's Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating, too.

　　美国证券交易委员会也进行调查。

　　If Avon is found guilty of anything, the penalties could be steep.

　　如果雅芳被判定有罪的话，那么处罚将会非常严重。

　　Some problems are beyond Avon's control. Brazil, a big market, is slowing down. Europe, which accounts for 28% of Avon's sales, is in crisis: it's hard to put lipstick¹² on the PIGS.

　　有些问题是雅芳无法控制的。雅芳最大的市场巴西正不断萎缩，为雅芳销售额贡献28%的欧洲市场正面临债务危机：在温饱问题未解决之前，很少有人考虑到美容等形象问题。

　　Avon is doing badly at home in America, too.

　　雅芳在美国本土的业绩同样非常糟糕。顾客们锱铢必较。

　　Shoppers are feeling Grinchy about pennies. And the non-beauty products (such as fashion accessories) that account for a hefty third of Avon's sales in America have lower margins¹³ than cosmetics¹⁵. (In other countries non-beauty stuff represents only about 10% of Avon's sales.)

　　而且占雅芳在美国销售额高达三分之一的其他非美容产品（诸如时尚饰品）比化妆品的利润要低。（在其他国家，非美容产品只占雅芳销售额的10%。）

　　Other problems are self-inflicted. Avon made a mess of its new IT system in Brazil.

　　其他问题则是自身的原因。雅芳将其用于巴西新的信息技术系统搞得一团糟。

　　Its working capital is chewing up a third of its gross cashflow, mainly due to poor inventory¹⁶ management.

　　由于糟糕的库存管理，雅芳营运资本占现金流总量的三分之一。

　　If Avon reduced its working capital, it would have less trouble paying dividends¹⁷, says Connie Maneaty of BMO Capital in New York.

　　位于纽约BMO Capital公司的Connie Maneaty说：如果雅芳减少运营资本，那么其支付股息的困难就会小很多。

　　It would also have more cash for acquisitions in fast-growing markets such as Vietnam or India.

　　同样会有更多的现金用于诸如越南和印度等快速发展市场的兼并业务。

　　Many will be sorry to see Ms Jung tossed overboard.

　　很多人对钟彬娴被扫地出门深表遗憾。

　　As the Princeton-educated daughter of Chinese immigrants, she embodied¹⁸ the American dream.

　　她毕业于普林斯顿大学，其父母是来自中国的移民，美国梦在她身上得以展现。

　　She was also a role model for women, in particular Avon's 6.5m sales representatives, most of whom are female.

　　她也是女性学习的角色模范，特别是雅芳公司650万销售代表，大部分都是女性。

　　One reason why Avon wants her to stay as chairman is that she is popular with the salesforce.

　　雅芳希望任命她为主席的原因之一就是她在销售队伍中颇受欢迎。

　　But Avon is ailing¹⁹ and needs an overhaul²⁰.

　　但是雅芳发展存在"诟病"，现在需要彻底检查。

　　A new boss will be a good start, says Ali Dibadj of Sanford C. Bernstein, a research firm.

　　研究公司Sanford C. Bernstein的Ali Dibadj认为，新的主席对雅芳来说将会是一个不错的开局。

　　The list of possible candidates includes Ed Shirley, vice²¹ chairman of the beauty and grooming²² unit at Procter & Gamble, an American consumer-goods giant, and Elizabeth Smith, who was in line to succeed Ms Jung at Avon before leaving the company to take over as boss of OSI Restaurant, a restaurant chain.

　　新主席的候选人中包括：美国日用消费品巨头宝洁公司美容与装饰部门的副总裁艾德雪莉，以及伊丽莎白?史密斯，她在离开雅芳之前是钟彬娴的继任者、目前是OSI连锁餐厅总裁。

　　Whoever gets the job, the changes required will be more than cosmetic¹⁴.

　　不论是谁成为新的总裁，雅芳想要改变，化妆品是远远不够的。

1 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

2 wilted   

（使）凋谢，枯萎( wilt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The flowers wilted in the hot sun. 花在烈日下枯萎了。
• The romance blossomed for six or seven months, and then wilted. 那罗曼史持续六七个月之后就告吹了。

3 hawk   

n.鹰，骗子；鹰派成员

参考例句：

• The hawk swooped down on the rabbit and killed it.鹰猛地朝兔子扑下来,并把它杀死。
• The hawk snatched the chicken and flew away.老鹰叼了小鸡就飞走了。

4 glossy   

adj.平滑的；有光泽的

参考例句：

• I like these glossy spots.我喜欢这些闪闪发光的花点。
• She had glossy black hair.她长着乌黑发亮的头发。

5 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

6 blemished   

v.有损…的完美，玷污( blemish的过去式 )

参考例句：

• His reputation was blemished by that article. 他的名声被那篇文章玷污了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The scandal has blemished her shining reputation. 这件丑闻损害了她辉煌的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

8 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

9 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

10 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

11 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

12 lipstick   

n.口红，唇膏

参考例句：

• Taking out her lipstick,she began to paint her lips.她拿出口红，开始往嘴唇上抹。
• Lipstick and hair conditioner are cosmetics.口红和护发素都是化妆品。

13 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

14 cosmetic   

n.化妆品；adj.化妆用的；装门面的；装饰性的

参考例句：

• These changes are purely cosmetic.这些改变纯粹是装饰门面。
• Laughter is the best cosmetic,so grin and wear it!微笑是最好的化妆品，所以请尽情微笑吧！

15 cosmetics   

n.化妆品

参考例句：

• We sell a wide range of cosmetics at a very reasonable price. 我们以公道的价格出售各种化妆品。
• Cosmetics do not always cover up the deficiencies of nature. 化妆品未能掩饰天生的缺陷。

16 inventory   

n.详细目录，存货清单

参考例句：

• Some stores inventory their stock once a week.有些商店每周清点存货一次。
• We will need to call on our supplier to get more inventory.我们必须请供应商送来更多存货。

17 dividends   

红利( dividend的名词复数 )； 股息； 被除数； （足球彩票的）彩金

参考例句：

• Nothing pays richer dividends than magnanimity. 没有什么比宽宏大量更能得到厚报。
• Their decision five years ago to computerise the company is now paying dividends. 五年前他们作出的使公司电脑化的决定现在正产生出效益。

18 embodied   

v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 )；象征；包括；包含

参考例句：

• a politician who embodied the hopes of black youth 代表黑人青年希望的政治家
• The heroic deeds of him embodied the glorious tradition of the troops. 他的英雄事迹体现了军队的光荣传统。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 ailing   

v.生病

参考例句：

• They discussed the problems ailing the steel industry. 他们讨论了困扰钢铁工业的问题。
• She looked after her ailing father. 她照顾有病的父亲。

20 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

21 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

22 grooming   

n. 修饰, 美容，（动物）梳理毛发

参考例句：

• You should always pay attention to personal grooming. 你应随时注意个人仪容。
• We watched two apes grooming each other. 我们看两只猩猩在互相理毛。