经济学人331:德国公司的管理 董事会的多元化

　　Business
商业报道
Corporate¹ governance in Germany
德国公司的管理
Diversifying² the board
董事会的多元化
German boards have long been cosy³ men's clubs. But things are changing
德国的董事会曾一度是享乐者的天堂，但是现在不一样了。
2_副本.jpgHERMANN JOSEF ABS liked to joke, What's the difference between a doghouse and the supervisory board?
HERMANN JOSEF喜欢开玩笑：狗屋和监事会有什么不同？
The doghouse is for the dog; the supervisory board is for the cat.
狗屋是给狗的，监事会是给猫的，
For those unfamiliar⁴ with the nuances of German humour, for the cat is slang for something like trash.
这是德国式幽默，猫在俚语里通常指代废物。
The late banker would know: while running Deutsche Bank from 1957 to 1967, he also sat on dozens of supervisory boards.
已故的银行家或许知道，在1957到1967年间主管德意志银行时，HERMANN JOSEF ABS还是几十个监事会成员里的一个。
This was the peak of Deutschland AG, a clique⁵ of long-serving bosses, autocratic chairmen, do-nothing board members and their financier friends.
过去，监事会是德国公司的顶层，他们是由一群长期担任老板的小团体，独裁主席，游手好闲的董事会成员以及他们金融界的朋友们组成。
Big German companies' supervisory boards are supposed to act as a check on their management boards.
大型德国公司的监事会应该管理董事会，
But in practice their relations were too cosy for this.
但是实际上他们的关系过于亲密。
This past year the stumbles of two titans seemed to highlight how much corporate power is still concentrated in few hands in the Germanspeaking world.
去年这两大巨头的过失似乎在过于强调企业大权仍掌控在少数德国人手里。
As 2013 began Gerhard Cromme was chairman of the supervisory boards of both Siemens, an industrial conglomerate⁶, and ThyssenKrupp, a steelmaker.
2013年伊始，Gerhard Cromme成为西门子及钢铁制造商蒂森克努伯两家企业的监事会主席。
But big losses at foreign mills and heavy fines over a cartel case cost him the chairmanship at ThyssenKrupp.
但是卡特尔事件中国外钢厂的巨大损失及高额罚款让他失去了蒂森克努伯公司监事会主席一职。
Then in July, a boardroom bunfight at Siemens ended with the departure of Peter Lscher, the chief executive.
同年7月，西门子董事会舞会事件以其首席主管Peter Lscher的离职而告终。
Mr Cromme belatedly called for his firing—but only after hiring him and protecting him for years.
Cromme请求延迟他的解雇，但也只是在雇佣和保护了他几年之后。
Josef Ackermann, a Swiss former boss of Deutsche Bank and a Siemens board member, had defended Mr Lscher.
德意志银行前瑞士分行行长兼西门子董事Josef Ackermann力挺Lscher。
When Mr Lscher went, so did he.
当Lscher走后他也离职了。
Shortly before this he had quit as chairman of Zurich, a Swiss insurer, whose chief financial officer had committed suicide, leaving a note berating⁷ Mr Ackermann.
在这之前不久他还辞去了瑞士保险公司苏黎世董事长一职。该公司的首席财务官自杀了，只留下一张便条斥责Ackermann。
Now he has no big corporate job, there have been reports that Mr Ackermann may have to step down as a trustee of the World Economic Forum⁸ after its gabfest in Davos this week.
现在他没有大公司工作，有报道称本周在达沃斯会议进行冗长的谈话后，Ackermann只能降职为世界经济论坛的受托人。
At first glance, corporate power in Germany still looks male, German and concentrated.
乍一看，企业大权仍集中在德国男性手里。
But its boardrooms are slowly getting more diverse.
但是董事会正慢慢变得多样化。
In 2003 the average supervisory-board member at a public company sat on 1.9 boards; now the figure is 1.6.
2003年监事会成员中上市公司平均占了1.9席。
A 2001 cut in tax on sales of shares let banks and insurance companies, which played big roles as lenders and part-owners, start disentangling themselves from companies.
然而现在这个数据是1.6。2001年销售股份削减税被放款及合伙大户银行和保险公司承包，并开始解决纠纷。
Into the gaps, and onto the boards, has come a new generation of more active members.
为了填补空缺，也有很多新一代的有活力的成员加入董事会。
Boards have little choice but to be sharper, says Christoph Schalast of Frankfurt School of Finance and Management.
法兰克福金融管理学院的Christoph Schalast表示董事会别无选择，只有变得更加锐利。
Many companies are now paying fines and settlements for their behaviour before the financial crisis.
现在许多公司都在金融危机到来之前为他们的行为支付罚款和理赔款。
A 2010 change in the law doubled the statute⁹ of limitations for such misdeeds to ten years.
2010年修改法律诉讼时效等罪行翻了一倍，达10年了。
Progress on making boards more international is slower.
董事会的国际化进程变缓了。
Eight of the largest 30 public companies have foreign bosses, but the rest of their boards' members are predominantly German, even at the country's most multinational¹⁰ firms.
规模最大的30家上市公司中有8家老板都是国外的，但是即使在大多数跨国公司，其董事会其他成员主要还是德国人。
But Burkhard Schwenker, the boss of Roland Berger, a consulting firm, says that counting passports is simplistic: what matters more is international experience, which German firms increasingly look for when recruiting both management-and supervisory-board members.
咨询公司Roland Berger的董事长Burkhard Schwenker却表示哪个国家的其实不重要，在招募管理及董事成员时更看重的是德国公司急需的国际经验。
If boards are becoming more professional and diverse, is accumulation of board seats a bad thing in itself?
如果董事会变得越来越专业越来越多样化，积累董事会职位本身是坏事吗？
Jrg Rocholl, the president of the European School for Management and Technology, says that studies disagree on whether busy board members are better or worse for profits.
欧洲管理与技术学院的院长Jrg Rocholl表示繁忙的董事会对企业收益是利是弊仍意见不一。
But he agrees that boards are becoming more capable, and says this has been a factor in Germany's economic revival¹¹.
但可以肯定的是董事们正变得越来越能干，这也是德国公司经济复苏的原因之一。
Pay for German board members is going up; but these days, members are earning it.
董事成员的工资上涨了，但是这段日子是他们应得的。
1.familiar with 熟悉的；友好的
No country is more familiar with nuclear peril¹² than japan.
日本比世界上的任何国家都更熟悉核危害。
A person familiar with the case offered further details.
一位知情人士提供了进一步的详情。
2.suppose to 认为
I suppose to go there on my honeymoon¹³.
我本来想去那里度蜜月。
Would you suppose to meet the people on the boat.
你认为是那些在船上的人吗？
3.concentrate in 集中于
Most accounting¹⁴ personnel concentrate in the financial department.
大部分的会计人员都是集中在财务部门的。
Because of his somnolent¹⁵ voice students find it difficult to concentrate in his classes.
由于他的声音十分催眠，学生觉得很难在他的课上集中思想。
4.call for 需要；要求
A few relatively¹⁶ infrequent situations also call for a semicolon.
有几个比较少见的的情况也要求使用分号。
Finally, higher food prices will call for tighter monetary¹⁷ policy.
最后，食品价格上涨会要求各国收紧货币政策。

1 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

2 diversifying   

v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的现在分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• Some publishers are now diversifying into software. 有些出版社目前正兼营软件。 来自辞典例句
• Silverlit is diversifying into new markets, such as Russia and Eastern Europe. Silverlit正在使他们的市场变得多样化，开发新的市场如俄罗斯和东欧国家。 来自互联网

3 cosy   

adj.温暖而舒适的，安逸的

参考例句：

• We spent a cosy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。
• It was so warm and cosy in bed that Simon didn't want to get out.床上温暖而又舒适，西蒙简直不想下床了。

4 unfamiliar   

adj.陌生的，不熟悉的

参考例句：

• I am unfamiliar with the place and the people here.我在这儿人地生疏。
• The man seemed unfamiliar to me.这人很面生。

5 clique   

n.朋党派系，小集团

参考例句：

• The reactionary ruling clique was torn by internal strife.反动统治集团内部勾心斗角，四分五裂。
• If the renegade clique of that country were in power,it would have meant serious disaster for the people.如果那个国家的叛徒集团一得势，人民就要遭殃。

6 conglomerate   

n.综合商社，多元化集团公司

参考例句：

• The firm has been taken over by an American conglomerate.该公司已被美国一企业集团接管。
• An American conglomerate holds a major share in the company.一家美国的大联合企业持有该公司的大部分股份。

7 berating   

v.严厉责备，痛斥( berate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He deserved the berating that the coach gave him. 他活该受到教练的严厉训斥。 来自互联网
• The boss is berating those who were late for work. 老板正在呵斥那些上班迟到的员工。 来自互联网

8 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

9 statute   

n.成文法，法令，法规；章程，规则，条例

参考例句：

• Protection for the consumer is laid down by statute.保障消费者利益已在法令里作了规定。
• The next section will consider this environmental statute in detail.下一部分将详细论述环境法令的问题。

10 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

11 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

12 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

13 honeymoon   

n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月

参考例句：

• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
• The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。

14 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

15 somnolent   

adj.想睡的，催眠的；adv.瞌睡地；昏昏欲睡地；使人瞌睡地

参考例句：

• The noise of the stream had a pleasantly somnolent effect.小河潺潺的流水声有宜人的催眠效果。
• The sedative makes people very somnolent.这种镇静剂会让人瞌睡。

16 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

17 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。