The Bottom Line

Is escaping the rat race always a good idea? Many people dream of giving up the day job to start their own business - and we often hear about the success stories. But does everyone have what it takes? Evan Davis and guests compare the dream and the reality. GUESTS: Luke Johnson, Entrepreneur and Founder of Risk Capital Partners Paula Fry, former Director, Fashion Seeker UK Sarah Meredith, Sole Tra...

It's hard to put a value on a human life. When you're well, perhaps you don't think about it. But if you're ill, getting access to the right drugs, whatever the cost, is a priority. But the NHS does not have a bottomless pit of money. And some medicines are judged too expensive to be freely available, so patients miss out on treatments that could save or extend their lives. There are usually two v...

How will the vote to leave the EU affect big and small businesses in the UK? Evan Davis and guests discuss trade deals, tariffs and 'passporting' rights that allow UK-based firms to sell financial products and services from Britain to EU customers. They'll also explore how companies can turn the current economic uncertainty into business opportunities. Guests: Anne Richards, CEO, M & G Investm...

Most of us negotiate in some form or other every day - whether it's about who walks the dog, how much screen-time the kids can have or when to visit the in-laws. But too often we treat it like a competitive sport, with only one aim: to win. Which can backfire, especially when you need co-operation later on. It's much the same in business - negotiating to win at all costs is unlikely to result in a...

The business of film. Evan Davis follows the money trail from script to screen. With the help of a top independent film producer, a film distributor and the head of a top cinema chain, Evan discovers who takes the risks and who makes the money behind the scenes. Guests Alex Hamilton, Managing Director, Entertainment One UK Elizabeth Karlsen, Producer and co-founder, Number9 Films Tim Richards, CEO...

It is not easy to teach new tricks to the business world's old dogs. The latest fashionable solution for big corporations slowed down by bureaucracy and traditional ways of thinking is to incubate tech start-ups. The idea is that the big corporation benefits from the creativity and "can do" attitude of the start-up. In return the start-up gets funding, professional advice and help navigating the c...

Asset management - or asset stripping? This week Evan Davis asks when making a profit from running a business becomes simple plundering. In business, things go wrong at the best of times ... mistakes are made, luck turns bad. But sometimes things can also go wrong not because of bad luck, but because someone makes money out of failure. The "profit or plunder" question has been raised by events at...

What does EU membership mean for UK business and how might that change if Britain votes to leave? Business leaders join Evan Davis to discuss how trade agreements and red tape can both help and hinder corporate success. What can Switzerland teach us about trading with Europe and beyond, despite being outside the EU? Guests: Jan Atteslander, EconomieSuisse Julia Gash, CEO, Bidbi Christopher Nieper,...

Whether it's creating Angry Birds, the best-selling mobile app, or developing the best-selling Alzheimer's drug or discovering one of the world's biggest oil fields in recent years, every company dreams of blockbuster success. But what happens after you hit the jackpot? How do you sustain that level of success? And what's needed to adapt from small start-up to big business? Evan Davis and guests s...

Many senior executives now employ personal coaches to help them through their toughest business challenges. Coaches can provide confidential, independent support for senior managers who find life lonely at the top. But shouldn't the boss be capable of making decisions on his or her own? And are coaches sometimes the hidden power behind the senior executive throne? Guests: Gavin Patterson, CEO of B...

Horse racing is the second most popular spectator sport in the UK but it is also a business. Presenter Evan Davis and guests discuss who makes the money: the horse owners, the jockeys, the race courses or the bookmakers? Guests: Simon Bazalgette, Chief Executive, The Jockey Club Rachel Hood, Director, The Horsemen's Group Ciaran O'Brien, Group Communications Director, William Hill bookmakers Produ...

Global firms like Amazon, Google and Starbucks have been criticised for using clever accounting tricks to reduce their tax bills in the UK. But how much tax should they be paying? Evan Davis and guests discuss the whys and wherefores of the international tax regime, including the role of tax havens. Along the way, they'll digest the "Dutch sandwich" and the "double Irish" tax avoidance devices use...

The Bottom Line first broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2006. At the time, Tony Blair was Prime Minister, interest rates were 4.5%, petrol was 90 pence a litre and a first class stamp cost 32p (half today's price). In a special edition, to mark ten years since the programme came on air, Evan Davis and guests discuss some of the big changes that have happened in the past decade, including: the g...

When you enter personal details onto any website or smartphone app, what happens to it? Where does it get stored, who owns it and who has access to it? These questions are becoming more relevant to ask as we put more details about every facet of our lives onto the internet. With a new piece of legislation passed in the EU dealing with this precise issue, businesses need to be up to speed with thei...

All businesses rely on customers. So, why do some businesses bend over backwards to keep customers happy, and why do some of them appear not to care? What is the impact of poor customer service on a business and how much does it cost them to invest in improving their infrastructure? Evan Davis discusses dos and don'ts of customer service with an airline, an energy company and a retailer, all of wh...

After the Paris summit on climate change and the global commitment to cut carbon emissions, The Bottom Line is going green - with businesses that generate energy from the sun, the wind - and from cheese. And, whilst the government is committed to getting more of its energy from renewables, Evan Davis and guests discuss why green firms are seeing red over cuts to subsidies they say are vital to upd...

After recent corporate scandals like VW's emissions' cheating, Tesco's accounting irregularities, Barclays interest-rate rigging, many asked why company board members failed to act. What happened to the checks and balances designed to curb management excesses? Evan Davis and guests look at how company boards operate and how to make them work effectively. They discuss the role of company directors,...

Can the Northern Powerhouse solve Britain's North-South economic divide? For now, the Northern Powerhouse is a concept: an idea that towns and cities in the north can unite, forming their own economic hub to rival London and the south east. So how to turn it into a reality? Evan Davis and guests are with an audience at the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce to discuss what kind of businesses w...

Rewriting the rules: what does it take to be a non-conformist? Evan Davis is joined by a banker, a brewer and a tech entrepreneur as they discuss how success can mean challenging the orthodox way of doing things. Guests: James Watt - Founder, Brewdog Ltd Sarah Wood - Co-founder, Unruly Media Anders Bouvin, CEO, Handelsbanken UK.

What does a financial engineer do? A mechanical engineer may design a machine, one that does a task or overcomes an obstacle, but what problems does modern finance solve? Can the clever manipulation of debt, equity or derivatives, really make human beings better off? Some think finance is a bit of a racket, designed to extract money from the enterprise of others; others think modern finance is a m...

From the design desk to the shop window, how do fast fashion brands deliver the latest trends in double-quick time? Evan Davis and guests discuss fabric, factories and a nimble supply chain. Guests: Catarina Midby, Sustainability manager, H & M; Carol Kane, Co-founder and Joint CEO, Boohoo; Kim Winser, Founder and CEO, Winser London. Producer: Sally Abrahams.

Whether it's high-profile sports events or blockbuster art exhibitions, companies like Adidas and Unilever spend millions of pounds on sponsorship - to get their brand associated with sporting or artistic excellence. The global sponsorship market is worth more than 30 billion pounds a year, but what happens when negative publicity - like Fifa's World Cup corruption scandal - starts to tarnish a br...

Companies like Royal Mail, Saga and the AA have recently listed their shares on the stock market. It gives them access to plenty of money to help them grow, but also means they're subject to public scrutiny. Evan Davis and guests discuss why firms decide to float and how they must adapt to becoming a plc. Guests: Martin Clarke, CFO, the AA; Dan Wagner, CEO, Powa Technologies; Gillian Karran-Cumber...

Volkswagen is dealing with a corporate crisis following the emissions rigging scandal. Evan Davis and guests discuss. Guests: Sir John Egan, former CEO, Jaguar, former Chairman, Severn Trent Lord Browne, former CEO, BP Lucy Marcus, CEO, Marcus Venture Consulting Arndt Ellinghorst, Senior MD, Evercore ISI Producer: Sally Abrahams.

How do you value something like a painting? What makes one artist worth more than another? Who decides what is in vogue and why do they have so much power in the art world? Evan Davis presents a discussion on taste and value in the art world with a panel including the British artist Grayson Perry. Guests: Grayson Perry - Artist Valeria Napoleone - Collector and Patron Ralph Taylor - Director, UK B...