5/22

This morning we had the privilege of hearing a lecture by Georges De Nemeskeri-Kiss discussing the financial crisis in the EU.  Honestly, he was amazing, but a lot of what he discussed was over my head.  I found it remarkable that he began the lecture by giving us a choice of topics.  We picked one and he launched into this brilliant explanation and analysis of the crisis.  What's it like to walk around with that much information in your mind and be able to communicate it in clear and organized fashion? Remarkable.  Every time I hear an intelligent discussion on the financial crisis I walk away feeling a bit depressed.  The greed of a few severely impacted the well being of many and it doesn't appear that the lessons have been learned.

This afternoon we visited Galderma.  It was very insightful to get a glimpse of the mindset that employees of such a large company have.  While it certainly did not have the family type environment of Dani-Alu, there was a sense of pride in their company.  It is also fascinating to me to consider the sheer size, numerically and geographically, of Galderma and marvel at the efforts that are taken to get that many people moving in the same direction.  Consider all of the factory regulations, HR considerations, and specific job tasks that are happening at all at once.  I used to run a company with 80 employees across 4 cities and that seemed impossible to keep up with, forget thousands.

Below, friends enjoying a quiet pub after a day of site visits.   

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