Althought the recession is officially over in many countries, the effects of it are still being felt and probably will be for some time.

Kraft has recently announced a takeover bid for Cadbury Schweppes. Already questions are being asked about why British firms are losing control of their companies. The short answer is that during the course of its 200-year history, it has allowed more than 50% of its shares to be sold. That means that the door was opened for someone at some time to buy the company. If Cadbury Schweppes hadn’t done so, then any bid by anyone else would have been limited to less than a controlling interest in the firm.

Few of us will ever be put in a situation where we’re at the helm of a publicly-listed company, but the principle remains. We should never mortgage the future of our business in order to solve a short term problem.