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Exceptional customer service has now become a leading component in the mission and vision statements of many organisations. It is an area in which every business needs to excel. Cameron Cooper reports.

Maxine Horne has made millions out of mobile phones over the past decade.

She knows them inside out. Like the average user, however, she gets no joy out of programming phone numbers, charging batteries or setting up message banks.

Sacked. Released. Fired. Dismissed. There is no way to make it sound good and, when it happens to you, it seems there's no way to make it feel good. But it is possible to turn it to your advantage and create very good results from a very bad day. Chris Sheedy reports. Prior to losing his job as a result of a voluntary redundancy in 1996, Steve Bowler had been a human resources manager with a federal government department.

Australia is an innovative nation and the number of programs available to foster ideas and talent is growing. Cameron Cooper reports. Coming from a physiotherapist, Mark Alexander's admission is somewhat surprising. "I don't want to be pushing on people's backs for the rest of my life," says Alexander, who in the past has kneaded the fatigued muscles of the London Broncos Rugby League team and Australian Olympic athletes such as Cathy Freeman.

As Federal Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Pru Goward has the opportunity and responsibility to shape the way both business and individuals tackle gender issues - at home and in the office. Kate Kerrison talks to her about where the passion for equality came from.

"How can you not be influenced by the songs of your time. I was 18 years old when the women's movement began and was at the first meeting at Adelaide University . Your whole life is affected by it," Goward says.

By Helen Burns

Picture this: you are a team leader running a day-long workshop with a group of managers from across the organisation. The workshop is going well, everyone is contributing and you are making progress.

After the lunch break your senior manager arrives unannounced, stands in front of the group and says: "This isn't going well at all; I'm going to take over now."

Don Voelte, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Australia's largest publicly traded oil and gas exploration and production company, Woodside, talks to Lauren Thomsen-Moore about his views on management and leadership.

Anyone who has been in the eye of a media storm will agree that the old saying, "any publicity is good publicity", no longer applies. Managing the media is an important element in protecting your brand and reputation. Lesley Parker reports. The Pan Pharmaceuticals crisis in 2003 was one of the biggest product recalls in Australian history.

Perhaps the oddest aspect of employee disengagement is that it can start at the very beginning, with the recruitment process and actual engagement, and grow insidiously from there. Deborah Tarrant reports. Employee disengagement is triggered by something as simple as an organisation's culture being misrepresented in a job interview, or an inadequate job description.

Managing the local division of a world brand is not always easy. Steve Vamos, Microsoft Australia 's Managing Director explains to Lauren Thomsen-Moore why the repositioning of the local culture was so important.

The philosophy of not-for-profit organisations seems to resonate with younger workers and managers. It may be about doing good work or it may be the growing 'not for the profit of shareholders' approach.

Lesley Parker reports.

Many not-for-profit managers will quietly admit to having a self-esteem problem. They are the 'poor cousins' - sometimes figuratively, but often literally - of their corporate sector peers.