Mistakes exposed as the tide turns

Shareholders carry can for strategic blunders at Sasol, Group Five.

MOOI RIVER - Economic activist Nassim Taleb has written a couple of bestsellers containing countless examples of how, when it comes to money, it's better to be lucky than brilliant (they can be purchased from the Moneyweb Shop) . Often, business mediocrities have been massively rewarded through factors other than their own talent. Taleb is not the only one to make a strong case that many of those earning large executive salaries have done so because of being in the right place at the right time rather than the possession of any special talents.

This philosophy will attract legions of new supporters as the economic downturn continues to reveal examples of poor executive decision-making. Or, to use investment guru Warren Buffett's terminology, when the tide goes out we get to see whose been swimming without any trunks.

The problem with all this is by the time the mistakes surface, those who made them have often banked their millions, ...