There is only one company that Sir John Harvey-Jones, British television's first-ever Troubleshooter, refuses to dissect: ICI, for which he produced Britain's first-ever billion-pound annual profit. But Sir John won't be at the company's central London headquarters to analyse the performance of the men who succeeded him. When asked to comment on how they've done, since he departed after 31 years at ICI in 1987, he simply says: "No, I won't."This from the man who was so outspoken in the boom years of the 1980s, he earned himself the title of Margaret Thatcher's least-favourite businessman. And who, as BBC2's corporate doctor, made pronouncements about those bosses who dared to let him through their factory gates that scared the hell out of their puffed-up PRs but made absolute sense to millions of viewers who had never been near a boardroom.But the small- to medium-sized businesses he once very publicly took apart keep on coming back for more. Three years after his 10-year TV stint ended, his no-nonsense advice remains a sought-after commodity. "I still get about four letters a day from companies asking for help," he says. Last month's batch included one addressed simply to "Sir John Harvey-Jones, Wales" As many as possible are answered, for free.
Large corporations, too, still invite him to talk to them about their management mistakes.Sir John has always pulled 'em in. On 3 March 1987, the day he quit the chair of what was then Britain's biggest industrial company, he flew to New York for a dinner with several hundred fund managers. They loved his salty talk almost as much as the profits he brought them. They rose to their feet, draped him with an outrageously wide kipper tie, his trademark neckwear, and cheered him.A decade and a half later, aged 79 and despite having suffered two strokes, he still isn't pussy-footing around Take his views on the subject of fat cat executive pay "It's obscene," he declares "And unnecessary. I don't believe it makes people work harder." Sir John knows exactly the impact £20m-plus severance deals have had on millions of small investors and on workers. "They irritate the hell out of the troops," he says.But who in their right mind, and with a watertight contract, would dream of refusing a golden handshake, no matter how badly the company had performed? Let alone give up an annual pay rise.Well, under Sir John at ICI, that was what happened Twice.
"In my first two years, the salaries committee thought we should have a modest increase," he recalls "The workforce had already had one. I and the other directors said, for two years, that we would not take it The company was not performing. I said if we didn't do better next time around, I wouldn't wait to be pushed. I'd resign."Luckily, the following year's profits exceeded a billion pounds, an unbelievable turnaround. And one that surely guaranteed him the sort of financial farewell others have since enjoyed? Not so Sir John retired on just £150,000 a year "I got three-quarters of my final salary," he says. "I thought it was generous."Who better, then, to run his eye over today's corporate culture - for example, Enron-style accounting to boost share prices "Unbelievable," declares Sir John.