Telco's shrinking globe

SOL TRUJILLO'S globetrotting ways are starting to pay dividends. Microsoft's energetic boss, Steve Ballmer, for one, popped into Sydney for Telstra's mammoth eight-hour gabfest yesterday.

Apart from taking potshots at Google's new mobile phone, Ballmer, who apparently goes way back with Sol, was spruiking Microsoft's new alliance with Telstra.

Sadly, Ballmer didn't do one of his famed let's-rev-the-troops routines he's renowned for at Microsoft. (Haven't seen one? Go to YouTube and search "Steve Ballmer going crazy". And you thought your boss was odd.)

Another to pop in for a chat was the Cisco Systems boss, John Chambers. Well, he popped in via "tele-presence", chatting with Sol and the Telstra exec David Thodey. To the disappointment of Sol, a former Pepsi director, Chambers was sipping Diet Coke.

Chambers has circled the world over the past few weeks via tele-conferencing, pointing out that Cisco was cutting staff carbon emissions.

Thodey butted in to suggest he not give Sol too many ideas.

It's at this point we should perhaps mention Sol, a big spruiker of using broadband to cut emissions, was busy filling another page on his passport over the weekend with a(nother) trip to Shanghai for "a meeting".

Meanwhile, Sol wasn't shedding too many tears despite his chum John McCain's thumping at the ballot box. Asked if this affected his stay in Australia, Sol replied that the election had no bearing on how long he was going to hang around.

Somehow we doubt we'll be asking Sol at the end of Barack Obama's first term if he, too, wants "four more years".

Hard lesson

Being a value manager is a tricky business.

So as Eddy Groves's dream slid down the S-bend yesterday, we couldn't help but spare a thought for the chaps at Lazard Asset Management.

Was it only June when Lazard and Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia tipped $82.2 million in fresh equity into the already lurching child-care operator?

Lazard and Morgan Stanley picked up 15per cent of ABC, taking home 71.5million shares they might now use as confetti at the next kids' party.

Makes one wonder about the analysis that goes into making the odd investment decision. Still, they're not alone.

The Singapore Government's investment arm, Temasek, will be tempted to bring out the cane to check what went wrong.

All over the place

Leighton's chairman, David Mortimer, wants to iron out a fewissues for those of you who attended the contractor's annual meeting yesterday.

When asked by one concerned shareholder if Leighton ever intended to get a female director on its blokey board of pig shooters, Mortimer responded: "'Probably not' is the short answer."

Afterwards a slightly pale-faced Mortimer - accompanied by a Leighton media flack - explained he had misheard the question. "I'm quite happy to have women on the board. We have women all over the place." Oh, dear.

It seems Mortimer might needto see a hearing doctor. Inrelation to another question hemixed up Leighton's allegeddealings with "rogue contractors" to its dealings with "road contractors".

When he was corrected, Mortimer pointed to Leighton's chief executive, Wal King, and explained: "We have a man who is an expert in managing rogue contractors."

And don't be worried about Wal King's health if you happen to spot him somewhere near Royal North Shore Hospital. Leighton's doing some upgrade work at the hospital. "It's across the road from my office," Wal said, adding he'd be strolling the hospital grounds on his daily inspection tour.

Betting men

Back to work in the unglamorous world of medical centres for Primary Healthcare's Ed Bateman.

His three-year-old Glowlamp, primed for yesterday's Oaks at Flemington, failed to pick up the million-dollar purse, finishing sixth.

The cash clearly would have come in handy as Dr Ed continues to try to get his renos on his Mosman pile up and running.

Meanwhile, It's unclear if his competitor, Bruce Dixon from Healthscope, lost a few more bucks after punting $100 on Glowlamp on Saturday's Derby Day.

Next!

It's at this point that Babcock & Brown and Centro shareholders should start praying.

Bankers are systematically going through their list, starting with the A's. Allco, check. ABC Learning, check.

Now, who's next? The B's. That would be Babcock. And C? That would be Centro. Anyone with lots of debt out there starting with D?

Meanwhile, a clarification: Allco boss David Clarke has not yet received the cash payout of $3.5million in place of long-term incentives as we said yesterday. But he does retain the entitlement to a pro-rata payout when he finishes up shortly, as expected, as an unsecured creditor.

Dragon's hoard

Gail Kelly's first stint at the helm of Westpac has delivered $8.5million, short of what her successor at the happy dragon, Paul Fegan, may yet earn for his one year in the gig if all the stars align on payouts of his options and incentives.

Fegan could pocket more than $11million for the year.

Dragging on Kelly's first effort were the first tranche of the shares she received as a sign-on fee that were worth up to $4.9million but came in at $3.8million.

A parsing thought

A reader points out the word of the day from Dictionary.com earlier this week: addle \AD-'l\, verb: 1. to make or become muddled or confused 2. to make or become rotten or putrid.

Our correspondent wonders: "So does that mean someone who Addles is an ...?"

Meanwhile, Rodney Adler was spotted yesterday at Uccello, a new Italian restaurant near the pool at the Ivy, a trendy noshery in the city.

Rodney remains sans mullet but is now apparently sporting a Julius Caesar-esque comb-forward.

Psst! Got a tip? Use our online tips box incognito.