In short, they have to prevent their staff from getting involved in sex scandals. Executives are told they are responsible for the behaviour of their staff within three ranks directly below them. They also need to avoid the usual run-of-the-mill scandals involving money, of which the same three-rank rule also applies.

However, there is no mention of penalties, and we are not sure whether similar directives have been sent to local officials. Quite an impossible feat, Lai See reckons.

Almost 10,000 overseas reporters are expected to cover the event, with an anticipated 70 million visitors. More than 190 countries and 50 international organisations have confirmed their participation - the highest number of participants in the history of the World Expo.

So how do you set and enforce standards for moral behaviour for so many people? And how do you control staff conduct outside office hours?

We don't have the answer for the first question. But, to rein in unacceptable or aberrant staff behaviour, the boss can perhaps consider sending out senior staff to supervise junior staff. But then who supervises the supervisor?

Oh well, at least these bosses can breathe a sigh of relief that the Expo only runs from May to October.

Complex picture

There is a lot of truth in the belief that big is still better.

Japanese management guru Kenichi Ohmae recently told an interviewer that Toyota Motor Corp's largest failure is being too focused on small things.

He says 'the Toyota way of 'accumulation of small improvements', or 'kaizen' philosophy' has turned out to be a weakness in the age of complex electronic engines. The company is struggling to repair its image after recalling eight million vehicles.

Ohmae explains that each Toyota car has about 24,000 inputs and outputs, with as many as 70 computer chips processing and sending information in order to operate the engine control units. And consequently, the electronic complexity has overwhelmed its traditional 'kaizen' concept.

The expert believes by attending to minor details the company has inadvertently lost the big picture of how the whole electronic engine or overall safety works.

But, it has missed an even bigger picture - the human factor.

Ohmae says because design and production are broken down into so many small bits, there is no one among the Toyota engineers who knows how to fix the problem. Wow, that's a really scary picture!

Good move

We are not accustomed to seeing our civil servants slumming it. On Wednesday, the financial chief announced plans to move some government departments to factory buildings after they have been suitably 'revitalised'.

John Tsang Chun-wah said ultimately he would like to see government departments move out of business districts. Staff at three government buildings may soon have to bid farewell to the Wan Chai harbour view. But their small sacrifice will boost the coffers by HK$14 billion.

Back at her best

Lai See was really pleased to see Betty Yuen So Siu-mai, the former managing director of CLP Group, looking so well yesterday. Yuen, who recently recovered from breast cancer, looked completely transformed.

It was her first media briefing since returning to work last month, and she presented the group's 2009 results in her new capacity as vice-chairman of CLP Power Hong Kong.

We are told that Yuen now aims to have a better work-life balance; do exercise in the morning and only go to the office in the afternoon. Despite working part-time, she will keep a watchful eye on the strategic direction of the group's Hong Kong electricity business.