Peter Day's World of Business

The former Barclays CEO, Antony Jenkins, talks to Kamal Ahmed

The executive personal assistant is a job that requires utmost discretion and an inbuilt ability to know what the boss needs before they need it. In an age where many administrative tasks are being delegated to computers, the human touch of the skilled executive assistant is gaining value in the corporate suite. Sathnam Sanghera finds out how the role of the Man Men secretary has evolved into the contemporary assistant and discovers how indispensable these modern day multitaskers are to the success of a CEO and their company.

Cremona in northern Italy is the original home of the Stradivarius violin and now - several centuries later - master craftsmen are still producing hand-made violins and exporting around the world. But how can such a niche industry survive in the modern world of mass production?

Peter Day asks whether companies really should still be built to last in today's hi-tech internet world. What are the characteristics of those that stand the test of time? Many do learn to change or even re-invent themselves while others, such as Woolworths, have disappeared altogether. In interviews with business leaders and entrepreneurs he discusses whether longevity still matters.Producer: Caroline Bayley

In some villages in rural China they're replacing the sounds of chickens and farm life with something very 21st century. In the village of Qing Yan Liu, four hours south of Shanghai, they've created a world of bubble wrap and sticky tape. The people here have embraced going online to become an internet shopping hub. In the eyes of the Chinese Premier this could be the future of rural China. He hopes that more and more places will copy what has happened in “China’s Number One E-Commerce village”. He wants to avoid what is happening in many other villages where all the young people have left in search of work and the place is gradually abandoned. Peter Day visits three countryside villages to hear how online shopping is transforming life in rural China. Producer: Charlotte Pritchard.

China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Many Chinese dream of seeing blue skies and white clouds but rarely do because of the smog. Often the daily routine is to wake up and check the pollution levels to decide if it is safe for children to play outside, or if a filter mask should be worn for protection. Ahead of December’s UN Climate Change summit, Peter Day reports on the Chinese ambitions to make China ‘go green’. Many people say the Chinese aren’t given enough credit for their efforts and argue the West will be shocked when it realises the extent of their actions. But can that ambition become reality? Peter Day reports from Beijing and beyond and asks when will the Chinese be able to breathe more easily?

Peter Day continues his reports from the drought stricken central valley of California. This week he visits two family farms. Both grow fruit and nut crops. Both reflect the central role of migration and water in Californian history. They were founded by incomers; one from Japan, the other Mexico. But that is where the similarities end. These farms are separated by heartless geology. One has access to good quality groundwater, the other does not. Producer : Rosamund Jones

California has some of the world's most productive agricultural land. It puts fruit and vegetables on America's tables and exports huge amount of produce too; nearly all of the almonds we consume come from there. But the state is also enduring a severe drought, now into its fourth year. Farm land is being fallowed, farm workers are losing their jobs and thousands of wells are drying up. Some farmers believe that this year is the tipping point. If rain does not fall in the winter, they'll be unable to farm next year. But others have had some of their best years during these testing times. Peter Day explores what happens when water becomes the most valuable commodity there is. Producer: Rosamund Jones

For more than 150 years, Steinway and Sons have been building handmade pianos to please the ear of the most discerning musicians. Their sound fills concert halls around the world. Why? Is it simply because they're the best; the best marketed or is there another reason? Peter Day visits one of Steinway's two factories, in Astoria New York, to find out what gives this instrument its prized status in the concert world and ask if this once family owned firm can keep its place on the world stage. Producer: Sandra Kanthal

It would take an elephant balanced on the tip of a pencil to break through a sheet of graphene the thickness cling film. That's the description those promoting this new wonder material like to use to illustrate the strength of graphene. The atomic material was isolated by two scientists at Manchester University in 2004. Now, just over a decade and one Nobel prize later, Peter Day visits the newly opened the National Graphene Institute. Its aim is to bring business and science together, to develop potential future uses for graphene. Will this strategy succeed where Britain’s past attempts to spin out scientific discoveries have not? Producer: Sandra Kanthal

Who's your boss? Peter Day explores how three different companies, in three different countries, do business without managers. Who hires and fires? And how do you get a pay rise? He asks how these radical organisations emerged, and whether other companies may follow their lead. Producer: Rosamund Jones

Opera is an expensive art form. It receives millions of pounds of public money. Can that be justified? Peter Day gets a range of operatic experiences - from top opera companies, to pub performers and a country house summer festival. The first opera was performed 400 years ago in Italy; how does the future look?Producer: Penny Murphy

As the race to develop driverless cars hots up around the world, the UK is determined not to be left in the slow lane. Government money is being invested to help test vehicles and 'pods' over the next three years. It's not just the robotic technology which is being developed- building the trust of the public in vehicles which eventually won't need drivers behind the wheel is crucial There's still a long way to go, and Peter Day talks to those involved in this brave new world of transport.

Remarkable start-up stories of entrepreneurs from Saudi Arabia, Israel and New Zealand.

What exactly is economics? Science or art? An explanation of our society based on observable, demonstrable law or is it an attempt to systematise the unknowable: the mysteries of the human mind? Peter Day puts these questions to the economist and bestselling author of Nudge, Professor Richard Thaler, one of the founding fathers of behavioural economics. This relatively new branch of the dismal science tries to shed light on the way people make choices in their everyday lives and why subtle changes in the way options are framed can make big differences in how we behave.

As Dame Ellen MacArthur circumnavigated the globe she got first-hand knowledge of the finite nature of the world’s resources. When she retired from sailing she created a foundation to promote the concept of a 'Circular Economy' - where resources are re-used and waste reduced to zero. Many companies around the world - including some of the biggest, like Unilever - are responding to her ideas.Peter Day talks to the record-breaking sailor, to Unilever, and to the creators of an innovative urban farm in New Jersey about why these concepts are so important and how businesses can take them on board.Producer: Sandra Kanthal

Mohed Altrad was born in the Syrian desert, an orphan and in poverty. He does not know how old he is. He is now a French billionaire and he has just been chosen as Ernst and Young World Entrepreneur of the Year. In this week's Global Business he tells Peter Day about his extraordinary story and the international company he's created over the past 30 years.

An International Labour Organization report ranked Colombia second globally for the percentage of women in middle and senior management positions. Peter Day investigates why Colombian women have managed to advance in business and whether the figures are a true reflection of life for women in a country known for its machismo culture.

Over the past decade the Colombian city of Medellin has changed its reputation from murder capital to model of innovation. Peter Day investigates how the city’s transformation led by its public institutions might have lessons for other cities struggling with violence and poverty.

Medellin used to be one of the most dangerous cites on earth; with a reputation for kidnapping and murder, as well as a thriving drugs trade. Now Colombia's second city has become a top global tourist destination. Peter Day reports on a remarkable transformation.