The Bottom Line with Evan Davis

The curious business of expert advice. Evan Davis's guests this week come from very different industry sectors, but have one thing in common - they're to some extent selling expertise, knowledge that the customer doesn't have. If consumers are in a state of relative ignorance, how can they shop around? What stops them getting ripped off? They also swap thoughts on religion in the workplace.

Three young entrepreneurs share their headaches and hopes as they discuss the challenges of creating and running a business. Presented by Evan Davis.

Does it really take a big ego to be successful in business? Evan Davis asks his panel about egos and narcissicm. And what's so special about the US when it comes to successful startups?

Evan Davis and his panel talk cars. What road is the automotive industry on? Just where is it headed? They also consider whether it’s best to be a wage slave, with a regular salary, or to take a share of the profits of a business.

It's become a dirty word, often associated with negatives like 'crony' and 'crisis'. Evan Davis asks his executive panel how they would redesign and rebrand capitalism. They also swap thoughts on when you reach your prime in business. First in a new series.

Evan Davis and his panel consider whether now’s the time for companies to pursue big, ambitious ideas – or is it a time for more modest aspirations? They also discuss banking with the boss of retail banking at Royal Bank of Scotland, and take stock of the consumer sector in the run-up to Christmas. Last in the current series.

Evan Davis asks his panel about the importance of bonds to business. The boss of Heathrow reveals the trials of running an airport. And the panel considers whether a good manager can run any company of any type.

What's the secret of a happy business marriage? Evan Davis asks his panel about the key partnerships they have with other companies. They also consider whether flat organisations work best.

In the third programme in her series of debates about the financial crisis, Stephanie Flanders asks a panel of top economic thinkers whether the world has the institutions it needs to confront today's problems. Stephanie is joined in the studio by Willem Buiter, Chief Economist at Citigroup, Jim O'Neill Chairman of the asset management division of Goldman Sachs and Katinka Barysch, Deputy Director of the Centre for European Reform in London. They'll also discuss whether the lesson of the last few years - especially in the eurozone - is that national democracies and global markets simply don't mix. Producer: Caroline Bayley Editor: Stephen Chilcott

A smorgasbord of topics as Evan Davis and his panel of guests discuss everything from Swedish business and Ikea, to the Eurozone crisis and product proliferation.

Should we blame the bankers or the economists when it comes to the global financial crisis? And what can we learn from the current crisis? In the second of three programmes, BBC Economics Editor Stephanie Flanders discusses the global economy with high-profile economic thinkers, including billionaire investor George Soros; Sir Howard Davies, former director of the London School of Economics and Dr DeAnne Julius, chair of Chatham House and a former member of the Bank of England's monetary policy committee.

As protests continue around the world against the financial sector, Evan Davis and three guests from that industry consider a fundamental question: does the sector create genuine wealth, or is it essentially parasitic, finding ingenious ways of distributing other people’s wealth to its own workers?

What does the future hold for the Euro? BBC Economics editor Stephanie Flanders discusses how the current economic crisis will play out over the next decade. Joined by a panel of top economic thinkers, she ask if Western economies can expect to grow at all over the next few years, and will the Euro exist in ten years time? Stephanie is joined by Nicola Horlick of Bramdean Asset Management; David Roche of global investment research firm Independent Strategy and Will Hutton, chair of the Big Innovation Centre - a new think tank set up by the Work Foundation.

Stephanie Flanders asks her panel about the dos and don’ts of marketing. They also discuss messiness in the workplace - does a cluttered desk really mean a cluttered mind?

Evan Davis and guests consider whether it’s getting easier to create a new business in the wired world, or do lower barriers to entry mean it’s trickier to get noticed? They also discuss how good businesses are built on the back of mistakes.