McKinsey can-do

Even in these tougher times, some companies will spare no expense for staff. At the management consultant McKinsey, that now extends to menial jobs and household chores.

McKinsey, the company that gave William Hague his professional start in life, has now set up a "yes-we-can" desk in its lobby. The function of the desk is to make life as easy for employees as possible, and a recent memo shows just how far that will go.

During the month of August, the desk offers an errand-running service to collect passports, plan holidays, buy sun-tan lotion of the appropriate strength or even organise barbecues.

But the service comes into its own while employees are away. The yes-we-can-ers offer to take care of houseplants, terrace or garden. They will go into the house and switch lights on periodically, feed pets and provide 24-hour house-sitters. When employees get home, the company makes sure your treasured holiday snaps get to the developers promptly.

For the office slobs there is even better news. The company offers a full spring-cleaning service, which, according to the memo includes limescale removal, tile cleaning and ironing.