1.   OVER the past few weeks I have been attempting to assess the relative marketing merits of companies as diverse as theatre companies, electrical retailers and peat producers.

2.   Academics suggested such a move would give top executives greater freedom to manage the increasingly diverse company.

3.   But if a diverse company is one where management, board members and suppliers mirror the racial makeup of the community, good hunting.

4.   Companies as diverse as disk drive maker Western Digital Corp., drugmaker Ivax Corp. and fuel systems developer Walbro Corp. have issued gloomy profit forecasts.

5.   Companies as diverse as IBM, Estee Lauder, Amgen and Northern Telecom have posted better-than-expected numbers recently.

6.   Companies as diverse as disk drive maker Western Digital Corp., drugmaker Ivax Corp. and fuel systems developer Walbro Corp. issued gloomy profit forecasts this week.

7.   Companies as diverse as fiber-optics developer Harmonic Lightwaves Inc. and software producer SeaChange International Inc. dropped after forecasting gloomy profits.

8.   Companies as diverse as Imperial Chemical Industries Plc and Reuters Holdings Plc have suggested earnings growth may slow in the second half of the year.

9.   Companies as diverse as Sprint Corp. and FranceTelecom made such investments through a complex holding structure.

10.   Companies as diverse as Wal-Mart Stores, Boeing and Airtouch Communications have programs to foster teamwork, communication and cooperation.