Task One this week is a monthly guidance note to institutional investors ahead of the CEO's conference call. He's started using MediaDashboard to see the risks and opportunities in media coverage - and so far it's saved him a lot of pain.

The big themes - plotted for him on a chart; he doesn't want to read 1,000 articles - are a new influenza strain first spotted in duckbilled platypuses, an obesity drug nearing patent expiry, and an ongoing story surrounding drugs research in developing countries.

All are big stories. All carry risks. But communicated correctly, Barri can turn the risks into opportunities. It's time to offer those investors some tension relievers.

Next: a shot in the arm for nervous investors