Financial Statement Hacks for Small Business Owners
“When the bank asks for them. Otherwise, why bother? …It’s just a bunch of numbers on a page.” Those were the precise words of a small business CFO in response to my question as to how often he generated financial statements for his company. Prior to that, I had asked the CEO how often he…
INSPIRE Excellence in Your Entire Team!
I recently wrote about how to Achieve Your Full Potential Through Level 3 Accountability and cited the Harvard Business Review article relating that 70% of ALL employees are demotivated and disengaged. Common sense dictates that a demotivated person is less productive than a motivated person. And you can ask yourself how productive you are when…
Achieve Your Full Potential through Level 3 Accountability!
Accountability is obviously critical to the success of any business. After all, every business strategy has to be executed through people. Assuming the strategy is sound, the efficiency with which they execute the strategy determines the degree of profitability. Thus, holding people accountable to the strategy is essential to success. Because my practice focuses upon…
Considerations for Planning the Sale of Your Company
Studies and surveys conducted by universities, government organizations and the media are revealing some startling – and occasionally stark – statistics about the state of business in America today. Among the more incredible realities facing business owners today is the fact that, as the last of the Baby Boomers retire over the next 13 years,…
Surrounded by Idiots
I fully understand the frustration of entrepreneurial CEOs in executing their vision and the sense that they are surrounded with incompetence. It takes patience but the way to achieving their vision is to inspire people to their fullest potential and thereby get 100% productivity out of them rather than measure how many minutes to the…
The Best Team Wins!
In today’s business world, the greatest competitive advantage is derived by those organizations that can attract, develop and retain the right people at the right time and execute in an environment of accountability. Properly developed, your PIP ensures that: the Company Vision has been clearly defined and communicated management is in strategic alignment and there…
Have You Ever Built a Tree House?
I remember when we were kids how my brother and I and our friends from the neighborhood would decide, every once in a while, to build a tree house. I think we would all start with this vision of something that looked like a miniature version of a real house but I don’t ever recall…
Is Cruising Safe?
As I read the articles and reports of the Italian cruise ship disaster I feel for the families of travelers involved and I think back to my last cruise and our marveling over how they never even completed the safety briefing. Though we left from Venice, Italy, we were traveling on a recognized cruise line.…
Performance Management Process
Performance Management is a process that every member of your team must master. It requires consistent focus along with the fundamental management skills to ensure the process is efficient and effective. Every manager will be inclined to think ‘I could do it faster’, ‘I can do it better’, ‘I might as well just do it myself’,…
How to Align Your Team for Optimal Execution
I recently completed the implementation of the Critical Factors Management System into a $4.5 million manufacturing company that had been operating at a loss for the past six months. As is usually the case, I cannot mention the name of the client but they are typical of many small businesses that are run by intelligent,…
