Vilfredo Pareto was an early twentieth century Italian economist who gave us the 80/20 rule. We hear it most commonly used in reference to sales . . . 80 percent of your business comes from 20 percent of your customers. But the mistake we often make is to spend […] Continue Reading…
“Communication is to leadership as the swing is to golf; everyone can do it, but few do it well.”
Consistently, “being in the know” ranks near the top of employee satisfaction surveys. People want to know what’s going on around here. They want to know what their part is. They want to know how events, both good and bad, are impacting the company. And why shouldn’t they? After […] Continue Reading…
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
I normally begin with a “Quote of the Week,” but I wanted to talk about Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and didn’t really have an appropriate quote for that topic. So I guess this is a “Tip of the Week.”
While monthly financial statements provide vital information to the management of […] Continue Reading…
“Cash is king.”
Is it king in your organization? It should be. You should be forecasting your cash for the next thirty days, reviewing it daily, updating it weekly.
Some small business owners are unclear on the difference between “cash” and “profit.” They are totally different. You can be very profitable and still […] Continue Reading…
“Most companies grow themselves out of business. They either can’t finance (the growth), or they can’t manage it.”
Sadly, when a business fails, it is often not because it was founded on a bad idea. It’s because it simply runs out of money. Even if the business is profitable, it can still be cash-starved out of business. How does that happen?
Several ways.
If the business is a brand […] Continue Reading…
“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.”
For most small business owners, the business is their single largest asset and the one they are counting upon to fund their retirement. So wouldn’t it make sense for them to plan when and how they expect to exit the business? You would think so, but many don’t . […] Continue Reading…
“No organization can make good decisions without conflict.”
“No organization can make good decisions without conflict.”
“If everyone is thinking alike, someone’s not thinking.”
We tend to veer away from conflict. It can make us feel uncomfortable, or even downright shaken. It can inspire anger, anxiety, hurt feelings, and a lot of other negative outcomes. So we avoid it. […] Continue Reading…
“Today’s decision makers are reassessing every spending and investment decision they make. They are looking for ways to reduce delay or cancel purchases and investment decisions, and they are seeking certainty that desired results will be achieved as planned.”
At a recent business meeting, one of the participants complained, “I’ve never seen so much indecision. Our customers just won’t pull the trigger. They get right up to the point of buying then back away, putting off the buying decision until next month or next quarter or longer.” That […] Continue Reading…
“If there is no change, there’s no need to manage.”
What would happen in your business if one day your managers just didn’t show up? What would their subordinates do? Well, they would probably just do what they did yesterday. And if the managers still didn’t show up the following day, the subordinates would just continue doing what they […] Continue Reading…
Running a company is easy when you don’t know how, but very difficult when you do.
Running a company is easy when you don’t know how, but very difficult when you do.
Below are some activities that, when performed rigorously and consistently, tend to separate strong small business operators from those who are struggling. It is not intended to be a comprehensive list, and the list […] Continue Reading…
