Business Perspectives

Many firms hire consultants who have experience in their industry. The premise is if a consultant has experience in my industry then they should understand our issues. True or Fasle?

The answer is both true and false. True, a consultant who is familiar with your business understands the "constraints" your business and the customer faces from an industry perspective. False. Those who are outside a "system" are most likely to see obvious "systemic fixes". Being to close to a "system" may in fact be a detriment to improvement. Sometimes being to close to a problem is in fact part of the problem.

Being to close to a "system" can create internalized beliefs about the systems capabilities and how it should work. Rather than using innovative thinking some consultants have "canned answers" as to what has worked for others. Every company has its unique "systemic" attributes. Issues like culture, size, demographics, market dynamics, human resources etc. All create a combined definition of "systemic attributes". Very few companies have the same "systemic attributes".

An outsiders who is grounded in the principals of "systemic thinking, understanding variation, the dynamics of psychology, and how technology adds value" to a "system" can be more effective than one with experience in a specific industry.

An example: Much has been written about "benchmarking against the best" While learning what the best is doing is a sound proclamation for learning, copying what the "best in class" do may not be a sound principle of improvement. Given that every "system" has its own unique attributes copying what others do may in fact increase cost and complexity.

Case in point: In the early 80's every major vehicle manufacturer adopted what Japan had instituted as "Quality Management". Deming even was called to all the major U.S. automobile manufacturers to teach what he had taught Japan. His first proclamation what "Management owes the system thus management must lead the systemic changes using profound knowledge". Now 20 years later has the leaders of American automobile manufacturers made the necessary changes?
Market, economic factors and consumer satisfaction results led us to a simply conclusion. No they have not!

Consider Ford, GM, Chrysler and their current condition. Each tried to institute "quality". Each made some progress but simply not enough. All internalized "Quality" and each made it a department rather than a duty of leadership. In other words, their thinking was flawed.

So how can a qualified consultant add the greatest value to your organization?

First, they can provide an alternative view of what your company does and how well it does it without being invested in existing beliefs. Outside thinking can be the greatest value a consultant can provide.

Second, a good consultant will tell the CEO or Chairman the facts without fearing of repercussion. A good consultant will not base his feedback on opinion or politics rather he/she will be armed with data to prove an assessment which supports the very changes that need to be made, like it or not.

Third, a good consultant will make a commitment to help the organization through a change process by insuring internalize of the thinking behind the methods and processes that substantiate needed changes. Thus enabling the organization to sustain change by itself.

Fourth, a good consultant should always provide more value than clients expect. Value both in less cost than expected and in sound advice and recommendations that enable an organization to reach beyond its objectives without the consultant.

Finding a consultant can be easy but following these guidelines can help you determine if you've found the right one.

Insights to Success

Create That Winning Feeling by Bob Proctor

I believe we would all agree that having a winning feeling is prerequisite to achieving outstanding results. A person can’t possibly expect to win if they’re constantly focusing on failure! The real secret here is to capture that winning feeling of success as often as you can to create the environment necessary to succeed.

If you’ve been a little down in the dumps, feeling insecure or perhaps not feeling as confident in your ability as you’d like, I have a great tip for you. My suggestion to anyone looking for a success track to run on, or to a person who is looking to get back on one, is to start capitalizing on short-term victories. That means specifically focus on tasks you can achieve daily. The principle is to start with an adversity over which you can succeed, and gradually take on more and more difficult tasks. Nothing succeeds like success.

Another technique used by many people in developing or maintaining a winning feeling is what we call the reflection method. Think back during a time where you were really successful at something… we all have times to which we can relate. It could have been a sale, a particular speech, a school play, or standing up to the town bully. Each one of us can reflect back on a moment in time to recapture that winning feeling.

Professional sports coaches often replay winning games of the past for their team prior to a big game to stimulate and create a winning feeling!

Years ago, a good friend of mine had left his job and a company that he had worked with for many years. He was one of the top VPs with his company and had done extremely well. He had left because he wanted to start his own business. I told him he could use one of our offices until such time as he was ready to open up his own office.

In any event, I happened to be in the office one afternoon and Grant, who normally was very upbeat and positive, was really having a difficult time. After a few moments of small talk, it became apparent what the problem was. Grant had hit the terror barrier and the possibility of starting his own company was overwhelming him… he just didn’t think he could do it. Here’s a man who had risen to the top of his field, made a high six-figure income for years… and yet was still having doubts as to his ability to start his own company.

I asked Grant to go home, get a notebook and start to write down all of his accomplishments, as far back as he could remember. The look on his face was priceless – I’m sure he thought I’d lost my mind. I told him that the accomplishment could be small or large… it didn’t really matter. The point was to focus on something positive. I still remember him asking, “Well, what if I only fill half a page.” I just smiled and asked him to do his best and start writing.

Monday morning came and Grant was back in the office with a notebook full of accomplishments. I smiled and said, “You must have been fairly confident, you picked up a good sized notebook!” We both had a good laugh. Grant went on to build a multi-million dollar financial planning company and later franchised the operation to extend across Canada and the US!

This is a great exercise for anyone needing a bit of a boost. What would give you a winning feeling of pride and satisfaction? Remember… a winning feeling is a confident feeling and one that forgets misses, and reinforces successful attempts.
For more information on TSTN and their world-renown faculty of success and achievement thought leaders visit: http://www.preview1.tstn.com?KBID=2645

TSTN - The world’s only television network dedicated to success and achievement. Get the competitive advantage in life - Subscribe to TSTN!

Management Tampering

Our firm has had a diverse experience in many industries. From Healthcare, Insurance, Wireless, Transportation and Real Estate we've seen over a hundred companies from the inside out. What is a repeated behavioral problem is "Management Tampering" which does nothing more than increase cost and create further problems. What is "Management Tampering"? It is simply coming to conclusion on a solution without throughly understanding the root cause of a problem.

In many of our engagements we've witnessed complex process problems that had driven cost up. Upon analysis of the problems we've consistently discovered that the problems were caused by previous attempts to solve problems. The attempts were nothing more than what we call "shot gun solutions" being someone, somewhere, at sometime simply though they had the best idea which they thought would solve a problem. The fact is that previous solutions only created further problems, increased cost and the ongoing "shot gun approach" created yet a another series of problems which only further increased cost. The cycle is a like cancer eating away at productivity and profitability. When will management STOP THE MADNESS?

The answer is only when they see and understand that problems are systemic and solutions need to be systemic as well. This requires an understanding of how things are connected, how the connection cuts across multiple processes, how interconnection relates to outcomes or results. Learning the "how" requires a change in mindset. Changing mindsets requires education but many managers already think they know it all and they are the Kings because of their title or position in a company. The biggest barrier to improvement is the "mindset" of management. We have found that employees, for the most part, want change and can contribute to effective change. There isn't a customer in any industry that would want better service, an improved or innovative product at great value and all at the lowest possible cost. So what is the biggest barrier to fulfilling these opportunities, Management!

What does it take to change "mindsets"? Sometimes it takes a shock treatment: loss of market, employee turnover, loss of profit etc etc. Even when these events occur sometimes it still doesn't create the awakening needed for change. Leadership is needed to set a new tone, a new direction and new mindsets.

The alternative is to recognize the need for change, learn new methods, adopt a new philosophy and gain new directions and new confidence. However, this is a hard road for entrenched mindsets and one that requires a recognition that new knowledge is needed. Where will the new knowledge come from? Who has it and how can it be gained, used and executed effectively? Until there is recognition of these issues progress cannot be made and repeated mistakes will be the method for going forward into chaos.

Personal change is a requirement of transformation. However it is the toughest challenge of all change initiatives.

From Impossible to Possible

A reporter was writing a story on my career as a technology forecaster and business strategist, and asked me why I have been so excited about technology all of these years. I explained to her that technology allows us to turn the impossible into the possible. Most of the things you and I do on a daily basis were, at one time, impossible. For early man, sitting in a chair was impossible; they would have to find a rock or a stump if they wanted to sit.

How have humans been able to redefine what is possible since they first set foot on the planet? The answer is, technology. Technology enables us to turn the impossible into the possible. History reveals that when a new tool is combined with a compelling vision, the world can be changed.

Imagine what it might have been like when some long-ago inventor showed off the first wheel. He or she might have said, "I'll change the world with this." As you might guess, word spread very slowly.

The telephone was another great invention, but just as inventions before it, word still spread slowly. Let's face it, who would you call?
Today Is Not Like Yesterday
When there is a tectonic shift out at sea that triggers an earthquake, tidal waves are created. Because of the great depths of the ocean, the waves are very small, yet the energy from the earthquake can cause the small waves to reach speeds of up to 500 mph. As the waves get closer to shore and the water becomes shallow, they slow down and build, often to great heights.

A few professional lookouts, in this case technology forecasters and futurists whose job it is to look out at the horizon, saw the approaching waves of technological change. Most of us, however, spend little time looking at the horizon. Instead we concentrate on avoiding the obstacles in our current path. Using this tidal wave metaphor, the dot com wave caught by many businesses and individuals by surprise and as the wave subsided, it washed many of the bad business models out to sea.

When a tidal wave strikes, it is usually followed by a few more waves. The next e-business wave of technology-driven change is fast approaching, and once again, few are ready. I would call this wave a "smart" wave because venture capitalists and stock market investors learned a great lesson from the first wave: a plan for profitability and an understanding of sales, marketing, fulfillment and customer service, among others are important.
The Quiet Revolution
Today, word spreads quickly! Customized news comes to us via many avenues, including television, PDAs and cell phones. Microsoft has recently introduced smart object technology that uses radio waves to broadcast news, sports, stock quotes and other information to everyday objects like a watch, bracelet or key chain pendant that have a smart object receiver.

When AOL introduced instant messaging many years ago, it allowed users to detect the online presence of buddies - people we may want to communicate with whenever they are online - and instantly communicate with them by typing a message. Instant messaging is no longer limited to typing short messages. The latest application of instant messaging allows you to talk with and even see the people with whom you are communicating. Even cell phones will allow you to detect when your buddies have their cell phones on so you will know that if you call, they will be there to answer.

When a technology satisfies a social need, a revolution is created. One of mankind's social needs is to communicate. Every time a technology like smoke signals, the telegraph, the telephone and the Web, to name a few, has allowed us to lift the bar on our ability to communicate, a revolution in how we live, work and play followed.
Real-Time Events
Thanks to the Web and other telecommunication technologies, new ideas and events spread almost instantly around the world. We have been watching events from around the world in real-time for over a decade. Remember the first Gulf War and seeing the live video on CNN of the bombs being dropped? Years later, I'll never forget walking into the lobby of a hotel in Brussels, Belgium and seeing a crowd gathered around a television with live video of the World Trade Center just as it collapsed. Now, that's instant messaging.

As our laptops, cell phones and PDAs become multimedia Communication Age devices, we will experience yet another shift in how we live our lives and conduct our business.
Should Is More Important Than Could
When I look beyond communication technology and look at nanotechnology, biotechnology and many others fields, I see that technology will continue to allow mankind to redefine what is possible on the planet, turning the impossible into the possible. We will discover many new things we can do. The key to shaping a positive future is to separate what we could do from what we should do. By focusing on what we should do, we can shape a better tomorrow for all.

Can Consultants give you a competitive advantage?

So you think your company has no competition. Highly unlikely - competition is everywhere. Maybe there isn't a "direct" competitor who provides EXACTLY what your company offers, but there are undoubtedly elements of your products that buyers can get from other sources, potentially at a cheaper price. Plus, any company that is perceived by buyers to be in your space should also be considered a competitor.

So how can you ensure your company maintains a competitive advantage? According to a report published by the Aberdeen Group in March 2001, a good place to start is strategic e-sourcing. The report states there are many ways in which you and your company can "e-source" all your purchases, and in turn, earn greater market share.

Aberdeen describes strategic e-sourcing as "the process of using web-based technologies to support the identification, evaluation, negotiation, and configuration of optimal groupings of trading partners into a supply chain network, that can efficiently respond to changing market demands." What does that mean? Essentially, using online resources to purchase goods and services will make your job easier, give your company a competitive edge, position you to respond more quickly to your customer's changing needs, and in turn secure market share.

Aberdeen notes the trouble with traditional sourcing practices is that they are riddled with complex and labor-intensive process. When companies cross over to an e-sourcing approach all these processes can be streamlined, improving the sourcing cycle and negotiations, while providing enhanced access to supplier intelligence. Simply put, using an e-sourcing tool provides:

Easy access to a greater variety of vendors
A baseline for the "going rate" for products and services
An apples-to-apples comparison of vendor offerings and capabilities
A decision-support tool for more informed purchases
As you probably know, to achieve profitability and remain competitive, companies are faced with increased pressure to perform at optimal efficiency. E-sourcing creates that significant advantage needed, especially for companies who have consistent, challenging competitive threats. Aberdeen states that in hyper-competitive markets such as high tech, companies will find themselves with reduced opportunity to compete, and will have less pricing flexibility if they come to market too late. It is imperative that companies "align themselves with products and supply partners who will make them more successful in bringing new products to market more quickly and at a lower price than ever before." And this would be a difficult task if it weren't for the advent of the online sourcing solutions.
Can one supplier really make a difference in a company's success? Probably not. But a series of bad suppliers can. With the size and multi-division, most companies don't even know if they use bad suppliers more than once. Just imagine, if you use those same suppliers quarter after quarter or year after year, the results can be devastating. Many successful companies have already taken advantage of these web-based tools. According to Aberdeen, organizations using web-based sourcing technologies have been able to do the following:


Identify and negotiate with a broad range of qualified suppliers
Reduce process costs for sourcing engagements
Shorten sourcing cycles by 25% to 30%
Reduce time-to-market cycles by 10% to 15%
Negotiate an average of 5% to 20% unit price reductions
Extend strategic sourcing to a wider range of products and services
Enhance collaboration and knowledge sharing
This article is brought to you by eWork Markets, an excellent online sourcing solution for companies and individuals to procure consulting services. Take advantage of what many other companies already know about strategic e-sourcing - go to www.eworkmarkets.com and post your consulting project today.

Consultant Myths and Truths

Ever been in a meeting and somebody said "let's just get a consultant in here to help us." Well bringing in a consultant might be a good idea, but then again it might not.

Statistics show that only 4% of buyers of consulting services can claim they are very satisfied with the results of the consulting engagement. That number is staggering when you consider that hundreds of billions of dollars are spent on consultants each year.

Buyers of consulting services have the power to help their consultants succeed. Matter of fact - the buyer is REALLY the key to a consultant's success!

The most common projects to fail are what I like to call the "knee jerk project." These are projects where clients are quick to jump and say "I want this fixed!" without fully understanding what needs to be fixed. Prior to hiring a consultant, the company should ask questions like is it really a problem, what specifically is the problem, can the problem really be fixed, what are some scenarios of potential solutions, and what does the end product/project look like? In other words, what do you want the consultant to accomplish?

Additionally, even when the project is well thought through, consultants aren't magicians who wave their wand and suddenly make all the bad things in a company go away. If there are internal barriers that would prevent a problem from being fixed, no consultant can fix it, no matter how much experience they have or how much they charge you.

Another project likely to end in failure is the "band aid project." Many companies are willing to spend a small amount of money on a consultant who can really only provide a patch, rather than paying more money for one who is tasked with providing a long term, sustainable resolution.

For example, don't pay a company to set up a lead management software program unless you are going to pay them to make that software communicate/exchange data with other pertinent company software programs and business practices. Short cuts may provide immediate gratification but their benefits are short lived. If you can't afford to do it right, wait until you can.

Finally, let your consultant do what they do best - their job. If you are constantly pointing out "this won't work" or "we tried that" then their ideas won't be fresh. First let them present the ideas then suggest improvements. They won't always be right on the money, but if you stifle ideas then there is no point in hiring them. Let them do the work and don't second-guess every step of the way. Be open-minded and more often than not they will slip in an idea you never considered.

Before you hire a consultant you need to make sure the objectives are realistic and achievable, that you both agree to a Statement-of-Work with set expectations and a communication vehicle for milestone tracking, and that all internal barriers are removed before any of the work begins. Don't waste your money if you are going to set your consultants up for failure.

Article written by Emarket.com
http://www.eworkmarkets.com

Factors to Small Business Success

There are numerous factors that drive small business success. The problem is that most small businesses do not have the time, knowledge or capital to manage the factors effectively.

Many small business owners also fall into the trap of thinking they know it all or whatever the issues are they can get through them. Many time until a small business owner is faced with serious problems that could cripple their business then and only then do they seek help to solve problems and stabilize their business in order to prepare it for the next stage of growth.

Small Business Factors is a non-profit group of experienced business people with a diverse skill set in many industries and business disciplines. Our resource act as advisors to local small business owners for the purposes of helping them solve everyday problems and to grow their businesses effectively.

A wise man named Solomon once said "a wise man seeks the counsel of many with experience". Founded on this principle, Small Business Factors mision is to provide small business owners with wise counsel from many with experience.

This site provides information about many of the challenges and business factors that small business owners face on a day to day basis. Our counsel is aimed at providing practical answers to small business challenges at the lowest possible cost. Our network of experienced business people spands from across the globe to people living in the very town your business is located.

Please look through our listing of the issues we've identified as the most common challenges to small businesses and see if any of these relate to your current needs.

The first step to gaining the benefits of our organization is to arrange a free assessment of needs so our advisors can get to work finding you solutions to your most perplexing challenges.

To start this process simply email Joseph Rounds, Director of Member Services, to schedule one of our advisors to visit with you to discuss your needs. Joseph Rounds email is JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

Small Business Funding

It all starts with a great idea, an idea that has probably been in your mind for a long time. You have the product sorted out, how you are going to deliver your service, where you are going to set up your office and how you are going to market your new business. But the stumbling block always seems to be the finance to get you going.

Finding the finance to get a small business off the ground is a major issue for any potential small business. Some new businesses lend themselves to very little start up capital because the main selling point is the owner’s skills and knowledge, for example consultants, web designers, PR specialists. Businesses which require stock holding, plant and equipment and other investment, face the real challenge of getting their start up finance together.

So what sources can you tap into to ensure your business gets off to a solid start?

Your Savings

The first port of call! If you have been in employment for some time then before going it alone you should hopefully have some spare cash behind you. Whether this be in the form of cash in a savings account or shares and unit trusts, this is a good start to your fund raising exercise.

You can be more focused in saving cash if you have had the goal of setting up your own business for awhile. Knowing you need to save to get your business off the ground will make sure you don’t spend your future nest egg on unnecessary items. Whilst a new Plasma TV or the latest DVD Recorder may seem to be an essential purchase, knowing that you have a business to set up in the future will be sufficient a deterrent to keep the cheque book firmly locked away!

Keep Your Job

Some business owners are lucky enough that during the early days of the business they can keep the day job while working on the business during the evenings and weekends. This has two benefits. Firstly, they are still earning thereby allowing more time to build up a cash reserve. Secondly, it’s an opportunity to test out the business to make sure there is a market.

Make sure that you can realistically keep both balls in the air at the same time otherwise you will end up doing justice to neither your job or your new business. The support of your family is also essential if you are to follow this strategy. They have to accept that what used to be ‘family time’ may have to take a back seat until you decide to concentrate on the business full time.

Family and Friends

These can be a useful source of finance for any start up. If you have harboured ambitions to run your business for some time, then many of your family and friends are already likely to know about your idea. You should therefore have an indication who is for it and who is against it.

If you haven’t shared your secret desire then it’s time to be slightly devious! If you are in the early planning stages start drip feeding your ideas to key people whom you think are likely to support you. Tell them your ideas, share your ambitions and goals and on a regular basis update them with your progress. The plan is to get them sold on you and your future business at an early stage.

Once you get to the point where you are ready to start asking for contributions hold an Investor Evening. Prepare a presentation outlining your plans, the business, the market etc. Show the potential investors what their return will be in recognition for supporting you.

Invite as many people as you can and promise an interesting and fun evening, Be bold at the very start; tell them exactly why they are there, so there are no misunderstandings. After you have done your presentation gather all the names of the people who may want more information or even a one-to-one with you.

Whilst this group are people who know you and so are more likely to trust you, don’t forget that you are developing a very different relationship which can quickly turn sour. Be prepared for rocky times!

Bank Line of Credit or Loan

Now you’re getting into the serious stuff! Getting support from a Bank for a new business is tough, as many entrepreneurs will testify. One sneaky way is to apply for an unsecured loan while you are still in employment. If you have planned things right you will know when you are starting up, so a few months before you pack your job in, apply for a loan based on your salary. However, make sure that you can comfortably meet the repayments. There is no grace period; you will be expected to pay back immediately, so your business will have to start earning very quickly.

The alternative is a business line of credit facility. There is no fixed repayment date, although they will be for periods from 6 to 12 months, and all you have to do is ensure that you keep within the overdraft limit. You will have to write a business plan to present to the Bank which outlines your idea and the business.

Mortgage or Equity Release

With the way house prices have been increasing over the last few years, the vast majority of people now have substantial equity in their homes. The cheaper alternative to a Bank overdraft or loan is a mortgage. The interest rate is lower and, as the repayments are spread over a longer period, the monthly repayment is less (although you will end up paying more interest in the long run).

The disadvantage of raising cash this way is that your home is potentially at risk. If meeting the monthly repayments is dependent on what the business can generate then a slow start could cause cash problems. So be very sure you can meet the repayments even during a lean period.

Credit Cards

If you haven’t got any savings, can’t get support from family or friends, or a Bank loan or mortgage, then there are your credit cards! However, whilst it’s easy to draw down on your card, be wary! Credit cards are the most expensive form of debt.

They are ideal because all you may have to do is pay the minimum amount but card debt, as most people have found out, can be a long term burden. But, if you need a cash lump sum to kick start the business and you know you can pay it off within a few months, then it’s an alternative source of finance worth considering, if somewhat unorthodox!

Business Grants

Business grants are available for specific industries, sectors and reasons. Grant providers will usually only give a portion of your requirement, so they cannot be used to totally finance a start up. However, they can be useful in filling a funding gap.

Business Angels

A popular way to fund a business are Business Angels. These are people, usually retired or successful business people in their own right, who are looking for opportunities to invest in new businesses.

In exchange for an investment they will typically look for a shareholding in the business and some hands-on involvement. They will have a vast business experience and so are useful people to have on board. However, you will have to accept an element of loss of control but that needs to be balanced against your desire for funding.

Getting finance for your new business can be a challenge but there are a number of avenues to explore and so with dedication and focus you could soon be on your way to launching your own small business.

Small Business Regulatory Compliance

Small businesses are over regulated which drives cost up. However, unless a small business leanrs to comply with all the state and federal regulations fines for non compliance can be significant and penalties for late filing of appropriate taxes can also be a drain on profitability.

Small Business Factors as created a matrix of regulatory compliance issues for most small businesses. It is from this matrix that we can quickly and easily assess your current status and make recommendations for effective solutions to keep your business in compliance.

For a free assessment please contact Joseph Rounds, Director of Member Services at JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

Small Business Marketing

Marketing can be an expensive task, especially if it doesn't produce the desired results.

There are numerous methods for effective marketing of small business offerings. From traditional direct mail, advertising and networking to web based marketing initiatives, the critical question is which is most effective for my business.

There are several factors to consider when it comes to makreting.

What is your business, product or service brand?
What is the profile of likely customers?
What need does your product or service fill?
What is the competitive difference of your product or service over competition?
What is the best and least expensive way to reach potential customers?
Are your salespeople fully trained on all these issues?
What collateral materials are needed to effectively communicate your product or service?

The anwsers to these and many more questions are the foundation to designing, impelementing, executing and forever improving an effective marketing effort that drives sales and profitability.

For a free assessment of the best marketing initiatives for your business email Joseph Rounds at JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws and we'll arrange a free personal counseling session with one of our experienced advisors.

Small Business Planning

Whether you are starting or growing a small business, a sound business plan is your roadmap to success. Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs rely on their memory and never actually commit their ideas to paper. Even if they do consider writing a business plan, they are often overwhelmed or confused by the planning process and never understand the value of this critical document. As a result, many small business dreams fail or fall short of their actual potential.

Having a written business plan is not the anwser. Using it to communicate and establish measureable actions for your busienss is how to use a business plan effectively. Writing a business plan will force you to objectively develop and evaluate your tactical and strategic plans. It will also help you identify the opportunities and risks encountered as a result of your decisions. You will better understand the environment in which you operate, the strengths and weaknesses of your business, the competition, and the validity of your assumptions. Most importantly, you will understand who your customers are and how you can meet or exceed their needs and expectations.

While the Internet provides a wealth of resources, finding relevant, accurate, and current information to support your strategies and financial projections can prove to be a frustrating and time consuming challenge. If you decide you need a business plan our advisors can help you sort through the issues that drive you plan and ultimately provide you with the resources to help in the implementation as well.

For a free assessment of the issues and value of developing a formal busienss plan please email Joseph Rounds, Member Services Director at jrounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

Small Business Technology

There isn't enough time in a month for the small business owner to search, research and analyze the best technology solutions for their business. Nor is their enough room on this page to define all the issues, solutions and cost comparisions. Technology can drive business productivity and sales but it can also be so expensive that the solutions are out of reach from most small businesses.

Small Business Factors has already done the research and analysis for numerous technology needs of small businesses. Rather than spend valuable time looking for anwsers or interviewing multiple vendors, let us find your anwsers once we understand your needs.

A sample of what we've found includes:

Fully functional web sites for $120 a year including hosting!
Custom designed databases integrated with accounting packages for as little as $750 a year!
Marketing campaigns integarted with your web site for as little as $100 a month
Equipment purchasing through Group Purchasing Organizations for as much as 60% less than you'd pay locally
Wireless Mobile Solutions for your sales force
Mobile marketing solutions, get ahead of the emerging trend in mobile marketing

We've discovered hundreds of solutions for a variety of technology chellenges that small business face. For a free assessment of your needs and our findings email Joseph Rounds, Membership Director, at JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

Small Business Health Care Coverage

Healthcare cost are rising rapidly. Many small businesses would like to provide their employees benefits but cannot find affordable coverage without having significant exclusions or reduced benefits.

Having quality employee benefits is a competitive differential for attracting and hiring the best candidates for your business. The challenge is how can you provide these benefits without paying the highest cost since your not a Fortune 500 company with thousands of employees. The anwser is "group purchasing organizations".

Today small businesses can obtain Fortune 500 employee benefits for their employees at very competitive cost. From medical coverage, disability, life insurance, 401k, IRA's to employee savings plans, all is now available to the small business owner as if it were a Fortune 500 company with thousands of employees.

Small Business Factors has studied the market and found unqiue "Group Purchasing Organizations" that will even handle your payroll and keep you in compliance with state and federal payroll taxes. Most of these GPO's charge a small monthly fee per employee which is much less expensive then having an in house resource or having your accountant do the work never less taking your important time to administer employee payroll and benefits.

To learn more about GPO's and how your company could gain the benefits of using their services contact Joseph Rounds at JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

Hiring the right people

Selection is the process of choosing individuals with the right qualifications to fill jobs. Without qualified employees, the organization’s success suffers. According to a recent MetLife Employee Benefits Trend Study released in January, 74% of businesses are expecting competition for talent to escalate over the next year. With recruiting emerging as one of the top concerns for employers, no one can afford to make bad hires. A 2004 Gartner report found that organizations are more focused on applicant tracking and automated requisitioning. For effective hiring to be possible it must include well-oiled and executed practices, strategies, and techniques.

Most people would agree that hiring a well-qualified candidate makes a tremendous difference to the organization’s effectiveness and to the bottom line. Imagine for a minute that your company had a regular practice of settling for new hires with average job skills and abilities. Now imagine that you instead had a regular practice of hiring the best-qualified candidates who would perform at 20-40% above average in job skills and abilities. That’s hiring well and adding to the performance of the company.”

Despite the obvious need and importance of hiring the best from available talent the first time, the process still has its challenges. The five most common and costly mistakes we see are:

not having well-defined selection criteria.
not preparing a question strategy mapping out the right questions.
the absence of an interview structure that allows for multiple points of view and well-defined roles and responsibilities during the interview.
lack of a clearly defined evaluation and review process that allows you to compare “apples to apples.”
settling for less than the most qualified candidate for the position.
The fact is that today’s managers and supervisors are asked to lead the interviewing and selection processes when they are not trained and equipped to. They don’t use a structured process, they haven’t been trained in interview and selection skills and strategies, and they may use team members who also have not been trained; or they try to go it alone. The odds are that inconsistent success with hiring will continue.

Ownership of talent management and sound hiring practices begins with top management who builds a culture of “shared accountability” among managers and supervisors. HR plays a role in making sure that managers clearly understand the role they are expected to play. The components of a sound hiring process might look something like this:

A process for defining what you are looking for – typically a position description, job competencies, and questioning strategies.
A plan for the interview process – hiring strategy, sourcing, resume screening, the interview team, and identification of the great reasons to work here.
Attention to the steps in conducting the interview – establishing an appropriate climate, conducting the interview, and responding to challenging interviewee questions.
A process for making the selection – decision- making guidelines, evaluating the candidates, and communicating with candidates.
The goal, through the right kind of training, is to develop a hiring team of managers and leaders that will establish an efficient process that reduces the time it takes to interview and select a qualified candidate. By hiring the right candidates, managers and team leaders will be able to maximize productivity and increase retention by ensuring that those candidates have the talent for the job. Good managers and leaders can ensure cohesion and support for new hires by involving team members in the process.

Small Business Factors has tools for small business that can help you get insights into potential candidates so you can make the right choice the first time.

For a free assessment please contact Joseph Rounds, Director of Member Services at JRounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws

7 Small Business Challenges

Running a small business is a challenging task with limited resources. Many small business struggle with common problems which include:

1. Inability to grow and stay in business.

The first goal is to stay in business and prosper. The challenge is "how" and "what" is the best method to grow and prosper. There are many business factors that have to be constantly managed in order for any business to grow and prosper effectively. These include:

Having the right amount of capital
Having great service or a unique product
Hiring and managing the right people
Managing the cost
Sales & Marketing Strategies that deliver consistent results
Using technology to your business advantage
Taking care of your customers
Planning for growth

2. Wallet is not big enough.

You gather all the resources you can to start a business you withdrew all your life savings, borrowed money from your parents, even mixed out your credit cards. When you open for business, alas, you find that customers and sales can be pretty elusive. You wait, and wait, and wait, but cash is running out. Without money coming in, you decide to cut your losses and close down the business.

Solution: Get an outside objective view as to whether your assumptions and related projections are realistic. Is the market for your product/service being reached? If so what is the best way to get a response? How does your product/service solve a clients problems? How does your product/service stake up against competition? Are there other sources of capital you have not tapped? Small Business factors can provide you with the proper analysis and suggestions for acquiring new capital or insuring that the capital you have will provide enough fuel for you to become self sustaining.

3. Product or service isn't "delighting your customers"

Your success depends on whether you provide products or services with value to your customers. Many small business entrepreneurs fail to effectively communicate to their customers the benefits of their products or services. This is particularly true of many small business owners who have little if any experience in marketing or managing for growth.

Solutions: The acceptance of your products will depend on how well you are able to represent your business in the minds of your customers. If you know that you offer good quality products or services with value, the next step should be to get that information across your target market. Generate customer interest in the product through effective advertising and promotions. Constantly assessing customer satisfaction is critical to long term success. There are many inexpensive ways to monitor customer satisfaction and Small Business Factors can provide you with ways and tools to do so at the least amount of cost.

4. Marketing and advertising fails to elicit response

You must develop effective strategies to market your business. But is your marketing plan working, or are they just a waste of time and resources?

Many business owners, in an attempt to save on costs, develop their own marketing campaigns only to fail in their intended purpose of bringing in more business or achieving "top-of-mind-awareness" in the mind of the customer. They spend time and resources on wrong advertising medium.

Solutions: To achieve your marketing and advertising goals, you need to have an effective message, market position, and adequate funding. An advertising message that is "believable and relevant" is the key to promotional success. When you have the right thing to say in your promotion, you will drive sales. And when the right message is also unique, it becomes even more effective. The best marketing usually comes from existing customers

5. Failure to adapt to changing market conditions

Changing market conditions may include downturn or upswings in the economy, heightened competition, or even common business risks such as Web site business interruption or calamities. Change is inevitable and knowing how to adjust quickly is the key to survival.

Solutions: Stay abreast of the rapidly changing business environment by reviewing your company’s business strategy. If you determine that your current strategy will not work, overhaul your business focus, if necessary. It is important that you study your customers thoroughly so you can track customer preferences and buying trends. This will help release your company from the economic ups and downs. Outsourcing this kind of regular analysis can be done without a lot of expense.

6. Poor management

Poor management ranks high among the reasons for the failure of many small businesses. It may cover anything from the inability to manage people, security, financial aspects, marketing or customer relation aspects of a business.

Poor credit management is another common source of the downfall of many businesses. The failure to handle credit well is often the precursor of many cash flow problems.

Solutions: Starting a business has numerous risk. Whether you've already got a business running or just starting one reducing the critical risk can mean the difference between success and failure. Small Business Factors can provide you with an analysis of the risk and how to reduce those that impact you most.

7. Lack of know-how and regulatory compliance

Many small businesses perish because the entrepreneur simply lacks the know-how in a particular aspect of business. This is particularly true for small business owners who must learn how to wear many hats. You may be good in creating your crafts, but you may need help in setting up your accounting system or distributing your products. Or you may have an idea where to find additional financing, but lacks the skills to network in the mainstream capital sources.

Regulatory compliance is another black hole that has forced many small businesses into closure. From simply issues such as payroll taxes, federal taxes, environmental compliance to other state and federal regulations many business owners are not even aware they are out of compliance until it is too late.

Solutions: Get a board of advisors, or consult a mentor. You may not need a full complement of a formal board of directors, but your business will benefit from the advice of 2-3 people who can provide you with the knowledge in areas that you need help.

Or you can hire on a retainer basis some professionals in your area, such as a small business advisors or a business consultant. You can also seek the help of business counselors such as the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), who can provide you with experienced counselors in your field.

Small Business Factors is a non-profit organization aimed at assisting small business owners with solving these and other common problems. Our resource pool consist of experienced business owners and executives from large corporation who have retired to help the small business owner. It is safe to say that our group has made virtually all the mistakes a business can make and our goal is to help others avoid the same mistakes by sharing lessons learned and the solutions for common problems.

Contact us for a free assessment of how we can help your business succeed. email Joseph Rounds at jrounds@smallbusinessfactors.ws