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Helping business owners grow their companies and transition with confidence, added value and complete control.
Tag Archives: small business advice
A Goal isn’t a Finish Line
I was going over some productivity numbers with a long term client. “Remember when our goal for this was 2000 man hours?” he said. “Now we are below 1200, and closing in on 1100, and with greater volume!” Everywhere we … Continue Reading
No! No! Bad employee! No!
A very successful plaintiff’s attorney once told me that there were two keys to getting a settlement in a class action product liability suit. The first was to find the smoking gun. Somewhere, an employee had told someone not to … Continue Reading
Posted in Leadership, Managing Employees
Tagged business ownership, employees, management, small business, small business advice
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Accountability vs. Guilt
While discussing oil rig disaster in the Golf Of Mexico the other day a friend exclaimed “Someone needs to go to jail for this!” While I understand his anger about the massive economic and environmental damage involved, his comment illustrates … Continue Reading
Ready…Set…Wait? Leading Indicators and small business
In the last few weeks I’ve talked to a score of small business owners who say that things are improving for their companies. Several have been involved in trade shows that had record attendance. A few manufacturers are seeing a … Continue Reading
Penny wise
A client who provides Information Technology services to small and midi-sized clients was expressing frustration the other day. His company has a relationship with a business to support their employees’ technology needs. They were constantly delayed, however, by the network … Continue Reading
Do you understand where this is going? Four
I ran into a friend in the gym the other day. he is the President of a tech company providing IT services to the government. What they do is highly skilled and highly sensitive.I asked him how his business was … Continue Reading
Do you understand where this is going? Three
We worked on an interesting hypothesis with a client the other day. He has 100 employees (or close enough to make the math easy.) The company pays for 75% of each employee’s health insurance. Additional coverage for the family is at … Continue Reading
Do you understand where this is going? Two
Between 1997 and 2009 I had one client audited by the Department of Labor for Wage and Hour compliance. In the last 90 days I’ve had two. The first had an auditor who brought along a trainee. The second brought … Continue Reading
Do you understand where this is going? One
One of my TAB Board meetings has an insurance broker who followed the reform debate closely. The discussion was illuminating. It is one of many that I’ve had in the last three months, and it’s all beginning to come together. … Continue Reading
The 7 Sins of Entrepreneurs on TV
My interview with Eyewitness News in San Antonio about “The 7 Sins of Entrepreneurs” is up on You Tube. Take a look. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8knGXIRXUE
Posted in John's Opinions
Tagged business ownership, leadership, management, small business, small business advice
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In January of 2000 I was asked what I thought the first big change would be in the new century. I said (and it’s been documented elsewhere) that we would have a national health care plan by 2011. It wasn’t … Continue Reading
They bite the hand that feeds them
On Friday a local columnist in the San Antonio Express News, Rhonda Templeton, wrote about a recent survey of employees lying on the job. I quote: ” Bending the truth is a long time tradition in U.S. workplaces- as the … Continue Reading