By Brandy L. Frederickson-Raney
Developing a business can be a fairly challenging journey as well as complicated as your businesses demands increase. Having a well devised business plan is always a necessary starting point; however, once you have developed your business plan where do you go from there? Many business owners have solicited the help of a knowledgeable and experienced business coach. Gaining an external perspective can prove to be essential in your businesses growth in today's every changing market.
Business coaching is the practice of providing advice and support to an individual or business to help them recognize ways to improve the effectiveness of their business. Business coaching is for the inexperienced entrepreneur as well as the established company with an extensive history. It has been reported that over 40% of Fortune 500 companies use business coaching. Your business coach can observe costly ineffective patterns and help develop and establish new strategies necessary to enable your business to grow.
As reported by the International Coach Federation, of the 210 clients whom were receiving business coaching 70% reported their investment in business coaching as "very valuable", 28.5% said their investment was "valuable" and 1.5% said their investment in a coach had "not been valuable." In summary, an astonishing 98.5% of coaching clients reported their investment in a coach as "well worth the money."
The benefits of using business coaching often outweigh the financial cost. Business coaching is similar to consulting or counseling; however, coaching is about creating a mutual beneficial alliance. Business coaches looks at your business as a whole; including your businesses past, present and future to better manage your professional and personal life. Coaching can improve the overall quality and life of your business, by streamlining your initial business plan.
Most business owners seek the advice of a business coach for help on time management as well as career guidance and business strategies. To a lesser extent however, still significant, they seek coaching on relationships, family, wellness as well as spirituality. Coaching is a discovery of your company's inefficiencies. The true process of coaching requires getting at the source of your businesses ineffectiveness. If your company is stalling there is a reason. You have to be accepting of your company's inefficiencies while seeking your coach's advice. Your coach will be able to devise a plan to overcome your inefficiencies; thus paving the road to a profitable business future
In this increasingly challenging market, having a business coach can prove to be a worthwhile investment. The statistics on business coaching reveal that business owners who do seek the expertise of a qualified business coach do improve and enhance their chances of success. By partnering with a business coach, you can gain the opportunity to receive structured guidance and sound advice you may not have considered previously.
Virtual Assist Managers is owned and operated by Brandy Frederickson-Raney. I am a 15-year veteran in the administrative field. My experience includes an administrative support roll for medical and dental professionals. I have acquired experience over the years in the administrative field as a Practice Manager and Office Coordinator, in accounts payable and accounts receivable, medical billing as well as dental and medical terminology. I also am a Certified Medical Transcriptionist and have been employed as a government contract Transcriptionist.
I have been involved in all phases of the dental and medical practice experience. This experience also includes recruitment of employees, transitioning of doctors, staff management, writing and implementing practice policies, marketing, billing, recall coordination, and computer management.
I currently reside in Georgia with my husband and two children. We are a family in the US Army and enjoy being transferred to new and exciting areas. In my spare time, I thrive on spending time with my children, connecting with old friends, and enjoying the family experience.
I am delighted you have decided to visit Virtual Assist Managers.
100% Satisfaction Guaranteed! We are committed to excellence. The success of Virtual Assist Managers is based on the satisfaction of our clients.
Showing posts with label Business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Business. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
10 Ways to Keep Talent Through Tough Times
By Rick Weaver
Even though there are plenty of people looking for jobs, finding skilled, talented workers is harder than ever before. Therefore it is essential you retain your current talent.
Here are ten easy, practical ways you can hold on to those individuals you do not want to lose.
Even though there are plenty of people looking for jobs, finding skilled, talented workers is harder than ever before. Therefore it is essential you retain your current talent.
Here are ten easy, practical ways you can hold on to those individuals you do not want to lose.
- Give top performers opportunities to develop. Providing additional training and responsibilities helps you see what they can do.
- Reward your top performers to retain them. Rewards should be consistent with the value they provide. However do not fall into the trap that rewards must be cash or merchandise. There are hundreds of creative ways to reward talent without spending a dime.
- Keep your door open. Be accessible to your people when they want to talk.
- Provide mentors. Veteran employees can help young talent learn the culture.
- Cross-train top performers so that you can move them around where needed. Younger employees appreciate this as it gives them broadened expertise.
- Show you value talent by treating employees fairly.
- Find ways to help your top performers understand themselves. This will help them manage change better.
- Develop your own standards for top performance. Don't copy someone else's unless mediocrity is OK. Make sure your talent understands the standards and are equipped to achieve the goal.
- How many top performers are enough? Mine for talent all the time, not just when talent leaves or changes jobs.
- Maintain relationships even when people move on. Some talented people return quickly when they find out they do like the new employer. Welcome them back.
Monday, January 12, 2009
7 Success Strategies to Grow Your Business Fast
By Diane Estrada
What goes up must come down as Newton so masterfully discovered. Yes, an economic valley does take some maneuvering to skillfully navigate, but by keeping your head while others are losing theirs, and following these 7 Success Strategies, you can thrive during these economic times, and end up growing your business fast as well.
Be determined to succeed
The attitude you hold about yourself and what you are capable of makes up the fundamental obstacle keeping you from your business success no matter how the economy is doing. It's hard to imagine, but thought is the only thing that stands in our way of attaining what we want in life. Success is an inside job. Focus on your growth and watch as your self-confidence soars. Competency builds confidence. It builds a virtual circle feeding itself, expanding bigger and bigger. Think bigger. Be bigger.
Stop micromanaging and start outsourcing
A business owner who tries to manage everything creates a bottleneck and stifles any opportunity for growth. You would be surprised at the number of activities that can be outsourced to free you up for the tasks you enjoy that will actually help you make money and grow your business easily. Since these people and services are sourced "on demand" you end of paying only for what you need when you need it. Areas to evaluate are office administration, office management, lead generation, marketing support, web site development and maintenance, product fulfillment, event management, and customer service functions. Do what you do best and delegate the rest!
Develop strategic alliances and joint ventures
Seek out ways to collaborate with others in your industry - even your competitors! You know, 1+1 = 5.
The key benefits to this approach include:
1) Gaining economies of scale in marketing, or production.
2) Sharing and transferring of manufacturing and technical expertise.
3) Access to previously blocked markets.
4) Defeating mutual rivals.
Strategic alliances are one of the most powerful ways to quickly and inexpensively grow your business. In one of my businesses, I went from 200 visitors a month on my web site to over 500,000, with one strategic alliance - and it didn't cost me a dime!
Focus on growth strategies
You've all heard the comment, "You have to spend money to make money." Well this IS the case. Spend more on marketing, spend more on advertising, give more bonuses, and cut back where you are not profitable. An important element of your growth strategy is to constantly reinvent yourself; offer creative pricing and inexpensive luxuries, find out what your customers have re-prioritized as most important to them and figure out how your products and services can best be re-positioned to respond to their concerns. As counter-intuitive as it seems, add new products or expand your product offerings if that is what is needed. To cut back and close off is to succumb to a declining economy and business.
Stop selling products and services and build relationships instead
Strong relationships can help increase cash flow, close deals and promote your business more effectively. Focus on giving first, receiving second. This approach demands an investment of time, energy and genuine interest. Undoubtedly, the way to turn contacts into contracts is to establish a powerful network that utilizes your carefully cultured relationships to gain referrals.
Leverage the Internet
There is no other more powerful medium to gain exposure and add to your growth in cost effective ways than to expand your marketing presence to the Internet; for lead generation, branding, additional revenue streams and promotion. Internet marketing is relatively inexpensive when compared to the ratio of cost against the reach of a target market, often for a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising budgets. Moreover, internet marketing has the advantage of measuring statistics easily, quickly and inexpensively. There are a variety of methods you can use to trace, measure and test different messages or offerings immediately that are most effective to your audience. Such measurements cannot be achieved through other forms of advertising and promotion.
Develop mastery in seeing strengths
Focus on the best of your and your team's successes, talents, strengths and skills. Many business owners enjoy learning how to spot their skills and strengths, yet few can skillfully see the best in others. Take this comment for example:
"Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."
MGM Executive, reacting to Fred Astaire's screen test, 1928.
To see the best in others does require you to see the best in you first. Want more success? Get to know your greatest resources better. Shift your attention to what is going well, what you see as successful. Talk about your wins freely and often. You'll be amazed at how focusing on the positive and the best creates a trust and openness that allows problems to surface sooner, as employees are not afraid of being seen only for their weaknesses.
It is no surprise that my opening and closing Success Strategies to grow your business fast, even in this down economy, have to do with attitude, focus, and point of view. You are the designer of your destiny. Start now in leading your life, your company, your self from an attitude of greatness, gratitude and appreciation of the best that surrounds you.
Diane Estrada, the Business Ballerina, is a successful business executive and entrepreneur. She shares tips and lessons learned from years as a ballerina to teach women entrepreneurs how to build million dollar businesses with grace and ease. To learn more about her programs and sign up for more FREE tips like these, visit her website at http://www.businessballerina.com
What goes up must come down as Newton so masterfully discovered. Yes, an economic valley does take some maneuvering to skillfully navigate, but by keeping your head while others are losing theirs, and following these 7 Success Strategies, you can thrive during these economic times, and end up growing your business fast as well.
Be determined to succeed
The attitude you hold about yourself and what you are capable of makes up the fundamental obstacle keeping you from your business success no matter how the economy is doing. It's hard to imagine, but thought is the only thing that stands in our way of attaining what we want in life. Success is an inside job. Focus on your growth and watch as your self-confidence soars. Competency builds confidence. It builds a virtual circle feeding itself, expanding bigger and bigger. Think bigger. Be bigger.
Stop micromanaging and start outsourcing
A business owner who tries to manage everything creates a bottleneck and stifles any opportunity for growth. You would be surprised at the number of activities that can be outsourced to free you up for the tasks you enjoy that will actually help you make money and grow your business easily. Since these people and services are sourced "on demand" you end of paying only for what you need when you need it. Areas to evaluate are office administration, office management, lead generation, marketing support, web site development and maintenance, product fulfillment, event management, and customer service functions. Do what you do best and delegate the rest!
Develop strategic alliances and joint ventures
Seek out ways to collaborate with others in your industry - even your competitors! You know, 1+1 = 5.
The key benefits to this approach include:
1) Gaining economies of scale in marketing, or production.
2) Sharing and transferring of manufacturing and technical expertise.
3) Access to previously blocked markets.
4) Defeating mutual rivals.
Strategic alliances are one of the most powerful ways to quickly and inexpensively grow your business. In one of my businesses, I went from 200 visitors a month on my web site to over 500,000, with one strategic alliance - and it didn't cost me a dime!
Focus on growth strategies
You've all heard the comment, "You have to spend money to make money." Well this IS the case. Spend more on marketing, spend more on advertising, give more bonuses, and cut back where you are not profitable. An important element of your growth strategy is to constantly reinvent yourself; offer creative pricing and inexpensive luxuries, find out what your customers have re-prioritized as most important to them and figure out how your products and services can best be re-positioned to respond to their concerns. As counter-intuitive as it seems, add new products or expand your product offerings if that is what is needed. To cut back and close off is to succumb to a declining economy and business.
Stop selling products and services and build relationships instead
Strong relationships can help increase cash flow, close deals and promote your business more effectively. Focus on giving first, receiving second. This approach demands an investment of time, energy and genuine interest. Undoubtedly, the way to turn contacts into contracts is to establish a powerful network that utilizes your carefully cultured relationships to gain referrals.
Leverage the Internet
There is no other more powerful medium to gain exposure and add to your growth in cost effective ways than to expand your marketing presence to the Internet; for lead generation, branding, additional revenue streams and promotion. Internet marketing is relatively inexpensive when compared to the ratio of cost against the reach of a target market, often for a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising budgets. Moreover, internet marketing has the advantage of measuring statistics easily, quickly and inexpensively. There are a variety of methods you can use to trace, measure and test different messages or offerings immediately that are most effective to your audience. Such measurements cannot be achieved through other forms of advertising and promotion.
Develop mastery in seeing strengths
Focus on the best of your and your team's successes, talents, strengths and skills. Many business owners enjoy learning how to spot their skills and strengths, yet few can skillfully see the best in others. Take this comment for example:
"Can't act. Can't sing. Balding. Can dance a little."
MGM Executive, reacting to Fred Astaire's screen test, 1928.
To see the best in others does require you to see the best in you first. Want more success? Get to know your greatest resources better. Shift your attention to what is going well, what you see as successful. Talk about your wins freely and often. You'll be amazed at how focusing on the positive and the best creates a trust and openness that allows problems to surface sooner, as employees are not afraid of being seen only for their weaknesses.
It is no surprise that my opening and closing Success Strategies to grow your business fast, even in this down economy, have to do with attitude, focus, and point of view. You are the designer of your destiny. Start now in leading your life, your company, your self from an attitude of greatness, gratitude and appreciation of the best that surrounds you.
Diane Estrada, the Business Ballerina, is a successful business executive and entrepreneur. She shares tips and lessons learned from years as a ballerina to teach women entrepreneurs how to build million dollar businesses with grace and ease. To learn more about her programs and sign up for more FREE tips like these, visit her website at http://www.businessballerina.com
Make 2009 the Best Year For Your Business - Ten Tragic Mistakes to Avoid
By Jennifer Selby Long
Welcome to 2009! How can I be so upbeat when I'm reporting on the topic of tragic mistakes? Because I know YOU can thrive this year, and your business right along with you. It's your choice - curl up into the fetal position or go for the gold.
Don't let the economic doom and gloom obscure your decision-making. January 2009's Money magazine cited an absolutely fascinating study demonstrating how we see patterns that simply aren't there when we feel out of control of our environments. Participants in the study were given two different headlines, one indicating that this year would be smooth sailing for the stock market, and the other indicating that the year ahead looked rocky.
Sure enough, when shown pages of utterly random dots, participants who had read the unsettling headline genuinely thought they saw patterns, while those who read the optimistic headline weren't fooled. They knew there were no patterns on those pages.
This translates into real life when we find ourselves searching, searching, searching for a clear pattern to explain what is happening, on the assumption that if we understand the pattern we can regain control. When we feel out of control, we make poor decisions.
That's why it's so essential to seek out not only data, but perspective, from a variety of sources. One of my favorite ways to ensure that I make informed decisions and recommendations is to gain a broader viewpoint through conversations (both in person and on line) with my peers.
One great source of these insights has been my membership in The Society for the Advancement of Consulting® (SAC®). SAC is an international association of consulting professionals who subscribe to an industry code of ethics and have provided evidence of significant consulting results among our clients.
We recently developed a Top Ten list of the best and worst practices in current economic conditions, based on the observations of our global membership and the tens of thousands of clients we serve. These are the ten tragic mistakes to avoid:
1. Panicking as leaders, and allowing employees to witness dissension, indecision, and vacillation.
2. Withdrawal and downsizing so severe that the probability of being positioned strongly when the upturn arrives is remote.
3. Sacrificing productivity of remaining workers through rolling and seemingly arbitrary layoffs.
4. Failure to spread sacrifice, and a perception that executives are not sharing the burden.
5. Poor communication of short and longer term plans to the workforce.
6. Failure to manage public relations, media speculation, and reporting.
7. Follow-the-leader mentality instead of carving out a singular approach to the conditions as they affect the organization.
8. Failure to provide incentive for key talent which can't easily be replaced.
9. Cutbacks in the wrong areas, such as customer responsiveness.
10. Poor use of existing credit and financial reserves.
How are you doing in each of these areas?
If any of them look familiar to you, it's never too late to steer the boat in the right direction, but don't put it off. Recession rewards those who are nimble, not those who analyze and ponder until the opportunity passes them by. If your organization is drifting into these bad practices, you need to make changes right now.
For the Top Ten Best Practices list, please visit my blog at http://www.jenniferselbylong.com
My intent in sharing our top ten lists is not to scare you. There's the American media to do that. My intent is to help you make better-informed decisions. Your happiness and success mean a lot to me. If there's anything I can do to help you make 2009 your best year, please let me know.
Jennifer Selby Long, Founder and Principal of Selby Group, provides executive coaching and organizational development services. Jennifer's knack is helping clients navigate the leadership and organizational challenges triggered by change and growth. She knows firsthand that great plans often fail because companies don't take into account the human factors that come into play when implementing them. Visit Jennifer at: http://www.selbygroup.com
Welcome to 2009! How can I be so upbeat when I'm reporting on the topic of tragic mistakes? Because I know YOU can thrive this year, and your business right along with you. It's your choice - curl up into the fetal position or go for the gold.
Don't let the economic doom and gloom obscure your decision-making. January 2009's Money magazine cited an absolutely fascinating study demonstrating how we see patterns that simply aren't there when we feel out of control of our environments. Participants in the study were given two different headlines, one indicating that this year would be smooth sailing for the stock market, and the other indicating that the year ahead looked rocky.
Sure enough, when shown pages of utterly random dots, participants who had read the unsettling headline genuinely thought they saw patterns, while those who read the optimistic headline weren't fooled. They knew there were no patterns on those pages.
This translates into real life when we find ourselves searching, searching, searching for a clear pattern to explain what is happening, on the assumption that if we understand the pattern we can regain control. When we feel out of control, we make poor decisions.
That's why it's so essential to seek out not only data, but perspective, from a variety of sources. One of my favorite ways to ensure that I make informed decisions and recommendations is to gain a broader viewpoint through conversations (both in person and on line) with my peers.
One great source of these insights has been my membership in The Society for the Advancement of Consulting® (SAC®). SAC is an international association of consulting professionals who subscribe to an industry code of ethics and have provided evidence of significant consulting results among our clients.
We recently developed a Top Ten list of the best and worst practices in current economic conditions, based on the observations of our global membership and the tens of thousands of clients we serve. These are the ten tragic mistakes to avoid:
1. Panicking as leaders, and allowing employees to witness dissension, indecision, and vacillation.
2. Withdrawal and downsizing so severe that the probability of being positioned strongly when the upturn arrives is remote.
3. Sacrificing productivity of remaining workers through rolling and seemingly arbitrary layoffs.
4. Failure to spread sacrifice, and a perception that executives are not sharing the burden.
5. Poor communication of short and longer term plans to the workforce.
6. Failure to manage public relations, media speculation, and reporting.
7. Follow-the-leader mentality instead of carving out a singular approach to the conditions as they affect the organization.
8. Failure to provide incentive for key talent which can't easily be replaced.
9. Cutbacks in the wrong areas, such as customer responsiveness.
10. Poor use of existing credit and financial reserves.
How are you doing in each of these areas?
If any of them look familiar to you, it's never too late to steer the boat in the right direction, but don't put it off. Recession rewards those who are nimble, not those who analyze and ponder until the opportunity passes them by. If your organization is drifting into these bad practices, you need to make changes right now.
For the Top Ten Best Practices list, please visit my blog at http://www.jenniferselbylong.com
My intent in sharing our top ten lists is not to scare you. There's the American media to do that. My intent is to help you make better-informed decisions. Your happiness and success mean a lot to me. If there's anything I can do to help you make 2009 your best year, please let me know.
Jennifer Selby Long, Founder and Principal of Selby Group, provides executive coaching and organizational development services. Jennifer's knack is helping clients navigate the leadership and organizational challenges triggered by change and growth. She knows firsthand that great plans often fail because companies don't take into account the human factors that come into play when implementing them. Visit Jennifer at: http://www.selbygroup.com
Thursday, December 11, 2008
10 Key Business Management Skills to Build Trust With Your Employees
By Martin Haworth
Employees never feel comfortable under a boss who doesn't trust them or whom they don't trust. In the absence of mutual trust productivity falls as the employees get into politics, covering their backs and other counterproductive activity.
Not trusting each other will affect morale, which leads to a deterioration in customer satisfaction as the focus shifts from the business needs to internal wrangling.
So, let's look at some key qualities a manager must possess to develop trust.
1. Effective Communication
A manager must communicate well to build strong relationships with their people. In difficult times, employees might think no news as bad news, so a manager must keep in close touch. Lack of communication reduces trust; being open with information creates it.
2. Trust Others and They Will Trust You
A manager must develop an ability to trust others and create an environment of trust throughout the workplace. Really, it is better to assume the trustworthiness of employees to start with, rather than waiting for them to earn it. Team members find it much easier to trust their manager if they feel trusted themselves.
3. Honesty In Everything
Being open and honest is a key ingredient for generating trust. When you are open about your vision, actions and intentions, you will usually generate strong support. Both good and bad news should be openly shared, reducing gossip and internal politics. By admitting mistakes and not trying to cover them up, shows any manager to be a normal human being, just like everyone else!
4. Establish Strong Business Ethics
Managers should create a moral value system for the workplace. Teams which have a common ethics are healthier, resourceful, adaptable and productive because of the common root of their consistent value systems.
5. Keep Your Word
By making actions visible and fulfilling commitments, managers become trusted. Failing on promises is insincere and causes tensions. A manager needs to deliver actions visibly, to ensure everyone is aware that they can be depended upon.
6. Be Consistent
In the process of building trust, being consistent and predictable is very important. If the behavioral pattern changes from to week to week, trusting it becomes difficult. Your people get twitchy and uncomfortable when plans and expectations change too much.
7. Be Easily Available
Your team members need to able to get to you when they need to. Whilst there may be times when, for purposes of doing your own work, you need to remain undisturbed, there needs to be a balance. You are the manager and they will need you for specific involvement in day to day activities.
8. Maintaining Confidences
Employees who you manage must be able to confide in you sensitive information, express concern and share problems. People need to know that you can keep this confidential when they need you to. Sometimes these can be personal matters and in such cases this becomes even more important.
9. Language Matters
Watching your language is crucial. By avoiding using the "us" and "them" figures of speech and sticking with "we" wherever possible, your team will bond better with you. Your language should be clear and simple, because everyone interprets what is said differently - so you need to speak plainly for everyone to understand.
10. Creating Social Time
Having informal social interactions with the team enhances the trust building procedure. In context, social interactions are a big opportunity for success for any good manager.
To make a team which works together efficiently, requires the abundant presence of mutual trust. By consistently thinking of and working on trust building, any manager will reap long-lasting positive benefits.
(c) 2008 Martin Haworth is the author of Super Successful Manager, an easy to use, step-by-step weekly development program for managers of EVERY skill level. You can get a sample lesson for free at http://www.SuperSuccessfulManager.com
Employees never feel comfortable under a boss who doesn't trust them or whom they don't trust. In the absence of mutual trust productivity falls as the employees get into politics, covering their backs and other counterproductive activity.
Not trusting each other will affect morale, which leads to a deterioration in customer satisfaction as the focus shifts from the business needs to internal wrangling.
So, let's look at some key qualities a manager must possess to develop trust.
1. Effective Communication
A manager must communicate well to build strong relationships with their people. In difficult times, employees might think no news as bad news, so a manager must keep in close touch. Lack of communication reduces trust; being open with information creates it.
2. Trust Others and They Will Trust You
A manager must develop an ability to trust others and create an environment of trust throughout the workplace. Really, it is better to assume the trustworthiness of employees to start with, rather than waiting for them to earn it. Team members find it much easier to trust their manager if they feel trusted themselves.
3. Honesty In Everything
Being open and honest is a key ingredient for generating trust. When you are open about your vision, actions and intentions, you will usually generate strong support. Both good and bad news should be openly shared, reducing gossip and internal politics. By admitting mistakes and not trying to cover them up, shows any manager to be a normal human being, just like everyone else!
4. Establish Strong Business Ethics
Managers should create a moral value system for the workplace. Teams which have a common ethics are healthier, resourceful, adaptable and productive because of the common root of their consistent value systems.
5. Keep Your Word
By making actions visible and fulfilling commitments, managers become trusted. Failing on promises is insincere and causes tensions. A manager needs to deliver actions visibly, to ensure everyone is aware that they can be depended upon.
6. Be Consistent
In the process of building trust, being consistent and predictable is very important. If the behavioral pattern changes from to week to week, trusting it becomes difficult. Your people get twitchy and uncomfortable when plans and expectations change too much.
7. Be Easily Available
Your team members need to able to get to you when they need to. Whilst there may be times when, for purposes of doing your own work, you need to remain undisturbed, there needs to be a balance. You are the manager and they will need you for specific involvement in day to day activities.
8. Maintaining Confidences
Employees who you manage must be able to confide in you sensitive information, express concern and share problems. People need to know that you can keep this confidential when they need you to. Sometimes these can be personal matters and in such cases this becomes even more important.
9. Language Matters
Watching your language is crucial. By avoiding using the "us" and "them" figures of speech and sticking with "we" wherever possible, your team will bond better with you. Your language should be clear and simple, because everyone interprets what is said differently - so you need to speak plainly for everyone to understand.
10. Creating Social Time
Having informal social interactions with the team enhances the trust building procedure. In context, social interactions are a big opportunity for success for any good manager.
To make a team which works together efficiently, requires the abundant presence of mutual trust. By consistently thinking of and working on trust building, any manager will reap long-lasting positive benefits.
(c) 2008 Martin Haworth is the author of Super Successful Manager, an easy to use, step-by-step weekly development program for managers of EVERY skill level. You can get a sample lesson for free at http://www.SuperSuccessfulManager.com
Saturday, October 18, 2008
How Helpful Are Management Consultants For Businessmen?
By James Gordon
Beginning of business needs so much resources and planning. The person who needs to do a business might have a vague idea of what he wants to achieve. But most often how this has to be done is the intriguing factor for many who seeks to do a business. Management consulting firms emerges as a blessing for such kind of entrepreneurs who are willing to utilize their wealth for bringing prosperity. Management consultants guides one through every process of management, most importantly strategic planning. Management planning consultants helps to overcome many hindrance that might occur in the various stages of business implementation.
Management consultancy in recent times has become so organized that they provide specific management professionals to even very concentrated niches on business. Active involvement of professional management consultants reduces unnecessary overheads and reduces the burden from the businessmen. Since skilled and fine tuned inputs are rendered the efficiency ratio tends to the highest possible. Management consulting firms handles the documentation of the projects and which is the major and most rewarding service offered. Since project management is in much of a demand most management consultants are concentrated and specializing on project management consultancy.
On a general basis management consulting firms offer services like business undertaking for the existing business houses. This is normally done on a profit sharing basis. These management consulting firms makes sure better management by right kind of staff and management resources and overlook optimal utilization of available resources. These firms are good for those who think big about business.
James Gordon writes management articles for a number of websites including Vijyoti School of Communications and corporate learning. Vijyoti is a management consultancy firm and hr consultancy.
Beginning of business needs so much resources and planning. The person who needs to do a business might have a vague idea of what he wants to achieve. But most often how this has to be done is the intriguing factor for many who seeks to do a business. Management consulting firms emerges as a blessing for such kind of entrepreneurs who are willing to utilize their wealth for bringing prosperity. Management consultants guides one through every process of management, most importantly strategic planning. Management planning consultants helps to overcome many hindrance that might occur in the various stages of business implementation.
Management consultancy in recent times has become so organized that they provide specific management professionals to even very concentrated niches on business. Active involvement of professional management consultants reduces unnecessary overheads and reduces the burden from the businessmen. Since skilled and fine tuned inputs are rendered the efficiency ratio tends to the highest possible. Management consulting firms handles the documentation of the projects and which is the major and most rewarding service offered. Since project management is in much of a demand most management consultants are concentrated and specializing on project management consultancy.
On a general basis management consulting firms offer services like business undertaking for the existing business houses. This is normally done on a profit sharing basis. These management consulting firms makes sure better management by right kind of staff and management resources and overlook optimal utilization of available resources. These firms are good for those who think big about business.
James Gordon writes management articles for a number of websites including Vijyoti School of Communications and corporate learning. Vijyoti is a management consultancy firm and hr consultancy.
Third Party Qualification - Streamlining Compliance Management
By Trevor A. Bouchard
The practice of third party qualification is not a new concept but with the recent fledgling economy and under staffed purchasing departments, more companies are considering third party qualification as a viable alternative. Organizations large are making a shift in an attempt to leverage recent technological advancements and an emerging third party vendor qualification market to minimize potential exposures and avoid lowering their bench marks of quality, while staying competitive in today's economy.
Traditional Challenges Businesses and organizations requiring the services of multiple companies have historically expended thousands of dollars annually to manage their internally generated lists with varying degrees of success in the attempt to adequately manage risk. Companies set standards to which vendors must adhere, allocate company overhead and employees to the task of reviewing individual vendor files to ensure files are complete, accurate and updated. The complete process, sometimes requiring multiple full-time employees, is a labour intensive activity and a major cost centre that can hinder financial performance of whatever business unit it falls under. Due to the cost associated with internal compliance management and vendor qualification many organizations in an effort to streamline and cut cost have decreased the number of purchasing managers they have on staff. As a result purchasing agents are becoming overworked and subsequently everywhere you turn the media is filled with reports of steps being missed via mismanagement, neglect and conflict of interest cases.
These miscues are a top-line; mission-critical challenge that requires the attention and commitment of senior-level executives and administrators as well as the dedicated allocation of carefully targeted resources. If executed improperly organizations are faced with conflict of interest liabilities and cost-inefficiencies, both recognized and hidden. Although in some verticals new regulations and internal conflict of interest policies and new document management software is being developed, implementation of these new solutions are being rolled out at an absorbent cost and barrier to entry is excluding some smaller organizations.
Existing top-down policies and procedures fail to provide a viable, verifiable solution for many organizations. As the need for conflict of interest transparency and document management intensifies, management and suppliers face unprecedented demands on their ability to identify, monitor and document these potentially high-risk relationships. Existing policies and procedures for board and administrator level compliance are insufficient. Disparate, incompatible stand-alone systems, where they exist, have proven difficult to implement and costly to integrate, offering little assurance of reliable compliance and no guarantee of the level playing field these requirements seek to establish.
Third Party Solutions and Why They Work! There is a new solution emerging which is proving to be a mutually beneficial business model in the independent vendor management segment of the software services marketplace, and this systematic solution holds tremendous promise for application to the growing demands for conflict of interest compliance and the ease in which purchasing agents can access integral documents. The two-pronged nature of the solution tackles the need for organizations to provide greater transparency into their business relationships on the one hand, and the vested interest of outside vendors and services providers to comply with these transparency requirements in order to do business with these major customers on the other. The solution demands an integrated, system-level approach.
Comprehensive compliance with emerging conflict of interest regulations will require both sides of the customer/supplier equation to work together in assuring across-the-board integration of constantly changing data and rapidly evolving systems upgrades.
While no centralized system-wide solution capable of managing the expanding and evolving challenges of the conflict of interest compliance problem currently exists, this unique business model has fragmented representation across many regions and is slowly proving itself to be a viable foundation for the development of such a full scale solution.
In comparison to current practices at many organizations, third party technology rich solutions offer businesses a more comprehensive and up-to-date vendor list that has enhanced document visibility and increased risk management while providing a significant cost savings. The element of with-in arms reach is taken out of play and many companies can help reduce their exposure to missed steps, mismanagement, and neglect and conflict of interest cases.
In Summary To address the growing complexity of vendor management and the need to capture, evaluate and monitor conflict of interest disclosures, organizations alike need to work together to build upon the capabilities of vendor relationship management systems to create a centralized all-encompassing solution that ensures conflict of interest compliance.
This article was written by Trevor A. Bouchard President & CEO of Quick
Contractors.com Inc.
For more information go to: http://www.QuickContractors.com
The practice of third party qualification is not a new concept but with the recent fledgling economy and under staffed purchasing departments, more companies are considering third party qualification as a viable alternative. Organizations large are making a shift in an attempt to leverage recent technological advancements and an emerging third party vendor qualification market to minimize potential exposures and avoid lowering their bench marks of quality, while staying competitive in today's economy.
Traditional Challenges Businesses and organizations requiring the services of multiple companies have historically expended thousands of dollars annually to manage their internally generated lists with varying degrees of success in the attempt to adequately manage risk. Companies set standards to which vendors must adhere, allocate company overhead and employees to the task of reviewing individual vendor files to ensure files are complete, accurate and updated. The complete process, sometimes requiring multiple full-time employees, is a labour intensive activity and a major cost centre that can hinder financial performance of whatever business unit it falls under. Due to the cost associated with internal compliance management and vendor qualification many organizations in an effort to streamline and cut cost have decreased the number of purchasing managers they have on staff. As a result purchasing agents are becoming overworked and subsequently everywhere you turn the media is filled with reports of steps being missed via mismanagement, neglect and conflict of interest cases.
These miscues are a top-line; mission-critical challenge that requires the attention and commitment of senior-level executives and administrators as well as the dedicated allocation of carefully targeted resources. If executed improperly organizations are faced with conflict of interest liabilities and cost-inefficiencies, both recognized and hidden. Although in some verticals new regulations and internal conflict of interest policies and new document management software is being developed, implementation of these new solutions are being rolled out at an absorbent cost and barrier to entry is excluding some smaller organizations.
Existing top-down policies and procedures fail to provide a viable, verifiable solution for many organizations. As the need for conflict of interest transparency and document management intensifies, management and suppliers face unprecedented demands on their ability to identify, monitor and document these potentially high-risk relationships. Existing policies and procedures for board and administrator level compliance are insufficient. Disparate, incompatible stand-alone systems, where they exist, have proven difficult to implement and costly to integrate, offering little assurance of reliable compliance and no guarantee of the level playing field these requirements seek to establish.
Third Party Solutions and Why They Work! There is a new solution emerging which is proving to be a mutually beneficial business model in the independent vendor management segment of the software services marketplace, and this systematic solution holds tremendous promise for application to the growing demands for conflict of interest compliance and the ease in which purchasing agents can access integral documents. The two-pronged nature of the solution tackles the need for organizations to provide greater transparency into their business relationships on the one hand, and the vested interest of outside vendors and services providers to comply with these transparency requirements in order to do business with these major customers on the other. The solution demands an integrated, system-level approach.
Comprehensive compliance with emerging conflict of interest regulations will require both sides of the customer/supplier equation to work together in assuring across-the-board integration of constantly changing data and rapidly evolving systems upgrades.
While no centralized system-wide solution capable of managing the expanding and evolving challenges of the conflict of interest compliance problem currently exists, this unique business model has fragmented representation across many regions and is slowly proving itself to be a viable foundation for the development of such a full scale solution.
In comparison to current practices at many organizations, third party technology rich solutions offer businesses a more comprehensive and up-to-date vendor list that has enhanced document visibility and increased risk management while providing a significant cost savings. The element of with-in arms reach is taken out of play and many companies can help reduce their exposure to missed steps, mismanagement, and neglect and conflict of interest cases.
In Summary To address the growing complexity of vendor management and the need to capture, evaluate and monitor conflict of interest disclosures, organizations alike need to work together to build upon the capabilities of vendor relationship management systems to create a centralized all-encompassing solution that ensures conflict of interest compliance.
This article was written by Trevor A. Bouchard President & CEO of Quick
Contractors.com Inc.
For more information go to: http://www.QuickContractors.com
Common Mistakes When Buying a Business
By Iain Mackintosh
There's no denying it - buying a business creates a real buzz of excitement. The key is to make sure this keenness doesn't cloud your judgment and leave you with a business you don't want, or don't know the full history of. Here are some tips to keep in mind for when you're planning on making a big splash to make sure it's one that you don't regret!
Make Sure You Love the Business You Want
The first point sounds obvious, but don't just buy a business because it's a good deal. To turn a business into a real success story, you have to be passionate about what they do, or the way they do it. If you're passionate about the job, and it can use your skills, the battle is already half won, so be certain it's something you can be excited by before you sign any legal documents.
Be Thorough in Your Checks
When checking on the general health of a business you're interested in, it's tempting just to look at the financial statements and chat to the current owner, but this can hide an awful lot of vital information. You want to get a real understanding of everything about the business - its reputation, market and customers. You want to find out about its employees, debts and competitors. In short, you need to know everything about the business - information that legal documents alone won't be able to fill you in on.
Find Out Why They Are Selling
Sure, it may just be that the owner is retiring or they're bored of the business, but are you certain that's the reason? You want a full explanation - if they're trying to get shot of the business, then you might be thinking the same thing a week after purchasing! Do a little detective work and figure out what the deal is. There's every chance you'll still want to go ahead with the purchase, but forearmed is forewarned. If their reason for selling is a big issue you could knock a substantial amount off of the asking price, leaving you with a better deal when the time comes to sign the legal documents transferring ownership.
Get a Good Business Contract
It's a common misconception that the only important thing to consider in a contract is the price you're paying for the company - the truth is that there's a lot more to it than that, and a bad business contract could really hamper your new purchase's chance of success over the coming years. Make sure your business contract is reasonable in terms of payment scheme, debt encumbrance and intellectual property rights, amongst other things. If these terms go over your head, be sure to hire a solicitor familiar with business purchase law to make sure the contract is sound.
Don't Get Ripped Off
In the spur of the moment, and imagining the competition, it's quite easy to end up overpaying for the business you're targeting. Usually businesses have two pricing models: base (revenue or profit) and a multiplier. It's a really good idea to get a professional evaluation of the company to ensure you don't end up overpaying, before you sign any legal documents.
It goes without saying that signing that business contract and buying a company is a big decision, and there's plenty to go wrong. There's plenty to go right as well of course - especially from an informed, well planned and executed sale. If you follow these tips, you're more likely to be celebrating the latter, rather than bemoaning the former.
Iain Mackintosh is the managing director of Simply-Docs. The firm provides over 1100 UK business documents covering all aspects of business from holiday entitlement to employment contracts. By providing these legal documents (with content provided by leading commercial lawyers, HR and health & safety consultants) at an affordable price, the company intends to help small businesses avoid costly breaches of regulation and legal action.
There's no denying it - buying a business creates a real buzz of excitement. The key is to make sure this keenness doesn't cloud your judgment and leave you with a business you don't want, or don't know the full history of. Here are some tips to keep in mind for when you're planning on making a big splash to make sure it's one that you don't regret!
Make Sure You Love the Business You Want
The first point sounds obvious, but don't just buy a business because it's a good deal. To turn a business into a real success story, you have to be passionate about what they do, or the way they do it. If you're passionate about the job, and it can use your skills, the battle is already half won, so be certain it's something you can be excited by before you sign any legal documents.
Be Thorough in Your Checks
When checking on the general health of a business you're interested in, it's tempting just to look at the financial statements and chat to the current owner, but this can hide an awful lot of vital information. You want to get a real understanding of everything about the business - its reputation, market and customers. You want to find out about its employees, debts and competitors. In short, you need to know everything about the business - information that legal documents alone won't be able to fill you in on.
Find Out Why They Are Selling
Sure, it may just be that the owner is retiring or they're bored of the business, but are you certain that's the reason? You want a full explanation - if they're trying to get shot of the business, then you might be thinking the same thing a week after purchasing! Do a little detective work and figure out what the deal is. There's every chance you'll still want to go ahead with the purchase, but forearmed is forewarned. If their reason for selling is a big issue you could knock a substantial amount off of the asking price, leaving you with a better deal when the time comes to sign the legal documents transferring ownership.
Get a Good Business Contract
It's a common misconception that the only important thing to consider in a contract is the price you're paying for the company - the truth is that there's a lot more to it than that, and a bad business contract could really hamper your new purchase's chance of success over the coming years. Make sure your business contract is reasonable in terms of payment scheme, debt encumbrance and intellectual property rights, amongst other things. If these terms go over your head, be sure to hire a solicitor familiar with business purchase law to make sure the contract is sound.
Don't Get Ripped Off
In the spur of the moment, and imagining the competition, it's quite easy to end up overpaying for the business you're targeting. Usually businesses have two pricing models: base (revenue or profit) and a multiplier. It's a really good idea to get a professional evaluation of the company to ensure you don't end up overpaying, before you sign any legal documents.
It goes without saying that signing that business contract and buying a company is a big decision, and there's plenty to go wrong. There's plenty to go right as well of course - especially from an informed, well planned and executed sale. If you follow these tips, you're more likely to be celebrating the latter, rather than bemoaning the former.
Iain Mackintosh is the managing director of Simply-Docs. The firm provides over 1100 UK business documents covering all aspects of business from holiday entitlement to employment contracts. By providing these legal documents (with content provided by leading commercial lawyers, HR and health & safety consultants) at an affordable price, the company intends to help small businesses avoid costly breaches of regulation and legal action.
Management Consulting - The Smartest Business Move You Could Ever Do
By Brian S. Smith
In this testing time businesses have different kinds of needs necessary to grow and develop. There are times when management do not know what to do to take their business to the next level. Some managers may also know what needs to be done but are unsure how to go about doing it. This is where management consulting comes into play and for most businesses they are able to handle all your problems with an optimum solution.
As businesses grow this gives rise to different kinds of problems and brings various complexities. It always pays to hire a management consultant as they have a wider knowledge about industry, business and environmental analysis. Different size and types of business house follow the policy of hiring consultants to give business an optimum solution to the problems businesses faces. This may even lead to the centralising and structuring of the business to make things happen faster as well as smoothly.
Problems like inventory control, legal issues, expenses etc are faced by any business house and these problems can be controlled and regulated if a consultant is hired and this can bring efficiency in the work environment as well.
Why Companies Hire Management Consultants
There are companies that have many operations which are complex and have wide range of transactions taking places. Management consultants are active in every kind of situations and are experienced to deal with large complexities. They are always in touch with the firms operations and have their team working any time on optimising the problems.
1) These management consults are engaged in analysing the work culture and environment of the current market trends and help in expansion and offshore deals.
2) They show you the possibility and benefits of merger and acquisitions and makes sure that you do not get in to loss in any kinds of transactions. They help throughout the process of litigation and legal issues and help you till the end of all formalities.
3) They help you in expansion as well raising funds through various objects like IPO, private placements of investments tools and through venture capitals.
4) They also guide the process of growth and transformation of a business by giving direction and the path that will be taken.
The Expertise of Business Management Consulting
There are few consulting firms which provides services in all the fields but mostly all the companies deals and are specialised in different fields. There are firms like public issue management firms which specialises in their respective fields of market research and finance management etc. These are vertically specialised in their respective field. Some consultants however are specialised in many areas and provide productive solution to many kind of business situations right from marketing to auditing of finance.
Business management consultants and consulting agencies have a very practical and productive approach towards any kind of problem solving and help firms in optimising their business situations and solutions. These companies help the firms for better results and effective growth and development.
Brian S. Smith leads a business consulting firm with over 19 years experience in 20 countries. Brian and his professionals have set the standard for "Best in Class" consulting for small business. The Business Efficiency Group methodology has a foundation built on; People, Process and Technology. Find out how effective business consulting can help you. http://www.indadv.com
In this testing time businesses have different kinds of needs necessary to grow and develop. There are times when management do not know what to do to take their business to the next level. Some managers may also know what needs to be done but are unsure how to go about doing it. This is where management consulting comes into play and for most businesses they are able to handle all your problems with an optimum solution.
As businesses grow this gives rise to different kinds of problems and brings various complexities. It always pays to hire a management consultant as they have a wider knowledge about industry, business and environmental analysis. Different size and types of business house follow the policy of hiring consultants to give business an optimum solution to the problems businesses faces. This may even lead to the centralising and structuring of the business to make things happen faster as well as smoothly.
Problems like inventory control, legal issues, expenses etc are faced by any business house and these problems can be controlled and regulated if a consultant is hired and this can bring efficiency in the work environment as well.
Why Companies Hire Management Consultants
There are companies that have many operations which are complex and have wide range of transactions taking places. Management consultants are active in every kind of situations and are experienced to deal with large complexities. They are always in touch with the firms operations and have their team working any time on optimising the problems.
1) These management consults are engaged in analysing the work culture and environment of the current market trends and help in expansion and offshore deals.
2) They show you the possibility and benefits of merger and acquisitions and makes sure that you do not get in to loss in any kinds of transactions. They help throughout the process of litigation and legal issues and help you till the end of all formalities.
3) They help you in expansion as well raising funds through various objects like IPO, private placements of investments tools and through venture capitals.
4) They also guide the process of growth and transformation of a business by giving direction and the path that will be taken.
The Expertise of Business Management Consulting
There are few consulting firms which provides services in all the fields but mostly all the companies deals and are specialised in different fields. There are firms like public issue management firms which specialises in their respective fields of market research and finance management etc. These are vertically specialised in their respective field. Some consultants however are specialised in many areas and provide productive solution to many kind of business situations right from marketing to auditing of finance.
Business management consultants and consulting agencies have a very practical and productive approach towards any kind of problem solving and help firms in optimising their business situations and solutions. These companies help the firms for better results and effective growth and development.
Brian S. Smith leads a business consulting firm with over 19 years experience in 20 countries. Brian and his professionals have set the standard for "Best in Class" consulting for small business. The Business Efficiency Group methodology has a foundation built on; People, Process and Technology. Find out how effective business consulting can help you. http://www.indadv.com
Management Basics - Mind Your Own Business
By Hans Bool
If people would mind their own business life would be boring. But it would help organization if employees would mind their own business. The easiest way to manage an organization is by picturing it as a network, hierarchy or other form of small atomic business units; a single employee business. Think of every person in the organization as a solo entrepreneur.
Organizations become more complex because we have forgotten that they are only a set of companies that work under the same umbrella. It is easier to join an organization so that people know each other and they can interact swiftly amongst themselves.
Yet organizations have grown over the last decades and have become more and more complex and some simple basics about management and control have been replaced by all kinds of techniques, methods and inspirational issues that have little to do with the main drive of organizations: to do business.
If you know what your business is, what you are good at, the productive role that fits you best, you will also fit easier in the organization. If everybody's role is clear, than teamwork will follow automatically.
But as organizations become more complex, the attention for ones' personal role seems to become less of a point for management. One could wonder whether we need all that expensive management if people would just know what their own business is. Or, does the manager make it all too complex just to save his job? I don't think that way, but sometimes it looks like it.
Productivity of the organization can only start by employees being productive. And to know how to be productive, try to imagine yourself as being a single company, within the boundaries of a larger organization.
If people would mind their own business life would be boring. But it would help organization if employees would mind their own business. The easiest way to manage an organization is by picturing it as a network, hierarchy or other form of small atomic business units; a single employee business. Think of every person in the organization as a solo entrepreneur.
Organizations become more complex because we have forgotten that they are only a set of companies that work under the same umbrella. It is easier to join an organization so that people know each other and they can interact swiftly amongst themselves.
Yet organizations have grown over the last decades and have become more and more complex and some simple basics about management and control have been replaced by all kinds of techniques, methods and inspirational issues that have little to do with the main drive of organizations: to do business.
If you know what your business is, what you are good at, the productive role that fits you best, you will also fit easier in the organization. If everybody's role is clear, than teamwork will follow automatically.
But as organizations become more complex, the attention for ones' personal role seems to become less of a point for management. One could wonder whether we need all that expensive management if people would just know what their own business is. Or, does the manager make it all too complex just to save his job? I don't think that way, but sometimes it looks like it.
Productivity of the organization can only start by employees being productive. And to know how to be productive, try to imagine yourself as being a single company, within the boundaries of a larger organization.
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