Learn how your business stacks up with internal and external strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT), then take action. Volatility is here to stay! Even though we continue to drudge along in the lackluster recovery, excitement remains - earthquakes, nuclear disasters, global conflicts in Libya, oil prices skyrocketing again, [...]
If you notice and act upon trends, you will succeed. In my 20 years of experience across multiple industries and globally, I've found that a secret to success is identifying trends EARLY in the process and then acting upon them as it makes sense. Lately, I've had a plethora [...]
In today's new normal business environment, volatility is the new norm. Change is required to remain competitive or to become competitive. If you manage change better than your competition, you'll have the opportunity to leapfrog the competition. In the last several years, I've seen a multitude of examples of [...]
As one of the top topics I typically help clients to strategize and implement, I thought it was worth taking a look at a few tips: Fit with strategy - Change for the sake of change without looking at fit with the company's strategy is useless yet occurs frequently. [...]
How many managers or employees think performance management is worthwhile? From my experience and research, the answer is few. And, on the other hand, how many complain that the manager or employee is on a different page from one another? Most. This leaves a paradox - most people think [...]
Business process improvement has almost become a "buzzword" - sounds good but what does it mean? What is really accomplished? Many times, companies create volumes of 1-inch thick binders of best practice processes, and yet achieve no bottom line results. Anyone seen these binders collecting dust on the bookshelf? [...]
Why track performance? Not tracking performance would be the same as if you watched a football game and never knew the score - what fun would that be? And why watch at all? Scorecards and metrics are your tool for understanding progress towards your business goals and they provide [...]
Partner with customers: Treat your customers as partners and brainstorm freight savings opportunities that would yield a win-win. There are a myriad of possibilities once you have a common goal. Partner with suppliers: Fierce negotiation isn't going to "win the race". Instead, treat your freight carriers as partners. Share [...]
My finance mentor definitely signifies "profit through people". I learned more from him about how to make a profit in the years we worked together than my BSBA, MBA (in Finance) and all the training classes over the years combined. He took all the complex terminology, confusing formulas and [...]
Businesses should always look for ways to increase cash flow. Here are a few ideas to pursue: It's not what you make; it's what you keep: As obvious as this sounds, it is easy to get caught up in the opposite of what will increase your cash flow - [...]
