Posts Tagged ‘Business Strategy’

4 steps to effective Disaster Recovery planning

by Marc Watley, Aug 23, 2010

IT executives today are, in fact, increasingly faced with the threat of disasters – whether natural or man-made. As organizations – and their customers – increasingly rely on database, server, and IP-connected applications and data sources, the importance and responsibility of maintaining continuity of the business infrastructure and limiting costly downtime in the event of a disaster, is paramount. Read this article to get a high-level, best-practices overview of the DR planning process. more…

Character and Personality #8: Competency

by Gary Monti, Aug 24, 2010

A good leader is also a good politician, one who finds a way to thread through a situation to reveal a path that, when followed, benefits the common good. Competence pulls technology and sophistication together so that one person can meet another person’s needs, i.e., a connection comprising the humanity of the stakeholders who need and commit to finding a solution that works. more…

Social Media and Tribes #9: The fear factor

by Deepika Bajaj, Aug 25, 2010

Even professionals who have gone through many technological innovations in the past don’t find the idea of being transparent and authentic over social media too appealing. They were worried about identity theft, making a wrong impression on a potential employer and above all were overwhelmed by the friend requests on Facebook. These are valid concerns, but not an excuse to avoid social media.  more…

Flexible Focus #16: The decision trap

by William Reed, Aug 26, 2010

Ambiguity causes anxiety in those who are inflexible, and creates possibilities in the minds of the people who have flexible focus. Tolerance for ambiguity drops when you have to make a decision. Urgency adds pressure, and when the decision affects the core areas of your life, you can feel as if you are lost in a labyrinth of choices. Your decision sets the wheels in motion, whereas with indecision the wheel turns without you. Read about the Six Criteria for Decision Making to stay in motion and steer the wheel. more…

Investment Value

by Steve Popell, Aug 27, 2010

In a previous post, Business Valuation in Divorce is Different, Steve discussed why Investment Value is more appropriate in the context of family law.  But, this method is not just for divorcing couples.  In any situation in which the party acquiring an interest (or a greater interest) in a company will become (or continue to be) part of the management team, Investment Value is often the most appropriate method.  Read this article to find out why. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, Business Management, business planning, Business Strategy, Business Valuation, deepika bajaj, execution, Flexible Focus, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, leaders, Leadership, management, marc watley, Social Media, steve popell, Strategy, technology, william reed, www.activegarage.com, www.datacentertrust.com, www.deepikabajaj.com

4 tips for selecting the right consultant

by Brian Beedle, Aug 16, 2010

Vendor selection process can be an arduous, time consuming, and stressful task.  Receiving quotes that run the gambit of the budgetary spectrum, deciding which product will give your company the biggest bang for the buck and wondering if saving a dollar or two is really worth the frustration of finding the “right partner”.  Every Project Manager has dealt with these issues. In this article, Brian lists some key points may provide some clarity and assist with narrowing the decision-making process when seeking a value-added business partner. more…

Character and Personality #7: Courage

by Gary Monti, Aug 17, 2010

Tiger Woods’ difficulties with his swing and Mark Hurd’s (HP’s CEO) inability to fill out expense reports correctly can be traced back to complexes. In a very public way they both show how trying to succeed simply by ego has limits and the desire to be complete as Self will, when denied, erupt and wreak havoc without any regard to the consequences. more…

Working Hard – Still no progress?

by Vijay Peduru, Aug 18, 2010

According to most economic historians, the Industrial age ended about 20Yrs ago in 1989 when the Berlin wall came down and the internet came up. In the industrial age, working hard meant, using our body and working long hours i.e physical labor. The easiest way to do hard work in the post industrial age, is to love change, train ourselves to love challenges and question the status quo all by using and exerting our mind. more…

Flexible Focus #15: Karma and Connections

by William Reed, Aug 19, 2010

You reap as you sow. Therefore if we want to achieve positive results, you need to think, speak, and act positively. There is also collective Karma, which is often thought of as collective fate, but more constructively can be interpreted as collective action. Things are connected in ways that are not always obvious. Even when the connections are not obvious, it is possible to take small actions which use the butterfly effect to create good Karma. more…

A diverse workforce: The smart thing to do

by Robert Driscoll, Aug 20, 2010

Diversity in the workplace should not be limited to race, gender and age, but differences of views and personalities as well. If this diverse workforce is guided properly, they will share their unique knowledge and discuss their differences rather than what’s common between them. This will lead to generating innovative ideas that could potentially change the marketplace you are in. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, brian beedle, Business Strategy, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, Leadership, possibilities, Project Management, Robert Driscoll, Strategy, technology, vijay peduru, william reed, www.activegarage.com

This post is about the Role of Stock Appreciation Rights in retaining key employees; which goes a long way in increasing the value of your company. One of the least understood, but most valuable, strategic assets of any privately held company planning to sell is the quality of management, including its breadth and depth.

Put yourself in the position of the buyer.  Would you pay a lot for a company the executive corps of which consists of the founder/CEO and a cast of minor characters?  Of course you wouldn’t, and for one very sound reason.  If something were to happen to that individual (illness, injury, death or, simply, loss of motivation) your return on investment would be in serious jeopardy.  So, you would reduce your risk by reducing the price.

Therefore, it is critically important that ownership find effective ways to retain key employees.

Fewer Practical Options (Pun Intended)

Financial incentives have always played a key role.  However, because IPOs are much harder to come by in today’s market, one of the traditional favorites (stock options) has lost much of its appeal.  Not to worry.  Riding to the rescue is a great alternative: Stock Appreciation Rights or SARs.  This vehicle conveys no equity ownership.  Instead, the employee shares in the financial success of the company through what amounts to cumulative deferred income, with a vesting schedule that can take nine years or longer to play out.

Advantages and Disadvantages

There are several distinct advantages of SARs over traditional stock options, including:

1. The value of the SAR shares is directly related to critical measures of company success, such as Pretax or After-Tax Profit, or Net Worth.
2. The bases for the (hopefully increasing) value of the SAR shares are strictly a matter of management discretion.
3. There are none of the nettlesome issues associated with employee equity ownership, such as membership on the Board of Directors.
4. All SAR shareholders have a common goal, which encourages cooperation among sometimes competitive individuals and/or departments.
5. The vesting schedule provides a powerful incentive to stay with the company – the whole point.
6. When the company repurchases vested shares, these payments are fully deductible.

The principal disadvantage is common to stock options; namely, inadequate short-term incentives.  This problem can be very effectively addressed with cash bonuses.

The next post will discuss the logistics of setting up and managing an effective SAR program, as well as how to structure a cash bonus program that it actually benefits the company, and not just the employees.

Make it a great month!
—
This article has been contributed by Steven D. Popell. Steve has been a general management consultant since 1970. Steve is a Certified Management Consultant, business valuation expert, and inventor of ExiTrak®- a process designed to assist the privately-held company owner/manager to build an attractive strategic acquisition candidate

Tagged as: Business Strategy, Business Valuation, Employee stock options, executives, exitrak, profits, SARs, steve popell, stock appreciation rights

Integration: Keys to the successful merger of companies

by Matthew Carmen, Aug 2, 2010

Companies merge to increase profits through increase efficiency. But according to CNBC, nine out of ten mergers do not fully meet the goals of their acquisition. The main task that takes place in successful integrations is proper reparation within operational areas. This includes putting together processes and procedures that will need to take place to reach the corporate goals. In this article Matthew describes how he participated in a merger at a large entertainment company and what contributed to its success.  more…

Character and Personality #5: Don’t pull that trigger!

by Gary Monti, Aug 3, 2010

Sometimes you don’t want to confront your fears and uncomfortable situations. This causes blind spots into which organizations can fall an disappear. Instead of taking short cuts and jumping to action we should explore options, analyze our assumptions and manage risk. more…

Managing a project requires actions

by Guy Ralfe, Aug 4, 2010

Just because the project has a plan does not mean we simply have to conform to it. A plan is created when certain realities are true. But as the project is implemented, things change and new realities open up. We need to constantly update our plan and make adjustments based on changes that occur through out the implementation phase. Guy sites an example from his recent experience in this article. more…

Flexible Focus #13: Finding focus in the frames

by William Reed, Aug 5, 2010

Creativity happens much better when you are in your favorite cafe than when you are in your cubicle. Even better, the Mandala Chart offers a fresh approach that helps you find focus in the frames. Once you understand the value and attraction of working with the Mandala Chart on paper, you can increase your skills and improve your results with practice. Here are 8 steps that can help you get started.  more…

Author’s Journey #33: 7 Keys to Profitable Special Events

by Roger Parker, Aug 6, 2010

Last week, Roger discussed some of the ways authors can attract profitable speaking invitations. In this week’s article he takes the idea of “speaking for profit” to the next level, which involves creating, marketing, and producing special events like conferences, seminars, and workshops. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, author's journey, Business Management, business planning, Business Strategy, Communication, gary monti, Guy Ralfe, Matthew Carmen, roger parker, william reed, Writing for Business, www.activegarage.com

Don’t just invent. Innovate.

by Robert Driscoll, Jul 26, 2010

Invention is not the same as innovation. Starbucks, Microsoft, Red Bull and Ebay did not simply invent. They all did something that was different in the marketplace that connected with its users. Sometimes creating that next big thing is just simply doing it better than your competition or making it simpler.  Ideas are all around us.  Now innovate. more…

Character and Personality #4: Time

by Gary Monti, Jul 27, 2010

Temperaments refers to preferred ways of thinking. Knowing individual’s temperaments can help predict possible outcomes in situations. A typical company will have a mix of intuitive thinker, intuitive feeler, sensing judger and sensing perceiver. Each  of them perceives time differently and understanding that will enable your planning and execution to proceed realistically. more…

Social Media and Tribes #7: Is Twitter doomed to fail?

by Deepika Bajaj, Jul 28, 2010

Twitter has generated enough controversies and we have not seen the end of it. There is a constant debate if Twitter is good or bad. Just like most things in life, it’s not for everybody and not for all purposes. But it will be enormously useful if you know how to leverage it. Share, connect and reciprocate with somebody on twitter and you’ll see it’s potential. more…

Flexible Focus #12: The 8 frames of live – Business

by William Reed, Jul 29, 2010

What career you pursue and how you engage with your work is one of the determining factors in the quality of your life and your legacy. Most people are concerned with the mechanics and features of their work, salary and benefits, but there is one question that should come first - Are you engaged in your work with head, heart, and hands? This article identified 7 hidden opportunities to shift to positive engagement. more…

Author’s Journey #32: Speaking for Profit

by Roger Parker, Jul 30, 2010

Authors depend on information products, workbooks, audios and videos because there’s more money in the back-end products then they’re likely to earn from their books. However, the Internet is a crowded marketplace; there’s competition even in niche categories. Speaking engagements provide a valuable source of profit. In this article Roger explains how to maximize your profits from speaking engagements. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, author's journey, business planning, Business Strategy, Communication, deepika bajaj, Entrepreneurship, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, Innovation, Robert Driscoll, roger parker, Social Media, william reed, Writing for Business, www.activegarage.com

Your readiness for managing your supplier after the negotiation

by Brian Superczynski, Jul 19, 2010

Organizational needs are routinely satisfied by external vendors. Letting the vendors manage the relationship will be like the tail wagging the dog. It will lead to serious issues not limited to mushrooming cost. Vendor management includes the negotiation process before the contact is signed, having an organizational structure to manage vendors and having an mature process to monitor the lifecycle of your agreements. more…

Character and Personality #3: Orientation and Energy

by Gary Monti, Jul 20, 2010

Two major components that go into determining one’s temperament are Orientation and Energy. Orientation refers to how we prefer to interface with the outside world. The two approaches are Judging (don’t confuse with Judgmental) and Perceiving. Two possibilities for gaining energy are Extroverts and Introverts. A person can have a combination of these traits and of course these are not the only once – there is a whole slew of these. Understanding these traits will help you manage people and teams better. more…

Social Media and Tribes # 6: Changing the world is addictive

by Deepika Bajaj, Jul 21, 2010

A tribe is constituted of people who care about a specific topic or interest or looking to bring a specific change. Tribes are needed to change the world and social media has created tremendous opportunity to create and lead tribes. Read this article to understand how to gain advantage using social media and not get simply distraught by its demands. more…

Flexible Focus #11: The Principle of comprehensiveness

by William Reed, Jul 22, 2010

In this article you will find an optical illusion. As you increase your field of vision, you will be able to see more white dots. The message here is, you need the ability to see the big picture, the details and the relationships all at the same time. Mandala Chart can help us regain our bearings by seeing our business comprehensively. This will enable us see the opportunities that are never obvious, because the exist in the spaces between. more…

Author’s Journey #31: Managing and Marketing information products

by Roger Parker, Jul 23, 2010

Information products are an author’s best friend; they offer far more profit potential than authors can earn from book sales alone. Last week, Roger’s post explored the 3 main issues involved in creating profitable information products: copyright, format, and topic. This week’s post takes a look at creating a process to produce, market, and schedule information products. more….

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, author's journey, Business Management, business planning, Business Strategy, Communication, deepika bajaj, Entrepreneurship, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, Innovation, invincibelle, Leadership, possibilities, roger parker, Sales and Marketing, Social Media, technology, william reed, Writing for Business, www.activegarage.com

In my last post, I talked about the pillars of success to help start your venture.  In order to make sure that the pillars stay up, you have to have a solid foundation, which are the principles of the leader.  These principles are: integrity, credibility, attitude, teamwork, excellence and vision.

In order to become a leader, you must have integrity.  Without integrity, you won’t have any followers.  Your integrity is your brand not only within your company, but in the marketplace with your customers as well.  As a leader, you are constantly building it and making it better.  You create, maintain and build your integrity throughout your career, but it only takes one unethical act to destroy it.

As you build and improve your integrity, you start gaining credibility not only within your organization, but with your customers as well, as you keep and fulfill on your promises.  You can’t have integrity and build your credibility without the right attitude.  You need to know how to build people up and help them overcome challenges and go above and beyond to not only create opportunities but create success as well.  An organization with smart people with the right attitude in an organization will go much farther than an organization without.  Sounds simple, but great people with the right attitude are the hardest, and most important, assets to find in a business.

A leader with integrity, credibility and the right attitude with a group of people following them who also have the right attitude must be able to create a teamwork environment.  Employees who are able to effectively work together allow a company to accomplish tasks and meet goals that would be very different, if not impossible to do, as individuals.

Being the leader of a company, you must strive for excellence.  You should constantly push to improve your product and services in the marketplace.  Not only listen to your employees recommendations, but more importantly, your customers as well.  Use these recommendations to continually improve your products or services.

In doing all of this, don’t forget about your company’s vision. Always remember it and ensure that your colleagues and employees practice it, believe in it and share it with your customers.  As a leader, you must be able to not only share the vision with others but also make sure it its being followed and practiced.

We all have skills and capabilities that help our organizations, but none of us are perfect.  If you can master most of these, along with the pillars of success, you will not only be an effective leader, but will create a company with effective employees helping you build a successful business.

This article was contributed by Robert Driscoll, co-founder of Active Garage. You can follow Robert on Twitter at rsdriscoll.

Tagged as: active garage, business, Business Management, Business Strategy, Communication, execution, http://activegarage.com, leaders, Leadership, management, Robert Driscoll, Strategy, www.activegarage.com

There are two very different reasons why effective long-range planning is critical for getting top dollar when you sell your company.  First, top-notch planning helps you to manage your company better and involve your employees at a higher and more productive level.  Second, and much less obvious, success in this area is very impressive to prospective buyers.  Why?

Because successful long-range planning (defined as developing a plan, implementing it and achieving most or all of the long-range goals) is indicative of solid and sophisticated management – a highly valuable strategic asset for most acquiring companies.  Here are 10 elements to developing a long-range plan that increases the likelihood of success manifolds:

1. Involve your key people.  For one thing, they will have ideas that are worth considering.  Beyond that, it is axiomatic that the best way to overcome resistance to change is to ensure that those who will be implementing the changes help to determine what those changes will be.  An effective planning group can comprise as few as three people, or as many as 15.  The important thing is that no one who can have a major impact on how the plan is implemented is left out.
2. Make sure that there is a solid consensus around the vision for the company; i.e. what will be the company’s identity in years to come.
3. Develop a clear and easily communicated mission statement that expresses what the company does and for whom.
4. Conduct a SWOT analysis; i.e. identify the company’s principal Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
5. Develop long-range goals that are challenging, achievable and in line with the company’s vision, mission and values.  These goals should be specifically designed to take advantage of strengths and opportunities, while addressing (or, at least, minimizing the negative effect of weaknesses and threats.  In addition, ensure that each member of the planning group (and the rest of the staff, as well) can relate the achievement of the company’s vision and mission to a high level of performance in their specific area(s) of responsibility.
6. Identify outside factors over which you have no control and little, if any, influence.
7. Short term objectives. Determine what you need to achieve within one year in order to give yourself a leg up in achieving your long-range goals.  But, be cautious with your scheduling.  The biggest mistake most owner-managers make is front loading implementation far too much.  If you are going to make a mistake, especially if this your first planning experience, make it on the low side of delivery.  You can always add short-term objectives later, but if you fail to achieve your objectives, it can severely damage morale.
8. Attach task assignments, with individual responsibilities and deadlines, to each short-term objective.
9. Attach action items to each task assignment.
10. Organize follow-up sessions no more often than monthly and no less often than quarterly.  This step is, in reality, as important as all the rest, because it is all that stands between you and a dusty planning document that fails to impact the future of your company.  Make sure that you are utterly ruthless in comparing actual performance with plan.  There is no reason to be unpleasant.  Most long-range plans fall behind in the early stages, usually because of excessive front loading.  The critical element is that everyone agrees on the relationship between plan and actual performance, and how to get back on track and timeline with any projects that are lagging

Oh, and one final thing… Good luck!

—
This article has been contributed by Steven D. Popell. Steve has been a general management consultant since 1970. Steve is a Certified Management Consultant, business valuation expert, and inventor of ExiTrak®- a process designed to assist the privately-held company owner/manager to build an attractive strategic acquisition candidate

Tagged as: active garage, business planning, Business Strategy, Business Valuation, company sales, exitrak, merger and acquisitions, sale of a company, selling your company, steve popell

4 Effective cost saving techniques in a down economy

by Brian Beedle, Jul 5, 2010

In these uncertain economic times, it is imperative for businesses to cut costs to maintain profitability. Prudence in what is cut will help us be positioned to return to “normal” business cycle. With that in mind, Brian has short listed 4 simple cost saving areas that every IT organization should consider. more…

Character and Personality #1: Emotionality

by Gary Monti, Jul 6, 2010

WOW… another great  article from Gary! Strong leaders are not without emotions. But they are able to validate their emotions with their principles at play. This helps them deliver an honest expression of emotions with a statement of underlying principles (agenda). This supports communications, while emotionality tears the community apart. more…

Social Media and Tribes #5: Social by Intention

by Deepika Bajaj, Jul 7, 2010

Participating and being active on online social media does not have to be detrimental to your career. If you can watch what you say, you can create a reputation you desire. Social media is a tool to build relationships and take them offline to build stronger relationships. more…

Flexible Focus #9: The magic of mindset

by William Reed, Jul 8, 2010

Having a point of view enables us to be very clear on where we stand. But it also give us the tendency to believe our point of view is the only correct one. Inflexibility over view points can put people on the warpath. Flexible focus gives us a strategic advantage, opens your eyes and lets you frame and reframe. more…

Author’s Journey #29: Research Tips – How do other authors profit?

by Roger Parker, July 9, 2010

Very often, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Researching and following what other authors do to profit can be valuable. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, author's journey, brian beedle, Business Strategy, Communication, deepika bajaj, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, invincibelle, Leadership, management, roger parker, Social Media, Writing for Business

3 Steps to making the Outsourcing choice

by Matthew Carmen, Jun 21, 2010

It is now rare to find a company, of any size, that hasn’t outsourced some portion of their IT functions.  This could be as small as an application or as large as the company’s entire IT department.  If you’re considering outsourcing within your own organization, Matthew’s article will help you think through the next steps in detail.  more…

Leadership and Mythology #7: Zeus, Greed and Change

by Gary Monti, Jun 22, 2010

Being greedy can lead to disastrous results. Nurturing your network and cultivating abundance is critical for sustained success and peace of mind. Greed and its consequences show up in Greek mythology. The lessons are quite relevant today especially in a complex, chaotic business world. more…

Social Media and Tribes #3: Mob mentality

by Deepika Bajaj, Jun 23, 2010

Contrary to popular conventions about the Web opening minds, people are more likely to read information or participate in social groups that reinforce what they already believe. A tribe can show dramatic increase in the undesirable action compared with doing nothing at all, because it demonstrated that lots of others engaged in the behavior. But if your message to your tribe is right, you can make positive change happen.  more…

Flexible Focus #7: Inside the lines

by William Reed, Jun 24, 2010

Thinking outside the box is a synonym for creativity. Although this metaphor has captured the popular imagination, the real challenge is to engage in applied creative thinking that solves real problems. Just like tennis is a game that is played entirely within the box, the most exciting and productive creative work is often produced and performed inside the box. In this article William explains how to use the Mandala chart to expand your thinking and stay within the lines.  more…

Author’s Journey #27: Building relationships with your readers

by Roger Parker, Jun 25, 2010

It is increasingly obvious that the whole point of writing a book is not to sell books, but to build long-term and profitable reader relationships. Consider your book the core of your long-term self (or business) marketing plan. In this scenario, your book becomes the hub of a relationship-building strategy that begins long before your book appears and continues for years afterward. more…

Magesh is an accomplished software professional focused on building enterprise value through creative use of technology. Magesh enjoys working with people and is passionate about bringing out the best in everybody to achieve results that are larger than the sum of individual accomplishments.

Tagged as: active garage, author's journey, Business Management, Business Strategy, deepika bajaj, Entrepreneurship, gary monti, http://activegarage.com, invincibelle, Leadership, management, Matthew Carmen, possibilities, purpose, roger parker, Strategy, Writing for Business, www.activegarage.com