There's a big disconnect for me when it comes to all the doom and gloom being peddled by the media about the national economy. There's not a parking place to be found when I go to the mall, and just the other day, I heard one grandmother complaining that the newest version of Wii was nowhere to be found in the entire state of Ohio. So, she was on a desperate hunt for the high-tech game (retails for $379) many states away. Yes, for a game. Truly, these are tough times when grandma is the hunter-gatherer for procuring what overindulged grandkids can't seem to live without. It just proves that where there's a will--or at least a willing pocketbook--there's a way.
It's also an underlying principle of our economy. If there is demand for a product at a price the customer is willing to pay, there will be sales. From heads of lettuce to houses, the market will act in its own best interest--distorting regulations notwithstanding. This doesn't mean that as the producer your margins may be smaller since the price of gas is up and this is driving the price of food up, too. If you can't pass increased costs for your current products on to customers, how do you find a way to get some of the cash that people clearly are spending at the mall or on Wii?
When Reid Pigman saw the profits being squeezed in his father's pilot school, he abandoned the school business and moved into the fixed base operation niche and now his company, Texas Jet, provides all the ground-based services required by aircraft owners and operators. If you're feeling the profit squeeze in your business, it may be time to make changes, find a new product, a new service or a new bundle of products and services that your customers will be happy to pay you for, and make your bottom line stronger as a result.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
Summer Interns Increase ROI
English philosopher Francis Bacon once said that "Young people are more fit for new projects than for settled business." It is summer so high school and college students need work, and chances are, your business' technology could use some updating, too.
While you and your older employees have learned to use the Internet to get work done, 16-20 year olds have used the Internet for play. That means they have experimented a lot and have probably discovered some tools and sites that you should know about. Technology is second nature to them and you could gain tremendous advantages simply by tapping into their computing knowledge to have them build databases or do web research for you.
Not only are today's young people technically savvy, they can be a cost-effective solution to help you with short-term projects in the business. Nicole Miller, the New York-based fashion house, and Mir, Fox & Rodriguez, a CPA firm in Houston have put interns to work, teaching them business principles that will serve them well in the future, as well as nurturing the next wave of talent.
Is there a project in your business that could tap into our youth's expertise and increase your return on the dollar you pay out to employees at the same time? Try a few summer interns. You'll be doing both of you a big favor.
While you and your older employees have learned to use the Internet to get work done, 16-20 year olds have used the Internet for play. That means they have experimented a lot and have probably discovered some tools and sites that you should know about. Technology is second nature to them and you could gain tremendous advantages simply by tapping into their computing knowledge to have them build databases or do web research for you.
Not only are today's young people technically savvy, they can be a cost-effective solution to help you with short-term projects in the business. Nicole Miller, the New York-based fashion house, and Mir, Fox & Rodriguez, a CPA firm in Houston have put interns to work, teaching them business principles that will serve them well in the future, as well as nurturing the next wave of talent.
Is there a project in your business that could tap into our youth's expertise and increase your return on the dollar you pay out to employees at the same time? Try a few summer interns. You'll be doing both of you a big favor.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
We Have Millions of Women Presidents
Today at Bloomberg.com you can read, "New York Senator Hillary Clinton is planning to concede the race for the Democratic presidential nomination and announce her support for Illinois Senator Barack Obama, her campaign said."
I'm not worried that little girls do not have a role model because even if Mrs. Clinton had become president, she would not have been first. Remember, there are about 10 million women in this country who are the president of their own company.
Much of the excitement surrounding her candidacy was that it was significant from both historical and role model perspectives. Indeed, it is no small thing that for the first time in our history, Americans were placing a woman in a position to become president. But what the public frenzy about Mrs. Clinton misses is that even if she had become president, she would not have been first. Our daughters—and sons—already have women presidential role models in the 10 million women in this country who are the president of their own company.
That’s why I was shocked to read in a USA Today article published in May 2008 that "Only 43 women have climbed the traditional ladder to become CEOs of Fortune 1000 companies in the last 35 years." It’s hard to imagine why so many women have successfully tackled the real issues of leadership in their own business—managing people, making payroll, tracking inventory, and keeping their taxpaying customers happy—yet aren’t seen as capable of successfully running America’s large businesses. This tells me that if you want to shatter glass, you should start by busting through the ceiling you built for yourself as has Vicky Carlson .
So when I read about the ‘tragedy’ of Hillary’s defeat, the last thing I feel is discouraged. The real business of keeping this country and economy strong is happening very nicely every day thanks to the hard work of women business owners and CEOs who know far more about leadership than Mrs. Clinton will ever know. She is irrelevant to the success or failure of our companies.
I'm not worried that little girls do not have a role model because even if Mrs. Clinton had become president, she would not have been first. Remember, there are about 10 million women in this country who are the president of their own company.
Much of the excitement surrounding her candidacy was that it was significant from both historical and role model perspectives. Indeed, it is no small thing that for the first time in our history, Americans were placing a woman in a position to become president. But what the public frenzy about Mrs. Clinton misses is that even if she had become president, she would not have been first. Our daughters—and sons—already have women presidential role models in the 10 million women in this country who are the president of their own company.
That’s why I was shocked to read in a USA Today article published in May 2008 that "Only 43 women have climbed the traditional ladder to become CEOs of Fortune 1000 companies in the last 35 years." It’s hard to imagine why so many women have successfully tackled the real issues of leadership in their own business—managing people, making payroll, tracking inventory, and keeping their taxpaying customers happy—yet aren’t seen as capable of successfully running America’s large businesses. This tells me that if you want to shatter glass, you should start by busting through the ceiling you built for yourself as has Vicky Carlson .
So when I read about the ‘tragedy’ of Hillary’s defeat, the last thing I feel is discouraged. The real business of keeping this country and economy strong is happening very nicely every day thanks to the hard work of women business owners and CEOs who know far more about leadership than Mrs. Clinton will ever know. She is irrelevant to the success or failure of our companies.
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