Project, Process & Business Improvement » Business

Looking for money?

A.J. — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:24:29 +0000

If you are dreaming about growing the next Microsoft or the next Google you need money. Unless you’ve got great credit or lots of credit cards, you look toward the venture capitalists. Unfortunately, they are not in such a giving mood! Venture capital funding plummets 81% in quarter

Don’t look for work…create it!

A.J. — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 14:50:24 +0000

Plenty of other laid-off workers across the country, burned out by a merciless job market, are building business plans instead of sending out résumés. For these people, recession has become the mother of invention.

NY Times article: Weary of Looking for Work, Some Create Their Own

Only one reason….

A.J. — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 21:03:51 +0000

There is only one reason to start a business. ONE.

I came across this blog entry by Andy Swan. So true, so true. Short, but insightful….read it

Small companies work to prevent layoffs

A.J. — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 01:50:16 +0000

Small companies work to prevent layoffs at MSN Money.

When there are only a few dozen employees — or fewer — layoffs can hit harder. So small businesses are using various methods and incentives to try to avoid them.

Re-Discover Your Business

A.J. — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:12:40 +0000

An organization, be it a business, a school, a government agency, is a collection of processes. These processes are the natural activities you perform that produce value, serve customers and generate income. Managing these processes is the key to the success of your organization.

Unfortunately, most organizations are not set up to manage processes. Instead they manage tasks. Think about it. Isn’t your company organized around functions. . .the accounting department, the engineering department, the sales department, the customer service department?

As a result, people tend to focus on “local” concerns instead of the “global” needs of process customers. Sub-processes evolve within departments without consideration of other functional areas. Layers of communication and management are created to ensure desired outcomes, thereby adding to costs and lengthening cycle and customer response times.

Inefficiency and waste become part of the system. They rob your organization of profits, productivity and its competitive advantage. But, there is a way out.

Process mapping is a simple yet powerful method of looking beyond functional activities and rediscovering your core processes. Process maps enable you to peel away the complexity of your organizational structure (and internal politics) and focus on the processes that are truly the heart of your business. Armed with a thorough understanding of the inputs, outputs and interrelationships of each process, you and your organization can:

Understand how processes interact in a system
Locate process flaws that are creating systemic problems
Evaluate which activities add value for the customer
Mobilize teams to streamline and improve processes
Identify processes that need to be reengineered

Properly used, process maps can change your entire approach to process improvement and business management. . .and greatly reduce the cost of your operations by eliminating as much as 50% of the steps in most processes as well as the root causes of systemic quality problems.

Recession is here!

A.J. — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:18:46 +0000

Well if this is not the confirmation the world needed that we are in a recession:

The drop in porn rentals and sales is worrisome on several fronts: Till now, porn has been a recession-proof business. Further, with the country already in a dispirited mood, the fact that porn has gone limp may indicate a true plunge in consumer confidence. DVD porn is down between 10% and 30%, depending on which nook and cranny of the business you scrutinize.

Read all about it in Variety -Hard times ahead as porn goes soft?

Interesting Article

A.J. — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 13:20:46 +0000

The Biggest Business Blunders Ever is an interesting article from Forbes.com.

The stories span industries from technology to real estate. Market miscalculations, short-term thinking and rotten ethics are the broad themes. Taken together, the collective devastation of these miscues in current dollar value creeps into the trillions.

Then go through the accompanying pictures. Learn from their mistakes

Then follow-up with The Biggest Risks To Your Business.

Clients look to Strategy Firms to Play Prominent Role in IT Decisions

A.J. — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 00:15:47 +0000

For over 8 years I kept telling my employees and my clients “It’s NOT the computers, dummy!” And Kennedy Information Research has published a report that confirms what I’ve been doing.

IT consulting firms are likely to get squeezed out as business issues become a more important component to IT strategy and planning and traditional strategy firms seize the opportunity. While Strategy firms’ investments in IT strategy capabilities have achieved some success, most key IT strategy planning activities have still been left to internal organizations and the IT consulting firms. Kennedy’s research shows, however, that IT strategy is starting to become a significant growth area for certain practices within Strategy firms. Consider that information management is a critical success criterion for some companies, global sourcing decisions require coordination between IT and business operations, and that Strategy firms possess the most sophisticated risk-adjusted ROI capabilities. Since it is an attractive adjacent offering that can be added to existing proposals, IT Strategy is a natural fit that can extend capabilities and fuel additional growth for Strategy firms.

There is some satisfaction in saying, “I told you so.”

Business Advisor Online

A.J. — Mon, 19 Jun 2006 16:44:58 +0000

Here is an info-packed site for those of you starting, operating and/or closing a small business: Business Advisor Online. You can find industry-specific information in Retail, Manufacturing/ Construction, Services, Wholesale/Distribution and Professional Services.

A quick review of the Business Advisor Online Site shows that you can easily access hundreds of high quality Articles, White Papers, and Business Management Tools, as well as links directly to relevant information on other sites. Each of these has a brief summary letting you know what to expect and every article is rated in several different ways to tell you what type of information it contains.

When I stared browsing the white papers, I lost track of time and started searching different keyword combinations to see what would come up. And wouldn’t you know it, I came across information I could use. Any site that gives me actionable new information is okay by me. As a point of disclosure, several of my own whitepapers are on the site.

Best Small Companies

A.J. — Wed, 19 Oct 2005 15:48:19 +0000

200 of the best small companies, with “small” defined as revenues between $5 million and $750 million (I should be so small . The 200 Best Small Companies at Forbes.com.