According to Makino, a global provider of advanced machining technology, companies doing things the same way they have been doing them for the last 10 to 15 years are probably in a “recurring uniform trap,” or “RUT,” while the global market is passing them by.

Why do something differently? Productivity is a big reason. A 21st century equation explains what productivity requirements will be for the future; the concept

being half the number of people, making twice as much money, but doing three times the amount of work.

In manufacturing, this concept is coming true today. Companies are looking under every rock for opportunities to improve productivity, increase efficiency and lower costs.

In many machine shops, machining centers sit idle while manual work is still being performed. By doing things this way, the companies are not getting the most out of their machine nor their personnel investment.

In today’s competitive environment, companies must identify if they are stuck in a RUT. In order to improve, they must be willing to step outside their comfort zones and create solutions.

Culture change takes place gradually, and everyone, especially the people who are out on the floor, must first have a high level of confidence that new technology will work and work reliably before they embrace it. Reliable, high-performance machines not only produce results but also eliminate your business RUT.

So far you have been following my advice and mailing to the same list more
than once. At some point you find lists that will produce returns continually, but you notice that you are receiving more returns than when you started mailing to those lists.

You may see things like “Undeliverable as Addressed” or “Forwarding Order Expired.” Every time you mail to an address and that prospect has moved or cannot be found for any reason, you have just paid for the postage with no possibility of getting a response.

Obviously it is a pretty big waste of money to continue to mail to this address, but what do you do about it? You could simply go into the list of names that you have purchased and delete the returns. No more bad addresses, no more wasted postage, right? That is one option but there is a better way to handle the situation.

The US Postal Service has an NCOA (National Change of Address) System that a limited number of companies are licensed to access. These companies are able to take the list that you have purchased, or compiled yourself, and check it against the USPS system. You will receive a report that will let you know if anyone on your list has moved, gone out of business, or even if the zip code that contact was in was changed by the Post Office itself.  Along with the report you will receive a new copy of your list that has been cleaned and updated.

The cost for having your list checked is very economical (about $5.00 per thousand records) and will allow you to keep getting your message out to as many people in your list as possible.

At times you can see up to a 10% undeliverable rate, and it can even be higher on older lists that you have been using for a while. Average is more like 5% undeliverable so let’s take a look at the numbers at that rate.

If you mail 10,000 and get 5% back for bad addresses: 10,000 x .05 = 500 pieces.

You will have paid postage on 500 pieces that did not reach their destination.

So if you mail to your list again without cleaning it you have just wasted: 500 x $0.23 = $115.00.

If you were to NCOA that list at a rate of $5.00 per thousand you would have spent: 10 x $5.00 = $50.00.

So you have three choices when faced with a list that needs cleaning:

1.  Spend hours deleting every return that you receive from your list.

2.  Waste $115.00 or more in postage every time you mail to that list.

3.  Have the list checked by an NCOA service and get back in touch with customers that may have moved, for around one tenth the cost.

The NCOA service is the easiest and most effective way to keep your postage costs down.

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What a letdown. Five articulate, highly educated, well-dressed presenters, armed with shiny animated slideshows, droned on and on and on and on. It didn’t matter what they were saying because the audience wouldn’t really hear any of it anyway. Around me, eyes closed, and others pretended to take notes while playing solitaire on their laptops. I wondered how in the world I could help these presenters. I also thought about tripling my consultation fee on the spot.

All presenters believe their words are important, and they are. But if you don’t give an audience a good reason to listen, they will quickly tune you out. In an age where sound bite is king, cutting through the clutter is more important now than ever.

Consider the following 7 points before stepping into the limelight:

The Take-Home

No matter how many years and dollars you’ve spent on research and development, no matter the technical complexity of your subject matter, when speaking to a group your entire presentation must boil down to one key point. If you had to sum up your talk in 10 seconds, what would you want your audience to know?

Ask Yourself the Right Questions
What you think a listener needs to know is not always what that listener wants to know. Put yourself in your listener’s seat and ask the following questions: So what? Who cares? What does this mean to the listener, reader or viewer and me? Until you frame your messages from your audience’s perspective, they won’t care. If they don’t care, you’ll never receive their full attention.

Talk in nuggets

Powerful communicators who can hold attention have something in common with each other. They’ve learned that speaking is for the ear, not for the eye. Instead of preparing a presentation as a research paper jammed with minutiae, condense complicated information into bite-sized nuggets and present only the information needed to move an audience toward the desired outcome.

Present, Don’t Read

Is your presentation written like a term paper? Is it written in sentences? Do you allow room for pauses so the listener can participate? People don’t converse in long-winded sentences. We speak in short phrases. So write in phrases or bullet points. You will then find yourself talking more and reading less. Also, take time to pause between key thoughts so your listeners can digest what you’re saying.

Paint the Picture

Explaining the features of your product may be important, but explanation without example has no meaning. People can’t remember all of the facts, but they do remember impressions. By comparing and contrasting, providing analogies and visual images, your presentation will come to life.

Slideshow or Presentation?

No one comes to a presentation to see a slideshow. They come to hear a knowledgeable person share ideas and talk. Visuals should reinforce what you’re saying, not serve as your script. Instead of preparing the slides first, prepare your remarks then create appropriate supporting visuals. Let your words drive the visuals instead of the other way around.

Nix the Jargon

Just because your audience is packed with colleagues or you’re providing information for an industry trade publication doesn’t mean you should talk jargon. Get rid of the buzzwords and throw away phrases. Rather, look for opportunities to put your words in context by humanizing your material and telling stories or anecdotes.

As I worked with the oncologist presenters and brought many of these points to their attention, they worried that simplifying the information would harm their credibility. Quite the opposite. By making an effort to connect with their audience rather than throw too much information at them, they created a focused, central theme with real-life examples that excited and inspired listeners. And in the end, the cancer drug they believed in made it to market and received a lot of good press!

Corporate Awards Benefits: A company’s success depends on its employees and their abilities. With the incentive of a corporate award or corporate gift you attract and retain current employees to pursue for more in the workplace. Corporate awards are great for:

• Direction
• Talent Retention
• Sales Goals
• Public Relations
• A Direct affect on the company’s bottom line.

Things to Consider when giving a Corporate Award: How many times do you give the award? Most companies have an annual corporate dinner or function where the years corporate awards are given out. This would be the best time to show your appreciation.
What type of recognition do you want the award to represent? You definitely want to make this award stand out and make it represent the kind of hard work that was accomplished. What kind of statement do you want to the corporate award to make? You want it to make it so that everyone else will strive for that award next year. A statement shows gratitude but also envy.

From the small business to the major corporation, corporate awards will have an increased performance level. No company should underestimate the power of corporate awards. Your business will gain a critical view of your operations and challenge to improve the business and company as a whole.

Benefits of Corporate Gifts: As major holidays are approaching, many companies will be thinking about giving your customers (and possibly employees) corporate gifts. Sending corporate gifts does not always have to be thought about during the holidays. Many other occasions such as referrals, completion of a project, customer’s birthday or even a business anniversary can be acceptable times to send a gift. When sending the gift, make sure that you add a personal touch, as this can go a long way. Include a hand-written note, or wrap the gift yourself. You can even present the gift in person to give it that extra touch. There are not a lot of do or don’t when sending a corporate gift but the key is to make sure that the added touch is there to show the person that you are grateful for what has been accomplished.

Companies should not underestimate the power of business awards and gifts. Not only do corporate awards show true appreciation, it makes other employees strive to become a standout in their field. Sending corporate gifts also reassures your thanks to the employee or client that you appreciate the hard work and dedication that it takes to run the business. These kind gestures will not only build your relationships but it will help you build the company by utilizing its maximum potential.

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With your company hosting the corporate event, you would have decided whether to plan the event yourself or to hire the services of professional Corporate Event Managers. Of course, you may feel that most of you have planned some event or the other; a meeting with your business associates, a get-together with friends and family, and so organizing a corporate event would be the same. A corporate event is not similar to organizing get-togethers and meetings. The role of corporate is not small and any mistake on this front could cost you dearly.

There are many advantages in hiring Corporate Event Managers. They bring in a number of assets, skills, services, and economical advantages that only with the experience and expertise of professional Corporate Event Managers.

Corporate Event Managers- Adding Value to Corporate Events

Whatever the objective of your corporate event, they require some value additions that are dependent on Corporate Event Managers:
• Corporate Event Managers are adept in visualizing what type of event will suit your objective. They have extensive experience in presenting creative suggestions and various alternatives, as well as having a vision of what the event should look like. A professional event manager also has the ability to execute, successfully, the vision of the client, and alternatively present a vision that will meet the desires of the client.
• Implementation of the vision involves coordination of goods and services. Corporate Event Managers have the experience and knowledge of all the goods and services that will be required to implement the vision, including location, registration, food and beverage, food service, entertainment, interactive games, audio/visual support, speakers, decoration, complementary gifts, security, insurance, ushers, transportation, parking arrangements, – the list is endless.
• Corporate Event Managers are very adept in planning and coordination of the efforts of a large number of people who are involved in organizing your corporate event.

Corporate event managers make sure that you fully enjoy the event without bothering about the implementation side of the corporate events!

Are you feeling a great connection to the meeting? Are you feeling enthusiastic about being in attendance at the meeting? Are you fully present at the meeting? Are you deeply tuned in and listening with your heart and your head? Are you inspired to co-create, participate, and contribute? Or, are you ready to fall asleep, or count the minutes of what you feel is wasted time?

My experience in my two plus decades of being in business and in coaching business clients around the world is that the system of meetings, clearly, must change. Most meetings don’t include participant involvement and actually serve to tune people out rather than tune them in, and as a result, the intention of the meeting falls short of its purpose. In other words, they really can be a waste of precious company time.

The process of Meeting Alignment, that we’ve been teaching companies around the world, has allowed them to use a systematic process that engages people in meetings and creates a desire for them to contribute and fully participate in these business meetings.

The Meeting Alignment Process and the results it creates include:

A desire to co-create: The purpose of a meeting isn’t to get across “your” agenda; it shifts to sharing your thoughts and hearing fully the thoughts and ideas of others to co-create the meeting purpose and actions.

Deep tuning in: Most meetings involve people talking and listening to themselves. The Meeting Alignment Process teaches people to fully listen with their hearts and to listen beyond the words to what is not said, to emotions, and to fully hear others.

The Meeting Alignment Process teaches techniques of being non-judgmental, so that people can fully hear and support each other and let new ideas IN vs. rule out and defend against why things won’t work. It produces a safe environment in which people feel encouraged to participate.

Non-attachment: Many people think meetings are about a specific outcome occurring – the meeting holder’s outcome… that’s a surefire way to alienate people and result in them NOT wanting to support you. The Meeting Alignment Process allows for each person to give up “their” outcome and allows the meeting and solutions to unfold for the good of the entire group.

What’s wrong: Most meetings focus on problems, fixing problems, or informing people of change. The meeting needs to come from a place of asking what IS working and involve what IS the right type questions. These questions form the basis of creating a positive energy flow and opening up creativity. It’s the basic principle of encouraging a sense of positivity rather than negativity.

Framework of questions: Questions in this process focus on what is working, why it works, what would be the perfect ideal vision, and what isn’t quite right yet, and then, coming up with resources and inspired actions to create the outcome of the meeting.

Feel good! When people attend a meeting where EVERY idea is praised and contributions rewarded and people thanked and really appreciated for their contributions, this raises self-esteem, confidence, and morale. People want to participate in meetings that make them feel good, not only about the company they work for, but about themselves and their role in it.

This process is effective in all companies and will work with all size groups. It requires a shift in the employer and leaders’ thinking, from managing and bossing and telling to coaching and co-creating and sharing. The effect is profound. People treated with value and respect, rise up to challenges. They are more excited to solve problems, participate in the mission and vision of the company, and create more productivity. They feel that the company’s success is their success. It motivates them to greater achievement.

Companies following a systematic process of creating a Meeting Alignment Process, take morale out of the toilet bowl fast. Their employees are happier, their retention rates rise, and the corporate culture shifts to one of enthusiasm.

A beneficial win-win situation is created and everybody gets to bask in success.

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Accounts receivable factoring helps in acquiring cash for the product or the services rendered. It results in immediate cash inflow without creating any debt or transferring the business ownership. Accounts receivables are the most values assets for any company. It is one of the mode for increasing sales and expanding business. The payment is done of the 80% of the invoice value. The 20% of the value is kept as reserved and is paid after deducting the fee once the amount on the invoice is due.

This practice if accounts receivable factoring is most suitable for small and medium business owners. Due to accounts receivable factoring small and medium business owners are able to generate cash and avoid the debt trap. It also helps in representing string financial status and avoids interest on any loans if otherwise taken.

Accounts receivable factoring also results in increased working capital as receivables are conditional on customer’s creditworthiness and not the business owners. It helps to avoid loan repayment, transferring business equity, engaging the assets, and also avoid yearly loan review process. For a small business owner accounts receivable factoring represents gaining working capital without overtaking any debt or loan. It is also a mode to increase sales without any repayment tensions for any loans etc. Thus business is able to meet demands and the circle keeps on auto-rotating as accounts receivable factoring increases sales and increased sales asks for more money to complete more orders.

Accounts receivable factoring also provides relief from non-paying clients or slow paying clients. It generates more sales due to increased orders. It also offers flexible funding program to help heighten the sales graph and take vendor discounts due to availability of cash.

This practice of accounts receivable factoring generates cash to fund the payrolls and taxes due. The funds thus generated also help to increase the inventory or buy new equipments, tools, etc to flourish the business.

The availability of cash helps small business owners to negotiate for discounts from their vendors and suppliers. It also helps to reduce book keeping, depositing checks, monitoring collection process, and preparing reports for collections. Brokers or agencies also provide their services for accounts receivable factoring. They help the business owners to manage their collections, payments, generating more cash and managing their cash inflow process.

They will look and all side of your business and find its strength and its weaknesses and then draw up a plan that is right for your business. Business consulting companies will give you the answers you need for long term revenue and profit and will consistently work with you and your employees on how to use the tools they provide for you, so you and your employees will have a profitable business for years to come. Just because you open a business does not mean you know how to run it, at least to the point of being open long enough for you to see a profit from your investment.

There may be a simple plan that doesn’t cost too much out of pocket expense, but may bring more customers into your business, business consultants can give you marketing tips such as web site ads and promotions, direct mail, or a half page ad in the yellow pages. You too may have come up with this idea all on your own however, unlike business consulting companies, you have no idea which one of these idea’s would be the better people getter, or how to strategically place your ad were it will get the best results.

Once you decide to hire a business consulting company, which one are you going to choose? Searching on the internet will get you thousands of hits, but then what? Of course all business consulting companies will claim they will do a good job for you and your business. Many will claim to provide their advanced expertise in all categories of business and marketing techniques.

While working for you will be their main focus. While it’s a good idea to hire a business consulting company, but your not sure how to go about finding a good consultant that will work to make your business profitable and not take all your money and vanish. The best thing to do is go online and search for the right website that will give you information about business consulting companies and how you can get in touch with them. You will have to register to a specific site and give them the information about your business so they can match you with the best consulting companies suited to your needs.

Most of these sites are low cost and using someone to help you find good business consulting companies is worth it. They do all the hunting for you and look for all the qualities you’re looking for in a business consultant. The business consultant company you hire can take a big burden off your shoulders. They will take the worry out of what to do next to improve your business.

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As a small business owner, your company most likely represents a significant portion of your net worth.  That’s why it’s crucial not to let litigation wash it away when the time comes to convert your years of hard work into cash.

Selling a business involves substantial amounts of money and a wide range of issues including warranties and representations, disclosures and contractual obligations.  Consequently, there are many opportunities for litigation to arise.  Not only is litigation highly unpleasant and disruptive to your lifestyle, it is also very, very expensive – even if you win.

But other than wishing, hoping and praying, what’s a small business owner to do? Rather than complaining try something more constructive. Here are eight strategies to follow when selling your business that can help minimize litigation issues.

1.  Honesty is the best insurance policy. Tell the truth about your business.  Do not attempt to hide any problems or issues that, if left undisclosed, might be the basis for future litigation. Rest assured that the cost of disclosure in a transaction is very small when compared to the cost of litigation for non-disclosure.

2.  Develop a confidential business review.  This is a high-quality and comprehensive document that describes your business and its background.  Within this document, clearly disclose any negative issues that are involved in the business.  Not only will disclosure reduce litigation risks, it will also add to your credibility with potential buyers and save you time by eliminating those who are unwilling to accept the realities of your business.

3.  Accurately communicate historical financial results. Do so in a manner that demonstrates the earning power of your business.  Ideally, this information will be presented in a summarized format that recasts your discretionary and certain other expenses to show EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization).

4.  Require your buyer to go through extensive due diligence.  Due diligence is the process by which a buyer conducts an independent investigation of the information you have provided about your business. The written due diligence materials should be incorporated into the final legal documents to minimize your litigation risks.

5.  Assemble a strong team of experienced professionals.  Your accountant and your attorney will play key roles, and their expertise will reduce litigation risks.  You may also benefit from the assistance of an experienced intermediary, broker, or merger and acquisition firm that specializes in selling privately owned businesses. However, before hiring an intermediary, make certain that they do not charge up-front fees and that they have a litigation-free track record.

6.  Ensure that closing documents are thorough and complete.  Not only must these documents contain appropriate legal language, they also must anticipate and address potential disagreements that may occur after closing – disagreements on issues like equipment or inventory values and condition, collection of accounts receivable and more.  These issues are easily addressed during the courtship phase with a buyer, but they can cause major problems after the transaction is closed and the honeymoon phase is over.

7.  Be careful with employment, transition and consulting agreements. If you enter into longer term agreements with your buyer, make sure the terms are entirely consistent with your retirement plans.  Otherwise you run the risk of being unwilling or unable to perform your obligations, and that can lead to litigation.

8.  Maintain confidentiality throughout the entire selling process. Although confidentiality will not directly protect you from litigation, it will help minimize the risk of losing valuable employees, customers and vendors during the process. One of the best ways to avoid litigation is to help ensure your buyer’s success, because that success significantly reduces the basis for damage claims.

The goal is a successful, worry-free transition.  Take the time to recognize and act on the many opportunities you have to minimize your litigation risks and reap the benefits later.

Understanding the Culture

This is possibly the most complex area and takes time to understand. Western norms of doing business cannot be applied in places such as India and China. Without a good understanding of the culture it’s easy for things to go wrong. This is where it can be useful to go on a cultural training course. A good course will tell you what to expect, how to react and plan strategies to deal with different ways of working.

Selecting the Right Projects to Go Offshore

Some companies are taking a blanket approach to their offshore adventure, expecting to dispense with their internal IT development entirely. The problem is that not all projects lend themselves to offshore development. Good candidates for going offshore are typically those projects that are either very well defined with very little change expected or repetitive work. Projects that require a large amount of customer interaction or are likely to have a lot of changes during development are not suitable.

Defining the Scope

Offshore projects need to be defined in more detail than those run at home are. You will get exactly what you ask for including all mistakes and errors, whether obvious or not. Make sure everything is written down and never make assumptions about what is obvious or implied. A spin off benefit many companies have experienced in this area is an improvement in the quality of their functional and technical specifications.

Getting What You Pay For

It is important to check whether the people and services you pay for are what you get. There is a tendency to provide cheaper solutions. Agree what you are buying and check on a regular basis that is what you are getting. Ask for peoples CV’s to ensure that they have the relevant experience and qualifications. Make regular visits to check that the working environment and equipment is as expected.

Effective Communication

This is probably the single most important aspect of offshore working. A lot of effort should be put into setting up a good communications structure. It cannot be assumed that the correct information is passed to the right people and it is important to make sure that it is to avoid problems later. One solution is to have a company manager offshore, at least initially, to ensure that everything runs smoothly.

Monitoring Progress

The terms “offshore development” and “black box” should not be heard in the same sentence. This is a concept that will not work. Offshore projects need managing or at least monitoring. It is important to have short milestones and frequent deliverables in any offshore project so it’s easier to monitor progress and quality and take timely corrective action. The onus is on the customer to monitor progress because the offshore company will seldom mention problems or delays in order to save face.

Common Pitfalls

i Not a quick fix budget cut. It takes from three months to a year to completely hand the work over to an offshore partner and during this period costs will rise, therefore don’t assume savings during this period.

ii Employing arms and legs rather than brains. It is common place to find that you will be assigned a qualified and experienced developer and several inexperienced trainees or students. The developer is expected to coach and guide the inexperienced staff to deliver packages of work. These people are usually unable to make sound technical decisions and in some of the worst examples have only a rudimentary knowledge of the technology they are working with. This can lead to poor quality and extended lead times.

iii Lack of accountability. It is important to have a single point of contact that can make decisions and get you want you need. All to often the person in this role has no power and is only there as a token to keep the customer happy.

iv Onshore experience. Do not rely on telephone and e-mail communication only. It is necessary for key staff from the offshore partner to work onshore in order for them to understand the company culture and what is expected of them. This can typically last between three and six months.

Anecdotal evidence from companies with two or more years experience in offshore outsourcing is that given time it can work and savings can be made but be prepared for the years of effort and a large up-front investment.

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