For the past month, it seems that a majority of calls made or e-mails sent came back with a “let’s discuss/schedule/do that in January”.  I don’t know about your business, but “waiting” for next month to start something, anything doesn’t fit well with my personality or strategy. I can assure you that I am not sitting idle – I can and am working ON my business.

If things are slow right now, it is time to focus on setting your goals for 2012.  Take a look at what you have accomplished in 2011 and decide where you want to go in 2012.  Do you want to grow the business? Okay. How? How much? What do you need to do? How many new customers do you need? From where? Can you get your existing customers to do more?

Take time to set goals, make a plan, and do the groundwork for what you want to accomplish.  It is a great use of the “downtime” you may have. Get specific about what you want to achieve – do you want $1 million in sales in 2012? How about a 10% increase in sales and profits over your 2011 results? Know what you want – set the goal so that you know if you are making progress!

Don’t waste valuable time waiting for others to be “ready” to do something.  Invest your time preparing your business to respond WHEN customers and prospects are ready to act.  Make your plan for what you are going to do on January 2nd. Know who you are going to call.  What customers you want to touch base with. Think. Plan. And DO! get ready to hit the ground running (and selling) in 2012. It is worth every minute you invest.

(To learn more about goal setting, check out my new e-book 10 Minute Success – Goals! on Amazon.com just $2.99. http://tinyurl.com/10minutesuccess-goals)

Each time I hear the statistic quoted that only one percent of the start-up businesses advised by government small business programs succeed (99% of them fail), I cringe. No other “industry” would be allowed to continue with a “success rate” that abysmal.

The truth of the matter lies in the “business model” of government in business, in which businesses are being advised and provided programs by well-meaning and well-intentioned “advisors” who rarely have experience in start-ups, small business, or the type of business issues that these fledging and/or struggling businesses need help with. So with few exceptions, the true issue is that the businesses are not being given the real picture and current, timely, relevant insight into what it means to be in business, run a business, and compete in the real-time of the day-to-day world they operate in under the realities and circumstances of today’s competitive, technological environment.

The well-intentioned and experienced government advisors and ancillary programs used to support the business start-ups are as entrenched and rooted in established programs as any other part of the government (It is, after all, “the government”). Big business and textbook methods are all too frequently used to lecture and provide seminars to would-be entrepreneurs and business owners. Textbooks, case studies, and corporate answers are cumbersome, time consuming, and burdensome to individuals and entities that are in need of innovative business models, quick turnarounds, fast answers, and practical solutions. These new businesses are cash strapped, time constrained and need savvy insights into how to market on the Internet and build a “buzz” about their brand. They aren’t interested in hearing why no one will do business with you because you are “too young,” “a woman,” or any other stereotype that is being played on the ol’ eight track of how business used to be done.

Not every governmental office or advisor “doesn’t get it” but too many of them don’t. Oh, and then there are the ones who are there to get it for themselves; this is the second category of government advisors my clients have encountered: The ones volunteering with the government so they can find the clients for their daytime company and the product or service they have to sell. The “day job” with the government is the SIDELINE! Talk about conflicts of interest! You may be a volunteer, but that doesn’t mean this is a marketing opportunity for your business!

Back to the Businesses that Need Advice: Improving Success Rates

The success and capitalization of these companies are dependent upon the ability to make things happen quickly, do business well, find answers, take action, and get things right the first time. They are eager to learn and need content and programs that work.

Programs and workshops have to be formulated to teach business owners and entrepreneurs what they have to know and do now. What it means to be in business, what they have to do to make sales, what numbers mean, and where the numbers come from. Performance becomes the ability to be fully capitalized because the business becomes the source of capitalization earlier and the business is capable of working effectively and efficiently to preserve the limited capital it has available in the early stages.

Government Isn’t the Answer for Starting Small or Big Businesses … or Bailing Them Out

Government advice and programs cannot provide the ultimate answers for small or big businesses. Certainly, providing entrenched and antiquated content that has demonstrated an inability to generate success is not the mechanism to achieving different results. Change is definitely needed if a different result is desired, and more businesses are to succeed and stay in business in their first five years (and beyond). Looking to lessons learned and to successful entrepreneurs and innovative programs is definitely part of the change that is needed to revive the economy. The question is: Are start-ups and new businesses, as well as the established systems, truly ready to change or just willing to talk about it? Change requires actions different from those previously taken. So far, there’s a whole lot of talk and a lot less action.

The problem with creating meaningful change stems from a need for a platform or a foundation for building the change. The basis for change arises out of the dissatisfaction with the current state of things, whatever they may be. But along with that dissatisfaction comes a need to hold onto something familiar and not leave everything we have known behind … so change ends up not being radical, or progressive, but an incremental process, often bringing with it the burdens of the system it seeks to break free from.

Corporations with the penchant for change initiatives and program after program for “innovation” find themselves to be the casualties of the unending desire to change and the inability to successfully innovate. The spirit is often all too wiling to pursue “change” and “innovation,” only to find the body unwilling or incapable due to a physical incapacity to change. Having worked in Fortune 500 organizations, it is institutionally built into the systems to protect the infrastructure through the CYA (cover your assets) mentality.

For instance, one past project that I had the experience of watching seemed to be just what was needed: The creation of a streamlined financial reporting and forecasting tool with just-in-time, real-time management information. The requirements for this tool came from top executives, with specific metrics they wanted calculated and measured. Very few metrics had been selected-only the most meaningful, and the list was literally a single page of financial information. Eureka! The light had been seen! Then, as all things must buckle under the weight of a big corporation, each layer of management said “But what if they ask for this too later?” … and suddenly one page of information, one page of stream-line glory became 1.3 billion pieces of data that had to be collected and calculated, sorted, and manipulated. We were back to producing all the numbers from the old system in a new system that was cobbled together in a less efficient manner because it had been a prototype for a new way of business, an innovation that was killed by the entrenched processes and approaches of “We’ve always had this piece of information and although we never use it, what if we want to sometime … ”

Government and large corporations have been and continue to move forward under momentum, sometimes despite themselves. They have been set in motion and until some unexpected force changes the rules and becomes the immovable object,the course will not and does not change. Even when giants stumble and fall, even when industries tumble and collide with reality, everyone hangs on to the way it has been and says “No. We cannot allow it to change.”

So government will continue to attempt to guide small businesses in how to do business. Government will continue to compete with the small businesses it is attempting to encourage to succeed. Government will now become big business through its operations, its stake in industries, and its so-called regulations and oversight of the companies it funds, regulates, and/or otherwise has managed to reach into on the behalf of the taxpayer.

The companies the government advises through its small business programs have a one percent success/survival rate. If those were cars manufactured and put on the road, it would be criminal. Well, now that the government is in the automotive business, let’s just hope they will be more successful at manufacturing cars than they have been at producing businesses.

Author: Lea A. Strickland, MBA CMA CFM CBM GMC

Copyright ©2009 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.

All Rights Reserved

As researchers, scientists and inventors, we are often caught up in ideas and their potential. As researchers, scientists and inventors, we are often caught up in ideas and their potential. We think about concepts we are interested in and how they can be practically applied. We think about the changes we can make, and see opportunities in the fields of research that excite us. We think we have the best ideas and that those ideas will be great technology and products. We see how these items can change the way the world lives. As we explore the ideas and our research proceeds, we see more and more potential.

Ask the Customer

What we forget about or overlook in the excitement of discovery is simple and complex: So what? Who cares? What does the customer really want? When it comes down to the bottom line of commercializing research or technology, it is rarely about how innovative the product is. It may in fact be a “better mousetrap,” but if the old mousetraps work for the marketplace, the customer, then they may decide they don’t need a better one. Your mousetrap may be more innovative; it may be the best mousetrap ever designed; it may also require users to do something differently. It may, in other words, solve a problem that no one really has, and the old mousetraps work just fine. They are cheap, easy, and do the job.

The customer says to you and your new mousetrap: “So what? The one I have works just fine. Who cares that the new design is “better”? I just need one that works.”

Of Diapers and Mousetraps

A new disposable diaper was launched in the marketplace this year (2010). The new diaper is more absorbent, thinner and easier to use-but much more expensive. The marketplace has not rushed to the store to buy the “better” diaper. In the current economy, the increased cost has not overcome that the current diapers are “good enough” for the customer. The marketplace says “Great idea … but too expensive,” which is bad news for a great idea.

Based upon the lack of market adoption (usage by the customer) of this new innovative diaper, many business experts and commentators say that innovation is over and that price is once again “king.” I don’t necessarily agree. Innovation for the sake of introducing a new retail product may no longer be an easy sale, but innovating to solve a real market problem and improve products that still need improvement, and understanding what the customer wants is still the key. Innovation will continue to be needed, but it must be done with an understanding of the customer and in the context that it is not innovation at any price. Innovation for the customer is the bottom line.

Innovation for the Customer: Value for the Price

Particularly in this price-sensitive economy, companies must become more focused on the consumer. They need to understand the value for the dollar in deciding which good ideas to pursue, how much to invest, timing, and the price the market can pay-or is willing to pay-for the innovation.

For decades, cost and price have been part of the equation in introducing new products, developing new technology and seeking alternative solutions to existing problems. However, in the last 10-20 years, the cost/price/value element of new product development has been less prominent in the analysis, because consumers and businesses had the ability to purchase and spend pretty much what they wanted, on whatever they wanted. Now for most individuals and organizations, spending is a concern. “How much for what and why do I need it?” comes into the buying decision on a daily basis, because the economy, credit constraints, job losses and overall perception about the future is more pessimistic than it has been for decades.

Time for Innovation

In a down economy, there is room for innovation, new ideas, new products and new technology. However, they must be customer focused. They must solve a pressing problem, and must be created for customers who are willing and able to pay for the innovation at a price that includes profit. Moving research from the lab to the marketplace will require an in-depth, carefully researched understanding of the customer and what they want to buy.

It is always time for innovation; however, it is also time to return to the sound business practice of understanding how innovation can be applied to solve a pervasive consumer need. The days of innovation for innovation’s sake are the “good ol’ days.” Today we innovate to solve problems, meet needs and answer the questions: “So what? Who Cares? How much is it worth?” – to the customer.

Author: Lea A. Strickland, MBA CMA CFM CBM GMC

Copyright ©2010 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.

All Rights Reserved

As individuals and businesses, during times of economic downturns and tight cash flows, we naturally fall into patterns of managing our pennies and dollars. We look to cut costs. We analyze our processes to avoid spending on “unnecessary” items and we put off doing things that can wait, are “nice to do” not “need to do,” and generally guard what cash we have. The problem then becomes our definitions of “unnecessary,” “nice to do” and “things that can wait”.

Timing and Necessity

When we look at our budgets and the expenditures we are making or plan to make, we are essentially making trade-offs. We can do option A, B and C or projects F and G. We can invest in marketing and training or we can buy a new piece of equipment or make payroll. Budgets are always about the plan we have for those trade-offs (in good times and bad; we just have more or less resources to allocate). So when it comes time to make those trade-off decisions and times are tough, tight or even desperate, it becomes harder to evaluate the options and find a balance between NOW and sometime in the future. Between getting through TODAY and framing decisions in the context of today plus the future impact.

In a recent workshop, a participant (let’s call him Jack) asked about how he could have done things differently. He was trying to work with one of his outside advisors, let’s say it was his attorney. He didn’t understand what the attorney tried to explain to him; in fact this was the third attorney the firm had provided to handle his company’s needs. Jack wasn’t sure the law firm had all the information, but “to save money” he didn’t want to meet with the new attorney and Jack didn’t want to call on another advisor whom he would also have to pay an hourly rate to oversee the project and talk with the attorney. Time was of essence on the project and budgets were tight. The attorney proceeded as Jack had directed without meeting with Jack first. Then Jack sent the attorney some more information. Then the attorney realized that a key document that Jack referred to wasn’t in the file.

So the attorney made the request for the missing document. (Now keep in mind this is the third attorney from the firm that has worked with Jack). The law firm has passed all previous correspondence from one attorney to the other, to the other. A short conversation with the latest attorney could ensure that the lawyer has everything relevant to the issue and a clear understanding of the deliverable, but being pennywise and fee foolish, Jack decides that it is less costly to not meet with the new attorney and let the work proceed.

The attorney went to work on the agreement that was needed based upon the available information. After numerous hours of working on the document, it was sent to Jack, who happily presented the agreement to the other party … only to find out it didn’t contain critical information on intellectual property rights in addition to few other items that were crucial negotiation points. Jack was irate that the attorney didn’t deal with those items appropriately, and he had a substantial invoice for an unusable document and a delay in making a deal.

Who Is Responsible for the Oversight?

In this example, who is at fault for the right information not getting into the agreement: The attorney who relied on the limited information that Jack provided, or Jack, who wouldn’t meet with the attorney to make sure the deliverable was clear and all the relevant information was provided to the attorney? The attorney? The client? Both?

When it comes down to the bottom-line the business owner is accountable for his decision to save money and not meet with the attorney to make sure there was a clear understanding of what was needed. A 30 minute investment of time spent talking to the new attorney would have ensured that the major points at least were covered…and if they weren’t them the attorney would have been accountable for the errors.

Penny and Deliverable Savvy

Sometimes to save money you have to invest money. As a business owner or an individual, you weigh the risk of investing an extra half hour, hour or several hours to make sure something is done right the first time, versus having to have it done again…and again…and again. Sometimes the investment is visible – how much you will spend to meet with the new attorney. Sometimes it is less obvious when it is utilizing the time of existing employees who are paid a salary and repeat a task over and over again until it is right.

When we look at decisions to decide what is “necessary” to do. It is important, even critical, to make sure you are looking at all the variables and the impact of not getting something right. If you are deciding whether to do something in-house or outsource, you have to consider the impact the project/activity will have on total operations, what degree of control you need to be sure it is “right”, and the total costs will you spend more time coordinating with an vendor than if you were managing the project in-house? Will quality, delivery, and other aspects differ in-house versus outsourced? Do you even know?

The impact of saving money is significant. A dollar saved is one you don’t have to earn. Avoiding costs is also a good strategy, but not at the expense of getting the right deliverable. Do it once. Do it right. Will always be a better investment than having to do a task over, and over, and over again.

Author: Lea A. Strickland, MBA CMA CFM CBM GMC

Copyright ©2010 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.

All Rights Reserved

Real World Case

A computer server was purchased from “Company A” for a small business, with the desire to use this technology to deliver its services:

• Internet access
• Access to and development of client file “content”
• Online communication with its clients
• Web conferencing for client and vendor meetings

The small business invested 10% of its profits in the server, recognizing it needed to upgrade its systems and desiring reliability. The small business also paid for a multi-year warranty on parts and labor, real-time monitoring, and a service contract. This definitely seemed to be a wise investment for a company that does its business via the computer more than 70% of the time.

From the beginning, things didn’t go as planned. Files weren’t transferred properly. Software wasn’t installed, and the business’ existing e-mail, calendars, and contacts were scrambled. After 3 weeks of downtime, debugging and incredible frustration, the chaos seemed to settle down … then came the “glitches” and loss of Internet connectivity. The server would shut down, different programs wouldn’t work at varying times; it was one thing after another … for months and months.

Exercising the warranty became an issue. Company A wanted to take the computer for five days, which meant shutting down the business for those days. As that was not an option, finally a day was set for the parts to be installed on-site, but the parts were defective! Yet another day had to be scheduled, and in the meantime the server continued to randomly shut down. Finally, the business was able to schedule another day for parts to be installed; but this time, the installation would be performed by another company. At this point the customer had enough of the “service” from Company A. Company A now held the warranty on the hardware, but had lost the customer.

The customer was willing to pay another service provider to provide service, even though labor was covered under the original warranty on the server. Why? Because the customer no longer trusted Company A to provide service or do the right thing when it came to customer satisfaction.

The saga didn’t end there. When the new computer service company arranged to pick up and install the replacement parts, the customer was required to sign for the parts, guaranteeing that the defective parts would be returned by a certain date and time or the customer would be charged for the parts. Why? Because Company A had ordered the replacement parts at an earlier date when they had planned to take the computer for five days.

Defective Customer Service

What went wrong in the relationship? Everyone knows that-like it or not-there will be instances when a defective product will be sold or when an employee will make a mistake in executing a project (e.g., not transferring every computer file and installing all the programs on the new computer). The customer service issue was neither taking responsibility for the problems nor rectifying them. Compounding problems by not stepping up to make it right for the customer makes a customer feel disrespected and that the company has the customer’s money and can walk away. An apology and a “we’ll make it right” go a long way toward keeping a customers business when situations go awry.

Additionally, how you manage your business internally should not become a problem for the customer. If you lose money due to a warranty issue, it isn’t the customer’s responsibility. If your employees make mistakes that require additional time and effort to make corrections, it isn’t the customer’s fault. If your team isn’t trained so that one person can handle a project solo and it takes the entire team to do one project and you didn’t plan for that in the project costs, it isn’t the customer’s problem. The internal project management, costs, and issues should be just that: INTERNAL. Learn from what went wrong and make sure that you acknowledge and hold your organization accountable, or else history will repeat itself, again and again. But not with a wronged customer, or anyone that customer knows or that the customer’s friends know, or their friends know … because it will get around.

Effective Customer Service Grows Revenues

Revenue growth comes from satisfied customers, even those for whom things have initially gone wrong on a project or with a product. Personally, I’m loyal to a couple of companies for whom things have gone wrong with their products; without hesitation these companies stepped up and made things right, with no attitude, no question, and a new product. I’m loyal because when there was an issue with their product they dealt with it immediately, decisively, and with respect for me as a customer. I’ve purchased their products for years and will continue to do so. I like being a valued customer and doing business with companies that recognize that the lifetime value of my business is far greater than a one-time sale of a product where something went wrong.

I’ve purchased a lot of technology products for personal and business use. Of all those purchases, two stand out, and both because things went wrong with a product. One did things RIGHT with their customer service and I still do business with them today. The other? Well, you can read between the lines. One understood how to grow revenues in the long term with effective customer service. The other is best left as a case study.

Copyright ©2009 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.

All rights reserved

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• Business Plan Basics – What You Need to Know Now!
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• Profiles In Success – Real World Lessons from Successful Organizations
• Funding Your Organization – Asking for the Money

These are not theoretical, but practical programs that are focused on the information that will make a difference in how you lead your organizations, allocate resources, and more!  Program content is made available in a variety of formats – live events, webinars, print materials, and facilitated peer advisory groups.

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Not having technical/scientific expertise would require this founder to hire as an employee a person with the credentials to serve as the project manager, or principal investigator. To qualify for the grant, the principal investigator would be required to be at least 51% employed by this company AND not employed full-time anywhere else.

The Dilemma: Learning Curves

The client needed to learn many things in a very short space of time:

- grant application processes;

- how to define the scope of its technology;

- research project planning;

- commercialization planning; AND

- compliance with the regulations related to these areas.

The small business grant proposal requires a small business to have the ability to both oversee the research and execute a substantial portion (50–67% depending on the phase/stage) of the project. This means that at the time the grant is awarded, the recipient organization must have employees—not consultants, subcontractors, or independent contractors—to perform the research.

The organization seeking a small business grant has to be able to execute the research and meet a number of different eligibility, technical and financial requirements and capabilities. When a proposing organization lacks the technical expertise and wants to overstate (at best) or misrepresent (at worst) the company’s organizational capabilities, then as a consultant/advisor it is important to be able to steer the client in the proper direction. When clients don’t cooperate, then the advisor is in a precarious position between the client and what is legally, regulatory and ethically mandated as actions.

In the case of a client who is overstating or misrepresenting the company’s capabilities, there are several steps for the advisor to discontinue the relationship. 

1. Discuss the rules of the road directly with the client.

2. Outline the issues and guidelines for generating a work product.

3. Draw the line! If the client won’t listen and hear what you are saying, give notice on the project.

4. Stop the project work immediately.

5. Write it off; reduce the fee, return retainers, or present a documented final bill that includes a few politely worded issues that you recommend the client address.

6. Notify: If the client was referred to you let the referring person or agency know there has been an issue (without breaching confidentiality, of course). Keep it professional and to the point.

7. If a complaint is filed against for any reason related to the project, respond promptly and with adequate documentation (again, without breaching confidentiality items) that the claim is incorrect or that the situation is being misrepresented by the filer.

8. Learn the signals. We all have instincts as to when situations or people could be risky to do business with; e.g., you may be hearing that little voice in the back of your mind saying “something’s not right about this project, client, situation…”

In the worst case scenario, it’s important as an advisor to be able to walk away whenever you get that feeling; it is usually your subconscious processing signals of body language and what is being said at an instinctive/intuitive level. If your instincts say run, then RUN! The client will likely be costly in more ways than you can imagine.

Author:  Lea A. Strickland, MBA CMA CFM CBM GMC
Copyright ©2010 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

Independent Contractor, Consultant or Business Owner

You’ve heard the old adage: the only certainties are death and taxes. Job security is no longer a given, and whether currently employed or not, we are always “on the market.” We are all free agents with skills, perseverance and a clear understanding of our capabilities; we are our own products to be packaged, priced, and marketed to qualified prospects. Not only are you the product, it may be time for you to be the business that owns the product.

You’ve been an employee. How different would it to be your own boss? There many options for how to be your own boss:

• As an independent contractor for other companies
• As a consultant for hire, putting all those corporate and professional skills to work for multiple clients
• As a business owner with a business name (J. Doe, Inc. or J. Doe, LLC); again, you can be a consultant, sell products and services, but this goes one step further than the previous option by formalizing your business legal status.

Each option has benefits and drawbacks. Whichever option you choose, whether it is “until I can find another job” or you get started and decide you want to own and run your own business regardless of the job market, changing your perspective from “unemployed worker” to “free agent/business owner” will enable you to look at your skill set from a different perspective.

First, you will recognize that there are alternatives to being an employee working for someone else. You will look at your experience and skill set from a perspective of “product” marketing against the competition. You will be marketing not a dry resume, but the benefits you bring to a prospective employer.

Jobs for You and Others

With the majority of jobs created by small businesses (and all businesses start small), you may find that you and several colleagues can come together to create financial independence for yourselves—and jobs for others. Even in tough economic times, new businesses and smart business people can succeed, grow and thrive. It takes planning, realism and hard work. It also takes some funds but you don’t have to be independently wealthy to start a business (although it doesn’t hurt!).

Your Next Career … Entrepreneur

So the first step is a realistic assessment of what you will be starting with. Take a hard, honest look at the following list to assess your readiness to start your own business.

• Experience and expertise
• Contacts and networks
• Tools and resources
  • Computers
  • Money
  • People
  • Space
  • Commitments and constraints
    • Living expenses
    • Sources of alternative cash flow
      • Bank accounts
      • Spouse’s income
      • First “investors” (e.g., credit cards, credit score)
    • Time
    • Space
    • Baggage from previous employers
      • Non-compete agreements
      • Non-disclosure agreements
      • Other legal agreements

Once you know where you will start, then comes deciding what to do and how to do it. Having a clear picture of what you want to do, what resources you have available and what you are willing to give up in the near term (1–3 years), as well as what commitments of time and resources you can’t change, then you have the basis for creating the business that will provide the financial independence you desire.

Author: Lea A. Strickland, MBA CMA CFM CBM GMC
Copyright ©2010 F.O.C.U.S. Resource, Inc.
All Rights Reserved