"You Oughta Plea in Pictures" is a solid reminder that pictures tell the story. It emphasizes the value of pictures and diagrams when illustrating important financial points rather than a plethora of spreadsheets that obscure the fundamental issues. There are some interesting, and rather famous, examples of how this has…
CFO Magazine recently published an article about “How to Talk about Layoffs“. It includes some valuable anecdotes about layoff processes that don’t work.
Here are several key themes that bear repeating:
The North Bay Business Journal, a publication of the New York Times, is a weekly business newspaper which covers the North Bay area of San Francisco – from the Golden Gate bridge north, including the Wine Country of Sonoma and Napa counties.
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Article published – February 23, 2009
BUILDING A BUSINESS: Ideas for your business you can take to the bank
“Money is better than poverty if only for financial reasons.” – Woody Allen
I’ve received a lot of questions lately about banking issues and the “rules of the road” for dealing with your bank in a troubled economy. All of us are facing an economy that I refer to as the “Double V” – an insidious environment comprised of big volatility and little visibility. These twin engines will predominate for the foreseeable future.
This week’s column will start with Banking 101 as we make our way toward more subtle concepts. Unquestionably, this process is more artful than scientific, and while there are mechanical tasks and financial metrics that apply, managing your banking relationship requires both judgment and discretion.
• No Surprises. It’s no surprise that “No Surprises” is at the top of the list. (more…)
I reported recently on the trend toward cutting costs without cutting jobs. BW expands upon that concept focusing on mandatory vacation and voluntary leave. I have recommended that to several clients to consider offering unpaid leave to employees. I think you will be be surprised to learn that there are…
BW reported this week on the accelerating trend toward home offices. Even such office-centric firms as BDO Seidman are finding ways to save money by encouraging home offices - and outfitting at company expense. Capital One - health care companies - and others are cited for recognizing the cost savings…
As usual, Jack and Suzy Welch are on target with their latest BW column, critizing the new Administration for various leadership "shortcomings". The valuable insight for business leaders is that "you gain nothing by showing uncertainty and indecision". In short, get your act together, probe the issues, work them to…
<A recent WSJ story about cost-cutting focuses on measures taken to reduce the costs for current employees to forestall personnel cuts that business leaders fear will hurt their ultimate competitiveness. There are some interesting twists on several ideas. Agilent Technologies tried a novel approach by tying a portion of all…
The Wall Street Journal published a recent article describing new "paycheck marketing" techniques in various consumer goods companies like Pepsico, Heinz, and Kimberly-Clark. In short, it targets promotional activities to periods when consumers are more likely to spend - closer to when they get paid rather than toward the end…
<The WSJ offers an inside look at how open book management and financial transparency have been used as valuable tools to help companies cope with the economic downturn. It may be more challenging to start this now, but the rewards can be plentiful and unexpected. More than anything, it enables…