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Unemployment is a State of Mind
A successful executive with a sterling reputation as a gifted manager is asked to leave his position. He grapples with having to "look" for a position, something he has never done. After working through the emotional process of losing a job, he reconnects with what is most important to him, and by doing so, creates a new and exciting business venture.

Franchise Opportunities – Fears That Drown Dreams – Instalment # 3
While there are certainly legitimate reasons why a person may not become an entrepreneur, I will focus on a few of the main reasons cited by people that would like to begin a business but haven’t made that leap.
Understand Your P & L
While cash flow is the most critical financial measure for small businesses, it is imperative that the P & L us fully understood
A Topgrading Tool
What tools can I use to select the best employee?
ARE YOU FANATICAL FOR YOUR CUSTOMER?
Is your customer's best interest at the center of your attention
Buying Help at Discount Pricing
Do you always pay the lowest price for labor?
Cash is King
In small companies, managing cash is critical. Not managing cash is one of the primary reasons that small companies fail, even when they may be making a profit
Dealing with Difficult Employees
Managing people is never easy, and some employees make it even more difficult. These challenging employees can try your patience and take a lot of your time and energy. It requires skillful management to turn these employees around and make them into productive workers.

Dealing with the Current Downturn
The current economic times are challanging, but we cannot "throw up our hands" and just react. We need to take smart, measured actions.
Develop Alliances
The development of alliance can be one of the most successful ventures a company can make.
Disect Profit, Loss
How do you quickly analyse the profit and loss statement if you are not a financial expert?
Do You Know Your Breakeven
It is critical that all business know their breakeven point and it is even more critical today.
Listen to Your Employees
If you do not listen to your employees, you are probably making a major mistake.
Fraud Prevention
Fraud is a problem in small companies
Manage Your Sales Force
Many CEO's/owners do not feel that they understand the sales process, so they hire salespeople and do not manage them. They just tell them, "Don't just stand there, sell something". Does this ever work? Probably not. Do not fall for the old idea that you must be a sales expert to manage the sales process.
Not Enough Meetings
Not enough meetings. What a dumb statement.
Operations Plans
Why should small companies have an operations plan?
Performance Appraisals
All organizations should have formal performance appraisals. The following is a guide for a good appraisal system.
Performance Measurements (KPI's)
Every company must have Key Performance Indicators that they use the manage their company.
Planning and Implementation
If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail
The Art of Networking
Is networking an important part of your marketing plan? If not, it should be.
The Balance of Managing
How many small business owners say they don't have time to manage? They must do it themselves.
The Need for Strategic Planning
Every company should have a strategic plan, no matter what the size. In fact, it is often more important for small firms as they tend to lose focus very easily.
Too Much Inventory
Critically managing all your inventory is critical to long term success. You may be surprised at what I classify as inventory.
Topgrading
How do I chose the best employees?
Saving Your Way to Success
How many times have you heard small company owners say they can cut costs to save their company?
Do A Needs Analysis before Buying Your Phone System
“Too many times I see phone systems installed that don’t suit the needs of the business. If you needed a new delivery truck you wouldn’t buy a four-door sedan. But that’s how bad it is sometimes…”
Career Changes Take Courage
Career change is uncomfortable. Often times it is not clear where you are headed. At other times you aren't sure if you really want to make a change. Learn what you can do to get comfortable with the change so that letting go of the old is not as difficult.
Consultants Can Be Scary but Do They Provide Value
As a CEO before I became a consultant ten years ago I had very little time for consultants and did not have a high opinion of them. One of the things that always stuck in my craw - and still does for that matter -- is to see a consultant conduct sales training that never actually carried a bag themselves. Some have very little if any experience in the field as an outside sales person. Even more concerning is to watch a consultant give leadership or business acumen advice when that consultant never had to meet a payroll or run a company personally. Consultants can provide real value on many occasions but they can also be your worst nightmare.
No Such Thing As A Sell-Out
Art vs. commerce. Where do the two cross? Where do the two meet? Is there anything wrong with combining them? That's what we're going to discuss. Entrepreneurs are found everywhere and there's most certainly an art to being an entrepreneur.
Commit to Change
“A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.” - John Maxwell
4 Ways We Kill Innovation
Yet when we separate innovation from our core business, set it apart as a unique process or proposition - we position innovation as "outside" our core business. We make innovation the exception rather than the rule, treat it as a point in time exercise rather than an integral part of the way we operate on a daily basis. Only when we embrace innovation as a conscious and continuous part of our daily actions can we reap the will rewards of innovation.
Your Consulting Business and Web 2.0
Using the internet to move your consulting business forward requires more than putting up a web site. Are you really leveraging the new social media aspects of the web for the future benefit of your business? Leslie Allan prods your thinking on how to use this new medium as he reviews a provocative white paper on this important business topic.
Reverse Mentoring and the Leader-Follower Theory
Navigating through the rapidly changing world of blogs, podcasts, social networking, tablet computers, smart phones and other technologies can be a daunting task for anyone. Managers and business owners find themselves facing the reality that they are increasingly out of touch with these modern technologies and the lexicon of the under-35 crowd. Equally challenging and frustrating is paying for specialized training in technologies that are sure to be out of date the moment you leave the classroom. One solution to this managerial quandary is “reverse mentoring.” Reverse mentoring helps managers to effectively use the skills and knowledge of their employee base without stepping outside the confines of the organization. Understanding the process of reverse mentoring is the first step to successfully embracing emerging technologies and ideas

Leader-Follower Theory and the Transformational Organization
Leaders often seek the secret formula of leadership theory in their pursuit of effective organizational transformation. They desire a method that will aid them in efficiently moving their organization towards specified goals and objectives with the least amount of resistance. The goal of this paper is to address the leader-follower theory and its use in the transformational organization. This paper will address the attributes of humility and servant leadership and its contribution to the effectiveness of the leader-follower theory towards organizational transformation.

Are Project-Based Consulting SEO Services Worth It?
Article discusses how to calculate pricing for SEO services as it is very easy to calculate project based fees but the result might be ambiguous and to implement value based pricing many other factors needs to be considered.
Hourly Consulting Model for SEO Services – How Does It Work?
One of the most common questions a consulting client asks before hiring a SEO consultant: How much should I pay for hourly consulting? Here are some tips..
SEO Contract Services – Do They Deliver?
If you are thinking of hiring SEO company/consultant then it is very important that you safeguard your interest by entering into a legally binding SEO agreement. Here is important discussion regarding SEO contract.
Classes to Motivate and Manage a Team:
Team management courses will focus on skills to help the team building. In all team building, training seminars, managers need to develop a course of team dynamics and also learn how to use the dynamics of their team as a tool to improve communication and performance.These classes train members how to use many techniques to motivate and create team unity.

Could a Coach Get You There?
You know what coaches do for athletes. You've heard what they've done for the rich and the famous. What about you? Have you ever thought about partnering with a coach? Barbara Garro spent the time to graduate from both Corporate Coach University and Coach Training Institute. Why? Corporate/entreprenerial coaching entails complexities personal/life coaching does not. Why else? Business people have personal lives and I wanted to combine my skills so my coaching clients get Work-Life Coaching or Life-Work Coaching. Garro coaching is all about getting you where you want to be when you want to get yourself there.

The Benefit of Safety Debriefing - Developing a Culture of Learning through Lessons Learned
Safety debriefing skills learned from a qualified consulting firm is a necessity in today's rapidly changing business environment. The forces of rapid global change can render limited professional skill sets obsolete almost overnight, and continuous learning about business processes can give professionals invaluable 'lessons learned', helping to prevent succumbing to obsolescence or irrelevance.
Five Reasons Agency Compensation Should Not Be Relationship Based
Don't get me wrong, measuring and managing a high quality relationship is important between agencies and marketers. But at the ANA Marketing Financial Management Conference last week in Phoenix, Arizona, there was a presentation by Sarah Armstrong on Value Based Agency Compensation.
Fulfilling Your Dreams by Changing Careers
How I went from drama teacher to Invention Marketing “Guru”.
The Reluctant Consultant
The letters, emails, faxes start like this: “Dear Ms, Mrs, Sir (I love that one!), Miss Lefkowitz: I need advice, and I know only you can help me. I have a great idea for a fashion accessory (or whatever) invention. I know it’s good because I told my family and friends, and they think it’s great too. I know this product could make a lot of money. The only problem is I don’t know what to do now, or, I don’t have any money, or, I want someone to take my idea and do whatever it takes to get it out to the public. Can you help me?” Does this sound familiar?

How to Find Your Ideal Client
Nearly every client I have says their perfect client is “everyone” because “I can help everyone” or “My book can help everyone.” That might be wonderful but it is bad business. You can’t afford to market to “everyone.” And “everyone” doesn’t want you. They want to work with someone who specializes in “them,” not in everyone. That’s why I was delighted when I signed a new coaching client who works with lawyers who are in a certain transition point in their careers and must make career and life choices. How cool is that!
C-Level Relationship Selling – How to Differentiate When Selling
Differentiating is a good talking point, but it doesn’t close sales. Showing you’re competent does. Use numbers, names and details to show your difference makes you competent in what matters to the C-Level buyer.

C-Level Relationship Selling – Good Work Won’t Win the Next Sale
To win sale after sale from the same customer, you must do more than good work. You must let buyers know what it took to make it good. You must associate yourself with the winning solution and prove that you’re special. Read and learn how.

Building a Consulting Practice
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has predicted a rise of about 55 percent in the number of consulting opportunities in the period between 2002 and 2012. This is the best time for baby boomers who are on the lookout for career growth opportunities. Consultancy provides an opportunity to postpone their retirement and advance their career at the same time. Building a consulting practice can help you establish regular clients that can look up to you for advice and guidance. In addition, you can also have flexible working hours that leave plenty of free time to pursue your hobbies.

SEO Consulting
It’s one of the hottest, freshest industries that have people around the world clamouring to get into. SEO consulting has become the latest cool job among the typically not so cool. People who were once thought of as nothing but geeks are today proving invaluable to small business owners looking to take their website to the top. If it’s a line of work that you are interested in getting into, read on for further tips on how to succeed.

What is a Personal Brand?
Have you heard the term "personal brand" before? What is it? And more importantly, why should you care about it. This article will provide some insight into personal branding on the what and why dimensions.
C-Level Selling - The Great Customer Experience
C-Level Selling - The Great Customer Experience Happens When the C-Level Executives Are Satisfied. The Great Customer Experience requires making C-level executive constantly feel you are helping them succeed. Learn what’s required in this C-level selling article.

C-Level Selling Tips – Keep Competition Out of Your Key Accounts
The only way to keep competition out of your key accounts is to be perceived as the top benefit provider for that key account. Your competition wants those accounts and they will eventually penetrate unless those accounts fear losing the benefits you and only you can provide. This article will show how to make sure that happens

Do Planes Have Horns?
In the not so distant past, my niece’s four-year old son, Hollis, was getting on a plane. Hollis is a frequent traveler. As usual, the energetic four-year old ran down the gangway in excitement. He just about ran into the captain’s legs at the entrance to the plane. As he looked up at the uniformed woman, Hollis asked, “Do planes have horns?”

So, You Want to Start a Small Business?
So you decided to start a business? Are you having trouble figuring out what you do and do not need? A lot of the information available for Entrepreneurs is geared towards the individuals who are thinking of starting a big small business. Now I know what you’re thinking, how can you start a big small business? Well it’s easy; a lot of data available talks in terms of having an actual physical business, having employees, etc. However, there are a lot of people who want to start a small business with just themselves and perhaps one other person. Even with the wealth of information accessible trying to find the appropriate materials to accomplish is very hard.

How to Gain a Web Presence
One of the keys to starting a successful venture in today's business climate is having an effective website that reaches and appeals to your target audience. This article outlines some simple ways to get you site up and running while also appealing to search engines in the process.

Human Resources Consulting
Whether it’s for education, training, or data management, handling legal affairs or drafting policies, human resources consulting can help organize your company so that it is better able to reach the next level of success. But once you recognize that you need some help, what next? How do you go about finding that right consultant that will not only work well with your corporate team, but will be able to provide you with the appropriate steps to take to be able to move forward?

WHAT MAKES A MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT GREAT? Part III of III
The Great Consultant What makes a consultant unique is the ability to apply previously acquired knowledge to a new situation and to determine which of the many methods used beforehand is the best suited for the problem at hand. It is the difference between working by conditioned reflex and actually thinking about what you are doing and determining the most efficient means of achieving the objective.

WHAT IS MANAGEMENT CONSULTING
Answering the question "what is management consulting?" is as difficult as attempting to answer the question "how long is a piece of string?” There are two causes for the confusion about exactly what management consultants do. First, management consulting is an umbrella term that encompasses many different careers. Second, management consultants cannot give specific examples of their work because it is confidential and highly sensitive.
MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS - THE TRUSTED ADVISORS
Management consulting has undergone a dramatic transformation over the past two decades. The profile of a consultant has changed from being just a sharp and knowledgeable technologist to that of a trusted advisor for the client’s entire organization.
MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS - THE TRUSTED ADVISORS
Management consulting has undergone a dramatic transformation over the past two decades. The profile of a consultant has changed from being just a sharp and knowledgeable technologist to that of a trusted advisor for the client’s entire organization.
Manage Your Cash Flow And Share Business Success Benefits
Advice For Startups - Manage your cash flow. You can’t spend a lot at the beginning. I was under a mountain of MBA debt coming out of school. I didn’t have the money to pay people top dollar so I used an innovative compensation structure. We had small salaries and large pay-for-performance incentives. If we didn’t sell any work, we didn’t get paid. That was a model that helped the business get off the ground. We offered much lower salaries with a lot of upside potential. With this mode we attracted people who were entrepreneurial. We’re constantly looking to innovate and be entrepreneurs – so this compensation model fits our culture perfectly.

Other consulting Related Articles

BRAND YOUR CONSULTING BRILLIANCE
Today’s competitive marketplace for consulting services is no longer responsive to the marketing strategies that worked in the past. The services you provide should speak volumes about your consulting business. Think about what happens when you hear phrases such as “the ultimate driving machine,” “Don’t leave home without it,” and “Just do it.” Chances are good that you can immediately associate them with BMW, American Express, and Nike. These companies have mastered “brand brilliance.” Brand your consulting brilliance because the future of your business depends on it.
The Coaching Fallacy What it is and what it isnt
There is much confusion about what Coaching is- and isn’t. Many consulting firms have simply gone through their marketing materials and changed the word “consulting” to “coaching.” For many in the business world, that sums up what they perceive Coaching to be, a new word for consulting. Nothing could be farther from the truth!
How to Get Value from a Management Consultant
Unlike many outside services, management consulting is distinguished by qualities that appear less tangible -- and are therefore more difficult to assess up-front. Usually the fee must be set before the consultant's assignment begins. So how can a value-conscious manager make sure the company gets the consulting service, support and results that it's paying for?

Performance Consulting
Performance consulting is consulting with a direct impact. It is consulting that is typically divided into three sub-specialties including organizational development specialists, professional development specialists and personal coaches.
So You Want to be a Consultant?
I've been consulting successfully for over 20 years now. That makes me an old-timer in many folks' perceptions. Friends and associates often come to me for advice on how to start their own consulting business - mostly around how to position themselves as an expert in the market. Here are the thoughts I share.

Why You Should Not Hire a Management Consulting Firm...at least not yet.
There are many strategic management consulting companies in the United States and around the world. For organizations that are looking for strategic consulting help in their business, there are so many options available to them that making a decision on the right consulting firm becomes daunting. Even with all of the available expertise, many companies never seek the outside help. Maybe that is the best for all concerned. Bringing in outside consulting help is not for everyone. When consulting companies come in to help with strategy or to solve complex business challenges, it is often an exercise that forces executives to check their egos at the door and confront their own organization’s issues and baggage. Not all companies are up for that. Are you ready?

Hourly Consulting Model for SEO Services – How Does It Work?
One of the most common questions a consulting client asks before hiring a SEO consultant: How much should I pay for hourly consulting? Here are some tips..
Find out about a Consulting Franchise Opportunity
If you enjoy working with other businesses and are looking for a change in career, a consulting franchise business might well suit you. We look at the types of consulting franchise available and offer some helpful tips to help you make the right choice for you.
Technology Consulting Career Potentials
Technology Consulting is an area where technical consulting expertise helps the organizations of their clients to align their technology requirements in accordance with ongoing market strategies.

5 Ways to Find Clients for Your Consulting Business
Starting your own consulting business is just like any other business; you need to have an assortment of skills in order to succeed. One of the biggest mistakes that someone makes when starting a consulting business is thinking that the only skill they need is the one they will be consulting in. Wrong......very wrong.
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