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Ed Riefenstahl, Facilitator, TAB Fort Worth
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| | TAB Fort Worth Anniversaries | |
March/Apr. Anniv.
Casey Borgers
John Brancato
Jennifer Carter
Randy Ferrari
Eric Flavin
Chad Horany
Jon Pastusek
Lee Rogers
Dave Walsh | |
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| | Hear How We Help Our Members |  | |
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| | Quick Tips |
Evaluating New Vendors
With the advent of the Internet, all companies can be made to look big online. When you are deciding on a new vendor, an actual visit to their location will give you a firsthand understanding of how solid they really are.
Ronen Yaari
Open Moves
Huntington, NY
Is Your Payroll Company Bonded?
Before you hire a payroll company, find out if it has a fidelity bond and whether the bond covers the owner as well as the other employees. This will ensure that if your money gets diverted from the intended recipient (i.e., paying your taxes to the IRS) the money will be covered and paid.
Donald Barrick
Resource Management Partners
Islandia, NY
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| | Event Details |
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Upcoming Events
4-2-11 - Crucial Confrontations presented by Dr. Larry Peters, TCU Nelley Professor
LinkedIn Classes - April, May and June
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Schedule a TAB Speaker for your Organization
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| | TAB in The News | |
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| Learn how to Lead Across Generational Differences | |
Attend "Leading Across Generational Differences" on Wednesday, April 6, 2011, at 11:45 AM at the office of Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, LLP located in the Carter Burgess Plaza in Fort Worth.
Our speaker is Paulette Turner, President, Integrated Leadership Concepts, Inc.
Participants will learn in which generation they fall based on their behaviors and learn how to:
- effectively lead across differences.
- mobilize employees and business partners around their company goals, no matter their generational tendencies.
More information / Register |
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TAB Member - Emerging Business finalist | |
TAB Fort Worth member company Studios 121 was named "Small Business of the Year" finalist by the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce. Studios 121 was 1 of 3 finalists in the Emerging Business category. Congratulations to Michael Fletcher and his staff at Studios 121. |
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Q/A The Workplace Doctor™
Fight or Settle Claim? |
Dear Workplace Doctor,
An employee brought a claim against the company last week. Are there any guidelines that could help us determine whether to fight or settle it? - Dave G.
Dave,
While there is no easy answer, following are a few preliminary considerations:
1. Risks of losing.
2. Cost of litigation.
3. Loss of personnel time.
4. Whether or not settlement will leave a black mark against your company or encourage others to sue.
5. Whether litigation or settlement could create unwanted adverse
notoriety.
6. Whether you can demonstrate a vigorous defense.
Consult an attorney and disclose anything that could possibly relate to this case.
Copyright 2011, Dr. Connie Sitterly, "The Workplace Doctor™" President, Sittcom, Inc., Management Training Specialists. Connie is an international speaker, trainer, executive coach, author, management consultant. You may reach her by phone 817.737.2893, Connie's email / Visit Connie's website |
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Communication
E-newsletters: Reach Customers for Only Pennies per Person |
 Electronic newsletters are a cost efficient way to target your customers, clients, and potential buyers. They establish you, or your business, as an authority on an issue. Additionally, they can be shared via Facebook or Twitter, or simply forwarded to other email accounts by the recipients. Before you move forward create a plan and consider the following: - Send it out once a month. - Include a few sentences of each story and link to the entire story on your website or blog so you can track what your target audience wants to read. - Delegate it to someone or hire out for the job - otherwise, it will never get done. Depending if you want to use a professional graphic designer and hire a writer, such as yours truly, you'll spend approximately $300-$500. If you're still not sold on the idea - run the numbers. Say you spend $500/month and you send it to a thousand people. You've spent 50 cents per person. Depending on your business - you may only need a couple of sales to cover the cost - now that's a good return on your investment! Read this entire story here.
Jamie Brown, Owner, Jamie Brown Public Relations
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Save Time with Digital Contracts | |
Are you still printing, signing, scanning or even faxing contracts and NDAs? We have been using EchoSign for a while, and we have significantly reduced the amount of time it takes to sign a contract. All you need is a PDF version of your document, and only the sender needs an account. We have lately implemented some of the more advanced options, allowing us to re-use our standard contracts and just change the costs and terms online.
Diego Prusky, Style Digital Marketing, St. Louis, MO
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| TAB Fort Worth 2010 Members of the Year | |
401 Board - Will Atkinson, CAP Software
402 Board - Jeremy Sweek, Sweek Consulting
501 Board - Tony Ford, Tony Ford & Associates |
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Logo Tournament | |
I wanted a fun and memorable logo for Pitter Patter Paws. Another business owner suggested LogoTournament.com, a website that enables business owners to establish a contest and receive dozens of logos to choose from. I set up a $300 prize, and was overjoyed with more than 80 entries from more than 30+ artists. The site enabled me to give feedback to the artists, rank the logos and see my ideas coming to life. I didn't have to commit to a single designer or agency up front, and I had a blast watching the new entries and changes daily.
Diane Schmidt, Pitter Patter Paws, LLC, Highland Village, TX
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Three Tips for Webinars | |
Most people have a short attention span, so when developing webinars (or online training) keep it short. Typically, webinars that are 15 to 30 minutes long are better received; people tend to "check-out" if they are longer.
Remember that you can do the webinars live, but you can also pre-record them or record them as you are doing the live presentation. This will allow people to go back and review the presentation or see it if they weren't able to attend the live session.
A few sites you can use for webinars are Log Me In, Go To Webinar, and Free Conference.
Pete Psotny, Cornerstone Homes Realty, Denver, CO |
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| Sharing Financials with Employees | |
When sharing financials with employees, it is best to operate on a need-to-know basis. In other words, be sure that the people you are sharing with have control over the numbers; no use sharing something they can't influence.
An interesting exercise is to ask employees what percentage of a $100 sale turns into profit. Subtract from the sale the cost of goods sold and other expenses such as salaries. This is the actual profit. Of course, taxes have to be paid on the profit, which reduces it further.
Next, ask employees to estimate how much total investment the owner has in the company (i.e., inventory, building, equipment, etc.) and break down the profit percentage as a return on investment. This will give them something to consider besides how much money the company is making.
Ron Mondor, Zantek Information Technology Inc., Winnipeg, MB
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| Using Social Media to Vet Applicants | |
When I am ready to select job candidates for the interview stage of the hiring process, I check social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to see if they have any activity. You would be amazed at the information available that can give you some very useful insights into the candidate's character and experiences. Also, you should be aware that many insurance companies search these sites to gather information about policy applicants and claimants.
Roger Foisy, Roger R. Foisy Personal Injury, Mississauga, ON
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ABOUT THE ALTERNATIVE BOARD®
The Alternative Board® is comprised of members who are business owners, CEOs or presidents who run businesses in non-competing fields. During a TAB Board meeting, you receive the benefit of the collective experience of the board members, who offer practical solutions to your problems-not theories.
You can learn more about TAB, which has been helping business owners succeed since 1990, by visiting TheAlternativeBoard.com
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