I hope you enjoy this newsletter. Every issue features current thoughts and best practices in leadership, business management and core competencies from recognized experts. Feel free to send me your thoughts -- I'm always open to great ideas.
If you like what you see here, don't keep it to yourself! Use the Forward Email link at the bottom of the newsletter to send this on to your colleagues and clients.
Also, don't forget to read and contribute comments to the Step 1 Management blog "In Step With Small Business Management". Adding your voice to the mix greatly enriches the conversation!
UPCOMING EVENTS
My Turn:
Breaking Bread: Breaking Through
Both friends and professional colleagues have kidded me for some time about my penchant for scheduling meetings over breakfast or lunch. The ribbing is good natured and I cheerily accept the wisecracks about me "never missing a meal". What they don't know is that there is a method to my madness.
I have come to be an advocate of making food an integral part of any sort of business meeting, especially those that have the potential to be "thorny". I believe that most of what we learned about human relationships growing up occured around the dinner table. If we had a strong family unit we developed a healthy sense of the roles that each member of the group played--father or mother as guide, rulemaker, mentor, authority, etc. and our siblings as peers, some older and therefore more experienced and some younger and less prepared for life. This family organism would meet regularly around the kitchen or dining room table to share a meal and report on daily activity, progress on longer term projects (like that book report or term paper) or "operational" issues (such as the car won't start or the bathroom sink is clogged). The food flying around the table facilitated open communication in a comfortable setting. Our defenses were temporarly dropped as we passed the mashed potatoes and gravy.
Not everyone had that sort of a childhood, to be sure. For those whose early years were spent in an angry or otherwise unpleasant environment, breaking bread might simply trigger unhappy memories or cause that familiar knot to form in the pit of their stomach. While I have no empirical evidence to quote in this regard, I'll bet some of these folks don't have a healthy sense of the roles that leaders play in an organization (family or professional). That dysfunctional family experience may be carried over into the workplace, where the individual unwittingly creates an equally dysfunctional team. Problem resolution in this kind of atmosphere usually consists of management by fiat and declarations of "because I said so!" That response is no more valuable at work than it was when your father said it to you.
So here's what I suggest. If your team--leaders and front line staff alike--are struggling with a challenging problem, step away from the office for a few hours and pull up a chair in your favorite eatery. Have the team come together around the meal table to discuss what's really going on and what needs to be done. You will be surprised how quickly instinctive defensiveness melts away like butter on a warm roll.
I know it ain't scientific, but it couldn't hurt.
-- Jeff Canter
Federal Facts with Kim Kisner
Kim Kisner is a human resources and employment attorney in Pittsburgh with offices located at 6393 Penn Ave. # 306. Kim's expertise is featured on a recurring basis in a column titled "Federal Facts", which focuses on federal employment law issues that you need to know about.
Federal Facts V:
IRS Makes Mid-Year Increase to Standard Mileage Rate
by Kim Kisner
Record-high gas prices have prompted
the IRS to increase its optional mileage reimbursement rate mid-year. The IRS raised the optional business mileage reimbursement
rate eight cents to 58.5 cents per mile beginning July 1, up from 50.5 cents
for the first six months of 2008.
Ordinarily, the IRS makes changes to
the standard auto mileage reimbursement rate in the fall that take effect on
January 1 each year. However, on rare
occasions, the agency will increase the rate during the year to reflect
significant economic changes.For
example, in September 2005, the IRS increased the mileage reimbursement rate to
48.5 cents from 40.5 cents to reflect the higher gas prices associated with
Hurricane Katrina. It then lowered the
rate to 44.5 cents per mile in January 2006.
The IRS bases the rate on its annual
study of the fixed and variable cost of operating an automobile. This latest
eight-cent increase is the direct result of increased gas prices.According to the American Automobile
Association (AAA), the national average for a gallon of gas in the United
States is about $4.00, compared to just $2.96 a gallon a year ago.
The IRS also announced an eight-cent
increase in the mileage rate for deductible moving and medical expenses. Those
rates rose to 27 cents per mile on July 1. The amount that taxpayers can deduct when they
use their vehicles for charitable activities will remain at 14 cents per mile. Because the charitable reimbursement rate is
set by statute and not by the IRS, adjustments to the rate would require an act
of Congress.
Kim Kisner is founder and principal of Kisner Law Firm. She has been a litigator and counselor in the area of employment law for more than a decade. Kisner Law Firm helps employers minimize risks while growing their businesses, by preventing workplace disputes from escalating into costly litigation.
Your business can't go according to plan if you have no plan.
What do you want to achieve this year? More new customers per week? Higher average order amounts? Better customer service ratings? No matter what it is you are shooting for, goal setting is one of the most important things that you will do in the New Year. I've got a few tips to help you get there.
1. Keep it Challenging but Realistic. Any goal that you set for your company should be challenging but don't over do it. For example, if you had an average order amount of $700 last year, you wouldn't want to set your goal for this year at $3000 per order. Unless you make drastic changes in how your company runs or what you are selling, that goal is just not realistic. You know best what you may be able to achieve in your particular industry, so be honest with yourself and set your goals accordingly.
2. Write All Your Goals Down.
You may say to yourself on January 1, "I want to get 20 more new customers per week this year." A few months later you will be saying "Did I say I wanted 20 or 30?" Or more realistically, you have forgotten that you even made that goal. If you have all of your goals written down you will be able to not only go back and check them, you will also be able to go down the list every few months and check to see how many of them you have completed.
3. Assess Your Current Situation.
To set goals you have to know where you are at right now. In 2003 I wanted to assess our customer service rating so we sent out a survey to all of our customers on which they could rate us in each department of our operation. That helped us establish our base. Now we send the survey to every customer after every order. This way we can keep track of how we are doing and if there is ever a hiccup we can fix it quickly. Don't assume anything. Always assess the current situation before setting a new goal.
It's Only Going to Hurt A Little ...
Now, in financial goal setting for your business, one invariably comes to the question: "How do I decide on a budget when starting a marketing plan?"
This is obviously the first question that you have to answer in order to get started on your new campaign - and in order to reach the income goals you have set for yourself.
So how do you figure out what your budget should be? Here is an easy method to help you find a number that is going to work for you and your business. Some might say that it is a good rule of thumb, but I personally judge things on whether or not they work and get results. That's all.
Moving on ... Start with the amount of income that your company generated last month and multiply it by .14 (or 14%). That means that if you had $50,000 in Gross Income last month you should budget to spend $7000 on marketing in the next month. Wait ... I know, it sounds painful but it is just like a shot at the doctor. It might hurt for a minute (or in this case a month) but down the road you are going to be glad that you went through it. Putting that much toward the right marketing will bump up your income the next month and start you on a cycle of steady growth.
I know that some businesses run tighter than others and it is possible that you won't be comfortable with that amount in the beginning . Don't misunderstand me, any marketing is better than no marketing. Don't get discouraged if your budget is lower than 14%. But use 14% as the ideal to strive for because, for me as well as many other growing businesses, it has proven to give the best rate of growth possible. How do I know, you ask? My company has expanded 400% in the past 2 years. Now picture your business at 4 times its current size ... There's that smile I was looking for!
The growth of your business is based on three factors; quality products, great customer service and the proper amount of marketing. If you know you have the first two taken care and you still aren't experiencing healthy growth then you need to take a serious look at your marketing budget.
So sharpen your pencils, start calculating and decide how rapidly you want your business to grow.
Please take a moment this week to sit down and decide on your goals for the New Year. Even if it is past the New Year and even well into the year, set your goals for the rest of the year.
Everything is easier when you are working towards a goal. My goal is your success and I assume that is your goal as well.
(NOTE: This article has been reprinted from http://www.ArticleFeedster.com with permission.)
Jeff Canter Step 1 Management Services LLC 412-216-0842
