Knowledge is Valuable, Just That
A world without knowledge can’t be imagined as even soaps use it, like the Desperate Housewives recap: Knowing is Half the Battle… (1)
In order not to Spam this article with the same word, I’ve looked for some synonyms (on MSN’s Encarta): acquaintance, familiarity, awareness, understanding, comprehension, realization, experience, expertise, skill, know-how.
What kind of company or organization would value know-how most? It is similar to “expertise,” but expertise is associated to the expert, someone who knows very much about a certain - specific - topic.
Some formulations of the importance of comprehension are:
- Our business depends on the skills and knowledge of our staff and we are committed to developing the skills and capabilities of all our employees.
- The value of Know-how: Investing in, Enlarging the reserve of, Taking initiatives to acquire…
- Global expertise - local knowledge
- We firmly believe that, in any undertaking, it is necessary to be knowledgeable.
Another view on “understanding” is more implicit: the importance of learning in general or the “learning organization.” To become a learning organization, knowledge is important: “… developing, capturing, applying and managing knowledge is our most important work. Skilled, experienced, and knowledgeable employees are our most valuable asset.
Knowledge is a stock, like the stock of cattle. And how is this stock valued. Similar to the valuation of “pork-bellies” on the Chicago stock-exchange: by forces of demand and supply.
In organizations this valuation is much less transparent. We value knowledge, often because afterwards we realize that we don’t know how to do things. An expert how has done something before, is a valuable asset. That is why the best method to buy knowledge is to hire someone with experience in the field you are looking for. That is cheaper than training and educating someone of the internal staff.
Mind the difference between experience and knowledge.
Hiring a new employee because of its knowledge means to change to existing stock of knowledge. That is more important than knowledge itself.
In teamwork:
… and regularly sharing knowledge and experience.
Rather than concentrating on the stock of knowledge, (knowledge) management is needed to make sure that knowledge flows. To do this sharing information and experience is important but there is more. A very adequate formulation is this challenge is expressed by a real company (1):
Face reality. We firmly believe that, in any undertaking, it is necessary to be knowledgeable, i.e. permanently monitoring our clients’ expectations, and the developments of our markets, and also by knowing ourselves inside out: our strengths, our weaknesses and our potential. It is this knowledge that allows us to plan, to decide and to act. (http://www.econocom.com/jobs/corporate-values)
However the knowledge is power metaphor is less useful in business as it refers more to the political side of knowledge. Let’s keep politics out. Knowledge is important, more important is “knowing” how to manage it.
And about the companies that value knowledge most… think about consulting companies and other information intensive organizations, like financial institutions: could the financial crisis have been prevented if we all knew what we were doing?
By Hans Bool
Business - Constructing Efficient Systems - What Types of Filing Systems Would Help You?
There are several different types of filing systems that can be used in your business to keep things organized and easy to find. Of course, the more paper you use, the more filing cabinets you will need I recommend that you choose a different colour for each filing system. This provides you with a visual reminder of where the file belongs..
Following are some of the systems which I have found are helpful in my private practice:
Client Filing System - We have tried a number of different ways of keeping these but have found that the best is to use letter sized folders with self-sticking fasteners on each side. The file label has three rows. The top row has the client’s surname followed by a comma and the first name(s). The second row has a coding system we use that is formed by using the year and month that the client file was opened as well as the number that indicates how many referrals have been received in the year to date.
We use legal-sized vertical files with hanging file folders but file all of the client files alphabetically. The most important thing to remember is that you will receive a number of files over time and therefore need a system that will accommodate and hold them according to professional standards.
Financial Files - As my business has grown significantly I have had to divide the various aspects of the financial accounting into smaller systems. Initially, however, you will need files for Income, Expenses, Assets, Liabilities, Banking, Income Tax and Reports. Again I recommend different coloured folders for each and, if possible, a separate filing drawer to hold them. We also use banker’s boxes with the year clearly marked on the outside to hold information from previous years that need to be kept.
Topical Files - Over the years I have collected a great number of wonderful articles and handouts. We have developed a written list of the various file names and sorted these into subject groupings that are filed alphabetically.
Correspondence and General Information - There always seem to be things that you want to keep which don’t seem to fit into the above systems. We have one drawer that houses these again in alphabetical order.
Do not get too sophisticated when it comes to a filing system. The idea is to ensure that the things you keep really need to be kept and then can be found easily when needed.
Filing systems can either waste time or save time depending on how they are set up. It is therefore a good idea to plan well before you even begin. That’s all part of the adventure of having a business.
By Linda Hancock
Finding the Time For a Business Despite Raising a Family
The single most challenging thing for mom-preneurs is the fact that there really are only 24 hours in a day. If we didn’t have to sleep we would all get so much more accomplished, wouldn’t we? But the fact is we do need sleep. I know I need MY sleep. How do mothers “do it all”? I have learned over the years, that there is no way to do it all, but there are ways to fit in the things that are more important for you by revising how you approach each day.
There are many things I do on a daily basis that help me to find time for my business, but here are three that I think are very important:
1. Get organized
How often do you spend a good hour looking for something that you know is somewhere, but you have no clue where it got put? You could have sworn it was right on the counter the other day!
Every week I spend about 15-30 minutes organizing something in my house. I may just put everything back where it belongs, or I might clear out a closet, straighten a drawer in a desk, or clear out clutter from under my child’s bed.
The short time that I spend organizing saves me so much time later looking for something that isn’t in the right place. For example, when I need to find a transaction statement for a certain bank account from 2005, it would literally take me a matter of minutes. Or if the children are looking for more pencils or glue sticks, I know I will always have some of those in my secret basket.
2. Work efficiently
Learning to work efficiently can be the most important time-saver out there. Someone working on a project while being distracted, unorganized and unfocused could spend 6 hours on the project while that same person working on the same project with zero interruptions, a clear outline of what is to be accomplished and streamlined focus on each task at hand could take 2 hours.
I find I am much more productive if I write down my goals for the day and for the moment that I just sit down to work. I write down what I expect to work on, in what order I am going to work on the tasks and how long I expect each task to take.
It’s best to turn off all distractions. Let the machine answer the phone, make sure the kids are busy (or as busy as they can be for their age), turn your ear away from any other distractions besides the kids and your work, and skip the snacks. (Snacking while working can be a huge distraction, believe it or not).
3. Realize that your house doesn’t need to be spotless
I used to think that my house had to be spotless and picked up all the time. I spent WAY too much time cleaning everything.
When my second child was born, I realized that something had to go, and the business was not going to be that something. With 2 young children, I was spending a lot of time cleaning up. I didn’t want to hire a maid, so the alternative was to decide that certain things could be cleaned a little less often.
After each child (I now have 3), I found more and more things in the house that didn’t need to be cleaned as often as they did before. I have learned that there are many more important things than a clean house and they always come first. And just think I STILL have people who come and visit and mention that my house looks great! How clean is your house? Clean enough?
It ultimately comes down to the fact that people make time for what they feel is important to them. If your business is important, then you make the time for it. You give other tasks, projects and distractions a lower priority.
By Kimberly Reddington
Managing Conflict Resolution in the Workplace
Difference of opinion always persists with two or more people at a discussion or at work. Sometimes, those differences lead to years of unresolved court battles. Due to difference of just an opinion within team members, over a simple issue, production takes a bad beating. One has to explore the ever existing means of resolving a conflict, as peacefully as possible.
The typical approach to conflict is to avoid it altogether. However, that doesn’t work, since regardless of how many policies and regulations exist to deal with workplace disputes, conflicts continue to arise. Rather, we need to develop strategies for conflict management.
Identify the Conflict
It’s better to avoid getting in disagreements for the sake of getting more work done, but many times, co-workers butt heads over ideas and how they are presented. Instead of turning on one another and resorting to office politics, employees should work together to identify what is causing their lack of productivity.
As a typical case, if a conflict is the result of somebody who exercise a great deal of power over the decision making, the other team members should take it upon themselves to effectively determine the reason behind the unacceptable behavior of the concerned team member.
Handle the Conflict
For many of us, the prospect of confronting a difficult co-worker is intimidating indeed. Still, it serves no one if everyone in the workplace ignores an employee who is perceived as a troublemaker. Actually, ignoring such a problem only serves to tell the troublemaker that their unethical behavior is acceptable, and that it is fine to continue acting in such a manner.
To paraphrase, it is the job of the other workers in the group to work proactively with a difficult party in order to resolve conflict. Employees can approach their manager as a backup plan, but it is best to first deal directly with the co-worker who is perceived as the source of group conflict. The thing to keep in mind is that how you approach this person has a direct bearing on the outcome. Confronting anyone too harshly over a problem is only likely to escalate it, once he or she grows upset.
Instead, we should be kind and courteous in the way we speak to the person who has been a problem for the rest of the office. Point out instances that were particularly upsetting, and always bring another person along for a second opinion. It’s also a good idea to have written documentation of a co-worker’s problematic actions.
Prevent Future Conflicts
Learn from past conflicts and apply them in the future to prevent an incident from escalating later. We should be proactive-but not paranoid-when it comes to recognizing small incidents that could possibly escalate into something much worse.
All involved parties gain from effectively resolved conflicts. If handled properly, there is no need for anyone to be dismissed, and co-workers can develop even better connections, forming powerful bonds that will empower them to handle any future issues more effectively.
By Steve Wilheir
The Value Of On-the-Job Rotation
Following the trauma of downsizing is the boredom that stems from feeling plateaued. This feeling of boredom by American employees isn’t new given the repetition of many jobs. Millions of workers in America don’t go around broadcasting their feelings, but they would welcome the change of pace and duties that on-the-job rotation would make possible for them.
What are some of the benefits of implementing an on-the-job rotation program within your own department or division? Consider the following:
1. An energized workforce would be one big benefit. New tasks will encourage a new enthusiasm in employees that is lost during past, present, or future economic downturns and layoffs.
2. Greater creativity is another plus result. As employees assume new responsibilities, their minds are open to the opportunities within their tasks.
3. A larger sense of pride and self-worth with result via job rotation. Workers who learn all phases of a job increase in value to their managers and company. As they recognize their greater value, their feelings of self-worth increase as well. With that comes pride and greater feelings of job security, which in turn can lead to higher productivity.
How to Set Up a Job Rotation Program To set up such a program, you first need to announce the startup of job rotation so all the employees in your operation know about it.
Both three-and-six month time periods should be tried to see which one works the best. You want to give those involved in the program the opportunity to really learn their new jobs. At the same time, if some employees do not like their new duties, or prove unable to function well in them, they should have the right to request a return to their original jobs or make a change to something else.
The first three months could be a trial period for each employee who moves into a new job. Depending on the program, you may decide to transfer the employee back to his or her former job. You should still offer the individual first chance to fill that slot when it next becomes vacant, or work only with open positions.
Feedback is critical during the program–feedback from the employees involved and from those to whom they report if they have other direct reports besides yourself.
Clearly, on-the-job rotation programs have a part in keeping employees in today’s leaner organizations and businesses motivated. Certainly those managers who have tried them have liked them.
By Perry Wilbur
History of Wal-Mart
The history of Wal-Mart is very colorful and inspiring to almost every retailer. In 1940s Sam Walton laid the foundation stone of Wal-Mart. It was the vision of Sam that changed the face of today’s retailing business. Wal-Mart as we all know is well known for competitive pricing, excellent customer support and proper business ethics at workplace.
Similarly, history of Citigroup Inc. is also very rich and colorful. Citigroup Inc. is popularly known as Citi, which is a major financial service provider in America. It’s headquarter is in New York, NY. There is hardly any country or region where Citigroup is not available.
The history of Citigroup tells us that this group was formed after one of the largest mergers by creating a $140 billion firm with assets of almost $700 billion in the world between Citicorp (major banking giant) and Travelers Group in 1998. As on today, Citigroup has become one of the largest financial services companies with over 200 million customers in more than 100 countries. As far as its revenue is concerned it also tops the list as on 2008.
Both Wal-Mart and Citigroup are highly reputed groups in the world. In case of Wal-Mart the credit surely goes to one man Sam Walton, who changed the scene how businesses do business in the retailing world today. Earlier, traditionally wholesalers were the only people who were making a huge profit and customers were forced to pay extra money from their own pockets.
But Wal-Mart decided to give benefits to its customers than to fill their own pockets. It was the business philosophy of Walton that allows him to earn profits on the basis of volumes than hiking prices unlike other retailers in those times. After graduating from University of Missouri in Columbia, Walton started his career with a renowned company called JC Penney. A very few people actually know Walton started his career with as low as $2 per month. And due to his uncommon vision and philosophy he became a common household name in America.
By Sturat Mitchel
Tenant Verification - Be Safe - Not Sorry
zip-reports, tenant, screening, verification, credit, investigation, background, checks, landlord, real-estate, applicant, records, pre-employment, criminal, crime, legalIf you own a landed property, then you can easily make some easy money off it, by renting it out. This will provide you with a steady stream of income each month, without doing anything. However, you must always run a background check on your prospective tenants before you rent out your property to them. This will make sure that you don’t accidentally take in tenants with criminal backgrounds. Remember, you are renting out your property to an unknown person or family. You have no clue regarding what kind of people they really are.
That is not the only reason for conducting a background check on your prospective tenants. Even good people with clean criminal records may run into bad debts at some point in their lives. So, before taking in people like these as tenants, you should definitely get their credit reports checked to make sure that they can pay your rent every month without fail. True, if you find out later that they are unable to pay your rent, you always have the option of evicting them. However, it is a long and tedious process, with many possible complications. So, it is better to perform a financial credit check on your prospective tenants before renting out your property to them. There is less chance of complications that way.
It is best to consult accredited agencies for running the background check on your prospective tenants. These agencies can perform a thorough investigation based on the guidelines prescribed in Fair Credit Reporting Act and Fair Housing Laws. However, there is one drawback of these laws. It is that some of these laws require the written consent of the tenants on whom you want to have the checks performed.
There are some points, on which agencies usually focus their search. These include the following:
1. Criminal background check - The agency can perform a criminal background check on your prospective tenants by consulting various Government-maintained records, such as, state and county criminal records, state eviction records, sex offender registers, etc., to find out whether the person has a history of committing any serious crimes. They will verify the authenticity of the information provided by the tenant, by using his/her social security number, driving license, etc. They will contact police stations to find out whether the prospective tenant has any record of any kind of criminal activities reported against him/ her.
2. Credit check - The agency will check bank statements and state records to find out whether the person has any unpaid debts, or history of bankruptcy. Based on this information, you will be able to determine whether the person would be able to pay his rent every month, without fail.
These background checks are required to ensure that you are renting your property only to a civilized person with a proper financial status. Perform a check on the background of your prospective tenant, to ensure complete peace of mind.
By Gardner Wilkinson
Eliminating Business Shyness Can Increase Your Business’s Success
Here are Five Questions to ask yourself as a Solo Entrepreneur, if business shyness is getting in the way of your business’s success.
1. Do you dread asking for money from your customers or raising your fees when you need to?
2. Do you feel you do not deserve to be paid for your services because you feel you don’t know enough?
3. Do you feel as if getting paid for your services means that you will have to compromise what you do or say in order to keep business coming in?
4. Do you break out in a sweat thinking of meeting new people or talking in front of a large crowd to promote your business?
5. Do you find yourself saying, “I HATE the thought of selling or marketing myself,” “I have no time to market myself” to the point that your business never gets off the ground?
Well…answering YES to any one or all of these questions means that you definitely need to keep reading this article.
I Think I Have a Really Good Idea? Why am I Not Making Any Money?
Most people start a new business based on her present skill set and/or a passion for something. This can be anything from making custom handbags to guiding people on a different spiritual plane. Their product or service is dynamite.
But what often happens is the happy new entrepreneur quickly realizes that, no matter how fabulous her product or service is, at first not many people will beat a path to her door. The dream of working for oneself quickly dissolves into the reality that all businesses face: having to find and keep paying customers.
That is usually when the “deer in the headlights” look comes out. Why don’t I have enough customers? Usually it is because the solo-entrepreneur has not done enough or anything to market or sell her product effectively. The thought process goes something like this:
- “I am really good at making pocketbooks but I know nothing about marketing. I don’t even know where to start.”
- “To be really honest, I hate the thought of selling. I don’t want to be a salesperson.”
- “I don’t have the time to market myself.”
I am sure you realize that just creating a business does not guarantee its success, no matter how great the idea behind it is. Yes, we have all heard the dismal statistics about new business startups and their failure rate. But, should this discourage you from starting a new business or working to get your business off the ground? I certainly hope not!
Working for yourself will bring freedom and personal rewards that cannot be measured in any amount of money, so don’t give up. Believe it or not, the success of your new business is really much more under your control than you think.
The Hard Part Starts the First Day You Open Your Doors for Business
I probably don’t have to tell you this; once you have started a new business, the really hard part starts immediately. I will not sugar coat the fact that if you have an idea that amounts to selling ice cubes to penguins, the chance of your business succeeding are slim indeed. Well, maybe with global warming this might actually be a good business. Of course, your business’s ultimate success depends on you having a viable market for you product or service.
I am sure this is not news to you. It is really up to you to attract customers to your business and eventually selling your offering to thim if there is a viable market for you. If you do not market and sell your business consistently and effectively you are the one who is blocking the flow of money into your business. You have to be the one that gets out of the way of your money stream.
May Seem Obvious But…
I know this sounds kind of like a like a “DUH, I know that.” But let me show you where most beginning entrepreneurs make their first fatal new business mistakes. I have found that working with new self-bosses, the most common initial complaints I hear from them are is that they are uncomfortable asking for money for their product or service. They are worried that people will think less of them if they sell their product or promote themselves. Worse, they never make the time to do any marketing.
Do you hear yourself feeling the same way? Once you do get up the courage to get out and meet with new people, do you feel you might have nothing of value to sell, even if that is not true and have spent years developing your product or service?
It is important you do something to rid yourself of these business shyness fears or your business will not grow. I don’t mean that you need get to the point where you sort of tolerate doing this. You really have to learn to ABSOLUTELY, and I mean ABSOLUTELY LOVE PROMOTING AND SELLING yourself and your business.
The good news is that this is easily learned and can actually be fun to accomplish. I know this is hard to believe, but once you understand where most of your sales and marketing jitters come from you will see that it is possible to effectively overcome them.
By Nancy Knettell
ESL Class - Top Four Reasons Why Studying English is Crucial For Your Future
Among them are decisions related to our education and training and more specifically whether we are able to communicate with others in one or more foreign languages. Nowadays, being proficient in English is a requirement and in case you didn’t know, here are top four reasons why studying it is essential for your future.
1. Work. In a world that functions at such a global level as ours, the capabilities a person has can become crucial when competing for a position in an organization or even getting the job in the first place. Our increasingly demanding world of work expects people to not only know about things concerning their profession or area of expertise, but also have training in specific job related items. Among them is languages. The development of communicative skills in foreign languages is all too necessary because of the intensive use of the Internet and other mass media as well as the interaction with clients and businessmen from other countries.
2. Travel. Learning languages can make travelling a much more pleasurable experience. Being able to handle everything that staying in a foreign country entails enables travellers to become more open to other things such as the cultural experience. Knowing languages can open doors to culture, we can learn about other customs and traditions different from our own.
3. Further study Many scholarships and courses abroad demand speaking a second language proficiently. In the case of school exchanges, knowing a second language is also a requirement. Not studying a second language can seriously affect your options of studying abroad or even act as an impairment.
4. New friends. Through travel and the use of Internet, languages have become important tools to communicate with others. A healthy social life can literally depend on how well you can achieve this. Meeting new people, making friends and also dating on the Internet have become very common and having sufficient knowledge and practice with foreign languages can also make a difference.
Let’s face it! There is much more to an ESL class than meets the eye. Your options are endless with the right language training. ESL can give you access to the world at different yet equally important levels. After all, isn’t feeling sure of yourself and having choices in the above mentioned areas worth it?
Mariano Descalzi
S. Oneida St. - Suite 390
Denver - Colorado
http://www.EnglishLCI.com
marianodescalzi1@gmail.com
(001) 303-756-0760
Does Your Business Need an Employer Identification Number?
If you have a business and you have employees, then you need a Federal Employer Identification Number, or EIN. Basically, it is a number that the Internal Revenue Service uses to identify your business.
Your EIN is a nine-digit number that the IRS assigns to identify tax accounts of employers. The EIN is not a substitute for your social security number, and it’s important that the business owner use the EIN, not their social security number when dealing with the IRS.
How do you know whether you need an EIN? If you answer yes to any of the following questions, you need one:
—Do you have employees?
—Is your business incorporated?
—Do you file tax returns for the following: Employment, Excise, Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms?
—Have you filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 7?
—Are you forming a pension, profit sharing or retirement plan?
—Do you have a Keogh plan (A Keogh plan is a a tax-deferred pension plan for employees)?
—Is your business involved with the following: Trusts, except certain grantor-owned revocable trusts,
IRAs, Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Returns,
estates, real estate mortgage investment conduits, non-profit organizations, farmers’ cooperatives, plan administrators.
—Are you a new corporation?
—Did you recently purchase or inherit an existing business?
However, you do not need an EIN if you are simply changing the name of your business or moving.
If you are forming a corporation, getting a EIN should be a priority, because you won’t be able to make a deposit or file a tax return until you have one in hand. It takes about two to four weeks to get an EIN, so it’s important to plan ahead.
If you do have any questions about whether your business requires a EIN, the IRS can answer most questions. Also, several online incorporation business can handle all the paperwork involved in setting up a new business, including filing for an EIN.
Roberto Neuberger is President and CEO of ActiveFilings.com which has over 8 years experience forming over 39,000 corporations, LLC’S and non-profits.
Click Here to find out why the decision to incorporate can mean the difference between success and failure in your business.
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