You are Probably a Micromanager

My recent post on why people micromanage triggered over 100 comments, stories, and suggestions — many of them relating experiences on the receiving end of micromanagement. What was striking was that only two readers actually admitted to being micromanagers themselves. One said:

"I have been micromanaged and guess what? When I rose through the ranks I did the same. It's difficult to admit to yourself. I believe it's a part of the learning process."

The other reader noted:

"I am one of those control freaks you are talking about. I know I am doing it, but sometimes being like that has made me aware of some nasty situations before they turned into disasters. I can imagine that I am a complete nightmare to work for."

This disparity reinforces the curious paradox that I mentioned in the earlier post: While many people complain about being micromanaged, very few think of themselves as micromanagers. But if nobody is a micromanager, then who is doing all the micromanaging?

The answer is that it's all of us (or at least many of us). Let me share a personal confession: When I first started to manage other consultants, I always worried that they would not perform to my standards. To ease my anxiety, I insisted that they get my approval for any communication that went to the client, whether it was an email, meeting notes, or a presentation. I also asked them to rehearse meetings in advance and check in with me after any contact with the client. In my own mind, these demands ensured quality control and educated less-experienced consultants. And while this was partly true, in retrospect much of what I did was unnecessary and probably perceived as micromanaging.

It would be comforting to say that I've matured — and indeed I've become much better at giving associates more headroom. But the reality is that these early patterns never go away completely. Just recently one of our newer consultants took on an assignment with a long-standing client — and despite knowing that he's experienced and capable, I found myself constantly asking him to report on his progress. While my anxiety was reduced, I actually added little value in the end.

The point is that all managers fall into these patterns at some point — often driven by anxiety and insecurity, either from lack of subject matter knowledge, inadequate training, or insufficient experience. In addition, the people they manage all have different skills, abilities, and experiences — and need varying degrees and types of attention. These people also have different expectations about what they want from a manager, so helpful support to one person could easily be perceived as controlling micromanagement to another.

Unfortunately most of these patterns are invisible to us. Even when we are aware of them, certain situations (like the new consultant in my case) can trigger them anyway. At the same time, none of us like to think of ourselves as micromanagers. So we rationalize the behavior (as I did) and continue to do what is most comfortable. It's a vicious cycle: Our anxiety drives us to behave unproductively, and the preservation of our self-image gives us justification to do it again. So that's why many people believe that they work for micromanagers, but few people think that they are micromanagers themselves.

It is possible to tone down this vicious cycle and make it less dysfunctional. The starting point is to admit to yourself that there is a possibility — even a slim one — that some of your subordinates view you as a micromanager. If you accept that notion, then ask your people to give you some feedback: Are there controls that you could loosen? Are there "checking" activities that you could stop doing? Are there different ways that you could stay on top of things without getting into unnecessary details? You might be surprised by the answers. And if you follow through on your team's suggestions, not only will it help you to grow as a manager, but you will also give them the confidence to speak up about additional patterns.

Let's face it: Most of us micromanage in some way, at least in the eyes of our people. So stand in front of a mirror, raise your hand and say: "My name is ___, and I'm a micromanager." Then let me know what happens.

Why People Micromanage

Over the past few decades I've worked with hundreds of managers, and many complain that they work for micromanagers. But strangely I don't recall anyone who ever admitted to being one.

I was thinking about this incongruity while working with a group of senior managers from a manufacturing division who were trying to streamline their operational reporting processes. During the meeting, the team listed their various monthly reports and the review meetings that accompanied them.

From the discussion it became clear that the same data was being sliced, diced, and formatted in many ways and then being checked and rechecked by a variety of managers at different levels. In addition, ad-hoc reports were being created in response to particular questions raised by the regular reports. In other words, operational reporting had become a cottage industry that sucked up time and resources.

None of the senior managers found this process productive, and they knew that their people complained about being "micromanaged to death." At the same time, none of them felt accountable for having created this problem. Somehow this burdensome, costly culture of micromanagement happened unintentionally.

So if nobody's waking up in the morning intending to be a micromanager, then why do people still feel micromanaged? Let me suggest two mostly unconscious reasons:

Managers worry about being disconnected. As managers rise through the ranks, they often become concerned that they've lost touch with the actual work of the organization. Because they have less direct contact with the shop floor or customers, they start to feel isolated. One way of reducing this anxiety is to seek information in as many ways as possible — through reports, meetings, and one-on-one conversations. But since this attempt to stay connected is largely unplanned and driven by idiosyncratic anxiety, the result is that managers at different levels and functions end up looking at the same basic data in many different ways.

Managers stay in familiar operational territory. Many managers are unable to let go of their old job or their old ways of doing their job. It's the well-worn saying: "What got you here won't get you there." Many managers are promoted based on their ability to achieve operational goals, manage budgets, control their numbers, and solve problems. However, at higher levels managers usually need to dial down their operational focus and learn how to be more strategic. To do so, managers have to trust their people to manage day-to-day operations and coach them as needed, rather than trying to do it for them. For many managers this is a difficult transition and they unconsciously continue to spend time in the more comfortable operational realm of their subordinates.

When the unconscious need for more direct information converges with a manager's tendency towards operational focus, micromanagement is often the result. And when many managers operate this way, we end up with the complex micromanagement culture described above.

The good news is that once you discover these unconscious patterns, it's possible to do something about them. The divisional manufacturing meeting that I attended is a good example. During the discussion, managers began to confront their patterns — both individually and as a team — and agreed to eliminate or modify certain reports and reviews. They also agreed to continue holding regular meetings to recalibrate their information appetite.

The message here is that with every promotion, managers need to learn a little more about how to lead using an "instrument panel" instead of direct observation. In doing this, managers need to work together to standardize the cockpits — so that the instruments and information not only make sense to them, but don't become overwhelming for everyone else.

Planificar una acción de marketing 2.0

Es incuestionable aunque las cifras del comercio electrónico no sean espectaculares, lo que no se puede negar es que todos y cada uno de nosotros somos clientes 2.0. Es decir, puede que no compremos por Internet pero sí que buscamos información sobre productos, servicios y marcas tanto en las redes sociales como en foros o blogs.

De hecho, no actuamos como sujetos pasivos sino que también nos atrevemos a publicar nuestros comentarios y dar nuestras opiniones para que puedan servir como recomendación a otros clientes ofreciéndoles la oportunidad de poder acceder a nuestra propia experiencia como consumidores.

Las empresas no pueden evitar esta realidad ni la pueden obviar o ignorar por lo que han de aprovechar los medios sociales para ganar visibilidad y capacidad de interacción con sus clientes.

La estrategia a seguir por tanto debe comenzar destruyendo tópicos, las críticas y las alabanzas no se pueden ni ocultar ni detener, por tanto, la presencia en los medios sociales debe estar dirigida a mantener de una manera relación efectiva con los consumidores. En este sentido hay que destacar que los usuarios suelen mostrarse menos dispuestos a hablar negativamente sobre aquellas compañías con las que interactúan habitualmente, por lo que es importante establecer una relación fluida con ellos.

A continuación habrá que definir los objetivos que se pretenden alcanzar con nuestra acción. Este es el caso de incrementar la visibilidad online de nuestra marca; incrementar el número de visitas a nuestra página web, fortalecer la relación conlos clientes actuales; contactar con nuevos clientes potenciales; o incluso, promocionar nuevos productos o servicios.

En función de como sea nuestro público objetivo habrá que utilizar un medio u otro y seguir las “costumbres” de socialización establecidas en ellas. Lo mejor es analizar las prácticas de las grandes marcas en cada medio y asimilarlas a nuestros propósitos.

Una vez determinado el medio hay que desarrollar una estrategia de contenidos. En este sentido, lo interesante es publicar contenidos relacionados con nuestro negocio originales y de calidad, y que resulten atractivos y de utilidad para el usuario, aportándole algún tipo de valor.Por ejemplo, la edición de tutoriales.

Por último paso es establecer herramientas de análisis que nos permitan medir la efectividad de nuestra presencia en la red social. Para esto se pueden utilizar las propias herramientas de estadísticas que nos ofrece cada red social: aplicaciones de webmetrics como Google Analytics en caso de reenviar tráfico a nuestra web; o plataformas de gestión como HootSuite, que nos permiten analizar la viralidad de nuestra acción en las redes sociales.

Negocios modernos, negocios antiguos

¿Un negocio antiguo no es bueno?, ¿es mejor un negocio moderno? Es mejor uno de clásico,¿no?, ¿más seguro?, ¿sí, seguro?, ¿o bien es más seguro un negocio actual y “super mega moderno? No hay negocios buenos o malos, todos son buenos si son rentables.

Que conste que no estoy hablando de sectores en auge o en declive, estoy hablando de negocios en sí, que bien pueden ser el sector al que se dirigen, pero que también puede ser en el como se dirigen esos negocios. Y es que decir que un negocio dirigido de forma clásica o antigua, o con una personalidad clásica o antigua, no tiene futuro o viceversa lo encuentro en realidad un sin sentido.

Habrá formas de negocio clásicas o antiguas que seguirán siendo igual de válidas que antaño, igual que habrá otras que tendremos que dejar atrás si queremos tirar adelante con nuestro negocio. Lo mismo sucede con lo moderno y actual, habrá muchas formas o facetas que en realidad no sirven o aportan nada, y otras que serán absolutamente indispensables para gestionar un negocio con éxito.

Yo no miro si ese negocio, si esa empresa es considerada moderna o actual, o clásica o antigua. Yo miro su cuenta de resultados. Y es su cuenta de resultados, mejor dicho es su rentabilidad lo que me dice lo que es esa empresa, no su supuesto clasicismo, o por contra su modernidad.

Hay que aprender a no preocuparse de lo que no se puede controlar

Últimamente como consecuencia de la situación de nerviosismo generalizada, la celeridad con la que se toman determinado tipo de decisiones, y los movimientos empresariales que se están produciendo. Muchos mandos intermedios y empleados de muchas empresas, especialmente las que pertenecen a su vez a otros grupos empresariales, están padeciendo una situación de estrés inducida por una situación que es completamente ajena a nuestra decisión, lo que nos lleva a actuar con inseguridad, desconfianza e incluso nos lleva a perder la visión de largo plazo.

Aunque comprendemos que el cambio que esperamos no depende de nuestra decisión, muchas veces gastamos demasiado tiempo y energías en pensar en las consecuencias de algo que no sabemos si se va a producir, afectando a nuestro día a día y al entorno del equipo.

En mi opinión, lo más inteligente es actuar con racionalidad, con naturalidad y viviendo el día a día, porque nadie sabe lo que nos va a deparar mañana, y posiblemente, muchos de los movimientos o cambios con los que especulamos hoy no se materializarán finalmente.

Por lo que no merece la pena perder ni un solo segundo de nuestro tiempo, ni mucho menos dejarnos afectar por ello. Y sobre todo, hemos de tener un especial cuidado en cómo gestionamos este tipo de situaciones si dirigimos un equipo de personas, porque ellos se hacen sus respectivas preguntas, y en nuestras manos estará que logremos mitigar la situación o acrecentarla.

Why Your Small Business Should Hangout on Google+

In a recent interview with Brian Solis, a principal analyst at research firm, Altimeter Group and author of The End of Business As Usual, he told me about why Google+ is already a useful tool for businesses, even though a critical mass of Americans hasn't necessarily glommed on yet.

Google+ is the fastest growing social network in history, says Solis. But more to the point, he adds: "It's not just a social network. Google+ will become a platform that connects all Google products, essentially creating a personal or social operating system for each individual."

Sounds like it will be big deal doesn't it? But to figure out how entrepreneurs can use it most effectively now, I reached out to some social media mavens for some tips:

Compartmentalize your content.
Segmenting and organizing brand fans, customers and influencers can be useful for gaining insights and customizing relevant content for your audience. Intel has taken advantage of circles separating their community between "technology enthusiasts," a "newsroom" and under the broad category of "life at Intel."

"Our followers to let us know which of our circles they'd like to join, so that we can provide them with the right type of information," says Jennifer Lashua from Intel's Social Media Center of Excellence. In addition to obviously popular tech content, we're finding that 'behind the scenes' footage seems to be well received, as well as educational material," she says.

Experiment with hangouts.
Facebook has a Skype integration, which only allows for a one-way video conversation. However, Google+ Hangouts is perfect for a business that wants to connect live and interact with a bigger audience. Movies like The Muppets have used hangouts, as have bands like the Black Eyed Peas, who had a hangout and Q&A with fans before going on stage during a concert.

Even the Dalai Lama hosted a hangout with his millions of fans with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Macy's offered one that asked fashion bloggers to give advice to their followers. But you might be asking yourself: I'm not a rockstar or spiritual icon- how does this apply to me? No matter who you are, hangouts allow you to get personal, creative, interactive and put a face behind your brand.

Harness the power of Google.
The power to connect your brand or business to Google's search engine is undeniable. The +1 button allows you to track who is connecting and sharing your content across the web. According to Christian Oestlian, head of social advertising at Google, it's all about "marrying the power of personal recommendations with the immediacy and power of recommendation on Google search." In other words, say someone is searching for a café in their city. Your brand could pop up if someone in their network had +1'd it.

Google+ ripples has also become a useful tool to see how a post has spread throughout the social network. Ian Schafer, founder of digital agency Deep Focus adds: "Integrating with Google+ is essential right now, because of its impact on Google search results. Experimentation will give businesses (especially small ones) a leg up on their competition."

How to Hire the Best Small Business Employees

The smaller the business, the more hiring the right people matters. When employee #100 turns out to be a

disaster the impact on the business is relatively small and usually confined to a small group of employees.
When employee #4 is a disaster, everything suffers.

Attitude is everything. you can teach skills but it's incredibly hard to teach and instill enthusiasm, teamwork and independence (you need both), and motivation.

The best small business employees:

-Feel "it's all 8 hours to me." I first heard this expression when I asked an employee to help me clean up after a backed-up sewer line spread waste water across the warehouse. He said, "Sure. It's all 8 hours." He felt he was paid to work for 8 hours so what he did during that time didn't matter (in a good way.) Great small business employees -- and great employees anywhere -- are willing to do whatever it takes and are more concerned with overall objectives and goals than their individual duties.
-Possess one outstanding skill... Small businesses have a variety of specific needs: Running the website, processing orders, generating leads, etc. Many roles can be outsourced. If you have the choice, only bring roles in-house because the candidate is truly outstanding...
-... and doesn't care about a job description or organizational structure. A prospective employee who asks to see a detailed job description is waving a large red flag. "What does the job entail, you ask? Whatever I need you to do." A small business owner pays an employee to work, not to hold a position. (If you don't think there's a difference you haven't run a small business.)
-Are a little bit "off." People who are quirky, sometimes irreverent, and happy to be different may seem slightly "off," but in a really good way. Employees who aren't afraid to stand out stretch boundaries, challenge a small business owner to think in different ways, and often come up with the best ideas.
-Want to learn something... and take it over. Face it, you're often overwhelmed. The luxury to "delegate and forget" is incredibly valuable. While employees with an independent streak can be more difficult to manage, the payoff is worth it.
-May lack polish, but have personality to spare. Think about your favorite customers or suppliers; aside from practical business aspects, what comes to mind first? They're personable, friendly, outgoing... they make your day a little more fun. Look for the same qualities in new hires. Customers buy from people they like.
-Knocked on your door. A friend of mine runs a mid-size company. One day a college senior walked in and said, "I've checked out your website, and forgive me for saying this but it could be a lot better. I graduate soon and would love to work for you. Here is a list of the changes I would make in the first three months, including how those changes would improve conversions and SEO results." Targeted approach, had done his homework... and showed a level of initiative every small business owner hopes to find. While a great employee will rarely try to crash your small business party, when one does give them serious consideration.

Family business longevity examined in a new light

Survival statistics have often been used to equate business exit with failure. That limited perspective doesn't consider a family's role as wealth creators.

Family business longevity examined in a new light

By Barbara Spector

In this issue, we celebrate the longevity of America’s oldest family businesses—companies that have been continuously owned by the same family for 155 years or more. Sustaining a family enterprise for more than a century and a half is a truly remarkable achievement. But does that mean family companies that last for only two or three generations are a failure? Should we consider families who have exited their businesses as less accomplished than those who continue to operate the legacy company—even if those who sell their businesses use the proceeds to create new, and greater, wealth? Why is business longevity so often viewed as the only meaningful measure of an enterprising family’s success?

A three-year study conducted under the auspices of the Family Firm Institute—a global association of researchers and advisers—aimed to reframe the view of family enterprise from a focus on operating companies to an assessment of value creation over time. The “FFI/Goodman Longevity Study,” completed in 2010, was conducted by Robert Nason, who was then at Babson College and is now pursuing a Ph.D. in entrepreneurship at Syracuse University, along with two European researchers: Mattias Nordqvist of Jönköping International Business School in Sweden and Thomas Zellweger of the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The study was funded in part by attorney and FFI member Joe Goodman. It will be published in a forthcoming issue of the field’s academic journal, Family Business Review.

Putting statistics in context

The investigators re-examined frequently quoted statistics from a 1987 study by John L. Ward, now at the Kellogg School. Ward’s nearly quarter-century-old report said that only 30% of family companies survive through the second generation, and just 13% make it through the third. Ward himself has acknowledged the limitations of that study, Nason and Nordqvist noted in a presentation at FFI’s 2010 annual conference in Chicago. Ward surveyed just 200 companies from only one state (Illinois) and only one industry (manufacturing).

Moreover, the researchers noted, Ward’s family business findings should be compared with longevity statistics for companies in general. Based on an assessment of U.S. Census data on start-ups founded in 2000—both family and non-family businesses—50% to 60% of all companies failed in the first five years, and only 25% lasted a decade. “[Ward’s] oft-cited survival statistics are low, out of context and not generalizable,” Nason and Nordqvist asserted in their presentation.

The FFI/Goodman team circulated an online questionnaire to senior family firm executives and received 541 responses, which they winnowed to 118. About 70% of the respondents were from the U.S. The survey participants’ annual revenues ranged from less than $1 million to $3 billion; the enterprises ranged in age from less than 20 years to 384 years (the mean was 60 years).

Challenging traditional assumptions

The study found that just 10.6% of the family enterprises owned only one business. The average number of companies controlled by these families was 3.4; 21.3% controlled five or more. Over the history of the participating families, they had owned an average of 6.1 firms. The investigators noted that research in the field has traditionally centered on firms founded by families and has not sufficiently addressed companies acquired through M&A; the families in their study added an average of 2.7 companies via acquisition.

Nason notes that since nearly 90% of the families in the study population own multiple businesses, shuttering one family-owned company would not spell the end of those families’ wealth-creating activity. “They’re divesting underperforming assets and redeploying them,” Nason notes. In other words, these successful families have business “failures” in their history.

The findings, the investigators pointed out, indicate that the key wealth creation vehicle is not the firm but the family.

Moreover, the researchers noted, companies can be old but not entrepreneurial. A number of the historic firms on the Family Business 100, for example, have survived but not grown; in fact, several have contracted over the years.

The FFI/Goodman team noted that previous studies have not adequately addressed the importance of innovation and risk taking to family firms’ entrepreneurship and longevity. Another important component is what they call “transgenerational entrepreneurial orientation,” or “decision making with the success of the next generation in mind.”

In a 2002 article (Family Business Review, 15[3]: 223-38, 2002), researchers Timothy G. Habbershon and Joseph Pistrui wrote, “Families committed to transgenerational wealth must understand that markets inevitably change and that all asset-dependent advantages erode over time…. Transgenerational wealth, therefore, embodies an implicit assumption that the family ownership group will develop entrepreneurial change capabilities in line with the inevitable need to shed or redeploy assets once its value-creating properties approach exhaustion.”

Habbershon and Pistrui contended that a “prevailing stereotype” exists in the family business arena: “diversifying assets through a sale (even at a premium) or utilizing traditional growth strategies—going public, forming a strategic alliance, merging, leveraging the company—can be viewed as a failure rather than a step toward continued wealth creation.”

In other words, Nason says, the focus of family business owners and their advisers should be on sustainability of the family’s wealth, not on longevity of a particular operating entity.

Families with a transgenerational orientation view the legacy company broadly rather than narrowly. Though they lovingly tell their children tales of the original business model and the town where it first took root, those aspects are just part of the family story. They place their emphasis on the founder’s entrepreneurial spirit, attention to the marketplace, flexibility and sense of stewardship. This perspective raises the odds that the family will prosper as an economic unit over many generations, no matter what form its wealth-creating entities take.

Colaboradores Ajenos a la Familia

What about non-family employees in the family business?

Non-family employees are the backbone of most family businesses. They should be treated equitably and professionally.

Do non-family employees in a family business have unique problems?

It depends on the company. Some family businesses, as they grow, lag behind in good human resource policies and procedures. But all businesses are subject to ERISA and other government regulations regarding the workplace. Using some kind of outside human resource assistance is essential.

Are there more subtle issues, as well?

Yes, there can be. A family business has an opportunity to embrace its non-family business employees as part of the team, assuring low turnover and good morale. It's important that such employees are not made to feel that they are second-class citizens.

Why would they be considered second-class citizens?

One example would be when there are one or more next generation employees working in the business. These family members should guard against demonstrating feelings of superiority or entitlement to avoid resentment and poor morale in the company. While most non-family business members are aware that the future of the family employees will probably be different from theirs in terms of the longer term future, the best policy for the company to follow is to treat all employees equitably. All should have job descriptions, performance evaluations, and requirements to follow the same workplace standards.

Networking Strategies for the Holidays

Holiday parties mean much more than free food and fun. They also can bring entrepreneurs a host of new opportunities to network and build relationships.

Most people think of networking only through the traditional venues, whether chamber of commerce events, business contact referral groups, or online sites such as LinkedIn. But holiday parties, including professional and industry social events where you can network with people outside your business, can be an even better time to introduce yourself to a new contact or share a friendly conversation with someone you already know.

Related: How to Tap the Power of 'Thank You'

To make the most of holiday party networking, here are a few things to keep in mind:

-Be prepared. Try to learn in advance the names of people you will likely chat with, their jobs and their recent accomplishments. You will need to do a little homework, perhaps a Google search and a look at their LinkedIn or Facebook pages. Use the information you glean to break the ice.

-Ask good questions. From the CEO to intern level, people love to talk about themselves. Here are some suggested conversation starters: How did you get started? What were some of the challenges with. . . ? Have you read any good books lately? My favorite is: How can I help you?

-Have a "teaser” topic ready. Approaching the end of the year, every business executive is thinking about how to increase profits and performance in the new year. Have an idea ready that describes the steps you'd take to improve your networking contact's business. Make this research part of the homework you do ahead of time. But don't give away the goose; save the details for a later conversation.
Related: Don't Wait for a Reunion to Network With Former Classmates

-Don't have more than a couple of drinks. It's a party, but you don't want to smell of liquor or be too relaxed when you approach people you want to connect with. Impressions count. Make the right one.

-Be confident of your value. Introducing yourself to an executive can be an intimidating experience, so give yourself a pep talk before the party. Make a list of your accomplishments over the past year and figure out how you might weave them into conversations. Once you've got that down, you should feel good about yourself.
-Use the introduction to segue to a future meeting. You don't want to end your chat at the party. The endgame here is to open the door for a follow-up meeting one-to-one. But remember that a party is a social gathering, so keep it natural and leave them intrigued.

-Honor the event. This is really important. Make sure that when networking at a holiday party -- or any nontraditional networking event for that matter -- you don't treat it like a business mixer. Show finesse. Yes, it is a great networking opportunity, but if you overtly sell, you may turn people off. After all, it is a holiday.

Building a Business on Regifting

What it is
Shift My Gift is a web-based service that allows registered users to transfer money to worthy causes--money that would otherwise have been spent on gifts. Donations are processed online through Network for Good, a Bethesda, Md., nonprofit organization. Through a partnership with GuideStar, a nonprofit reporting agency, users can access a database of more than 1.8 million IRS-recognized nonprofits and choose where they want the cash to go.

How it started
After hiking through some of Nepal's poorest regions, Blair Souder returned to his Lincoln University, Pa., home just in time for Black Friday, the post-Thanksgiving retail frenzy. Although the people in Nepal had very little, they "were very connected and seemed to be living in happiness and peace, as far as I could see," Souder says. It was a stark contrast to the shopping craze that kicks off the December holiday season in the States.

"I began thinking it would be cool to have a place online where people could easily [transfer their gifts to benefit others] and also create a bit of a movement around it," Souder says. "It would help people reflect on themselves: How am I going to celebrate the next event in my life? Do I really need more gifts?" He told his brother Kirk about the idea and the two went to work building the site.

Why it took off
The site, which has only been live since mid-August, attracted more than 2,000 discrete visitors within the first month, simply through word-of-mouth. The Souders plan a grassroots promotion campaign that will include up to 25 partner nonprofits to help spread the word through their own networks. One of the most recently featured nonprofits is the venerable Heifer International, which was established in 1944 and works with poor communities throughout the world to end hunger and poverty while caring for the earth.
The business case
Shift My Gift charges users a $1.49 processing fee per transaction--less than what it would cost to wrap and send most gifts through the U.S. Postal Service or courier. The fee is not tax-deductible, but the donation is. In addition, a 4.75 percent "grant" is withheld from each donation and given to Network for Good to offset the cost of processing (the grant is tax-deductible).

What's next
The Souders will work with their nonprofit partners to run donation campaigns and encourage gifting through the site. They're also working on a publicity campaign and increasing their social media profile to get the word out about their site, which Blair says is easy to use.

"For people who realize that they just don't want any more stuff and would like to use gift-giving occasions, like birthdays or weddings, to make a difference in the world, this allows them to celebrate in a more meaningful way," he says. "People are really responding to that message."

How to Bootstrap Your Business

Erica Zidel knew trying to raise funds for her startup would be a full-time job. She worried that chasing after capital would distract her from building the best product she could. So, rather than sweat the investment game, she has spent two years holding down a day job while bootstrapping her new company on the side.

During business hours, the Boston resident works as a management consultant. Evenings and weekends, she puts on her startup hat.

"I've basically been working two full-time jobs," says Zidel, founder and CEO of Sitting Around, an online community that makes it easy for parents to find and coordinate babysitting co-ops in their neighborhoods. It's a hectic schedule--schizophrenic, even--but it's also thrilling. "When I woke up this morning, I realized that it was Monday, and I got excited," Zidel says.

What's perhaps more thrilling is that she's been able to self-fund Sitting Around with the money she earns from her consulting work. Besides not getting sidetracked with fundraising, Zidel and her business partner, CTO Ted Tieken, have been able to retain 100 percent ownership of the babysitting venture.

"Bootstrapping early on means I have complete control over the vision and the product at a time when even small changes can lead to big consequences down the road," Zidel says. "I wanted the flexibility to make the right decisions, free from a board or an investor's influence. When you have just the founders making decisions, you can innovate much faster."

That focus on innovation has paid off. Sitting Around serves families in 48 states, as well as in Canada, Australia, Hong Kong and the U.K. Since the site launched in June, its user base has doubled every month; the company is on track to have 5,000 users by year's end. Sitting Around also was one of 125 finalists in this year's MassChallenge, a Boston-based startup competition and accelerator program. Perhaps most exciting of all? Shortly after launching the company, Zidel was honored at the White House as a champion of change for her contributions to child care.

Money vs. Time
The beauty of moonlighting with a startup is that it lets you test a business idea without jeopardizing your financial well-being, says Pamela Slim, business consultant and author of Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur.

"When you don't know where your monthly income is coming from, it often sets up a fight-or-flight response in your brain," Slim says. "And that's not a good place to be when you're trying to be creative. So having that psychological cushion is often very important for the development of business ideas."

Zidel will attest to that. Thanks to her day job, she's been able to pour $15,000 to $20,000 of her own money into her business. Not having to take on debt or live like a monk has been a point of pride--but it has also been a necessity. "Since I'm a mother, I have to maintain an adequate standard of living for my son," Zidel explains. "While I'm definitely frugal and very conscious that a dollar spent on lifestyle is a dollar not spent on Sitting Around, I'd rather work two jobs than feed my son ramen."

But as anyone bootstrapping a business on top of a day job will tell you, seed capital isn't the only ingredient in the recipe.

"When I started my journey as an entrepreneur, I thought the most precious resource was money, but it's actually time," says Aaron Franklin, co-founder of LazyMeter.com, a web-based productivity tool that launched in August.

Franklin and LazyMeter co-founder Joshua Runge initially began "messing around" with their idea nights and weekends while working full time at Microsoft. After four months of brainstorming and development, the two felt they could no longer do their day jobs justice. With LazyMeter still in the product-development stage, they resigned from Microsoft at the end of 2009, trading in their steady paychecks for a more flexible web-consulting client.

"We needed a source of revenue to buy us the time to build the right product. Consulting was really the perfect way to ease this transition," says Franklin, who is based in San Francisco.

Taking project-based work did more than just allow Franklin and Runge to bootstrap the startup. Because they performed their consulting work under their business entity, they were able to stretch their income further by putting their pre-tax earnings back into their new company.

Today, LazyMeter has more than 10,000 users. Although currently a free service, the founders plan to introduce premium subscription features as soon as the first quarter of 2012.

Juggling Act
Bootstrapping a business is not without its challenges. Besides the long hours and the strain on personal relationships, it can be tricky to split one's creative juices between two professional pursuits.

"Being pulled in multiple directions is the hardest," says Sitting Around's Zidel. "It takes a while for your brain to switch gears. And when things start to collide, it can be hard to say [what] you should be working on."

To stay productive and sane, Zidel schedules her workdays down to the hour and sticks to a list of non-negotiable items to accomplish each day. Still, she admits, "it's hard to stop working. I really have to force myself to carve out some personal time."

Bootstrapping with income earned from not a single employer but a cadre of consulting clients comes with its own set of obstacles.

"Sometimes customers require a lot of attention, making it difficult to carve out time for your startup," LazyMeter's Franklin says. Likewise, he adds, "When you start consulting, it can be tempting to work as many hours as they can pay you."

Either way, your startup loses--which is why it's important to make an exit plan and stick to it. "If you make enough revenue to last another month but slow down your startup by a month, you're not getting ahead," Franklin says. "Make sure your efforts are moving you forward, not backward."

Knowing When to Leap
How will you know when to quit your day job? Author Slim advises that once you've tested your idea in the real world and know there's a market for it, you should set specific, tangible metrics.

"For some people, it can be getting a significant amount of traffic on their website or selling a certain number of units," she says. "For some people, it's when they have X dollars in their savings. For some people, it's a date--say, ‘Come hell or high water, Dec. 31, 2012, I'm quitting my job.'"

For Nick Cronin, co-founder and CEO of ExpertBids.com, which connects business owners with lawyers, CPAs and other consultants, the day came when his web startup began to bring in revenue. After spending 15 months growing his site to 10,000 users--7,000 of them experts--Cronin left his gig as a corporate attorney to work on his startup full time in November 2010. Now, he says, "We bring in enough money for a developer and myself to work on [the site] and to cover all expenses, including office space and advertising/marketing."

Before quitting his job, Cronin spent a year lining his savings account. "I knew that things were going to take time and that we were going to need a little bit of a runway before I could take a salary," says the Chicago-based entrepreneur. "My goal was to have nine months where, if we didn't make a dollar, I'd be totally fine."

The escape route looks completely different for Sitting Around's Zidel. "It's less the number of users and more the rate of growth. We've been testing different components of our business to see what works before we go out to raise money and turn the gas on," she says. "Now we have a lot of great data: what messages resonate, what products make money."

While she won't specify revenue, Zidel says her site is making money from its premium subscribers, who pay $15 per year, and from advertisers. In 2012, the company will launch discounted product offers to site members (such as backpacks for kids) and a pay-per-transaction scheduling tool for booking babysitters.

Until Sitting Around brings in enough to pay a comfortable salary, Zidel says she's content to juggle CEO duties with her consulting work. And to those who say you're not a true entrepreneur unless you quit your day job, she cries foul.

"A lot people think that to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to be sleeping on an air mattress and working on your business 80 to 90 hours a week," she says. "But I think that definition of success is silly. I'm living proof that if you have a quality idea and you spend your time well and execute it well, you can wind up with something great."

Protecting Your Rep at Your Day Job
Your boss may not be thrilled to learn that you're cultivating a side business. To avoid biting the hand that feeds you, follow this advice from Pamela Slim, author of Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur.

Check your employment agreement and employee handbook. Some companies have a no-moonlighting policy. Others have non-compete agreements that prohibit you from doing your own business with their clients. Others--particularly technology companies--have policies that nab the intellectual property rights of anything you create on your own time.

Keep quiet about your side project. Unless your employment agreement requires you to come clean about your after-hours venture, Slim recommends staying mum with managers and colleagues. Yes, some might be supportive of your side pursuit. But, Slim says, once the cat's out of the bag, "be prepared to be fired, as a worst-case scenario."

Don't work on your startup on company time. Just because you love your side project more than your job doesn't give you license to slack off. Resist the urge to use your work phone and e-mail to conduct startup business. "Take the calls on your cell on a break, and, if possible, use your own laptop or mobile device to check personal e-mail," Slim says. "Remember, everything is tracked and monitored in large corporations."

Don't burn bridges. Guard your professional reputation as though your life depends on it. "It's never a pleasant thing to be fired for performance," Slim says. "That's not the way you want to go out." Besides, your current employer might be a future customer or investor.

A Small Business Owner's Guide to Year-End Sales Success

As the holiday season kicks into full gear, many business owners' thoughts naturally turn to their year-end income strategy. Suddenly, there are only four weeks left to book revenue into 2011.

Likely, you already have your holiday sales strategy set for the holiday season but, if you don't, chin up. There's still plenty of time to implement smart sales and pricing techniques that will make your year-end brighter.

Here are five ways to maximize your 2011 income.

1. Offer payment incentives. If you have slow customers whose payments might not show up until next year, consider offering them a small prompt-payment discount to encourage them to fork over funds sooner rather than later.

2. Hire temporary help. If you sell retail either online or off, your big season lies ahead. Do you have enough staff? If not, hire a veteran or a teen to help you during the holiday crunch time. Unemployment is sky-high for both those groups.

3. Get smart about pricing. Customers have never been more price-sensitive, but that doesn't mean every item you sell needs to be at a rock-bottom price. Make sure you've done your research to identify opportunities to sell at higher price points. Also consider bundling your products into new combinations, where your price won't be directly comparable with competitors.

4. Consider flash marketing. It may be too late to organize a major marketing campaign, but there's always running a quick sale on Facebook or Twitter to bring in more last-minute revenue. Your competitors are doing it. In a recent study by retail-industry research firm RSR Research, 40 percent of retailers said their marketing has become more promotion-driven over the past few years, up from 31 percent last year.

5. Tap your network for ideas. Learn what other local businesses are doing to drive year-end sales. Post a question on your LinkedIn status, ask at your mastermind group, take a Facebook poll -- there are many ways to take the pulse of what's going on locally and find a great new sales tip.

Gestion Empresarial según Carlos Slim

Gracias a su buena gestión empresarial Carlos Slim se ha convertido, recientemente, en el hombre más rico de todo el mundo. Por ello todo lo que dice causa gran admiración… La CNNExpansion ha recopilado sus 10 consejos para una buena gestión:

1. Tener estructuras simples y organizaciones con mínimos niveles jerárquicos, con desarrollo humano y formación interna de las funciones ejecutivas. Tener flexibilidad y rapidez en las decisiones. Operar con las ventajas de la empresa pequeña, que son las que hacen grandes a las grandes empresas.
2. Mantener la austeridad en tiempos de vacas gordas. Esto fortalece, capitaliza y acelera el desarrollo de la empresa. Asimismo, evita los amargos ajustes dramáticos en las épocas de crisis.
3.Ser activos en la modernización, crecimiento, capacitación, calidad, simplificación y mejora incansable de los procesos productivos. Incrementar la productividad, competitividad, reducir gastos y costos guiados siempre por las más altas referencias mundiales.
4. La empresa nunca debe limitarse a la medida del propietario o del administrador. No sentirnos grandes en nuestros pequeños corralitos. Mínima inversión en activos no productivos (por ejemplo, Grupo Carso siempre tuvo sus oficinas en las plantas de las empresas industriales; ahora que da un giro comercial, tendrá oficinas públicas).
5. No hay reto que no podamos alcanzar trabajando unidos con claridad en los objetivos y con conocimiento de los instrumentos para lograrlos.
6. El dinero que sale de la empresa se evapora. Por eso reinvertimos las utilidades.
7.La creatividad empresarial no sólo es aplicable a los negocios. También es la solución de muchos de los problemas de nuestros países. Lo que hacemos a través de las fundaciones del grupo.
8. El optimismo firme y paciente siempre rinde sus frutos. Esto es de mi padre.
9. Todos los tiempos son buenos para quienes saben trabajar y tienen con qué hacerlo.
10. Nuestra premisa es y siempre ha sido tener muy presente que nos vamos sin nada; que sólo podemos hacer las cosas en vida y que el empresario es un creador de riqueza que la administra temporalmente.

How (Small) Heroic Acts of Kindness Will Grow Your Business

Zane’s Cycles Is Deliberate About Becoming Their Customers’ “Go to” Place

Picture a dad on a Saturday morning toting a bike with a broken chain and a disappointed kid. Dad’s already been to the hardware store, with no luck. Two stops later, exasperated and increasingly frustrated, both father and son find their way to Zane’s Cycles in Branford, CT.



Within minutes they find out what will fix the chain: a 25-cent master link. The salesman at Zane’s hands it over, with a firm “No charge.” Zane’s has decided to give these parts away. Anything that costs a buck or under, they give to any customer who needs it. Though small in price, these parts are usually attached to a frustrating experience for the customer.

Owner Chris Zane says:

“I could either charge the guy one buck or two bucks for the part or give it to him. So I give the part away, along with an extra one. By making seven good impressions, we keep customers connected and returning to us.”

Emotional Bonds Create Lifelong Customers

Zane’s wants to become the lifeline for their customer throughout his or her bike ownership. And that sometimes means throwing in a bike part for free — especially at frustrating moments. Zane’s wants to build strong relationships through creating indelible memories, like the one that made the day of that father and son.

Chris Zane is astute enough to know that in these moments, an emotional bond to his store is created. And this will translate in the future into a prosperous customer relationship. Zane’s works to deliver at least seven “wow” moments for each customer. They do this because at Zane’s they believe that seven powerful interactions prove to customers that Zane’s is (a) consistently good to them, and (b) the best (and only) place to go for anything regarding bicycles.

Why does Zane’s do this? Because it’s the right thing to do. And because they have a track record of success with these acts of kindness. Zane’s “pays it forward” consistently with their customers, and that grows their business.

By Extending Human Kindness, Zane’s Wins Market Share

The memories customers have of times when they were stressed and Zane’s came through, with no strings attached, pull them back to the store. And once a customer walks back into Zane’s, he or she usually buys. Each Zane’s customer spends an average of $12,500 with the company. And Zane’s experiences unheard of 43 percent margins.

You do the math: Wouldn’t you spend $1 to make an impression that will earn a customer worth $12,500? How many “wow” impressions do you encourage your people to deliver in the course of a day, a month or a year to your customers? Consider if those nickel, dime and dollar charges are costing you more than you’re charging in lost goodwill and future customers.

Have You Planned for Heroic Acts of Kindness?

Zane’s Cycles decided to give away bike parts costing less than $1. This makes Zane’s the lifeline for their customers throughout their bicycle ownership. These gestures create “wow” memories that pull customers back to the store. Ask yourself these questions:

Is everyone in my business ready to go the extra mile? Do they have permission? Are they inspired?
Do I celebrate heroism every day?
How would I rate my intent and ability to enable and deliver heroic acts of kindness?
Do customers rave about your heroic acts of kindness today?
How does my decision to go the extra mile compare with this beloved company?
Let’s identify one simple gesture you can make to give people permission, ability and the freedom to go the extra mile.

La calidad se percibe

La calidad se percibe

¿Cuántas veces no nos hemos ido a comprar una camisa y con el simple tacto ya nos hemos dado cuenta de que era de muy mala calidad?, ¿cuántas veces hemos ido a comprar algo que nos deslumbraba por su aspecto pero de simplemente tocarlo ya hemos visto lo malo que era? Y es que la calidad se percibe, y la mala calidad, sin duda, se detecta a la primera.

Pueden vendernos esa pieza, ese objeto o ese lo que sea como el mejor del mundo, pero de buen seguro que si por el mismo ya no se vende percibiéndose como una pieza o como un objeto de calidad, para nada servirá vendernos esa supuesta calidad.

Un producto tiene que ser bueno y eficiente, y además en todo caso tiene que parecerlo (que eso no quita que no sea bonito). Pero parecerlo realmente, no de forma artificiosa o decorada, que lo único que esconde, son las grandes carencias y lagunas que tiene detrás.

Me vienen a la mente un sinfín de objetos, especialmente de estos tan manidos “ex todo a 100”, los cuales tú los ves y la vista te puede hacer llevar a pensar que estamos ante un gran producto, cuando lo que precisamente es, no es precisamente un buen producto. Estos, como otros, son claros casos donde la imagen no se ajusta a la calidad, pero donde la calidad (mejor dicho la ausencia de calidad) se detecta a pesar (o precisamente por) de la imagen.

Los centros de producción se trasladan ya por los clientes y no tanto por los costes salariales

Los centros de producción se trasladan ya por los clientes y no tanto por los costes salariales

Con el desarrollo del comercio internacional y la globalización económica, han sido muchas las multinacionales que han decidido trasladar sus centros de producción por una razón de costes, entendidos en sentido amplio, y entre los que se incluyen los inherentes ala mano de obra, el tratamiento fiscal de sus beneficios, la disponibilidad de materias primas o los costes de intermediación.

A medida que los países industrializados han ido experimentando un deterioro de su crecimiento económico y los países emergentes, en especial el grupo de los BRICS (Brasil, Rusia, India, China y Sudáfrica) han ido consolidando altas tasas de crecimiento y de renta, el poder de compra está basculando desde Europa y Estados Unidos hacia estos países, cuestión que está modificando las razones por las que las empresas deciden una deslocalización empresarial, siendo los mercados y no tanto los costes.

En los últimos meses, son muchas las empresas que están experimentando estas sensaciones, como la filial del grupo alemán Wolkswagen, Seat, que ha proyectado abrir quince concesionarios en China, dónde comercializará dos de sus modelos, el León y el Ibiza. Con el objetivo de aprovechar el dinamismo de la economía china para compensar la caída incesante de las ventas en los mercados occidentales.

Este fenómeno, que sin lugar a dudas irá a más en los próximos años, deja entrever algunos de los cambios que se están produciendo en el mapa económico mundial. Dónde los principales mercados están abandonando América del norte y el viejo continente, para focalizarse en aquéllas economías más dinámicas, con mayor renta y con ‘ganas’ de experimentar el patrón de consumo occidental.

Los 72 consejos más interesantes, para emprender un negocio, de los bloggers más influyentes

A la hora de emprender un negocio nunca llegan los consejos que puedan darnos por lo que si quieres pasarte un buen rato leyendo, y aprendiendo de los bloggers más interesantes en España, tan solo degusta el resumen/listado y continua leyendo cada artículo…

J. Trecet – Consejos básicos para ahorrar gastos

1. Compra los muebles en eBay. Muchas empresas están quebrando, reduciendo plantilla o cambiando de oficina. Aprovechate y consigue el mobiliario de la oficina a precio de saldo.
2. Mesas baratas, sillas caras. Ahorrarás muchos dolores de espalda y aumentará la productividad. Esto es la diferencia ente gasto e inversión.
3. La comida, mejor de casa. Este es todo un clásico del ahorro, que Calacanis amplia al resto de empleados. En este caso no se gana dinero, sino tiempo, otro de los grandes problemas para cualquier emprendedor.
4. Cuidado con la tarifa del móvil, es tu dinero y no el de la empresa.
Compra surtidores de agua y café para la oficina. En primer lugar te ahorrarás el dinero del café y en segundo el tiempo en ir al bar.
6. Blogea para ahorrar los servicios de comunicación y publicidad. Además, podrás demostrar los conocimientos reales de la empresa.
7. Elimina los gastos de administración y limpieza. Aprende a realizar algunas de las gestiones por las que tendrías que pagar a un administrador y mantén la oficina en condiciones por ti mismo.

Sandro Rosell – 10 consejos

Sandro Rosell – Febrero 2010 – Iniciador Barcelona from Links40 digital media content on Vimeo.

1. En la vida puedes planetarte ser actor o ser espectador.
2. Ser optimista.
3. Tres consejos para un emprendedor que está empezando: (1) Equipo humano, (2) Equipo humano y (3) Equipo humano..
4. Intentar rodearse de “buenas personas buenas”, es lo más importante para generar equipo..
5. Sandro reparte su actividad un 50% en gestionar su negocio (BSM) y el otro 50% en gestionar sus inversiones. Se ocupa de su propio negocio.
6. Como inversor, los factores más valorados en todo proyecto que evalua son: (1) el producto/servicio y (2) la pasión del emprendedor que está explicando la idea de negocio.
7 Se necesita escalabilidad en los equipos de trabajo.
8. Sobre el Networking, le gusta mucho twitter y facebook, pero prefiere el contacto personal con las personas. “
9 Sobre las lecciones aprendidas de tropiezos o fracasos, sus principales errores han sido haber elegido mal el compañero de viaje, y también hacer malas inversiones. Lo leimos en el ibro negro del emprendedor, los socios equivocados son un factor clave del fracaso. Por otro lado todos los inversores se equivocan a veces, reconocerlo es un signo que me parece positivo.
10. Es contrario a que los proyectos reciban ayudas, y dice que sólo la sanidad debería recibirlas.

J. Encinar – Consejos sobre como empezar una empresa

1. Empezar un negocio es algo muy serio. Es difícil hacerlo en tus ratos libres o por la tarde. Si de veras quieres empezar un negocio deja tu trabajo, reduce tus gastos y dedícate a ello a tiempo completo. Es la única manera de darle una oportunidad de éxito a tu idea.
2. En un proyecto lo más importante no es la idea sino el equipo que está detrás. Rodeate del mejor equipo del mundo y todo saldrá mejor. La mejor idea del mundo con un equipo mediocre no llega a ningún sitio, pero un equipo brillante puede hacer un gran negocio hasta de una idea mediocre.
3. Ten una discusión seria con tus socios sobre como repartir el capital y qué ocurre si alguno abandona el barco. Repartir el capital a medias y no tener un acuerdo de socios es una receta para conflictos y problemas más adelante.
4. Evita el reparto de capital a partes iguales, nadie aporta lo mismo que otros y al final es una fuente de problemas. Si tienes socios en el negocio tiene que estar bien claro que la empresa no es una comuna hippy. Alguien tiene que ser el jefe.
5. Nunca utilices el argumento “esto o aquello es justo” porque el concepto de justicia es subjetivo y dará muchos problemas de interpretación. Es mejor hablar de lo que es “razonable”
6. Calcula tus necesidades de financiación con muchos meses de antelación. Cualquier negociación dura más de lo previsto y tu fuerza negociadora es nula si estás a punto de quedarte sin dinero.
7. En los contratos legales importantes y ampliaciones de capital revisa tú mismo todos los cálculos y los números. Muchos abogados son abogados porque no les gustaban las matemáticas en el cole.
8. En el mundo ideal, una idea tiene poca inversión necesaria inicial, cash flows positivos desde el comienzo, activos reales, break even cercano y barreras de entrada reales.
9. No te preocupes de tener todo absolutamente atado y bien atado. Por muy brillante que una idea sea siempre hay alguien que puede venir con multiples “que pasa si…”. Es imposible que una idea guste a todo el mundo. Hasta las mejores oportunidades vienen con riesgos y cosas que pueden salir mal. Intentar encontrar (como inversor o emprendedor) una idea “que no puede fallar” es la inútil búsqueda del grial. Hasta el mejor negocio tiene riesgos que pueden hacerlo “fallar”.
10. Muchas pequeñas empresas y emprendedores pierden el sueño pensando “cómo va a reaccionar el mamut que tengo por competidor a mi entrada en su negocio” pero la realidad es que muchas grandes empresas no pueden hacer lo que hace un emprendedor porque tienen un distinto “perfil de riesgo”. Como emprendedor tú puedes equivocarte, hacer errores, arriesgar tu marca… Tú puedes fallar, ellos no. Ellos tienen más miedo a arriesgar su marca y su prestigio. Tu puedes hacer el ridículo, ellos no. Esa es tu ventaja.

Tecnorantes – Consejos varios para emprendedores

1. Si tienes que hacer un plan de negocio o unas previsiones, multiplica tus previsiones de gastos por 2 y divide tu ingresos estimados por 2.
2. No dejes que tu proyecto o empresa dependa de una subvención
3. Prepárate para la posibilidad de no cobrar un euro durante un tiempo o en situaciones complicadas.
4. Se honesto. Contigo mismo, con tus clientes, con tus proveedores y con tus trabajadores.
5. Se sincero cuando hay problemas
6. El cliente no siempre tiene la razón.
7. Trata de atar muy bien plazos, pagos y condiciones.
8. No trabajes para amigos íntimos y familiares.
9. Se agradecido, pese a no conseguir tus objetivos
10. Elige muy bien a tus socios
11. Pagos y administración
12. Date a conocer
13. Haz cosas sin esperar nada a cambio
14. Se flexible cuando la ocasión lo merezca – Evita conflictos y juicios


Consejos para emprendedores

1. Busca la pasión en lo que se hagas
2. Aprovecha tus ventajas
3. Ofrece algo diferente
4. Empieza en pequeño, pero proyéctate en grande
5. Proyéctate en el futuro
6. Planifica siempre
7. No seas tan optimista
8. No te concentres sólo en el dinero
9. Minimiza el riesgo y luego actúa
10. No tengas miedo cometer errores
11. Analiza permanentemente el mercado
12. Busca permanentemente las oportunidades
13. No ofrezcas algo que te guste a ti, sino algo que les guste a los consumidores
14. Medita bien tus decisiones
15. Comprime el tiempo
16. No dejes de capacitarte
17. Ahorra en todo lo que puedas
18. Rodéate de las personas indicadas
19. Sé perseverante
20. Sé paciente

Julio Alonso – 11 consejos para no convertirte en una bomba 2.0

1. Ten un claro modelo de negocio desde ya.
2. Sé un negocio completo, no sólo una funcionalidad.
3. Haz algo que sea relevante para la gente normal, no sólo para los bloggers.
4. Usa un nombre fácil de recordar y de diferenciar.
5. Sepárate de todo lo que huela a 2.0, tendrá un impacto negativo dentro de poco.
6. Pide consejo a gente que no esté relacionada con la Web 2.0
7. Si eres revolucionario asegúrate que la revolución va a suceder.
8. Si eres evolucionario asegúrate de que el mercado es suficientemente grande y que tu producto es suficientemente diferencial como para que la gente se pase a él.
9. Busca el encaje de tu negocio en una cadena de valor existente.
10. No esperes ser el próximo Google y, sobretodo, no esperes que Google vaya a comprarte.
11. Ignora la euforia desatada y diviértete, pero mantén los pies en la tierra.

A la caza del cliente

Una cuestión bastante curiosa es como se suelen dar por sentadas determinadas premisas. Pero es que en tiempos de crisis estos lujos no son permisibles, hay que cuestionárselo todo. Por ejemplo, y esto es fundamental, que con independencia del tipo de negocio no se puede esperar por los clientes, hay que salir a buscarlos, hay que ir a la caza del cliente. ¿Cómo? Con imaginación y trabajo, como en Talleres Alberotecnic.

Talleres Alberotecnic es una empresa dedicada al mundo del automóvil (mecánica, electricidad, chapa, pintura). Ante la crisis, y el hecho de tener que pagar 15 nominas todos los meses agudizo su ingenio para ver como conseguía captar la carga de trabajo que la crisis le estaba negando. Así que ideo un plan sencillo pero ingenioso, tal y como narraban en levante-emv.com:
La idea es tan sencilla como brillante. Se trata de recorrer la ciudad en busca de coches con pequeños problemas de chapa, pintura o neumáticos. Una vez localizados, se fotografían y se vuelcan los datos en un ordenador portátil. «Hemos creado una base de datos que nos permite estimar los daños y realizar un presupuesto muy exacto en el mismo lugar en el que encontramos el coche», explica. El papel se fija al parabrisas y se espera a que el futuro cliente se sorprenda al ver que se trata de un presupuesto para reparar su propio coche. Todo son facilidades, también en el precio final. «Al calcular el precio incluimos un descuento para que sea más bajo que el de cualquier otro taller» asegura el gerente del Alberotecnic.
En definitiva, un modo de trabajar totalmente distinto al de su competencia, adelantándose a las necesidades del cliente, y que cuenta con el factor sorpresa. El caso es que les está yendo bien, aunque son conscientes de que tarde o temprano serán imitados. Sin embargo, esa no puede ser la excusa para no intentarlo, ya que por un lado el que da primero da dos veces, y por otro alguien que ha sido capaz de ingeniar este método de venta estoy seguro que será capaz de encontrar nuevas alternativas que les permitan seguir creciendo.

Gestión de Empresa Familiar V: Relación entre hermanos

1. Relación entre hermanos
La rivalidad entre hermanos es una pauta de la realidad y puede ser positiva. Pero existen casos de celos y competencia destructiva y esto resulta negativo para la empresa.

Conflictos entre hermanos (el rol del padre) Cuando estalla el conflicto entre dos o tres hermanos en una EF, la consternación invade a todas las personas más cercanas. Todo parece un infortunio, una maldición que se desató sobre la familia y sobre la empresa. Recordemos que la historia registra muchos precedentes de situaciones complicadas entre familiares. Caín y Abel eran hermanos. Esaú y Jacob también. Saliendo de ejemplos bíblicos y buscando en las EF, en el día a día, encontramos muchos casos, muchas lecciones de las cuales podemos sacar provecho.

Al César lo que es del César
La historia del mundo empresario registra muchos fracasos cuando el padre intenta, aun en contra de la realidad, mantener juntos a los hijos que parecen no querer estar juntos. También se registran ejemplos favorables cuando el padre logra encaminar a cada hijo en un proyecto distinto, cuando el padre percibe que la personalidad de los mismos se contrapone a un proyecto compartido. En estos casos, una vez separados, es decir, cada cual por su lado, los beligerantes lograron, como empresarios, mejor performance que cuando convivían. Sería mas o menos decir que, frente a conflictos familiares insolubles, "la desunión hace la fuerza".

El padre que mira sin ver
Es deseable que el padre detecte, lo más tempranamente posible, la incompatibilidad entre hermanos. Pero, por lo general, los padres quieren que su familia quede atada entre sí, que todos sigan alrededor de los conflictos, como quedaban alrededor de la mesa familiar. Los padres, cuando cierran los ojos frente a la realidad, son responsables, porque han puesto la energía en construir una empresa y no en comprender a sus hijos.

Reflexiones
Los conflictos entre hermanos tienen algunos elementos que se repiten:
1. Las raíces del conflicto entre hermanos están en la infancia y no en la empresa de ahora.
2. La mecha del conflicto se prende fuego sobre temas de menor importancia. (Ejemplos: gastos insignificantes, productos marginales,
detalles burocráticos).
3. Durante el conflicto, se pierde mucho tiempo en dudas, indecisiones, tentativas frustradas de negociación sobre lo inconciliable. Existe una esperanza de que "el tiempo solucionará".
4. La actitud del padre gerente es de perplejidad e indecisión, creyendo que se está desempeñando con imparcialidad, lo que muchas veces es una confortable forma de lavarse las manos.

Sugerencias:
•Tener siempre en cuenta que los hijos son distintos y con capacidades distintas.
•Evitar la tradición monárquica de favorecer al hijo primogénito sólo por ese hecho.
•Aplicar el criterio de roles y responsabilidad según las características y capacidad.
•Establecer remuneraciones según bases objetivas.
•Detectar a tiempo de que el mejor destino de cada hijo puede ser por caminos distintos y encaminar a cada cual para que marche por separado.
•Reiterando, pensar que siempre, el conflicto no es de ahora, está en la infancia.

Gobernabilidad VIII: What about compensation

What about compensation?

Since an advisory board does not have fiduciary responsibility for the company — and that should be spelled out clearly in the advisory board's charter — compensation is generally not at the same level as board of director compensation. However, if the business values the dedication of time and effort made by advisory board members, some modest compensation should be worked out — either as a retainer fee or as a fee for attending meetings.

10 Ways to Turn Your Blog into a Lead-Generation Machine

10 Ways to Turn Your Blog into a Lead-Generation Machine

Sometimes when I hear companies talking about creating a "machine" for their lead-generation efforts, I think about Dr. Seuss. Specifically, I think about all the fantastical and imaginative machines he created in his 46 children's books--like the Super-Axe-Hacker, the Utterly Sputter and (my favorite) the Eight-Nozzled Elephant-Toted Boom Blitz, a mighty machine that rapidly fires explosive sour-cherry stones.

Of course in real life, businesses can't flip the switch on a Triple-Sling Jigger to instantly produce prospects. But what if you could create a kind of machine for lead generation on your own company blog, allowing it to help you continuously fill that sales funnel?

Blogs are a great way to increase your digital presence, making you more visible and "findable" via Google, Bing and the like. They can also be a great way to generate leads. Your blog can function as a kind of triage for your sales team, fielding and answering questions organically via the content you produce there. However, it can perform that function only if you effectively create momentum with visitors who are likely to buy, turning them from mere passersby into something more.

Here's a 10-step prescription to increase your visibility and attract more qualified folks to your site. It may not shoot cherry pits, but it will help you convert your traffic into leads.

1. Make your blog an extension of your main website. A visitor's first experience with your company might be through a blog page. He or she might never land on your main site's homepage, so link your blog visually (mirroring the navigation and design of your main site) as well as technically. Maintain the blog as a subdomain of your main domain (something like blog.website.com) versus putting it on a separate domain entirely. Blogging on the same domain that hosts your company site ensures that all inbound links to blog pages also juice up the search mojo of your main site.

2. Solve or share, don't shill. Your blog should focus on your customers. It should either solve their problems or share your resources. Don't shill your stuff. This may sound obvious, but too many business blogs seem to be a repository for press releases, regurgitated marketing-speak and other pablum. News about your company and its products and services might be fascinating to you, but it's not what will ultimately attract and engage prospects. Write about what they care about.

How can you determine what to write about? Use inquires or "Frequently Asked Questions" as fuel for blog posts. Ask your frontline folks: What problems do our customers ask about? What advice do they need? What problems do our products or services solve? Also, check your search logs: See what keywords people use when they land on your site to get a sense of what problems they have and what words they use to describe them. (Of course, questions your customers don't ask but you wish they did--or Frequently Unasked Questions--also are great blog post fodder!)

3. Show up. Half of blogging is consistency, or just showing up on a regular basis. (Naturally, the other half is producing great stuff!) You don't have to blog every day, but you do have to create a schedule that's sustainable for you. Hiring a freelancer or a staff writer or editor can help keep you on track with regular content, especially if you are a reluctant writer. But if you can't afford that, use an editorial calendar to plan a posting schedule (and stick to it). An editorial calendar, by the way, is simply that: a calendar on which you plan what post will be published when.

Showing up also applies to the ongoing care and feeding of the community you're creating through your blog. Encourage conversation and engagement by responding to comments (even negative ones). Be part of the conversation, not above it.

4. Avoid War and Peace posts. The best blog posts are punchy and concise, focusing on a single idea. Think short paragraphs or bullet points. And don't bury the important information. Open with a declarative sentence that sets up the key idea. Framing blog posts this way not only respects your reader's busy schedule, but also helps address the anxiety a lot of us feel about writing. A blog post can also be a graphic, image, video or even an embedded PowerPoint presentation.

5. Pen a killer headline. I sometimes spend more time writing a headline for a blog post than I do writing the entire post. Why? Because every blog post creates a new page on your site, and every new page creates another opportunity to boost your ranking for one of your targeted keyword phrases in Google or Bing or other search engines. Your blog post title becomes your web page title, so titles matter!

An intriguing headline, or title, is also critical to attracting actual humans to read your post. The title of an article is not merely a promise to the reader (an idea of what's in store), it's also the pitchman for the entire post: It entices people to either click or … not.

6. Link to other resources. Throughout a post, link specific words or phrases to other resources on your site. You can link keywords to resource pages you've built around those words, or you can link to specific landing pages where you've posted related offers, like the ability for visitors to sign up for a companion webinar, request a white paper or get a free trial.

7. Embed companion calls to action. In addition to linking within the post itself, remember the real estate around the post. There are a few areas prime for calls to action on any blog page, including the "leaderboard" spot at the top of your blog, the sidebar on either side of the post and the often-ignored space immediately following a blog post.

The first two spots are great for banners or buttons. But the space under the post is key: Assuming readers get through the entire post, they should always be given an opportunity to learn more with either a companion offer or related piece of content. (Hint: This is also a good place from which to link to landing pages that require e-mail registration.)

8. Offer subscription services. Allow your visitors to subscribe to get regular updates to your blog via e-mail and RSS. Essentially, every time you publish a post, a subscriber is notified to check it out. Plug-ins to allow subscription options are likely available for your blogging platform of choice (most e-mail marketing providers offer plug-ins that can be integrated into WordPress and other blogging platforms to turn your blog into a comprehensive list-building system). There are also a number of third-party services that can collect names and contact info for you. FeedBlitz and Google FeedBurner are both free services.

9. Trick out with social bling. The more traffic you attract, the more opportunities you'll have for generating leads. So be sure to outfit your blog with social-sharing icons, particularly the big three: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Doing so subtly encourages your visitors to share your content and allows you to reach your network's network, which is a key attribute of social media. Of course, this assumes that you are actively participating in social media, i.e., engaging in conversation, and not just broadcasting headlines.

10. Remember one final thing. Fundamentally, a blog is an opportunity: It's a way to connect with customers in a real-time, accessible way. But your blog needs to be part of your business, and part of your lead-gen efforts. Talk it up in e-mail newsletters, in print collateral and on packaging materials. A blog won't magically drive business without active and ongoing promotion and participation--no matter how much inspiration Dr. Seuss imparts.

Gobernabilidad VII: What are some other areas where an advisory board could be particularly useful?

What are some other areas where an advisory board could be particularly useful?

An advisory board can help management focus on the future, bringing a strategic emphasis and some outside the box thinking. So asking the right questions can be a valuable service. One measure of the success of the board is identifying where change has occurred as a result of its advice.

La concentración comercial como salida a la crisis

Los centros comerciales surgieron por un principio de economías de escala, es decir, que mediante la concentración de establecimientos variados, que ofrecen distintas soluciones al cliente, se conseguiría llamar mucho más la atención de este, al necesitar cubrir ‘necesidades globales’.

De tal manera que es más probable que un consumidor acuda a un centro que ofrezca un mayor número de servicios a la hora de disponerse a realizar sus compras, máxime cuando busca satisfacer una necesidad sobre la que no ha cerrado su decisión de compra.

Esta esencia ha vuelto a despertar, y ante un escenario de caída de las ventas en el comercio minorista, ha surgido una nueva tendencia entre los establecimientos de distribución comercial en este sentido. Un ejemplo de ello es el proyecto de apertura de una clínica dental dentro de El Corte Inglés, concretamente en su centro del Paseo de la Castellana de Madrid, con el que pretende ampliar su oferta de servicios aprovechando las sinergias de su estructura comercial.

Las nuevas circunstancias nos obligan a ser mucho más eficientes si queremos seguir a flote, lo que significa también conseguir un mayor aprovechamiento de los recursos disponibles, y debe hacernos meditar sobre si nuestra infraestructura puede dar cabida nuevas ideas de negocio.

Piense en el ejemplo de un autónomo que regenta un comercio de productos de papelería en un local amplio, ¿porqué no reinventarnos y complementar nuestro negocio con productos gourmet, decoración o perfumería? Nuestros costes fijos no crecerán nunca en la misma proporción y aprovecharemos las economías de escala, que no son exclusivas para las grandes firmas de distribución comercial.

Why you should Hire INFECTED people for your STARTUP

What is the use of hiring people who do not believe in your product. It is your job to hire the people who are already “infected” with your product or service. Such people have different attitudes to work because they believe in what they are selling. Building a company requires great people, but where do you find them, and how do you get them in the door? You need to identify them and make the right choice in the end.

Startups need to spend less time teaching new hires about the products they build and sell. When a person is a user of your product or service, it is easier for him or her to fit in your startup. You will spend less time training the new recruit about how to work and how to adjust to the new environment and your startup culture.

Proven candidates who are believers in your product have higher rate of committing to their jobs and working with passion than those who need to be trained and thought about what actually goes on in your company.

You should determine how much knowledge the prospective candidates have about your product or service before hiring. Ask them about you do, who your customers are, and who your competition is. That way you can prove whether they are in for the money or want to make meaning and build a company.

In a startup, the people you employ from the beginning are your most important asset. These are the people who will build your business and see it grow. Hire people who do not just want your money but are ambitious and proactive and willing to create a successful company. Candidates who are on a mission to create a company have higher rate of performance.

Everything begins and ends with the right people doing the right jobs at the right time. Creating a company requires great minds and creative people who are ready to adopt and change over time for the good of the business. An “infected” candidate is half way into your vision to creating a lasting company.

“Infected” people are driven, and know what they want because they already know you and are eager to join you. Make that decision today and hire that “infected” candidate.

Gobernabilidad VI: What is the real value of an advisory board

What is the real value of an advisory board?

Since all the company financials and other internal information should be shared with an advisory board, the board can cause management to be more focused, transparent, and accountable. Beyond that, an advisory board can act as a sounding board for management, and bring to bear the experience and expertise of its members.

Caer bien a los demás supone, a mi entender, más del 70% de la venta

Caer bien a los demás supone, a mi entender, más del 70% de la venta

No soy de las personas que caen bien en la primera impresión. Lo sé y trato de minimizarlo. Pero nunca me había parado a pensarlo hasta que me han dicho que parece que tengo “Asperger”. Ostras!! Suelo tener empatia pero con las personas con las que ya me une una amistad. Con el resto simplemente no conecto. ¿Tendré solución? Lejos de analizar si es un defecto, más o menos grave, si me doy cuenta de que en más de una ocasión he perdido la oportunidad de hacer negocios por que no acabo de conectar.

La cuestión es que según un estudio de Universidad de Columbia, el cómo se trabaje o qué conocimientos se tengan, no garantizan el éxito por sí solos. “Tan importante o más es ser agradable y contar con la simpatía de los jefes y compañeros”, señala. Según los expertos, a estas personas se les recomienda con mayor facilidad para promociones o aumentos de sueldo.

El psicoterapeuta Luis Muiño asegura que “el problema es de hábitos de comunicación. Para caer bien, hay que establecer puentes comunes: la gente que cae mal no lo hace. Por lo que quienes caen mal a los demás no tienen de qué preocuparse: es posible aprender a ser carismático.

Por lo tanto, caer bien se puede aprender y en la red, como siempre, numerosos portales nos facilitan la vida… y de uno de ellos saco estas claves:

Cuidar los gestos: sonreír, no tensar los rasgos de la cara (los labios tensos, los dientes apretados y la mandíbula rígida producen rechazo).
Bromear: el buen humor actúa siempre como un imán en las relaciones personales. Pero es importante no abusar de él.
Ser Natural. No jugar a hacerse el simpático. La empatía es la capacidad de emocionarse con otros, y no es una estrategia ni una técnica comercial.
No aconsejar ni decir a nadie lo que tiene que hacer. Eso coloca a la otra persona en una situación de inferioridad que no gusta.
Cuidar los detalles: acordarse de cosas simples como felicitar a familiares y amigos por su cumpleaños, llamarles por teléfono de vez en cuando o hacer algún regalo.
No agredir y evitar los ‘mensajes tú’, en los que se descarga en el interlocutor la responsabilidad o culpa de todo el conflicto. Hay que utilizar la autocrítica.
Ser tolerante: El respeto a quienes piensan y actúan de modo distinto del nuestro, ayuda a que tengamos mejor imagen. Y que seamos más humanos.
Cuidar Imagen: Dedique atención y tiempo a su aseo y cuidado personal. La buena imagen corporal refuerza la seguridad personal y abre las puertas a la aceptación social.
No Desconfiar: La gente es buena, mientras no se demuestre lo contrario. Una actitud abierta facilita que los demás nos acojan con buena disposición.
Entiendo que para cambiar la forma de ser, y conseguir caber bien a la gente, hace falta algo más que 9 claves pero por algo se empieza… os ire contando…