How to recreate Silicon Valley: Role Models

In recent history, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs have been symbolized by Steve Jobs or Elon Musk, but those gentlemen were attracted to entrepreneurial pursuits in the Valley because of the success of those who proceeded them. Less than 100 years ago, the Santa Clara Valley, the area that was to become the entrepreneurial powerhouse called Silicon […]

Book can help you come up with truly creative ideas

Jerry McLaughlin is a seasoned entrepreneur who enjoys reading. Some of the books he reads turn out to be useful to business leaders. This month, Jerry writes about “Cracking Creativity: The Secrets of Creative Genius” by Michael Michalko, published by Ten Speed Press. What is this book about? This book provides a framework and techniques […]

How Roy Church transformed LCCC for generations to come

It was music to his ears when Roy A. Church, Ed.D., heard that a community college in Ohio wanted a president — particularly one who could help make the institution more dynamic and more embedded in the fiber of the community.

Give yourself 24 hours: Then celebrate, mourn or move on

Former Miami Dolphins Coach Don Shula won the most games in NFL history — 328. He has a natural ability to lead and motivate others by identifying players’ talents and honing those skills to beat the competition. He plays to his people’s strengths, like we talk about in Lesson 21. Coach Shula had a 24-hour […]

How lessons learned from a successful RNC can work for your business, too

Cleveland is still basking in the afterglow of a successful Republican National Convention this past summer. The city’s peaceful party for thousands from around the world remains a point of pride for Northeast Ohio and its leaders. The positive outcome was in contrast to the negative predictions beforehand. Many in the media and city feared […]

Whether for optimum operation or for sale, here’s how to spruce up your business

Riverside is in the business of investing in small to mid-sized businesses and helping them thrive. When we succeed, our companies really sparkle — in fact, SPARCLE (yes in our case, with a “C”) is an acronym for us. It spells out a checklist of important attributes that we have found, when happening all together, […]

How to be on guard as cyberthreat hits companies of all sizes

A single email can cost your company thousands of dollars in the blink of an eye. This nightmare scenario recently happened to a 100-employee professional services firm. An employee opened an email that linked to a malicious website. By the time the firm realized that some files were encrypted, hours had passed. Soon the company […]

Three easy ways to recognize employees

As leaders, it’s up to us to create a workplace where people feel appreciated and respected. Sometimes it’s the little things that can have the biggest impact. Customizing recognition is just one simple way to do that.