A ‘new normal’? Companies boost financial and non-financial investments in workforces: ERC survey
While for most of the past 16 years, companies reported that hiring and retaining talent was their biggest challenge, the 2016 ERC/Smart Business Workplace Practices Survey found that it is true again, but that the atypical business experiences of the past few years seem to be indicating the “new normal” has arrived. This year’s survey […]
After 60 years, Holy Family remains at the forefront of hospice care
Longevity isn’t a word often found at end-of-life care facilities. But longevity describes the St. Augustine Health Ministries’ Holy Family Home, celebrating 60 years of hospice care in Greater Cleveland.
Judy's Jungle — A realistic fiberglass zoo arises in parking lot
CAN YOU HEAR ME ROAR? Judy’s Jungle: A collection of fiberglass animals makes realistic zoo in Mentor Down in the wilds of Mentor, Ohio, there lies a jungle like no other. It’s not an asphalt jungle, but more of a fiberglass one. It’s Judy’s Jungle, and it’s along the parking lot of MT Heat Treat […]
If employees innovate a product or service, does it matter if it was approved or not?
When I was editing our magazine’s Uniquely Cleveland about a “jungle” of fiberglass animals that a Mentor company set up in its parking lot, it reminded me how probably every leader probably has a pet project. The leader who had the menagerie took the whimsical route, providing an escape from reality for company employees and visitors.
Smart jewelry to the rescue — Jerry Wilmink develops technology to summon help with a tap
Jerry Wilmink didn’t have to look too far for inspiration when he launched a company called WiseWear. He found it in his own family — his grandfather, who suffered from dementia, had fallen and broken his hip and was unable to call for help. He suffered injuries in 2010 that led to his unfortunate death. […]
Don’t just wait for opportunities to come to you
Look beyond your company in search of other ways to diversify your interests. Don’t just rely on one customer, one business, one investment or one idea to protect what you’ve built.
Environmental Law Network links firms to build an organization of valuable connections
“Networking” may be an overused term among businesses today, but to Greg DeGulis, chair of the Environmental Law Network, it’s the organization’s touchstone.
Develop your team and a succession plan to be ready when you move on
So how do you train your senior management team? If you pick the right people, you will find you don’t need to train them on the management side. You just need to counsel them on ideas. Plan to train them on your business, but don’t tell them it is written in stone. You hired them to be creative. Don’t micromanage them. Your job should be to coach, mentor, motivate, encourage, counsel, be a sounding board….. Your job is to grow the business, not run the business.
Projecting for investors — Prepare to balance between long-term vision and what the near term may bring
What makes the forecasting process even more tricky are the unspoken pressures from the venture capital industry — an industry that thrives on finding and backing companies with the potential for explosive growth.
Three strategic ways businesses compete
hen competing in business, choose your “angle,” so to speak. Do you offer the most value at the best price in the market? Are you the most innovative, known as cutting edge?