Inside View
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Changes in SBA loan rates to free up access to capital
The ongoing battle in business
Educational decisions correlate with self-employment
SBA supports bill to simplify home office deduction
Accounting software selection for entrepreneurs
Don't be afraid of conflict - embrace it effectively
Employee in-breeding
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The Ongoing Battle in Business by Lou Principe
In today’s economy, America’s corporations are rediscovering an old rule of business, namely, that excellence in sales and customer service starts and finishes with people, not processes. Today’s competitive environment, service to the customer often becomes the critical factor in whether a business succeeds or fails.
As part of this new enlightenment, top managers are also beginning to understand that front line employees…on phones, in airplane aisles, behind counters… hold the key to customer satisfaction and repeat business.
The qualities of leadership are the same in all fields, the leader being the one who sets the highest example. As a company tries to expand, what takes place is a fatal shift from leadership to management, which marks the plateaus and failures of most companies. MORE Educational Decisions Correlate With Self-Employment
College graduates who specialize in social science tend toward self-employment as compared to those with bachelor’s degrees in other subjects, according to a working paper released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration. The paper used data tracking a group of university graduates from the class of 1993 through 2003 MORE
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Changes in SBA loan rates to free up access to capital
Administrator Sandy K. Baruah announced important loan program changes to help the agency’s lending partners increase access to capital for small businesses. MORE SBA supports bill to simplify home office deduction
Chief Counsel for Advocacy Thomas M. Sullivan has commended Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) for introducing the “Home Office Deduction Simplification and Improvement Act of 2008” (S. 3371). The bill will simplify the home office deduction by introducing a standard deduction for small business owners. MORE
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Accounting software selection for entrepreneurs by Carol McCaul
You’re starting your business or your business is growing leaps and bounds and your books are out of control. Whatever your reasons for considering accounting software, if you’re like most entrepreneurs, you see it as a necessary evil that you’ve put it off for far too long. MORE | Don't be afraid of conflict - embrace it effectively by G.L.S. Harris II
Tips to confront and manage conflict within our network
What do you think of when you hear the word “conflict?” Do you think mayhem or a simple disagreement…perhaps; a pleasant feeling of change and progress quaintly enters your mind. Now, ask two friends to define it. MORE | Human Resources
Employee in-breeding by C.C. Holland
It’s human nature to gravitate to people who are like you, and that holds true in the office as well. When you’re hiring for your team, people who click with potential co-workers and fit in with the culture often seem like best candidates. And much of the time, they have been referred by current employees — so it’s a no-brainer, right?
Wrong, says Gina Ruiz in Workforce Management’s recruiting and staffing newsletter. One thing managers forget is that this sort of workplace inbreeding has build-in pitfalls. If you’re trying to change your corporate culture, bolster diversity, or bring in new skills or talents, it’s harder to do if you’re hiring clones of your current workforce.
And as we all know, some referrals have more to do with nepotism or friendship than with professional criteria — e.g., “John’s a great guy, lots of fun!” rather than “John has excellent project-management skills.”
So although employee referrals are the top external source of hire, don’t forget to keep casting your talent net wide enough to catch a few nonconforming fish. Your team and your organization will both benefit.
CC Holland is a writer and editor. She writes regularly for BNET |
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