Consider these selected quotes from a well known novel: " A startling thought this, that a woman could handle business matters as well or better then a man. Never before had she put this remarkable idea into words. She sat quite still with the heavy book on her lap, thinking how in these past lean months she had done a man's work and done it well. She had been brought up … [Read more...]
The USPS Lesson
The post office is nearly bankrupt, the cost cutting is not working. We are in danger of losing a service that is vital to many small businesses. So while other business blogs are looking at this situation and wondering what went wrong, I’m asking “what can we learn?” The postal situation is not unique and what it highlights is how the wrong type of organizational culture can … [Read more...]
The Cost of Business
In our current situation many companies are cackling about how much money they have saving on services and are doing their fair share to keep pushing prices down. On the surface this savings looks good to many companies, but as soon as the economy turns around these services are going to go back to the increased costs they deserve and then what? Well in my years I have observed … [Read more...]
You Are What You Say You Are….
Leadership is an elusive quality and few people ever really get it, but as the figurehead of a company you are supposed to know what it means to be a leader and a motivator even if it wasn’t taught to you. In my industry I see a lot of individuals who were really good at their chosen profession and that skill got them thrust into the management arena. Leadership is an elusive … [Read more...]
The Leper in the Room: Workplace Violence
As a business owner I have noticed that entrepreneurs talk about a range of topics and we share some pretty personal details; what doesn’t happen is the talk about violence. We speak about managing teams and dealing with problem performers, but we very rarely speak about what happens when those situations go horribly wrong. To get to the bottom of this I got some advice from … [Read more...]
More People are Getting Raises in 2011—Are You?
As reported by Kimberly Weisul in BNET, salaries are on the increase, back up to the levels before the great recession, according to a WorldatWork study. There are some reasons for reserved optimism. (Weisul bills herself as an optimist. And it’s tough to be a small business writer and an optimist at the same time these days. . .) Here are some key points on the 2011 … [Read more...]
Reinvent Opportunity, Restore Satisfaction
Guest post by LaMae Allen deJongh, managing director for US Human Capital and Diversity for Accenture (learn more about LaMae at the end of this post) Experience tells us that when employees are unhappy they look for new jobs. But what if that’s no longer true? What if, for a variety of reasons, dissatisfied employees are staying with their companies? New global … [Read more...]
Increasing Market Profile With Women’s Initiatives
Women's Initiatives Focused on Business Growth Due to the challenging economy and increased focus on revenue generation and business growth the timing is right for women’s leadership initiatives to be a catalyst for increasing organizational market visibility. All corporate initiatives are called to directly support business strategy in the best of times and these are not … [Read more...]
Do You Feel As If You Are Swimming Upstream?
Are we taking advantage of the natural flow of an organization or are we swimming upstream? Below are two critically important topics for Women in Business 1- Are you working on the right things? 2-Do the right people know you are working on the right things? These two topics are important guiding rules for women navigating a career in business- particularly in … [Read more...]
Do You Have Success Amnesia?
This week I am presenting at a wonderful conference- Linkage Women in Leadership. This event is held in San Francisco each year. It is a high energy event for women in all stages of career development. The event draws very powerful keynote speakers and excellent breakout presenters. Many many years ago I came to this conference to learn about the advancement of women . The … [Read more...]