I love sharing the best of what I have learned in my long life and career. Mostly, I speak about simple financial systems and UN-complicated business planning. However, in most of my presentations, the conversation settles on employees. You need some help if you are going to clean up your financials, set up great scorekeeping [...]
Ready to go...UN-solo? Perhaps you've been thinking about adding a new team member. Maybe your first? It can be a bit UN-nerving! Once upon a time, I hired phenomenal Shauna, and committed to TWO hours...a month! If you want to grow your company, or buy a bit of time off, bringing on a team member can [...]
Oh, it breaks my heart when this happens: A good team member...leaves. A client of mine called and told me that one of his key team members resigned. Let's call the employee Dan. (Know that that's not his real name, and this story is a mashup.) Dan is a great guy and had been with [...]
I travel a lot. I appreciate when the hotel staff does a great job of making me comfortable. Sometimes I don’t need a lot of care, so I will place the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door. Recently, after having done so, I hopped in the shower. At which point someone started knocking on [...]
Does it make you cringe to think about imposing the formal structure of an Organization Chart on your small shop? Fear not! The Organization Chart can be a wonderful tool. Recalling my many, many jobs, I can count on three fingers the number of times I actually knew for what I was responsible and to [...]
Dear Ellen, We have a good compensation program at our company. The Salespeople get commission for their performance. Lately, it just seems to be a little bit stale. Like the team isn’t really motivated by the bonuses. What can I do to fire things up? Sincerely, “Lost the Spark” Dear “Sparky,” People love to play [...]
Recently I got this question from a concerned business owner regarding an employee: Dear Ellen, My one and only employee is always pushing the boundaries. He knows he is supposed to keep his uniform shirt tucked in. Today, he showed up with his shirt untucked. Even worse, underneath his white shirt he was wearing a [...]
