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Do you have a plan for disaster?
RichardMarino
07/26/2010 - 23:21

Imagine you arrive to work tomorrow and all of your computers are gone. All the hardware and all the backups. OK, maybe that’s not too likely, after all you do have security and alarms at your facility, but what if you arrive at work and there’s been an accident ─ a truck carrying hazardous materials has spilled its contents on your street and you can’t get into your building. Or what if you find you'll be without power for days, or, in the case of other disasters, for weeks. Can your business survive without its computers and its data for this length of time?

Seriously, think about this for a minute. Do you have a plan in place to deal with this scenario? When did you last update it? When did you last verify that all the elements were in place and worked?

If you haven’t thought about this much, ask your employees to put together the key applications necessary every day to run your business. Email is probably one of them. If you stop answering email from your customers, what will happen? If you can’t answer phone calls, email would allow you to at least notify customers and keep in contact.

After you understand what applications are essential to run your business, value them in terms of importance and cost/risk if you lose them. The key is not the expense, but the risk you are willing to take. As a CEO you should be asking your staff, your CIO or IT Manager, or whoever you look to for IT support, some serious questions, like "What would we do if….?" It will likely be up to you as to what you are willing to spend, but the risk is real and should be evaluated.

That’s a starting point for building a disaster recovery (DR) plan. Most large companies have multiple offices and can shift the burden from one to another, but even that requires a plan. They probably also have duplicate computer/server/co-location installations. If you are a mid-size company, you may not have this luxury. However, even a small company can build a simple DR plan, even if it consists of backup tapes being taken home once a week.

 
Some Popular Business-Related Apps
CraigKaplan
07/14/2010 - 21:11

Many free or for-purchase apps can help businesses reduce expenses. Among them:

Skype Mobile. Allows users to make Skype calls without using phone minutes

Xora Mobile Workforce Manager. A combination GPS and time clock that lets workers punch in, punch out, keep track of overtime, and know when to turn left or right

Telenav Track. Lets employers actually see workers, vehicles, and other equipment in the field; automates field-data capture and integrates with back-office systems

iTerminal. Enables mobile personnel to accept credit-card payments

mbPointer. Lets an iPhone double as a presentation pointer

iXpenseIt. Offers mobile expense recording and budget tracking; users enter data and take a picture of the receipt

 
Don't blink or you'll miss the change
ReneFord
07/14/2010 - 20:45

The Printing Industry is undergoing tremendous change in its effort to remain competitive in an ever increasingly digital market place. Printing press manufacturers are developing and introducing vastly more efficient printing presses that dramatically reduce prepress, printing, finishing times and ink consumption while improving quality reproduction. Press manufacturers are also partnering with printers to provide their customers with innovative training to assist their clients in reducing their internal processes associated with the delivery of their print content.

The changes are continual and exciting. If you blink you can miss significant changes that can improve your operation.
 
Yogi Barra said it best
JohnReese
06/15/2010 - 00:00

"It ain't over 'til it's over."

I am not the first nor will I be the last one to quote Mr. Yogi Berra of NY Yankee fame. This wise saying is as apropos today as it was over 50 years ago. How many times have we heard our leaders say . . . "The Recession is over"?

Well, when it comes to your company, the recession will be over, when sales are rising as they were pre-2008, when you are back to full production, when earnings are generated by revenue growth and not expense cuts, when you are comfortable with your liquidity and when you feel confident in growing your business.

Are you there yet?

Moody’s sees a slowdown in the improvement we have seen over the last 13 months:

Moody's Liquidity-Stress Index remained at 4.8% in May, halting a 13-month improvement in this measure of corporate liquidity, the ratings service said. The lull in May was the first interruption in the liquidity measure's improvement since the index peaked at 20.9% in March 2009. Moody's Liquidity-Stress Index measures the percentage of companies rated by Moody's with the rating agency's lowest speculative grade liquidity rating of SGL-4. The index generally declines as corporate liquidity improves.

The slowdown in improvement in the index in May coincides with a sharp decline in high-yield debt issuance as concerns about the European financial crisis prompted a flight to less-risky assets, Moody's said in a report. A sustained drop in demand for high-yield corporate paper could push companies with maturing debt or tight covenants closer to default. Source: Moody’s press release

"The future ain't what it used to be."

Mr. Berra was spot on again. American business has a new normal. Businesses cannot take the risk of hiring people that may be ineffective. Everyone we add needs to be paid for performance. How do they add to the bottom line, are they accountable for results and do they have skin in the game?

News Alert -- The Wall Street Journal -- June 4, 2010 -- 12:15 p.m. EDT

The U.S. economy added 431,000 jobs in May, but the gains were inflated by 411,000 temporary government hires for the 2010 Census, the Labor Department reported. The private sector created just 41,000 jobs after adding 218,000 jobs in April. The unemployment rate, which is calculated using a separate household survey, fell only moderately, to 9.7% in May from 9.9% the previous month. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires were expecting payrolls to rise by an even higher 515,000.

"It's deja vu all over again."

Many of us went through a similar period 10 years or so ago when we went through the dot com bust. Did we learn our lesson or did we go back to the same old habits?

Small Business Confidence Increased in May

According to a recent survey by the National Federation of Independent Business, confidence among small employers in the United States increased to its highest level since September 2008 as employers become more optimistic that the nation's economy will improve in six months. The report showed that the optimism index rose to 92.2 in May, up from 90.6 in April. The increase is lower than in previous economic rebounds, which indicate the economy will take some time to gain strength. Businessweek.com - June 8, 2010

So my advice . . . Be cautiously optimistic. Hire folks that will help grow top line revenue and pay them for success. Keep experts on your team that understand your business and can control COGS. Outsource through third parties the management of G&A expenses and pay them for performance.

 
Are your credentials in order?
BobMcLoone
06/02/2010 - 23:08

Are you seeing any light on the horizon? Are you ready to break out of the bunker mode and eager to get back to business as usual? Are you concerned about how you will find the cash to make it happen?

Fortunately, the economic freeze that has engulfed the credit market is beginning to thaw. Capital is starting to flow again, but only to businesses and organizations that have their ducks in a row. These conditions will, undoubtedly, be the situation in the long run. Relaxed lending policies and frequent lapses in control will be a thing in the past. The days of stricter regulations are here to stay.

Specifically, lenders will be looking for drum-tight financial statements, a solid business plan and a strategy that truly embraces cash flow needs. These credentials will be crucial, especially for small- to medium-size companies and organizations where cash flow and an optimal credit package are essential to long-term success.

Here are a few basic areas that you may want to focus on before heading out into the capital market:

• Funding Priorities – It is vital that your business strategy adequately funds your priorities. During the budget cycle, managers should continuously ascertain whether expenses are appropriate and effectively aligned with revenues. Going through the revenue / expense alignment exercise helps resurrect problems as well as opportunities, which, in turn, helps identify necessary changes to accommodate the business strategy.

• Optimize G&A Expenses – Most companies and organizations in the small -to medium-size range pay, on average, 20% more than they should on G&A expenses. Companies within this revenue range are usually very good at managing core expenses, such as raw materials and people costs. However, they don’t have the resources to find and sustain best value in their G&A spending. This can be a frustrating dilemma, considering that savings in G&A are normally fixed in nature and, accordingly, can go directly to the bottom line and cash flow – if they weren’t being utilized elsewhere. There are, however, ways to alleviate this dilemma. For starters, initiate an action plan to develop an overall cost management strategy and optimization goals for all primary G&A categories. Set expectations for everyone who will participate in G&A cost management and initiate an on-going audit process that assures best value expectations are sustained. Last and not least, it never hurts to ask your suppliers what you can do to reduce costs.

• Cash Cycle Opportunities – No ifs or buts about it - slow cash flow equates to higher loan costs. Look for cash flow opportunities in your production cycle. For manufacturers, explore opportunities to increase inventory turnover via application of just in time and lean management strategies. Continuously scrutinize and, if necessary, eliminate products with low margins. Expedite collections on Account Receivables by using ACH for collections and accepting credit cards on your web site for payment. Approach customers aggressively who historically do not pay their bills on time. Optimize your Accounts Payable process by ensuring that bills are paid when due, but not beforehand.

Bottom line, any organization that has strong financials, in conjunction with a solid cash flow strategy and reputable payment record, will always be the ‘perfect child’ for an optimal line of credit.