http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin Just another WordPress weblog Tue, 01 Jun 2010 19:20:47 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en “What gets measured gets managed”.  A quote attributed to Peter Drucker. Managing a business requires a broad set of skills and attention to all parts of the business. Many CEO’s are good at making or selling “things” (goods and service offerings) but some don’t spend enough time monitoring the overall health ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/05/measure-what/ I met with a company that was having severe operating problems.  They were experiencing increasing order backlogs; excess component inventories; high expedite cost of out-of-stock components; and very poor communication between internal departments.  When I explored their processes and asked a few questions about why they did not do things ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/04/but-we-are-different/ The economy may be slowly recovering but those I talk with are still very uncertain about the future.  That uncertainty can produce failures that can have devastating results for your organization.  If we cannot see the trees because we are focused on the forest, the results can be an unwanted ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/03/four-failures-from-uncertain-times/ Obtaining and retaining loyal customers is about developing relationships.  Companies spend $millions annually on advertising, hoping to influence the buying habits of their prospective customers. Advertising does not build relationships, it only hopes to influence the moment and convert those few seconds into a buying decision for a product.  Word of ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/02/word-of-mouth-marketing-what/ In 2005 I consulted for a start-up that was owned by an entrepreneur who had a public relations back ground.  I learned the value of good Public Relations (PR) and since then I have always consider it the next best form of advertising.  I believe the best form of advertising ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/02/grow-your-company-with-pr/ We conducted a survey of several Puget Sound companies asking them which area of their business caused them the greatest concern.  The issue rated the highest was the failure to introduce successful new products. When asking these companies to explain why they see this issue as their greatest challenge, ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2010/01/are-your-new-products-failing-and-you-don%e2%80%99t-know-why/ Do your work before you play. Always do more than others expect of you. Never quit trying to become better at something. Be willing to do the things you don’t like to do in order to achieve what you want. Be willing to accept failure and disappointment as a part of learning. Recognize that there ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2009/12/the-12-steps-of-effective-businesspeople/ A question I hear often is “how do I find a VC to invest in my company?”  First, there are many different institutional equity investors, both private and public.  Venture Capital companies are best known by start ups and early stage companies, because VC’s are most likely to be found ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2009/11/where-are-the-vcs/ If you take a magnifying glass and hold it up to most organizations recognized for their effectiveness, you will see that they have two characteristics in common; they have effective Leadership and they operate through effective Teams.  If you believe the chicken came before the egg, then you would agree ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2009/11/developing-your-most-important-asset-how-to-develop-an-effective-team/ Entrepreneurs are heralded by the business community as key contributors to the success of the US Economy; probably one of the most resilient economies in the world (even in a recession). New products, technologies and business ideas are the objectives of millions of aspiring Entrepreneurs throughout the world.  Yet, there ... http://aragopartnersllc.com/bulletin/2009/11/entrepreneur-or-%e2%80%9cpermopreneurtm%e2%80%9d-which-are-you/