Dare to be Different

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

Different is Important “No longer is a “good culture” good enough to be competitive.  Organizations today must find alignment between their corporate strategy and their corporate culture, or risk never fulfilling their competitive advantage.  Too many organizations, especially within the same industry, look and feel the same to work in. ….in all of the ways that matter, too many are ...

Vision, Purpose, Mission

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

“We shall not cease from exploration / And the end of all our exploring / Will be to arrive where we started / And know the place for the first time. “  T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets Core Values “Companies that enjoy enduring success have core values and a core purpose that remain fixed while their business strategies and practices endlessly adapt to a changing ...

Corporate Culture by Design

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

According to Katie Heinz in an article entitled Types of organizational Culture, “…it is defined as shared values, attitudes and practices…. It is the personality of your company and plays a large part in your employees’ overall satisfaction.”   A Common Goal and Purpose Culture helps inform the entire team.  It connects people to common goals and purpose.  Think of it ...

Keep It Moving

Manny Salomon smartPRENEUR Blog Series

Your business is not static Your business is not static — at least it shouldn’t be. Every successful company, in every market, has to evolve its offerings, approach, or marketing strategies. Otherwise you risk your products or services getting stale in the eyes of the consumer: all while competitors evolve what they’re doing to meet the changing needs of those ...

Open Culture

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

Employee Profit Sharing I want to discuss two related yet very different Company initiatives intended to create shared incentives and grow loyalty.   One, I struggled with over the years and simply could not find the right system(s) to support.  Perhaps it was a poor approach or lack of ‘gut’ but we never managed to develop a viable employee profit ...

Turnover and Company Culture

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

The Cost of Turnover I’ve heard horror stories about the cost of turnover in firms, especially smaller firms.   It may be one of the least understood and costly aspects of running a small labor dependent business.   Estimates have ranged from a month’s salary to a year’s salary.   I’m not referring to payouts, I’m referring to the internal ...

Task Management

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

In my last smartPRENEUR Blog we spoke to the importance of creating systems to capture detail and ensure effective information flow.   There is no question that task management systems are critical.  Automating is a big help, especially once clear processes which have been documented and tried, are in place.  Some key benefits of task management software:  Single place for ...
Attention to Details

Pay Attention to the Details

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

How to Boost Productivity A 2017 study by NFIB (National Federation of Independent Businesses) revealed that 56% of small business owners consider communication is key to boosting productivity. Further, it stated that the most powerful way to boost productivity is to optimize task management systems, so that the details don’t become protracted, and processes are easily captured and repeated.   No surprise ...
Effective vs Efficiency

Effective vs. Efficient

Marilyn Sanford smartPRENEUR Blog Series

Is the process or activity effective? Efficiencies are typically at the heart of planning and tracking business.  Ways to ensure efficiency may include:  tools, training, tracking systems, supervision, etc.  We have lots of ways to highlight and ensure efficiencies.  The question that is rarely asked: is the process or activity effective?  There is an important distinction. A highway may be ...