Categories for business

Ownership Transition in Family Business: Overlooked Critical Considerations

by | August 10, 2010

Our guest blog this week comes from Bob Gruber, President of  The Rainier Group, a professional firm with  concentrated experience in the issues that affect successful private business owners and other successful individuals including business transition services, wealth advisory services and institutional consulting.  Bob will be participating in our Succession Planning panel discussion on August 25.... View Article

MORE BANG FOR YOUR COMPENSATION BUCK – COMMUNICATION IS CRITICAL

by | July 20, 2010

Catherine Dovey is the founder of Compensation Works LLC and offers this guest blog with insights as to how and when to communicate with employees about compensation. ————————————- Several surveys show that up to 70% of employees are planning to look for new opportunities after the economy recovers.  Most of us assume that we need... View Article

Creating Value Through Employer-Employee Relationships

by | July 13, 2010

Scott Verrette of Resourceful HR offers us our guest blog post this month on how to create value in employment relationships.  Scott will be one of our guest speakers at the Equinox Focus Event:  Creating Value Through Employer-Employee Relationships on July 28.  Resourceful HR  helps companies grow through increased employee efficiency.  You can also sign up for... View Article

Making Happy Employees

by | July 7, 2010

Many studies show employers the value of “happy employees” to a business’ productivity and success.  An obvious question arising from these studies is:  “What makes for a “happy employee?”   The studies address this to varying degrees; but to me, a particular employee’s happiness in his or her work depends on many factors such as age,... View Article

Intellectual Property and the Financials

by | June 29, 2010

Our guest blog post comes from Dennis Purvine of CFO Selections.  Dennis is a CPA and CFO and has worked with companies in all stages of development. ——————————— Intellectual Property (I.P.) can be protected by patent, copyright, trademark, etc.  Companies that create, or purchase, intellectual property presumably create value for their business. (More on this... View Article

Common Mistakes in Patent Protection

by | June 10, 2010

Our guest blog post comes from Jim Rutter of Ruttler IP Law.  Jim will be our guest speaker at our June 23 Equinox Focus Event “Protecting and Leveraging Your IP”. ——————————————– The first major mistake that is made with patents is disclosing an invention prior to filing a patent application.  Disclosure could include offering to... View Article

Groundrules and Communication are Key to Success in Family Business

by | May 18, 2010

Our guest blog post comes from Steve Brilling, Executive Director of the Entrepreneurship Center and Family Business Roundtable at Seattle University’s Albers School of Business and Economics.  ———————- It all comes down to communication—clear, concise, honest communication, with a dash of compassion thrown in. Whether it is in a legal document or simply a written... View Article

Experience: Improving Family Business Communications

by | May 13, 2010

Experience is the best learning tool.  Our guest blog post comes from Bill Altland, a family business owner of Whale Tail Pharmacy in Craig, Alaska. ———————— The word that comes to my mind relating to communication issues in family businesses is the word “insidious”. It can be difficult to separate the business issues from family issues... View Article

There’s No Business Like A Family Business

by | May 4, 2010

Businesses are developed and grown through their relationships with people – people as owners, managers, customers, and vendors.  These people relationships, though critical for success, also create substantial risk for the business because people are emotional and often unpredictable.  Most businesses protect against this risk through contracts.  Why do they work?  Contracts allow a company... View Article