Posts by GPS
Perspectives
By GPSThe triumph of small and medium-size business
As you look back and define success in the deepest recesses of the mind, on both a personal and business level, the realization should be that success is making sure that you are happy with the progress made in life and enjoying the pursuits that are deemed important.
As simple as that may seem, it is extraordinarily difficult to define what “success” is for a small to medium-size business owner. At first blush, it would appear that the maximization of profitability is self-serving and should not be the primary or prerequisite goal in …
Everyone Wants A Piece Of You
By GPSDraw the line and determine when to say “yes” and how to say “no”
- An employee wants you to sponsor his son’s little league team.
- Your banker wants you on the dinner committee to plan the Annual Save the Naugahyde Ball, this year honoring Mr. and Mrs. Moneytree for their relentless efforts to protect Naugas from extinction. The privilege of a seat on the dinner committee comes complete with the responsibility of forking over enough to cover the cost for a table of 10.
- One of your best customers approaches you for funds to help pay the way for the
Americans Are Living Longer
By GPSAmericans are living longer. The life expectancy for Baby Boomers, those born between 1946 and 1965, is greater than any previous generation.
National Center for Health Statistics tables show that life expectancy increased 30 years, during the 20th Century, from 47 in 1900 to 77 at the millennium. The new tables are reporting that life expectancy of men 65 years old to be another 15.9 years, and women can expect to live an additional 19.2 years.
What do these numbers mean to you? The good news is that your retirement may be years longer than you had thought it to …
Protect The Passing Game
By GPSThe average business owner spends approximately 10 hours per day, six days per week to get their business to the point where it can provide a measure of security and comfort for their family. At some point, the control of this business will be transferred, and often times to a family member.
It goes without saying that an untimely, unplanned departure of a business owner can be devastating for the company and, even more so, for the owner’s surviving family members. A plan for succession that anticipates timely and untimely triggering events can compensate for that loss, and the business …
Can You Answer ‘What If?’
By GPS
One of the more overlooked, or misused corporate documents, is the Buy-Sell Agreement. This document is also commonly referred to as a Shareholders’ Agreement and has been mistaken for a Stock Purchase Agreement more than once.
To clarify, a Buy-Sell Agreement differs from a Stock Purchase Agreement in that the Stock Purchase Agreement documents a contemplated, actual, pending sale of stock. The Buy-Sell Agreement, in contrast, attempts to provide answers to the ‘what if ’ questions: What if my business partner dies? What if he wants to sell his stock to someone else? What if he retires? What if he …
Choose The Right Business Valuation Professional
By GPSCreate a valuable financial planning tool that captures your true worth.
According to surveys conducted by Accounting Today of the top 100 CPA firms, business valuation is one of the fastest-growing niche services.
The National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts (NACVA) has grown from its two original co-founders in 1991 to an average membership of 5,500, of which 127 are IRS valuators certified through NACVA. As this indicates, business valuation is growing increasingly in recognition and importance.
Some of the growing attention to business valuation can be attributed to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the 2002 law that governs public companies’ financial …
Business Valuation As The Quarterback
By GPS“A business valuation provides business owners the benefit of planning an exit strategy and mapping a course of action for both premeditated and untimely life events.”
On January 16, 1972, 81,023 people watched from the stands at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, as the Dallas Cowboys took their revenge on the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI. With a 24-3 victory, Dallas earned its first Super Bowl title and leading the charge was Roger Staubach, quarterback and the game’s Most Valuable Player. Without his completion of 12 of 19 passes for 119 yards and 2 touchdowns and his offensive …
Build A Team At Work
By GPSSo, how do you bring diverse personalities together to work as a team?
It is the business owner’s responsibility to bring a group of people together that work harmoniously and produce a profit. Sound easy? If it was, the overwhelming amount of business failures would be considered an exception rather than the norm.
So how do you bring diverse personalities together to work as a team? The team should produce a profit that not only accounts for risk recovery, but provides enough working capital to assure the long term success of the business enterprise.
The importance and ability to work …
Does Incorporation Protect My Assets?
By GPS
The most common reasons a court disregards an entity are undercapitalization, failure to maintain corporate formalities or failure to treat the corporation as separate from the shareholders.
One of the largest motivating factors for business owners to incorporate their business is preventing their personal wealth from being exposed to potential litigation involving the business operations.
Essentially, a corporation is formed to build a legal barrier between the company and the shareholder’s personal wealth, such as their home, vehicles, personal checking and savings accounts, retirement accounts, educational funds and other investments. Because a corporation is a separate legal “being” created under …
Is Money Walking Out Your Door?
By GPSSometimes your marketing — be it advertising, direct response, Web site, public relations or even word of mouth — works harder and more effectively than your staff.
Assess your hiring, training and management practices along with your marketing efforts next time the response to your ‘can’t miss’ promotion turns from expectations of ‘deal’ to ‘no deal.’
That’s not to say there isn’t an issue with your marketing strategy and the accompanying tactics. There very well could be tangible problems.
However, human ineptitude and just plain laziness could be undermining your sales and customer service effectiveness — and it is unlikely …
