Business Management - Setting Goals

Business Management - Setting Goals

Good business management is the key to success and good management starts with setting goals. Set goals for yourself for the accomplishment of the many tasks necessary in starting and managing your business successfully. Be specific. Write down the goals in measurable terms of performance. Break major goals down into sub-goals, showing what you expect to achieve in the next two to three months, the next six months, the next year, and the next five years. Beside each goal and sub-goal place a specific date showing when it is to be achieved. Plan the action you must take to attain the goals. While the effort required to reach each sub-goal should be great enough to challenge you, it should not be so great or unreasonable as to discourage you. Do not plan to reach too many goals all at one time. Establish priorities. Plan in advance how to measure results so you can know exactly how well you are doing. This is what is meant by "measurable" goals. If you can't keep score as you go along you are likely to lose motivation. Re-work your plan of action to allow for obstacles which may stand in your way. Try to foresee obstacles and plan ways to avert or minimize them.

Business Management - Selling

Business Management - Selling

Whether you operate a factory, wholesale outlet, retail store, service shop, or are a contractor, you will have to sell. No matter how good your product is, no matter what consumers think of it, you must sell to survive. Direct selling methods are through personal sales efforts, advertising and, for many businesses, display - including the packaging and styling of the product itself - in windows, in the establishment, or both. Establishing a good reputation with the general public through courtesy and special services is an indirect method of selling. While the latter should never be neglected, this brief discussion will be confined to direct selling methods. To establish your business on a firm footing requires a great deal of aggressive personal selling. You may have established competition to overcome. Or, if your idea is new with little or no competition, you have the extra problem of convincing people of the value of the new idea. Personal selling work is almost always necessary to accomplish this. If you are not a good salesperson, seek an employee or associate who is. A second way to build sales is by advertising. This may be done through newspapers, shopping papers, the yellow pages section of the telephone directory, and other published periodicals; radio and television; handbills, and direct mail. The media you select, as well as the message and style of presentation, will depend upon the particular customers you wish to reach. Plan and prepare advertising carefully, or it will be ineffective. Most media will be able to describe the characteristics of their audience (readers, listeners, etc.). Since your initial planning described the characteristics of your potential customers, you want to match these characteristics with the media audience. If you are selling expensive jewelry, don't advertise in high school newspapers. If you repair bicycles, you probably should. Advertising can be very expensive. It is wise to place a limit upon an amount to spend, then stay within that limit. To help you in determining how much to spend, study the operating ratios of similar businesses. Media advertising salespeople will help you plan and even prepare advertisements for you. Be sure to tell them your budget limitations. A third method of stimulating sales is effective displays both in your place of business and outside it. If you have had no previous experience in display work, you will want to study the subject or turn the task over to someone else. Observe displays of other businesses and read books, trade magazines, and the literature supplied by equipment manufacturers. It may be wise to hire a display expert for your opening display and special events, or you may obtain the services of one on a part-time basis. Much depends on your type of business and what it requires. The proper amount and types of selling effort to use vary from business to business and from owner to owner. Some businesses prosper with low-key sales efforts. Others, like the used-car lots, thrive on aggressive, hoop-la promotions. In any event, the importance of effective selling cannot be over-emphasized. On the other hand, don't lose sight of your major objective - to make a profit. Anyone can produce a large sales volume selling dollar bills for ninety cents. But that won't last long. So keep control of your costs, and price your product carefully.

Business Management - Record Keeping

Business Management - Record Keeping

The keeping of adequate records cannot be stressed too much. Study after study shows that many failures can be attributed to inadequate records or the owner's failure to use what information was available to him. Without records, the businessperson cannot see in advance which way the business is going. Up-to-date records may forecast impending disaster, forewarning you to take steps to avoid it. While extra work is required to keep an adequate set of records, you will be more than repaid for the effort and expense. If you are not prepared to keep adequate records - or have someone keep them for you - you should not try to operate a small business. At a minimum, records are needed to substantiate: Your returns under tax laws, including income tax and social security laws; Your request for credit from equipment manufacturers or a loan from a bank; Your claims about the business, should you wish to sell it. But most important, you need them to run your business successfully and to increase your profits. With an adequate. yet simple, bookkeeping system you can answer such questions as: How much business am I doing? What are my expenses? Which appear to be too high? What is my gross profit margin? My net profit? How much am I collecting on my charge business? What is the condition of my working capital? How much cash do I have on hand? How much in the bank? How much do I owe my suppliers? What is my net worth? That is, what is the value of my ownership of the business? What are the trends in my receipts, expenses, profits, and net worth? Is my financial position improving or growing worse? How do my assets compare with what I owe? What is the percentage of return on my investment? How many cents out of each dollar of sales are net profit? Answer these and other questions by preparing and studying balance sheets and profit-and-loss statements. To do this, it is important that you record information about transactions as they occur. Keep this data in a detailed and orderly fashion and you will be able to answer the above questions. You will also have the answers to such other vital questions about your business as: What products or services do my customers like best? Next best? Not at all? Do I carry the merchandise most often requested? Am I qualified to render the services they demand most? How many of my charge customers are slow payers? Shall I switch to cash only, or use a credit card charge plan? The kind of records and how many you need depends on your particular operation. A boy selling newspapers part time each day does not need inventory records. He buys and sells his entire stock each day. But shoe store or dress shop operators will soon find they cannot keep necessary inventory information in their heads. Below is a list of records, grouped according to their use. No business will need them all. You may need only a few. As a matter of fact, you should not maintain a record without answering these three questions: (1) How will this record be used? (2) How important is the information likely to be? (3) Is the information available elsewhere in an equally accessible form? The following list may call your attention to records you can use to great advantage: Inventory and Purchasing Records provide facts to help with buying and selling Inventory Control Record Item Perpetual Inventory Record Model Stock Plan Out-of-Stock Sheet Open-To-Buy Record Purchase Order File Open To Purchase Order File Supplier File Returned Goods File Price Change Book Accounts Payable Ledger Sales Records to help determine sales trends Individual Sales Transactions Summary of Daily Sales Sales Plan Sales Promotion Plan Cash Records to show what is happening to cash. Daily Cash Reconciliation Cash Receipts Journal Cash Disbursements Journal Bank Reconciliation Credit Records show who owes you money and whether they are paying on time. Charge Account Application Accounts Receivable Ledger Accounts Receivable Aging List Employee Records show legally required information and information helpful in the efficient management of personnel. Employee Earnings and Amounts Withheld Employees' Expense Allowances Employment Applications Record of Changes in Rate of Pay Record of Reasons for Termination of Employment Employee Benefits Record Job Descriptions Crucial Incidents Record Fixtures and Property Records list facts needed for taking depreciation allowances and for insurance coverage and claims. Equipment Record Insurance Register Bookkeeping Records, in addition to some of the above, are needed if you use a double-entry bookkeeping system. General Journal General Ledger For efficient business operation, use information from records to keep inventory stock in line with sales, to watch trends, and for tax purposes. Use records to plan. A well thought-out business plan as a guide will strengthen your chances for success. A record showing the data for your business plan is the budget. Work up a budget to help you determine just how much increase in profit is reasonably within your reach. The budget will answer such questions as: What sales will be needed to achieve my desired profit? What fixed expenses will be necessary to support these sales? What variable expenses will be incurred? A budget enables you to set a goal and determine what to do in order to reach it. Compare your budget periodically with actual operations figures. With effective records you can do this. Then, where discrepancies show up you can take corrective action before it is too late. The right decisions for the right corrective action will depend upon your knowledge of management techniques in buying, pricing, selling, selecting and training personnel, and handling other management problems. You probably are thinking you can hire a bookkeeper or an accountant to handle the record keeping for you. Yes, you can. But remember two very important facts: Provide the accountant with accurate input. If you buy something and don't record the amount in your business checkbook, the accountant can't enter it. If you sell something for cash and don't record it, the accountant won't know about it. The records the accountant prepares will be no better than the information you provide. Use the records to make decisions. If you went to a physician and he told you you were ill and needed certain medicine to get well, you would follow his advice. If you pay an accountant and he tells you your sales are down this year, don't hide your head in the sand and pretend the problem will go away. It won't.

Business Management - Pricing

Business Management - Pricing

Much of your success in business will depend on how you price your services. If your prices are too low, you will not cover expenses; too high and you will lose sales volume. In both cases, you will not make a profit. Before opening your business you must decide upon the general price level you expect to maintain. Will you cater to people buying in the high, medium, or low price range? Your choice of location, appearance of your establishment, quality of goods handled, and services to be offered will all depend on the customers you hope to attract, and so will your prices. After establishing this general price level, you are ready to price individual items. In general, the price of an item must cover the cost of the item, all other costs, plus a profit. Thus, you will have to markup the item by a certain amount to cover costs and earn a profit. In a business that sells few items, total costs can easily be allocated to each item and a markup quickly determined. With a variety of items, allocating costs and determining markup may require an accountant. In retail operations, goods are often marked up by 50 to 100 percent or more just to earn a 5% to 10% profit! Let us work through a markup example. Suppose your company sells one product, Product A. The supplier sells Product A to you for $5.00 each. You and your accountant determine the costs entailed in selling Product A are $4.00 per item, and you want a $1 per item profit. What is your markup? Well, the selling price is: $5 plus $4 plus $1 or $10; the markup therefore is $5. As a percentage, it is 100% ($5 markup = $5 cost of the item). So you have to markup Product A by 100% to make a 10% profit! Many small firms are interested in knowing what industry markup norms are for various products. Wholesalers, distributors, trade associations and business research companies publish a huge variety of such ratios and business statistics. They are useful as guidelines. Another ratio (in addition to the markup percentage) important to small firms is the Gross Margin Percentage (GMP). The GMP is similar to your markup percentage but whereas markup refers to the percent above the cost to you of each item that you must set the selling price in order to cover all other costs and earn profits, the GMP shows the relationship between sales revenues minus the cost of the item, which is your gross margin, and your sales revenues. What the GMP is telling you is that your markup bears a certain relationship to your sales revenues. The markup percentage and the GMP are essentially the same formula, with the markup referring to individual item pricing and GMP referring to the item prices times the number of items sold (volume). Perhaps an example will clarify the point. Your firm sells Product Z. It costs you $.70 each and you decide to sell it for $1 each to cover costs and profit. Your markup is 43%. Now let up say you sold 10,000 Product Z's last month thus producing $10,000 in revenues. Your cost to purchase Product Z was $7000; your gross margin was $3,000 (revenues minus cost of goods sold). This is also your gross markup for the month's volume. Your GMP would be 30% . Both of these percentages use the same basic numbers, differing only in division. Both are used to establish a pricing system. And both are published and can be used as guidelines for small firms starting out. Often managers determine what Gross Margin Percentage they will need to earn a profit and simply go to a published Markup Table to find the percentage markup that correlates with that margin requirement. While this discussion of pricing may appear, in some respects, to be directed only to the pricing of retail merchandise it can be applied to other types of businesses as well. For services the markup must cover selling and administrative costs in addition to the direct cost of performing a particular service. If you are manufacturing a product, the costs of direct labor, materials and supplies, parts purchased from other concerns, special tools and equipment, plant overhead, selling and administrative expenses must be carefully estimated. To compute a cost per unit requires an estimate of the number of units you plan to produce. Before your factory becomes too large it would be wise to consult an accountant about a cost accounting system. Not all items are marked up by the average markup. Luxury articles will take more, staples less. For instance, increased sales volume from a lower-than-average markup on a certain item - a "loss leader" - may bring a higher gross profit unless the price is lowered too much. Then the resulting increase in sales will not raise the total gross profit enough to compensate for the low price. Sometimes you may wish to sell a certain item or service at a lower markup in order to increase store traffic with the hope of increasing sales of regularly priced merchandise or generating a large number of new service contracts. Competitors' prices will also govern your prices. You cannot sell a product if your competitor is greatly underselling you. These and other reasons may cause you to vary your markup among items and services. There is no magic formula that will work on every product or every service all of the time. But you should keep in mind the overall average markup which you need to make a profit.

Business Management - Personnel Selection

Business Management - Personnel Selection

If your business will be large enough to require outside help, an important responsibility will be the selection and training of one or more employees. You may start out with family members or business partners to help you. But if the business grows - as you hope it will - the time will come when you must select and train personnel. Careful choice of personnel is essential. To select the right employees determine beforehand what you want each one to do. Then look for applicants to fill these particular needs. In a small business you will need flexible employees who can shift from task to task as required. Include this in the description of the jobs you wish to fill. At the same time, look ahead and plan your hiring to assure an organization of individuals capable of performing every essential function. In a retail store, a salesperson may also do stockkeeping or bookkeeping at the outset, but as the business grows you will need sales people, stockkeepers and bookkeepers. Once the job descriptions are written, line up applicants from whom to make a selection. Do not be swayed by customers who may suggest relatives. If the applicant does not succeed, you may lose a customer as well as an employee. Some sources of possible new employees are: Recommendations by friends, business acquaintances. Employment agencies. Placement bureaus of high schools, business schools, and colleges. Trade and industrial associations. Help-wanted ads in local newspapers. Your next task is to screen want ad responses and/or application forms sent by employment agencies. Some applicants will be eliminated sight unseen. For each of the others, the application form or letter will serve as a basis for the interview which should be conducted in private. Put the applicant at ease by describing your business in general and the job in particular. Once you have done this, encourage the applicant to talk. Selecting the right person is extremely important. Ask your questions carefully to find out everything about the applicant that is pertinent to the job. References are a must, and should be checked before making a final decision. Check through a personal visit or a phone call directly to the applicant's immediate former supervisor, if possible. Verify that the information given you is correct. Consider, with judgment, any negative comments you hear and what is not said. Checking references can bring to light significant information which may save you money and future inconvenience.

Business Management - Personnel

Business Management - Personnel

Training A well-selected employee is only a potential asset to your business. Whether or not he or she becomes a real asset depends upon your training. Remember: To allow sufficient time for training. Not to expect too much from the trainee in too short a time. To let the employee learn by performing under actual working conditions, with close supervision. To follow up on your training. Check the employee's performance after he or she has been at work for a time. Re-explain key points and short cuts; bring the employee up to date on new developments and encourage questions. Training is a continuous process which becomes constructive supervision. Supervision Supervision is the third essential of personnel control. Good supervision will reduce the cost of operating your business by cutting down on the number of employee errors. If errors are corrected early, employees will get more satisfaction from their jobs and perform better. Motivating Employees Small businesses sometimes face special problems in motivating employees. In a large company, a good employee can see an opportunity to advance into management. In a small company, you are the management. One thing you may wish to consider is to give good employees a small share of the profits, either through partownership or a profit-sharing plan. Someone who has a "share of the action" is going to be more concerned about helping to make a success of the business.

Secrets of Successful Small Business Management

Secrets of Successful Small Business Management

What are the secrets of successful management? Doing the basic things right! So here you have it, some basic stuff that will make or break your business. A business is an ongoing activity that doesn't run itself. As the manager you will have to set goals, determine how to reach those goals and make all the necessary decisions. You will have to purchase or make your product, price it, advertise it and sell it. You will have to keep records, and determine costs. You will have to control inventory, make the right buying decisions and keep costs down. You will have to hire, train and motivate employees now or as you grow. So in the next few articles we will highlight the necessary actions you will need to underttake to ensure your success. Business Management - Buying Skillful buying is an important essential of profitable operation. This is true whether you are a wholesaler or retailer of merchandise, a manufacturer or a service business operator. Some retailers say it is the most important single factor. Merchandise which is carefully purchased is easy to sell. Determining what to buy means finding out the type, kind, quality, brand, size, color, style -whatever applies to your particular inventory - which will sell the best. This requires close attention to salespeople, trade journals, catalogs, and especially the likes and dislikes of your regular customers. Analyze your sales records. Even the manufacturer should view the problem through the eyes of customers before deciding what materials, parts, and supplies to purchase. Know your regular customers, and make a good evaluation of the people you hope will become your customers. In what socioeconomic category are they? Are they homeowners or renters? Are they looking for price, style or quality? What is the predominant age category? The age of your customers can be a prime consideration in establishing a purchasing pattern. Young people buy more frequently than most older people. They need more, have fewer responsibilities, and spend more on themselves. They are more conscious of style trends whether in wearing apparel, cars or electronic equipment. If you decide to cater to the young trade because they seem dominate in your area, your buying pattern will be completely different than if the more conservative middle-aged customers appear to be in the majority. Study trade journals, newspaper advertisements, catalogs, window displays of businesses similar to yours. Ask advice of salespeople offering you merchandise, but buy sparingly from several suppliers rather than one, testing the water, so to speak, until you know what your best lines will be. Locating suitable merchandise sources is not easy. You may buy directly from manufacturers or producers, from wholesalers, distributors or jobbers. Select the suppliers who sell what you need and can deliver it when you need it. (Distributors and jobbers are used by most business people for quick fill-ins between factory shipments). You may spread purchases among many suppliers to gain more favorable prices and promotional material. Or you may concentrate your purchases among a small number of suppliers to simplify your credit problems. This will also help you become known as the seller of a certain brand or line of merchandise, and to maintain a fixed standard in your products, if you are buying materials for manufacturing purposes. When to buy is important if your business will have seasonal variations in sales volume. More stock will be needed prior to the seasonal upturn in sales volume. As sales decline, less merchandise is needed. This means purchases of goods for resale and materials for processing should vary accordingly. At the outset, how much to buy is speculative. The best policy is to be frugal until you have had enough experience to judge your needs. On the other hand, you cannot sell merchandise if you do not have it. To help solve buying problems, you should begin to keep stock control records at once. This will help you keep the stock in balance - neither too large nor too small - with a proper proportion and adequate assortment of products, sizes, colors, styles and qualities. Fundamentally, there are two types of stock control - control in dollars and control in physical units. Dollar controls show the amount of money invested in each merchandise category. Unit controls indicate the number of individual items when and from whom purchased by category. A good stock control system can help you determine what, from whom, when, and how much to buy.

Dishonest employees (Part 5)

Rules That Can Help Eliminate Employee Dishonesty

1. Prosecute employees who are caught stealing. Settling for restitution and an apology is inviting theft to continue.
2. Rotate security guards. Rotation discourages fraternizing with other employees who may turn out to be dishonest. Rotation also prevents monotony from reducing the alertness of guards.
3. Price items by machine or rubber stamp, not by handwriting.
4. Permit only authorized employees to set prices and mark merchandise.
5. In cases of returns and refunds, insist on a merchandise inspection and approval by someone other than the person who made the sale.
6. Pay special attention to cashiers when they are surrounded by clusters of people.
7. Be alert to the use of over ring slips to cover up shortages.
8. Make a dependable second check of incoming materials to rule out the possibility of collusive theft between drivers and receiving personnel. Do not allow a truck to approach the loading platform until it is ready to load or unload.
9. Do not allow drivers behind the receiving fence. Discourage drivers from taking goods or materials from the platform by the following devices: install heavy gauge wire fencing between bays, with the mesh too fine to provide a toehold; mount closed circuit television cameras overhead that will sweep the entire platform; and locate the receiving supervisor's desk or office to give him or her an unobstructed view of the entire platform.
10. At the loading platform, do not permit drivers to load their own trucks, especially by taking goods from stock.
11. Make sure that every lunchbox, toolbox, bag or package is inspected by a supervisor or guard as employees leave the plant.
12. Insist that all padlocks be snapped shut on hasps when not in use to prevent switching of locks.
13. Control keys to padlocks. Never leave the key hanging on a nail near the lock where a worker can borrow it and have a duplicate made while he or she is away from work.
14. Do not allow trash to accumulate in, or be picked up from, an area near storage sites of valuable materials or finished goods.
15. Supervise trash pickups and inspect disposal locations and rubbish trucks at irregular intervals for the presence of merchandise when you have the slightest reason to suspect collusion between employees and trash collectors.
16. Control receiving reports and shipping orders (preferably by sequential numbering) to prevent duplicate or fraudulent payment of invoices or padding or destruction of shipping orders.
17. Make sure that receiving reports are prepared immediately upon receipt of shipment. Delay in making out such reports can be an invitation to theft or, at best, result in record keeping errors.

Dishonest employees (Part 4)

Implement Audit Control Methods

Loss prevention controls and procedures by themselves are not enough to protect your assets. Controls and procedures must be audited from time to time or they will break down. No loss prevention control is stronger that its audit.

An effective auditing method is to omit deliberate errors. What will your people do if, for example, you see that more finished goods than the shipping order calls for reach the platform? Will the shipping clerk return the excess to stock? Will he or she try to divert it for personal use (perhaps in collusion with a truck driver)? Or will the clerk simply ship the order without ever knowing that the excess existed?

If the bookkeeper and the accounts receivable clerk are not dependable, alert and honest, disaster can result. Check them by withholding an invoice from each of them and observing their reaction. Will they miss the invoice? Will they realize that a missing invoice means lost revenue and call it to your attention?

Unannounced inspections are another excellent method of checking your preventive procedures. Such inspections are most effective during overtime periods or when the second or third shift is working. For example, one owner manager popped up on the shipping platform after the second shift left. He noticed a loaded truck parked at the platform and ordered it unloaded. The cartons in the rear were legitimate deliveries, but he found the front half of the truck crammed with stolen goods. The checker, who was hired to see that such stealing did not happen, had gone to sleep and let the accommodating driver load his own truck.

Keep Crooks off Balance

The employees who are the most successful at their second trade are the ones who test the system and are convinced that they can beat it. With every score, their confidence increases and along with it their danger to the company. The best way to stop such crooks is to keep them off balance -- keep them from developing the feeling that they can beat your system.

Here's an example of how one owner manager accomplished this. When inventory shrinkage became a major problem, he made a loss prevention survey. To help keep employees honest, he reduced the number of exits employees could use by half. He performed unscheduled locker inspections at the most unlikely times.

Employees were no longer allowed to take lunch boxes or bags of any kind to their work stations. Package inspection procedures were tightened. To date, this owner manager has caught no thieves. But by simply tightening controls and adding a number of surprise elements to his loss prevention maintenance system, he reduced his inventory loss drastically.

Don't Play Detective

Owner managers who suspect theft should not attempt to solve the crimes themselves. Even the best business owner may botch a criminal investigation because he or she is an amateur. When you suspect a theft, bring the police or a reliable firm of professional security consultants into the picture without delay. Where dishonest employees are bonded by insurance companies, ironclad evidence of theft must be uncovered before you can file a claim to recover your losses. Professional undercover investigation is among the most effective ways to secure such evidence.

Dishonest employees (Part 3)

Secure the Premises

Owner managers who are haphazard about physical security -- i.e., issuing keys, locking doors and changing locks -- are, in effect, inviting the dishonest employee into the plant or office after work. Intelligent key control and installation of time locks and alarms are ways of serving notice to crooked workers to play it straight.

The more doors a plant has, the more avenues of theft it offers. For example, one stock clerk parked his car at the receiving dock. He kept the trunk closed but unlocked. At 12:30, when the shipping receiving manager was at lunch, the stock clerk threw full cartons of shoes into the trunk and then slammed it locked. Elapsed time: 18 seconds.

A plant designed for maximum security will have a minimum number of active doors and a supervisor or guard, as warranted, stationed near each door. Moreover, a supervisor should be present when materials or finished goods are being received or shipped and when trash is being removed. As long as a door stays open, a responsible employee, supervisor or guard should be there.

Central station alarm systems should be used to protect a plant after hours. Their purpose is to record door openings and closing that can be investigated later if necessary. Time locks are also designed to record all openings.

Breakouts

A record of door openings can be important because the dishonest employee is often a specialist at breaking out, i.e., hiding inside and then leaving the plant after closing hours. If your plant is not protected against break out, you can be hurt badly, because this method of operation allows a thief to work essentially at his or her own speed.

After hours thieves bypass the alarm system that works beautifully against break ins. They can often leave by doors equipped with snap type locks, i.e., doors that do not require keys from the inside. Quickly and easily, they can pass goods outside and close the doors behind them, leaving no evidence.

A motion detector, electric eye or central station alarm will deter such thieves. You can also discourage breakouts with locks that need keys on both sides, provided that local or state fire regulations do not prohibit such locks. When goods, materials or money are missing and there is no evidence of forced entry, look for the inside thief.

Must have FREE business software

Free alternatives to expensive products
There are three programs that are critical to the smooth functioning of every business, large or small. And these 'must have's' can be your's for free (Macintosh and/or PC). There is also a fourth if you are into developing web pages and this one's free as well.

These are not what many of you may expect from free (often termed public domain) software. In fact the types of people who developed UNIX, one of the greatest operating systems in the world (free as well in many incarnations), are the same types of people who have developed the software I will recommend.

These programs are far more secure than anything you will get from the commercial alternatives. There are armies of dedicated people who ensure that no 'nasty' or vulnerable code creeps into these programs. You are guaranteed that these programs will do all they claim to do and do it very very well.

Web development
I used to use, for lack of a better alternative, Dreamweaver for web development. But is was very much overkill for what I wanted to do. Dreamweaver is, as far as I can tell, a very high level functional web development system for commercial developers or those responsible for large and/or lots of sites.

Given I was not a commercial web developer or responsible for a massive site I found that I used only a few of the capabilities of this wonderful piece of software. So I was paying for a wide range of functionality that I never needed - not a good commercial decision I would have thought. Well I now have an alternative that suits my needs right down to the ground.

Now I do all my web development - and there is quite a lot of it (see www.southwestcomputing/infobay/) using the first of these products - Nvu (pronounced N-view)

Download from - www.nvu.com

Office suite
I used to use Microsoft Office for all my word processing, presentation, spreadsheet and database needs - there was no viable alternative - especially not one that could, with ease, open and write Office combatible files. This need to deal with files from Office caused the biggest problems as nearly everyone I needed to send or receive files from used the Office suite. Well OpenOffice gave me a free and very powerful alternative to spending hundreds of dollars on buying and updating the Office suite on a regular basis.

Download from - www.openoffice.org

Web browser and e-mail client
Why would I suggest these two packages since in both Windows and the Mac these two products come free anyway?

The reason is that they are simply far superior in terms of security (in comparison the Windows alternatives) and functionality (to both Windows and Mac) and Firefox (the web browser) especially has a wide array of add-ons that increase that functionaily even further. The second program available from this site is Thunderbird the e-mail program.

Download from - www.mozilla.com

Types of business organizations

When organizing a new business, one of the most important decisions to be made is choosing the structure of a business. Factors influencing your decision about your business organization include:

• Legal restrictions
• Liabilities assumed
• Type of business operation
• Earnings distribution
• Capital needs
• Number of employees
• Tax advantages or disadvantages
• Length of business operation

The advantages and disadvantages of sole proprietorship, partnership and corporation are listed below.

Sole Proprietorship
This is the easiest and least costly way of starting a business. A sole proprietorship can be formed by finding a location and opening the door for business. There are likely to be fees to obtain business name
registration, a fictitious name certificate and other necessary licenses.

Lawyer's fees for starting the business will be less than the other business forms because less preparation of documents is required
and the owner has absolute authority over all business decisions.

Partnership
There are several types of partnerships. The two most common types are general and limited partnerships. A general partnership can be formed simply by an oral agreement between two or more persons, but a legal partnership agreement drawn up by a lawyer is highly recommended.

Legal fees for drawing up a partnership agreement are higher than those for a sole proprietorship, but may be lower than incorporating. A partnership agreement could be helpful in solving any disputes.

However, partners are responsible for the other partner's business actions, as well as their own.

A Partnership Agreement should include the following:

• Type of business.
• Amount of equity invested by each partner.
• Division of profit or loss.
• Partners compensation.
• Distribution of assets on dissolution.
• Duration of partnership.
• Provisions for changes or dissolving the partnership.
• Dispute settlement clause.
• Restrictions of authority and expenditures.
• Settlement in case of death or incapacitation.

Corporation/Company
A business may incorporate without a lawyer, but legal advice is highly recommended.

In the USA "C" Corporation is a legal entity made up of persons who have received a charter legally recognizing the corporation as a separate entity having its own rights, privileges and liabilities, apart from those of the individuals forming the corporation. It is the most complex form of business organization and is comprised of three groups of people: shareholders, directors and officers. The corporation can own
assets, borrow money and perform business functions without directly involving the owner(s) of the corporation. The corporation, therefore, is subject to more government regulation than proprietorships or partnerships.

Corporate earnings are subject to "double taxation" when the corporation is taxed and when passed through as stockholder dividends. However, corporations have the advantage of limited liability, but not total protection from lawsuits.

Subchapter S Corporation -- A special section of the Internal Revenue Code permits a corporation to be taxed as a partnership or sole proprietorship, with the profits taxed at the individual rather than the
corporate rate. To qualify as a Subchapter "S" corporation, a business must meet certain requirements.

For more information, contact the IRS and request IRS publication 589.

"LLCs" and "LLPs" -- The Limited Liability Company (LLC) is rapidly becoming a very popular business form. An LLC combines selected corporate and partnership characteristics while still maintaining status as a legal entity distinct from its owners. As a separate entity, it can acquire assets, incur liabilities and conduct business. As the name implies, however, it provides limited liability for the owners. LLC owners risk only their investment. Personal assets are not at risk.

The Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) is similar to the LLC with the exception that it is aimed at professional organizations.

Are you the entrepreneurial type?

Ask yourself - Is ENTREPRENEURSHIP for you?

There is no way to eliminate all the risks associated with starting a small business. However, you can improve your chances of success with good planning and preparation. A good starting place is to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses as the owner and manager of a small business. Carefully consider each of the following questions.

Are you a self-starter? It will be up to you - not someone else telling you - to develop projects, organize your time and follow through on details.

How well do you get along with different personalities? Business owners need to develop working relationships with a variety of people including customers, vendors, staff, bankers and professionals such as lawyers, accountants or consultants. Can you deal with a demanding client, an unreliable vendor or cranky staff person in the best interest of your business?

How good are you at making decisions? Small business owners are required to make decisions constantly, often quickly, under pressure, and independently.

Do you have the physical and emotional stamina to run a business? Business ownership can be challenging, fun and exciting. But it's also a lot of work. Can you face 12-hour work days six or seven days a week?

How well do you plan and organize? Research indicates that many business failures could have been avoided through better planning. Good organization - of financials, inventory, schedules, production -
can help avoid many pitfalls.

Is your drive strong enough to maintain your motivation? Running a business can wear you down. Some business owners feel burned out by having to carry all the responsibility on their shoulders. Strong motivation can make the business succeed and will help you survive slowdowns as well as periods of burnout.

How will the business affect your family? The first few years of business start-up can be hard on family life. The strain of an unsupportive spouse may be hard to balance against the demands of starting a business. There also may be financial difficulties until the business becomes profitable, which could take months or years. You may have to adjust to a lower standard of living or put family assets at risk.

It's not all bad news
It's true, there are a lot of reasons not to start your own business. But for the right person, the advantages of business ownership far outweigh the risks.

• You get to be your own boss.
• Hard work and long hours directly benefit you, rather than increasing profits for someone else.
• Earning and growth potential are far greater.
• A new venture can be exciting.
• Running a business can provide endless variety, challenge and opportunities to learn.

How to start a small business

Starting and managing a business takes motivation, desire and talent. It also takes research and planning.

Like a chess game, success in small business starts with decisive and correct opening moves. And, although initial mistakes are not fatal, it takes skill, discipline and hard work to regain the advantage.

To increase your chance for success, take the time up front to explore and evaluate your business and personal goals. Then use this information to build a comprehensive and well-thought-out business plan
that will help you reach these goals. The process of developing a business plan will help you think through some important issues that you
may not have considered yet. Your plan will become a valuable tool as you set out to raise money for your business. It should also provide milestones to gauge your success.

Getting Started
The first thing to do is to list your reasons for wanting to go into business.

Some of the most common reasons are:

• You want to be your own boss.
• You want financial independence.
• You want creative freedom.
• You want to fully use your skills and knowledge.

Next you need to determine what business is "right for you." Ask yourself these questions:

• What do I like to do with my time?
• What technical skills have I learned or developed?
• What do others say I am good at?
• How much time do I have to run a successful business?
• Do I have any hobbies or interests that are marketable?

Then you should identify the niche your business will fill. Conduct the necessary research to answer these questions:

• Is my idea practical and will it fill a need?
• What is my competition?
• What is my business advantage over existing firms?
• Can I deliver a better quality service?
• Can I create a demand for your business?

The final step before developing your plan is the pre-business checklist. You should answer these questions:

• What business am I interested in starting?
• What services or products will I sell? Where will I be located?
• What skills and experience do I bring to the business?
• What will be my legal structure? (see overview below)
• What will I name my business?
• What equipment or supplies will I need?
• What insurance coverage will be needed?
• What financing will I need?
• What are my resources?
• How will I compensate myself?

Your answers will help you create focused, well-researched business plan that should serve as a blueprint. It should detail how the business will be operated, managed and capitalized.

Dishonest employees (Part 2)

Observe New Employees

Lack of knowledge about the store's routine usually restricts new employees' stealing to what they can slip from the cash register or conceal on their persons. You can detect both by closely watching daily receipts and scrutinizing new employees until you are satisfied that you can trust them.

Establish a Positive Atmosphere

Another important step to eliminating employee dishonesty is to set a tone or atmosphere that encourages honesty in your store. Expect excellence from your employees, and live up to that standard yourself. People tend to copy individuals who set such standards and require that they be met. If an employee sees a supervisor in even a minor dishonest act, he or she might be encouraged in the same direction. When you set rules, be sure they apply to everyone.

Preserving the dignity of your employees is essential if you expect them to respect you and the store. Treat employees with courtesy and consideration. Show an interest in them as individuals. Then back up that interest -- to mention an example or two -- by keeping rest rooms and other areas clean and attractive and by providing fresh uniforms, if applicable. Respecting employees may not reform the hardcore thief but it will keep many others from straying.

Provide Incentives for Honest Employees

A third step in upgrading personnel is to enable employees to live up to your expectations. The following practices can help:

 Make certain each person is matched to his or her job. Setting unrealistic goals for employees is an invitation to them to cheat. If your goals are unrealistic, employees may think they must either cheat or admit failure and risk losing their jobs. Lying and cheating, even on a small scale, are just a step away from theft.

 Set reasonable rules and enforce them rigidly. Loosely administered rules are more harmful than no rules at all.

 Set clear lines of authority and responsibility. Each employee needs a yardstick by which to measure his or her progress and improve performance. To fill this basic need, spell out duties, preferably in writing. When employees do not know who does what, there will be error, waste and the kind of indifferent performance that breeds dishonesty.

 Establish a climate of accountability. Employees should know their jobs and feel trusted. But they should also realize that they are accountable for their actions. To some people, management indifference is a license to steal.

 Provide the necessary resources for success. As buyers, salespeople or stock clerks, nothing is more frustrating to employees than to see their goals blocked by circumstances beyond their control. To perform well, an employee needs the proper tools, the right information and guidance when it is required. Denying such support but still expecting employees to produce is a sure way to weaken morale.

 Be fair in rewarding performance. The top producing salesperson who receives the same treatment as the mediocre employee is apt to become resentful. Individuals who make a worthwhile contribution are entitled to, and expect, a fair reward. Honest recognition of merit by the owner manager encourages more honest effort on the part of the employee.

 Remove the temptation to steal. One organization of counter service restaurants is noted for its good employee relations. It treats people fairly and displays faith in their integrity and ability. But it also provides uniforms without pockets. Remove the opportunity to steal and half the battle is won. There is no substitute for rigid, well implemented preventive measures.

 Train employees to control stock shortages. Train employees in ways to eliminate stock shortage and shrinkage. One small retailer, for example, trains employees to record items, such as floor cleaner, that they take out of stock for use in the store. It is important to adopt a zero shortage attitude. Even if you feel that a reasonable write off due to theft is all right, keep it a secret and hammer away at shortage control, even when losses diminish.

 Remain alert. Never stop letting your people know that you are always aware and concerned. This point must be driven home again and again. And with every restatement of it -- whether by a security check, a change of locks, the testing of alarms, a systems audit or a notice on the bulletin board -- you can be assured that you are influencing that moment of decision when an employee is faced with the choice to steal or not to steal.

Dishonest employees (Part 1)

SAFEGUARDS AGAINST EMPLOYEE DISHONESTY

Loss by theft in retail establishments varies by the type of operation and the efficiency of management. Losses range, for example, from 1.3 percent of sales for a well managed department store to about 7 percent for a loosely controlled operation. According to one estimate, dishonest employees account for about two thirds of retail theft and shoplifting for the remaining third.

Even though you cannot eliminate stealing entirely, you can take steps to minimize it. The key lies in the proper mix of the right controls.

The best safeguard against employee theft is the worker whose integrity is beyond question. Too many retailers take integrity for granted. A store owner should take every precaution to ensure that the people hired are honest, and then, maintain the kind of store climate that will encourage them to stay honest.

Screen Applicants

Just like a book, a job applicant can't be judged by outward appearance alone. Appearance, experience and personality may all be in the applicant's favor, but he or she may still be a thief or other high security risk. Remember that the person you easily pick may just be looking for easy pickings.

In hiring, apply strict screening standards and, no matter how urgently you may need additional personnel, do not compromise those standards. Screen applicants through reference checks, credit checks, psychological tests, polygraph lie detector tests and personal character examinations. Be sure to adhere to the law in performing these checks.

Discrimination in Business - what to avoid

In almost every developed country of the world there are laws that govern discriminatory employment practises.

If you are to avoid any of the most common pitfalls can I suggest that you, in the first instance familiarise yourself with the following short list of personal attributes that may not be discriminated against in a prospective employee:

Gender,
Age,
Racial origins,
Marital status,
Pregnancy,
Spent conviction (ie a court conviction that has been served to the satisfaction of the legal system),
Family responsibility or status,
Religion,
Political beliefs and/or adherance
and disability.

Sexual or racial harassment and victimisation are also generally prohibited.

These laws apply almost universally in the recruitment, management and termination
of employees.