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Aristocracy Vs Meritocracy: Which one does a business choose

June 18, 2011 by
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Choosing the type of rule you want to have in your business can be a tough one. Do you want to have an aristocratic type of organizational structure in your organization? Are you ready to bestow responsibility only on a select group of people? And leave others who are capable but not in your so-called league of people?

Or are you ready for meritocratic type of leadership? Where the ship is steered by the most deserving? Which one sounds better?
Research has suggested that many people would want a meritocratic type of leadership. But they fear that things in the organization might change drastically. We have seen many family run companies, inducting their family members on the board. Later on they become senior members, before holding the reigns. Which means that aristocracy is very much alive as much as meritocracy.

Employees in certain companies would rather have the leadership maintain an aristocratic set-up. Getting into meritocracy might mean unhealthy competition within the organization for plum roles. But when the leadership is purely aristocratic employees feel that they know what to expect.

There are more theories and perceptions on the two kinds of leadership and governance in organizations. While aristocracy is seen as regressive sometimes, meritocracy is seen as accountable and aggressive. While aristocracy is seen as dependable, meritocracy is seen as performance-oriented and a non-friendly machinated approach to people.

New-age industry pundits feel that the future of organizational structure belongs to meritocracy. With rising expectations of people in terms of innovation, only the rainmakers will hold the reigns.

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Add Music Downloads to Your Cell Phone Plan

May 25, 2011 by
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You can think about your cell phone plan as if it were your investment portfolio. Diversity is definitely good—you use your phone for more than just talking. It’s also a good idea to include the things you don’t need today but might use in the future.

If your cell phone plan has limited coverage, hefty fees for exceeding your allotted minutes, and a restrictive data plan, you’re not getting a very good deal. If your investments came with these kinds of strings attached, you’d be dumping them for something better.

Shop around for cell phone plans the same way you shop around for stocks and other investments–you have a lot of options. For example, you can find plans that give you unlimited voice, text, data, and mobile music for a monthly flat fee. You might not think you’ll use all those services but once you have access to them, you’ll see how much they improve your quality of life.

Right now, your life consists of meetings, travel, market analysis, and more travel. You’ve equipped your phone to be compatible with your professional life. You have apps for checking the latest news, watching the market, and keeping tabs on trading overseas. What sometimes gets lost is the personal side of life. While it may be impractical to turn your phone off on a regular basis so you can unwind, you can incorporate some personal flavor into your daily routine. Listen to music while you check commodity prices or download a funny clip from the TV program you missed last night and watch it while you wait to board your flight.

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Investing in Precious Metals – Some Things you Should Know

May 15, 2011 by
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Whenever the economy hits a rough patch, spokespeople hawking the opportunity to invest in precious metals like silver, gold and platinum come out in full force. The message put across is that investing in precious metals is a surefire way to make money quickly and easily, with little to no risk involved. And while the prices of gold, silver and other precious metals may continue to skyrocket, that doesn’t mean that investing in precious metals is right for everyone.

Like with any other type of investing, it’s important to research and become familiar with the market prior to making that first investment; otherwise you run the risk of being taken advantage of or not getting the most out of your investment.

Here are just a few things you should know prior to investing in gold, silver and other precious metals:

In it for the Long Haul

When investing in gold and precious metals, your best bet is to focus on long-term growth. If you’re looking for a get rich quick scheme, you should probably look elsewhere. Keep in mind that short-term gains are not guaranteed, and even when they seem impressive, they pale in comparison to long-term gains.

Diversity Rules

Like with any other form of investing, diversity is key. The number one rule of investing is to maintain a diverse portfolio and not put all of your proverbial eggs in the same basket. This rule applies to precious metal investment as well.

Don’t buy the Hype

Remember that pitchmen selling you on the idea of investing in gold are paid to do so; exaggerations and half-truths are not uncommon, so buyer beware.

 

 

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Group Leaders in the Business World

March 28, 2011 by

Business owners need to be able to properly lead their business team to success through their example and verbal cues. It is not enough in the business world to be able to lead by your own example alone. You could have the best character in the world and still fall flat on your face when it comes to running a business team. You need to be as audible as possible so your team knows what to do at every turn in your plan.

One of the biggest problems that leaders face is having utter and incomplete lack of faith for their team. A leader should actually let his team do what they are paid to do. A team leader has a great understanding of what needs to be done in order to achieve the goals necessary to complete a project. A leader has to be able to give clear instructions to his/her team so they can work effectively on it as well. If the leader just shuts up and tries to do everything themselves the project will fail. An effective team leader needs to be able to use all the team member’s skills to accomplish their goals. A group is still better than one mad man’s way of getting something done.

The team leader could be the best employee any business has ever had, but it will mean nothing if there is no communication. The leader cannot spell everything out for the team. If he/she does gives too much instruction then it will take too long to produce results. The leader needs to give instructions and tell the team what he expects and the time he expects it by and have faith a little faith. A very good leader will see any short comings before they happen and prepare for them before they become a major problem.

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The Importance of Ideas in the Work Environment

March 24, 2011 by

Not all great ideas come from the people that are in charge or get paid to come up with great ideas. Sometimes it’s the people who work underneath everyone that can identify how the company can run more effectively. It is up to responsive business owners to understand the wisdom in the words of their employees and start implementing their ideas. If you are using another person’s ideas and there is any kind of profit gained from it they should get the credit. If you were the one that put the idea into motion then you should get credit for that.

If an employee comes up with something great it may have just been one good idea out of a thousand bad ideas. If more good ideas come from the employee then you should start to think about promoting him to a position where they can put their thoughts into action. Having ideas go through another person all the time is not very business savvy and it could actually hinder the company from doing something good.

The employee that is coming up with a bunch of great ideas deserves to be in a position where they get to call some shots. Great ideas have a place in business and they send people to the top. Give people the credit that they deserve, because it could bite you in the butt if you don’t. Make the employee feel like they are needed in the company so they don’t run off and big money with a competitor. The employee should pay their dues and receive some special care for being a great associate to the business. Everyone should be treated equally, but great ideas should be treated with the utmost care.

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Be Unique with an Internet Business

March 20, 2011 by

It is easier to run a business online now than it is to run it from an offline store front, it makes more sense to use the internet now to open a business. You don’t have to pay for building expects when you use the internet as your building. You don’t have to pay for things like electricity and water or rent and all these things can be cut down to save more profit for your business to grow. The more money you can put into business growth the more likely that you internet business will take off and do well.

If you are going to spend money on your internet business to make it grow then you should spend it on advertising. The hardest part about running an internet business is getting your name out there so people will actually go to your website to use it. The more money you put into advertising the more people will see your website and visit it. The more people that visit your website the more likely it is for someone to buy a product from there. Eventually the money spent on advertising will come back to you through profits from added sales.

Store fronts are most effective if they are used with a great internet marketing campaign. You get people that walk by your store as well as people browsing the internet for your services. You get the best of both worlds if you know what you are doing. The internet is filled with businesses already and there are already literally millions of store fronts in America. You need to offer something different and unique in order to stand out from the rest of the crowd.

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How to Effectively Analyze Your Business Expenses

March 16, 2011 by

Unfortunately, most small businesses that start up never see it past their first few years. In fact, most don’t even survive the first several months. However, there are ways to get around that high failure rate – like cutting back on unnecessary costs. Here are a few tips that will help you effectively analyze your business expenses.

  1. Make a detailed report of your spending habits. This is one of the first things that you should do if you suspect you are going well over the amount you should on your business expenses. Actually, it should also be implemented as a routine inspection at least twice per year.
  2. Take a look at all of the services you are hiring people for. The chance is pretty high that there are a lot of services that you could accomplish on your own with a little bit more effort and better time management skills. Don’t pay other people for what you can do yourself in the beginning.
  3. Get rid of products and services that barely break even. There is no point in keeping products, services or marketing strategies that just aren’t producing any results for your business – use your money wisely for something that can help you grow your business!

The most important thing about analyzing your business expenses is that you actually take action. You can crunch numbers and look into ineffective advertising methods all day – but you will never get anywhere if you don’t actually do something about the negative results that you have on paper.

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The Qualities That Your Employees Need to Have

March 9, 2011 by

Unfortunately, a good employee can be very difficult to find. The work ethic of today’s youth has declined drastically, and most people would rather do as little work as possible for the most pay. Here are a few top notch qualities that you should expect your potential employees to posses.

  1. Hard working. A good employee should be willing to stick around until the job is finished – not just until the time clock runs out. Very few people know how to finish the projects that they start now, so if you have found an employee that works as hard as they can don’t let them go!
  2. Willing to learn. You shouldn’t expect your employees to know everything right off the bat – or even five years down the line. However, you should expect them to have a will to learn new methods and procedures without you forcing them to. On the same note, never create a work environment where your employees are afraid to ask questions.
  3. Very adaptable. The work environment changes constantly – that’s why your business is doing well. Your employees should be able to change with it without getting too caught up in the policy changes.

These are obviously not the only qualities that you want your employees to have – but it’s definitely a good start! You should also take the time to evaluate your present employees, if you have any, to see if they are really what you are looking for in the long run.

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The Types of Businesses That Always Fail

March 7, 2011 by

Some business plans are destined to fail right out of the box. Fortunately, the ones that follow common sense logic and plan things out ahead of time are the ones that with succeed. Here are a few types of business models that always fail every time – hopefully you won’t let yours become one of them.

  1. The ones with zero planning behind them. You can’t expect to have a winning business if you don’t plan it out first. Aside from that, you will never get a bank to agree to loan you the startup funds if you don’t carefully plan it out either!
  2. The ones that take on too many expenses at once. You have to gradually take on expenses a little bit at a time as your business grows. You will only be asking to fail if you try to afford everything at once.
  3. The ones that prematurely hire employees without the funds. These are on the same note as the above type. Most startup companies cannot afford to hire any workers in the beginning – that’s a fact. Don’t try to push your business into the role of something that it isn’t ready to become yet.

The most important thing to keep in mind while you are a new start up company is that it takes patience – lots and lots of it for that matter. There will be days where it doesn’t seem like it’s worth it anymore. If you can’t plan out your goals, actually achieve them and push through the days that you don’t want to work you’ll be okay!

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Your Responsibilities As An Employer

February 23, 2011 by

When you take the leap to hire several employees you are also taking on an increased load of responsibility. After all, you can’t just up and quit your business now that other people are relying on your success as well. Here are a few of the top responsibilities that you will have if you decide to become an employer.

  1. You have to make sure everyone gets paid on time. Pay roll is a really important thing – your employees depend on the pay check that you send out to feed their family and pay their bills. If you are late you will be completely throwing off their schedule and possibility throwing them into debt.
  2. You have to learn how to manage gossip in the workplace. If you own an offline business where your employees regularly meet you will have to learn how to handle gossip. It’s a natural thing that almost everyone partakes in – however, as an employer you will have to know how to keep it to a minimum. Gossip does not promote a healthy work environment.
  3. You will have to know when to fire someone. Firing someone can be a very tough thing, especially if you are not a very hard person emotionally.

There is no reason to become overly controlling as an employer. In fact, if you do the hiring correctly you won’t have to worry about your employees being able to follow your instructions at all. However, you will never be able to throw tasks at your employees and expect that they know what to do without any coaching – that just is not part of reality.

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