Effective leaders encourage their employees’ creativity

August 1, 2024  |  Business, Markets

When we think of assets in an organization, our thoughts generally lean toward the accounting definitions. We have cash tied up in inventory and accounts receivable. We have cash tied up in equipment or other fixed assets. And we have cash tied up in, well, cash. These are all perfectly acceptable d…
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Dealing with difficult customers

June 1, 2024  |  Business, Markets

Every business at some point is forced to deal with difficult customers. Perhaps they are unhappy with the level of service, the product or a member of your team. Or maybe their expectations are just unrealistic. Understanding how to navigate challenging interactions, however, can turn a negative si…
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Succession planning for transitioning your family business

April 1, 2024  |  Business, Markets

I began working with business families in the late 1990s with RSM McGladrey in its family business consulting practice. I was working on my doctoral degree and hoped to gain experience working with leadership development in the “real” world. Then, as my journey continued, I worked with business …
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How to mitigate the online security risks of outsourcing

February 1, 2024  |  Business, Markets

What we now call “hacking” has been around almost as long as humans have existed. Today’s version focuses on technology, but the behavior takes many forms that even go back to the story of the Trojan horse. Hacking is simply the act of exploiting a weakness to gain access to something, whether…
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Develop a business culture of creativity

October 1, 2023  |  Business, Markets

I was recently speaking with one of my coaching clients and the subject of professional curiosity came up. Curiosity is a catalyst for creativity, problem-solving and continuous improvement. By creating a culture of curiosity, we can tap into the collective creativity of the people who work with us …
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The future landscape of the workforce

August 1, 2023  |  Business, Markets

Organizations need to be thinking about tomorrow and, more specifically, how the future of work, the workforce and the workplace will be dramatically different from what we know today. And more important, from what it has been in the past.
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Tips for keeping warehouses safe, organized and profitable

May 1, 2023  |  Business, Markets

Today’s warehouses are no longer just for storage. From being a showroom of products to providing a space for drying operations to housing all facets of inventory, today’s warehouses are multipurpose spaces that require well-defined organization and management to keep processes streamlined and e…
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Leadership and management: Both are necessary for success

April 1, 2023  |  Business, Markets

Leadership and management are closely related; however, despite often being spoken of in the same breath, they are certainly not synonymous. If we use those terms interchangeably, we tend to behave as if these roles are interchangeable and equivalent. Doing so means we miss critical components of ex…
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