The Thriving Small Business

Are Your Employees Engaged, Biding Their Time or Planning Their Escape?

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I have a good friend who recently landed a new job.

She has been wanting to make a move for a while but it took some time for her to secure a job that supports her career objectives.

She is a good friend and I walked with her through the several stages of her past employment. Read the Full Article →

8 Steps to Implementing Successful Organizational Change

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Change is a word that generates uneasiness in most of us.

But most would agree that we can think of a time we had a good change in our lives.

A marriage, the birth of a baby, moving into a new home or a new job are examples of positive changes in our lives.  Read the Full Article →

10 Secrets to Creating a Culture That Fosters Engaged Employees

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Successful organizations understand the importance of developing employees who are engaged and share a common goal.

They recognize that engaged employees put their heart and soul into their job and have the energy and excitement to give more than is required of them.

However, when employees are not engaged, it can have a negative effect on the work environment and ultimately the customer experience. Read the Full Article →

How To Prepare Your Organization For An Unexpected Disaster

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We are in that time of year again when we experience lots of storms, tornadoes and inclement weather.

These seasons of natural disasters are reminders for us to be diligent and prepare our homes and businesses for the possibility of damage.

In addition, we need our organizations to be ready to respond in the event of an emergency or disaster. Read the Full Article →

5 Steps in Creating An Effective PR Strategy

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The ability to maintain a positive public image is critical to achieving corporate objectives.

Which is why every organization should have an interest in public relations.

What is public relations?

According to Wikipedia, the definition of public relations is “a field concerned with maintaining public image for high-profile people, commercial businesses and organizations, non-profit associations or programs”. Read the Full Article →

How Well Does Your Organization Recovery From a Bad Service Experience?

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We are all human and human beings make mistakes.

This is just part of the imperfect nature of living life here on earth.

Because of this, it is important for organizations to take precautionary steps to minimize human error in the workplace.

This concept is what led the quality movement and product manufacturers to embrace quality management as a business practice. Read the Full Article →

8 Traits To Look for in a Mentor

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We’ve all heard the term ‘mentor’ but we need to acknowledge the importance of mentoring for professional development.

Mentoring has been around for a long time, specifically in academic environments where teaching is a part of the business model.

So what is a mentor?

According to dictionary.com a mentor is “a wise and trusted counselor or teacher – an influential senior sponsor or supporter.”

A mentor is someone who understands the work environment and offers advice to employees coming up the ladder. Read the Full Article →

5 Warning Signs That Your Organization Is At Risk Of A Quality Disaster

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Service and product quality is what separates the successful from struggling businesses.

Consumers have raised the bar as far as what they expect in terms of service and product quality.

The tension organizations wrestle with is managing the cost of delivering high quality products and services with a profitable bottom line. Read the Full Article →

 7 Tips to Make The Employee Survey Process Successful

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Every business owner understands that customers pay the bills.

And, to keep those customers coming back they need to provide a great service experience.

However, many organizations don’t pay as much attention to those people who care for their customers – the employees.

Employees are often on the front-line and interact with customers either in person, on the phone or delivering the product or service. Read the Full Article →

6 Areas of HR That Every Organization Should Manage

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Let’s be real – managing people is not why an entrepreneur goes into business.

Small business owners often lack the interest or skill-set to manage their most valuable asset – their human resources.

This art of managing people is complex and a science of its own.

There are entire degree and certification programs to teach the experts how to deal with the often complex issues that come with managing a work force. Read the Full Article →