It's hard to imagine, but once upon a time, “managerial best practices” were a foreign concept. Management in itself was not an area of focus and improvement. In 1982, Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson wrote The One Minute Manager, a short book that revolutionized the way people thought about the skills and effort needed to be a good manager.
Joe Schmidt, who earned his MBA from Marquette University, is VP of Operations at Midtown Crossing, as part of Mutual of Omaha, in Omaha, Nebraska. Joe teaches Managerial Accounting in the Midland MBA program.
Hi, Joe. To start, please tell us about your background.
As the old saying goes, “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” A strategic plan for your business or your team is critical to ensure your long-term success. A basic strategic plan can be created in a couple of concentrated afternoons or evenings, and can help keep you on the right course as you execute the daily tasks necessary to your business.
When creating a basic strategic plan you must consider, document, and share the following items with your team: (If you’re an individual entrepreneur, a strategic plan is still important)
For those of you unfamiliar with TED, the name of the organization is derived from the acronym “Technology, Entertainment, Design.” TED started way back in 1984 as a standalone conference. The conferences continued and, in 2000, TED was acquired by the non-profit Sapling Foundation–whose motto is “fostering the spread of great ideas.”
In a previous post, we looked at Stephen Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, a classic book showing the traits and practices that successful people are continually looking to improve. While it hasn't been around as long, the book, Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, has drawn just as many accolades as Covey's long-admired classic.
No one ever said that starting a business is easy. According to a recent article in Forbes, eight out of 10 small businesses will fail within the first 18 months. The author of that article, Eric Wagner, lays out his opinion on why the failure rate is so high.
Every day you’re faced with dozens of decisions—some big and some small. There’s no magic formula for making good decisions. Some people use a simple pros and cons checklist, while others try to weigh the best-and worst-case outcomes.
Jessica has been promoted since the publication of this post, and is now the Vice President of Development at Midland University.
Hi, Jessica. Tell us about your background.
I graduated from the University of Nebraska—Lincoln with a degree in business administration and have been in philanthropic roles most of my career. Most recently, I was Executive Director of the Fremont Area Community Foundation from 2010-2013, until I took a leap into the finance world with a job at First National Bank in Fremont.
Starting and running your own small business can be a daunting proposition. Many people are accustomed to the security a regular job and recurring paycheck can offer. But, more people than ever are choosing to work for themselves, either part-time or full-time.
Earlier this year, a little-known, long out-of-print book with the title Business Adventuresmade the news.
So, what exactly is noteworthy about this book, which originally carried the ungainly title Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street? The book was brought back into print in July 2014 through the efforts of Bill Gates and Warren Buffet.