Last Day of Class

Hi all,

I just wanted to thank everyone for all of the great information that they posted on the blog this semester. I really enjoyed all of the articles, videos and websites that people found and suggested. I saved many of them so that I can refer to them in the future.

Best of luck to everyone and have a great summer!

~Angela

Protect your Invention or Product – Patents, Trademarks, and Copyright

This is a great article for small business owners on the important of protecting your product. It outlines the three different types of protection; patents, trademarks, and copyrights, tell you what each of them can do and how you get apply for one or each of them. There is also some information on overseas and international patents and trademarks.

~Angela

http://community2.business.gov/t5/Small-Business-Matters/Protect-your-Invention-or-Product-Patents-Trademarks-and/ba-p/2301;jsessionid=6D8C30D41C195E1149222EBA8CAE3AE5

Antinori: Keeping It All In The Family Family Has Run Wineries For 623 Years, With No Plans To Sell

Families, the poet Philip Larkin wrote, they mess you up. Only he used slightly stronger language. When it comes to family business, he was right on the money.

A recent survey found only 15 percent of family businesses survive past the second generation. If the whims of the market place don't get you, rivalry or old fashioned greed will.

Which makes the Antinori family of Italy all the more remarkable: as 60 Minutes correspondent Morley Safer first reported last fall, they've been in the same line of work for six centuries now.

The Antinoris make wine and the family story reads like a wine review - complex, stylish, sophisticated with a bouquet both elegant and earthy.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/10/10/60minutes/main4514254.shtml

Chapters 20-21 5 points

1. This article is from Edge Business Magazine. I talks about stragies for working with relatives in a family business.
http://edgebusinessmagazine.com/tag/family-business/


2. This article is written by Edward Hess, the founder of The Center For Entrepreneurship and Corporate Growth and the Values Based Leadership Institute. It's about keeping the family business in business.
http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/interests/family/success.html


3. This article is by Henry Posters from the American Society For Quality. It discusses the importance of ethics in business.
http://www.asqsandiego.org/articles/ethics1.htm


4. This is article is from Ezine Articles. It is about unethical behavior in the workplace.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Unethical-Behavior-In-The-Workplace&id=954264


5. This article is from Harvard Business School. It discusses how corporate social responsibility rating can predict corporate social performance.
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5542.html

Chapter 20-21 5 points

family businesses makes strong bonds and drives a businesses performance. investors also look at family business as being more stable and willing to fund them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwUvWQyR9Vc&feature=PlayList&p=7B75392492010106&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=26

Family members need to have meetings about there business and the family itself. having an outsider might be a good idea and will help in the next generation of the business.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dK9N5YvA98

Hiring a senior staff member from outside the business can help the business grow and provide a look on how to do things that hasnt been seen before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nh5CDcfX_cI

Ethical behavior is something that is needed at a business and needs to be enforced among a business.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-nz0kojLv8

this video goes over the business ethics and how to handle these issues.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDPsSyaZNIw

Family:Good or Bad for Business?

This first video is a clip on the infamous Adidas company. This business is a family founded and run company. The video goes on to explain how the family coming together really help their company to be successful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQaSKDZAVAs


The link below provides not only text but also a video. These two resources are in the perspective of Jack Connors telling of the importance of management succession and much more. He relates his opinions to his own personal experiences and talks of the values shared...

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/jan2009/ca20090130_544017.htm


Paul Puckridge explains what succesion management planning is and how to go about it. He goes on to talk about how by having a plan such as this will allow a person/business to be taken more seriously and be given a new level of opportunity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Txed8nYbc4I


Although very long, this video is very informative. Jeffrey Sachs, a professor at Columbia University, discusses the levels of ethical standards in business. The only downfall about this video is it does take him a bit to get to the information because it's basically a lecture he gave recored...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOlmr9hWnTk&feature=PlayList&p=14AFE0B8468ECAD8&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=4


The article is about a person by the name of Pamela Hawley who is a global social entrepreneur. Pamela wants to make a social impact through the Web based marketplaces. Pamela started an organization called UniversalGiving which is a non-profit organization which collects donations and sends it to the project of the donator's choice...

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/dec2008/ca20081224_387821.htm

Chapters 20 & 21 - Five Points of Interest

According to this article, family businesses have the traits to survive during these tough economic times. Since family businesses make up 80% of the worlds businesses, will they be the ones who can pull through in this recession?

http://www.pbn.com/detail/40521.html


Purchasing business insurance can be a confusing and costly experience for a business owner if they do not have the right information. This article does a great job of breaking down the different types of insurance a company may need and tells you what and when you need them.

http://businessinsure.about.com/od/insuringyourbusiness/tp/listtypesins.htm


Business Ethics magazine is a web based magazine that provides readers and business owners information and updates about business and ethics. One section I really liked was their ranking of the 100 Most Corporate Citizens which is a listing of companies and corporations that they deemed to be ethically and socially responsible.

http://www.business-ethics.com/


Many businesses and companies have started to cut back on their Social Corporate Responsibility because of the downturn in the economy, but according to this video that is a poor decision.

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=businesses%20and%20social%20responsibilty&rls=com.microsoft:*&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv#q=businesses+and+social+responsibilty&rls=com.microsoft:*&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wv&start=20


Sexual Harassment is something that is still thriving in workplaces and companies all across the nation and the world. This website provides support to victims of sexual harassment in the workplace. It gives good information on what sexual harassment is, statistics about sexual harassment, liability information and tell the reader what to do if they have been sexually harassed.

http://www.sexualharassmentsupport.org/SHworkplace.html

~Angela

Five Links on Chapters 20 and 21

Here are five online articles and videos that I found interesting:

Family Business: Separate the Personal from the Professional
This video provides some insight into the importance of keeping a family business humming smoothly by keeping personal issues apart from the work of running the enterprise.

Complete Guide to Ethics Management: An Ethics Toolkit for Managers
I found this guide worthwhile, as it provides both a nice overview of business management ethics and some practical advice on how to implement an ethics component into the actual operation of the business.

Green Business Practices Make Good Business Sense
This .pdf link talks in-depth about a point regarding Green initiatives that I think is critical to keep in mind: Going Green can be beneficial for business, and heavy-handed government regulation may not be the best way to balance the need for sustainability with keeping the economy functioning soundly (particularly important at this point in time).

Exit Strategies for Your Business
This article provided some thoughtful advice on how to best 'exit' a business, including some excellent pros and cons related to whether or not to sell a business to family or to an outside party.

Strategic Risk Management
This interesting editoral makes the case for the important of implementing Strategic Risk Managment for businesses -- a relatively new approach to business planning and insurance coverage -- especially during these uncertain economic times.

Five Points of Interest!

For those of you that work in a family business, pick up the latest issue of “Family Business Magazine”.

http://www.familybusinessmagazine.com/

Family Business and money woes

http://www.bizjournals.com/extraedge/consultants/at_your_service/2009/05/04/column69.html?market=portland

How important is an exit strategy for the entrepreneur.

http://www.entrepreneurship.org/Resources/Detail/Default.aspx?id=10672

A wonderful source with videos covering the different type of small business insurance.

http://www.myownbusiness.org/s5/

Business Weeks article on business ethics and AIG

http://www.businessweek.com/managing/content/mar2009/ca20090319_591214.htm

Successor for Warren Buffett?

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE54127T20090502
Investment behemoth Berkshire Hathaway is looking for a successor. But you may not need to apply, since they have several internal candidates in mind. With $25B in cash, acquistions (outright purchases) of $6.1B in 2008, plus many more billions invested into large companies, they want someone with a lot of experience and the likelihood of great success like Warren Buffett. The board has one clear CEO successor in mind, with 2 backups, plus several external candidates they would likely tap for managing investments. In every case, the candidate has not only an established track record for financial results, but has also proved his committment to Berkshire's principles. "They all wish to work for Berkshire for reasons that go beyond compensation" says the company's annual report.
Keith

5 Sites to Help You

1) Here is a list of some of the oldest family businesses still around. Also, there are some tips to continue a family business.
http://www.familybusinessmagazine.com/oldestcos.html
2) Current tips to write a Succession Plan
http://www.evancarmichael.com/Human-Resources/770/Succession-Planning--Whats-the-Latest.html
3) 150 Types of Insurance Policies for Your Business
http://www.ampminsure.org/all.html
4) Business Ethic Cartoons
http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/e/ethic.asp
5) Tips for a Business When Choosing a Charity
http://www.staples.com/sbd/content/article/a-b/businessdonations.html

A Lasting Green Economy

From the Philadelphia Inquirer, May 3, page D1, also in www.philly.com the article highlights the work of Leanne Krueger-Banesky as director of Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia. Targeting 4 key areas of policy, employer commitment, job training and funding, she has set forth a plan to take Philly to the top of the Green Cities list, creating a sustainable and measurable plan. The best thing about the plan is that it includes a clear effort to create jobs within the green sector, solving economic and environmental issues simultaneously.

Controlling insurance costs

Personally, I shop around to at least 4 companies and bundle all of my policies together. It proves to give a better rate and also I raise my deductibles. You can see big savings for higher deductibles . Every now and then say once a year pull out your deck pages and shop you coverage around. You just might find a cheaper rate. Its really easy, fax your deck pages and they do all the number crunching...

Grim number

70% of all first generation businesses fail to survive into the second generation.

Small business managers and ethics

what do you guys think are some ways to maintain high ethical standards in your company??

More than 80% of all businesses are family owned

they generate 64% of the US gross domestic product! they account for 62% of employment and 65% of all wages..

Is working with family members harder?

Does anyone here work with family members and if so how do you like it??

Think Green...

These two Business Week articles reflect our responsibility to the environment.
http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/apr2009/pi20090422_843804.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/jul2008/bw2008073_004179.htm

Business Ethics...

Found these cool articles in Business Week talking about Business Ethics. Related well to chapter 21 in the textbook.
http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/dec2008/sb20081230_999118.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/jun2007/db20070622_221291.htm
http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/oct2007/bs20071025_096141.htm

Cleaning up Tyco's Mess

After former CEO Dennis Kozlowski had destroyed Tyco's corporate reputation by spending outrageous amounts for collectible art, birthday celebrations and extravagant personal items, all for personal benefit, new CEO Ed Breen brought in Eric Pillmore into a newly created position of Sr. VP of Corporate Ethics. Doylestown resident Pillmore was charged with the enormous task of elevating Tyco's name from the outhouse of corporate ethics all the way to the penthouse. As noted in Ethisphere at http://wp.corpedia.com/eric-pillmores/, Pillmore "managed a model corporate-culture turnaround from one of the most iconic examples of corporate malfeasance into a strong role model in the business ethics world." Pillmore's triumph has been noted in such publications as Harvard Business Review and many others; he now consults with Deloite and Touche, speaking and consulting worldwide on ethics in business. Kozlowski is now prisoner 05A4820 in the NY prison system, serving up to 8-25 years for misappropriating more than $400 million, including his infamous purchase of $6,000 shower curtain. He earns $1/day for mopping floors and serving food in the prison cafeteria.

Info on ESOP's

http://www.nceo.org/library/esops.html

This link to the National Center for Employee Ownership contains some good info about ESOP's, how and why they're used. Did you know that over 11,000 US corporations use ESOP's in some form, usually to arrange for departing owners and/or to reward employees? It also includes links to much more detailed on-line articles, books, and so forth.

More info on Kongo Gumi

I was intrigued to read about the 40-generation (!!!) survival of Kongo Gumi construction of Japan. Found an article at http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/apr2007/sb20070416_589621.htm?campaign_id=rss_topEmailedStories which goes into more detail on their success and ultimate failure. The 40th CEO was recently interviewd, where he cited the company's flexibility in selecting leaders as a key factor in its longevity. Rather than simply picking the eldest son (the default method), the firm chose one who best exhibited the required characteristics for the job. Furthermore, it wasn't always a son. The 38th Kongo to lead the company was Masakazu's grandmother. That was quite a step for tradition-steeped Asian company!!
Keith

The Top Ten Leadership Qualities

http://www.hrworld.com/features/top-10-leadership-qualities-031908/

I found that this article really simplifies the qualities that make a good leader. As you read through you will realize that all of the traits mentioned make for a good human being also.

Heather

Safety meeting and safety committees

http://www.lni.wa.gov/wisha/rules/corerules/HTML/296-800-130.htm
Here are some ideas for establishing safety meetings and committees and some of the items that should be included.
Some of the tasks of a safey committee include reviewing accident reports, investigating accidents, identifying and correcting hazards, and reviewing workplace accident and illness policies.

Risk Management Through Disaster Planning

http://www.lama-online.org/chris.html
When I worked in Health Care, disaster planning was a huge part of our risk management and also a key element in our licensure process. I like this article because it gives a good overview of the plans a business should make and I think our book glossed over such planning (the safety issues were covered in three paragraphs) and focused more on insurance.

Family Succession Planning

http://www.family-business-experts.com/family-succession-plan.html
This article points out the importance of a family succession plan that includes the goals of the family members who are involved in the business. It talks about defining whether the company is a family- first business or a business-first family- a decision that should guide the family in forming the plan.
One thing that I thought was especially important was making the plan before the family leader dies. Some family leaders don't share plans, instead surprising the other family members at the reading of the will.

A Socially Responisble Business

http://www.tomsofmaine.com/business-practices/values-beliefs.aspx
Visit this web page and learn about the socially responsible practices of "Toms of Maine". This company includes much of what is outlined in our text. Toms of Maine has a mission statement called "Reason for Being" and a "Stewardship Model". Both of these guide their practices, decisions, and operations. They set a standard for themselves that is clear, responsible, and ethical.

Corruption in business

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/10/30/8391852/index.htm?postversion=2006102309

I was impressed by the man featured in this article, Anwar Ibrahim. He stood up for his values event though it resulted being imprisoned for six years by corrupt leaders. He now teaches at Georgetown. I think the students there are lucky to have an inspiring leader that stuck to his morals and beliefs about accountability.