“What I am advocating for is the value of having a clear and intelligent plan, communicating it often and often, and, most importantly, mapping that plan to each team and each person in your organization.”
*More organizations need to think about doing this.
A VC: Feature Friday: Places People Go Next: “So a few weeks ago, I was stunned to be told by Foursquare that the ice cream shop I had just stepped into was the most popular place people go to right after the japanese restaurant I had just left. “
(Via.)
QUESTIONS
Training and development for employees might be one of the best investments a company or organization can make. People feel valued when they get training that will enable them to do and become more, in their job and in life. Even if the employee leaves in a few years, the investment could still payoff if the employee has a good feeling about the firm. In that case, they might find and refer a proper candidate to replace themselves after they depart.
Fine-Tuning the Perfect Employee – WSJ.com:
“Companies have long devoted resources to training and development, either internally or through partnerships with universities and community colleges.
But many companies cut back on programs or cancelled them altogether to save money during the downturn.
That appears to be changing: According to the American Society for Training and Development, U.S. employers spent 36% more on learning and development in 2010 than in 2009. Direct expenditures for learning, as a percentage of payroll, rose to 2.7% in 2010 from 2.3% in 2006.”
Build your own BRAND! Create your own customers. The kind that pick you over all other alternatives. Delight them to no end, they will share their delight with others because it makes them FEEL GOOD to share something special.
N&C: The text above was a comment I wrote to a Seth Godin post I sent to my Evernote account. His post can be found here.
Just noticed that CrunchBase added something of an info graphic to the site on what topics are getting a lot of activity. This is a nice addition to the site. It helps the user know more about what other users are exploring.
Waffle House Index Measures Hurricane Recovery – WSJ.com:
“In a recent academic paper, Panos Kouvelis, a business-school professor at Washington University in St. Louis, pegged Waffle House as one of the top four companies for disaster response, with Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Home Depot Inc. and Lowe’s Cos”
Impressive. Would have never guessed Waffle House in the top five, much less the top ten.
“Here’s the question they should be asking: What’s the most effective way to attract quality visitors to our trade show booth?”
Effectiveness is what really matters. Seek ways to get to the results one seeks.
Podcasts Worth Exploring
Notes:
These are some of best podcasts I listen too. There are more, but they are not focused on business, technology or marketing quite like these.
This Week in Venture Capital is a relatively recent addition. The three or four episodes I’ve listened to were outstanding. See links below.
Interviewee
The Quiznos sandwich chain has brought in restructuring advisers to help rework its finances, said people familiar with the matter, as the company struggles with a sales slump and a looming debt default.
There are risks to being a franchisee.
“… making local commercials for small businesses.”
Quote from a Wall Street Journal article.
There are people that are doing just that. What would keep you from doing the same? You could focus on the businesses that you really like. It could be two or three shots per video. Shot one, exterior of building. Shot 2, sweeping shot of interior. The third would be a still of a Google map with the location of the business. Suggested scene lengths of five seconds, twenty seconds and five seconds.
D.L. Damore 