Archive for December, 2009
Getting On Board
Have you ever wondered how you can effectively tap into advisory boards? After all, they are powerful sources of business, networks and more importantly, practical strategic and operational advice.
That’s why for BusinessCast #135 – Getting On Board – Robert and I sit down with a dynamic entrepreneur who has sat on several advisory boards as well as been a recipient of advisory boards’ important insights.
Our guest, Greig Clark is founder of the nationally successful company, College Pro Painters. Greig answers questions from two key perspectives: (i) from the board member perspective; and (ii) from the perspective of an entrepreneur seeking advice and support.
Greg shares his rare experiences by addressing several critical questions head-on, including:
- What benefits can you expect from working with an advisory board?
- What criteria can you use when choosing advisory board members?
- When have you outgrown your advisory board?
- What benefits can you achieve by being an advisory board member?
- What challenges will you face as an advisory board member?
Listen to BusinessCast #135 – Getting On Board and you’ll know how to get the most from your current and future advisory boards.
Q&A — Part 2
Over the last few weeks Robert and I have been collecting and consolidating the hundreds of questions that get sent to us each week via email, phone, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook etc.
But, rather than answer all the questions ourselves, for BusinessCast episode #134, we brought in two of the leading trainers of Canada’s growth companies — Andrew Patricio and Roger Pierce — the founders of BizLaunch. Together, the four of us answer questions spanning Marketing, Sales, Human Resources, Finance, Operations and Technology.
Listen to BusinessCast episode #134 and chances are we’ll be answering questions that you frequently face. Also, listen to our recent episode Q&A — Part 1 where we posed a host of other commonly asked questions to our very special guest, Peter Thomas, the founder of Century 21 Realtors.
Be Prepared: Continuity Planning
When was the last time you and your team planned for an emergency? If you’re like most entrepreneurs, your answer is “We’re far too busy to plan…” or “We’ve already taken precautions to prevent emergencies…” or “We aren’t at risk…”.
Well, the truth of the matter is that all you have to do is open up a newspaper to find instances of business leaders just like you who have suffered great personal and professional losses from not having a current, relevant and flexible continuity plan (i.e. business disaster plan).
That’s why in BusinessCast episode #133 — Be Prepared: Continuity Planning — we reached out to get the most current insights about how and when leaders in growth companies should plan for emergencies. Our guest is American Express’ VP and General Manager, Howard Grosfield. Howard shares with us the results from American Express’ recent cross-Canada research of growing companies’ current state of continuity planning.
Listen to BusinessCast episode #133 and you’ll understand how your emergency planning stacks up against your competitors. At the same time, you will find practical tips for helping you determine how and when to cost-effectively develop a relevant continuity plan for your company.