The Legacy Associates Article Library
You may reprint any of the following article(s) free of charge in your newsletter, magazine, or on your website, provided that the article is unedited, and that the copyright, author's bio, and contact information below appears with each article. Articles appearing on the web must provide a hyperlink to the author's web site.
Copyright 2007-2010 Terry H. Hill
Terry H. Hill is the founder and managing partner of Legacy Associates, Inc, a small business consulting and management support services firm. A veteran chief executive, Terry works directly with business owners of privately held companies on the issues and challenges that they face in each stage of their business life cycle. To find out how he can help you take your business to the next level, visit his site www.legacyai.com
How to Successfully Navigate Your Business through an Economic Downturn:
While economic downturns are
admittedly difficult, and are formidable obstacles to small businesses
that are trying to survive and grow, an economic downturn can open up
opportunities. A well-managed company can realize the opportunity to
gain market share by taking customers away from their competitors. (Read more)
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Additional Articles
20 Business-Building Practices:
There is a variety of ways to generate greater demand for your business. Whether you are starting a new business or jump starting an existing one, you need to identify at what stage of the business life-cycle your company is currently in. (Read more)
Making Your Working Capital Work:
In order to effectively manage working capital, it is prudent to measure your progress and control your processes. A good rule of thumb is- - - If you cannot measure it, you cannot control it. (Read more)
Keeping Your Bottom Line Strong:
Without a positive cash flow or a steady source of working capital to pay the rent, utilities, employees, repay debt, or expand your infrastructure, your company won’t be in business for long—much less positioned for growth. (Read more)
How do you Differentiate Yourself from Your Competitors?
Competition is a natural and integral part of doing business. How successful you become at competing depends on how you position your business relative to your competitors. (Read more)
How to Create a More Positive Cash Flow:
Positive cash flow does not happen by accident; it happens because a well-defined financial management technique called "cash management" is functioning. A good cash management system helps to efficiently and effectively manage the activities that produce cash. (Read more)
How to More Effectively Convert Your Inventory into Cash:
Slow-moving inventory adds to a slower cash flow and consequently creates greater carrying costs that must finance the inventory. The degree of success, in converting inventory into cash, is directly related to the how well the inventory cycle is monitored and controlled. (Read more)
How to More Effectively Convert Your Accounts Receivable into Cash:
To more effectively convert accounts receivable into cash it's essential that the credit and collection process be highly efficient in order for you to shorten the accounts receivable cycle time. The shorter the cycle time, the less time cash (capital) is tied up in the business process, and thus...(Read more)
Beyond your gut feel, just how feasible is your business idea? At times, "pulling the trigger" and launching a new business idea, based on a gut feeling, has proved to be successful. However, that is the exception, rather than the rule! Making decisions based on gut feelings alone is like playing Russian roulette. (Read more)
Don't Underestimate the Effects of Your Company Culture:
In order for your company to grow and prosper, a "company culture" must be created which clarifies your identity, your values, and your beliefs. A culture must also be created so that a company is able to not only attract quality people, but also – and even more importantly – to keep them. (Read more)
Strategic Planning is not only for Big Businesses:
Strategic planning is equally applicable and critical to small businesses. It is the process in which you develop a vision, set objectives, craft a strategy, implement and execute the strategy, and finally monitor and evaluate the desired outcome. (Read more)
Making the Transition from an Entrepreneurship to a Professionally Run Business:
If your business is to succeed, you need systems and processes that will stabilize your company and support future growth. This is why a well-planned transition strategy is so important. (Read more)
The Nuts and Bolts of Running Your Business:
Standardization of processes is a necessary part of the transition from a fledgling company to a professionally managed enterprise. As your business grows, standardization of processes and procedures is essential to future growth and success. (Read more)
12 Business Skills You Need to Master:
Success demands more than hard work, resilience, and expertise in your field. In order to succeed, you need to understand and to become proficient in a set of fundamental business skills. (Read more)
The Importance of Supplementing Your Skill Sets:
Unfortunately, for most entrepreneurs, the costs associated with hiring and employing a staff of individuals that possess the skills and experience that the entrepreneur lacks, can be high. However, there are a number of cost efficient means that you can use to supplement your lack of experience. (Read more)
Business Opportunities…how are you responding to those that come your way?
The need to examine and to determine whether or not a particular business opportunity and/or idea has any chance of success prior to financial commitment is critical. (Read more)
How Do You Measure the Risks and Rewards That Are Associated with Your Business?
It is important to determine how much risk you can withstand in a new venture or the expansion of an existing business. Before you even consider launching or expanding an existing business, you need to have strategies in place to offset potential losses or unforeseen challenges. (Read more)
Thinking Inside or Outside the Box...Where are you?
Interestingly enough, as a small business owner, "thinking outside the box" is precisely the behavior that inspired you to set off on the entrepreneurial path in the first place. The tough challenge is sustaining your original visionary mindset. (Read more)
The Rules of the Game of Business:
In many ways, the rules of the game of business are similar to the once popular quiz show of the 50's, the $64,000 Question. The rules are simple, in that... (Read more)
How do You Sustain and Grow Your Customer Relationships?
The most important thing in sales and marketing is to attract and retain your most profitable business customers. In order to accomplish this feat... (Read more)
What is Your Banker's Involvement?
An important stakeholder of any business is the bank. Banks are arguably the leading source of capital for entrepreneurs. (Read more)
What is Your SWOT?
An effective tool that assesses and identifies opportunities and risks is a SWOT analysis. A SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved in a business venture or project. (Read more)
The Secret to Success in Business Planning...plan your work and work your plan:
Running your own business is a highly rewarding, but often a risky endeavor. As with anything else, increasing your chances of success begins with preparation. (Read more)
The Importance of Seeking Business Advice:
Aligning yourself with a trusted business advisor is one of the most valuable pieces of advice that anyone can give you. Entrepreneurs are by nature mavericks—--daring, inspired, “idea-people" with the grit to overcome extraordinary obstacles. (Read more)
The General Business Advisor... A General Practitioner for Business:
There are many types of business advisors---financial, legal, insurance, special projects, etc. ---who can offer expertise in solving specific problems that inevitably face every business owner or budding entrepreneur. (Read more)
Entrepreneurship...a Leap of Faith:
Starting your own business is an undertaking that requires more than vision, inspiration, sweat equity, money and determination. It is a leap of faith that demands that you let go of everything that is safe, comfortable, and proven. It is getting “outside the box” in the biggest way possible. (Read more)
Your Action Plan...and how to execute it:
Creating a strategic business plan is a great first step. However, if your business plan gathers dust on a shelf, its value is lost. This is where the action plan comes in. An action plan can help you stay organized, coordinate your activities, and keep your projects on schedule. (Read more)
Business...It's About People: Conducting business is by nature interdependent. It is the result of multiple interactions between multiple stakeholders every day. A stakeholder is a person or a group with a vested interest in the success of your organization and your products and services. (Read more)
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Click here to continue and learn about Terry Hill's book,
How to Jump Start Your Business.