Here’s my gripe: Authors, consultants and others who use huge companies as examples for whatever point they are trying to make or sell. In the 1990s it was Microsoft. You’d hear, “This company is going to be the next Microsoft.” No it isn’t and it wasn’t. Now we hear the same things about Facebook, Google […]
Archive | January, 2017
Working With People
Three things right upfront: Most of my topics come from experiences. When I note a pattern, I tend to write about it. I try to limit the topics to business subjects and avoid personal stuff. We are all people and we work with people. And people have personal challenges that can’t help but affect their […]
Private Capital Markets
I recently attended a weekend event for business owners at Semiahmoo. I was one of the sponsors of the event and made a presentation on Private Capital Markets. Much of the academic support for the presentation came from ‘Private Capital Markets’ by Robert Slee. This book is the foremost piece of scholarship on the topic. […]
New Entity Choices: LLLPs and SPCs
Most of us are familiar with the various choices for the type of business entity. Traditionally there have been proprietorships, general partnerships, limited partnerships and corporations. About 25 years ago limited liability companies (LLCs) were added and they have been a very popular choice. In 2012, the Washington State legislature provided us with two new […]
The Top Five Financial Problems in Small Business
Everybody seems to like lists so here is my list of the Top Five Financial Problems I find in small businesses. These are issues I see repeatedly when I go into help a small business. The most common problem in small businesses, big businesses, non-profit organizations, everywhere, unequivocally, Number One with a bullet, is…. #1 […]
Some General Rules for Closely-Held Businesses
I don’t know about you but I’m tired of hearing “It depends” to almost any business question. Early in my career, when I would ask someone a tax question, I’d get an answer. Now the typical response I get to a tax question is, “I would approach it this way…” That’s not an answer! The […]