Posts by Ken DiPrima

“There ought to be a law against that!”

How often have we made that statement or heard others shout it out when someone does them wrong in a business transaction? Chances are pretty strong that there already is a law in place that was enacted to protect people and institutions from those same unfair or harmful actions. In the business world, these protective laws are more commonly referred to as ‘regulations’.

Nobody, however, likes to be regulated. Starting in infancy and extending through teen years and beyond, people tend to rebel against rules and regulations in deference to personal freedoms. …

We have all heard the complaint, “Competition from China is killing me” or “I can’t compete with the big box store purchasing power.”

For most business people, dealing with competition is part of their daily grind. It represents the constant battle for their customers’ dollars and patronage. Competition comes in many forms and shapes, and from a myriad of sources—sometimes from other companies selling products or services very similar to yours, other times from unexpected sources.

Most companies view their competition as another brand, product, or service. But smart leaders and organizations go broader. Competition is each and every challenge …

So shouted Howard Beale, the beleaguered TV anchor in the 1976 film Network, urging his TV audience to proclaim to the world their anger and dissatisfaction of current social conditions by yelling this phrase out from their windows to protest against all of the injustices cast upon them.

It was great drama. Beale’s dialogue before and after this outburst was both brilliant and prescient. It listed a litany of social and economic problems facing the country and it called for drastic changes. Grievances existed then and many of the same problems still exist today. It is this underlying anger …

“I know how to run my business. Why do I need you?”

After having run the business for some time, it is common for an owner to claim that they know everything about running their business, from the smallest detail to the overall structure. They’ve probably performed every task themselves at one time or another. If they can’t do something, more than likely an employee is doing it for them. Successful business owners stay focused on all of these aspects of the company and manage each of them in unison to produce the best results for the company. They’re typically …

“The Captain was sober today. He was unable to perform his duties as he rested fitfully under restraints in his cabin slipping into and out of consciousness…”

So wrote the rebellious first mate as he made the daily entry into the ship’s log. The ship’s captain who innocently had become incapacitated by illness was delirious with fever and unable to command the ship. The first mate who despised and begrudged the captain took truthful words in a manner that implied the exact opposite of the truth. He simply besmirched the captain’s character by accusing the him of being an habitual …

In sports, teamwork wins championships; stars win awards. Raw talent alone will not sustain a team to championship level. But a cohesive, harmonious, united team will. This is true in competitive sports and even more so in business. What championship teams and successful businesses each posess is an organization built on talented players, working as a single unit while executing a well designed plan. As in sports, every business, regardless of size, needs a plan of attack to achieve its goals.

Create a Culture of Teamwork Among the Employees

Building teamwork is an integral process of developing a business. Employers …

Over the past ten years, the business world has exploded with the creation of companies that utilize an incredibly wide array of innovative, world changing ideas. These companies soared to the top of market capitalization value faster than businesses in the United States had ever grown, and their growth is only just beginning.

They have redefined business models, business practices, as well as asset and personnel utilization. A veritable business and social revolution has occurred.

On-line retailers, like Amazon.com, have changed how America goes shopping. Anything and everything a person would want is now available on-line and offered by thousands …

In 2014 Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor, challenged the betting world by announcing his own bracket contest for the Annual March Madness; The NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament. He offered $1 Billion to anyone who correctly picked the winner of each of the tournament’s 63 games. Each year hundreds of thousands of people make their picks in brackets offered a variety of different places—from the office pools to the March Madness junkies, through major newspapers and sports channels. Mr. Buffet’s bracket challenge had an extremely large payoff, but only for perfection. There are winners in the rest of the pools, …