Cover Story
Stirring the pots
Kitchen in the Market’s founders like to see what they can cook up When I tell Tracy Morgan and Molly Herrmann I’m intrigued by their unusual business, Kitchen in the Market, they chime in with a laugh, “Us, too!” The two business partners, who met through a mutual friend, three years ago started as a […] Continue reading →
Letter From the Editor
[big time]
I heard from Steve McFarland the other day, just about a year after I talked with him last. At that time he had sold the company he founded, Orbit Systems, to mindSHIFT Technologies, and detailed what he said he learned in the transaction process—equivalent to an MBA. 10 months later, mindSHIFT was in turn acquired […] Continue reading →
Focus
Experts tell how business owners can pull off a deal of their own
Patricia May walks with a bit of a swagger these days. That’s because her company in Lakeville, Tembua, which provides language translation services for businesses, acquired an Oregon-based firm earlier this year. All at once, she says, vendors, suppliers, customers and colleagues view Tembua as a company that’s arrived. “We’ve been saying things like, ‘When […] Continue reading →
Business Builders
Ways to move along your family business to generation next
“Junior” may be 40 years old but “Senior” remembers the dopey thing he did at age 14; he’s been working in the family business for years with little passion for taking it over. Meanwhile, “Junior’s” sister is holding down a responsible financial analyst position in a Fortune 500 company and wants to own a business […] Continue reading →
How to safeguard every company’s Intellectual property using trademarks
While large companies heavily invested in research and development or content creation are usually sophisticated with regard to their intellectual property policies, smaller companies may be bewildered by the different types of intellectual property and protection. Here’s a rundown. 1.5 million trademarks A trademark is any word, phrase, symbol or design, or combination thereof that […] Continue reading →
5 steps can make business operations more efficient
You’re on the phone with your biggest client, who is upset because the order was one week late, or the invoice contained errors, or the IT consultant never showed up. You apologize profusely, promise to rectify the problem and offer a full refund. The client seems mollified and the situation is somewhat under control. At […] Continue reading →
Look outside your industry to make changes within
A quick and informal cross-industry review can uncover best-practice ideas along with missteps to avoid. Here are a few tips on how to go about a best-practice discovery process, where to gather ideas and examples, what goals and outcomes you can expect to reveal, and what to do with the knowledge you gain. We all […] Continue reading →
