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... x No Thanks Loading.. Drug-Use Awarness Increases Profitability In Small Firms 4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor This content has not been rated yet. DRUG-USE AWARNESS INCREASES PROFITABILITY IN SMALL FIRMS WORKING PARTNERS The Profit in Reassembling Human Assets Small businesses account for close to 50 percent of private-sector output in the United States and an estimated 39 percent of the Gross National Product (SBA Report to President, 1992) .& #160 The manufacturing segment's industrious work force, although frequently small in size, represents its most valuable and underdeveloped asset. The manufacturing industry draws its work force from one of the fastest-growing sectors of the population, the pool of 18-to 30-year-olds with a high school education. This group also exhibits the heaviest use of alcohol, cocaine, marijuana, and heroin (NIDA, 1991) . By joining or investing in support programs that help their workers prevent or overcome substance abuse problems, large and small manufacturers help themselves maintain a competitive edge in the dynamic world market.  Award-winning manufacturers recognized by INC. magazine as star performers are also leading the way in giving special attention to employees through worker support programs. This attention pays off by improving worker morale, and retaining the profit otherwise lost in nearly 1 million drug-related industrial accidents (Karol, 1991) .& #160 This finding supports the conclusions of a recent survey showing impact on job performance as the primary motivation for having a substance abuse policy. The Small Business Administration estimates that every dollar invested in an employee assistance program saves $16 in productivity by reducing health care costs (Moore, 1992) ...

... awareness, responsiveness, technology, and administrative efficiencies. Keeping prices low reduces competition. Raising prices invites competition. If the Postal Service had used its dominant position to lower costs and improve services, some of its competitors might never have appeared. As Einstein said, a problem can't be solved with the same thinking that created it. To compete in today's market, the Postal Service must innovate. In the vernacular of the bayou, don't let your alligator mouth overload your tadpole tail (see # 3 above) . Every organization (such as the Postal Service) can excel in some form or fashion — even if only by providing a good, bad example. In today's world, consumers are in charge and competition drives the marketplace. Consumers don't care about your problems (or those of any manufacturer/distributor, such as the Postal Service) . As Peter Drucker so eloquently states, the future will be driven by price-driven costing, not cost-driven pricing. In the past, an organization could add up its costs and then set a profit level to charge a given price. Manufacturers and distributors dominated this cost-driven pricing model, selling to consumers with limited sophistication and access to information. Today, the consumer rules (see # 7 above) . Sophisticated buyers with Internet access can shop from unlimited sources in a global economy. The result: a market based on price-driven costing, in which there's a price consumers will pay for every product or service and the manufacturer/distributor must offer if it wants to stay in business. In this environment, the consumer doesn't care if the price ...

... indicates you have only 10-30 seconds to gain someone's interest on the phone. This range depends on whether the call is to a home or a business. I don't think it's possible to cover these three items in less than half a minute. Do you? So with this time constraint, how do you go about planning a call that will generate interest? As Stephen Covey says in his book Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Begin with the end in mind. First, make a list of four or five services that your agency provides. Ideally, some of these should be unique. Try to be as specific as possible. Avoid subjective statements or generalizations such as provide the best service' or offer complete protection. For example, let's say your agency has expertise in designing safety programs for manufacturing companies. These programs help to reduce workplace injuries, which ultimately reduces Workers Compensation premium costs by lowering the premium modification factor. Next, for each service ask, What bad things are likely to happen to the prospect without my services? ' Referring to our example, the bad thing' would be increased workplace injuries and higher Workers Compensation premiums. When you've done this for your four or five services, the difficult part of your call preparation is done. But before you put this information into a phone script, there are two additional questions you must address. What market are you targeting with your call? For a consumer call, your target market could be single-family homeowners or residents in a particular neighborhood. For a business call, specify the industry or type of business, ( ...

... reapplied them to solve the puzzle. Although he could never do this the correct way, it was satisfying for him to show us his "accomplishment." &# 160 If you're familiar with the cube, you'll understand his frustration. If you've never seen or played with this toy, you'll never appreciate the challenge. So what does this game have to do with designing effective surveys? Nothing — or perhaps everything. &# 160 In the past, businesses served "mass markets." Although the individual members of these groups differed in age, economics, gender, and race there was no expectation for "tailor made" products. The only possible exception was for the wealthiest members of the "mass" — and even they had limited expectations for customization. &# 160 Although manufacturers would occasionally narrow the mass into market segments by age, economics, etc., this was just dividing the "herd" into smaller "pens." &# 160 Because of this there were only a few competitors, all of whom shared success and profits by selling similar products to the public. Consumers had limited access to information, most of which was controlled by or filtered through manufacturers, distributors, or providers. &# 160 Today, the game has changed. We've joined a global market that's the most competitive in history. The Internet has given every consumer convenient access to full information on any product or service, creating a new "sophisticated" consumer who can shop from an unlimited number of sources in a global economy. This is a significant power shift . & ...

... x No Thanks Loading.. This Is A Sloppy Industry — Which Creates Great Opportunities!4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor , Chris Burand This content has not been rated yet. Property/Casualty, and even Benefits, insurance, as practiced, is often sloppy. In many cases, quality is not a true concern. I know that everyone professes quality is critical, but quality is often not reality. I'm surprised that the sloppiness of our industry doesn't receive more attention. The good news: Sloppy industries are ripe for agencies that can deliver quality! Let's first establish the extent of the sloppiness. Insurers manufacture only paper and when claims occur, they manufacture checks and legal defense. Some sophisticated agencies manufacture loss control (risk management) The industry does not manufacture complex machines. In fact, even the forms used are usually standard, boilerplate commodities. Yet, there are insurance companies that can't print and mail, or even e-mail a policy before the effective date, even on renewals where nothing changes. These policies are not merely a day late, a week late, or sometimes even just a month late. I have personally received my business owners policy (BOP) renewal nine months late. That's a longer delay than a space shuttle launch. Keep in mind the complexity of a space shuttle. My BOP had one custom item: my name. That's sloppy. Agencies spend small fortunes checking insurance policies delivered by carriers and brokers for errors. They do this because the error rate is still too high. Years ago, after writing an article about carrier ...

... x No Thanks Loading.. Occupational Exposure To Formaldehyde 4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor This content has not been rated yet. INFORMATION DATE 19920216 DESCRIPTION USDOL Program Highlights-OSHA's Final Rule on Formaldehyde TOPIC Formaldehyde SUBJECT Occupational Exposure to Formaldehyde ABSTRACT Formaldehyde is one of the most common chemicals in use today. As a chemical building block, its use can be traced to consumer goods through a wide spectrum of manufacturing processes. The use of formaldehyde as a preservative in medical laboratories and as an embalming agent in mortuaries is generally known. Formaldehyde is primarily used in the manufacture of urea, phenol, and melamine resins and for a variety of special industrial chemicals. The downstream use of formaldehyde-based inputs is found throughout the U.S. economy. It contributes to the production of about 8 percent of the gross national product (GNP) of the United States. U.S. Department of Labor Program Highlights Fact Sheet No. OSHA 92-27 OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE TO FORMALDEHYDE Formaldehyde is one of the most common chemicals in use today. As a chemical building block, its use can be traced to consumer goods through a wide spectrum of manufacturing processes. The use of formaldehyde as a preservative in medical laboratories and as an embalming agent in mortuaries is generally known. Formaldehyde is primarily used in the manufacture of urea, phenol, and melamine resins and for a variety of special industrial chemicals. The downstream use of formaldehyde-based inputs is found throughout the U.S. economy. It contributes to the production of about 8 percent of the gross national product (GNP) of the United States. HEALTH EFFECTS Studies indicate that formaldehyde is a ...

... that any legal opinion rendered concerning their company is an opinion on which they can rely. Moreover, these companies frequently believe that if the legal advice given falls below the standard of care-that is, constitutes malpractice- that the company receiving bad advice can sue the lawyer. Many companies are surprised to learn that the legal advice that they paid for will not serve as a basis for a claim, even if the lawyer committed malpractice. To gain an appreciation of how unusual this situation may seem to many companies today, a brief review of how tort law has evolved may be helpful. Prior to the 20th century, virtually all American courts refused to impose liability for negligence unless the injured party had a contractual relationship or was in privity with the party who injured him. Thus, if a manufacturer of widgets' put his product into the stream of commerce, he was only responsible to those with whom he was in privity (those who purchased his product from him directly) . Gradually, the privity requirement was eroded. Early on in this evolution, manufacturers became liable to persons who bought their product from other parties who distributed the product through the chain of distribution. More recently, manufacturers have been held liable to persons who, although they did not buy the product in the stream of commerce, were injured by the product being used by someone who did purchase the product. While the privity requirement was being relaxed in the context of product liability, the courts also began to relax the privity requirement for certain services. Thus, accountants who were negligent in rendering an opinion that ...

... We become so involved in our own thoughts that nothing can penetrate our walls of self-absorption. Listening is an art, not a genetically programmed ability. To achieve it takes desire, commitment, and lots of practice. Listening isn't confined to the spoken word, either. I've often seen business owners send out questionnaires to assess the client's perception of their performance. As the returns come back, they fail to take the time to evaluate the fair to medium' responses. Instead, they obsess on the high grades, frantically trying to find splendid results to tie into a marketing campaign. Granted, a specific complaint may get attention, but not the so-so' grades that could indicate a larger problem. I know one business owner who took the art of NOT listening to new heights. A manufacturer conducted satisfaction surveys of its retailers' performance, and this owner got the surveys routed to him before the manufacturer. Beset by tremendously negative replies on the surveys, he had his office manager white-out the negative replies and replace them with compliments. The manufacturer eventually discovered the ruse and yanked the franchise. Had this owner listened to the customers and instituted policies to improve performance, he would still be in business. Just recently I experienced two separate instances of mistreatment by retail establishments. I wrote letters to the manager of each business, their corporate offices and, in one case, the licensor. In the case of the licensee (a cellular phone chain), I never got a response; they failed to listen' to my letter and have lost any future business from me. ...

... x No Thanks Loading.. Power Shift' – Niche Marketing In Today'S World 4/30/2013 by CompleteMarkets Editor , Michael Manes This content has not been rated yet. ‘POWER SHIFT' – NICHE MARKETING IN TODAY'S WORLD by Mike Manes This article by Mike Manes is the setup for an argument on niche marketing. Manes relies on a classic in literature to complete the argument. The closing poem describes today's world of business: A world that's seeing a Power Shift from providers and distributors of products and services to the consumer — the person or entity who pays for and uses these products and services. Yesterday's world was a "mass market." A few manufacturers (providers) and their distribution channels delivered what they wanted to the masses and the masses eagerly bought this stuff. Remember the "Big Three" automakers, the three networks (ABC/CBS/ NBC), and Time/Life/Look magazines? Consumers were held captive by whatever these folks wanted to sell us and the information they made available to us. Today, we have more than 500 cable channels, dozens of auto manufacturers with hundreds of models, and a specialty magazine for virtually every region of the country, specialty niche, or lifestyle: WWR, Fly Fishing, Quilting, Left-handed Diesel Mechanics, etc. More important, the Internet allows any consumer anywhere to access full information about any product or service they want to acquire. To convert this into the language of the insurance industry, yesterday's world of success meant keeping a customer in the dark. Tomorrow's success ...